#heck maybe Chris is the one that gets in contact and is like can you please take me home

[ambernotember]

I still think the best way to move Grace and Judd over to 9-1-1 is to have Grace drive Chris back to LA and she falls in love with the place and Judd follows her

[cer-rata]

Fic WIP "Pretending to Breathe"

If he was going to be totally honest, Chris hadn’t been entirely sure he’d see the sky again. He’d tried not to dwell on it while he was in the zone, but now that he could see clouds again, he realized how much they really meant to him. Grass was nice, too. Nice to lay on, nice to run his fingers through. Just…nice.

He closed his eyes and focused on blocking out any sounds from outside of the park. He was out of practice, but was getting the hang of it again. It took a moment, but he managed to isolate just the stuff that was immediately relevant to him: The sparrows that were bouncing nearby, Brian’s (B+ was starting to lean into his Earth name) breathing, the sound of roots slowly pressing into the soil--stuff like that.

…Wait.

He turned to look at his friend who was laying in the grass next to him. He was pretending to be human, so he was brown instead of turquoise, his…wires? Tendrils…? Whatever the glowy cables on his head were called were disguised to look like dreadlocks. It was pretty convincing. Cute too that he made himself resemble Star Sapphire so obviously.

“...Brian, why are you breathing?”

“What.”

“You don’t normally breathe.”

“But I can! I have lungs! I always have lungs!”

“But you never use them.”

He sighed. “...Humans can subconsciously tell if I’m not breathing, so if my chest isn’t rising they get slightly unnerved and can’t figure out why. So when I’m pretending I try to make sure I’m breathing.”

Chris hummed. “Gotcha. Well. Uh. You’re good at it.”

“...Breathing?”

“Yep!”

“You’re dumb.”

“Everyone is dumb to you.”

“No, no I think it’s just you.”

Chris shoved him and he laughed. “Alright, I got a question for you, my little nerdy friend.”

“I’m only shorter than you because I haven’t felt like updating my form yet--”

“What do you want to be when you grow up?”

“God.”

Chris sat with that in horror for a moment before slowly turning his head to look at Brian.

Brian was already looking at him with a big dumb smile on his face. He giggled when they made eye contact and he saw the concern in Chris’ expression. “You’re so easy.”

Chris squinted at him and sat up. “You’re annoying.”

“I am. Funny, though.”

“Is that what you want to be? A comedian?”

“I dunno. I don’t have a set lifespan, so I don’t really see the need to decide on a single course of action. I have…quite a bit of time to do many things. I could just hang out with you for the rest of your life and I wouldn’t have made a dent in the eternity I’ll have if I don’t get myself blown up. Even then you’d have to blow me up really thoroughly.” He winced. “...If my brother was here he’d have made a joke out of that phrasing.”

“What, about wanting to be blown real thoroughly?”

Brian sighed. “I shouldn’t have prompted you…”

Chris snorted. “You better say something real nice at my funeral.”

“‘Christopher Kent was my best friend. A lot of messed up stuff happened to him. But the greatest injustice in his life was that he was not born the blond that his personality and cognition indicated he should have been.’”

Chris gave him a look and that was enough to get him laughing again. He knew that B wasn’t Brainiac, he believed it too. But it was still striking to think that Brainiac had made such a giggly little kid. Even by accident. He shook his head. 

“Maybe you’re not invited.”

“Like you could stop me.”

“Ghosts are totally a thing.”

“I know how to trap them.”

“You’re lying.”

“Ghostbusters wasn’t as far off as one would assume. Anyway,” Brian sat up. “What about you, Mr. Fixed Lifespan, what do you want to be when you grow up? ‘Superman’ is not a valid answer.”

Chris snorted. “You have any idea how far down the list I am?”

“I do, yes. Heck, I think I'm even ranked higher--ah! Nope!” Brian caught Chris’ hand before he could get captured by it.

Chris strained to get past him, but Brian’s arm didn’t budge. “...Seriously, why are you so strong? Gah!” Brian yanked Chris over to him, and Chris fell on top of him in a heap. 

Brian hugged him close.  “My question is still unanswered. Answering questions is my whole thing, so you’re kind of cramping my style, blondie.”

Chris struggled a little bit, but not seriously. He groaned and went dramatically limp. “...I dunno, buddy. I never really got a chance to think about it before. Someone always had an idea of what I should do. I didn’t even really have time for hobbies before everything got bad. Well. Worse I guess, cause it didn’t start great either.”

Brian loosened his grip, and Chris adjusted to lay a little more comfortably. “Ah. Well…in that case…maybe when I start actually setting up my corps you could be…one of my first lanterns? Maybe? If you want, I mean. ‘Turquoise Lantern’ is a little bit of a mouthful admittedly, but I’m sure I can think of something better.” He cleared his throat nervously after he finished. 

Chris swallowed thickly. “Oh. Gee…you…you mean that?”

“Of course. You ask dumb questions all the time, you’re just what the corps would need.”

“Hey--”

“Now, I do plan it to be more of a research and education organization, so you may have to learn how to read but--” 

Chris slipped his hand under Brian’s shirt and started tickling him. Chris always thought it was hilarious how Brian would pretend to try and escape when the reality was that he actively chose to let himself feel the sensation for some reason. “You were really asking for this.” He pointed out as he scratched at the spot where Brian’s belly button would have been if he had one. He knew from experience that for whatever reason that was a bad spot, and Brian’s shrieks and squeals didn’t disappoint.

“I’m soooorry!’ He managed to squeak out.

“You can just ask, you know.”

“Wh-ha-hat?”

“If you want to wrestle or have me tickle you, you can just say that, you don’t have to try to annoy me first.”

“But--aha, Chris! C-Conrad and Damian bother each other for attention all the time!”

“Yeah, but they’re dating and both super crazy, are you calling me super crazy?”

Brian didn’t manage to get a response out because he was laughing so hard. He released Chris from his grip though, and Chris mercifully let him go in return. Brian took a minute to calm down.

“You’re mean,” He giggled. 

“Had fun?”

Brian nodded. “Yeah. I do kinda like it when you and Conrad play with me like that. It makes me feel like his actual little brother and like you actually like me.”

Chris’ eyes widened. “Wh--Buddy, I do actually--”

“I’m joking again.”

Chris squinted. “What did I just say about not having to annoy me to get me to tickle you?”

Brian squeaked and laughed and curled up into a ball. “Nooo! I was just being normal annoying that time!”

Chris snorted before laying back down in the grass next to him. “...I think I’d look good in turquoise.”

Brian uncurled and turned to look at him. “...Y-yeah, actually. I do too.” They made eye contact for a little too long, and Brian winced before awkwardly breaking it. 

Chris raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“Nothing!”

[altheneum-library]

Hey! The person who requested the Courtney one here! Thanks for answering my request. I thought about another one,a kinda of unhinged and silly reader. You can decide the characters :D

Also,can i be 🍁 anon? That's all,bye!

you've given me the power to do what I want now you will suffer it's consequences

a drink for my absence? sorry for the wait! it was hard getting my motivation back for a moment lol xP

contains; various/reader (can be seen as any relationship), somewhat heavy angst, comfort, fluff, crack taken a bit seriously

.

.

When you arrived on the island and it turns out almost everyone is dying, you made a vow to stay optimistic and be as wild as possible. the others were skeptical of you at first cause you were acting like an Izzy 2.0 but somewhat more unhinged than her, even she got sketchy of you. though when you proved that you weren't the killer and admitted that you're just like this normally then it's more understandable and there we're still times you made everyone laugh despite how dire the situation can be

times where you joked about Chris being a wuss, so you would shout "DOWN WITH THE KING!!" at the bonfire area with the others and they would cheer on and shout with you. it was like you made them forget a killer was even there!

you were known to be the sunshine character who is basically hyperactive, feral, and on crack, and who also has the love for arson and is the only person with a lighter

-

WHEN YOU LIVE:

so when Chris came back and had to ask you for help, you made a deal with him that the campers stay on the boat. along with his helpers. you led him to the spirits, under the guise of being their 'helper' too, though deep inside you we're pissed at him and when you saw they became vengeful spirits out to get him you used your unhinged appearance and personality to be very cunning.

you had cried when Owen and Noah died, you liked them, they balanced you out basically. You we're so pissed that the others can't find DJ yet, and with how angry you were with Duncan already you went out on your own to find him, your wrath was what made the killer avoid you. who knows what you'll do with a goddamn lighter and knife begrudgingly given to you by Duncan!?

when Chris died to the spirits taking him, you escaped with the other survivors.

right now, you made sure to keep contact with everyone, just to make sure they don't do anything stupid. you've not changed at all, except for maybe a few scratches and scars here and there.

-

WHEN YOU DIE:

you died the day before Chris came, you we're protecting Cody from the killer and distracted them by hitting their head with a rock hard. you ran and ran, until you're on top of the very same cliff your blonde friend fell from.

you weren't going down without a fight, and you fought against the killer for a good while but it seems there was no winning. so you wanted to make sure the killer came down with you, you lit your lighter and burnt them as you both fell from the cliff and landed into the ground.

Cody mourned for you that day when everyone found your body, the killer's was no where to be seen but judging by the blood they're long gone by now. everybody was deeply upset for you, even Eva and Duncan, you practically kept a strong attitude and a brave face the whole while. Heck, even the spirits of those who were killed we're deeply upset you didn't survive, they were highly hoping you would but you kept up a fight and killed the killer so that was enough for them.

when Chris came, your spirit didn't show your scars like the others so he was tricked by you into their trap.

you were happy the others managed to escape and survive, hoping they wouldn't come here anymore.

[buck-up-buck]

HEAR ME OUT

Okay, so I initially had an idea for the end of season 7 but threw it out the window due to the fact that we hardly ever get cliffhangers and with the uncertainty of renewal, there was no way in hell this would happen.

WELL, we just got season 8 confirmed so you bet your ass my theory is back in full swing and my lil delulu brain is going CRAZY.

So, picture this...

7x04-7x06 we have Buck's full Bi awakening and we are living for it. Obviously we have Madney's wedding also in full swing so things are tense for Buck and he is avoiding the hell out of Eddie just because, well, holy shit he's in love with his best friend.

So at the wedding, we have a cute lil Buck/Eddie moment and thing's are almost somewhat normal between them which Eddie is grateful for and it gives Buck the courage to confess his feelings and/or kiss Eddie.

Obviously, Eddie freaks the heck out because Buck what the hell do you mean you love me you can't love me absolutely not and he runs away from Buck in a panic.

Buck is of course heartbroken because he just destroyed his friendship with Eddie and has a complete meltdown. Eddie is avoiding him like the plague and Buck is at a loss.

In his angst era, Buck decides to speak to Bobby and takes a career break, maybe for a month or two (I don't know how career breaks for firefighters work so this may be a stretch), and says he is going to go to Italy (see what I did there?) and tells Bobby he just needs time to get his head together and figure out what (who) he truly wants.

Bobby is very worried about his son but is fully supportive and he and Hen go into full-blown planning mode to throw him a party for his last shift. Queue the entire team surprising Buck at the end of their shift with a farewell cake and banner and Athena and Karen and Chris are there and there are hugs and sadness and tears and it's all very sad.

The shift is over and Buck is in the locker room feeling all the feels when Eddie comes in and says "What, no goodbye for me?" and all Buck can say is "This hurts me, Eddie. I can't do this." and he leaves.

Eddie is in absolute DESPAIR and when he and Chris go home, he comes to realise that damnit, he can't let Buck go because he is the goddamn love of his life and he'll be damned if he lets him slip through his fingers. He grabs Chris and says "Come on, we're going to get Buck." to which Chris cheers and they get in the car.

Queue Buck about the leave his loft, turning all the lights off and looking around one last time all dramatically before picking up his bag and grabbing the door handle, only for his phone to ring.

Unknown number? Strange. He answers... "Hello?"

"Hello, Mr Buckley?"

"Yes, this is he."

"I am calling from LA memorial hospital, we have your number down as the emergency contact for Mr Edmundo Diaz. I am afraid he and his son have been in an accident."

The scene cuts to black.

*screams internally*

[elgascreamslikehell]

[from @911-on-abc] Lightning aftermath for the Diazes for the WIP tag game! I'm super curious as to why you hate 6x11

I'll be brief. (And she was brief for forty minutes straight)

First of all, there's no Eddie and i literally have no explanation for this. At that time Eddie should be the first person Buck would run to. Not Chimney. I like Chimney but he's not like the first contact person on the list.

And there was something for Buck's parents I didn't get much. Like redemption arc? Hello? You failed him drastically. It could not be fixed only by that. I mean not that they were there before and Buck wasn't first time guest in hospital. But now he could die and they have a habit to lose children? I just don't really get it.

I liked the idea of Buck's growing up in this ep, but as we all see it was 'just a phase' cause in 6*18 Natalia 'sees him' like hello you already decided it should be you who should see you not some death doula?!!

And i hardly can believe that he left Chris there and never thought about it. Like it never occurs in his mind?!

And in general - back to Diazes cause Eddie is my favourite character. There's no Eddie? There's small scene but imagine what was in Eddie's head all this time. He added Buck to his will, he was pretty sure he would die before him. He wasn't ready. But he can't show it cause he can show his emotions mostly to Buck - 5*13 and his breakdown as example.

So 6*11 was really underwhelming for me personally.

I really tried to be brief!

And small snippet (also from the very beginning):

It became one of his worst habits - just sitting here in the corner of the ER room and looking anywhere but Buck. He just can't look at him. But instead he can tell, how many cracks there are on the wall and which machine has the most annoying beeping sound and also he can tell by the steps, who is entering the room. And now that's Bobby. Bobby is good. He can ignore Eddie's presence most of the time - since he understood Eddie would not 'talk about it' anytime soon. Actually, most of them are good. All 118, Maddie - even when she asks these stupid questions 'Did you have lunch?' or 'When did you sleep last time?' Like it matters. So, everyone is okay. Apart of Buckleys. Who knew Buck's parents are so unpleasant people at the very least. It looks like they gets it only now, that they can lose another child. Where have you been before?! It's totally none of his business but he needs to think about something. Anything that isn't connected to the fact that Buck is in a coma and hell knows when he wakes up. If he even wakes up. But now it's Bobby. Maybe Eddie could have a quick nap, cause really, Bobby's quiet prayers work as lullaby sometimes. Apparently, no. No luck for you today, Eddie Diaz. Maybe you've sinned too much? 'Okay, Diaz, you're here',- not that it was much of surprise: 'Come on. You need to have a check up' Eddie scoffs: 'Me? What for? It's not that.. well, I don't need it, that's what I'm trying to say', - he spends too much time here in silence, starts to forget how to talk. 'You', - cap is quite adamant on this: 'If I remember correctly, you was on the ladder when the lightning stroke. And do you know that this kind of trauma can have a lot of aftereffects?' And do you understand I'm not ready to deal with it again? Bobby won't say that, never. But he has the right to think it. He lost his children once. That is totally not the experience he wants to relive. 'I'm fine', - Eddie is stubborn as heck but Bobby apparently prepared for this: 'You don't have much choice. You go with me and have full check up or we won't let you come here again. I discussed it with Maddie and Athena, so we'll find a way' Eddie sadly smiles. It looks like it's not only him who doesn't take Buck's parents into account.

[angelkurenai]

Oh baby dear - Chris Evans x Reader

Title: Oh baby dear

Pairing: Chris Evans x Surrogate!Reader

Warnings: None

Summary: After a trip that gives the chance to Chris to take a long-overdue break from his job, he comes back home with his mind made up to change his life. And even if it weren’t for the trip itself or meeting you, even though he had no idea if he’d ever see you again, he was determined to not wait any longer. Feeling ready to become a father he starts looking for a surrogate mother, only to end up finding you of all people.

“Son of a guy. You meant it.” brown eyes were wide, and for the first couple seconds no other sound could be heard in the room. It almost felt like the words could echo in the room.

“You're really doing this.” the man's voice was filled with just as much shock as was painted all over his face. At least the woman behind him was more calm, sipping on her drink with an ease that would have been troubling, especially in such a case, if it wasn't known that she had long ago heard the news.

“I wouldn't have brought it up in the first place if I wasn't seriously considering it.” the other man in the room couldn't take his eyes off his friend, trying to gauge his reaction the second it came through. It was bound to be the most honest one, no second thoughts, and he only needed his friends' honest thoughts. Not that, and he was sure of it, the other man would intentionally tell him anything but the truth.

“You- wow.” the shocked expression was still there but there was no mistaking the smile that was slowly but surely appearing on his face “Seems like Evans is finally joining the club, who'd have thought? That's what I call one heck of a year, quickly Scarlett note the date down! It's going to go down in the history books, I tell you. Oh you're in for one hell of a ride, buddy! Wait you knew about this, didn't you?” he turned to the woman but shook his head soon enough “Never mind. You're gonna have to look for a godmother but I do get to be the godfather, right? I really need to start making preparations, nine months are not even remotely enough. I gotta-”

“Take a deep breath and calm down, Robert. That's what you gotta do. Otherwise this kid won't get to meet its one-of-a-kind godfather. And we would never want that to happen, would we?” the woman interrupted his rambling, a teasing smile on her own lips as she noticed Chris himself chuckle.

“Oh goodness forbid that could ever happen.” Chris laughed some more, his chest feeling lighter than it had in the past couple days “And besides that, there has not been a surrogate found just yet. Papers got approved only a day ago, it will take more time than that.”

“You say that as if the second every woman finds out you're on that kind of market, won't volunteer to have your baby. Heck, I know most of them would gladly volunteer to do it the old-fashioned way! You'll see, you will be getting news very soon.” Robert brushed his friend off and got up from his seat, making his way to the mini bar to grab a drink for himself “Which means, I really gotta start preparing everything because a) this is Evans' kid and b) I'm the godfather and it'll get only the best!”

Scarlett couldn't help but laugh, while Chris shook his head with a chuckle, before she added “As you can see, he is going to be more trouble than the kid.” she ignored the look that was shot at her from Robert and kept going “But, speaking of it, I never asked: Did you never really consider adoption?”

“For most of the time that's what I had in mind, yes, but-” he sighed, easing back in his seat “I asked about it and my chances were sadly very low, given my job and everything, not to mention how lengthy of a process it all was. Sebastian was actually the one to suggest it and you know I haven't been able to stop thinking about it ever since. Granted, it is just as hard to find a surrogate who is also willing to be the biological mother but I feel like I have more to hope for this way.”

“You have every reason to be hopeful, I'm sure this will work out just fine. Besides-” she offered her friend a warm smile “There is no other man that I can think of that could be a better father than you. This child will be very lucky.”

“...The part of Robert being the godfather excluded?” Chris added with a smirk, eyeing his friend who narrowed his eyes at him, before both Chris and Scarlett burst into laughter.

“Life isn't perfect, what can you do?” she grinned as she took a sip of her drink.

“I'll try to be the better man, as always, and not comment on any spiteful comments against me. You're just jealous I am going to be the world's best godfather. Anyway, that wasn't what I was going to comment on.” he plopped back on his seat and gave the blue-eyed man a sly smile “Sebastian you say but I'm wondering: was it him or that summer trip to Italy that really prompted you to become a dad? Maybe a certain someone you met there? What was her name...”

“Don't-” it was all he had time to get out, his eyes wide and voice very warning; but there was never any stopping the man when he wanted to speak his mind.

“Ah yes.” Robert grinned widely “(Y/n).”

“What- Who?” Scarlett frowned, tilting her head to the side “How come I haven't heard of her before? I thought you told me everything about Italy.”

“She's nobod-”

“Probably the love of his life. Something like his soulmate. One he talks about a lot in his sleep, hence why I should hold more parties and have you guys over. The info I get is golden. Anyway, think of it as the star-crossed lovers but one where he isn't the Lana Del Rey young and beautiful, you know? Heard she's something like a med or psych graduate or something. So come to think of it all, Italy, soulmates and age difference, this is like another version of Call me by your-”

“And that's it for you. Enough words spoken for one day.” Scarlett said, not hesitating a second to place a hand over the man's mouth who admittedly didn't give up even if his words were only an incoherent mumble after that.

Chris' eyes were wide and there was no mistaking the way he wanted to not talk about it, as if there was some unparalleled sadness that came with the mention of your name, a deep ache and at the same time yearning perhaps because he missed you, just like there was no mistaking the tint of pink that was on his cheeks.

“That's-” he cleared his throat, avoiding looking at his friends in the eyes because he knew how easy it would be to tell that even so many months later the feelings were fresh as much as the day he had to leave, the day he left a part of himself on the airport with you – a part he knew real well he wouldn't get back again, certainly not from any other woman he got to meet. That missing part of him, even if the rest held all the beautiful memories dearly to itself and felt truly blessed, he knew was obvious. It was all on his face that he was missing something, even if he'd gotten so much. And he knew she would see it, it all became so obvious when he thought of you.

He shook his head when he realized he had taken longer than needed to reply “It was way too long ago, I can hardly remember it now. Hell, as if barely anything happened to begin with. She was just-” a lump in his throat, too painful “I made a good friend, a really good friend yes, who helped me see my life in a different way. Helped me make my choice and see the things that really matter. Couldn't keep in contact and yes that's a bit sad but- That's all there is to it, nothing more nothing less.”

Scarlett regarded him for a couple seconds, even as he tried to keep himself busy with getting another drink, before she finally spoke “If you say so.” she nodded her head “At least we now know who we owe this to and who to thank for our family growing, don't we?”

“Then-” Robert's smile was softer, yet also sad, as he raised his glass a bit “Let's drink to that, if not your baby just yet. To (Y/n)?”

“To (Y/n).” Scarlett nodded her head “For helping you make the best decision of your life, wherever she may be now.”

Chris hesitated, the unspoken truth of you not only being the one to help him make the decision but also be part of that decision, part of the family he wanted to build, was ready to break free from his lips but he held it back “Wherever she may be.” he said in a low hoarse voice, raising his glass as well “To (Y/n).”

He had not allowed himself to say your name in a long time and thinking back to it, the effect had been evident not only in his chest, in his heartbeat, but also in his lips, how painfully strange it felt when all he had been doing was think about it for months to no end, down to his throat that closed up with emotion. And he had allowed himself to say it not only so that he would make sure his friends would drop the subject but also because it had been a long time, he felt the need to and he knew that he wouldn't get the chance to do so, not anytime soon for sure.

And yet, only seconds ago, the name had left his lips for the second time in barely a couple days.

His brain could barely keep up with the fact, all the information he had to currently process seemed to make things even harder. Saying your name this time certainly had the same effect, his throat closed up and his heart leaped to his throat, but it felt like it was for an entirely different reason. He blinked several times, trying to make sure that what he was seeing was also true, to make sure that it wasn't wishful thinking and that him holding his breath had not reduced the levels of oxygen to a point where he couldn't even see straight. Truth be told, he felt pretty lightheaded.

“(Y/n) (Y/l/n).” he repeated your name for the third time, the third time in only a couple days his mind nearly screamed at him, but it didn't feel the same this time.

“Yes, I would say she seems like one of the most, if not the most, suitable candidate for you case.” the woman behind the desk gave him a warm smile but his brain was still currently stuck on the word 'candidate'.

“I'm sorry. There seems to be some misunderstanding here and I- I don't know whose part it is on, but-” he licked his lips, trying to swallow over the lump in his throat “When you say- What you're trying to say- I'm sorry.” he shook his head and let a couple seconds to pass in silence; he knew she wouldn't ask before him.

Taking a deep breath he decided to speak, even if his voice was hoarse he hoped she could make out the words “Candidate for what?”

The woman frowned a bit but it was gone faster than it could register, as she spoke in a calm voice “Your case. To be not only the surrogate you are looking for. See, her current, and according to her permanent from now on, residence is in New York City and very close to the residence you have listed as your permanent one. It is important, you understand, if we take into consideration that she will be the biological mother of the child. You might want the child to be able to stay in touch with her, and vice versa, so the close proximity does help. Of course that is always up to you, but in most cases we've seen it hap-”

“When did she sign up for this?” he asked, barely able to keep himself to wait for her to finish her sentence.

“Pardon?” she blinked and only then he realized how he might have sounded.

“You're right. I apologize, that came out as wrong.” he cleared his throat again “What I mean is... does she know who I am? That she- she's signing up to be a surrogate for my child.”

“Every surrogate must be informed, of course, of you as you are informed of her. She too must know whose child she will carry, don't you think it's fitting? But if you are uhm-” she hesitated “Concerned about other children, then, you need not worry. It's not my place to say this but it seems like-” she smiled a bit, almost knowingly “That you have already chosen, so I believe it wouldn't really be against any rule to say this. Consider it an extra bit of information.”

'Seems like you have already chosen.' would be a vast understatement. It was like every cell in his body was screaming 'Yes', chanting it over and over again that he was seriously worried he might have projected it somehow. He could barely control the words that came out of his lips anyway. If anything, the second he had come across the file with your name he had been glued to it, his eyes and all of his attention orbiting around the single file as if he was Earth and you were his Sun. Not far from the truth either.

But it also must have shown- No scratch that. He was sure it had shown because he had done no effort to hide it, too stunned and happy and eager and giddy and blessed and so many other things, to try to hide it. And she had clearly noticed.

“So, no, she has not mothered another child. As a matter of fact, Miss (Y/l/n) is doing this for the first time.” the woman leaned back in her chair “She came to us with the belief that there was too much sadness out there and, amongst other things, she decided to do this little one thing to help someone out. To make someone happy. I believe she didn't really have any further expectations out of this, no further plans, other than wanting to do some good. We only informed her of your case and she said she'd like to help, nothing else.” she shrugged softly “For any further reasons behind her choice you could ask her, I suppose. If you do think she could be the right choice to be the mother of your child, then-”

“She is.” he said, maybe a little too fast, but he didn't care. He didn't find a single part of him that cared for how eager he looked at the prospect of you being the mother of his child. Granted, it wasn't exactly how he'd imagined it but it was so much more than he ever thought he'd get, of what he thought he deserved, when he had told you goodbye that summer.

He cleared his throat again, trying to straighten his back and look as formal as he should in the suit he was wearing. He offered her a small smile “She is the right one. I think I've decided. I-” he paused, glancing at the pile of files and therefore other candidates which he had absolutely not even taken a glimpse at and he hoped she wouldn't comment on it “I've thought things through, yes.” because no man could make such a decision so hastily, he knew, and yet he looked like he just had “I'm glad for all the candidates it means a lot but uhm Miss (Y/l/n) seems to be indeed the right one. I think she will do just fine yes.”

“Wonderful.” she smiled more, nodding her head “If it means anything, she seemed happy when she was presented with your case.” oh if only she knew just how much it really meant to him, ask his wildly-beating heart and everyone would know just how much “Now, you understand that while you seem pretty sure and confident with your choice, you will have to give it some more time, more than anything to get in touch with the surrogate herself and discuss through any specific terms you might have. We will be the ones to set a meeting. Of course there are legal issues that need to be taken care of, but you're a lawyer yourself so you probably know that better than anybody else already.”

“Y-yes uh of course, yes, legal terms. Mr Wilson will represent me on the matter of course. But you said-” he folded his hands over his lap and threaded his fingers and it was either that or let his nerves show “Meeting her? Will I get to meet her in person soon or...?”

“That, Mr Evans, is completely up to you, how ready and sure you are, how much time you need and how fast you want things to progress.” she said as if she'd had this conversation many times over and she probably had “It could be within a week, a month, or, if you have no doubts, within three days the soonest possible. So, do you need time to think over-”

“The soonest possible. I'd like-” he nodded his head, straightening his suit's jacket “I think it would be best if I could meet with her the soonest possible. She's just what I was looking for.”

[theladyregret]

So after several play throughs I’ve discovered the things about The Quarry that bug me the most and things I wish could have happened. Don’t get me wrong, I love the game for sure. It’s the only game of theirs I’ve really liked since Until Dawn. So don’t take this to mean I don’t like it.

First, the plot holes that bug me because they make no sense.

First...if the power has been cut why is it still conveniently working for certain things? Like...why does the camps PA system still have power? If it was never designed to contact anyone outside of the camp then it wouldn’t make sense for it to have any backups as it’s useless in an emergency anyway. Also...why are the freezers still functioning? Considering anyone locked inside who isn’t a were-wolf freezes to death that implies the freezer is still getting power which...why...and like yeah it would still be cold inside without power but I don’t think it would be cold enough to kill anyone if it hadn’t had power all night and it’s close enough to morning that Kaitlyn doesn’t even have long enough to transform if she’s infected. This is a minor thing mostly though because I guess the argument can still be made that Chris had backup power supplies for these things in the case of a power outage...I just feel it’s unlikely.

Second, and my biggest gripe really, why is it that Ryan is the only one who doesn’t gain immunity to were-wolf attack upon being infected? Regardless of whether he’s infected or not if he doesn’t shoot Chris, Chris will still kill him. At literally any other time in the game a character that’s been infected can’t be killed by a were-wolf. It would have been nice to have a true “everyone lives” ending but this makes that impossible because even if you save everyone else, Chris still has to die.

Third...if the Hackett’s designed the electrified cages specifically to hold Chris, Caleb, and Kaylee...then...why weren’t they in them? Why was Chris chained up in the attic and Caleb and Kaylee just...completely free? The argument can’t even be made that they needed the space for the councilors because the only reason they’d need to worry about were-wolves is Silas who they didn’t even know was in the area...and leaving everyone free would be a good way to draw Silas out anyway. Make it make sense. It would have made more sense to have Silas and Max be the only threats up until Nick turns and when Laura cuts the power opening the cages at which point Chris could have gone into the house and the others could attack the survivors at the Lodge.

Last...upon learning that they won’t cross water...why not just everyone get in a boat and sit out on the lake until morning. Seriously...you don’t have to swim...there were boats literally everywhere. Like Dylan touches on it at one point and Kailtin dismisses it like their only option had been to just swim in the lake and not sit in boats.

Beyond that there’s just some areas of the game that I wish hadn’t been so bottle necked in their choices. I think it would have been better to give the player the choice of who goes with Laura and who goes to the scrapyard instead of just telling you who goes where. Not just because I would have proffered more Dylan/Ryan lol but like if you send the wrong people to do certain jobs then that could have had other consequences. Like...can you imagine sending Dylan and Abi to the scrapyard? Or Kaitlyn with Laura? Heck...maybe let Jacob do something other then being naked and sad in the woods if you let him out of the cage by having Laura go alone and taking him with her.

I also would have loved if they hadn’t had Abi’s only chance of infection being from Kaylee so both she and Nick would be at the same point of infection at the same time. You kind of get a hint of it with the encounter with Bobby if you fail the QTE which is the only time you get to see her showing symptoms before she’s inevitably cured. It just would have been interesting to see a less uneven dynamic between Abi and Nick if you get Abi infected too. Have them both being equally over the top towards each other. Both transform in the same scene and then Nick doesn’t end up in the cage with Jacob because Abi would be there to attack the hunters when Nick gets caught in the trap.

Also, my inner jokester thinks it would have been hilarious if there was the actual option to have Jacob just...not break the van. Everyone just packs up and goes home. Game over lol

[not-playable-character]

Edit: new link https://archiveofourown.org/works/32099263

ITS DONE!!!!  Finally, the RE8 meets RE7 fic is finished and posted!  so for everyone wondering and if you didn't figure it out already. The image I posted earlier is the seating arrangement of the gang as they play the game.  As always its posted on AO3 and under the cut.  I hope you enjoy @ibest14 I never actually played RE7 but I watched a walkthrough to write this.

It was a normal Saturday afternoon when the Winters family got a very strange package.  It was addressed to the whole family and had no return address.

“What the heck is this?” Rose wondered aloud carrying the small package inside, “Hey mom! Did you order something online?”

“Not that I remember, why?” Mia asked curious why her daughter was asking about the mail, “Who is it addressed to? Maybe your dad ordered something.” She went and stood next to Rose to look at the package.

“Hmm, I think we should wait for dad to get home to open it, I mean it is addressed to all of us.” Mia agreed with her daughter and went to continue making dinner.

Ethan got home a few hours later and was greeted by his daughter with a warm hug, “Haha, hey there kid how was your day?” He asked returning the hug and picking Rose up.

“It was good! We got a weird package in the mail, mom and I decided to wait for you before opening it.” Rose said leading him into the kitchen after he put her down.

“Welcome home, Hon! How was work?” Mia asked kissing Ethan on the cheek.

“Ugh, Williams was an absolute pain again.  He somehow unplugged all of his equipment and disconnected his computer from the ethernet cable again.” Ethan complained sitting down at the dinner table next to Rose. “Chris somehow changed his computer to Arabic and Sal’s computer was changed to have wingdings as the default language and it bricked the whole thing, he said it was an accident, but I think it was one of the dicks that keep harassing him.  I told Chris and he’s looking into it.” Ethan picked up the package and looked at the outside.

“Ugh why can’t these douchebags see that Sal is way better than them.  Probably just jealous of him.” Rose said frustrated at the harassment her uncle was receiving.

“We should invite him over for dinner sometime, lift his spirits some!” Mia suggested placing a glass of juice down for Ethan.  He agreed and thanked her for the juice.

Ethan handed the package back to Rose who tore into the packaging.  Inside was a video game box, “Resident Evil? Isn’t that a game from the nineties?” Rose asked confused.

Ethan leaned over to get a better look, “Yeah it is, I played almost all of them, but I’ve never seen that one.  It looks like its supposed to be the seventh one, but they only made six that I know of.” Ethan became confused taking the box from Rose studying it, it strangely didn’t have a back cover.

“Weird, maybe they are rebooting the series, but why wouldn’t there be a lot of news about it?” Rose asked.  Ethan’s face lit up at the possibility of a reboot of his favorite childhood series.

“Man, I hope so, I always loved Craig Bluemarsh and Leo C. Harrison.  They were the best!  The whole M.O.O.N.S squad from Badger City.  Special Ops turned paranormal investigators was the twist of the decade! And the whole thing with Egbert Walberk and how he possessed himself with countless demons to become basically a god.” Ethan sighs as he reminisces.

“You clearly have bad taste honey because Julie Easter was the best character in the series.  The ace of the M.O.O.N.S squad, the one that Walberk kidnapped to force demons into her with a mind control amulet.  Oh, and don’t forget Chloe Bluemarsh, college kid turned aid worker for those affected by the demons.” Mia added as she chopped vegetables for dinner.

“Ahh yes, how could I forget! Anyway, this looks like a cheap bootleg or fake.  Probably just a prank from Dani or Angie.”  Ethan said tossing the case further on the table looking upset.

“Aw man…. That’s lame dad.” Rose says dramatically throwing herself over the back of the chair.  “I’m keeping it anyway; the box looks cool.”

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A month after the whole package incident, Rose bursts into the house beaming.  “Dad, Uncle Chris just told me that we are having a meeting with the whole gang! We should totally bring that janky game we got and show it off!”

“Whoa, slow down Rose! You’re gonna hurt yourself running around like that.” Ethan says watching his daughter bounce in place.  “Why do you think we should bring that thing anyway? I doubt there will be anytime to just sit around and play a game, if it’s even real.”  Rose rolls her eyes at him.

“Dad, I’m sure Uncle Chris can pull some strings so we can have a little get together.  We never get to see each other all at once!” Rose states, putting on her best puppy dog eyes, “Don’t you want to see the gang, Dad. It would be so much fun.  You know how much I miss them all.” She begs.

Ethan can physically feel his resolve crumbling at his begging daughter, always caving into her once she pulls out the puppy eyes, “Fine, I’ll talk with Chris and we can bring the game with us, but you are responsible for the PlayStation and if it gets damaged or broken you have to buy the new one.” He says in his dad voice, trying to be stern.  Rose squeals and jumps into his arms hugging him.

“You’re the best dad ever!” She says running off to prepare for their long weekend at Blue Umbrella.

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“Ok, is everyone comfy, I’m about to start the game!” Rose said excitedly setting up the PS4 in the Blue Umbrella lounge room.  Everyone was present, Rose even convinced Miranda and Elena to join them after Milena was put to bed.

“I am unsure of what we are even doing sweet thing.” Alcina said settling into her chair near Donna.

“Well, I’m gonna play this weird game I got, maybe Dani can take over if I get tired.  We are just gonna check it out, if its good, Great! If not, we can make fun of how bad it is!” Rose explained sitting down on the couch wedged between Daniela, Angie, and Heisenberg with Bela and Cassandra on the floor in front of them.  Alcina wasn’t convinced that it would be fun, but she couldn’t deny Rose’s request considering how excited she looked.  She sighed and pulled out her reading glasses seeing the small text on the screen.

“Psh, what are you a grandma?” Heisenberg teased. Alcina growled at him.

“Oh, please grow up you child.” She replied trying to de-escalate the situation knowing Rose and her daughters hated when they argued.

“I see making your head bigger didn’t help your eyesight.” He continued to tease sensing her anger.

“I grew proportionally you ignoramus, becoming larger would not fix my farsightedness.” She growled out becoming angrier.

“Guys….” Rose said sadly at the two arguing.  Heisenberg immediately stopped his next sentence and turned to give Rose a side hug.

“Sorry kiddo, I forgot you hate it when we fight.  I’ll stop, I promise.”  He says sincerely as Alcina nods looking guilty, Rose smiles accepting their apologies.

“No more sappiness get to the action I’m getting bored!” Angie cried out from Daniela’s lap.  Rose rolls her eyes at the doll’s bratty attitude and begins the game.

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The game begins with a very familiar video to Ethan and Mia and the sight of Mia recording her warning message on the ship.

“What the…. How is this happening?  It showed the recording from my eyes, but I never recorded that…” Mia says stunned.

The next scene starts with the sound of a phone ringing and the overhead video of a car driving down a highway.  Ethan begins to speak to and unknown man in the voice over explaining how he was contacted by Mia and that she wants him to come and get her.

“This has to be a sick prank!  How did these people get that phone call!” Ethan shouts getting more and more upset as the clip plays. Mia places a hand on his arm to comfort him.

“Maybe there will be an explanation later.  There has to be….” Mia says trying to calm Ethan.

Rose pauses the game as it shifts to Ethan’s perspective in the car, “We don’t have to keep playing if this is making you guys uncomfortable.” She says to her parents.

Ethan takes a deep breath, “No, no… it’s fine, you were really excited for this.  I was just shocked.  I’m okay to keep going, as long as you are okay too Mia.”  She nods in agreement with her husband clearly rattled but pushing through.  Rose nods continuing the game as she walks Ethan through the thick Louisiana swamp towards the Baker house.

The first obstacle they encounter is a locked gate.  She moves him down a path leading to a trashed car with camera equipment scattered around it.  Looking in they find a scrip proposal for Sewer Gators Ep. 17.

They then come across a broken gate with a sign that says, “Accept Her Gift”, “Oh yeah definitely just walk through that incredibly ominous gate into the disgusting swamp.” Heisenberg says gesturing towards the screen, “I’d just say, ‘sorry lady I’m not that desperate for a wife’ and dip.”

“He has a point dad, I mean really its been three years.  Just move on.” Rose says to her father.

Ethan blushes, “Hey you can’t judge a man in love.  I had to know what happened.”

“Nah man, just accept the death bro.  Totally not worth it.” Daniela says interjecting.

“I’m right her you know.” Mia says scolding them.  Rose giggles and continues on.  They come across the remains of a fire with Mia’s purse laying there.  They then enter the Guest house finding it to be disgusting and in disrepair.

“God, I forgot how gross this place was.” Ethan says wrinkling his nose.

Rose looks around the living room area, finding a hidden chain that opens a hidden room they go through. Exploring further leads them into a flooded basement they are forced to crawl through.

“Oh, please Ethan, I know you are insanely stubborn but the corpse in the flooded basement should have been an indicator to leave immediately.” Alcina says as the dead body floats up in front of them.

“Ok, Ok I get it I’m a crazy person for going on, but can we please stop commenting on it.  I’m aware of the insanity.” Ethan replies as Rose comes up into a basement room with a jail cell containing Mia as well as other information on people who were listed as turned or dead.  They pick up the bolt cutters and break open Mia’s cell.  While they are being reunited Mia acts strangely warning him of the dangers and of Daddy.

“Pft, seriously? Daddy?” Dani snickers at Mia.

“Don’t start.  I was possessed by a child obsessed with family.” Mia says glaring at Dani.

Rose follows Mia through the basement where she and Ethan stop to talk about the last three years.

“Come on! This is a life or death situation, get a move on!” Cassandra yells out at the screen.

Rose continues to creep through the basement following Mia as Ethan learning more about her capture as they walk.  They come across a living room type area where Mia starts to act strangely, talking about family and when Ethan leaves, they hear her crash through the wall revealing a staircase to the house.  They move through the house looking for Mia.  They hear crashing coming from the stairs they came from and return to find Mia on all fours crawling up the stairs.  She attacks Ethan looking monstrous as she throws him back up with superhuman strength. She then attacks him with a knife stabbing him through the hand.  After a struggle she regains control rambling about a strange her as she slams her head against the wall.

“Jesus man, that is hard core…” Heisenberg says in awe. Mia grimaces at the memory.  Rose continues on wandering before they are attacked by Mia once again.  They fight her off with an axe.  “Ethan, my friend, you always have to double check that your enemy is dead.  She is definitely gonna get up again, classic horror trope.” Heisenberg says wisely.

“Karl, this actually happened.  I wasn’t thinking about ‘horror tropes’.  I was focusing on surviving.” Ethan says to him.

“Also, of course I’m going to get up, I’m sitting right here.  I’m clearly not dead.” Mia says exasperated.

Rose moves on with the game ignoring them and answers the phone that had begun to ring.  “Dad why did you answer the phone? Just leave.” She says as Zoe gives her warning to Ethan.  “Oh yeah let’s listen to the random phone lady and not just break a window.” She says rolling her eyes.

They move on solving the puzzle for the stairs catching a glimpse of the not at all dead Mia.  Replacing the fuse, they are jumped by Mia again who attacks him with a screwdriver pinning him to the wall before chopping his had off with a chainsaw.

“My god man! How did you keep going!” Sal exclaims looking at Ethan who just shrugs.

They find a pistol in one of the rooms and use it to take care of the attacking Mia as she rants crazily. Finally taking her down, they are ambushed by Jack Baker who punches him in the face.

“See I told you that you should have moved faster, now ‘Daddy’ caught you.” Cass says as Ethan falls over and is stomped on by Jack.  They see him being dragged and Mia being carried by Jack, the scene changes to Ethan strapped to a chair with Zoe staples his hand back on.  He finally fully awakes to a disgusting family dinner with the whole Baker family.

“Ugh, I miss Momma’s cooking so much.” Mia says reminiscing happily.  Everyone stares at her as they see the disgusting meal on the table in game.  She blushes, “Before she went fully crazy, she was an amazing cook.  Her gumbo was to die for, oh and Daddy’s fried chicken, mmm.”  She explains to them.  No one seems convinced as the scene continues with Lucas throwing food at him and Marguerite tries to get Ethan to eat, and Jack cuts off Lucas’ hand. Jack comes over and forces the rancid food into Ethan’s face as Marguerite rants and leaves angrily, Jack then cuts Ethan’s face before being interrupted by the doorbell.  They escape and flee through the house trying to find an exit. They find a key and are chased by Jack before escaping to the crawlspace.

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They explore the house before a police officer tries to ask Ethan questions.

“Man, that officer is kind of a dick…” Heisenberg says realizing how rude and unprofessional the officer is.

“He was a massive dick.” Ethan says frustrated at the memory of their interactions.  They make the way to the garage to meet the rude officer who refuses to take the situation seriously which leads to his death and Ethan’s continued entrapment.  “See, massive dick, we could have escaped, but noooo.” He says.

Rose nods in agreement as she avoids Jack in the garage and tries to defeat him with the car.  The car crashes and catches fire revealing an on fire Jack who is knocked down by the resulting explosion.  They collect the items in the room before climbing up the revealed ladder. Jack stops Ethan and shoots himself in the head with Ethan’s gun.

“I’ll say it again, he ain’t dead.  He’s coming back sooner or later.” Heisenberg says again.

“Yeah, no shit Sherlock. This game’s been full of tropes so far.” Cassandra responds to him rolling her eyes.

Rose continues on solving puzzles and making their way through the labyrinthine house avoiding the obviously not dead Jack and the molded that are scattered around the house. They see Jack mumbling to himself about being “her” and talking about how he is going to kill Ethan.

“God he’s so cool.” Dani says as he leaves the room getting looks from the others, “What? He’s a cool villain.”

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The fight with Jack was a bit of a struggle for Rose, but she made it through with Heisenberg, Dani, and Cass cheering her on.

When he finally exploded, both Heisenberg and Dani called out in joy, “Now that’s how you kill a villain!” Heisenberg shouted out with a laugh and high fived Dani over Rose’s head. As they make their way through the house again completing puzzles and finding Grandma in random places.

“She is the one who caused all this.” Alcina says pointing at Grandma.  Ethan and Mia looks shocked.

“How did you know that?” Mia asks. Alcina scoffs as if it is obvious.

“She hasn’t had the focus at all, yet she appears at random seemingly following Ethan, who we know is the next victim in mind.  She is clearly Eveline.”  She says smugly to everyone’s shocked faces.

Rose moved on ignoring the gloating.  She came across a trailer in the yard, exploring it revealed that it was Zoe’s home containing some useful items that she ignored moving to leave as the phone rang. Zoe explained about the mold and how to progress.

“Why are you so trusting of this woman, you don’t know her, and she has admitted that she is a part of the family trying to kill you?” Bela asked turning to face Ethan.  He opened his mouth to answer but nothing came out, he paused thinking and shrugged.  Bela rolled her eyes at him, “Typical man thing.” She mumbled out returning to her original position.

They move on to the old house and Marguerite just as Zoe instructed. Coming across baby dolls strung up from the rafters of the bridge.  “Whoever made those should be killed.” Donna said quietly.  Everyone looked at her confused.  “The look like such poor quality dolls, anyone who cares would never let them fall apart so easily.  Cheap plastic is the worst fate a doll can experience.” She explains confident.

“You aren’t upset at the fact that they are strung up, just that they suck?” Rose asks her.

“Of course, you can do what you like with them, but the craft must be respected.  These cheap factory made ones are a disgrace.”  Donna explains upset at the virtual dolls.  Rose mumbles an ok before moving on into the bug infested old house.  They make their way through the house avoiding mutant bugs and solving puzzles.

“Gotta say girls, these things really remind me of you three.” Heisenberg says as Rose burns her way through the nests of bugs.

“How dare you compare my girls to these disgusting things!  They are clearly superior in every way.” Alcina says angrily defending her girls.

“Thank you, mother, but he has a bit of a point.” Bela says to her mother with Cassandra nodding in agreement.

“Momma has a point though too! We are better than those things!” Dani says beaming at her mother. Cass mumbles suck up under her breath and is smacked by Dani.

Soon after they find Mia in game again, she explains her amnesia and is taken away by Lucas.  Not being able to help they continue on through the house again.  Eventually they are found by Marguerite who begins to stalk them through the house attacking them with her swarm of insects, insane rants, and vulgar obscenities.

“This lady is something else…” Heisenberg says cringing at Marguerite.

“For once we agree on something Karl.” Alcina agrees cringing as well.  The others nod in agreement with them.

They make their way through a secret passageway revealed by the spider shadow puzzle.  The wall space was infested which had everyone cringing at the writhing masses of centipedes.  They collect the crank and the crow key and try to enter Marguerite’s room before she throws him down the stairs and through the floor.  After a short encounter, she falls into the hole and melts into black goo. They collect information on the D series pieces and Zoe calls again, and she mentions they only need the arm piece as she has the D series head.  They return to the hole to see the goo gone and a long spindly arm take the lantern needed to progress.  They follow the monstrosity to well in front of the old house returning to Zoe’s trailer. They return to a new section of the old house where they are attacked by a mutated spider like Marguerite.

They run around the house, avoiding her swarms and attacks while burning her with the flamethrower and peppering her with shotgun shots to the disgusting nest on her lower half.

“I take it back; you girls are way more similar to the bug lady.” Heisenberg says once she finally dies. Alcina slaps the back of his head and growls at him.

“Momma can we mutate like that too!” Dani says excitedly as Bela and Cass cringe.

“Absolutely not.  Do not even think about trying.” Alcina scolds while Heisenberg and Rose chuckle at them.

“Why would anyone want to have a gross bug vagina?”  Cassandra turns around asking her sister.

Dani shrugs, “I don’t know, I just think it would be neat.” Rose shoves the controller into Dani’s hands and takes Angie from her.

“No more bug talk, you play, I’m getting tired.” Rose says stretching.

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They find their way into Eveline’s secret room and collect the arm.  They go to meet Zoe in her trailer only to find that no one is there.  They answer a call from Lucas where he tells Ethan that he has both Zoe and Mia, and that Ethan needs to play his game to save them and get the head.  They make their way back to the main house’s dissection room where they pull the snake key out of the dead deputy’s neck hole.  Lucas’ voice come out through a speaker explaining they need to find two keycards so they can meet.

“Ohhh, I love this guy! I’m getting so many ideas for new games, hehehe!” Angie says excitedly bouncing in Rose’s lap.  Donna glares at the doll chastising her through their mental link.  Angie pouts at the scolding.

They make their way through the increasingly molded main house solving Lucas’ puzzles and dodging the molded shambling around.  They find the blue keycard and make their way down into a secret room containing the red keycard.  Lucas calls again at the phone in the main hall, leading Ethan to a party in the barn.

They enter the barn to thumping music and glowing paint under a black light.  They come across a room with a television showing Lucas ranting and waving the D series head around, ranting about how he doesn’t want to give up his gift and that they can only get the serum from him before the television explodes.  They make their way through the barn avoiding trip mines and coming up to a locked gate with a passcode.  Lucas makes an appearance taunting Ethan and giving him incorrect passwords before a trap springs and a secret door opens up.

They wind through the barn avoiding the traps and taking out the molded arriving at Lucas’ arena where they fight off a giant molded.  After the fight they find the correct passcode to enter the birthday room.  They solve his puzzles and escape through the hole created by the dynamite.  They see a television with Zoe and Mia, Zoe explains where they are before Lucas cuts the camera to himself ranting about nothing.  They collect the D series head and leave the barn making their way to Zoe and Mia.  They release Zoe and Mia before collecting the completed serum.  Just after they are ambushed by a fully mutated Jack.

“Wait he isn’t dead?! I can’t believe I didn’t call it!” Heisenberg calls out as Dani fights Jack.

After a long grueling fight, taking out Jacks many swollen eyes and using one of the two serums to calcify him at Zoe’s request.  Walking down the pier they are faced with a choice to cure either Zoe or Mia.

“Well clearly we are supposed to cure mom. Its what dad did in real life.” Rose says.

“True, I did.  I did feel bad though, Chris ended up saving Zoe and her uncle, so it all ended up good.” Ethan says.

“Yeah, sure choosing Mia is what really happened but what if we chose Zoe?” Dani asks hovering over Zoe in game.

“No! We can do it later right now we are choosing mom.” Rose says sternly.

“Fiiiiinnnnnee.” Dani whines out giving Mia the serum.  They take the raft down the river listening to Ethan and Mia talk about the situation before they come across the wrecked boat Mia and Eveline arrived on.  They are attacked by the mold, and they switch to Mia’s perspective as they hear Eveline speak to her through their mental connection.

“Well, this is going to be interesting, I’ve never seen this before.” Ethan says as they move into the ship. They find an unconscious Ethan who is taken by the mold deeper into the ship.  They move through the mold infested ship as Mia, getting flashbacks as they move on.  They follow the phantom Eveline to a room containing a television where they watch a video tape that blends into them playing through the situation leading to the crash of the ship and the infection of the Baker family.

They see Mia’s partner Alan who explains he is the reason Eveline escaped he explains that she needs to fix his mess and they begin to track Eveline through the ship.  They finally come across Eveline in the engine room before she runs off again.  They find Alan again in the room next to the one where they started the video tape. As he explains that Eveline is deteriorating, he insults her, and she overtakes him with the mold.  The mold then spreads to Mia infecting her.  They then see Mia recording the warning video from the beginning of the game.  The section ends with Mia being blown off the ship and floating unconscious in the water, before returning to the present with Mia and the Phantom Eveline talking. Making their way to the bridge they use the surveillance cameras to find Ethan trapped in mold in the engine room. On the way there they are impeded by the phantom Eveline and the remaining molded.

As Mia finds Ethan, the perspective swaps back to Ethan’s mind as he speaks to a sane Jack.  He explains that Eveline is the cause of all the murders and kidnappings.  He says that they were infected when He rescued her from the crashed tanker.  Jack also explains that stopping Eveline will stop the mold.  Before Ethan awakens to Eveline and Mia arguing.  Mia rips him free from the mold prison and gives him the tissue sample before locking him out of the engine room urging him to kill Eveline.  They continue through the bayou to a salt mine near the Baker house.  They hear a military broadcast explaining a team was sent in to take down Eveline. They traverse the salt mines finding an underground lab with information on Eveline and the E series mold.  They use Eveline’s tissue samples to make the E- Necrotoxin that is used to kill her permanently. As they exit the mine, Ethan sees flashes of Eveline as she sends the molded to kill him. They exit the mine into the original room Ethan found Mia in where he has a vision of Mia panicking.  He continues to see visions of Mia’s attack on him and Eveline controlling her.  They stab Eveline with the serum, and she reveals her true form as Grandma before melting away and mutating into a large monstrosity.

As Dani fights the massive face of Eveline, Miranda mumbles to herself, “Absolutely fascinating.  How she responds to different stimuli and the delayed injection of the Necrotoxin.” Rose and Dani scream forgetting that Miranda was sitting behind them.

“Jesus Christ! What is wrong with you! You scared the living hell out of us!” Rose yells at her turning to face Miranda who has a notebook open in her lap.  “What are you even doing?”

Miranda blushes at being caught, “I was taking notes on how E-001 reacted and how the family responded to the infection.  It is incredibly fascinating that the whole Baker family mutated without becoming one of the shambling molded.”

“Trust me she was about to run off and work more before I stopped her.” Elena interjects into Miranda’s rambling.  “Don’t worry, I won’t let her work on the Eveline project outside of simply watching videos.” Miranda’s blush deepens and she looks embarrassed at being called out by her lab assistant.

“Good, no more mind control children allowed.” Dani says rudely turning back to the screen continuing the final fight.

Ethan is thrown from the house and sees helicopters arriving at the house as he is attacked by Eveline. He uses an unknown gun to shoot Eveline calcifying and crumbling her finally.  After the battle, Ethan and Mia are rescued by Chris.  The final shots of the game are Ethan speaking over clips of marshlands and the reveal of the Blue Umbrella helicopter.

“Well that certainly was something….” Ethan says as the credits roll.  Mia wide eyed and shocked nods in agreement.

“So, all that actually happened?” Rose asks her parents, they both nod. “Ok well that doesn’t explain how the heck this got made or why we were sent it or by who!” Rose rants.

“Who cares, it was awesome!” Dani exclaims high fiving Angie who cheers with her.

“Can we leave now? My back is beginning to hurt.” Bela complains standing up and stretching.

Rose boos her, “Fine be boring.  What did everyone else think?” She asks everyone left in the room.

“Amazing! Fantastic! Ten out of ten!” Dani exclaims clinging onto Rose.

“It was interesting, very cinematic.  A bit tropey at times but it works in its favor.  Especially since this technically happened.  The villains were enjoyable and empathetic at the same time.” Heisenberg critiques.

“Yeah, whatever it was fine.” Cass says getting up and leaving the room.

“I had quite a nice time, I’m glad you suggested this, Rose.” Alcina says picking up the sleeping Donna. “I’m sure Donna will apologize for falling asleep tomorrow morning.  Have a good night.”  She kisses the top of Rose and Dani’s heads and leave the room.

“It was quite informative, thank you for inviting me, Rose.  I truly appreciate it.  Now I must go and review my notes.” Miranda says looking at her notebook as she slowly leaves the room.

“We are actually going to bed, but thanks for inviting us, Rose.  We’ll have to do it again soon!” Elena says grabbing Miranda’s arm and taking her notebook.

“I think your mom and I have some talking to do, but you guys have a good night sweetie.” Ethan says getting up before kissing Rose on the head.

“Yeah, outside of the horrifying content of this ‘game’ it was fun.  Have a good night honey.” Mia says following her husband to their room.

“Alright seems like the party is dying down and someone has to get Sal to his room.  Seems like he and Donna can’t stay up late like us cool kids.” Heisenberg laughs out shaking Sal awake.  Sal stands up groggily and leans ion Heisenberg as they leave to their respective rooms.

“Lame everyone left. You want to stay up or are you hitting the sack too?” Dani asks Rose.

“I think I’m going to bed too.  I have a lot to think about.” Rose says hugging Dani, “See you in the morning Dan.”  Dani decides to follow Rose and they head to bed.

In his assigned quarters, the Duke watches the group scatter to their rooms for bed, “I’m glad they enjoyed my little gift.  Hopefully, it answers some questions for them.” The Duke says to himself chuckling.

[music-my-angel]

Remembering a silly promise

Prompt - Hey could you do a stereo kicks one, where they all meet up after disbanding. Where the boys are doing their own solo projects and some are in bands. (You know, Reece is in NHC, Charlie is in OTA and Casey is in Union J). I would just like one where they all reminisce about when they were a band, all congratulate each other and they all promise each other to stay in contact and never forget each other. Maybe it could be emotional? Thanks xx

 ------

The decision to split up had been unanimous but none of them would argue that life after leaving a band was difficult. When you are in a band, everything you do and every decision you take is altogether but when you are on your own, life can get tough and lonely. That’s exactly what happened to the Stereo Kicks boys. Some of them had moved on quickly, some of them got left behind but none of them could forget each other. That’s how they found themselves remembering a silly promise that they had made each other years before.

------

When the Stereo Kicks band had recently had their first major gig confirmed, they had celebrated the news in a small café. They had promised each other that they’d come back to this very café after 5 years and look back at their journey.

And now 5 years later, Barclay was the first to walk into the café, greet the owner and order his usual coffee. He sat for a while, remembering how they had made this silly promise years ago and scoffed, thinking how stupid he was to believe that his friends would remember it too.

Shaking his head, Barclay stood up when he felt a hand squeeze his shoulder.

“Tom” Barclay exclaimed, letting the man pull him in a hug.

“I’ve been sat in the corner for a while thinking that no one would come when I saw you get up here” Tom explained.

“Was thinking the same” Barclay admitted.

The two boys smiled at each other before hearing an angry yell behind them.

------

Jake had been cursing himself as he made the trip to the café. He couldn’t believe that he was wasting money over a silly promise made years ago that he wasn’t sure if anyone would even remember. He was in an angry mood when he walked right into someone in the café and tumbled down to the floor.

“Are you blind? You couldn’t see a whole person in front of you?” Jake yelled.

“Jakey” came an excited shriek next to him and when he looked in front, he saw Casey who had fallen down too.

“Oh my God, you remembered?” Jake asked.

“Of course, I’d remember you. We haven’t been out of contact for too long” Casey frowned.

“Remember the promise you idiot” Jake laughed, “Besides, no one can forget this handsome face!”

Casey chuckled as he pulled Jake in a hug.

“You handsome people plan on getting up or is the floor comfortable?” Tom asked as he walked up to the boys with Barclay in tow.

Jake’s mood turned from ‘angry to excited’ in mere seconds.

------

The boys were sat together when Jake brought up the Union J topic.

“Didn’t work out?” Barclay asked.

“Felt like I was replacing George and they couldn’t move on from him as well” Casey confessed.

“He was their youngest, nah? It wouldn’t have been easy for them too” Tom added.

Casey nodded before smiling brightly, “Look who’s here!”

James and Chris approached the boys, hesitantly.

“We were going to return back but heck, I’m so happy we walked in” Chris said, hugging Casey.

“We thought of returning from the door but Chris wanted to say hi to the owner” James admitted as he greeted the boys.

“Glad you wanted to say hi then” Jake laughed.

As the guys met each other, they notice Reece and Charlie outside the café.

------

“I thought they’d be too busy with their own bands to come” Barclay confessed.

Tom sighed softly as he got up, “Gotta bring these two kids in or they’d gather a crowd around them.”

They all smiled as they watched Tom turn into the protective big brother that he was as he went to the fetch the younger ones.

As soon as Charlie and Reece saw Tom, they jumped over him nearly making the man lose his footing but Tom only chuckled as he held onto the boys tighter.

“You all remembered” Charlie exclaimed.

“Look at us, all getting teary eyed over a silly promise” Jake chuckled.

“5 years” Barclay sighed.

“5 years ago we thought we were the next One Direction” Casey huffed.

“Look us now, man” Chris giggled.

“Look at us still remembering our promise” Reece pointed out.

“Because our friendship is above everything” James said.

“Where else would you find friends that remember a silly promise made 5 years ago” Tom added.

“Coffee shots anyone?” Barclay asked.

The boys cheered as they celebrated the reunion altogether.

------

It was a silly promise that brought the boys together and made them realize how strong their friendship was. It warmed their hearts that they all remembered a promise made 5 years ago and that’s exactly what made them make a new promise again. This time they promised not to wait for 5 years. Instead, they promised to stay in contact and keep checking on each other. And this time, they were all sure that they would remember their promise.

------

A/N

Hope you all like it.

Happy New Year, people! May this New Year be kind to one and all!

[optimistic-dinosaur-nacho]

Are You Up For The Challenge? PART 1

Chris Evans x Fem!Reader

Warnings: Language

Summary: You and your friend went for comic book store to get some new comics. But without knowing, one single Captain America doll brings them up for a quest.

Author’s Note: This is gonna be good. I just was scrolling through the media and remembered this darn video. So I’m gonna make it.

Love you!

~~~

You and your friend were about to head over to a comic store you saw on your way to the hotel. You two wanted to go after you settled in your hotel room before walking over there. You and your friend loved the Avengers comic books, even though you were adult women, you just loved to read comic books.

“Oh wow, it’s really small,” Jade says, looking around the place. You looked over to the comic books in the corner, seeing a few books before you heard Jade gasp.

“Look, Y/N,” She says, you turned around to see the Captain America doll. You laughed and walked over, “That’s pretty cool,” You reached for it and picked it up.

“Uh, excuse me?” The doll spoke, you yelped and dropped the doll, backing up with Jade. “What the hell?” Jade laughs. “Thanks for dropping me,” It says. You laughed, “Who-?” You picked it up, “I’m sorry, Mr. Captain America... doll.” You looked around to see if anyone was around you and Jade.

“Hey, eyes over here,” You look down to the doll, “I need your help. Are you up for the challenge?” It asks.

“He sounds kind of cute,” You muttered, spinning the doll around to look for some kind of camera. There was a short pause from the doll, “Are you two up for the challenge?”

You look at Jade who just shrugs at you.

“Yes.”

You waited for a response, “So this may look like a standard comic book store, but it’s actually a secret Hydra base. And I need your help to take it down. I need you to look around the room for a code,” You and Jade look around the room. “A four digit code. And time is of the essence.”

“Four digit code? Is he asking for our pin numbers?” Jade jokes, walking around the room. You look up and spot the sign, “Oh. Found it. Hey, cute guy we found it,” You shout into the doll faces.

You raise the doll up to the sign. “It says 1600.”

THE CODE IS 1600

“Now take that code and look for anything else on that sign that might be helpful,” The doll says. You move up to the sign and saw the triangle with a zap on it. “There’s a triangle with a zappy thing on it. That’s the power box, right? Where’s that at?” You asked.

Jade looks around, “Oh! There,” Jade runs over and puts in the code. “What was it, 1600?”

“Yeah. Hey, cute guy we found it. Are we done?” You asked, Jade opens the box and it swings open. Jade yelps.

The words written on the lid was PROVE YOUR WORTH.

“Um, Mr. America, we’re in.”

“Now. One of you is going to have to stick your hand in that hole. And I hope no one has a problem with snakes,” The doll says. You look at Jade who shakes her head immediately. “Nuh-uh, I ain’t dealing with live noodles, okay?”

“Really?” You asked, Jade nods. “Let your man do it,” Jade points at the doll. You look down, knowing you were holding it close. “I’ll do it, here, hold the doll.”

You hand Jade the doll and walked up to the box. You rolled up your sleeve and sighed, “Where’s the store clerk, if I get bitten I’ll sue the man.” You see Jade bite her nail as you reached into the hole, hearing the loud rattles and hisses.

You yelped when a harsh hiss booms in that box. You never pulled your arm out, “Pull out whatever you find in there.” You felt items and you pulled them out of the box, revealing masks and goggles. “What the heck?” You say.

“Suit up,” The doll said. You tossed Jade a mask, “Oh, we are now the Men in Black.”

“Yeah, it’s not like he’s gonna ask us to rob a bank now, are we?”

“You’re gonna have to walk out to the street to find an undercover Hydra operative, so you’re gonna have to very subtly, casually start asking around,”Jade throws on the goggles and poses.

“I feel like I look cute,” She says, you rolled your eyes as you were not happy about wearing these things. “These goggles are squeezing my brain, I can’t think straight. Come on.” You and Jade walk out of the store to the side walk.

“Start asking around,” The doll says. Jade walks up to a man, “Excuse me, sir. Are you a Hydra operative?”

The man shakes his head confusingly. “Jade, stop you look like you’re gonna kidnap them!”

“What? He said ask!” She says.

You threw your arms out, “I think the safest thing to do would be scream, ‘Hail Hydra’,” Your shoulders drop at the sound of the doll’s voice. 

“Jade, give me the dang doll,” You took the doll back, Jade looks around, “I’m gonna scream it.”

“No, Jade!”

“Hail Hydra!” You rubbed your forehead as Jade looks around. “That was good,” The doll says. You look over to see a man in shades walk up to you two.

He slips something into your hand, “Head back to the start.”

“What did he give you?” The doll asks, Jade watched him leave you two at the front of the store. “A flashlight and a Hydra pin,” You said.

“Good work, girls. Head back inside and find where in the store that Hydra emblem could fit.” You and Jade walk into the store again and you ripped off the goggles. “If we put on some tactical suits next, we’re gonna die,” You say.

Jade looks around the room, “Oh, there! Y/N, here!” Jade waves at you so you come over and saw the same hydra marking on the wall. “Okay,” You gave Jade the pin and she puts it right on the spot and a door opens causing you two to yelp and back up.

“God damn it, Cap, you have reflexes what’s going on? You gotta tell us these things!” You said.

“Okay, girls, you’re gonna go through that door and I think the Hydra base is downstairs.” Jade shoves the flashlight into your hands, “I’ll take your boyfriend, you take the flashlight,” She says.

You glare at her before turning on the flashlight, “If I die, I’m haunting your home.” Jade laughs as you two head down the stairs. “I got your boyfriend, don’t worry. Hey, Y/N’s boyfriend, what do we do now?” Jade asked.

You saw the fog at the bottom of the steps and you felt chills run up your spine. The doll never responded. “Hello? Hail hydra? AH!” Jade screams when the light cuts out and you’re in darkness.

“Y/N! HAIL HYDRA!”

“Shut up, Jade!” You said, moving forward. “Hello?” You called.

You heard gentle breathing in front of you before you felt a pair of hands grab your shoulders causing you to scream in terror and the lights go on. You see a figure stand in front of you, you quickly backed up and turned away.

The man soon laughs as Jade held the doll up for protection. “Oh my god!” Jade shouts, you turn around to see the man himself, Chris Evans.

Jade laughed, “Chris Evans!” She squeals. “You girls made it!” He says, you hold your hand to your chest. He laughs as he looks at you, “You were one of the first to get that code so quick,” He points at you.

You laughed, “I thought we were gonna die or something. But this better,” You say. Chris laughs, “Come here,” He gestures you for a hug and you got pulled into his chest.

His little belly laughs made you blush, you were so close to him. “You guys did good. I loved how much you two were arguing,” Chris held you by his side as Jade comes in for the next hug.

“Oh, god. That means you heard us say-” You cut yourself off and covered your face. Jade laughs, “She called you cute!” She laughs again, bending over her knees cackling.

Chris laughs, “Hey, it’s okay. I know I’m tough to handle,” He jokes. 

You lightly laughed, “Oh, man. That was pretty fun but kind of sketchy.”

“You guys, I gotta say, are really smart. I think you beat the high score. That had to be like 10 minutes. Maybe even five,” He says. You laughed, “I guess we were skilled. Oh, my god, this is the best thing that’s ever happened to me. We literally came here for Marvel stuff and I was just about to get that doll.”

Chris laughs, “I spooked you guys there. I can’t believe you dropped me.” You all laughed and began to chat more. Chris had the staff who were working on this small escape room showed you the cameras, you all laughing to the video.

You gotten pictures with Chris Evans, he added some different pictures of different poses. You two hugged, stuck your tongues out, whatever, you let him check out the results of them with some laughter. And after that, you gave Chris one last hug along with your friend and you headed back to your hotel.

“I can’t believe we just met Chris Evans. I think he really likes you,” Jade said, throwing herself onto her own bed. You closed the door, “You’re just speaking nonsense now because we met him and you knew I liked him from the beginning don’t get my hopes up.”

“You don’t believe me?” She asked, she pulls out her phone, “I might’ve took some secret photos of you chatting.” You groan, “Jade, why-?”

“Because you two were adorable, you clearly his type. You two are only 6 years apart of age, how could you not date him?”

You pulled out your phone, “I would not because I know he does not like me.” You opened your phone and you saw that you were in your contact app. “Oh, no...”

Jade looks up, “What?”

You scrolled through your contacts and met the name in the ‘C’ section. Chris had added his name and number into your phone. He must’ve gotten the chance to. “He added his phone number into my contacts.”

Jade gasps, “OH MY GOD! You’re gonna have babies-!”

“Jade, stop it, you sound drunk!”

“No, that’s just how I act! You got his number!” She hops off the bed, “You’re gonna send him pictures and all the fun stuff, you’ll love it and he’ll return them back-”

“Jade, stop!” You laughed as she squeal throughout the room. “Can you relax?” Jade takes a deep breath. “Okay. Okay. Sorry.” You sighed as she drops her shoulders.

“Text him.”

~~~~

I’m sorry I had to end it there!

Want a tag? Just ask!

TAGS OF LOVELY PEOPLE: @joannaliceevans-fanficblog​ @chrisevans-imagines​ @princess-evans-addict​ @ifuseekamyevans​ @lowkeycapsvision​ @mizcaptainphoenix​ @justice-avengers​ @my-favorite-fics-and-imagines​

[blazehedgehog]

i bet you could do a kickass video on sonic xtreme

I dunno.

I talk big about Sonic X-treme, but the truth of the matter is I kind of stopped paying attention to a lot of it after a while.

For those who don’t know, here’s the whole story:

Around 2000 or 2001, I was deep in to, like, The Secrets of Sonic Team and other websites that covered lost beta elements in Sonic games. This was right after the big Sonic 2 Beta discovery, and the Sonic community was working overtime documenting all kinds of discoveries and lost stuff from every Sonic game ever made up to that point...

...except Sonic X-treme. That information was fragmented and spread across the internet and nobody really seemed to care. I saw a niche I could fill, so I started up a website and combed the web looking for every scan, screenshot and video I could find. I collected all of it at a modest website that was something like sonicxtreme.tk or sonicxtreme.cjb.net or whatever. One of those free domain URLs.

And once I’d collected everything that could be found on Sonic X-treme... that was, uh, it. It’s not like there was anything more that I could do. Once I had all the magazine articles and screenshots of the game, I had reached a dead end on what that website could accomplish. I had completed the known snapshot of what was Sonic X-treme. And so it sat for like, a year. Maybe longer. Just gathering dust.

By now, people at in the community were making efforts to contact the English-speaking members of Sonic 2′s development team. People like Craig Stitt, Brenda Ross, so on and so forth. The Sega Technical Institute folks. And it dawned on me: the entire development staff for Sonic X-treme was American, weren’t they? With Sonic 2, they were stuck talking to artists who were trapped in the tunnel vision of only working on small, specific parts of the game. Brenda Ross could only speak about the couple levels she worked on, y’know? They couldn’t interview the larger members of Sonic Team directly -- they were celebrities, which made them hard to contact, and on top of that there was a language barrier. There were a lot of hurdles to cross, and many of them were borderline impossible.

But with Sonic X-treme, everything was way more accessible and local. So I started skimming the magazine scans I had. Ultra Gameplayers had run a monthly feature called “White Glove Diaries” about the development of the game, speaking to people who were working on it, and it was the best source of information for the game at the time. Within moments, I had a name: Mike Wallis, the game’s producer. Inside of maybe thirty minutes and some skillful Google searching later, I had an email address. It really was that easy.

I tried to be as polite and respectful as I could; I asked him if he was the same Mike Wallis that worked on Sonic X-treme and wondered if he would be willing to answer any questions.

The first thing he wrote back to me was “How did you find me?” along with confirmation that yes, he was that Mike Wallis.

The second thing he wrote back to me was “Would you be willing to speak over the phone?”

And I panicked. This guy was, at least to me, a pretty big deal. I was still deep in my pit of despair, so the idea of interviewing this guy rattled me. I couldn’t do it. I posted on on the Sonic hacking community forum, relaying my inability to go through with this thing. Here I was on the cusp of a big breakthrough and I was acting like a deer in the headlights. Leaped before I looked and got exactly what I wanted, at the cost of now feeling deeply over my head. I was in no way mentally prepared for this.

Somebody on the forum stepped forward and said he’d do the interview for me. His username was Pachuka, and he was gaining notoriety in the Sonic hacking community. Pachuka seemed confident and knew his way around the important terminology, so I figured sure, he can do it. We talked over IRC, ran through some questions we wanted to ask, set the whole thing up for the appointed phone call. We were a team.

The call happened and Pachuka recorded the whole thing. Said he’d release the MP3 on his new website, The Sonic-Cult.

I was incredibly nervous even just listening to the MP3 of the phone call. They’d have to mention me, right? Acknowledge my existence? Talk about how I set the call up? It was hard not to feel incredibly self-conscious.

The call opened with Mike Wallis referring to my website. And Pachuka... had no idea what he was talking about. He never mentioned me by name, and barely even acknowledged that he knew me. Heck, Mike Wallis seemed to know more about me than Pachuka did, and I’m the one who set the whole thing up for him.

Looking back in retrospect, I probably didn’t do that much. From getting the idea, to finding his email address and sending the email, contacting Mike Wallis took what was likely less than an hour’s work, and I was mainly following the example of others in the Sonic community. But in the moment, it felt like I had done a lot. This was as much my discovery as it was anyone else’s. I was the only person who cared enough to set this up. I ran a whole website about this stuff -- the only website for it on the entire internet. And yet, Pachuka couldn’t even remember my username. I felt worthless.

From then on, the community treated this as Pachuka’s discovery. It was his interview. He made the discovery. His star rose, and I remained a nobody. No one cared about my site. Sonic-Cult is where you went if you wanted to learn the real deal about Sonic X-treme.

With Mike Wallis on the line, Pachuka started contacting more people from Sonic X-treme’s development. Soon, that lead him to Chris Senn, and the floodgates were blown wide open. Chris Senn was the key to everything.

I was never a part of any of those conversations. Not even once. The whole community took off without me and I was left in the dust. The handful of screenshots and magazine scans I had collected now looked absolutely pitiful.

I paid attention to the information that came out, of course. I was still interested in the game, and I mirrored what I could on my site. But on the inside, it was hard not to feel hurt. I never looked at it with quite the fervor I once had. It wasn’t mine anymore. I let myself get scooped and the door was slammed in my face without so much as a “thank you.”

After that, the magic and mystery of Sonic X-treme wore off pretty quickly for me. As more and more and more concept drawings and videos and music files and sprites and everything else burst out of Chris Senn, my interest began to wane. It stopped being special.

Petty? On some level, maybe. But for a brief window of time, Sonic X-treme research felt like my baby. I was the guy you talked to about that. Why bother keeping up appearances when somebody else was getting patted on the back and now one of the game’s developers was practically uploading the entire design document to the internet? They apparently didn’t want me involved, so I took a hike.

Don’t get me wrong: it was my fault. I handed this to Pachuka on a silver platter, and he ran away with it. It was a decision that haunted me for years. Made me start realizing I needed to be more confident and less shy.

I am in no rush to relive that mistake.

So when it comes to Sonic 3, I could recite a lot of that from memory. When it comes to Sonic X-treme, I remember the details of the Mike Wallis interview and some basics that came from Chris Senn, but a lot of the finer details of that weren’t really committed to memory, because I didn’t pay super close attention to all of it. And where would you even go to fill in those blanks? Last I checked, The Senntient website isn’t what it used to be.

So, again... I dunno.

[lanaisnotwool]

418 Investing in PreREO with Barry Owens

http://moneyripples.com/2020/08/21/418-investing-in-prereo-with-barry-owens/

We have a special guest today, the President of PreReo, Barry Owens.

He is a 30-year mortgage industry veteran. Basically he provides problem-solving solutions to create win-win solutions. He has an extensive resume in the industry and it is an interesting story.

Chris Miles, the "Cash Flow Expert and Anti-Financial Advisor," is a leading authority on how to quickly free up and create cash flow for thousands of his clients, entrepreneurs, and others internationally! He’s an author, speaker, and radio host that has been featured in US News, CNN Money, Bankrate, Entrepreneur on Fire, and spoken to thousands getting them fast financial results.

Listen to our Podcast here:

https://www.blogtalkradio.com/moneyripples/2020/07/17/418--investing-in-pre-reos

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Chris Miles (00:00): Hello, my fellow Ripplers! This is Chris Miles. Your Cash Flow Expert and Anti-Financial Advisor. Welcome you out for a wonderful show. A show that’s for you. And it’s about you guys. It’s about those of you that want to work. You don’t want to work so hard because you’ve been working your tail off. You want to work because you want to not because you have to. To have that freedom. That prosperity. That cash flow. Today! Not working 30 or 40 years and saving forever and hope that someday you might have a retirement, but you want that freedom right now. So you’re gonna be able to live a life to do what you love. To be with those you love. Whenever the heck you feel like it. But on top of that, as a Rippler, you actually want to create a ripple effect in the lives of others too. Not just your family and generations beyond you, which is awesome, but for everybody you come in contact with to enrich your community and make things better.

Chris Miles (00:55): And guys, I appreciate you guys that have been sharing this show, creating a ripple effect that way, because as we can be able to do this for other people, man, this just gets bigger and bigger. And I appreciate you guys allowing me to create a ripple effect through you and an essence, creating through others as well. Thank you again for tuning in for joining us and for following us too.

Chris Miles (01:13): Here’s a quick reminder. Go to our website, MoneyRipples.com. You can check out the blogs that have the videos of these shows as well as the free book Beyond Rice & Beans, Seven Secrets to Free Up Cash Today. That you can download for free right now to be able to find more money today. So check it out.

Chris Miles (01:28): Alright! So I’ve got a special guest today. You guys have had, you know, we’ve had repeat guests. So one of our biggest repeat guest we’ve had on the show is Jorge Newberry. You guys know from like American Homeowner Preservation, things like that. Well, we’ve got a special guests here with one of his partners, someone that he actually worked with in a company called PreREO. This guy’s name is Barry Owens. He’s the president of PreREO. He’s a 30 year mortgage industry veteran. He believes that PreREO provides an incredible opportunity for bringing no holders and community investors together to mitigate losses, to lenders and accelerate returns for investors. Basically creating a huge win-win for everybody. His unique background experience creating and executing a variety problem solving solutions, positioned to successfully and build the infrastructure to handle the varying and specific needs of no buyers and sellers. Prior to joining his PreReo, Barry worked in leadership roles, such as [inaudible]. So Barry, welcome to our show!

Barry Owens (02:19): Thank you very much, Chris. Happy to be here.

Chris Miles (02:22): Yeah. So tell us like first and foremost, like how’d you even go this route because many people go in like the banking industries and things like that, but I know a deal with Reos or Real Estate Owned Properties, right? Like dealing with these, it’s a very specific niche. How’d you get there?

Barry Owens (02:37): Yeah. It is a well known, but also hidden niche, right? The people that are in it know it very well. You know, they’ve learned a lot through it and they’ve made a lot of money through it, but it is also very quiet because it’s not very traditional.

Chris Miles (02:51): Yeah.

Barry Owens (02:52): I very connected to the bank, you know, having the right contacts, having the right introductions, having access to the products is really the key in it. So yes, it is a very niche driven market where, you know, knowing the right individuals, having the right contacts, whether that be at the lending institutions, institutions like ours that can actually provide the product is a very strategic advantage to participate.

Chris Miles (03:18): Yeah. Now this is a very synergistic business that goes along with American homeowner preservation. I can see it. It makes perfect sense while you guys are connected. Tell us, for those listeners that don’t even know what REOS are. Right. Give us a brief introduction about what they are and that sort of thing.

Barry Owens (03:32): Yeah. So REO, it’s a bank acronym for Real Estate Owned. Basically it’s a property that either an investor or banking institution has foreclosed on and taken back into inventory. It did not sell it forclosue sales. So now it’s going to be brought back in marketed for sale by the institution. They sometimes use third parties to sell it for them, but yeah. And then basically owned asset that’s an REO or you’ll sometimes hear it referred to as an OREO, Other Real Estate Owned.

Chris Miles (04:02): Absolutely. And this is key because I know from last recession, when people I knew that were dealing with Oreos connection is everything like it’s not about who has the most money, because you can sometimes offer less money and still get an offer accepted if you have the right relationships with these banks, with these institutions. Correct?

Barry Owens (04:22): Correct. And a lot of, again, it goes back to my earlier comment on, you know, as you said, the relationship as you become a repeat buyer that gives you a lot of credibility with these investors that we know you’re going to keep coming back, purchasing more product. So yeah, you kind of do get bulk discount mentality going, you know, when you’re a repeat buyer, it definitely builds your credibility.

Chris Miles (04:43): That’s absolutely true. And so give us an example, like what does it like to buy a property through you guys? Like, you know, give us example so maybe, cause obviously you buy a whole portfolio of these things, right? Do you sell these by the portfolio or do you sell the individual properties, like piece them off? How do you do it?

Barry Owens (05:00): Typically they’re going to be pieced off. Now we do have buyers that will buy multiple properties at the same time, but they might not all close on the same day, but we might have three, four or five, six deals going with them at any given time. But we do sell these, you know, basically individual properties in our note, which is the preREO market, which is really what, you know, our website, preREO is focused on is selling the notes of the foreclosure properties. They’re not REO yet. They’re preREO. We’re selling them out instead of the actual physical property, which is the discerning difference between the preREO and the REO.

Chris Miles (05:39): And why would they want the preREO versus the REO

Speaker 3 (05:44): Opportunities. The program that we created historically owning a vacant note, a property note, and the property is vacant. It’s a very costly endeavor. You have lawn care, snow removal, vandalism, all those factors. And plus you’re paying interest. You’ve got all these things, plus you’re completing a foreclosure. So it’s basically a dead money asset, which is why people are frowned upon the past. What we’ve done with preREO is create a program and we have the complete infrastructure to handhold people through this entire process, through the turning networks that we have and the servicing that we have with AHP backing us. And you know, those pileated ponies where we can handhold somebody through the entire process. And the key here is the receiver. When you can get a receiver appointed and people oftentimes get nervous on receiver, that���s expensive and doesn’t need to be because our receiver can be any person that can’t be an entity, but it can be any person.

Speaker 3 (06:48): So as an example, if you have a local real estate agent that you work with, or, you know, we also have a vast network, we could introduce you to as well, you have a contractor or you know, that real estate agent whomever you would choose. You can have that person appointed as the receiver by the court, take possession of the property of this vacant property, which you’ve purchased at a great price because of the fact that again, historically vacant notes are not something that people go after a whole lot, but we’ve been able to bring this entire segment of the market and put it in front of investors and the network and the supporting network with the receiver. So that receiver now has the power of the court to go in and take possession of the property. Re-key the property, the buyer of the note, you know, the preREO partner, they can go in, take possession, do the necessary repairs, if any, that are required to a property, put a renter in it while the foreclosure action is going. So now you’ve turned that, you know what used to be a dead money asset into an income producing asset while you complete the foreclosure. And then once you complete the foreclosure, then you have that REO that we talked about earlier. Now, what do you want to do with it? Are you a buy and hold strategy? Or I just want rental income? Are you a flipper? You know, Hey, let me take my profits now. But you have a multitude of strategies that, you know, will be completely up to you once that process is done.

Chris Miles (08:26): So walk us through like sample deal. Like what may one of the investors that have gone and purchased one of these properties, walk us through like what the process was like and the numbers too. Like how did those numbers work out for them?

Speaker 3 (08:37): Yeah. So to give you an example and I can’t really get into the specific numbers, but I will lay it out. So one of our initial customers, it’s been a longer term customer of AHP. They purchased a couple of the notes a few months ago, you know, as we were rolling up the program. They just paid off their first note and they are back and they have numerous offers now on other properties. So the return was obviously significant enough for them. Honestly, I don’t even know what their return was. They paid us off. Now they’re back putting in offers on other properties. So, but as like hypothetical numbers, you know, one of the samples that we use is that, and this is a good example. It’ll set the table. So for, to do round numbers, we typically sell the properties at 75% of value. So what that means, if you went to a realtor.com, you would see a property at $133,000 value, we will sell it for a hundred thousand. The note for a hundred thousand dollars preREO will fund 75% of that. The investor would need to come to the table with $25,000 to fund it. They’re part of the participation agreement, right? I have.

Chris Miles (09:58): So to be clear, they’re not buying the full hundred thousand of the note. You guys are partnering together, you’re putting up 75% of money. They’re putting up 25% of that net price. Right? Yeah.

Barry Owens (10:10): Correct. And they need to have some money in the back for rehab. And the legal costs, that will incur. We estimate it’s about $25,000 or so, you have to get the receiver appointed. And obviously that number can vary, you know, on a palatial estate, you know, $3 million estate, your numbers are going to escalate, but yeah, $25,000 repair and legal expenses to pay the $2,000 for the program fee. And you give the 12% return to preREO on the money based on how long you hold that money. And then we will do it for up to three years, you can pay us off in two weeks as well, if that would be your choice. And typically what we would see, the one analysis that we ran in that case after the repairs are done, the property is worth $79,000, your net, after all the costs, after the participation fee, after the 12% annualized return, if you sell it in a year, you’re looking at a $39,000 return. So these numbers can be very lucrative in a very short period of time.

Chris Miles (11:26): Yeah. So let me walk back just so people can kind of get a visual because it’s always easier to do this, and I know that they can reach out to you guys and see some of the stuff too. So in this example, somebody puts $25,000 down, right? That’s their investment into that out of the hundred thousands of 25% they put in, like you said, about another 25,000 repairs, right? So they’re at about 50,000 bucks. Plus like you said, there’s about $2,000 program fee. You mentioned like, and this is a key one I wanted to focus too. So because you’re coming in with the 75,000, right? They’re paying you essentially like 12% a year or 1% a month. Right?

Barry Owens (12:03): Correct.

Chris Miles (12:04): On that money. So, and we’re saying this over how long? A period of time?

Barry Owens (12:09): The example that I just gave was a one year, but we worked through the notes, but we have people that pay us off in three months, depending on where it’s at in the foreclosure. So the timelines on these varys greatly.

Chris Miles (12:23): Yeah. It can vary greatly depending on the speed, but even if it took a full year, which is a decent amount of time, right? That’s like, you know, 9,000 bucks to come out of pocket. So they might’ve come out of pocket a little over 60 grand. Correct? In that example.

Barry Owens (12:36): Yeah. Depending on how you want to play that out. Yeah. For they would liquidate the investment. Yes, totally. Yes.

Chris Miles (12:42): But then, like you said, after they liquidate, what’s the return on that, that, in that example,

Barry Owens (12:47): Well, on that example would be $39,000 is the profit in the spreads and looking at

Chris Miles (12:55): That’s a huge profit for a short period of time.

Speaker 3 (12:58): It is a very significant profit, which is, you know, we have just really got the program running, just started adding a bunch of properties to it. Like I said, we’ve only had a couple of test samples, or test cases that I could talk about and have gone through, but it’s already proven to be a lucrative, as I stated, people aren’t going to come back investors, aren’t going to come back to a program where they didn’t make money. So we are already seeing the repeat investors on these, which is fantastic. I mean, that’s, what’s gonna make, you know, the model thrive. We want to see the investors do well. And we’re partnered in this, you know, we have a vested interest in this doing well.

Chris Miles (13:37): Right. This is kind of a done with you deal. Right. It’s definitely not done for you. There’s definitely a lot of your own involvement in this, but there’s definitely a place where you guys are really, truly partnering together for these deals, right?

Barry Owens (13:50): Yeah, absolutely. Not only with our money, but with our resources. It was through legal and AHP servicing and all of the support mechanisms that we have in our, you know, internal staff to walk people through issues and, you know, educate them as we go. So yeah, it’s definitely not, you know, here write a check and then you’re on your own. There’s a support mechanism through our process.

Chris Miles (14:13): That’s right. And that’s the kind of the cool thing. And everybody listening, I want them to really understand the difference here is that there is a difference between passive investing and active investing. And we’ve mentioned this on the show several times, right? I mean, passive investing is you turn it over. You’re really not doing a whole lot. Right. Even if you buy a turnkey property, you know, even though you have somebody that helps you buy a rental property, that’s I would call it a partially passive investment. Right. Because there’s some work upfront, but once he got it going, then it’s mostly passive. Well, this one’s definitely more on the active side, but as you go up through those ranks, the potential for returns is much bigger. There’s also more time involvement in this, but still, I mean, you took that say you took that same again, we’re rounding down to 60,000 bucks, right.

Chris Miles (14:56): But $60,000 and you put it with AHP, you know, very, very passive. Like you do nothing. You know, you let them do all the work, right. I mean, you might make 6,000 bucks or so in a year, you know, but in this example, you said, you can make over 30 because now you’re getting more involved. You’re become more of an active investor in this kind of thing. And I know there’s several of you that either one, you like note investing, which this is kind of up your alley anyways. Or two, you’re already trying to find ways to buy properties at a discount and trying to find ways to create leverage. And this is exactly the way to do leverage. And by the way, nice thing he has here too, is, you know, obviously this is private money. Well, I mean, you’re using like AHPS money, but you’re not actually, they’re not going and having to qualify for a bank loan, which could take weeks, Right?

Barry Owens (15:39): Yes. Yeah. They’re the qualifier. If you’re coming to the table, you’re participating with us, you know, we ask you a couple of generic questions, but yeah, it’s very smooth, very easy process. It’s not something that you get back loaded with paperwork that you have to keep going back and forth with and keep coming up with documentation.

Chris Miles (15:59): Right. You can get hung up on this or that. And the other that just becomes frustrating and extensive, you know, so we’re definitely not saying this is a recommendation. We’re definitely not saying this is risk-free or anything of that nature, but definitely this is an amazing option, you know, and especially where you, like you said, this is preREO. This is not like buying OREOs where I’ve seen a lot of people got burned the last recession buying OREOs, you know, outright, and then having huge tax bills left on them. Cause they’re out in Chicago or something, right. It’s not like that.

Speaker 3 (16:26): Yeah. And we do the due diligence on them and we highly encourage everybody to do their own as well. But we will give you a broker price opinion, which is a third party, independent value of the property. And obviously you can go out to realtor.com or Zillow and look at some estimates, they’re both on rental incomes and property values. So you’re going to go into this with a lot of information, you know, to make it secure. And as you stated, yeah, there are people that have been burned tentatively on the REO market for one reason or the other. But there’s also a reason why there’s so many TV shows promoting these fix and flips, you know, in live scenarios because there is definitely a lucrative market out there for investors.

Chris Miles (17:10): Absolutely. And especially, I know there’s a lot of people that listen to show that say, okay, Chris, I get how I can buy rental properties and whatnot, but is there anything I could do that could be more lucrative? That could be faster and accelerated. And I’m not telling people to just go and should I go for pie in the sky and swing for the fences, and they strike out and they lose money. That’s not what we’re talking about doing here, but definitely if they have their bandwidth to put a little time and effort into something, this could be a great opportunity for them.

Barry Owens (17:39): Yeah, absolutely. And again, with the support mechanisms that are in place, you know, from a value, it, it gives a very high comfort level to everybody. We want to make sure that everybody’s very comfortable with what they’re investing in and how the process works. So we’re here, you know, a very supportive team behind it.

Chris Miles (17:57): Well, Barry, that’s exciting stuff. I love it. Everybody, we’ll put in the show notes, the link. So you guys can go and find out more, but Barry, I appreciate your time. This is really cool stuff, a great niche and a great opportunity that even someone who’s got, like you said, maybe they got 50,000 or a hundred thousand bucks. This could be an amazing opportunity for them to take advantage of and really create some great returns. Whether they create a rental from it, whether they flip the property, whatever it might be. There’s some definite opportunity here for them.

Barry Owens (18:26): Yeah. Absolutely. Looking forward to it. And I would greatly appreciate the time today, Chris.

Chris Miles (18:31): Absolutely. Man, I really appreciate the opportunity to have you on as well. So, every definitely check it out. Like I say, go to the show notes, you’ll see a link there. You can go and learn more about what preREO does and really how you can become more involved and how you can even ask more questions. So everybody go check that out. And man, again, this show is all about how you take action. It’s not just about being a hearer of this podcast and the hearer the word, but a doer as well. So make sure you go check that out, learn more, especially this, some that really hit home for you, or this is something that you’re already trying to do. And this just gave you more, leverage, more opportunity, check them out. So everybody, I hope you make it a wonderful and prosperous week and we’ll see you later.

[be-the-creature-fan]

Rise of ZV (Episode 2)

By: be-the-creature-fan

Episode Summary: Life after the Accident had deeply effected the WK Crew and decided to split up and find work elsewhere. However they still keep in contact with each other and are together during the highs and lows as time moves forward. Meanwhile a John Doe finds himself not remembering who he is, in a hospital. With very little strength and no known family, a sweet old couple helps him get back on his feet and try to help him remember his past life but to no evale. (It has sub chapters which might occur sometimes in this series)

Hope you enjoy this episode :)

Part 1 Episode 2

Numb and Moving on

After the accident Martin had to tell Martin the news to his family, which was probably one of the hardest things he had to do. Time seemed to move slowly while planning for the funeral, but the day of the funeral eventually came. Martin was feeling numb throughout everything but the funeral seemed epeshily hard for him since they couldn't acutely find any of Chris's remains, so they instead buried Chris's CPS and Creature Souvenir Collection.

After the funeral the WK team started discussing what to do next.

"I think we need to split up" Martin said bluntly.

"Whoa What?" Koki said very surprised. "Why?"

"Well we aren't the WK Team without Chris, and since Chris is gone, well I think we should disband the WK Team and start finding new jobs. We can stay in touch of course but it's time to start moving on."

"Ok, we understand" Aviva and the others said.

Over the next month Martin, Aviva Koki and Jimmy eventually found new jobs.

Martin got an office job at a cabinet factory. Aviva got a job at a mostly top secret science facility. Koki got a job working as a mechanic and Jimmy making a name for himself as a food blogger. Life was hard for the team but time just seemed to moving forward.

Martin's Birthday

It was December 23rd and it was a cold and bitter day. Heck, Martin was so busy with his new office job that he nearly forgot it was his birthday if it wasn't for the rest of the WK team and both of his Parents calling him that morning wishing him a Happy Birthday, not like it was much of a birthday without Chris. Later that day Martin got another call from Aviva.

"Hey Martin, how's your birthday going?"

"I don't know, it's ok I guess just felt like every other day." Martin said as he looked at a picture of Chris trying to smash his head into his birthday cake from a year ago. "How about you Aviva, how was your week?"

"Very interesting to say the least?" Aviva recalled "it's a long story, so if you don't have time I can tell you later if you want"

"Oh I have time, I just finished working for the day and I'm about to head home"

"Alright, well the week started like this..."

You Look Like Somebody I Use to Know.

(8:07am December 19th)

Aviva was working at on a new type of pill in her office that is supposed to restore nerves in the brain. The only thing thats needed now was test runs, but qualified and willing participants were very slim, and for many weeks thats how it was for many weeks. However this day was different, it started when one of Aviva's coworkers barged into her office.

"Ms. Corvado I have excellent news!"

"What is it Jones?" Aviva asked in a unenthusiastic voice

"We found a perfect canidate to test out the brain pill, he's a John Doe case but after hearing about this he's saying that he's willing to be apart of the trial."

"Oh! Well that's great, but does he know the potential risk? Because its still not quite ready."

"Well, he and the people who found him were hoping that they could meet up with a professional to have more of an idea of what this pill can do so they can make a firm decision if they want to continue with participating in the trial."

"Ok I'll probably contact them and meet up with them sometime this week."

So Aviva got ahold of the John Doe victim and the old couple who found him and the very next day Aviva met with them in John Doe's hospital room. The old couple who had found him were Mr. and Mrs. Svinth, and they are farmers. They told Aviva the story of how they found John Doe crawling out of the forest fire that was near by their house, and how half of his face was severely burned and lost his eye.

"For weeks he has been slipping in and out of consciousness" Mrs.Svinth added "We're trying to help him try to remember who he is, but nothing is helping, so when we read about needing participants for the new pill you were working on we told John about it while he was awake and he wanted to be part of your study."

So Aviva meets John Doe and even though he had semi long stubble and a large bandage covering the left side of his face there was something familiar about him but put it to the side thinking she was still grieving and after a short discussion and signing the waiver, John Doe took the pill.

"It might be a while before it takes effect, please let me know if anything happens. Aviva said as she started packing up.

"Thank you" John Doe said in a very raspy voice.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Back to Decmber 23rd

"Wow, that's weird" Martin said as he approached his apartment.

"What is it?" Aviva asked

"The light in my apartment is on, but I always turn it off before I leave for work, maybe someone broke in"

"Oh! I'll talk to you later then" Aviva said as she quickly hung up.

The light then suddenly turned off as Martin began to open the unlocked door.

TBC.......

[bltngames]

SAGE 2020: The Usual Suspects

Hi, folks! Back when I used to work at TSSZ a lot of people really enjoyed reading my articles where I’d talk about various games at the Sonic Amateur Games Expo (SAGE), and I’ve gotten more requests in the last month and a half to continue doing those types of articles than I think I’ve ever gotten about anything else I’ve ever done before. So, here we are!

But I also need to be real with you: there are a lot of games at SAGE. It was exhausting enough when there were 70, 80, or even 90 games. Heck, the one year I wrote about 85-something games by myself, I sort of felt like I was going to die. This year, there are over 220 games at SAGE. It is physically and emotionally impossible for me to talk about everything, and it may even be impossible for me to play everything. Things will fall through the cracks. Most things, probably. Though I am responsible for basically inventing SAGE 20 years ago, I am also a human. I have my limits, and I am sorry it has to be this way.

Structurally, we’re going to be doing things a little bit differently, and you should expect this to be a little fast and loose. Since I’m not talking about every single game on the show floor, articles are going to be broken up into types:

“Usual Suspects” will be for games that either appeared at previous SAGEs or that I’m at least aware of.

“Fan Games” should be obvious, and it’s whatever doesn’t fall under Usual Suspects.

“Indies” is the same deal, but for original games.

And finally, there will be a “Honorable Mentions” article for whatever random leftovers I don’t cover in the first three articles. Looking forward to me talking about your game, but I don’t mention it? Tell me about it and maybe it’ll end up here.

Without any more delay, let’s talk about those Usual Suspects...

Sonic GT

Sonic GT has always been kind of a difficult game to control, but usually it just took a little bit of getting used to. There was always a period of adjustment, where you had to learn the game’s quirks. But, over time, I feel like the game is also just getting… quirkier. Every time I come back to this, I slam head first into the Sonic GT’s learning curve, and it always feels just a little bit steeper. This is one of those games that tries to fit a lot of abilities into a tiny amount of buttons. It works, but it feels like you have to memorize an operator’s manual. It’s all about figuring out which button to hold when to get what state. But, man… when it clicks into place, it’s still kind of magic. And, at the very least, the levels have all been reworked to take better advantage of Sonic’s high-flying, death-defying acrobatics. You’ve just got to be willing to learn. The real downside of this new version is the inclusion of a proper story mode -- I don’t have anything against having cutscenes in your game or whatever, but for the purposes of reviewing these games, some ability to fast forward through the talking heads so I could get back to the gameplay would’ve been nice. You can skip ahead in cutscenes you’ve already watched, but that doesn’t help when it’s your first time through. Oh well. So it goes. (Update: in the process of getting this article posted, Sonic GT has been patched to make cutscenes always skippable.)

Project SXU (Sonic X-treme Unity)

Another year, another Sonic X-treme recreation. This one’s interesting because it seems to be the most “complete” yet, offering the four most famous levels: Jade Gully, Crystal Frost, Red Sands and Death Egg. Intentionally or unintentionally, this also seems to replicate quite a few quirks we’ve seen in Sonic X-treme’s controls in the videos that have been released of the in-development build. Which means that it, uh, kind of sucks to play. I realize that’s kind of rude, but I’m sort of allowed to say that. 15 years ago, I was basically the only person on the internet that cared what happened to Sonic X-treme, so... I started contacting developers, starting with the game's producer, Mike Wallis. He lead us to Chris Senn, and that broke the dam on information about this game. Now, I don’t claim ownership over everything that came out of this, I’m simply saying I was the one who got the ball rolling. I watched the mystery of Sonic X-treme slowly get uncovered with as much intent as one could possibly have. It is a fascinating piece of lost media, but as a game… well, I think it got canceled for a reason. SXU shows us a clear vision of that, with a game that’s disorienting to look at and hard to control. Heck, if you’re using a controller, you can’t even use the analog stick -- you have to use a d-pad, leading to controls that feel frustratingly twitchy. But that's true to the experience. I probably spent almost as long in this demo accidentally slipping into bottomless pits as I did exploring its levels. Again, this more or less feels accurate to what we’ve seen in videos, though I do think Sonic probably feels a little too sensitive, here. Regardless, it’s still absolutely fascinating.

“Sonic Infinity Engine” Games

I’m cheating a little bit, here. This is technically three entries, but it’s in “Usual Suspects” because there’s been Infinity Engine games at SAGE for a few years now. Listen, it’s my site, my rules, and we’re playing fast and loose, baby!

Adventure Pack 2

This claims to be a “pack” of multiple levels, but the one level I played went on for over 25 minutes without showing any signs of ending. The level is… well, it’s the kind of stuff we’ve seen at SAGE for years and years and years, a space previously occupied by SonicGDK and BlitzSonic before it, where somebody is clearly starting out learning 3D level design, has some prefab assets, and goes to town creating a huge, intricate environment… that doesn’t fit a Sonic game at all. Too many tight spaces, too much enemy spam, and too much labyrinthine pacing. This is “Sonic Visits Anor Londo,” and while it looks interesting visually, it’s easy to get lost, or worse, killed because something isn’t functioning right. Like a lot of Infinity Engine stuff, it’s a bit hit or miss.... And now, also cramped.

Infinity+ Colorful Combat

The primary goal of this seems to be to update the Infinity Engine with extra features, something that I think is pretty welcome. The Infinity Engine is okay, but it’s missing a little bit of polish that the original developer neglected to give it before abandoning the project. This helps tighten some of that stuff up, while also introducing Wisp powers and more playable characters. Some of the new characters could still use some work, yet, but given the project is still in active development, that’s pretty much a guarantee. This could end up being the defacto version of the Sonic Infinity Engine.

Sonic Reforge: Red Ridge (Blockout)

This is what’s called a “Grey Box.” Rather than build out a fully-detailed level, you get a rough estimate on how the stage will flow before you put all the graphics in. What’s here is okay, I guess, but the level loops back on itself in ways that can be kind of confusing. There are a few places where it’s not really clear where you’re supposed to go next, and I spent several minutes running in circles. I’m also not a huge fan of the changes to Infinity’s physics; jumping off of ramps is a key part of the Sonic experience, but there are several places here where that doesn’t work -- to get the height needed to progress, you just need to roll really fast. It works, but it doesn’t feel like the Sonic I’m familiar with.

Sonic World DX

I have a bit of history with this game. Or, well, with a different version of this game. I wasn’t kind to some of the original entries at SAGE many years ago, but over time, they’ve cleaned the game up and streamlined it a fair amount. Now we have the “DX” release, a further cleanup effort splintered off from the main project, but to be honest, I’m not entirely sure what’s different from the previous release. The main version of Sonic World supports an absolutely gargantuan amount of content, with 50 playable characters and at least that many levels. It was big, and weird, and impressive. This demo ships with three or four playable characters and eight stages. Beyond that, there’s not much else to say -- it’s still Sonic World, though this release doesn’t work right with my controller. It picks up the controller binds from the main version of Sonic World, correctly assuming I’m using a DualShock 4, but none of the buttons are correct. When it asks me to press the X button, I have to press Circle for it to properly register. Not only that, but the right stick camera control is completely broken. Switching to an Xbox controller fixes the camera issues, but now the face buttons have the opposite problem: when it asks me to press A to jump, I have to press X. Throws my whole vibe off, like wearing your shoes on the wrong feet. The menus are bizarre, too -- while adjusting the volume, you can’t push left or right to adjust the levels, you have to use controller face buttons for some reason. This whole thing feels like I stepped back in time to 2013 in a bad way.

Sonic Freedom

I feel like I’ve been waiting to see a major development from Sonic Freedom for half a decade at this point. The art considerations for this game are no joke, and I do not envy anyone trying to make a proper high-def 2D Sonic game that looks this good. But, well… it’s another year, and there’s not a lot here. It plays fine, I guess -- the controls are decent, at least. The problem is the level design. Does this level even end? I’m not sure. I know previous demos for Sonic Freedom have had more than one level, but the stage you start out in here is a confusing, empty labyrinth with respawning enemies and a finite number of rings. You climb up and up and up, but eventually I reached what felt like a dead end. Visually it will always look incredible, but I’m wondering if it’ll ever actually become a game at any point in the future.

BraSonic 20XX

Here’s a strange blast from the past I wasn’t expecting. BraSonic is an old fangame from probably more than a decade and a half ago. It was so long ago that I can’t even actually remember if I played the old version of the game or not, but I definitely remember the name. What really throws me for a loop playing the 20XX version now is how much it feels like a game from back in the early 2000’s. The artwork, the sound effects, the locations, all of it makes me feel like I’m 19 again. Thankfully, this doesn’t play like a fangame from 2004; physics seem pretty solid, level design flows pretty well, and it generally seems to be fun, weird, and most importantly, unique. There aren’t many fan games here at SAGE that open with their first boss fight being against Sonic the Hedgehog. If you find yourself getting burnt out from so many Sonic fan games feeling same-y, this could be a good change of pace.

Sonic Frenzy Adventure

Maybe it’s the fact that this is the 20th Anniversary of the Sonic Amateur Games Expo, but here’s another very old fangame coming back out of the woodwork for an enhanced modern re-release. This game was a mainstay of the mid-to-late 2000’s SAGE events, after which it disappeared before being finished. Well, maybe it was finished. Again, a lot of this stuff was so, so, so long ago that this poor old man’s memory just can’t recall it. Seeing Frenzy Adventure back warms my heart, though. It’s an old friend in what has proven to be a very challenging year. Admittedly, parts of it still feel a bit mid-2000’s, but I consider those charming quirks. Throwbacks to a simpler era. At the very least, controls have been improved, so it does play better than the old releases did. Good stuff. Glad to see you again, dude.

Sonic Speed Course

This was a game that turned up last year, but in the kerfuffle I didn’t get around to trying it, even though I really wanted to. This is clearly a game inspired by Kirby’s Dream Course, but instead of Nintendo’s pink puffball, we have Sonic and friends. Whereas Kirby gained abilities by bowling through enemies, this adapts a more traditional Sonic gameplay structure of item boxes filled with shields and other powerups. But here’s my deep dark secret: even though I love Kirby’s Dream Course in concept, there’s a part of me that feels an intense hatred for that game. I have distinct memories of renting Kirby’s Dream Course as a kid and getting really far into the game, but trying to play it as an adult I’m baffled at how difficult it is. The main problem I have is that every stroke you take subtracts from your health, meaning you can only hit the ball so many times before you just… die. This makes for a very, very steep learning curve that discourages play and experimentation. Every shot truly, deeply matters and eventually I find myself caught in a death spiral and staring at the game over screen. All of this is replicated in Sonic’s Speed Course, which, much like with Kirby, I find myself drawn to like a moth to the flame -- only to come away feeling dejected and like I’m just not good enough. For fans of Kirby’s Dream Course, this is undoubtedly good news, as this means Sonic Speed Course is faithful to the tone of that game. But I find myself wishing there was a practice mode or something that let me play these courses without the punitive health system, because I’m ready to love them.

Sonic: Triple Trouble 16-Bit

When you write about so many games at SAGE every year, things start to blur together... a lot. I seem to recall that Triple Trouble 16-Bit last year was good, but had room for improvement. Well, this year, this demo feels… really quite good. I’ll admit, I was a little skeptical about remaking this game. Sonic: Triple Trouble was among the first batch of Game Gear games I ever owned as a kid, and while I liked the game, in my adulthood, I feel like I’ve come to appreciate Sonic Chaos more. But so much has been added to this game that it’s really come into its own. It uses Triple Trouble more as a jumping off point to become something fresh and interesting, and on top of that, this demo is pretty polished. This game was kind of always on my radar, but it’s really turning into something special.

Battle Cross Fever

Every year, I download this game hoping for some kind of single player offering, and every year I’m let down. Battle Cross Fever is a fighting game that plays a lot like Smash Bros., but contains elements that pull it closer to traditional fighting games like Street Fighter. It’s the kind of game that can check with the server to make sure you’re playing the latest version, but doesn’t have true online multiplayer -- instead advertising that you should use a piece of screen sharing software like Parsec to accomplish online multiplayer. In their defense, the few times I’ve used Parsec, it’s basically been magic for how well it works. But I just want, like… anything that I can play by myself. Even if it’s just a super basic arcade mode with brain dead AI, anything is better than nothing. But, I suppose, I am an outlier. Judging by the horrific character select music I landed on, Battle Cross Fever has enough of a community that they could get fans to sing along to “Ghost Town” from Sonic Forces -- which is a fun idea, don’t get me wrong, but when you have loud voices over cheap microphones, well… I hope you aren’t wearing headphones like I was. Anyway, this game’s always seemed solid, but I’ve also never played it with another human being, so really, I’m speaking from the perspective of admiring the diverse roster and all of the fun arenas they’ve ported in. Maybe someday it’ll get some single player content.

I’ll be back with another article… uh, eventually. In truth, I was only going to feature five games here, but it ended up being ten, so we’ll see how many are in future articles when we get there!

[seven-oomen]

So I was trying to wait until you answered my submit because I REALLY want your opinion of my new baby idea, but stocking shelves lets my mind wander, and anyway you haven't specified if Mel is an Alpha or Omega yet, and I know it would warp the ages slightly, but omg, could Scott be Stiles' (half)brother for reals?! Like, then maybe he would grow up more like we're supposed to think he is? And yet more fun for diagramming the family tree? (Also, you're so lucky this isn't in all caps. 😆)

Sorry I actually got disctracted by AC Valhalla and I’ve been occasionally squeeing when I go back to the submission because I want to write it all so badly but spoilers?

Ah well, this’ll be between us but here are some of my ideas. (And I was really struggling how to tie Scott into this but you just solved that for me, bless ^^)

Also, it occurred to me that with everyone this young, the possibility of more kids definitely exists, and Chris is gonna end up with at least two options for accidental baby daddy.  I’m just saying, imagine the sheer unbridled havoc a kid with Noah’s sass (and those shaggy golden waves) and Chris’s sweetness (and those silver-blue puppy eyes) could wreak, especially if raised under the influence of Peter’s more vague approach to morals (he does the same with Stiles, and Noah likes to tease him about corrupting his kids while Claudia smirks and refuses to make eye contact behind his back.)  Like, the possibilities are endless, really.  I can just imagine some of the pack kids having to draw out a family tree for class one day and their teacher sobbing and doing shots as they try to make sense of them.  XD  Also, now I’m curious about living arrangements.  That’s gonna be one heck of a big house.  Good thing they have a lot of land.

They are gonna get more kids and I made a family tree to kinda explain and keep up. But strap in. (Also if the kids ever have to make a family tree like this, good lord their teacher will despise them.)

Okay so, Chris had twins with Peter (Allison and Jackson) in January 1995.  Noah and Claudia had Stiles in March 1995, Noah and Melissa had Scott in April 1995). (Noah and Melissa are best friends, but both of them are in a relationship with Claudia, and having sex was the cheapest way for Mel to also have a kid, and that way their kids shared two moms and a dad.)

Also, the birth order for the Hale kids is:

Nathaniel

Talia

Merlia

Peter.

In 2001 another birth explosion happens for the Hale/Argent/Stilinski’s? Namely, in February Melissa gives birth to Victoria’s daughter Isabella. In May 2001 Chris gives birth to a set of twins that have a different father, Peter fathered Evelyne and Noah fathered Benjamin. In August 2001 Claudia gives birth to Victoria’s son Charlie (I will not write that Polish name rn XD).

Peter and Noah are both Alphas, Chris is an Omega. Melissa and Claudia are both Omegas, Victoria is an Alpha. Chris and Victoria continue being married as are Noah and Claudia. Divorce is expensive and they’re all kinda dating each other anyway, so. Peter and Melissa are just good friends and wine buddies.

They all live in a new build house close to the Hale property. Chris continues being a part of the Satomi pack, the kids call her grandma, Peter continues being a part of the Hale pack, the kids call John grandpa. Including Stiles, Scott, Charlie, Ben, and Izzy.

Noah only has sons, Stiles and Ben are Omegas, Scott is an Alpha. Peter has three daughters, two Alphas, one Omega (Allison), and an Omega son. Charlie is an Alpha, Izzy is an Omega. Laura and Derek are Alphas, Cora is an Omega.

Stiles is a druid like his parents, Scott is human but chooses the bite to cure his asthma later in life, Charlie is a druid, Izzy is human. Allison and Jackson are human but Jackson chooses the bite later in life, Ben is a druid, Evelyne is a werewolf.

So yeah eventually they’ll end up in a household of 6 adults (3 moms, 3 dads), and 9 kids between them. XD

Idk if that made things any clearer but I’m stoked to figure out more about this family.

[cnc-hoebayb]

The boys as supportive hype men bfs

For when you’re lookin extra fine and they just wanna hype the shit outchu

.

Zabdiel

-“dimelooo mamiii”

-literally that ^ but with different inflections on dif syllables everytime depending on mood/situation lol

-not a very big social media man, but will post a quick story of you like “🥴❤️” dressed in something reeeeaal nice then delete it later (bc he want u for his eyes only duH!)

-but in public tho !!

-wow

-that’s his game, he’d be huggin all up on you like no ones watching

-Defintely would get caught by the paparazzi for some “provocative touching/staring” with each other

-Buys you everything

-flowers in that little shop on the corner? Done. Ice cream on the street that looks way too good? Chocolate vanilla swirl it is.

-Would probably go all out and buy you a new fancy piece of jewelry too

-its his own lil ritual to get u a new pair of earrings that match with the particular outfits he loves to see you in uwu

-he honestly seems like he’d want to hype you up all day but then spend the rest of the night with you in private

-hype you up in his own personal way ayooo

-details? I think a lil bit

-whisper dirty praises in your ear about how good you look

-goes in between rough and tender touches over his favorite parts of your body

-dead eye contact the whole time so it’s super intimate

-k that’s all u get u thirsty hoes

Erick

-does that thing to random strangers like “that’s my gf” and points at u

-for literally anything

-like when you’re ordering food for you both at a fast food place and he’s watching you lookin snackish tell them you’d like two number 5’s

-he leans over to the old lady next to him like “that girl- mi novia 😉”

-he’s also very vocal

-just likes you or him (or both) to be the center of attention

-“SHES WALKING IN AND SHES SO HOT GUYS WATCH UR FUCKING SELVES”

-kinda embarrassing but at the same time so sweet and way flattering so u don’t front bout it

-doesn’t really show you off on social media, but more in public or to his family

-Just wants to show his favorite ppl his fav person and how amazing you are

-compliments you all day

-really bad pick up lines mostly

-but they’re so bad that they’re actually really cute and funny

-pretends that youre a stranger at a store and hits on you like you’ve never met before

-“Erick please not here,” you’d beg while in line at the busy concession stand of the movie theater

-“im jus asking if u as sweet as those cookie dough bites u got right there mami mmhmmm”

Joel

-literally the cutest of them all

-not super extra, but very lovey and sweet

-you’d walk in the room all dolled up and he’d be super star struck like “oh my god dude you’re so beautiful”

-for literally any outfit too tho

-You can walk in with his sweatpants and necklace on and he’d lose it just as hard

-stares at you all day

-buys you flowers just for the heck of it

-sweet gentle touches and kisses all day too

-when he talks about you in public it’s all super down to earth and him saying how gorgeous you are doing anything

-takes you out to show you off

-somewhere where he knows a lot of press and people in general will be

-makes it super obvious you’re there together

-“don’t worry HONEY, I’ll grab the door for you BABE” and looks other homies dead in the eyes for dominance purposes

-he really would take you anywhere to show you off tbh. The dog park, museum, grocery store, you name it

-he fills his camera roll with candid pics of you through the day

-when you guys get really rowdy at the end of the night bc you’re tired, he records you the whole time dancing n singing and being a crackhead

-but its wholesome content of you guys being happy in love and having so much fun :,)

-he posts it all and everyone is like “couple goals wowo” and it makes your heart melt bc you’re with someone who makes you confident and happy and he’s everything

Richard

-literally not one second where his hand would be off of you

-ESPECIALLY in public

-hand in your back pocket, on your waist, in your hand

-also the type of guy that would be super extra and do things like hold the door for you dramatically, carry you over potholes or puddles in the street like “no te preocupes amor, i gotchu”

-a master at subtly tho

-and subtle teasing

-would mention how fine you look at the beggining of the day with a low whisper in your ear and a hot neck kiss

-then totally drop it for tension purposes

-would ignore u in person for a bit or maybe he just doesn’t see you much that day

-then would post a fire pic of you like “sheeesh🥵”

-comments under all your recent pics suddenly with thirsty shit

-all the fans are freaking out like “GET UR MAN”

-but he’s still avoiding you personally bc he knows it gets you all riled up

-so you watch him post and hype you all day until he gets home finally and wants to touch you and love you

-and you’re like “NO! No touching bc u can’t play these games Camacho”

-He smiles at you and puts on his nasally play voice while swooping in to lift you off your feet, tickling your sides and kissing you all over

-“mira que sexy ohmygaaad”

-ok but also

-he’d take his time with you when it got down to business, letting you know everything going through his mind when he kisses you, every time he removes another piece of clothing, telling you how perfect you are

-slow passionate intense nights that feel like they could last forever

Christopher

-constant screaming

-“oye mamiiiii”

-his million stories on insta are all of you with dif filters, emojis, and captions

-he’s singing or yelling in the background every one, but honestly no one can tell at this point

-besos every other second

-you’re just *taking a bite of pizza* and Chris would drop everything like “fucK pls kiss me now”

-a lot of seductive glances from a distance

-intimidates everybody in the room tbh

-will be that guy talking to anyone being like “doesn’t my baby look ultra fine today- well i mean she always fine, but today it just hits different”

-probably very sweet like Joel but in his own sappy Chris way

-will sing to you every love song that comes on in the car or while you’re standing around

-dances with you in public just to spin you around, kiss you, and tell you how good you look

-you’re always afraid to look like that one annoying pda couple but the way y’all make it look is actually rly sweet and sincere

-also does that thing and records you being a crackhead at night, but he’s actin just as wild so all the videos are so hard to follow

-they’re all of you guys SCREAMING and CACKLING SOO HARD and no one can form out anything anyone is saying bc you’re both just being idiots

-he records you dancing like a dummy in the dark corner of your room and he’s just there like “AYY AY DALE MAMI AY”

-for some reason i just see him at the end of the night wanting a long, deep makeout sesh more than anything

-bc sometimes kissing can be just as intimate and passionate when you’re with the right person, and Chris is exactly that guy

-he’d be kinda vocal and mumble every time your lips disconnect abt how much he loves you and how crazy you make him by being so god damn beautiful all the time