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darth-salem-emperor-of-earth · 4 years ago

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Not sure if I’m late or not but here is my latest entry for @naruto-fantasy-week, a prompt for Day 5! I doubt I’ll have enough time to eek out fanfics with the last two prompts before the event ends but I’ll eventually write them and post them anyway and go back to this fanfic and the previous to spruce them up and expand on the ideas I came up with for each fanfic/prompt.

There is some violence mentioned and acted upon, especially in the end, but it’s nothing too graphic. And as a fun tidbit, cantarella was a poison rumored to be used by the Borgias but since there’s not a whole lot of evidence the poison exists, I took artistic license with it to suit my purpose of this story.

The title derives from the lyrics of Nightwish’s song “7 Days to the Wolves”.

Summary: He was a man of many faces, shapes, and ideas. Unfortunately, shapeshifters like him were a prize to be captured and then used for gladiator arenas. While he was used to the killing that didn’t mean Orochimaru never stopped contemplating his revenge. Who would have thought he would find another shapeshifter hidden right under Danzo’s nose? Naruto Fantasy Week, Day 5. Prompt: Shapeshifters. [Orochimaru x Sakura]

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“Serpents were in my heart.” — Mary Shelley, The Mortal Immortal

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The white wyrm rested, and waited, in anticipation for that small cellar door to open and here the sounds of the humans issuing orders at him, telling him how lucky he was that a wretched snake, a shapeshifter, continued to live under the generous hospitality of Danzo, and if he continued to do his part in the fighting pits, he would be fed and not lose any of his scales.

Orochimaru snarled at the door, wishing he could snap the wood in two and break the bones of the sentries posted outside his door. He heard that same annoying speech approximately 5475 times, once a day, for the last fifteen years. And sometimes they lied, for after battles, if he ended the match too quickly or gave his hapless opponent a swift, clean, and painless death, they’d drug him and pry a few of his white scales off, while the magic they used to bind and control his shapeshifting restrained him from unable to lash out. Such actions served to not only remind Orochimaru of who was in charge of his life and to sell his pearlescent scales to the highest bidder, adding a hefty, lucrative amount to Danzo’s coffers.

One of these days, he was going to swallow Danzo whole and let that fool slowly digest in his stomach. His death would be slow, agonizing, and very satisfying.

A guard eventually did open his chamber door, recited the boring, useless drivel Orochimaru heard over thousand times before nodding over to the masked mage at his side. The unknown mage wore a rodent-like mask, different from the last mage who temporarily lifted the block on his shapeshifting.

“Danzo requests your presence, your human presence, at his side. The next match is starting soon.” informed the masked mage once the yellow glow departed from his outstretched hand. Orochimaru narrowed his slitted golden eyes dangerously. He remembered what happened when they first allowed him to change shapes, to assume his human form. He acted all compliant and understanding, lulling them in a false sense of security right before he first bite off the head of the mage, then a nearby guard, before shifting out of his wyrm body and back into his human self to escape the narrow door and grab the first weapon he could find to slay the other guard who was about to raise the alarm of his escape. He was eventually recaptured before he could leave the keep, home of the fighting pits, and was whipped brutally for his attempt. Yet through it all, Orochimaru still had to laugh bitterly at their earlier carelessness. Did they not forget who he was and why Danzo decided to let him live after his greatest transgression (besides being a shapeshifter)?

Before the village discovered his identity of a shapeshifter–creatures the elders condemned as monsters, only fit for extermination–, he was a trained warrior, a skilled killer who served the town while keeping his snake-like gilded eyes hidden in his youth through glamor or shaded spectacles. His parents could hide their natural heritage and appearances better with simple alterations and had no need for glamor, since they were older and more experienced shapeshifters. Yet all their years of experience and aptitude didn’t save them from being slaughtered��by the orders of Danzo. And Sarutobi, the village’s main leader, Orochimaru’s very teacher, turned a blind eye, and let the cloak-and-dagger execution happen. And then promptly turned around to lie to his young pupil’s grief-stricken face about his parents’ deaths.

He didn’t regret killing that old bastard for lying to him after all those years. He may have not wanted his parents to die or issued the decree but his negligence, his cowardice, and acceptance of shapeshifters being lesser beings, like animals, made him just as guilty as Danzo, who hung up his parents’ skins up on his office for all to see. He had forced one of them to turn into a large serpent and the other, a small dragon, all so he could use their hide as a trophy. Such disfigurement was the most traumatizing death any shapeshifter could experience, especially if their corpse was paraded around like a proud prize for humans to gawk at.

Orochimaru was left alone in his cell once more so he could transform back into a human and change into the clothes that were left for him. Those robes were always placed so neatly in the corner, waiting for him, when he was permitted to be human. His scaly body was soon a tall, lean pale man with long, silky black hair, and he kept his signature, curved golden eyes with dark purple markings around the eyelids. Everyone already knew who he really was so why bother mask his true appearance?

By the time he was escorted and brought to Danzo, the power-hungry man was already barking orders at the serving girls to bring him more sake and food. For Orochimaru, he simply inclined his head, inviting him to take a seat and watch the upcoming match. Just like always, whenever he planned to sic some unfortunate soul in the ring with him, as a wyrm. He wanted Orochimaru to study the gladiator’s fighting techniques and movements beforehand, a sure sign that he wanted his opponent to die in the battle arena.

Most likely a political opponent of Danzo’s or a dissenter he labeled as a ‘traitor’. My, my, he’s finding so many of them these days.

The fighter down below was fast, Orochimaru would give him that, but strategy was not his forte. He dodged most of his larger foe’s attacks and was more of the type to wear his assailant down until they became exhausted and made mistakes. And he repeated his defensive blows often, another tactical error. Basically, his onslaught with him would hardly be a worthy match.

Sighing in disappointment, Orochimaru helped himself to a goblet of water, draining its contents dry before setting the cup back down. As if on cue, one of the serving maids rushed up to him to refill his drink. He turned around, about to politely thank her (after all, unlike some, he actually had manners), and he heard a sharp intake of breath. When a pink haired server came into his line of vision, his nostrils flared, and her green eyes stared at him surprise. He understood her reaction.

Here, amidst Danzo’s private posse of servants, trusted men, and soldiers, was another shapeshifter. And unlike him, she was not branded or wearing chains that restricted or prohibited her from transforming into other animals or people. Which meant…

Danzo doesn’t know she’s a shapeshifter. How bloody rich.

If he wasn’t in the presence of Danzo’s oh so charming company, he’d laugh viciously at the irony right there, on the spot.

The girl–no, young woman–whoever she was, fumbled with the pitcher during her moment of distraction and quickly averted her gaze to focus on not making an entire mess of the water and attracting the unwanted attention of Danzo. Meanwhile, as she concentrated solely on watching the water rise in his metallic goblet, Orochimaru leaned forwarded and whispered in her ear.

“Be careful, little one. Better stick to the shadows, lest someone gets suspicious and uncovers your secret. Then you’ll be chained, just like me.”

That mocking warning startled her but she uttered nothing. She merely finished filling up his cup and returned to her original location, off to the corner and out of sight. Yet she did sneak a glance over her shoulder to get a glimpse of him one more time before she returned to her duties and he resumed his bored review of the fighting before him. Hopefully, that fledgling shapeshifter had enough sense in her to realize she risked more than just her life staying here and would quit the village in the dead of the night.

There was no need for this putrid city to have two shapeshifters under their control or be responsible for another’s one death.

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He was wrong about the other shapeshifter.

She must be lacking wits, to sneak past all the guards just so she could creep into his cell and offer him water and leftover food from the kitchens. Some might call her courageous but all Orochimaru beheld was a foolhardy woman who should have left Danzo’s service, packed her bags, and left this godforsaken place already.

“You shouldn’t have come,” he hissed, revealing his rows of sharp, venomous teeth.

The roseate haired shapeshifter ignored him, setting down a jug of water, scraps of chicken, pheasant, beef, and wild boar. The tender, seasoned meats and the spices cooked into its juices wafted through his nose and he eyed the meal curiously.

“I never thought I would see another shapeshifter,” she began, inching the food tray closer to him. “Especially one imprisoned by Danzo. I thought he had a strict ‘kill every single shapeshifter I see’ policy.”

He chuckled dryly. “He does, unless he wants to use you for his own purposes. But why are you here to see me? You risk torture and certain death should the guards notice you.”

“But I wanted to see you!” she protested. “I haven’t seen, much less talked to another shapeshifter in years. Especially one who could help me–teach me, that is!”

“Teach you what?” Orochimaru finally decided to sate his hunger and first devour the bits of pheasant, relieved to find that the chef didn’t use too much pepper and balanced the amount of herbs just right.

“To change into larger, stronger creatures,” she explained, verdant eyes sparkling with hope. “You see, I was adopted by humans and they didn’t know my true heritage. So I had to learn how to transform on my own or scavenge for any books left behind by shapeshifters for helpful tips. I can do small animals and creatures but nothing as big or impressive as this.” She gestured to his wyrm body.

That explains how she was able to skulk past all the sentries.

“Why should I help you?” Orochimaru cut in, cocking his big, heavy head at her. “Why stay here, talking to me, instead of departing this wretched town and start searching our own kind? Surely, someone there can help you better than I.”

Her green eyes leveled with his amber ones, resolute and dark. “Because I crave to kill that bastard Danzo and I believe you’ll help me do that. And besides, I want to help you escape this horrible place.”

She didn’t even know him and yet, she wanted to help set him free. This shapeshifter was a strange creature, but he understood the hunger for revenge. It was a language he fathomed all too well and the burning desire had kept him going for all these torturous fifteen years. Danzo expected him to try to escape again or at least, try to murder him, but he didn’t anticipate her. And that raised the odds a little in their favor.

“What an intriguing proposal,” he practically purred, his breathing fanning against her face and causing her pink hair to billow out behind her. “In exchange for me training you in how to change into more complex forms, you’ll help me escape from this dungeon, and somehow, together, we’ll kill Danzo. Is that correct?”

She nodded firmly. “Yes. And I don’t care how long the training takes. I want, no need, to master my shapeshifting.”

At least she was dedicated, eager to learn. Orochimaru couldn’t abide small-minded people and those who had no drive, no interest in acquiring more knowledge and skills.

Either way, he was trapped underneath the fighting pits, with nothing else better to do so why not? At least this way, he wouldn’t be so dreadfully bored.

“Very well, I will accept this offer. However, I will need to know the name of my pupil. It’s only polite after all.” He forked his long tongue at her, amused when he startled her a little.

“It’s Sakura.” She bowed her head in reverence. When was the last time someone gifted even a small measure of respect like that? “What’s yours? I need to know the name of my teacher too.”

He grinned wide, knowing full well his face probably appeared utterly monstrous and terrifying but to Sakura’s credit, she didn’t flinch or scramble away from him in supreme terror.

Good.

“Orochimaru. Now, let us begin with your first lesson.”

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Contrary to the popular belief among humans, shapeshifters didn’t magically obtain knowledge on how to transfer into every creature or animal in existence overnight. Each attempt took time, energy, training, and practice to learn, control, and master each form, so a shapeshifter could not only move and talk in their new form but stay in it for long periods of time. The same went to altering their human appearance or body completely.

So his lessons with Sakura continued for years as she made progress with more medium sized animals or changing her human self to the point no one would recognize her. He never inquired why she wanted Danzo dead so much because that was none of his business and right now, he was not that interested in prying into her personal affairs. In return, she never asked what he did to be imprisoned so cruelly by Danzo. However, he did not miss the way her eyes would linger over his old scars or small, open patches of flesh where his scales once were and her face would scrunch up into pure, indignant rage. It was adorable, actually.

Yet he could hardly say the same whenever she was too exhausted in her training to head back to her room and go to sleep in her bed. Instead, Sakura would simply collapse amidst his coiled, scaly body and wrapped her arms around him, almost as if she was giving him a hug. Part of her features were usually resting up against his neck, so near his face that half of the time Orochimaru was tempted to shake his head or move around to jostle Sakura out of her slumber but something always prevented him from doing so. Maybe it was pity seeing how weary she was, juggling her servant duties, making sure her identity as a shapeshifter is still a secret, and then sneaking into his cell during the night to receive more lessons from him. She probably didn’t even realize she was falling asleep on him. Regardless, Orochimaru allowed this habit of hers to continue and only waited a few hours later to carefully wake her up and remind her to get back to her room before the sun rose and the other servants inquired about her absence. The routine turned into a cycle he had no motivation to stop.

While Sakura was improving with her shapeshifting and finally could move onto the larger creatures, they began to discuss, in all seriousness and not just idle musing, about escaping and slaying Danzo in the process.

“Poison would be the surest way to kill him,” Sakura opined. “There are so many different varieties out there that are slow acting and don’t show any immediate signs of poison until after death. And I serve him his meals occasionally, right after he is given his medicine. I can always poison the drink he takes to wash the foul flavor of the concoction down. He wouldn’t be able to notice a difference in taste.”

“A fine idea but Danzo is a paranoid man, especially since he knows I want to kill him and many of my previous forms favored snakes, serpents, or dragon-like beasts. I’ve heard he boosted his immunity to several poisons so if we choose poorly and select the one he’s immune to, then we wasted our time.” Orochimaru pointed out, stretching out his long, cumbersome physique in this rather cramped cell.

Undaunted, Sakura still pressed the venom route. “What about poisons that will simply immobilize him and prevent him from speaking or moving for a long time? Surely he wouldn’t have spent his time increading his defense for poison that won’t kill him outright or over time.”

Cocking his head, Orochimaru regarded her curiously at her suggestion. If Danzo was paralyzed like that, preferably in his bed, those close to him would raise their suspicions that this wasn’t natural and the work of some curse or toxin. On the other hand, if they measured the dose correctly and timed its effect exactly, then it could be possible to have the old devil at their mercy. That is, if he was predicting Sakura’s plan accurately.

“Are you suggesting we use a poison that will paralyze sometime in the night, rendering him unable to defend himself or call for help as we kill him?” he stated, making sure they were on the same page.

Sakura nodded, eyes resolved, her face grim. “Yes. Do you think that scheme would work?”

“It could, if we can get our hands on this specific poison. Cantarella, I believe it’s called. Do you know where you can obtain some?” Creating cantarella on their own would take far too long and even though shapeshifters were blessed with longevity, Orochimaru did not want to take any more risks with these nighttime lessons of theirs. Sooner or later, someone would notice Sakura’s odd nocturnal routines and investigate. And such nosiness could get them both butchered.

“Yes, I know someone. He poses as a traveling merchant and has no love for Danzo or this village. He won’t ask questions if I purchase the cantarella from him.”

Orochimaru hummed with approval. “Good, that issue is taken care of. Now, onto the other snag in this scheme of ours.” Lifting his head up, he gestured to the thick, old, and heinous brand embedded in his upper torso, located right on his upper left chest if he was a man. “This brand and the chains that bind me here prevent me from transforming. Since none of us know how to remove the brand or negate it completely, we need one the sealing rings the mages use to control whether or not a shapeshifter can change their form.”

Moving away from her spot on the hard, damp ground, Sakura approached the branded section and gingerly reached out to touch it, tracing the design slowly. “I think I can get one. It might take me a few days or a week to butter up the mage but I have a plan.” She turned her head towards him. “Trust me on this. By the end of this week, I will get us that ring and once we have it, then all we have to do next is administer the cantarella.”

“And not get caught in the process,” Orochimaru reminded soberly. “If Danzo or one of his supporters catches wind of our plot, then we’re good as dead.”

And this time, Danzo will skin me for certain, wyrm form and all.

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His concern on Sakura’s unspoken plan to get a sealing ring from a mage was apparently groundless. For by the end of the week, after she entered his cell in the form of a cat, he glimpsed the ring in her mouth. She dropped the item in front of her, a triumphant beam on her feline visage before steadily changing back into the petite, muscled young woman with short, cropped rose hair and jade eyes.

“How long do we have before the mage starts searching for his missing ring?” was the first question Orochimaru asked, not touching the said ring right away. For years he longed to get his hands on this trinket, to use its powers to nullify the brand’s power and finally control his own shape for a change. It didn’t matter whether he or Sakura used the ring, the magic inside would work and he could shift back into his human self again or take the form of another animal. They were lucky the sorcery within those rings could be accessed by anyone with just a simple word, a word Orochimaru heard often enough with his now almost twenty years of imprisonment.

Contemplating his query, Sakura scrunched her nose up to concentration on her estimation on the amount of time they had left to enact their wild scheme. “I think we have until morning. The sleeping potion I gave him will leave him knocked out the rest of the evening and night.”

Sleeping potion? If he had eyebrows in his wyrm form, Orochimary would have risen both of them. Only those who possessed enough knowledge and skills in medicine would boost such confidence in the lasting effects of a sleeping potion. No mere amateur could create a legitimate concoction that would actually work.

Sakura never ceased to surprise him.

“A shapeshifter and a practitioner of medicine? My, my, you must have an interesting story to tell. I must say, I’m rather impressed with your skillset.” Orochimaru remarked. He remembered a former comrade-in-arms who was a combat medic, the first in her line of work. By the time he murdered their former teacher, Sarutobi, she had already left the town and roamed the countryside to be with her lover, a civilian named Dan. If Danzo was now fully dominating this town, she would have been aghast and then incensed what became of her home.

Orochimaru hadn’t thought about Tsunade for a long time. Being chained in a dungeon and used for gladiatorial matches had a peculiar way of warping one’s memories and perception of time, it seemed.

Sakura brightened at his praise, the luster in her eyes practically illuminating his dim, dusky cell. “I’m happy to hear that, Orochimaru. Sleeping potion can be chancy, especially mixed with alcohol, but the mage I was charming earlier already wanted to spend some time alone with me after his shift. Getting the sleeping potion was actually harder than mixing it into his ale. By the time he wakes up tomorrow, he won't remember if we had a wild night or not.”

Mocking laughter percolated from the back of Orochimaru’s long, thick throat. Undone by the lust in his own loins. How insipidly easy.

“As long he won’t recall clearly and the potion lasts, we have our chance.” He nodded to the ring on the ground. “Use that thing on me. It’ll be easier for you to release the binding seal on me rather than myself.” His tail or mouth were much too enormous to hold the ring securely with dropping it or accidentally swallowing it. “All you need to do is chant ‘Release’ and I should be able to change my form at will.”

Sakura gifted him a skeptical look. “The word to use is ‘release’? Nothing else? Nothing more complicated?”

“I never said the mages under Danzo’s control were intelligent. Most of them are mindless drones. Danzo mass produces those rings to help all of his soldiers and assassins combat shapeshifters so of course he wants them to be easy to utilize.”

She glared at the offending ring on the ground prior to picking it up and slipping it under her finger. Her mouth opened and formed the lone word, her voice low, soft, but commanding.

“Release!”

He felt the brand heat up, the pin-prickling warmth uncomfortable at first prior to evanescing away into nothing. The shadow of control the brand had always rendered inside his mind and body was gone, replaced with an empty sensation that there was no magic this time to stop him from shifting.

His body grew smaller and assumed a new shape. His alabaster scales became white skin, long, luxurious hair the color of jet black cascading effortlessly down his scalp and past his shoulders and back, and he relished the feel of arms, legs, hands, and feet. The only part of him that remained the same was his golden eyes, outlined by violet markings.

Sakura stared up at him in wonder, holding the ring up for him to take and use for his own protection. “I’ve never seen you shapeshift before. You did so flawlessly...it’s like watching water move on its own.”

An indulgent half-smile slithered across his lips, accepting the ring and dropping the trinket over his pointer finger. “If you live long enough as I have, then you’ll be able to shift your body as swiftly and deftly as me.” His eyes roamed past Sakuraand over to the cell door behind them. There were no guards around but they still had to be cautious. They were so close to the final stages of their plot.

“I take it since you made plans to snatch this ring that you already are in possession of the cantarella?”

She nodded. “Yes, and I’ve been scheduled to bring Danzo his meal and drink tonight, with the physician who will feed him his medicine.” A black smirk spread across her fair visage. “I will be needed for this duty in less than an hour.”

He expected such news but the information was so welcoming and pleasing to him that his half-grin soon morphed into a smirk identical to hers. “Perfect. Go and make the preparations and let me know when it’s done. When night has fallen, we will shapeshift into an unnoticeable animal to enter his room. After that…” He shrugged nonchalantly, as if the two of them would just be wishing Danzo goodnight instead of murdering him in his bed. But the sinister, vindictive gleam in both of their gazes belied the softness of his tone. Orochimaru could imagine Danzo’s blood on his hands, coating the entire wall in a crimson palette. “Well, let’s give the people of this...amusing establishment something to chat about tomorrow morning.”

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The priceless, alarmed look in Danzo’s eyes would be forever burned in Orochimaru’s mind. There was a small fragrance of fear emitting from the usually prideful, smug hunter of shapeshifters, the tantalizing smell hovered so deliciously over him as the two shapeshifters approached the bed, a candle in both of their hands so Danzo could witness his assassins. The cantarella worked wonders for even now, Danzo could not move nor speak to save himself. All he could was listen. Listen and wait for his demise to come.

“I warned you all those years ago that killing me would have been wiser for you,” Orochimaru intoned darkly, his whispery words surely evoking the same memory from Danzo. The candlelight illuminated his amber eyes so clearly in the vacant darkness of the room. “But I shouldn’t be so rude and hog all the introductions. Sakura, dear, why don’t you jot Danzo’s recollection of you? Judging by the confused expression on his face, I say he doesn’t recall you.”

Danzo wheezed and grunted, mouth hanging up like a fish, but his fear was now replaced with utter rage.

In an instant, Sakura held a dagger over his chest, a silent snarl overcoming her mouth, her face promising no mercy and a slow, painful death. She glared at Danzo like he was vermin, not fit to even exist in this world. “I doubt you remember me, you bastard. Why would you, when you banned the women in this village the right to become warriors? And why would you care about some girl all those years ago, from a civilian family, who could not possibly be a threat to you? After all, it was her friend, that orphan boy whom the neighbors whispered about having shapeshifting powers and that he acted more like an animal than a boy? Isn’t that right?”

By now, in the midst of her ranting, Sakura had already begun to sink the blade into Danzo’s stomach and the old coot hacked, and then gurgled out wordless noises, his eyes wide as saucers. Although Danzo could not scream out his agony, Orochimaru still tore some of the bedsheets and stuffed them in his mouth, just in case. Sakura retracted her hand, only to plunge the dagger into another area of his abdomen once more.

“He was just a boy, Danzo! And he was my friend!” she growled, jade eyes ablaze with retribution, fury, contempt, and grief. Emotions Orochimaru comprehended all too well. He could never forget behelding his parents’ hides decorated in Danzo’s office, no matter how hard he tried. “His name was Naruto and you executed him for being a mischievous shapeshifter.” Again and again she stabbed, garnet holes oozing out of him and spreading outward to create morphless, endless streaks and designs, staining his clothes and sheets until the entire bed cover, once a bland beige color, now was dyed a deep burgundy hue. “But you missed one. You missed me, Sakura. All this time, I’ve been serving your food, pouring your drinks, and you didn’t fucking realize a shapeshifter was amongst you this whole time.” She spat in his wrinkled countenance, giving the dagger another savage twist before she rend the weapon out and handed the blade to Orochimaru.

Your turn, she seemed to convey.

He tilted his head at her as a silent ‘thank you’, the hilt of the sanguinary, jagged dagger warm, consoling, and solid against his palm. He rested the edge of the dagger against Danzo’s throat, the point delicately piercing the skin of that center bulge. “I know based on how much blood you have already lost thanks to Sakura’s wonderfully enthusiastic work that you don’t have long for this world. So in your last fleeting moments, I am going to fulfill my promise to you and take my pound of flesh.” Danzo’s eyes bulged in recognition, his chin soaked with his drool.

Orochimaru cackled. Excellent, he still remembers my first threat to him before he cast me into the dungeons.

“That’s right, Danzo. I’ve come to carve out your heart at last.”

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When he and Sakura changed into bats and flew out of the open window Sakura had left ajar hours earlier, when she added the cantarella into Danzo’s drink, the sun was barely reaching the tips of the hills and bringing faint tinges of purples, pinks, and oranges to the night sky. By the time the servants opened the door and witnessed the gruesome display of what little remained of Danzo, the two shapeshifters would be a distant memory and far from the village’s reach.

“What will you do now that Danzo’s dead? You can shapeshift on your own quite well.”

At his question, Sakura frowned. “I’m not sure. I always assumed I’d die right after assassinating Danzo so I never really figured out the part of what comes next.” She combed through her lush, pink hair, her fingers untangling any stubborn knots. “But I recently heard some shapeshifters live away from humans and formed their settlement. Perhaps we could find them and live amongst them?”

Funny how she included him in her idea. Yet Orochimaru didn’t protest. It wasn’t as ifhe had any fine plans of his own and besides his parents, there was no one else in the world who cared about him. Save for Sakura.

“I suppose that idea has merit,” he admitted, pretending not to notice the delighted sparkle in her verdant gaze or the way her lips curled upwards in triumph. “Let’s give your plan a try and see if we’re lucky enough to find more of our own.”

Much to his surprise, she reached over to grab his hand and held onto it, a small smile gracing her lips. “Even if we don’t, we won’t be alone. I’m…” She swallowed briefly before resuming. “I’m grateful...and delighted to have you in my life, Orochimaru.”

He squeezed her hand fondly, the right words caught in his throat. So was he.

Regardless, Sakura understood his unspoken sentiment and continued to grin ever brighter for the rest of the day.

#narutofantasyweek2020 #narutofantasyweek #naruto fantasy week #naruto-fantasy-week #OroSaku #Sakura x Orochimaru #Shapeshifters #my writing

22 notes · View notes

secret-engima · 5 years ago

Note

So how does Regina meet each of her merry misfits? (Other than Clarus, of course) Does Regina meet Cor when Mors recruits him into the Crownsguard? Because by the Six is that going to go down like a lead balloon. (Picture Regina meeting bby Cor and stealing him from Mors/Crownsguard because they apparently can't be trusted to take care of the feral bby Cloud. Said bby Cloud is Offended by Regina hauling him around like a sack of potatoes and so so Confused by Everything Else.)

OKay so- any and all of what I’m about to say MIGHT change because Regina is unpredictable and I have basically no notes for this BUT-

-Regina meets Weskham when she’s about 11. Regina has a habit of driving off her retainers with her odd behavior, so now it’s poor 14 year old Weskham’s turn to try to cope with the little Fae Princess. Regina has little to no opinion on Weskham (he’s not her Clarus, he’s just another new servant that will be too bootlicking or bossy so why should she care?). Then Something Bad Happens and Weskham helps Regina through it, isn’t afraid of her even when she falls into a fit of Rage and she is ... surprised. Grateful. Curious. She looks at Weskham, really looks at him for the first time and names him her Rain. Weskham accepts the title with grace even if he doesn’t know what it means.

-Cid is all of 41 when a group of three teenagers, the leader of whom is the youngest at 14 push a broken down custom beauty of a car into his no-name repair and gas station and the fourteen year old cheerfully tells him that, no, they don’t need his help, she just needs to borrow his garage so she can fix up the car herself. For obvious reasons, that does not fly with Cid Sophiar and they end up working on the Regalia together, bonding as gear heads in a way he didn’t think possible considering this girl is only a tiny teenager. Then he figures out that this is the princess who up and ran away a few weeks ago and ... somehow ... he’s still not sure how, instead of calling them in and getting them returned to Insomnia, Cid finds himself coming along as the Designated Adult of the group. Regina calls him her Sun, Cid grouchily tells her that he is HARDLY a ray of sunshine and he’s still mad at her for talking him into this. Regina just laughs.

-They pick up Sylva Via Fleuret in a move that is one third royal kidnapping, one third bribery, and two thirds Regina Nonsense. But Sylva likes Regina, likes her fire and magic and passion and so when Regina comes to Sylva with Gentiana the High Messenger on her heels and says that her son is going to be the king of prophecy, that that means Sylva’s unborn, not even conceived yet daughter is going to die for some ancient prophecy that makes no sense unless Sylva comes and helps Regina BREAK that prophecy to pieces ... Sylva finds herself saying yes. Despite all her training. All her ingrained loyalty to duty and the prophecy and the Astrals. Regina has Shiva’s favor in this and even if they fail ... how could Sylva live with herself knowing she didn’t try? Regina grins and calls her Lightning and Sylva can feel that the title is deeply important somehow, even if she doesn’t know how.

-They track down Adagium Ardyn after a long and frantic search. Because surely killing the Accursed would go a long way to breaking the prophecy? Weaken the starscourge enough that martyrdom wasn’t necessary? They crack open the prison on Angelgard ... and Regina bursts into tears. Because this is no monster. This shivering, dazed figure hanging from chains that are HOOKED into his skin like he’s just a slab of meat in a freezer- this flickering soul that doesn’t even know if they are a hallucination or his brother’s newest child come to try her luck at killing him ... he is no monster. He is the Healer King described in the most secret of Oracle texts, he is a man locked away and suffering in agony. Regina as she fearlessly yet oh so gently frees him from his chains, calls him Sky, and all those with her can feel the PAIN in her voice, the agony and fury on this stranger’s behalf as she breathes the title. They know in an instant that Regina will not kill this man, that whatever plans she had to slay the Adagium are scrapped now as she orders Clarus to help her carry him away from this dank, long-sealed prison. (Ardyn thinks he’s dreaming for a very long time, because surely he is still locked in that dungeon, surely a child of Somnus and OH does she look so like Somnus, would never show kindness to a monster).

-Cor, the last of the misfits I will be covering in this post, is both youngest and last to be recruited. And by recruited I mean kidnapped. And by kidnapped I mean, Regina had to sneak back into the Citadel for something without her father’s knowing, Cor, little 14 year old Cloud Prodigy he is, tracked her down and insisted he was going to stop her on the king’s orders, then demanded to know why Regina was staring at him like that. Regina, who’s brain had thoroughly fried itself with loops of “bby Cloud? Cloud bby? Cloud bby in uniform? My DAD HAS CHAINED CLOUD BBY? CLOUD BBY NO. FREE CLOUD BBY FROM CLUTCHES OF BAD DAD. MY CLOUD BBY NOW.” immediately did the “reasonable” thing of knocking Cor out and potato-sacking him out of Insomnia with her. When Cor wakes up, he is ... miles outside of Insomnia, surrounded by all of the missing princess’s retinue who are unanimously arguing with Regina over whether or not to “keep” Cor. Cor threatens to gut them all, Regina just pats his head and talks him into coming along with the reasoning that “at least this way you can keep an eye on your king’s daughter” and the promise that “the day you can beat me in a spar, can pin me down and force me to yield, I will let you take us all back to the Citadel”.

Cor, being Cor, proceeds to spend at least half the trip periodically attacking Regina, trying to catch her off guard and make her yield. These attempts always end up with him humiliated on the ground, Regina sitting on him and petting his hair as she calmly corrects his ambush technique. Then Gilgamesh happens and Cor gets a really good look at just what a truly angry, deadly Regina looks like and realizes that he never stood a chance.

#SE asks #a-world-in-grey asks #Forged in Fury verse #Secret Engima Rambles

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acourtofhopeanddreams · 6 years ago

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Sansa Stark and the Olympians

Or: I ask the guy when he's finally gonna try and get the girl, aka me

Written for Day 4 of @incorrectjonsansa based on the prompt: "You meme a lot to me" (and we can all agree that Percy Jackson is one big meme, right?)

Sansa Stark, daughter of Athena, has dropped countless of hints, but Jon, son of Ares, doesn't seem to get them. So, after some encouragement (or more threatening) from Margaery, daughter of Aphrodite, she confronts him herself.

Percy Jackson AU // Demigod AU

There were quite a few things Jon Snow, son of Ares, was really good at. Whenever they were making the teams to play capture the flag, he was the one everyone wanted in their team. He could deal with about five campers in the other team all on his own, which means that usually the team that got him ended up winning the game within fifteen minutes.

Margaery, daughter of Aphrodite, complained quite often that the game was no fun anymore.

Sansa, daughter of Athena, begged to differ. Her war tactics and his fighting skills were a match made in heaven and secretly she had made it her goal to win this game within ten minutes before the summer was over. She was certain they could do it.

Unless they were sent on some quest, which wasn’t that unlikely.

Now the Gods had been forced to somehow take care of their children, if you could call dumping them in a summer camp to play capture the flag and get taught ancient fighting techniques no one was using these days anymore taking care of, they had also noticed that the campers were actually quite useful. Whenever the Gods got a task they didn’t feel like doing, they simply summoned one of their children and called it a quest.

Most half bloods didn’t seem to mind. They liked playing the hero and they preferred slaying monsters in the real word over cleaning their bunks and doing chores at camp.

Sansa used to be like that too.

But not anymore.

Not ever since Jon had been brought in.

And Sansa was sure she had dropped enough hints by now that she liked him. Whenever she was in charge of making the schedules for the cores, she always made sure she and Jon had to work together. Whenever she was made captain of a capture the flag team, she always made him co-captain and general. And for the end of the summer chariot race she had also asked him to partner up with her.

And there were moments he seemed to do the same. He had offered to teach her how to hold a sword and while doing so he had been constantly touching her. During dinner he never seemed to talk to his siblings. He was always looking at her and once in a while he smiled. And every time he walked past her he made sure to touch her shoulder.

Sansa was not an expert when it came to love, especially not compared to Margaery who had dated more than a few demigods already, including Sansa’s older brother Robb, but slowly Sansa started to grow a little impatient.

Either Jon Snow was gay, which would be totally okay if he would actually let her know that she didn’t stand a chance and all her flirting was for nothing. Or love was one of the few things he was not that good in.

“Sansa?” Margaery interrupted Sansa’s thoughts. She had her arms crossed in front of her chest and she was wearing a dress that clearly accentuated her beauty. “If you don’t do it, I will.”

Sansa shook her head. “What are you talking about?”

“About you and Jon.” Margaery rolled her eyes. “Shall I ask him what he thinks of you or are you gonna do it yourself?”

Sansa raised her eyebrows. Of course she could let Margaery do it, but even though Margaery was the daughter of the Goddess of love, she wasn’t really known for her subtlety.

And apart from that, if Jon was not interested in turning their friendship into a romance, Sansa didn’t want the rest of the camp to know before she did. And that included Margaery. “I’ll go.” She took a deep breath and stood up from her seat.

Even though the other campers pretended to be eating and chatting, she felt their glances following her while she made her way to the Ares table.

“Jon?” She placed a hand on his shoulder. “Have you finished eating yet?” She licked her dry lips and quickly pulled her hand back, before Jon would notice that her palm was sweating.

“Yeah…” He was still chewing on his last bite, but his plate was indeed empty. “Why?” He cocked his head and Sansa was glad that the evening had already fallen and that the light in the dinner cabin wasn’t that great.

Her cheeks were glowing and she shifted her weight from one foot to the other. “I need your help with…with…” Usually her mind was trustworthy and came up with solutions and plans much faster than she could talk. Now she was blank. “Something.” She paused. “In private.” She added quickly.

“Okay…” Jon furrowed his eyebrows, but he did stand up from his seat. His muscled arms barely fitted in the orange camp shirt and Sansa stared at his broad back while she followed him outside.

Even though it was summer, the evening chill surprised her a little and she quickly wrapped her arms around herself to keep her from shivering while they walked away from the others, towards the lake.

When they reached the edge of the water Jon turned around and cocked his head. “So, what do you need my help with?”

Sansa swallowed once more. “I don’t really need your help, I…” She hesitated for a moment and then she gathered all her courage and strength. “When are you gonna ask me out, Jon?”

Jon stared at her with wide open eyes. He opened his mouth to say something, but then he closed it again.

And the more minutes passed, the more awkward Sansa started to feel.

“Fine…” She eventually shook her head. “Forget it. Forget that I asked. Forget what I said. Let’s not ruin our friendship.” She already turned around to walk back to the dinner cabin, but then Jon curled his fingers around her wrist.

“I was thinking about the when part of your question, not the dating part.” Jon bent his head and Sansa froze. “So, is now as good a moment as any?”

Sansa’s lips curled up into a smile. “It's not as great a moment as a few weeks ago would have been, but it’s far better than tomorrow.”

“Sansa Stark…” Jon cleared his throat. “Would you like to go on a date with me?”

“A date?” She raised her eyebrows. “After all those hints I dropped, that’s all your gonna ask?”

“I thought…” Jon paused and he scratched the back of his neck. “Sansa Stark…” He licked his lips and pulled her a little closer towards him. “Do you want to be my girlfriend?”

Sansa’s lips curled up into a smile and then she freed herself from his embrace so she could curl her arms around his neck. “I thought you’d never ask.”

#incorrect jonsa week #jonsa #jon snow #Sansa Stark #game of thrones #got #got fanfiction #game of thrones fanfiction #sansa stark fanfiction #jon snow fanfiction #jonsa fanfiction #percy jackson #percy jackon and the olympians #rick riordan

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mysaldate · 5 years ago

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headcanons on how the slayers would react to an impossible battle situation - facing an upper moon. they do have the option of running, but innocent lives might be at stake owo for isanami, sasuke, saizo, kakei-san, and rokuro

I was trying to look up about when did Muzan create the Demon Moons but the timeline is so messy and makes so little sense that the best guess is it being some 120 years before the main story or somewhere around that. Since Brave10 timeline comes way before this, I don’t think Demon Moons would be around at that time but it’s not unlikely that demons of similar power levels were around – they just didn’t give the warning with their eyes.

Also I will open each character up with some basic info on their general battle style since I haven’t mentioned it yet but it will affect their reactions.

I’m also writing this to calm down after my rant so sorry if some of them feel just a little out of place. I’ll be trying hard for that not to happen though.

Brave10 Demon Slayers facing a certain defeat headcanons

Isanami

She usually leaves the fighting to Saizo and makes sure the people are alright but at the off chance they got separated and she is forced to fight, she can be surprisingly capable. Her small build and amazing flexibility are her main advantages in a fight and she also has a surprising amount of stamina.

With that all being said, she is still quite weak so even a demon of slightly lower power levels than those of an Upper Moon is already a serious problem for her. However, if a demon that powerful was to show up, the gap between them would be enormous.

If there are no civilians at the scene, Isanami might use the sixth form to attempt to blind the demon and then escape using the fourth form. How successful she would be depends mostly on her surroundings. She’s quite capable of disappearing from sight in a forest and thanks to her being very light, she doesn’t make much noise either. In an open field however, she might not be that lucky.

If innocent lives are at stake, Isanami will go on defense, trying to protect them to the best of her ability. She might even offer to give up without a fight if the demon spares the people around (have I mentioned she’s quite possibly a marechi?). If the demon allows it, she will then write a letter to Saizo and Sasuke since she doesn’t want to leave them without a goodbye.

She still won’t let the demon eat her until she is absolutely certain all the people are safely gone. She may be naive when it comes to her fellow slayers but she knows well enough not to trust a demon just that easily.

Sasuke

Sasuke specializes in a stealthy battle style. He stays hidden as much as he can and deals surprising attacks that bring most enemies down before they even realize what hit them. He uses his connection with nature to read his enemies’ movements and figure out the best course of action.

As such, the demons he would have most trouble slaying would be either those staying in a house or mansion (like Kyogai) or demons capable of manipulating nature around them. The later especially could pose a serious threat to him as his most important source of information and cover would be completely cut off.

He generally tries to get fights as far away from civilians as possible so he doesn’t have to worry about protecting them while fighting so it’s more likely he would find himself in such a situation aside from people. Sasuke doesn’t have an ego that would prevent him from running from a fight he clearly has not chance of winning. Thanks to the footwork of his second form, he might manage to get far enough from the demon’s immediate reach to then make a run for it. He’s quite fast on his feet, even faster than most demons, so he has high chances of making it out alive.

However, if a fight was to break out around other people, things get a little more complicated. Sasuke would constantly have to switch between offensive and defensive style, trying to both protect the people with him and keep the demon at bay. He knows he can’t send the people ahead of him since the demon is so strong he couldn’t keep it away from them anyway so the best he can do is fight with all his might to protect everyone.

He will send one of his owls, or possibly the messanger crow, to bring help. He doesn’t really count on making it out alive but if someone can come and protect at least some of the people there, then that’s enough for him.

Saizo

Saizo tends to push his limits as far as they would go in every fight. Even when fighting weaker demons, he’s not exactly good at saving his energy. His fighting style is powerful but not efficient. He rushes to end every fight before the demon can properly warm up and before it can drag out for any longer than necessary.

He doesn’t do very well in long fights but he’s pretty durable so sheer raw strength won’t be enough to knock him down. It’s much more dangerous if the demon merely blocks all of the incoming attacks and tires him out first. While this was already pointed out to him, he doesn’t really know how to fix this little problem and still charges in head-on. The fact that he can’t use the full potential of Breath of Darkness also plays its role.

Like Sasuke, he much prefers to fight aside from any human community, though it’s more to fit his lone wolf aesthetics (shattered when Isanami insisted on joining him) and his general dislike of crowds. While he doesn’t mind to fall back for a while, he’s not used to leaving a fight unfinished so he might pretend to run, only to then turn around and try again, using the increasing speed of fifth form to at least deal as much damage as he can as well as block the enemy’s attacks.

While he would complain about having to protect someone, he’s not about to let women or children just die, especially since he’s a demon slayer. He struggles with defensive techniques though and his only real solution would be luring the demon’s attention away by relentlessly attacking. He would leave the people with Isanami and just hope she will leave with them and won’t come back to help him fight.

He has also thought of sending the crow to get help but in the end decided against it. The demon is already most likely going to kill him and help wouldn’t get to the soon enough anyway. If another single slayer was to face the same demon alone, it would be a pointless loss. Rather, he will have the crow record what went down and report everything properly so adequate actions can be taken.

Kakei

His style focuses mostly on the advantage he can gain by keeping his distance from the demon. Kakei doesn’t posses extraordinary speed or stamina but he’s extremely durable and quick to get back up after receiving a blow. Thanks to mastering the Breath of Fire as well, he can use combined techniques, either using Saya as a blade or taking up the sword of one of his fellow slayers – though he doesn’t do that often.

His weakness would most likely be close combat so if a demon is quick enough to avoid his shots or can block them effectively enough to get close, he might get into trouble. It’s also particularly dangerous if a demon can use long-distance attacks with a range superior to Kakei’s.

His fourth technique will get used a lot if the demon gets close and he’s alone. Saya is, unsurprisingly, great at breaking bones and can be used as an extremely violent stabbing weapon if used with enough strength. And Kakei certainly has this sort of strength. Even if he knows he has no chance of winning, there’s no way he’s just giving up. If he has to, he will take the demon to hell with him.

This goes all the more if there are innocent bystanders nearby. No way in hell will he allow anyone else to get hurt on his watch. He will take even close-range shots, no matter how much the recoil damage hurts him. And if worse comes to the absolute worst, his fifth form is on the list as well. He will blow the demon’s head to ribbons if it’s the last thing he can ever do.

Rather than sending his crow off to get back-up, he will order it to take the people to safety. With his bullets, he can prevent the demon from going after them and take it on by himself for long enough for them to escape. It still would bother him that he never got to make up for his failure as a father (in his eyes at least) and that he will die before ever doing that but he also understands that there are bigger things in life than himself. Protecting more innocent lives is one of them.

Rokuro

He is an incredibly balanced fighter. One of the few who can keep up incredibly well on both offense and defense, he’s also fast and agile. With his excellent eye-sight, he’s definitelly one of the strongest demon slayers of his generation. When on a mission with Yukimura, he also makes the best of his excelent insight into the enemy techniques and weaknesses. They make a great team but some would argue Rokuro is more efficient on his own when he can focus solely on fighting and less on protecting his master.

As such, there’s not really a particular set of abilities a demon would have to have in order to gain any advantage over him. That’s not to say he can’t be simply overpowered but unlike Kakei or Sasuke, this pillar has no clear weakness. Meeting a demon who can surpass him in one or more ways, of course, is entirely possible and if separated from Yukimura, it’s not improbable he might even make a mistake of judgment.

If he realizes he’d be overpowered on his own (and believe me, he would realize that before the fight even starts), he’d probably fall back, sending a message out and asking for further orders. He will try to collect information on the demon without being seen or felt – and he’s probably quite successful in that area as well. He’s deffinitelly not seeking a fight and if it seems neccessary, he will take the chance to flee.

Things take a turn if there’s a chance of the demon going after other people. If Rokuro is given enough time ahead before the demon can reach them, he is likely to find a safe hiding spot for them to stay at or to organise some sort of an escape. He’s likely to stay behind and distract the demon, even if just for a short while. But he also has no intention of dying there so he will just hold the demon off and then flee the scene as well.

If he’s not given any time, however, he will need to think on his feet. And his first priority, of course, is ensuring the people’s safety. He would most likely use his second additional form way more than he normally should, exhausting himself thoroughly but there’s no way he’d give anyone over. He might switch into other forms briefly to recover at least a bit of his stamina but he will most certainly remain on the defense. At this point, the crow is sent out. Not for back-up but to warn any lower-ranked slayers possibly in the area. Though don’t get it wrong, he’s not telling them to run, just to be careful. It’s in his best interest to have more hands to use to protect everyone and hold off the demon after all.

#brave 10 #brave10 #brave10 imagines #kny x brave 10 #isanami #sarutobi sasuke #kirigakure saizo #juuzou kakei #unno rokuro

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helsung · 6 years ago

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RETRIEVED FROM THE INTERNAL DATABASE OF HER MAJESTY’S SECRET HELLSING ORGANIZATION, NOT FOR PUBLIC RELEASE OR FOR COPY . ORDER SIGNED BY SIR INTEGRA FAIRBROOK WINGATES HELLSING HERSELF .

of all supernatural creatures that have crossed paths with the van helsing clan, & later the hellsing organization, none stand out & as a memorable as THE VAMPIRE . the family whose namesake & history intertwines with the organization has painted its legacy with the blood of these monsters, they have found their greatest feats in slaying them & protecting humanity from their corruption . it is no coincidence then that of all beasts that reach the shores of the united kingdom, the vampire is our most common threat . there are many factors which make it feared among all other creatures, the apex predator of a food chain beyond the limits of human comprehension, & the subject of the hellsing organization never-ending crusade to hunt it to extinction :

SECTION #001 — PHYSIOGNOMY .

VAMPIRES ARE LIKE CHAMELEONS, sharing the figure & features of a human, able to hide & lie in wait among its natural prey, with an appearance subject to change of their own will . of course, the weaker they are the easier it is to distinguish them from your fellow man, you can quite easily assess the threat level of any given vampire by how well it hides itself among a crowd of people . weak vampires may also be unable to truly shift in appearance, like many of their abilities, such a skill is something to be learned & mastered . the common traits that set a creature of this nature apart from any human are RED EYES & SHARP SHARK-LIKE TEETH . as mentioned previously, more powerful vampires may chose to hide these traits, the red in their eyes hidden beneath a fake glint, though in darkness it is still quite visible . they might also cover their fangs, but it is important to note the canines of this creature’s maw, for they will ALWAYS remain sharp . weaker variations can also lessen their vampiric traits through restraint from blood consumption, which might provide the slightest cover, but in said state a vampire’s nature as a shambling corpse is most well seen .

starved of what satiates their hunger, a vampire’s form will begin to slowly wither & they will grow weaker . given enough time a vampire may return to a corpse-like catatonic state, though the length of this process may itself take months or years depending on their inherit strength . human blood is what fuels their vampirism, what allows them the power to prey on humanity, & without it they are fated to revert to their truest form, the corpses they should have been .

it was not always this way, vampires of old were quite easily distinguishable from humans, sharing only in the humanoid figure but with more telltale signs of their status as apex predators . they have since EVOLVED to hide themselves among humanity, a natural consequence of their never-ending thirst for blood, & only the most ancient of vampires retain elements of their historical depictions . to a trained eye, however, even the vampires of now may be told apart from people . while humans possess a solid composition, a vampire’s is more shadow-like, shifting endlessly in infinite states of dishevelment which make one tense upon eye contact . it is hard to notice just how inhuman vampires appear, but under the right light conditions, through the right photographs, one can tell .

SECTION #002 — LIFE-CYCLE .

according to legends, vampires are not born, THEY ARE MADE, a curse spread from one host to another . it is true, that vampires do not & can not procreate ( with humans or each other ), but the beginnings of a vampire are a far more complicated process with endless, situational variations . vampirism is a curse, & thus, it has a source . though it is impossible to trace it down to any single progenitor, it is foolish to believe that people become vampires simply through the spread from one infected patient to another . a human may become a vampire in numerous ways, either they are sired into their unholy existence by someone already afflicted, or they become vampires from their own hubris . vampirism is an illness born out of HUNGER, hunger for many things, be it eternal life, or power . the latter is the most common narrative, & thus many who seek greater strength beyond the limitations of humanity may become vampires out of pure desire . they might perform forbidden rituals of the occult, sacrifice their soul to all manner of devils, gods & specters or something as simple as satiating their thirst with the blood of their fellow man .

once afflicted, a vampire’s life-cycle is virtually limitless, able to live for an insurmountable number of years beyond that of a human . it is this longevity that makes the vampire one of the last supernatural creatures to stalk the edges of our perception . many other monsters of its ilk have since died our or have been hunted to extinction, YET THE VAMPIRE SURVIVES . is this simply down to their prolonged existence ? is it their status as the top of the unholy food-chain that allowed them to survive when their comrades did not ?

NO, while those are factors to consider, the vampire continues in spite of its kin for it draws its satiation from a different source . while beasts may feed on the nutrients present in human flesh, after all, we are red meat, vampires hunger for blood . like all creatures, humans possess a SOUL, their very essence contained within that allows to exist & perceive, & BLOOD IS THE CURRENCY OF THE SOUL . drain someone of their blood, quench your thirst with it, & soon you will be allowed to peer into them, their thoughts, their feelings & even their very memories . by draining a person’s entire bloodstream, vampires are able to absorb their soul, granting them further power beyond simply that which is gained from normal feeding . vampires are then able to do with these souls as they please, should they know how to utilize them, summoning their victims as familiars, using them to hone their skills & abilities . making them the most feared among the forces of darkness & the last surviving vanguard of the night . it is this discovery, made by the late arthur van helsing, that truly explains the source of the vampire’s abilities, & the need for its TOTAL ERADICATION .

SECTION #003 — THREAT .

vampires posses an array of abilities that prove deadly to any human unfortunate enough be become their prey . the exact nature & number are ill-defined & so not even the hellsing organization can provide a complete assessment of the capabilities of a vampire . vampirism is a tailored curse, one that suits each corrupted individual down to their need . in essence, THERE IS NO UPPER LIMIT TO THE POWERS BORN OF VAMPIRISM, as each encounter may differ in its own unique way, & thus each mission is required, according strictly to the hellsing organization’s internal regulations, to perform an extensive reconnaissance operation before a target is engaged in combat .

however, there are shared traits between many of the vampires slain by hunters & soldiers of the organization, which are to be memorized & understood as an observable pattern within vampirism . it is, after all, an affliction of those who hunger for POWER, & in that shared origin one will find common abilities . they are as follows :

ENHANCED STRENGTH, AGILITY, ENDURANCE & RESILIENCE — self-explanatory, vampires possess capabilities beyond any mere human, able to move faster than the eye can perceive, to tear through flesh like it is paper, to outlast trained soldiers in battle & to survive a hailstorm of bullets . they are not to be underestimated, as they can rip apart an overconfident squadron in seconds ;

REGENERATION — again, self-explanatory, any wound a vampire is caused can be healed quickly without visible scarring . more powerful & skilled the vampire, more potent their regenerative abilities, able to even regrow or reattach limbs which have been severed . it is said that a strong enough vampire may even regrow their head ;

LONGEVITY — decay & rot are of little concern to a vampire, they are corruption inhabiting a body, & given a consistent stream of human blood they can live on for as long as they desire, nigh immortal if not for the existence of bodies such as the hellsing organization to seek their end ;

INTANGIBILITY — if they so choose, a vampire may become immaterial to the world, & pass through any matter it desires . of course, this is a skill uncommonly seen, & a technique that necessitates a degree of mastery before it is to be used offensively . the only know material to cancel it out is SILVER ;

PERCEPTION — a vampire’s ability to perceive the world around them is enhanced & honed specifically for the hunting of humans, thus their hearing, sight & sense of their surroundings reaches far above ours . they can hear single a heartbeat among a crowd from miles away, can see their prey through solid objects & perceive the surrounding area to such a degree that a plan of attack may be formed in seconds ;

TELEPATHY & HYPNOSIS — is it because of this enhanced perception that vampires have to the ability to stalk a person through their thoughts, able to project their desires onto a potential victim & draw them closer . as well, they may simply sense a human’s thoughts & emotions when they are close by without needing a single drop of blood . of course, this is not a common ability, & is a skill to be mastered before it sees use in the vampire’s hunt ;

TELEKINESIS — certain vampires may possess minds so powerful as to move solid objects . while another infrequent ability, it may be used by a vampire to drag their opponent off their fit & into their claws, or simply to levitate objects & even themselves to be used as weapons or for better spacing when engaging in combat ;

refer to previous sections for anything missing from this list .

SECTION #004 — SPREAD .

one might imagine vampirism to travel among the populace like a plague, an illness passed on from an infected individual to another, but it is a mistake to think of it this way . vampirism is no common affliction, & though it can be passed, a more correct assessment would be to say that VAMPIRISM IS A CANCER . as previously mentioned, one might give into becoming a vampire because of their lust for greater power . how, then, is vampirisim granted ? does it simply manifest out of thin air & infect those wanting ? of course, the answer is much more damming . vampirism is a curse which is present within us all, any human serves the potential of becoming a vampire, should they find themselves under the right circumstances . it is an affliction born of humanity’s own hubris, manifesting itself as vengeful beasts that seek nothing but our destruction .

we all born into this world with a corruption in our hearts that may overtake us & turn us into monsters, each of us serves the potential of becoming a vampire, but to then imagine a necessity for the culling of fellow humans in an effort to stop the spread of vampirism is monstrous in & of itself . the circumstances by which a human may turn are so specific & uncommon that billions of us can go our entire lives without knowing we are all corruptible . in order for one to turn themselves, they necessitate a pathological hunger for power without limit, not power over others granted through the hierarchical systems we live under, power beyond the constructs we agree upon . power to dominate without restraint & to do it as they please . as well, another of the few known triggers for our inherit corruption is desperation beyond measure, a willingness to sacrifice one’s own humanity in order to survive in the face of certain doom . combine these two circumstances, give it human blood of any sort, & you just might have witnessed the beginnings of a self-made vampire .

it is for this reason that vampirism is so uncommon among humanity, despite every individual presenting a potential risk of the affliction, & why, in order for the lineage of vampires to continue, it is customary for the vampire to turn humans into more of its kin . this too can be an uncommon sight, such a ritual, while easy to perform, can be deeply personal & born of incredible circumstance . it is quite easy to understand that granting another immortality & power beyond measure, against their will or because of it, while sacrificing their humanity is not a decision to be made lightly . thus, it is more rational to fear DEATH by a vampire’s hand rather than the granting of UNDEATH . the way by which a human is turned is quite simplistic in comparison, it requires them to be drained of most if not all of their blood by a vampire’s bite, allowing the plague to spread through their body from the touch of fangs alone, & then they must be given a taste of vampiric blood . vampirism is an unstable corruption, one that can destroy a human’s mind & body if not contained by a vampire’s blood . self-made vampires need not worry, but those being turned NEED vampiric blood within their system lest the poison take away their rational mind & rot their body to the core, turning them into GHOULS .

SECTION #005 — WEAKNESS .

almost in spite of their great power, dispatching a vampire can be quite easily done . in ages past they were quite weak to objects of religious significance, such as crosses, & unable to withstand the radiation of the sun, but today most vampires have evolved past such classical weaknesses . regardless, SILVER remains their natural deterrent, contact with it will burn their skin & any wound they contract from the metal is either permanent or harder to heal . as such, soldiers of the hellsing organization are outfitted with silver plated rounds of both exploding & standard variety, designed specifically by our research & development department to incapacitate most types of vampires . blessed silver is found to be double as effective, & thus we also provide standard ammunition forged from melted silver crosses provided to hellsing by the manchester cathedral . however , these are in short supply, & are only to be used under dire circumstances as a last resort or if a vampiric threat is assessed to be greater than normal, as per our internal regulations .

when attempting to incapacitate a vampire, one should make sure to aim for one of two potential areas of their body, either the head or the heart . destroying either/both of them or severing from a vampire will, in most cases, kill them instantly without any chance of regeneration . even a well placed non-silver bullet may dispatch a vampire if aimed well enough, & thus precision with a fire arm is the difference between life & death . as well, while not commonly used by the organization, FIRE can prove a useful tool when dealing with vampires, able to burn them at a rate similar to contact with silver or, at the very least, weaken them enough for a well placed shot . vampires are scarcely immune to explosives, as well, & can be incapacitated if one were to explode one/both of their vital points . dispatching an entire group of vampires is generally better done by utilizing explosives than engaging them with firearms .

THIS ENTRY HAS BEEN COMPILED FROM RESEARCH INTO THE OCCULT DONE OVER THE MANY GENERATIONS OF THE VAN HELSING FAMILY, WRITTEN & SIGNED BY SIR INTEGRA FAIRBROOK WINGATES HELLSING .

#* ( could've been so much better ┊ ooc. )#* ( signed & printed ┊ headcanon. )#* ( doing hirano's work for him ┊ worldbuilding. )#eat your heart out kouta hirano #i WRITE hellsing now #it's mine #*beats hands against chest like a gorilla while screaming*#blood //#blood mention //#cancer mention //#illness mention //

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asernolonger · 5 years ago

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Dreamscape Drabble #3: A Dragoon’s Respite

(Mun note: Warning, there is some implied mild nudity under the cut! You have been warned!)

Could it get any worse for Selenie? Trapped in this strange realm, unable to awaken, and forced to relieve her torturous past? She doubted it could, but then, she realized... she was reliving them in sequence of when they occurred. Which meant that the next one was very likely to be...

She “awoke” (though she knew that, at the current moment, she was not truly awake-still very much in that forced dream trance), feeling groggy and exhausted. Her mind was in somewhat of a haze-what had happened?

“Oh, look! Roror, she’s awake! I think she’s confused, but she’s awake!”

She blinked a few times upon hearing the chirpy, high-pitched voice. When her vision finally settled, she couldn’t believe what was sitting on her chest, flashing a toothy, childish grin at her.

An off-white scaled hatchling. A dragon hatchling! What was a dragon hatchling doing on her chest?! Moreover, why was it happy that she was awake?!

Instinctively, she swatted the hatchling off her chest, blushing fiercely, shooting up into a sitting position, and wrapping her arms around herself. The hatchling whimpered a bit, before regathering itself and scowling at her.

“Why did you do that?! I didn’t hurt you!”

“Instinct, little one. You must remember, she is a daughter of Ishgard. Or rather, she was a daughter of Ishgard. She knoweth not the truth.”

A low, rumbling voice, calm yet powerful, spoke, and then, a much larger dragon descended from higher in the tower she just realized she was in, landing as gently as possible on the same level she was resting on. She was confused, but then, upon looking down at her arms...

They were covered in scales. The talons were still very much there. Her eyes began to glisten. It wasn’t a horrible nightmare. That bastard really did manage to have the last laugh. She couldn’t go back-not like this! She’d be viewed as a heretic and executed on the spot!

“Fear not, daughter of man. You are safe under my wing. No spell, no fang, no claw, no steel will harm thee.” The larger dragon spoke. Selenie curled in on herself.

“I’m a freak of nature! I’m a monster! What in the hells am I meant to do now?! I can’t go back home, and there’s no way in the seventh hell I’m joining him-”

As her emotions ran high, a light began to shine in her hand. Soon enough, it detonated, sending her flying into the air. However, when she didn’t feel the sensation of slamming into something hard, nor solid ground beneath her, she was confused. As the dust settled, she realized... she was in mid-air! How in the hells was she in mid-air and staying there?! She hadn’t used any sort of Jump, and even then, a Jump would not have her staying in the air!

“Hm, so thy wings are not merely for show. Another skill to master, but I do not mind teaching thee.”

She blinked, and looked back. She hadn’t even realized she’d unfurled her newfound wings, let alone that they were keeping her in mid-air. And the most disturbing part? It felt so natural. Like this was how her body was meant to be. She looked to the large dragon, who was lying there patiently.

“...How do I come down?” She finally asked.

“Search thy instincts, daughter of man. Just as your body knows how to fly, so too it knows how to land.”

With reluctance, she closed her eyes, before finally figuring out how to maneuver her wings to land. The large dragon was pleased as she wrapped her wings around herself.

“Well done. Tell me thy name, child of man.” He asked.

“Selenie. Selenie Armour.”

He hummed.

“A beautiful name. Mine is Roror, son of Hraesvelgr. Unlike Yilbegan, who thou didst slay, I have no desire to participate in the Dragonsong War. Many of my brothers and sisters feel the same way. Even our sire remains neutral and aloof. Now, I shall begin mine teachings, so hearken well to mine words...”

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The time passed by so very quickly. At first, she struggled, often waking up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat, screaming. Eventually, the nightmares began to lessen (or perhaps she just came to terms with them enough that they simply didn’t affect her as strongly) in potency. The truth was painful and difficult to swallow, but she couldn’t deny it-so she just let it be.

Despite the fact she was the daughter of the nation that was supposed to be their enemy, Roror and his hatchlings seemed to have infinite compassion for mortals. Selenie was not the first he’d taken in under his wing, but evidently, she was the first proper dragoon that had been put under his care. Most of the others were forgemasters, who were kind enough to refit her armor to fit her new form, and forge a new spear for her, without asking for a single gil. And while it was all too easy to adapt to her new armor and spear, not everything was so easy.

The new powers, however... those proved a bit difficult to learn properly. Well, some of them, at the least. Flight and her newfound senses were practically instinctual from the start, and learning to contend with enhanced versions of her existing abilities wasn’t too hard. But learning how to channel her newfound magic into other techniques that she’d never even contemplated before? That was hard. But she managed to come up with a few tricks-mostly offensive abilities, but new tricks nonetheless.

In other words, life was okay. Selenie loved playing with the little dragonets, and found a simple joy in flying anywhere she pleased. But she was not the type to be able to settle down forever, and she wanted to truly get away from it all. She wanted to start over-to be a ser no longer.

“I do not fault thee for wishing to spread thy wings and leave the nest. Head to the south, far beyond the reaches of dragon or Ishgard, and I have no doubt that new adventures will await thee.” Roror suggested.

“Head south, and become an adventurer... it makes sense.”

She stood up, stretched, and smiled at her draconic caretaker.

“Thanks. For everything. I won’t let it go to waste.”

“Fare thee well, little Selenie.”

She sprinted out of the spire that had been her sanctuary, before leaping off the edge, spreading her wings as she began to fall. She caught a strong wind, and let it carry her away, heading south to the other nations of Eorzea.

#isola-thoughts #isola-event #sorta happy times now #probably as happy as it gets for Selenie tbh #poor thing has been through a lotta shit #implied brief nudity #event: dreamscape

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avehi-the-adamant · 6 years ago

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In the Ashes of Teldrassil

(( Co-written with my RP partner, @kidcatgemini. Mierne belongs to her.))

The pitch-black moon hung ominously in the sky. A side effect of the ritual the Kaldorei High Priestess performed some week or so ago. It made it harder to see through the already-dense trees and ominous shroud of ashes that remained in Darkshore… but Avehi managed. She’d had no issues so far finding the Horde forces here. Most of the time, they conveniently came to her! One by one, Horde soldiers crumbled beneath Rokaa - her rune-inscribed crystalline hammer. It was a dark reflection of the weapon she’d wielded in life, during her service as a Light-blessed Vindicator. She forged this new hammer using her practiced crystal forging techniques, as well as the runeforging she’d learned from the Ebon Blade. Fitting the newfound resolved she had found to continue her service to her people, she named the weapon ‘Undying Oath’. The hammer had spelled doom for countless enemies of the Draenei. From Twilight’s Hammer cultists, to Mantid of Pandaria, to even demons of the Burning Legion on Argus. Now, she used it to crush the Horde forces in Kalimdor - literally, in most cases.

She lifted her weapon up after the last of the Forsaken had fallen, with a displeased snarl. She derived no pleasure from killing Forsaken. Orcs, trolls, tauren… she could draw their life energy through combat, sating her Hunger for a time. But the Forsaken had no life energy to draw from, which only agitated Avehi more and more as the fighting went on. Still, she was quite proficient in slaying undead monsters like them. The war against the Scourge gave her plenty of invested experience in taking them down for good.

The Vindicator looked around, cautiously. The woods were eerily still along the coastline. She suspected the group she’d taken down wasn’t the last. Her plated hand gripped her hammer tightly, as she assumed a battle stance. Something was coming… she could smell the blighted Forsaken blood on the wind. She was ready.

What came leaping out of the woods was not a Forsaken, but a ghostly wolf… though it held the disembodied arm of a Forsaken in its mouth. It didn’t even seem to notice Avehi as it turned and perked up its ears, as if listening for something. The sound of a body falling, a flame trap going off, followed by horrible screaming that eventually died out seemed to satisfy the creature. It dropped the arm and turned to leave…

And jumped back with a yelp of surprise as it finally saw the death knight. Immediately, it shifted to a familiar Draenei form, a hand placed over her chest in shock.

“By the Earth Mother, you gave me a fright!” Mierne exclaimed.

Avehi couldn’t help but chuckle at Mierne’s reaction - she’d never gotten the jump on her before! She chuckled lightly, covering her mouth with her hand, before shaking her head.

“Apologies, Mierne. I suppose I’m more subtle than I used to be.”

She looked around once more, tail swaying smoothly behind her. Her agitation seemed to settle in the presence of her long-time friend, but that didn’t mean she’d lowered her guard at all. From what she could tell, they’d cleared out most of the nearby enemies between the two of them. Avehi looked to Mierne once again, and nodded.

“It is good to see you. Even out here.” she dipped her head. “Though, I’m somewhat surprised to see you outside of Bloodmyst.”

“I felt I had to do something after the burning of Teldrassil,” Mierne answered as she looked off towards where the large tree once was, “When word came that Tyrande was pushing back, it felt like the right time to join the battle in my own way.”

She turned her attention back to her friend, giving her a sheepish smile. It was obvious she was a bit out of place in a war zone. She’d already let her guard down.

“Not on the front lines, of course. But leading the Horde through traps and gathering provisions,” she continued, “Kharanos is here as well. I was going to meet him soon at the Alliance stronghold. Did you wish to join me?”

“--Vindicator Khanaros? He’s here?”

Her own reaction surprised Avehi. But she couldn’t help but feel a rushing return of long-buried feelings surface abruptly. She wasn’t prepared for it, frankly. Some years ago, during her Vindicator training, she developed something of a crush for Vindicator Khanaros. He wasn’t like others she typically got involved with - he was mature, stoic… steely. She recalled fantasizing about him rather often back in those days; such fantasies keeping her breathless and warm on countless nights. But it was nothing more than that. Merely a childish crush on an older Draenei male. They’d met, of course. And spoke briefly on an occasion or two. But so fleeting were their interactions… She hoped he would still remember her.

Even as she was now...

“As you say, Mierne.” she nodded once, letting the sudden resurgence of her adolescent feelings settle once again. “Let’s not keep your fiance waiting, yes? Lead the way.”

She hefted her hammer up over her shoulder, and followed Mierne to the Alliance holding in Bashal’aran.

Mierne couldn’t help but blush slightly as she followed Avehi. She still wasn’t used Khanaros being referred as such. It was hard to tell if she ever would. She still had time to think on it still, especially now that they’d agreed to slow things down a bit. Nothing had changed other than how people referred to the as.

~*~

Vindicator Khanaros shifted his weight from one hoof to the other, as he watched the treeline through narrowed eyes. Returning to a battlefield environment had been easy enough - some things you never unlearn. His crystalline hammer felt heavy, yet natural in his hands. His plated armor fit just as it always had, like a second skin. He watched, stoically, along the treeline due north. A simple glance in passing at the war table in the Sentinel’s Command Tent was enough to tell him everything he needed to know about Darkshore. The Horde had holdings both north and south of them. Much closer north, however. Were he a gambling man, he’d bet the next attack would come from there - and he was more than ready for it. The last good fight he’d had was some time ago, on Argus. And he was itching for another. Again - some things you never unlearn.

His tail flickered, however, as he turned to face the southern ramp up into the Bashal’aran compound. An aura of undeath wafted from that direction. Were the Forsaken coming up? A scout, perhaps? He snarled, and began hoofing that direction - hammer already aglow with vindictive Light.

Mierne and Avehi breached the tree line on the south side of the camp just as Khanaros began making his way over. They’d traveled mostly in silence, not wanting to alert any possible hord scouts of their presence. Noticing his serious expression and the way he was stomping over, Mierne couldn’t help but look over her shoulder to see if they had perhaps been followed.

She saw nothing. Her tail twitched nervously as she listened for any tell tale sounds from the forest, but the only sound that she could pick up were that of the heavily armoured Vindicator. She turned her attention back to him.

“Khan,” she greeted him warmly, though with a hint of worry in her voice, “Is something wrong?”

Avehi exhibited no such nervousness. At least, not from behind her. She had grown adept at finding other undead, including Forsaken. If they were followed, she’d know it. No, instead her nervousness stemmed from meeting her old mentor for the first time in years. Decades! As she crested the hill alongside Mierne, he came into view - he looked as distinguished and inspiring as ever. He wore his age well, signs of it showing in his face. But they somehow made him look stronger, rather than feeble. Experienced, not expiring. She almost staggered back, gasping lightly, as a rush of memories of him came flooding back into her mind. And emotions along with them.

Khanaros relaxed, visibly, as Mierne approached. He smiled to her… then looked suspiciously at Avehi. He could feel it immediately as she drew closer - that aura of undeath she carried. It caught him off guard, especially here. The stench of undeath was pallettable in these woods. He never expected it would emanate from an ally. Another Draenei, especially. He knew some of his kin were Scourged. He’d even met one or two, in passing. Khanaros knew that couldn’t be easy. Like the Krokul, losing the connection to the Light surely hit a Draenei hard. His suspicious look turned to a sympathetic look, as he eyed Avehi over a second time.

“No, no… all is well.” he then nodded to Mierne, as his holy energies faded from his hands and hammer. “Who is your friend?”

That question hurt quite a bit, for Avehi; while they weren’t ever close, she and Khanaros had met a couple times. She had hoped she stuck out at least a little from other trainees under his command back in the day. But he looked at her as if he never met her in his life! Had it been so long? Was she so forgettable? Or had undeath changed her that much? No possible answer took the sting out of his innocent query. She slumped, tail drooping down behind her as she looked away.

Mierne relaxed completely and smiled at Khanaros. At his presence alone, her tail began to sway happily behind her. There was something about seeing him all dressed up in his armor and seeing his powerful displays of the Light! She strolled up to him, but refrained from any public displays of affection while he was on duty… unless he initiated of course… Not that it was needed. The spark between them was obvious. Uncertain as she was about the engagement, there was no debate on how much she enjoyed her old friend’s presence.

“Ah! This is my dear friend Avehi! I have told you about her, I’m certain! She and I grew close in the marshes after the fall of Shattrath.”

She turned her head to smile at Avehi, blinking as she noticed the sudden change in her friend’s demeanour. The slumped shoulders… the dropping tail… Had Khanaros’ use of the Light upset her. She knew the undead tended to be sensitive to it...

“—Ah, are you alright, Avehi?” She asked, concern in her voice, “Are you… are you that sensitive to the Light’s presence?”

“--Aah, no. No, I’m alright.” Avehi snapped to, nodding to Mierne.

She gave a meek smile, before looking back at Khanaros. The Vindicators exchanged a moment of looks, before Khanaros broke the silence between them. He sheathed his hammer, and offered Avehi a crisp salute.

“Oh, of course! It is well, yes!” he bowed his head politely. “Mierne has mentioned you on several occasions. Always in a positive light, of course. It is a pleasure to finally meet you.”

He was proud of himself, suppressing his reflex to use his typical greeting. He had worked with Death Knights before, in Northrend and in several campaigns since. The Light didn’t always agree with them - and wishing Light’s blessings on them had often earned him scowls and scolding retorts. He imagined, to them, such was a curse. A slap in the face. He’d caught himself from uttering such a phrase now, even though Avehi was a fellow Draenei.

Avehi did frown, however, the meek smile vanishing quickly again as Khanaros addressed her. Despite, she returned the salute with one of her own. Theirs was always a professional relationship, in the past. She could certainly be professional now.

“We’ve met several times, Vindicator.” she put plainly, tone even… if not a little monotone. “I was actually trained as a Vindicator under your command, on Draenor. But… do not fret. That was some time ago, certainly. And I was much more lively back then, I imagine.”

It was Khanaros’ turn to slump slightly at the revelation. He let out a silent ‘oh’, as he looked Avehi over once more - closer this time. He had met so many Draenei in his life, trained hundreds - if not thousands - of recruits. It was ridiculous to think he would remember them all! But that made it no less awkward, in the moment. He cleared his throat.

“I… see. Apologies, I…”

Words failed him. But they didn’t fail Avehi.

“Pay it no mind, Vindicator Khanaros.” she shook her head, and offered him a weak smile. “It is an honor to be re-introduced to you, nonetheless.”

Her tail twitched behind her, erratically. But otherwise, she was extremely calm and collected. Shoulders back again, standing proudly following her salute. Making a fuss or a scene would do no one any good. Especially Mierne; Avehi didn’t want to shame or embarrass his dear friend’s fiance, after all. But despite her professional demeanor… the awkward tension was thick as could be!

Mierne has absolutely no idea where the sudden tension had come from, but she could feel it nonetheless. She glanced from Avehi to Khanaros and back. Avehi’s friendly demeanour had completely vanished, and she couldn’t help but wonder why. With how uncomfortable Khanaros was getting, she was starting to wonder if perhaps something had happened between them years ago. If so, Avehi would have said something beforehand, right?

She tried to think of something to ease the tension, but nothing came to mind. Sighing, she walked over to take Khanaros’ hand in hers, giving it an encouraging squeeze.

“All is well, yes? What better way to get reacquainted than killing Horde soldiers together!”

She cringed internally. Solving people problems wasn’t what she was good at. Awkward conversations like this were why she lived -away- from people.

“How about we sit and catch up? I’ve planted a number of traps in the area. They will alert us if enemy forces draw near.”

Her tail flicked awkwardly. Why did things feel weird?

The squeeze of his hand shook Khanaros loose of his awkward stall. He looked to Mierne, and smiled.

“A fine idea. Come, I have a tent, we can seek shelter within from the dreariness.” he offered.

‘Most of it…’ he thought to himself, as he looked Avehi over once more.

He could tell he offended her, not recalling her from before. It couldn't be helped, but clearly it struck a nerve. As he led the two of them to the tent, he rattled his brain trying to recall something - anything - about Vindicator Avehi...

The Death Knight followed behind Mierne and her fiance, quiet and sullen. She was trying not to let this sudden rush of emotions spoil the meeting. It was a struggle, though - she didn't realize how much that silly crush meant to her, or how unresolved those feelings were left. Seeing him again brought them all back… seeing him holding hands with Mierne as they walked along ahead of her made it worse. She expected someone would earn his affections, certainly. But to have it he someone so close to her… it made it feel that much more personal - irrational as she knew that was. How long had her best friend been living out one of her oldest fantasies? Embracing that strong, stern, but noble Vindicator? Indulging in his body…?

--No, no… she shook the thought from her mind as best she could. Jealousy would poison her friendship. She wouldn't let that happen! She couldn't! Lightly, Avehi cleared her throat, as Khanaros led them both into the tent.

“I had heard you retired, Vindicator. Some time ago.” she offered, tone varying and friendly, as it was before. “Rumors, I presume?”

Khanaros parted the tent flaps, allowing Mierne and Avehi both in ahead of him. It was nothing fancy; a table, some benches, crates of supplies and a weapon rack. Still, it was nice than just standing outside!

“I had very much intended to, after Argus.” he replied. “But a war this close to home demanded my attention. I could never ignore the needs of our people.”

He smiled to Avehi, politely, seeming to relax some. At least they were talking!

Mierne set her hammer down next to the weapon rack as they entered the tent. She was surprised at all the room inside, used to her little hovels back on the isles.

She was also used to wearing a lot less than she was. Due to the area being a battlefield, she was wearing mail armor that was much more appropriate, covering her body entirely. She removed her gloves and set her helm aside, brushing a hand through her hair. Despite the mess her helm had made of it, it still looked much better than when she lived alone in the wild. She took a bit more care of her appearance around Khanaros, especially when being seen in public with him. While she didn’t care about how people viewed her, she knew Khanaros had a reputation to uphold.

“This war has indeed come too close for comfort”, she agreed, “We are fortunate the Horde cannot keep a foothold here, otherwise nothing would stop them from attacking the Exodar.”

She took a seat on one of the benches, turning her attention to Avehi, “How are things in Kul Tiras?”

“When I was there, they were… stable.” Avehi replied, taking her place in the darkest corner of the tent - her lichfire eyes glowing brighter in contrast. “The Horde has a secure holding in the north of the island, but the bulk of their forces seem to be in Zandalar.”

Khanaros set his hammer neatly on the rack beside Mierne’s, before turning to the table. He poured a cup of water from a pitcher, and offered it to Mierne. He then did the same for Avehi… but Avehi shook her head in declination. The elder Vindicator simply then took the cup for himself.

“What matters to me, now, is Darkshore.” he said, plainly. “Kul Tiras is a nation that has long left the Alliance to fend for itself. I would not see it fall, if it can be helped, but perhaps coming under Horde fire will help them see the need to unite with the Alliance in this campaign. But as I said, Darkshore is--”

“You’re of a mind to just let the Horde tear into Kul Tiras? An allied human kingdom?” Avehi interjected, eyes narrowed slightly at Khanaros. “Our presence there, defending them, is as vital as it is here reclaiming Darkshore for the Kaldorei.”

The tension returned - Khanaros felt it as he looked Avehi over. This time, it wasn’t so much awkward as it was… hostile. He calmly shook his head, as he set the cup down.

“I did not mean to imply such. Of course, if we can help the Kul Tirans, that is best.” he elaborated. “But for the safety of the Exodar, and the protection of our people, defending Darkshore is paramount. That is all I meant, Vindicator Avehi.”

“No one argues that. We’re all here, aren’t we?” Avehi retorted - the air in the tent growing a bit colder. “But if we only fight battles to defend our people, while other people suffer the Horde’s brutality elsewhere, how are we better allies to the Alliance than the Kul Tirans? No front in this war is more or less important than another.”

In unintended unison, both Khanaros and Avehi looked to Mierne, as if awaiting her to weigh in on the issue…

Mierne frowned heavily at the two as they fought. She had thought the two would get along well, given that they’d met previously, but Avehi was in an abnormally abrasive mood it seemed.

‘What’s gotten into her?’ the shaman wondered, brow twitching.

“I think this type of conversation is exactly why I tend to stay on my island!” She growled, crossing her arms over her chest, “For goodness sake, I thought we came in here to speak of more pleasant things.”

Her tail flicked sporadically next to her as she took a sip from the water Khanaros had given her. She used the pause to attempt to calm herself.

“As for my opinion on political matters I know nothing about. I stand firm in my belief that our people come first. Certainly above short lived beings like the humans. When we were in need, the Kal’dorei helped us. Now, we repay that favour. My motivations are as simple as that.”

She shrugged, not certain what else they wanted from her.

“--Of course, yes.” Khanaros cleared his throat. “Apologies. The war in general is a controversial subject. It runs emotions high, and sparks arguments by its very nature.”

He dipped his head apologetically towards Mierne, then to Avehi. He had his opinions of the war, and it was clear she did as well. Mierne was right, though - a more pleasant topic was surely in order for this crowd!

As if she weren’t already stoic enough, Avehi kept still and silent, eyeing the two of them from her dark corner of the tent. The air between them still felt a little chilly, both literally and figuratively, but much less so than at the building of the spontaneous argument. Her expression was dull, unreadable, as if carved from stone. But her continued irritation was conveyed well enough as her tail swayed, fast but even, behind her. Her hands hung at her sides, balled into plates fists.

“... Mm.” she nodded once, after a long and silent pause. “I'm sorry, I must still be worked up from fighting. Please, excuse me a moment.”

With even, intent strides, Avehi exited the tent without another word. Khanaros opened his mouth to try to say something to stop her, but instead looked to Mierne to do so instead. It didn't seem to matter, though - she left before either had much of a chance to protest it. Khanaros sighed, before swallowing down the rest of his water.

“... I am sorry, Mierne.” he exhaled, defeatedly. “I must have offended your friend deeply when I did not recognize her. Did she tell you we had met previously?”

Mierne was silent as she watched Avehi leave the tent. She did nothing to stop her. The Death Knight was clearly frustrated about something, and she suspected it had to do with something bigger than a past teacher not remembering her. She shook her head at Khanaros’ question.

“She did not. I was aware that she knew who you are, but that is the extent of it. I have not spoken to her in some time, though. I suspect it is something else that bothers her, and it is marking her bristle at smaller things.” She sighed, patting the empty place on the bench for Khanaros to come sit next to her.

“Avehi is still quite young, and I cannot imagine the trauma undeath would brings.”

Khanaros nodded thoughtfully as he took a seat beside Mierne. He exhaled a heavy sigh. It troubled him that not only had he seemed to upset a fellow Vindicator - fallen or not - but he'd also upset Mierne's friend. A part of him worried that failing to meet Avehi's approval could affect his plans to marry Mierne. He wasn't sure they were that close, but he knew Mierne well. Well enough to know that she didn't keep many close friends. That Avehi was one at all spoke to how much she must've meant to Mierne.

“Perhaps… it is my aura?” he theorized. “The Light can adversely affect one of her condition. Perhaps I am agitating her in that unintentional way.”

He slipped his arm around Mierne, casually, holding her as they sat. His tail swayed calmly, but his eyes continually glanced towards the tent opening, as if awaiting Avehi's return.

“I could… try to diminish it, I suppose…”

“Hmm… perhaps. She was acting as normal until we arrived. The Light might bother her more than she’s willing to let on.”

Mierne gave another shrug as she leaned in comfortably against Khanaros. Her tail reached over and intertwined with his in a comforting manner. She could tell he was distraught over the matter. It seemed Avehi’s opinion of him was an important matter to him. She couldn’t help but wonder why. Certainly, he must have encountered more than a single person that disliked him at some point in his long life. Avehi couldn’t be the first.

“Do not dwell on it,” she reassured him, placing a quick kiss on his cheek, “You did nothing wrong.”

Khanaros leaned into the kiss, unable to help but smile at Mierne's affections. His tail coiled about hers.

“... I know this is rather opposite of trying to diminish that aura, but…” he shrugged, giving Mierne a sheepish look. “...I was going to ask what you thought of the idea of me attempting the Lightforge Trials.”

~*~

Avehi paced outside around the camp. This was going poorly, she knew. She worried about what Mierne must've thought of all this. Her tail swayed in agitation, concerns that she'd surely upset her oldest and dearest friend! Her lichfire eyes flared with frustration, as she stood out over a small outcropping, and gazed thoughtfully at the darkened moon. She had to get this under control - this wasn't like her at all! Oh, how she wanted to walk back in that tent, and punch Khanaros in the face! And yet she could just as easily go inside and kiss him passionately. He'd be certain to remember her then, either way!

She exhaled slowly - not by any necessity, of course. Undeath did away with her need to breathe. Instead, it had become a practiced, reflexive motion to help her calm herself. She shook her head, putting aside her thoughts and feelings for Khanaros. For now. She had to salvage this, and set things right. For Mierne. She could do that.

But how? What explanation was suitable for this behavior? She could blame the Hunger… no, she prided herself in keeping that well under control. To lean on it as an excuse would undermine that. War stress? They all had that… she watched the moon, shoulders slumping as the realization washed over her - the best course of action was to come clean. To tell the truth, and reveal her crush on Khanaros. Her tail flickered, and began swaying in another way. A different pace and variance, not thoughtful anymore. Now... mustering confidence. She had made up her mind. She just needed the courage to carry out her will.

~*~

“What do you think?” Khanaros asked, turning to Mierne.

She looked genuinely surprised by his interest in becoming Lightforged. The more she thought of it, however, the more it made sense for it to be a path Khanaros would want to take. He’d been a Vindicator for longer than they’d known each other. The Light always an important facet in his life. Lightforging was naturally the next step for him in that regard. He was strong, old and wise. Surely he would have no problems passing his trials.

Perhaps it appeared as a surprise as he had so recently retired after Argus. This next step was quite the opposite of the quiet retirement he’d planned before the war broke out. But, if anything, this war proved that the fighting would not end. Not anytime soon.

Her head tilted as she thought it through. She was worried at what such an overabundance of exposure could bring. But again, she trusted Khanaros of all people would handle it appropriately.

“I think...” She said after a moment’s thought, “I think it would suit you well. If this is the path that feels natural to you, then who am I to stop you?”

Mierne smiled. Surely he wasn’t asking for her permission. Simply looking for counsel from his oldest friend… fiancé… She still wasn’t used to the thought.

“If this is what you wish to do, then you have my full support, of course.”

“Mm. I believe it is.” Khanaros smiled, tensing his arm to affectionately squeeze Mierne beside him. “It did not interest me before, when I thought I would be hanging up my hammer for good. But seeing as this war is far from over, I think it wise to give myself further to the Light, to better exact its divine judgement.”

He nodded once, firmly. Determined, now. From what he had heard, the trial was rigorous, testing body, mind, and soul, all. But now, with Mierne’s support in such a decision, he was confident all would be well.

“--It would change my appearance, I believe.” he added, as an afterthought. “Paler skin and hair, from what I have seen. Would you love me still, if I came out looking different?”

He smirked, half-teasingly. He knew the answer, of course. Their connection wasn’t purely based on appearances. But he also knew physical attraction was important in its own way. With any luck, he’d come out looking better from the Lightforging… not worse.

Before Mierne could reply, the tent flaps opened, as Avehi stepped inside once more. She looked solemnly to the pair as they sat on the bench, before exhaling a thoughtful sigh. Her tail swayed behind her, restlessly, as she stepped further inside and stood before her dearest friend, and former mentor.

“I… owe you both an explanation.” she said, meekly, shoulders slumping slightly. “I know I’ve been… stand-off-ish, yes? Moreso than is normal, even for me.”

“--It is alright, Vindicator Avehi.” Khanaros piped up, interrupting. “We… discussed it a bit, and pieced together why you are so uncomfortable around me.”

Avehi’s lichfire eyes widened! She gasped lightly, eyeing Khanaros, then Mierne.

“You… you do?” she asked, anxiously.

“It was obvious, yes, after we ruminated on it. As I said, it is alright. You need not be embarrassed or ashamed by it. I only regret I did not notice it sooner, or we could have addressed it immediately.”

The Death Knight blinked slowly. She didn’t expect such an amicable reaction! In a way, it only made her more attracted to Khanaros, with how mildly and level-headedly he addressed the awkward feelings she had for him. So mature! Perhaps he was right, and she should have come clean about this before the meeting! But… he didn’t want Mierne to think Avehi would try to act on such feelings. She glanced again to her dear friend, as if to gauge her reaction to the revelation.

“I… promise, I never intended to take any manner of action about this. It’s just somewhat… frustrating, yes? Given how things are now.” she sighed, apologetically.

“It… it is fine,” Mierne waved a hand dismissively, “No need to dwell on such things. It is a natural thing, after all.”

Mierne was fairly certain Avehi and Khanaros were not speaking of the same issues. She knew Avehi got along fine with Vindicators in the past. One she even considered a very close friend, so it made no sense for her behaviour to dramatically change this much upon Khanaros’ aura. The worry had crossed her mind earlier, but in hindsight it didn’t add up. Avehi had even told her such was not the case. Now, it seemed like she was just hiding behind that excuse...

She chose not to address it, however. For the moment, everyone was getting along well, and that was fine with her. She could discover what was really bothering her dear friend at a later time. There was no need to drag everything out in front of Khanaros.

She got up and made her way over to the knight, pulling her into a tight hug. Whatever the issue was, she wanted Avehi to know that she was always there for her.

Avehi couldn't help but smile as Mierne embraced her. She knew her dear friend would understand, passing no judgement for such things. She returned the embrace, being gently mindful of her armor as she affectionately squeezed Mierne.

“I… am glad. I worried such would make things difficult between us, seeing as you two are to be wed.” she sighed, relieved. “I'm sure it'll be easier to bear, as time goes on. I can't avoid you both forever, just because of a silly feeling.”

“Wise beyond your years, Vindicator Avehi.” Khanaros piped up as he stood.

Avehi broke the hug and looked to Khanaros, offering him a respectful bow. She found herself smiling lightly at hin, as well.

“Thank you, Vindicator Khanaros. And thank you for being so understanding about this. I know it is… awkward.” she shrugged, cheeks darkening. “At least, it's awkward for me. I imagine you must get this a lot.”

“Hmm, I suppose so. Death Knights do tend to shy from me. I cannot imagine you are alone in feeling the effects of the aura of the Light's blessing I exude.” he nodded once. “But rest assured, i take no offense. And i commend you for wishing to expose yourself to it, despite your condition. I pray you do manage to build up a tolerance to such discomforts, if only to be closer to the Light. A Draenei's connection to the Light is a sacred thing, enabling our kin to…”

Avehi kept up her facade, while her tail swaying bore the brunt of her indications of disappointment and irritation. As Khanaros went on with his impromptu sermon on the Light, Avehi nodded along. But she realized it now; he had no idea she had a crush on him. He'd misread the situation, almost as badly as she misread his misreading. Silently, she cursed to herself, eyes flickering over to Mierne. She must've misunderstood, too. Perhaps she would tell her in time. But for now, it was probably for the best she went along with Khanaros’ false assumption. It cleared her of the awkwardness, at least.

“...so that we may bask in its eternal warmth. May it be so.” Khanaros nodded firmly at the conclusion of his speech.

“Yes… may it be so.” Avehi repeated, before bowing her head politely to the two elder Draenei. “I will… see about building my tolerance in tine. But for now, your aura is rather… radiant. I think I shall go and fight on my own, for now.”

“As you wish, Vindicator Avehi. Light guide your path, and shield you from harm.” the Vindicator nodded, imparting his verbal blessing. “Until we meet again.”

Avehi looked to Mierne, smiling, before turning to depart once more. The miscommunication concealed her lust for her dear friend's fiance… for the moment. But she still felt she should tell her.

Just… not now.

~*~

#Avehi the Adamant #Mierne the Persevering #Khanaros the Inexorable #Darkshore #Teldrassil #Warfront #Awkward #Character Story

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the-voice-of-hell · 4 years ago

Text

The Septagram

- Previous - First -

***

Jason calmed Josie enough to explain the problem in more detail. On the far end of the cell, he could see the other victims in a row. Two men and another woman, cowering away from the beast. The monster itself just looked like a man laying on the floor, propping his head on some rotten hay, one hand resting across a plump belly. He looked like a man now, but when he got hungry again, he’d open that belly to reveal a double row of fangs - and eat somebody whole.

Jason said, “If more than one of us came at him at the same time, we could-”

“You don’t understand,” Josie said.

“Well sure I do, like flight 93 on 9-11. You know it’s a risk, somebody might die, but you do it for-”

“No, Jason! The monsters, they have a power. When someone kills them, they die.”

“Like one of us will definitely die if we kill it? Even if we don’t get a scratch on us?”

“Exactly! Maybe a rock falls out of the ceiling and crushes you. Maybe you just have a heart attack. One way or another, if you kill it, you die.”

“So somebody has to volunteer, I see. That’s a rough one. But it’s better than waiting to die...” He shook his head. “I have to live, for Maddy.”

“You understand now.”

“Alright. We’ll escape.”

She stood up and walked to the wall, looking away from him.

“Take off your pants, Josie.”

She turned around in shock. “Jason!”

“They’re denim, they’ll probably hold up better than my slacks. Or take off my slacks, I don’t care.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Loop ‘em around two bars. Twist them until the metal bends, or the stone crumbles. Whichever comes first.”

She rolled her eyes. “It won’t work.”

One of the cowering men on the far side of them from the monster braved the danger to hustle over to them, as close to the bars as he could be without hitting them. He looked to Jason. (too many them)

“I heard what you said. I don’t know if it’ll work, but I’ll try it to.”

“Great, kid! That’s usin’ your noggin’! See Josie?”

“OK, OK.” She took off her pants.

The other guy took off his pants as well, and they started to do the twisting technique. Jason just worked on trying to get his cuffs in front of him - not as easy as it would have been for him fifty pounds and twenty-five years before.

Josie was doing her best, straining to keep twisting the rough cloth, going mad. She looked to the other guy and saw that he had successfully bent the bar a very small amount.

“Sir! What did you do?”

“It’s not wide enough!”

“Maybe I can get through, try to help from outside.”

He nodded and narrowed his stance so she could get past while he continued to work, not wanting to lose a second of effort. Jason was distracted in the corner, upside down against the wall, trying some inadvisable moves to get his hands free.

Josie squeezed through the bars, such a tight fit she might have broken ribs to pull it off, and staggered free, wheezing and flailing. The man and woman at the far end of the cell stood up in shock.

The guy twisting his pants smiled. “Alright! See if you can find a key or something!”

She nodded. “I will-” The words caught in her throat. She’d surely stand a better chance of escaping the building if she just took off. But then, if the men yelled after her, it might alert a guard. She was paralyzed with indecision.

“Or don’t,” said the guy. “Just, do what you can.”

She nodded and looked around nervously, barely moving.

Jason freed one hand from the cuffs with a yelp. “Augh!” He slapped the ground to steel himself, squeezed his eyes. “No good.” He’d need to try to get his thumb back in place at some point. But he looked around quick, knowing danger could have been awakened at any time.

It had. The sleeping monster looked at him with wet eyes. It looked much like a man in outline, but those eyes looked like something out of a sardine can. Jason felt a sick sinking inside. That is the face of an animal. You’re nothing but food to it.

He slowly got to his feet, looking at the thing. The people from the other side took advantage of its distraction to run across, to where they could stand by the guy twisting his pants. Jason was to one side, three people and a possible way out were to the other. What would the creature do?

It stood up, clumsily, similarly to the way Jason had just gotten to his feet. They could see now that its “clothing” were just texture on the rough skin of a crude mimic. It lurched toward Jason with halting steps. The lady and man who had just arrived were paralyzed with distraction, Josie outside as well, but the other guy kept twisting his pants - hoping for the best.

“Nice doggie,” said Jason. “Nice doggie. You want a biscuit, you son of a bitch?” He almost chuckled, but choked on it. He braced himself to die.

***

Bybaal lounged in a bath, luxuriating in the sensations of the flesh. But then a starling flew in, buzzing with excitement, and landed nearby. He rose to get his robe as it explained the situation in a slur of clicks and squeaks. The sexy goat angels remained in the tub, pleasuring each other.

“No,” he said to the starling. “Just live long enough to be of use.” It jerked its body into the air and flew away in a near perfect diagonal, like a UFO. Starlings are weird.

The fallen angel ran his fingers through his hair. Would this be the last time he’d be able to experience this body? Depending on how ugly the fight got, he might have to build a new form from scratch. Tedious.

He looked to his assembled forces. The angelic host knelt in the front row, pure discipline, waiting for his commands. The rabble of goblins jumped out of their seats when they saw him rise. He gestured to them with a grandiose sweep.

“I know your hearts, mortal men. You want your lives to matter. For your misspent time upon the Earth to be remembered in infamy. Well, the police have finally come for you. The empire of your land has personally sent its centurions to punish you. It is a high honor, is it not?”

They mostly looked scared, shifting side to side, gripping their weapons impotently like crosses against vampires.

“Just go downstairs and try to kill them. Shoo.”

Fersen, the commander of the assembled angels, bowed to Bybaal. “It will be more than mere police, will it not?”

“They bear the mark of my brother. But were they sent by our mother? I do not yet know. Load your cannons to slay angels.”

“Yes, my Lord.”

It was FPS time. The murder clubbers had spent long hours honing skills in video games - first person shooters - and their goblinish transformation had made them more lean and deft. They wouldn’t work as a team, but they would clear corners, rush, crouch, and hit targets barely bigger than pixels. They opted for guns, leaving most of the hand to hand weapons behind, and hustled down the stairs.

They met the cops about fifteen floors down. With the advantage of speed, endurance, and chaotic movement, they broke the line immediately. People scattered hall to hall, door to door, goblins versus birdheads. Both sides took friendly fire in the confusion. There was no death shield here. Each side was protected by the seal of a fallen angel. They were equal.

But there were heroes. Infante and Iphigenia worked the floor one room, one hall, one turn at a time. Infante dashed from a door on one side of the hall to the other, a gun in each hand, spraying in both directions. Headshot, headshot, headshot. When the creeps got closer, he tossed grenades into the hall, then came out shooting again.

Iphigenia wasn’t as dramatic, aware of her continuing mortality. She lurked, hustled, caved in a few skulls in rapid succession, went to the shadows again. This was the promised reward - the reason to raid the citadel. This was to be her revenge for those lost to the murder clubs - for her family. It felt hollow, mechanistic.

Park’s battles were a lot more difficult. He wanted to keep an eye on Infante, but everywhere the guy went was hot with gunfire, kept him at bay. He finally lost sight of him completely, in the halls that were growing hazy with gunsmoke.

The police were panicked and broken, but not out of the fight completely. Park spent most of his moving strategically with them, as they tried to clear the corners, use their technological advantages with flashbangs and such. They tried to work smarter, not harder. But the chaotic creeps had a way of surprising them over and over again. Even with the cops transformed into weird monsters, Park couldn’t help feel saddened and distressed by how often they were getting killed around him.

There were less and less gunshots, like the final kernels in the microwave popcorn. The remaining enemies knew their foes were on the other side of the grand hall. But whoever dared run across that expanse would be wide open to getting cut down.

Infante poked his head out far enough to see Park doing the same about seventy-five feet away, then had to duck around the corner again as gunshots rained on the wall beside him.

“AHAHAHA! You lose, normies!” Some goblins jeered and hooted from across the main hall.

He radioed, “Sec channel, over.” Then he trusted Park to switch his radio to the right frequency while any goblins with police radios tried to catch up. “Gonna toss out all my flashbangs in ten.”

He started counting it off in his head while he got the things ready. The ghouls were carrying on. Gunshots, and sparks on the stone wall beside him. A murder clubber had worked his way into the hall directly opposite his, and had line of sight. But he also didn’t have the patience to get closer before he tipped his hand.

Infante threw the first flashbang down that hall, followed by rapid tosses toward other halls across the way. Hopefully somebody had given that Iphigenia the sec channel and she wasn’t getting blinded at the same time. Then he hustled out into the open, across the hall.

The creeps had enough savvy to shoot at their best memory of his location, even though they were blinded. He had to book like hell to get ahead of the bullets.

In the hall directly across the way, the first victim of his flashbangs was putting out a wall of autofire from an illegally modified assault rifle. Infante headed to a different hall, and saw it was occupied. Two goblins there saw him through their seared retinas and opened fire. He dove between them, blasting one centermass mid-leap, landing with a roll, and headshotting the remainder. Hopefully Park had managed to make good use of the moment.

He put on some sunglasses with peripheral mirrors and hustled down the hall, using the glasses to keep glancing at his six. Just as he reached the end, it paid off. He saw some murderers hustling around the corner. They opened up on him and he leapt through the nearest door.

Pinned down. He waited about eight seconds and hucked two frag grenades into the hall. Right after they went off, he lunged out the door low, on his side, practically touching the ground. He fired, they fired. He found himself unscathed, save a little scrape of his left hand.

Starting to feel immortal, he got back to his feet and got back into action.

Park had taken advantage of the flashbangs to cross the killing floor, but was unable to reach a hall at first. Shots were going off all around him. He knew his radio was useless - by now they had CB radios in hand and had his frequencies - so he threw it into the nearest hall, hoping they’d think it was a grenade. Then he came around the corner blasting and dodging. When Infante did it, he was smooth like a river. Park was a jumped-up poindexter, body language about as intimidating in that moment as Don Knotts.

But he did it. He killed all the closest targets, and got to cover in a room. He looked out into the hall. So many dead cops. So much for the seal of Abalaam. And just where the fuck was Abraham anyway?

He poked his head out like a meerkat, taking only the briefest of looks this way and that. Then he got brave enough to move again.

Iphigenia didn’t have a radio to clock the warning and was blinded by Infante’s flashbang gambit. She was tired, pretty sure the gunshot was bleeding fresh into the bandage, and just let herself collapse. Play dead.

It was a genuine moment of rest. She felt relaxed there. The blood loss and abuse of the recent fighting had numbed her body, made the roughness of the stone less brutal. She reflected on why she came here, and realized she had no idea.

Did that Abraham use his “occult knowledge” to hypnotize her into coming? She didn’t give a shit about revenge. The murder clubbers were clearly going to get themselves killed in short order, even if she didn’t come.

Worse, she was more sure than ever that she shouldn’t have come - that it was too risky to Jelly Sue. She wanted to get her doll and run away. Find a place to play house. Tea party. Whatever vampire dolls were into. She didn’t care if it was totally creepy, she wanted to do whatever Jelly wanted. I want my doll.

But they wouldn’t let her now. She had to finish the job to make sure the cops didn’t become a problem for her. She opened her eyes. Nothing left of the retinal burn but an annoying crescent that slid around when she moved her eyeballs. Workable.

She heard some movement somehow, above the ringing in her ears, and looked across the hall. Park hustling corner to corner, then out of sight. She saw some goblins creeping up to the corner, getting ready to chuck some looted police grenades into the hall after him.

She whistled sharply. The one with the grenade looked at her in sudden distraction. Then all three were shredded when it blew up in his hand. One was still alive, rolling on the ground, missing an arm. She picked up a glock from a nearby dead cop and carefully lined up a headshot.

Then she casually picked herself up off the ground.

Park did his Don Knotts routine, staggering around corners and bugging his eyes out at danger. He got himself in a crossfire and ducked into a room to get out of the way. But he knew that was risky because if the bastards picked up grenades from the fallen cops in the halls, they could chuck them into the room without even lining themselves up so he’d have a chance at shooting them. Still, he could get back out in that hall either.

He ran the math and decided to stay right next to the door. He put a mirror out into the hall so he could see them approaching. He could put his gun out there, take some shots and hope for the best, but they could also blow his hand off. Decisions, decisions.

He angled the SMG out the door without putting the barrel into their line of fire, and hoped the ricochet would be enough to intimidate them. He opened fire, and ran out of bullets in less than a second.

Park tossed the gun aside and pulled out a glock. Then he tested the mirror again. They were closer. The suppressive fire hadn’t scared them off. Then he saw another gunman far behind them, a muzzle flash of automatic fire. It must have been Infante. Another three down, but the guy had to duck out of the way to avoid the remainder.

He angled the mirror toward the leftovers. They were advancing on his position fast, and started blasting at the door, hoping for ricochet damage. Park had to leap out of the way and roll across the floor.

One of the goblins sprang into the room sideways across the ground, hoping for a surprising angle of attack. But Park was still on the ground, and it was trivially easy to shoot the bastard as he came. He did catch one in the vest.

Then came what he had feared - two grenades lobbed into the room at different angles, to increase the spread of damage. He scrambled to his feet and out into the hall as they exploded, felt stabbing heat in his head, shoulder, calf. Plus he was now face to face with the grenade lobber and his friend.

The friend had his gun ready, but grenade goblin in the way, and Park got the drop on him. Two bullets - one in the neck, one in the face. Then grenade goblin had his gun out, and the two of them were in a standoff.

Park said, “Yeah. You see how it works here, huh? We’re all bodies waiting to fall. Is that what you wanna be like, kid?”

The green man’s lips rippled and curled. He spit. “Fuckin’ pigs. I used to admire you.”

“Then you joined a murder mob. If you liked law and order, why’d you go dirty?”

“You were the thin blue line! Keepin’ niggers and Mexicans in check.”

“Yeah, that’s… not what the job is about.”

“Look at you now! You fuckin’ chink!”

“You see all these dead guys around us? You still have a chance to get out of this alive. That has to be worth something to you.”

“That’s why you’ll never understand us. Never be as great as us. We don’t care if we live or die! We know we ain’t gettin’ out out of this alive!”

“But you still didn’t pull the trigger when you knew I had you dead to rights. Come on, kid. Snap out of it!”

A hammer hooked the goblin’s arm. He spun around to shoot his assailant, but was dead before he saw a thing - the hammer driven through his nose and into his brain.

“Officer.”

“Iphigenia, thanks.” He almost said something regretful, but he realized that he didn’t care she’d killed the creep. He had just half-convinced himself that all life has value, for the purpose of role-playing the negotiation. It was still a disconcerting save, the goblin man twitching and voiding his bowels as he brushed against Park’s body on the way down.

They hustled down the hall, clearing the corners as best they could, until they met up with Infante down in the corner of the floor. He said, “We can’t be sure, but I don’t see anybody else coming. Did we get them?”

“Can’t be sure,” Park agreed. “Did they get all of us?”

Infante shook his head. “I’m sorry. What a fucking shitshow.”

Iphigenia said, “Maybe we should get back to your boss and call it a day.”

Infante’s radio crackled to life. “Sergeant Infante.”

“SAC? ...Over.”

“That’s right. Proceed to the objective. Eliminate Bybaal.”

“Did I read that? We have no troops, sir. They’re all dead.”

“You read me. He will be in the throne room. Top floor of course. Over.”

“...” The three exchanged looks.

“Do you copy, Sergeant?”

“I copy.”

***

Jason and the two men were free with Josie, but not in a mood for celebration. At the last moment, the monster had eaten the woman. True to the telling, it had gotten tired and laid down for a nap immediately afterward. All three men were splattered with her blood and gore.

“Hey buddy, I’m sorry about your..?”

“Oh? She wasn’t my wife, or even my girlfriend. I didn’t know her.”

“She died without anyone knowing who the next of kin are. Damn.”

“I’m Jason.”

“Sung.”

“And you?”

“I’m Justice.”

“Sung, think ya might change your name to Jung? We’re all J’s here except you.”

“Jason!,” Josie said.

It was quiet time. They were in a dark dungeon without a flashlight between them. Unnatural pink flames came from cracks in the floor, but the space wasn’t really warm. Of course, only a fool would touch those lights to find out if they’d burn. Jason wasn’t a fool.

The four escapees heard a chattering voice and an animal-like whickering coming from up a ramp and around the corner. They froze. Then Justice got his wits back and hustled quietly up the ramp to the edge, waiting to pounce. Jason and Sung followed. Jason felt the need to cast a reassuring nod back to Josie. You don’t have to do this violence, dear.

The demons came into sight and the men attacked. Justice leapt out with a big roundhouse punch for the goatish soldier angel, and Sung joined him, grabbing the thing by the tail. Jason used his good hand to slug the other one, which looked like a couple of baroque wooden chairs got in a teleporter accident and were topped off with a horse’s head.

It was a true melee. The demons tried to grunt and yell, got out a few loud short shouts - hopefully not enough to draw down friends. But the guys managed to wrestle them into submission. They peeled off the soldier’s clothing and used it to hastily tie them up, then moved on. Their bodies were badly bruised. Jason was sure he had dozens of splinters as well.

Josie joined them to roll the bad guys down the ramp, and move on.

Jason said, “These guys look like random piles of garbage. If we see anything layin’ around, maybe we could use it for disguises.”

There was not a scrap of garbage to be seen. The dungeon was so bare, so featureless - as if it had sprung organically from the earth, instead of being fashioned by hands.

They came to a fork in the tunnel. One way ramped up and the other continued into another dungeon hall. Everyone went for the ramp up without a moment’s thought, but Jason stopped.

Josie glanced back and noticed. “Jason?”

“You guys go without me. I gotta find my baby.”

The other three looked at each other, and silently concurred they didn’t have time for it. The men nodded and kept on up the ramp. Josie said, “Bless you, sir,” and joined them.

Jason was alone in the dungeon hall. He didn’t have time for this either. What if she was in a cell with a man-eating monster? He broke into a jog, rasping out her name quietly into each cell he passed.

“Maddy? Maddy? Madison? Baby? Are you there?”

A dog-like beast lunged through the bars and snapped at him, its head split into three sections that slipped between different bars. Fortunately the split didn’t go back far enough to let its bulky body escape the jail. Jason moved along.

The cellblock halls were ramping up, and to his annoyance contained fewer cells. Would he have to double back to find her prison? The hall here was still made of monolithic black stone, but it looked like it was carved to give the impression of being made out of intricate tessellated bricks and pillars. The wall to the right was cracked with organic shapes - openings. Some went deep into the rock, making pitch black alcoves. Some went all the way through, revealing a dim grey light.

That couldn’t be the outdoors, could it? Based on the spiral of the halls, it had to be inside. But then, maybe it was a courtyard. The openings were too narrow to squeeze through, and he wasn’t interested in a hell courtyard. He had to find his girl.

“Maddy? Maddy?” He wasn’t even bothering to be quiet. If the demons came again, he’d give ‘em a red-ass beatdown.

Then he heard a woman’s voice saying “addy? addy?” from further down the hall. Was it Maddy, calling for him? No, the voice was joined by an identical one, then another, and they layered - all repeating her name in a mocking chorus.

“You damned demons!” The voices were getting nearer and nearer. He could turn tail and run, maybe even find her in a lower part of the dungeon he missed. But this thing was pissing him off. He charged forward into the hall, linebacker style.

He came around a bend in the hall and saw it. Three women’s heads, spiralling around each other as they flew down the hall, streaming pink spectral light behind them, and a vortex of bone shards. They didn’t even seem to take notice of him, and he froze there, mesmerized by the bizarre sight.

The heads passed and the vortex sucked him in, sweeping him off his feet, assaulting him with scrapes and grit. He bashed into the ceiling, the floor, the wall, and then through the wall.

He crashed through one of the openings, flew out into the extremely dim reflected starlight. It was a courtyard, with walls thousands of feet high. But how deep was it from where he had been flung? He fell and fell, sure he would die.

***

Park realized he’d killed some goblins. Either they weren’t protected by the death shield, or he was immune to the effects. It made him feel a little less nervous, but he still didn’t like the idea of taking this fight to Bybaal. Hadn’t the goat soldiers in Tukwila been part of his forces? Did that mean more were waiting for them?

It did. In the stairwell, they started popping around the banisters above to shoot muskets at them. But the lack of a clear shot kept either side from landing anything. Park shied away from returning fire, sure he’d be more fragile than the “heroes.”

Iphigenia fired a glock occasionally as she went, Infante added just enough shots to keep the goats leery of being seen. Starlight coming through the windows was the brightest light available at this elevation. Infante’s flashlight didn’t add much. The muzzle flashes were blinding.

The closer they got, the wider the opening for gunfire became. Infante said to Ippy, “Can I borrow your coat?” She took it off, hating the way it moved the flesh of her wounded shoulder, and handed it to him. He waved it in the opening, and they obliged with a torrent of gunshots.

He was getting them to waste ammo. If they didn’t have enough discipline to hold back a second line to reload, they wouldn’t have time to react to a charge. He ran up the stairs, hoping the large amount of shots meant nobody would have a musket ready for him. The others hustled up behind him.

Infante easily took them out with his assault rifle - just one shot apiece. He was a machine. Iphigenia’s glock was much less effective, taking multiple shots, and she wasn’t as strong at aiming. Park hardly made a dent with his glock.

But the others didn’t need to lift a finger this time. If a goat angel came into Infante’s line of sight, it was dead meat. They reached the highest landing. Behind them the window was much larger than those on previous floors - and with no glass in the frame, they could easily fall out of it. The wind ripping through from the outside was fierce and extremely cold.

At the top floor, they stopped at the door, Park and Ippy on one side and Infante on the other. Infante said, “You think anybody innocent is in there?”

Park said, “No. Definitely no.”

“No point saving these then.” He started lobbing explosives into the floor - grenade after grenade, then a heavier thermal charge which made a wall of fire wash between him and the others. Ippy had to stamp out a fire on her shoe. He threw out his last flashbang, then hustled into the room. Despite all the noise, Park could still hear bleating and wailing from the victims of the barrage.

Iphigenia came into the room with nothing on her mind but getting through this efficiently as possible. She jogged up to her first victim - just an irregular silhouette in the smoke that filled the room - and caved in a head.

Park just wanted to survive. He knew from the soldiers Infante had killed in the stairwell that this lot would be much more difficult than the goblins. He ran for a hiding place, and found one behind a big black velvet curtain. Not bulletproof, but better than nothing.

Infante had switched the powder in his bullets with the stuff he’d taken off the goat soldiers in Tukwila. The grade was powerful, and so was he. It was like being in an action movie. He dove behind cover, came up moving, every shot took one out. Tossed the rifle when it was out of bullets. Switched to a shotgun, hid behind a statue as muskets peppered the other side of it, came out leaping low, firing sideways at the gunners, rolling to avoid a few shots, blasting at what was left of them. The shotgun was too slow to reload so he dropped it, switching to paired semiautomatic pistols, came up blasting. Every shot was a headshot.

Ippy didn’t like how many bullets were in the air and spent most of her time behind cover, occasionally popping out to shoot a guy, or snag one with her hammer and beat it to death in private.

The wind through the huge windows quickly dispersed the smoke from the explosives and the gun battle, revealing a bizarre scene. The throne itself was a statue of a kneeling horse, which whatever ruler would straddle as they sat. Before it was a shallow pool about eight by twenty feet, extending forward like a red carpet. The room was full of dead angels, and only one foe remained - kneeling in the pool, smoke and water spray flying all around him.

It was a northeast Asian looking man with longish hair. He was seething with anger and surging with power. Iphigenia and Park came out from undercover and Infante emptied his clips into the guy. The shots sparked away, barely scratching his flawless skin.

Infante dropped the pistols and picked up the shotgun again, coming back to face the bulletproof man. “Bybaal, I presume?”

He snarled. The back of his shirt ripped apart, and a flaming wheel erupted from his back. He was growing larger now - would be eight feet if standing up. His skin began to crack and bleed, as if the transformation was ruining him. “You’re right. Whose pawn are you?”

Park said, “He calls himself Abraham. What do you think?”

Infante said, “Fuck that,” and started emptying the shotgun into the angel.

It was gouging his flesh, flicking away loose scraps of it, but his core remained, growing larger. Beneath the ruined human skin, he was a red devil, muscular and bizarre. Gold veins erupted from and resubmerged into his skin. The wheel was the dominant shape in his form, taking up the place where wings could have been, and taking a substantial chunk out of what should have been a spine as well. It wasn’t made of pure fire - there was some kind of core, possibly metallic or just shiny wood - but it seemed loose in its track as it spun - wobbling, throwing sparks and random gouts of fire.

“Pawns of Abalaam then. When you’re all dead, we’ll shake hands, you know. Your deaths will be water under the bridge in a little sibling rivalry.”

Infante drew another pair of pistols.

Iphigenia noticed a subtle change in Bybaal’s expression. Did he wince?

“What’s the matter?”

“Ruining this perfectly good body to dispense with some pesty bastards!” He roared like a lion and reared back, his wheel touching the ground in the shallow pool and throwing a volley of sparks that completely enveloped the heroes. The pool itself flashed to steam, once more filling the room with obscuring mist.

Park ran for cover, his body burning and begging for rest. He leapt over a stone bier and rolled across the floor. Back in the sparks, Infante and Iphigenia didn’t run as far. They just shielded themselves and stepped back a few paces.

Bybaal was in his final form, twelve feet tall and rippling with muscles. His head was horned and crowned, his mouth so full of twisted fangs it would be surprising if he could close it. He burst out of the shadow of sparks and clotheslined the heroes, sending them tumbling through the air. Ippy’s wound ripped open and sprayed blood in the air.

The demon lord skidded to a halt, stood to his full height, and turned to see his victims. They were slowly picking themselves off the ground. But a new foe emerged from behind the throne. It was SAC Abraham, with Jelly Sue at his side.

“Brother!,” Bybaal barked. “You think you can defeat me with these trifling puppets! I may as well have that ugly skin devoured by my birds.” As if in response, a bunch of starlings in the corners of the room started making a burbling racket like a ruined audiotape, stepping closer with tiny feet.

Abraham laughed. “This poppet only has to weaken you enough for the nephilim to finish the job.”

Ippy turned to face them. “No, Jelly Sue! Don’t do it!”

“She can’t control it,” he said. “You may as well ask the amoeba not to envelope the paramecium.”

He made a jerking movement and she spasmed. Had he stabbed her in the back? Iphigenia’s blood began to pulse a little harder, and the drops on the ground snaked into rivulets, headed her way. She looked slightly sad, head bobbling in place.

Park got up the bravery to stand. “Abalaam? We didn’t sign up to be your hitmen. Let go of the girl and do your own dirty work.” The glock rattled in his shaky palm. He was so weak now.

“Fool! You think this is a girl?”

Bybaal stomped his feet and roared again.

Infante whipped around and aimed one pistol into the mouth, fired a single bullet through the soft palate with unbelievable accuracy. It ricocheted through the fallen angel’s skull. The wheel came loose, bounced off the floor once, and exploded into sparks and splinters. Bybaal collapsed to the floor, his leathery skin deflated, some parts of his flesh crumbling like stone, some melting like ice. Motes of light scattered like grains of rice spilled on the floor, and faded to nothing. The starlings flew out the windows.

Then Infante turned the other way, pointing the gun at Abalaam.

“You’re next, prick.”

“Do you think you killed my brother by your power alone?”

Iphigenia went to her knees, rolled her head on her shoulders.

Park said, “Let go of the girl! You think I can stop supercop from putting one down your retina, Abalaam?”

“I can. And I can keep Iphigenia from raising a hand against me with the same simple move.”

Infante didn’t understand what Abalaam was doing or how, but he immediately regretted not pulling the trigger quickly enough. Jelly Sue cracked apart like a clay pot, falling to the ground in shards. A red mist hung in the air where the girl had been, then rained down as tiny drops of blood.

Iphigenia screamed and fell face first on the floor.

Infante unloaded both pistols on Abalaam. He laughed as his face was ripped up, revealing leathery red flesh beneath, and began to swell in size. A wheel erupted from his back, ripping his bulletproof vest in half. His wheel was already broken in its track, stuck and unmoving, with jagged spokes.

Park joined in, firing his gun until it clicked, knowing full well it would do nothing. “Damn it!” He tossed it aside and walked briskly to stand by Infante.

They were both unarmed, but defiant, staring at the fallen angel as he outstripped his human guise. He looked rather similar in demon form - just red, muscular, horned, all the same general traits as his brother. But that face was still Abraham’s. Had there ever been a human Abraham? How had a demon, presumably trapped in Hell thousands of years, managed to infiltrate the United States government so effectively?

Even his voice was the same - just larger - as he reached twelve feet tall. “Park, you never stood a chance. You are an oracle - a mere mortal, your body too frail to hold the spark of divinity in your fragile skull. And you, Infante… Beautiful nephilim, my brother from another mother… I will offer you to our queen.”

“Like fuck you will, bro!”

Jets of fire came out of Abalaam’s sides, propelling him forward. Infante tried to turn away but was snatched by the back of his vest and dragged off. Park reached impotently behind them and fell to his knees. The angel flew out of a large window, carrying Infante off into the night.”

***

#The Septagram

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gramilano · 7 years ago

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Seeing Peter Wright’s The Nutcracker again after several years of witnessing other productions brings its success as a dramatic piece to the fore. Placing the traditional story within an outer tale of Drosselmeyer separated from, and then reunited with, his nephew Hans-Peter, adds a level of genuine emotion which cannot be matched by seeing a little girl finding her lost wooden toy. It works. It is a tear-jerking moment when Drosselmeyer hugs his nephew Hans-Peter during the score’s final bars. It closes the drama and, despite the plentiful dancing during the second act divertissements (in themselves more interwoven with the main story than is usual, with the constant participation of Clara and Hans-Peter) it returns neatly to resolve the opening scene of the ballet.

If you haven’t read the programme notes you may not know why Hans-Peter is no longer with his uncle. Wright explains:

Drosselmeyer, a timeless magician and creator of mechanical toys and clocks, was once employed in a royal palace where he invented a trap that killed off half the mouse population. In revenge the wicked Queen of the Mice cast a spell over Drosselmeyer’s nephew, Hans-Peter, which transformed him into an ugly Nutcracker Doll. The only way to break the spell was for the Nutcracker to slay the Mouse King, thereby committing an act of great bravery, and for a young girl to love and care for him in spite of his awful appearance.

Even if a backstory of a trap and a mice queen is not obvious, we do know that something lost is restored, contrasting with Clara’s loss of innocence during the ballet.

The Nutcracker. Anna Rose O’Sullivan as Clara and James Hay as Hans Peter The Nutcracker. ©ROH 2016. Photo by Helen Maybanks

The Nutcracker. Anna Rose O’Sullivan as Clara, James Hay as Hans Peter The Nutcracker, David Udes and Paul Kay. ©ROH 2016. Photo by Helen Maybanks

Gary Avis, as Drosselmeyer, dominates the stage from the opening of the curtain to its close, swishing his cloak, while he knowingly teases and preens. Wright weaves the character into the story throughout, and Drosselmeyer casts his magic over snowflakes and toy soldiers, but it is a magic evidently less powerful than that of the Queen of the Mice. Avis’s superior yet kindly air contrasts effectively with the emotional tenderness of the reunion with his nephew. It’s a winning performance. Hans Peter, freed by Clara’s true love, is played by James Hay, a perky live-wire dancer whose slight build and crisp technique make him ideal for this role. His Clara was played by Anna Rose O’Sullivan.

O’Sullivan is Royal Ballet through and through. She trained at The Royal Ballet School and joined the Company five years ago, and was promoted to soloist last year. The ‘English Rose’ label has probably been applied to her many times already, and it’s fitting, yet with her petals there are thorns. She looks delicate and feminine yet leaps as high as the men and throws off her chaîné turns with exhilarating speed. An enchanting talent.

The Company’s always excellent corps were not always in unison for the snowflakes — the unbelievable rhythm of a month of shows with matinee and evening performances was beginning to take its toll. Even so, the scene is still uplifting and who wouldn’t be moved when the children’s chorus join the orchestra. Also, here’s a technical note for other ballet companies: snow falling from behind the downstage border in a thin strip is effective, but snow falling from the front to the back, covering the entire stage, is pure magic.

In the Sugar Garden in the Kingdom of Sweets Beatriz Stix-Brunell’s Rose Fairy shone out, as did a replacement, Joseph Sissens, who graduated into the Company from the School in 2016. He joined the equally talented Matthew Ball for the Chinese Dance, and is certainly one to watch.

The Nutcracker. Alexander Campbell as The Prince and Francesca Hayward as The Sugar Plum Fairy. ©ROH 2016. Photo by Helen Maybanks

The Nutcracker. Alexander Campbell as The Prince and Francesca Hayward as The Sugar Plum Fairy. ©ROH 2016, photo by Helen Maybanks

The responsibility for the Grand pas de deux was given to the outstanding Francesca Hayward and Alexander Campbell. Strangely impeded by some erratic tempi from the vastly experienced Barry Wordsworth, they shook off any choreographic difficulty with seeming effortlessness. Campbell is everyone’s favourite Hans-Peter and, while he maybe not an obvious choice as the prince, it was a joy to see him dance this role with his clean landings in fifth, his muscular manèges, and his attentive and secure partnering. He’s also quite a showman with his flamboyant finishes and playful grin.

Unquestionably, Campbell had a dream partner in Hayward, a dancer he is often paired with. She is THE musical box ballerina: delicate and poised with perfect proportions. She’s as light as a feather, and radiates serenity as her face illuminates the stage. Those off-axis epaulement positions which can seem forced are incorporated seamlessly into her dancing and all is presented with great ease, and also freshness, as though she’s inventing steps on the spur of the moment.

Hayward and Campbell have been coached by Lesley Collier, and it shows. Stylistically perfect with a light touch for even the most difficult passages. When they execute the same sequence, they are always beautifully together — a true partnership.

And so the ballet comes to an end — Clara is reunited with her Nutcracker, and rushing outside her house into the snow she sees Hans-Peter, who looks a lot like the boy in her dream. She indicates to him where to find Drosselmeyer’s workshop… and this is where Peter Wright should have called in a favour with Tchaikovsky: just a few more bars to saviour their reunion would make the ending even more satisfying.

Royal Ballet’s uplifting Nutcracker with Francesca Hayward, Alexander Campbell, Anna Rose O’Sullivan, James Hay and the ubiquitous Gary Avis Seeing Peter Wright's The Nutcracker again after several years of witnessing other productions brings its success as a dramatic piece to the fore.

#Alexander Campbell #Francesca Hayward #Gary Avis #James Hay #Matthew Ball #Nutcracker #Peter Wright #Royal Ballet #Royal Ballet School

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besthairstylesbraided · 5 years ago

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50 Short Layered Haircuts

Forget long locks, short layered haircuts for women are the coolest style to go for! Whether you choose a sexy bob, a flirty pixie cut, or anything in between (like a pixie bob), short hairstyles are here to stay!

It doesn’t matter if you’re a teen or mature woman, there are plenty of flattering haircuts with layers you can choose from.

1. Short Layered Bob Haircuts

We can’t think of any better way to start our list than with a dazzling hairstyle. Not only is the bob downright spectacular, but so is the choice of coloring. This is the ideal hairstyle for the unconventional woman who can hardly wait to show her true colors.

2. Flirty Short Layers

A short hairstyle that any woman can rock is this voluminous cut. It is particularly recommended for women over the age of 40, but it looks adorable on younger ladies as well. Flirt in the classiest way possible!

3. Mature Layered Short Haircuts

Raquel Welch, a style icon and source of inspiration for women of all ages, proves just how effective a short haircut with plenty of feathered layers can be in offering a flirty and youthful look.

4. Layered Haircut for Straight Hair

You should definitely take advantage and make the most of short layered bob haircuts like this one, especially if your hair is naturally straight. You won’t have to spend hours on end getting ready to go out as your straight locks will fall perfectly in place on their own!

5. Short to Medium Layered Haircuts

What if you want to get a haircut, but you’re not willing to go that short? Well then, a short to medium cut with layers is in order. The layers go from short to long in the front and can make for a chic, shoulder-length hairstyle.

6. Short Layered Haircuts for Thin Hair

Battling the lifelong struggle of having fine hair? We feel you and got your back too! A short and layered cut is just what you need to bring your thin locks back to life. We also recommend adding some highlights, blonde – or in whatever color you like – as this will create the illusion of thicker hair.

7. Playful Short Haircuts

An actress and singer that’s quite close to our hearts, Mandy Moore never ceases to brighten up our day with a cute look. Some years back now, she used to rock this short hairstyle, and she did so flawlessly. It is an overgrown, long and layered and choppy pixie.

8. Fiery Layered Haircuts

Not afraid to go full out glamorous with short layered haircuts? Then bring on the color! Experiment with red hair and highlights for some extra sass. The longer layers of red are intertwined with shorter ones that are highlighted in different shades of red including copper and burgundy.

9. Short Layered Haircuts for Round Faces

A significant factor you need to take into consideration when choosing your new hairstyle is the shape of your face. For ladies with a round face, we recommend going for an inverted bob. Its face-framing layers will help create a slimming effect and will also draw attention to the features.

10. Professional Short Haircuts

Ladies who work for corporations or have jobs with a strict dress code must have a clean-cut and to the point hairstyle. One of the best short layered haircuts to go for in these environments is the slicked down pixie. It’s also a good look for a job interview!

11. Short Layered Haircuts with Bangs

We love so many parts about this particular Dianna Agron look that it’s hard to pick just one. The choppy bangs and equally dicey haircut are jaw-dropping. Couple this with the blonde hair balayage and you get the icing on the cake and the cherry on top.

12. Cute Short Haircuts for Teens

High school life definitely has its ups and downs, but one of the perks is showing off your new look! Impress all your friends with an adorable short haircut with layers and add some graceful side part bangs to it to complete this incredibly easy hairstyle for school.

13. Feathered Short Haircuts

What if you want to feel like the wind is constantly raking through your hair? What you need, then, is a feathered layers haircut. Like the name suggests, this layering technique helps create a feathery effect. It’s just what a gal with fine hair needs!

14. Effortless Short Haircuts with Layers

If your hair is naturally thick and you usually have to get ready for work or school in record time, then this pixie haircut is one of your best choices! The layers are perfectly trimmed so they will fall in place effortlessly and with minimal input from you.

15. Oval Face Layered Haircuts for Short Hair

We’ve already presented a great short layered haircut for ladies with round faces. Now, it’s time to show one for women with an oval face shape. Essentially, this is a classic bob that was cut inwards to frame the structure of the face. The swept-back bangs are also a nice touch too.

16. Bold Super Short Haircuts

It takes heaps of courage to rock this haircut, but we totally encourage our bold and daring readers to try it out or adapt it to fit their tastes! The overall look is extremely eye-catching, so we will be pointing out its various elements.

First, you have the long top and shaved sides pixie cut. Then, there’s the shaved design. And last but not least, admire the brunette sides and platinum blonde to white long top.

17. Short Layered Haircuts for Thick Hair

We simply adore the masterful shaping of this short haircut! It’s actually a pixie haircut, but with longer bangs in front. This short hair with fringe and layers that were strategically trimmed helps add extra volume to the back, front, and all around, in general.

18. Boho Layered Haircuts

This dreamy pixie cut will surely melt the heart of our indie and boho type readers. It delightfully combines short layers with a fringe, and it will perfectly complement women with small faces. The blunt cunt bangs also help enhance the overall sweet and innocent but daring look.

19. Medium Short Layered Haircuts

This is yet another excellent option for women seeking a haircut between medium and short in length. It is a layered haircut for straight medium length hair that was also enhanced by the copper on brunette ombre dye job.

20. Layered Ombre Bobs

Keeping on this note, let’s talk more about coloring ideas for short layered haircuts. This is an angled bob-shaped short hair cut that was further brought to life by a dark brown to blonde ombre coloring. The caramel transition makes it all the more beautiful!

21. Pixie Balayage Hairstyles

For a discrete color gradient, we totally recommend looking into balayage options. This pixie, for instance, is one of the best haircuts to try out if you want a bold look made even the more special thanks to its coloring. The roots are a deep charcoal that goes to blend out into silvery layered tips.

22. Short Layered Haircuts for Wavy Hair

Wavy hair is more than generous when it comes to the number of short layered haircuts you can try out with it. Also, thanks to layered cutting and the versatile length, you can reduce the maintenance time to a bare minimum. As long as the shape is well-defined from the beginning, you shouldn’t have any styling problems at all!

23. Layered Haircuts Short and Stacked

Another way to cut down on maintenance is by using the stacked cutting technique. This works great on short to medium short haircuts as well as long ones.

Stacking is a popular method in the bob haircuts category with its layers that start long and end short near the nape. Enjoy that natural volume boost!

24. Spiky Color Blends

For an even bolder take on short layered haircuts, consider blending more than one color – go for two or more! In this pixie example, you can see how various tones from the blonde and red palettes are stunningly melted together for a dynamic look.

25. Layers and Undercuts

We’ve talked all about undercut designs before, but this example hits the nail right on the head! Not only is the top part full of lively layers, but the sleek undercut follows up to beautifully complete the look!

26. Short Choppy Layered Haircuts

To make the transition from long to short hair all the easier, go for some medium short haircuts first. This shoulder-length cut will make the final short chop easier to achieve. It is also beauty all on its own thanks to the choppy layering and styling and the beautifully done blonde highlights.

27. Short Haircuts with Bangs and Layers

This style of short layered haircuts will look wonderful on anybody, regardless of their face shape! The bangs, as well as the messy styling, make for a huge difference when combined with the layered locks.

Also, while the messiness will be easier to obtain on wavy hair, it works just as well on curly and straight locks too!

28. Layered Afro Ringlets

Women with afro-textured hair can slay a short haircut any time, any day. The fact that their natural hair texture is full of volume makes the maintenance a breeze and we recommend a progressive length for an ultra-cool effect!

29. Braided Hairstyles for Short Layered Hair

Although shorter locks are a bit more limited in terms of styling, there are still plenty of ideas to work and play around with. For example, this small side braid is adorable – you can add more of them or even go for a crown braid – still, this will only be achievable if you have some longer layers!

30. Short Layered Haircuts for Curly Hair

Layers are everything when it comes to adding even more volume to your ringlets. And this stacked bob is one of the coolest short curly hair with lots of layers styles out there! The fact that it also features blonde highlights only helps add more oomph to an already great look!

31. Easygoing Layered Haircuts

And we are back to ladies with straight hair for this one. Just like the example from #4, this is an effortless hairstyle for women with naturally straight locks. Make sure you get the layers right and rake your fingers through your hair for extra volume – without any hair products either!

32. Haircuts with Short Layers on Top

This is a picture-perfect pixie haircut with impeccable layering. Although the bangs are long, the layers are kept short and flow amazingly into one another for this splendid look. The white hair color is also amazing!

33. Brown and Blonde Short Hair

This is another look that genuinely impressed us for more than one reason. We’ll start with the coloring – the brown and blonde balayage looks ravishing! Then, we love how the layers in the haircut extend to the choppy bangs, which is another detail that caught our eye.

34. Short Layered Haircuts African American Women

The feathered bob strikes again in yet another charming version. While it is showcased on superb raven locks, this is one of the short bobs that can be adapted for any color or hair texture.

35. Long Hair with Short Layers

We wanted to touch on the idea of long hair with short layers as well, even though we also have an article specially dedicated to it too.

Even waist-length can come to life and gain volume with some alluring layers. Take this photo as just one example of the many and great long layered haircuts with short bangs out there.

36. Voluminous Pixie Haircuts

Even though they are some of the shortest haircuts out there, pixie cuts are also incredibly versatile. For example, this shot proves that it is easy to add feathered layers and add an abundance of volume – provided the pixie is styled accordingly, that is.

37. Short Layered Haircuts for Young Girls

Layered haircuts are just as useful, pretty, and appropriate for little girls as they are for women. They will make kids look and feel adorable, especially with some short layered haircuts that are also so much easier to maintain.

38. Short Layered Inverted Bob Haircuts

When getting a layered bob, inverted cutting is an essential option to keep in mind as, when combined, the two methods will result in a voluminous, flirty, and chic hairstyle. One that is also so easy to style.

39. Classy Shaved Hairstyles

Whoever said that shaved hairstyles were too far out? In fact, plenty of these kinds of short layered haircuts can be quite classy. Take this photo above, for example, and admire the elegance of side-swept layered locks combined with a shaved side.

40. Very Short Layered Haircuts

If you’re willing to go above and beyond with the shortness of your haircut, choose a blunt or choppy look. Women with small or oval-shaped faces will look radiant with this outgoing hairstyle.

41. Pastel Blend Hairstyles

This is a superb dye job that uses the melting technique to combine three pastel shades. The color melts also help accentuate the various layers in the hair as well as its waviness. This latter can be obtained with a curling iron or wand.

42. Short Layered Spiky Haircuts

This haircut is daring and delicate at the same time, and the way you wear it will set the mood. Keep it natural for a delicate look, or add some quality hair products to make it spiky and daring. We also dig the strawberry blonde/copper hair color.

43. Asymmetrical Short Haircuts

Why not step fully outside conventions and the comfort zone with an asymmetrical haircut? We love how this particular cut has just enough asymmetry to make it wearable on a daily basis and yet it still looks spectacular and out of the ordinary. Note the full side bangs as well!

44. Short Blunt Layered Haircuts

Blunt bangs look phenomenal when paired with short layered locks, especially when the fringe is shorter and verging on micro bangs. This is a dreamy hairstyle for the unconventional woman who is not afraid to experiment with her look.

45. Flippy Layered Hairstyles

Want your hair to look brilliant at any angle, regardless of how you flip or part it? Then this is likely the perfect haircut for you. It’s slightly longer than even the other medium cuts on our list, but the perfect layers deserve all the praise!

46. Super Curly Short Hair

Curly hair is, by far, the most generous texture as far as short layered haircuts are concerned. Corkscrew curls will easily fall into place, no matter how short or long their overall length might be.

47. Short Blonde Layered Haircuts

We showcased plenty of blonde hairstyles in this list, but we wanted to specifically offer this color the spotlight. Short layered haircuts are often associated with the hot season, and we all know that blonde is among those timeless hair colors that always invoke summer colors!

48. V-Shaped Layered Short Haircuts

Get even more creative with your haircut by thinking of specific designs. A V-shape, for instance, is ideal if you’re planning on cutting your hair super short. The top part will be voluminous owing to the well-thought-out shape. Just admire this choppy layered hair back view with an almost V-shape.

49. Pastel Rainbow Layered Hairstyles

Carry the rainbow with you wherever you go! This is yet another great way to wear pastel hair if the previous examples weren’t funky enough for you. Add a bit of every color in the rainbow in your layered hairstyle and use the choppy layers to accentuate the hues. It will make for a funky fresh look.

50. Short Shag Hairstyles

We will end our list on a fabulously messy note with an idea of short shag hairstyles. Continue following us on HairMotive, and you’ll see just how much we adore messy hairstyles. After all, this short haircut is just one of the many great shag haircuts out there!

Conclusion

In conclusion, there is an abundance of short layered haircuts out there, and they are so versatile and oh so stylish. They come in all shapes and sizes and are perfect for all personalities.

While you can opt for a sleek and classy cut that grazes your chin, you can just as well go wild with the boldest super short haircut you can think of!

50 Short Layered Haircuts

#Short Hair #Short Haircuts #Short Hairstyles #Very Short Haircuts

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dbarajas03-blog · 6 years ago

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GAMORA

Gamora Zen Whoberi Ben Titan from Earth 7528 is a deadly force to be reckoned with. She poses a huge threat as a female assassin trained by none other than Thanos. She may not have superpowers, but she possesses abilities that make her extremely powerful.

Powers and Abilities

Gamora was enhanced at low levels of superhuman strength, durability, endurance and reflexes, and healing factor. Gamora received treatments from Thanos that enhanced her physiology. While engaging the US Military, it was mentioned that the armed forces were under the impression that she was no stronger than Spider-Man. However, her skill combined with her strength made them estimate her to be close to as dangerous as Iron Man. Gamora's bodily tissues are much harder and more resistant to injury than those of a human. Her body is also specially adapted to withstand the physiologically debilitating effects of moving and running at high rates of speed without sustaining injury. Her skeleton was constructed of a lightweight yet nearly indestructible alloy, enabling her to survive falls that would eventually kill a normal human. Gamora is said to be the most dangerous female assassin in the Milky Way galaxy. She is a highly accomplished athlete trained in gymnastics, hand-to-hand combat, the uses of the known weaponry of the galaxy, and stealth techniques. She is one of the most skilled martial artists in the universe. She is capable of defeating opponents who possess superhuman strength and durability that far surpass her own, and she has defeated a military platoon containing dozens of combat-trained men in only a few minutes. She has learned to paralyze or kill opponents using vital point strikes directed at certain nerve clusters. She is an accomplished strategist. She had been widely considered one of, if not the greatest, both on and off the battlefield. She is able to formulate battle strategies and her brilliant tactical sense allows her to alter any strategy to fit the changing need of the situation. Gamora is an extremely skilled assassin, being sent by Thanos to kill many of his adversaries across the galaxy. Her years of training and experience have made her an expert acrobat, gymnast, and aerialist.

Bio

Gamora was the sole survivor of the alien humanoid race called the Zen Whoberis, a peace-loving people whose population were wiped out by a zealous religious order seeking to establish a galaxy-wide empire. Agents of the Church, called Grand Inquisitors, herded the entire population of the planet into a valley and exterminated them all for their resistance. The mad Titan Thanos rescued Gamora and brought her through time to a period at least two decades prior to her people's deaths, traveling from Earth-7528 to Earth-616. Aboard his space station Sanctuary, Thanos raised Gamora and used advanced technology to endow her with enhanced humanoid abilities. He also subtly altered her perceptions so that she would not recognize the evil of her deeds. Thanos decided to train her as a weapon to use against and kill the Magus. Thanos made sure Gamora was raised with discipline, though he did on occasion show her affection as a father would show his child: such as celebrating the religious holiday of Yule. Through rigorous training, she would become a highly skilled master of various martial arts forms from throughout the universe. Even though Gamora was learning and becoming a master martial artist, she still had more to learn. While still a young girl, she went on a trip with Thanos. Though explicitly against Thanos orders and warning, out of curiosity she decided to venture planetside. In turn, she fell into an ambush set up by a group of thugs. The attackers used their numbers advantage and were able to defeat her in spite of her great skill. She was severely injured in the fight and gang-raped. Near death, her proverbial knight in shining armor arrived in the form of Thanos, who quickly dispatched the assailants. Thanos then recovered the apologetic and near dead Gamora. After returning to Sanctuary Thanos restored and augmented Gamora. This was achieved via bionic implants and replacement parts of Thanos' own design. These physical and power upgrades made her an equal to Adam Warlock's own physical abilities. She also received specialized training and abilities including resistance to reality distortion as well as an accelerated healing factor. Thanos planned to send Gamora to assassinate his enemy, the Magus, the leader of the Universal Church of Truth, a warped version of Adam Warlock from an alternate future. She practiced for this assignment by killing the Church's Grand Inquisitors. Thanos hoped that the presence of a non-contemporary element such as Gamora inserted into the Magus's presence would disrupt his opponent's plans and eliminate the divergence of events that created the Magus from this timeline. Gamora's presence was detected by the Magus, who prevented her from getting close enough to assassinate him. Gamora did, however, assist Adam Warlock in his final battle against Magus. When Magus was defeated, Gamora returned to her master, Thanos. After a couple of weeks at Sanctuary, Thanos' base of operations at the time, Gamora expressed her boredom to Thanos. Thanos then told her to find Warlock, and become his unofficial bodyguard. While locating Warlock, she was attacked by Drax the Destroyer, a being whose sole purpose in life is to kill Thanos. She escaped Drax, and returned to Thanos, only to find out Thanos' plan to destroy the universe as a sacrifice to Death. Horrified, she tried to slay Thanos with a dagger, but Thanos slew her instead. Adam Warlock found Gamora with one last spark of life remaining in her body and used his Soul Gem to absorb her consciousness. Gamora's spirit remained in the Soul Gem until the Infinity Gauntlet crisis, when in a plan to stop the Mad Titan from destroying the universe, Warlock projected his, Gamora's and Pip's souls into three deceased bodies. His powers reshaped their shattered bodies into new, more powerful versions of their old bodies. She joined Warlock in his plan to stop Thanos, but she herself was not present for most of the fighting. At the end, when Warlock had seized possession of the Infinity Gauntlet for himself, Gamora remained at his side for whatever would come next, although she was a bit against the idea of leaving Thanos free.

A couple of months later, Warlock was convinced by the Living Tribunal that he was unworthy of wielding the power of all Infinity Gems, so he decided to divide the gems among those he trusts. Gamora was entrusted with the supposed defunct Time Gem and was made a member of the Infinity Watch. The team, led by Adam Warlock and consisting of Drax, Pip and Moondragon, settled in Monster Island, the sovereign nation ruled by the Mole Man. Not long after that, the Watch was forced to team up with Thanos after the reappearance of an old foe of theirs, the Magus. However, this Magus was the result of Warlock expelling both the bad and the good from his body in order to truly become a logical being. She and Thanos appeared to have reconciled their relationship and even went a round of friendly sparring while on their mission to defeat the Magus. The Watch, Thanos, and Earth's heroes managed to defeat the Magus, and he was banished to Soul World.

At times, Gamora would inadvertently tap into the power of the Time Gem, and get a good glimpse of the future. One of her visions was of a man standing over, what appeared to be, a deceased Adam Warlock. This frightened her, even more so when Warlock was put into a coma after the battle with the Magus. While the Watch, struggled to come together as a team, Gamora stayed by Warlock's bedside and protected the island from foreign invaders. However, one day, a man by the name of Maxam washed up on their shore, and she immediately recognized him as the man from her vision. This suspicious man had no idea who he was nor where he was, but even so, Gamora voted for the Watch to not help him, but Warlock (who had recently woke up from his coma) said they'd help him for the time being.

Yet another universal threat emerged when Adam Warlock's good side sought to eradicate the universe of all sin by simply eradicating the universe itself. However, Gamora (and many of Earth's heroes, including fellow Infinity Watch member Moondragon) was manipulated into joining the Goddess' crusade. A war broke out between those manipulated and those non-manipulated with both sides suffering heavy casualties. Those manipulated were broke out of the trance when Warlock and Thanos defeated the Goddess and banished her to the soul world. The team returned back to Monster Island where they could focus on helping Maxam, to Gamora's displeasure. It was a much-needed break, but then Warlock called the Watch to help the Silver Surfer defeat the mentally unstable Thor. The Watch went against Adam's instructions and attacked Thor without him present, which resulted in Thor taking the Power Gem from Drax. After this catastrophic mistake, Warlock and Silver Surfer were forced to enlist the help of Doctor Strange to take them and the rest of the Watch to Asgard. They were not met gladly there, for they had to fight their way through Trolls and Asgardians warriors (and even had to get help from Thanos)) to get Odin to finally help Thor. In the end, Thor was cured and Asgard was indebted to the Watch.

Her true feelings for Adam Warlock began to show further when Maya came to the island and she and Adam fell in love because of Count Abyss' love potion. She believed the best answer was to simply kill Maya. Eventually, she accepted it for what it was and went to help rescue her from Abyss in his dimension. The Watch was successful in rescuing Maya, but she ended up marrying someone else.

Things would quickly get out of hand for Gamora again. This time due to Maxam making what he thought was a harmless tease about Gamora's feelings towards Adam and referring to it as puppy love. Due to her still being unable to express herself to Adam and her unease and concerns about Maxam, due to the visions from her gem, Gamora attacked Maxam. The two had fought before but this time Gamora was aware of her opponent. The fight favored Gamora to triumph until it was broken up when Moondragon, who was currently in a coma, used Drax and his power gem to communicate. Adam was displeased with Gamora's actions and told her so. This, in turn, angered and caused Gamora to verbally lash out. For it was not her mistrust of Maxam directly concerning Adams own well being. Unable to accept Adam siding with Maxam over her, she quit the team and threw her gem at Adam when he asked for it back. Which Warlock, in turn, gave to Maxam. She then had Pip teleport her away from Monster Island and Earth. She was tracked down by Thanos, who sought out the Time Gem in order to erase his troubled history. However, just as Gamora was going to make a decision to help him or not, all the Infinity Gems of the Watch and Thanos' Reality gem disappeared.

Some time afterward, Gamora finds out that Thanos created clones of himself many years ago, but never activated them. They remained dormant until a secret enemy of his activated five of them recently, and those five clones all had the fixation on destroying the universe and the programming "Adam Warlock is the key to oblivion". Just then, the Thanos clone she recently encountered tracked her to her location, so she and Thanos had to destroy it. After they did that, Thanos began to spy on the other "Thanosi", he did and their plan was revealed. Gamora was later sent to aid Spider-Man and Captain Marvel in protecting Atleza, a human girl who was destined to become an anchor of their reality. They, with the aid of Moondragon, protected the little girl until Adam Warlock, Pip the Troll and Thanos arrived. They arrived to defeat the Omega Thanosi, who was a combination of Thanos and Galactus. After they won the battle, Gamora and Adam Warlock entered a loving relationship and decided to depart into another dimension to protect and raise Atleza.

Having no purpose and wanting to do things for the greater good, Gamora joined the team of heroes known as the Guardians of the Galaxy. At first, she was not trusted because of her past, but after risking her life to save the others, she was seen in a different light. While trying to close a fissure located inside a Dyson Sphere, the team decided to stop threats to them by turning off the shield that protected them from the star's immense heat. They planned to teleport out but were unable to do so. Gamora braved the intense heat in order to turn the shields back on, charring her entire body from head to toe. It took some time for Gamora to heal from this. After the Skrulls were found on Knowhere, the team's base, accusations ran high, especially towards Gamora. After they found the Skrulls, it was revealed to all that Star-Lord had Mantis mildly brainwash them into joining the team. Disgusted, Gamora quit the team and headed off with Adam Warlock. After a short run in with the Universal Church of Truth, Gamora and Adam returned to the Guardians in order to help them continue to save the universe.

After experiencing reoccurring dreams concerning encounters with an older version of herself, Gamora came to the realization that a portion of her soul remained trapped inside the Soul World. Determined to set it free, Gamora set out to find the Soul Gem. To this end, she located Grandmaster and made a deal with him. To perform missions for him with the Guardians of the Galaxy in exchange for information, hoping to find about the Soul Gem this way. When carrying a heist on the Collector's collection, Tivan agreed to help Gamora in her mission. He made a deal with Gamora, offering his assistance in stealing the Soul Gem if it turned out the Grandmaster possessed, in exchange for the Infinity Gem Gamora bluffed about possessing.

When the Collector interrupted the Guardians' rendezvous with their client, the Grandmaster revealed he had challenged his brother just to test him. The Collector and the Grandmaster learned that some of their fellow Elders were mysteriously altered or gone, and determined they could be linked to the disappearance of the Infinity Stones. Since helping the Grandmaster and the Collector gather the stones aligned with her plans, Gamora convinced her teammates to embark on a quest to find them. After helping the Nova Corps defend the Power Stone which had manifested in the planet Xitaung, the Guardians took off with it to Oblitus. They were approached by Adam Warlock and Kang the Conqueror, who had joined forces to find the Time Stone and already had the Soul Gem in their possession. Gamora attempted to force Warlock to hand over the Soul Gem, and a fight broke out. During the battle, Drax managed to hold it but was exposed to the corruption of Soulworld. He struck Gamora to prevent her from opening the gem and departed with Warlock and Kang. In addition to Drax's betrayal, the other Guardians refused to follow Gamora into pursuing Kang. Outraged by her teammates' behavior, Gamora left them to obtain the Soul Gem on her own.

In order to help her quest, Gamora kidnapped a master forger from Nidavellir and forced him to make her an armor, killing him afterward. She later agreed to a parley with Star-Lord in order to steal the Power Stone from him, by switching it with a fake without him noticing, and encrusted the hilt of her Infinity Blade with it. Sporting her masked armor and the encrusted sword, Gamora attacked Thanos before he could set out to gather the Infinity Stones to prevent his interference. After being felled, Thanos remarked that Gamora was going to conduct his requiem. Despite brushing off her father's comment and killing him, Gamora decided to adopt that word as her new alias and became known as Requiem. After murdering Thanos, Gamora started being plagued by apparitions of him. Requiem subsequently interrupted a conclave of the new Infinity Watch to steal the Infinity Stones, and her true identity was quickly revealed to her former allies. Star-Lord was surprised by Gamora's uncharacteristic behavior, and she tried to kill him, he was only saved by the intervention of Doctor Strange using the Time Stone. As the conflict continued, Gamora managed to get her hands on the Reality Stone, and quickly claimed the remaining Stones from their owners. Encouraged by Thanos' apparition, Gamora hesitantly opened a portal to the Soul Gem and reunited with the fragment of herself, becoming whole again. She then set out to rebalance the Soul Gem. To prevent opposition from her quest and to feed the being Devondra, who was responsible for the Soul Gem's hungering for souls, Gamora used the Infinity Stones to fold the universe in half and merge the two halves together before sending the new universe into a pocket dimension called Warp World inside the Soul Gem. Gamora planned to create a reality once Devondra devoured all the souls and ensure that suffering no longer existed in this new universe. She also sealed Loki into the Soul Gem when he asked to be her counsel. Gamora and Loki's companion Flowa then traveled to the God Quarry so Gamora could investigate what laid beneath it as she couldn't see past it.

Even with the Infinity Stones, Gamora was unable to breach the barrier at the bottom of the God Quarry. After fending alternate reality versions of Captain Marvel and Moondragon, Gamora was confronted by Loki and his newly assembled Cosmic Avengers who had managed to escape the Soul Gem. Wielding copies of the Infinity Stones Gamora unintentionally created when she created Warp World, the Cosmic Avengers easily subdued Gamora and took the Infinity Stones from her. However, Loki used his sorcery to take control of Gamora's Infinity Stones and used them to send her and the alternate reality Phyla-Vell and Moondragon to Warp World before transporting himself to the unknown realm that existed beneath the God Quarry.

While in Warp World, Gamora was clobbered by Soldier Supreme and nearly consumed by Devondra but was rescued by Peet, the fusion of Star-Lord and Groot. The Cosmic Avengers eventually returned with the Infinity Stones after Loki relinquished them. With Adam Warlock's help, the Cosmic Avengers restored the universe while also allowing Warp World to remain in existence. They then fled Soul World using the Soul Gem with Gamora, Star-Lord, Groot, Rocket Raccoon, Moondragon, and Phyal-Vell, but Drax had to stay behind to keep the portal opened. They arrived on Earth and crash-landed in Egypt. Phyla-Vell and Moondragon wanted to punish Gamora for destroying their universe, even though that was the work of a different Gamora. Adam Warlock decided to send Gamora to a random location using the Infinity Stones in order to redeem herself. Gamora ended up on an unknown planet with a resurrected Magus.

Significance

In conclusion, Gamora is without a doubt, an incredible female character in the Marvel Universe. She is an enhanced skilled and powerful warrior who has a deep sense of loyalty and justice. She has gone through a lot of tragedies and this has definitely affected her personality. I think she is one the best female heroes in the Marvel Universe and if her representation in the MCU isn’t enough, then I enough the info. gather on this post was.

References:

https://marvel.fandom.com/wiki/Gamora_Zen_Whoberi_Ben_Titan_(Earth-7528)

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bethevenyc · 8 years ago

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Instagram Sensation 'Kinky Sweat' Mixes Feats of Beauty and Strength

Meet Alicia Archer. She’s a dancer, fitness instructor, and makeup aficionado, known by her 25,000 Instagram followers for “Kinky Sweat” posts that combine glittery hair and makeup looks with videos that showcase her eye-popping skills in physical strength, flexibility, and balance.

A photo posted by Alicia Archer (@kinkysweat) on Jan 11, 2017 at 7:10pm PST

“Learning flexibility as an adult, I think, intrigues a lot of people,” Archer, 32, tells Yahoo Beauty of her growing legions of followers.

A video posted by Alicia Archer (@kinkysweat) on Nov 14, 2016 at 8:13am PST

A New York City native, Archer says she first fell in love with makeup as a teen, and while attending college for performance at a program that combines academics with the Alvin Ailey School of Dance, deepened her exploration of cosmetics through stage makeup for performances.

After starting a front-desk gig at an Equinox health club — where Archer now teaches about a dozen classes a week in barre and a dynamic, barefoot cardio class based on a technique called BodyArt (quickly growing in popularity) — the dance major became even more tuned in to her appearance.

A photo posted by Alicia Archer (@kinkysweat) on Jan 27, 2017 at 12:54pm PST

“I was always a skincare buff, but eventually I started watching YouTube and that in combination with attending castings and getting aerial gigs — performing on the cube or lira for special events at club parties where you’re required to wear very elaborate costumes with neon and studs — your makeup you pretty much have to power up with that,” Archer tells Yahoo Beauty. (She now has more than 11,800 subscribers to her own YouTube channel.)

Regarding makeup, she says, “I know it’s stigmatized, taking pride in how you look, but I think it gets misunderstood, because there’s definitely a difference between relying on makeup for confidence and knowing that you’re still beautiful without it. I definitely love makeup as an art.”

A video posted by Alicia Archer (@kinkysweat) on Jan 6, 2017 at 7:06pm PST

And it’s one Archer doesn’t skip before hitting the gym for hardcore classes — even before the ones she teaches at the crack of dawn. “It adds like half an hour, and I know it’s so stupid because it’s so early in the morning, but it’s like my meditation,” she says about doing a full-on primp at sunrise. “I look forward to getting up and creating a new face.”

Archer has plenty of sweat-proof products to recommend for anyone who wants a full face during an intense workout session.

A video posted by Alicia Archer (@kinkysweat) on Dec 30, 2016 at 2:48pm PST

“I really love the Hourglass Vanish Seamless Foundation Stick, which came out last year,” she says, because it’s waterproof, super-pigmented, and long lasting. “That stuff’s bulletproof but still looks like skin.” (For a more affordable option, Archer recommends Maybelline Fit Me.) She starts with Hourglass Veil Mineral Primer to combat oiliness, but also loves Shine Killer from NYX.

Also high on Archer’s list: the entire new sweat-proof, athleisure line from Tarte, including the Lifted mascara, which is “black-brown, really natural looking, but provides curl and length and nice hold…” (with Better Than Sex Too Faced as a nice alternative) — and the tinted moisturizer with SPF 30.

As for hair products, Archer has recently begun collaborating with an all-natural brand she loves — Uncle Funky’s Daughter — through her series of YouTube videos. “One of their slogans is ‘keep the junk in the trunk,’ and it’s free of sulfates, parabens, mineral oils, anything cheap to act as fillers. Instead they try to formulate with macadamia oil, coconut oil, real stuff that works,” says Archer, who is of Puerto Rican descent and whose personal journey from chemically-treated hair to all-natural curls is a frequent topic of hers on Instagram.

Bushy eyebrows ✔️ Hoop earrings ✔️ Dark Brown lip liner ✔️ Straight hair ✔️ LOOKING SUPER PUERTO RICAN ✔️✔️✔️ ???? #tbt

A photo posted by Alicia Archer (@kinkysweat) on Dec 8, 2016 at 2:58pm PST

“Every salon my mom brought me to just wanted to straighten it. There was no salon that embraced natural hair. It was considered bad hair, and the only way to deal with it was to chemically alter it. She finally gave in,” Archer says, adding that it wasn’t until she got older that she even realize that her hair wasn’t naturally straight, which is why she had to get it treated every couple of weeks.

“When you do that your hair is dead hair, and it’s really hard to manage unless someone did it for you. So I had to go to the Dominicans and have it done so it didn’t look like a hot mess,” she says.

A photo posted by Alicia Archer (@kinkysweat) on Sep 30, 2016 at 6:13am PDT

Years later, before starting college, Archer came across a story about a woman who was embracing her natural hair texture. “I was thinking I’m not going to have time to go to the beauty parlor every Sunday,” she says, “and budget wise, I was thinking about food and not my hair.” So she followed the lead of the woman in the article and chopped all her hair off, down to a half-inch of coiled curls, which she then allowed to grow back naturally.

“It was scary but also liberating,” she says. “I was free of caring what my hair looked like, and I was excited to start anew with the texture that I’d always had and to learn how to style it.”

Related: 22-Year-Old With Cancer Slays Hospital Stays Through the Power of Makeup

Let’s keep in touch! Follow Yahoo Beauty on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest.

yahoo

#makeup #_uuid:93340254-5609-32c7-a699-71aa8845e6cb #vlogger #_author:Beth Greenfield #natural hair #kinky sweat #fitness #alicia archer #beauty stories #_revsp:wp.yahoo.beauty.us #_lmsid:a0Vd000000AE7lXEAT

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meniwouldliketofuck · 6 years ago

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erebiş

Ok my least favourite staging , the 18TH one is LİTHUANİA. Like so many others i expected some lion visuals maybe some holograms. Or maybe a lion figure, a decor could have been used. There seems nothing interesting gonna happen in the performance. I like the hot colours, the lights maybe. But the staging looks not so attractive enough. He, though looks hot with his sunburnt face but that's also not enough to save the song. I don't know. Vocally, he sounds good. Like he never had any problems with that. So yeah that's that. the next one, 17TH is CROATİA for me. He sings incredible, he sounds so good. He is only 18 years old but he is like a 20 years of experienced artist. Staging... i'm not the fan of the wings and they are looking even cheaper in the exclusive video clip. I can accept the wings of the dancers maybe but Roko should have stayed simple. I don't like his look he can be dressed better.Hairdo could be better. It's an outdated song and the staging looks boring and not promising, so perfect singing skills are not saving this. I'm sorry.

Moving on to the 16TH ONE, which is MOLDOVA. I like her dress and her look. She sounds nearly perfect. She is a great artist. Her colour of voice is excellent, she has the charisma. Speaking of the performance and the stage, it is simple, it is not an original idea here on Eurovision obviously, but actually it perfectly fits the song. And most of the people on TV probably not gonna notice this is a similar act of Ukraine 2011. And actually uKRAINE DID NOT INVENT SAND DRAWINGS. So everyone can use this technique of course. Though I find it very fitting it still not my favourite. So it is in my 16th place anyway. Because there are way remarkable stages than this for me.

15TH stage amongts these eighteen is SWİTZERLAND. He didn't change the costume. Don't like it. It is like a gym outfit. Costumes would be better if he had something similar as in the music video. With the classic outfit and the hat.... And with that red background, the red costumes of dancers is not going well. They are dissapperaing in sight. There should be a contrast in colours. He sounds fine, vocals are so much better now. Dancing is the best thing in this perfomance. So that's why this is the 15th one. He is a great dancer but because of the camera angles i think we are not gonna see the dance most of the time. Beside that, staging looks basic not gonna lie. They rely on and trust only the dance and the charisma of Luca Hanni. They should go with the latino theme like in the music video.

The next one, THE 14TH is LATVİA. Even though i like the staging and the lights the backroung visuals etc. this way. Mmmm This would also be so much better if it was all in black and white most of the time, i mean maybe until the last chorus then switches into colours. And i would want have some close ups of the singer's FACE, exactly like in National finale. Other than this staging is nice anyway, goes well with the song's soul, energy. she sounds a bit different to me actually? Her voice was deeper. Now she's like singing more through the nose. I don't know. Still this looks classy and it is actually a bit underrated.

Ok my 13TH favourite stage is DENMARK. Looks very colourful it is good, it looks happy, sunny, , sweet, funny, mostly all the good feelings that the song wants to give. So it is a good staging. Fits well with the song. So there's not much to critic. If you love the song you probably gonna love the staging as well. She sounds very well, i like her voice. But this is my 13th fav.

So moving on to my 12TH favourite stage which belongs to NORWAY. Special effects, background visual,the smoke addition and ground visuals combined looks good together. They created a contrast between fire and nordic icy atmosphere. But this is mostly blue and i would like to see some green, white and purple some more colours like real Northern lights of Norway. I don't know. They could use some real footage of norwagien mountains or fjord views. I like their costumes, i like Alexandra's hair so much this way. They sound excellent, 3 of them, they slayed the vocals appareantly. Especially Alexandra sounds divine. And i may be wrong but i think i am hearing a little bit of a revamp on this. I don't know, tell me if i'm wrong.

I am sorry to say this 11th one is ROMANİA. I wish i could place this higher. But i am actually not so satisfied with staging now. Her dress could have been Red. . Like in the national finale. It would be better than black. Her hair should have been the same also with the national finale performance. She doesn't have any make-up as i saw. I want some make-up with red colour maybe. My eyes are searching for Red in the stage. We have this chair it is kinda Red. Bu the whole stage is mostly Blue and metalic. I like the song so much and i want this out of the semi-final. She sounds very good, her voice is flawless we know it. Other than these i like the dancers and the visual in the background, they are from the video clip i guess. They are nice. But something is missing like i said. For me maybe it is colours...

Okay my 10th fav is AUSTRİA. Background effects look amazing. Lights are being used so well like wide camera shots are working so good on this. She sounds so good, she's a good vocalist. I like the dark theme, dark atmoshpere. Probably, she is gonna grown in people after the performance. She was so underrated before. With this staging ,Austria now, i think has a fighting chance against others competetors of this semi final, i guess. Yeah.

Moving on to the 9TH one which is SWEDEN. This became more favourite after the second rehearsal. I can see why. This is a powerhouse performance. This looks very positive, giving me so much good feelings, good energy. John Lundvik is very cute very charming guy. The scene when the back vocalists and him get together look so good with the lights and visuals and colours in the background. Women are looking so charismatic. I love their dress. Vocals, impressive... I don't actually understand what that tool, that thing in the background gonna do, what's it's purpose except put some lights on them. So yeah, it's a good staging.

My 8TH favourite stage is MALTA's stage. They changed everything. Costumes, the background, everything. They got rid of their own led screen and adapt the main one. Like a chamaleon change colours. So, fits well with the song. They keep the chroeography though. Which is the most important thing for me. That choreo looks so cute i want the full of it. And staging is better now. She looks beautiful i love the new costume, i love the hair down it is better. She looks confident and sassy. Which is a good thing. I love the background. One of the best use of LED screen amongst all these countries. the part with the plants, black and green especially, is so amazing. And i also love her vocals. She sounds good. Maybe a little more backvocal support could be nice.

So... Ok The 7TH one is ARMENİA. After watching the exclusive clip, i got relaxed. Because in the first rehearsal video, i thought staging is very basic, empty and not so promising. But now, it changed, yes this is very powerful. Looks so good on camera. Her vocals are out of this world, incredible. Fire, lots of fire and shooting lights we have, when she screams. She is filling the big stage with her giant voice. The song is fantastic and with this live performance it is even better. But I would love to have some dancers and some choreo still... so Armenia is in 7th place.

Next is, NORTH MACEDONİA. Which is the 6TH favourite staging of mine. First of all i love the fact that they don't use female visual, feminism undertoned background pictures or women rights, women issues related concept as a staging. Because the song itself doing this so good and enough. Other than that i love the dress and simple staging on this one. There are 7 or 8 more Tamara on the background for a while like Russia. I don't know if it is planned or a coincidence but ok. They trusted mostly on the song and the voice of Tamara which is acceptable because both of them are amazing. Vocals are perfect. Face expressions of her, she is like feeling the song, she is like living the songs. So the message is delivered through her voice and her face. She looks passionate end full of energy. And this is a big part of the staging. Staging is not all about decorations and lights and visual etc. A singer is the biggest decor of the stage. And Tamara is being one of the most beautiful decors. But i think this is gonna have a battle have fight for the final with Albania. I wish both of them to be a part of the Grand Final. I don't know. Hope for the best. So...

My 5th favorite stage is ALBANİAN stage. I love the fire ring that she stays in the center of. İt looks very cool. I wish they will show that more and close. And i also need more fire in the backround. I love that red triangles above. Staging and colurs look good, perfectly fine. I love the dress of her. Moreover, the gold pieced dress makes the performance and staging more indigenous, which is very convenient since this ballad, this song, has ethnic elements involved. I don't like the hair and make-up but i think they are gonna do it properly in the show. Vocally she is the best with no need to discuss. Song is so meaningful and performance is giving that feeling, that emotions to us indeed. So yeah it's the fift one.

Moving on to the 4th best stage. For me it is RUSSİA. Staging looks so different and original and outstanding. Which are the things that effect mostly on voting alongside the song and the performance. I love the illusion thing. I love to see 8 more Sergey at once. Since he is a lovely, a gorgeous, a blatanly handsome guy. I think i can say that the rest of the show is gonna be phenomenal as well. I bet they have planned more things to show us. This is like watching a video clip on stage which he did again back in 2016. The greek stage desinger who designes that knows the job. Sergey sounds so good, he is like maybe the best male voice.. so congrats. Russia is killing it again.

Ok the 3RD best stage for me is THE NETHERLANDS. Wow. Simple yet gorgeous. Even though he is not actually playing the piano it still looks very artistic and aesthetic. I actually love the fact that the piano is looking like a very cheap one rather than a YAMAHA or an expensive piano. Because this song is not about materialism it is about love and friendship, it is about spiritual things. So a humble looking piano is very good, fits so well. It’s symbolizing simplicity for me. It really makes me feel like he is a small town boy in a big arcade. I love the blue atmoshpere on this one. Blue mostly feels icy and cold but in this one it is like water. A water which is warm and peaceful. So it feels so good. I love the lasers and the lights behind. So yeah, a simple staging like also can be this big like The Netherlands.

So moving on to my 2nd favorite stage which is IRELAND. I love this. I trusted this song and Ireland and Sarah so much and YES this is the result. I love the staging. I love this pink, barbie, blondie, 50s theme, this concept. This is very feminine, girly.Decoration looks amazing. Staging is aesthetically pleasing. Background features looks perfect. Everthing fits amazingly well with the song. I love her look and her dancers look, make-up, hair, dress.. perfect. The only problem is maybe her vocals. She sounds a little weak but this song doesnt require a great voice. This is the biggest grow of this semi-final. I want this on Final so baad! This looks verty catchy and has a big chance to be remembered while voting.

Ok the winner of staging is AZERBAİJAN. This is the best stage that they do and one of the best desings on Eurovision history as well. I love everything about it. The golden heart in the background. The Triangle decor, robotic arms that shoot laser lines on him. Colours, smoke, special effects. Even his costume is perfectly designed. I am not the biggest fan of the song but with staging and the performance, song is gaining so much attention for me. His vocals sound so good, i didn't know he is such a great singer. I love the fact that there are no dancers because the stage is already crowded so much sooo yeah. Congratulations Azerbaijan. This is next level. I don't know that staging gonna make Azerbaijan win but this became my favorite stage.

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