#honeycutt is fun to draw

[thegodovereverything]

TMNTober

prompt: machine

@tmntober-2023

[aaliyah-and-her-ocs]

My Senior Thesis is all done! Took me a day and half to finally collage all my assets and everything else together. Everything was drawn by myself.

The visual effects (sparkles, grunge effect, fire flames, and shattered glass) those are from Adobe Stock.

And the song is Travel to Space by the Honeycutts.

All Voiceactors Twitters (aside from my own) are in my Instagram Post.

https://www.instagram.com/p/C5GpIhtOUTP/?igsh=N3JzemJsaTBhazY0

So please check them all out cause I very much appreciate all their help as well.

There was a tone of things I couldn't include due to time and my struggle levels, but now that thesis is over, I plan to draw all these characters for fun now and who knows, maybe one day make the game a reality if possible.

Here are a couple screencaps from the finished video and ones I couldn't include.

I also have a ton of other things I made to go with it, including the Voice Actor announcement cards (check insta post above), the promotional poster (older pinned post), Postcards and Business cards that include my email, website, and instagram, and Informational pages about each of the characters that I put into files to look like prisoner files that people can look through to learn about one's they may simp for a little bit more.

Anyway I hope you all enjoy!

Here's me at the final show case!

[notsokatt]

Things about my Fugitoid.

(Hi sorry this took like, a month to throw together. Life got in the way lol but yay Fugitoid! - Also I wanna add more drawings but whatever I'll just post now and add them gradually) Thank you so much for showing such interest in my silly little ninja turtle thing!! It fills me with so much joy!! I hope you guys enjoy traumatized robo child @unscapedgoat @felyas-stuff @rhiefiefie I'd like to preface this all by saying, my whole dumb turtle version or whatever. People are calling them AUs these days? I just took all my favorite things and smashed them together. All of it is just a compilations of ideas that I think are cool. A lot of it doesn't quite make sense. Like "why does a child have access to mind uploading tech?" uhhh because... aliens. And it's cool I guess. yeah there we go. sure. Dont think about it too hard lol

First of all, some things to know about Kraang:

Utroms are highly sensitive to their environments. Their thin skin is very permeable, their bodies practically a mush of exposed neurons. If not under perfect conditions they rapidly deteriorate and die. They live in containers.

Their biggest weakness is aeon crystals, a rare mineral that emits an energy that permeates their armor and reacts with their bodies causing them to disintegrate into green goo (wow I sure wonder what that is). Like salt to a snail.

This green goo is highly radioactive and still dangerous to them. The bodies must be disposed of quickly or else they risk cancers and mutations to their highly sensitive bodies.

The Kraang is a militia of Utroms.

Kraang is at war with the Triceratons. The Kraang are losing the war because the Triceratons have discovered the Kraang's weakness and have gotten ahold of aeon crystals, which they are unaffected by themselves.

However, the Kraang have a plan to surprise their enemy and win the war once and for all. They are building an interplanetary superweapon.

As they slowly dwindle in numbers they send out small fleets to invade specific planets and use the planet as a military base to set up a piece of a super weapon.

The Kraang are low on materials, scavenging for anything they can use to fight and defend and build. Becoming leeches to other civilizations and pillaging any planets that can't fight back.

The Kraang do not care about the planets they are using. In their opinion the planets should be honored by their invasion and thankful for being useful. We all do what we must to survive.

NOW ABOUT FUGITOID.

"Looking through their blinds as a Kraang ship descends right nearby; the upload is complete. They take off the helmet on their head with trembling hands. They don't know where their family is, but they have a good idea of why they haven't come home yet. They don't have any weapons or skills. Even with all their junior tech kits and good grades, one kid can't save something as world shattering as this. So, with a turn of a chronometer dial on their suit, a familiar fuzzy feeling overcomes them, as their body begins to shut down for rest as they do every few days. They go cuddle up in their nest and hold their plushy tight to their chest, petting it's soft head and nuzzling it. As the dizzying haze takes over they close their eyes and their body relaxes. The room turns humid and blisteringly hot. They did their best."

Honeycutt is a nerd of a kid, making inventions in their room and creating little bits and bops. They got a "build your own robot" kit for their hatch day and excitedly put it together before upgrading it and transforming it into their own beautiful creation. Giving it a million little silly features and fun tricks. It was their masterpiece and their favorite thing.

That robot quickly became a blessing and a curse when the Kraang arrived. As they witnessed their home planet be taken over, out of options and alone, they backed up their consciousness to it, surviving the genocide in a strange half-existence sorta of way. Becoming one with their own creation.

They try to run and escape their own planet but are quickly captured by the Kraang. The aliens discover their engineering abilities and durability. So they force them to help build the Kraang super weapon on their own planet and do the dirty work that the Kraang are too sensitive to do. Perhaps they try to fight back and free themselves, maybe they're successful a few times. Maybe they even gave themselves the duty to go out and warn the other planets that are about to be invaded to help prepare them. But sooner or later, the Kraang catch up. And they can do nothing to stop it. Everything they do, everything they try, fails. Over and over. They quickly earned their new name "Fugitoid"

After so many failed attempts to stop the invasions and the super weapon and military bases and all of it. They eventually become jaded and give up. Just giving in and letting it happen as each planet is destroyed and repurposed for a more advanced species.

As the construction of the weapon comes closer to completion, just 3 pieces of the weapon, 3 planets left, they arrive to Earth, the one next in line. Since Earth is a grave dumping site and potentially dangerous for the Kraang, Fugitoid is dropped off to survey the area, collecting samples of the planet's surface and life to prepare for invasion.

Through some crazy hijinks, the turtles meet Fugitoid, perhaps through Casey Jones and his crazy alien speculations. They hang out and be goofy kids together. After a while, the Kraang come to take Fugitoid away and with the turtles already knowing Kraang=Bad (because like, they've already been chased by another single Kraang who is trying to capture them to prove to their higher ups that they could make mutant warriors with the ooze that are immune to Aeon crystals - It's a whole other plotline. Dont worry bout it too hard. The turtles just know Kraang=Bad). The turtles fight and save Fugitoid from abduction. Fugitoid doesn't really try to fight back or help in any way, they're just kinda like "Yeah sure. Ok. Whatever" but they eventually are saved and the Kraang retreat to space.

When Fugitoid is rescued from their capture and is introduced to Earth culture, they can't help but be very detached and numb (kinda like Marvin from hitchhikers guide.) Leo sarcastically asks if all android are so emotionless. Fugitoid explains that they know this world will end thanks to the Kraang. There's nothing anyone on this planet can do about it, so in order to lessen the pain of losing what they love once again, they refuse to grow attached to anything.

But as good friends do, the turtles and the gang try their best to prove that it is safe to care and love, in fact, it is vital to live. They do everything they can to keep them and this planet safe and they try to prove that to them. After many many attempts, Fugitoid finally gives in a tiny bit. Letting themself believe that maybe it really is ok. Their new friends have been quite good at stopping the Kraang from their resource gathering, societal infiltration, and attempts at abduction...

As the story develops and our team learns more about their new friend. It is revealed what Fugitoid has done. All the destruction they have been complacent in, all the deaths they are responsible for, all the danger they have put their planet in. The team is horrified. Raph is furious that Fugitoid even complied with their captors for something so horrible. Leo feels betrayed, like she had put her entire family in danger by welcoming this stranger to her home. Mikey is heartbroken and confused, wondering how they could ever give up on all those people so easily.

Fugitoid, filled with shame and self disgust does what any scared child does, they run and hide.

Donnie is able to track them down using a tracking device she clipped onto them. She finds them and listens to their story. Donnie understands. She is also very limited in her abilities. She is also just a kid. She's not very strong or capable on her own. She doesn't even know what she'd do if she didn't have her family. She relies so heavily on her sisters and her machines, she feels ashamed for struggling to do even the simplest of things sometimes.

She kinda gets what it is like to feel helpless and to just accept it and give up already. In fact, she is already preparing for her own end. She already has plans to create an AI version of herself if she were to ever die. She has been recording her voice for the past few years and compiling it together, both for her own amusement to hear herself talk but also for her records of her thoughts and experiences. It makes sense to give up so easily and just accept your place. It's freeing in a way to let go of control. But. What you have to remember is that you always have at least a tiny bit of influence. No matter how minor.

She concludes that we may not be able to stop the future, but we can still influence it in a better direction. Just like how Honeycutt was able to put their consciousness in another body. It didn't save their world, but it did save them. The destruction of their world and all those other ones would have happened with or without Fugitoid. But now they can try to help at least one world or at least let it keep going a little longer. Fugitoid knows the inner working of the Kraang like no other. They know how to fly ships and hack their coding systems, they know all their big plans and how their weapons work and their weaknesses. Fugitoid is such a vital asset and can do so much more than before. It's not on their shoulders to save an entire planet, but they can still do something. Even if it's tiny. Even if it seems pointless.

Then they join the turtles and have a whole plot arc to fight the Kraang causing enough damage to them that the fleet has to retreat and avoid the planet, les they run out of resources completely, allowing Earth to live for another day. The day they return is unknown, but for now, they can keep living.

Their story explores a lot of survivors guilt. Feeling trapped in your own body. And finding strength and meaning in inevitability.

But as they hang out with the turtles more and get out of all that detachment and apathy they slowly return to being a silly goofy kid who loves to play little pranks, build machines, and have so much sass.

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

Perhaps in later seasons we can explore their identity a bit more, how they can't fully experience the same things that their friends can. How no one truly understands what their home planet is like. What it's like to be the last of their kind but also not even BE their own kind anymore. And of course all the grief of destroying all those planets. God just, lots of trauma in this one.

OH!! maybe we could even have an episode where fugitoids friends come together and try to like, learn about and recreate their home planet a bit from all the stories they told. idk, now I'm just thinking up more bullet points.

Maybe they can connect with metal head or another robot friend. Become robot friends hehe

I know they'd definitely be able to connect with Venus when it comes to that identity thing, how they aren't at all like their old self's anymore due to circumstances out of their control. But at the same time, they're still themselves.

They could also connect to Karai when it comes to having so many regrets in the past and so much grief.

I also see Jennika very much being the cool older sister to them too. Maybe it reminds them of their old family in some way.

Hmm what else. Their pronouns are They/She/It. Um..... Ya I can't think of anything else right now. :D

[slayerchick303]

QAF characters and how much I trust them

Emmett Honeycutt- My one true love! I'd trust him with the keys to my entire life. Emmett is who I aspire to be as a person. Not in like his career, love life, or anything. I'd just love to be as kind, confident, and pure of a human as he is. That being said, I think he's too optimistic to give any truly sound relationship advice (whether it be towards a friend, significant other, or family). But I'm just a cynic. On that note!----

Brian Kinney- I love Brian, and we have a lot in common. That is possibly why I give him zero trust. Brian would absolutely leave you stranded at an airport because he forgot to pick you up. At best, he'd be incredibly late because he got... diverted. I don't think he'd be as bad after season 5, but he's still not remotely reliable. (When I say I'm like him, it's not in this way! I'm not a flake like him). If he eventually showed up to your party, you could trust him to stay for about 5 minutes unless it was his kind of party. He'll show up to your anniversary gathering drunk with 2 random leather daddies he met at the bar. That being said, you can always trust him to liven a dead event by spiking the punch. He'd do that until a better offer came along, that is.

Justin Taylor- All the trust! He might be slightly late and have no food in his refrigerator when you come over, but he will never leave you in a lurch. He'll give you honest feedback and help you see reason before you do something stupid. And if he thinks something you believe in is worth doing, he'll stand at your side and help... even if it means plastering up posters all night when he has work in the morning. He'll tell you when your significant other sucks and that you should break up with them.

Michael Novotny- If you'd asked me in season 1, I would have given him so much trust. After season 5, however, my opinion changed. He would absolutely get preoccupied with his family and not be able to help you. He'd forget to call to cancel plans, too. As much as Michael is less of a doormat in season 5, I would still worry he wouldn't give me honest feedback. Plus, his whole judgemental streak was not cool. Those are heavy cons brought up in season 5, but I like to think he gets his head back on right, and he starts being a good friend and better person again.

Ted Schmidt- Ted is amazing in a crisis. He's the person you call at 3 AM when your life has fallen apart. He'll pick you up, help you save whatever you can, and draw up a ten point plan on how things are going to be okay by the time you're going to sleep on his couch. He'll assist you with phone calls and forms. Ultimate trust! He's fun at parties if you're looking for the chill area. He's much better after his self-esteem glow up in season 5. I couldn't hang with season 1 Ted. I'm already the -1,000 self-image person in the group. Granted, I have legitimate reason to be that way when Ted absolutely does not. That being said, he's another person who can't be objective with relationship advice. Most especially romantic advice. Both his and Brian's political opinions are straight-up garbage.

Melanie Marcus- She's another person I'd give the keys to my life to! If ever I needed help, I'd call her. I'd probably call Teddy first because he has less going on in his life, but Melanie would be my second call. She's competent in virtually everything but home renovation. She'll be honest with and will support you. She'll represent you pro-bono if you ever get into legal trouble. She'll rage with you at town halls to make sure everyone is protected and safe under the law. She'll plan events to bolster the community. She's even fun at parties. She earns all of the trust! The only thing I worry about is her absolute refusal to not go 160 miles per hour all the time. The woman needs to learn when to take a break. She has a vice grip desire to control things, but I'm pretty laissez-faire about everything, so I'd be glad not to have to make decisions.

Lindsay Peterson- While she shares many of the same qualities as Melanie, I trust her less. For one, she's the queen of getting invested in something when all prior experience has told her it's never going to happen (i.e. that her parents will love her unconditionally). Her priority is family, which is 100% valid. But unlike Mikey, if she or Mel were going to have to leave you high and dry, she'd at least call you. Most likely, she'd find someone else to make sure you were covered if neither she nor Mel could be there for you. She is a little prudish. She's often focused on propriety and the approval of others, so that's not great. Especially since I'm a people pleaser to begin with, so that's like adding gasoline to a fire. She would give sound relationship advice, though I think she's too forgiving of bad behavior *cough* Brian *cough*

Ben Bruckner- He's obviously very trustworthy and would do everything possible to help a friend. However, he does get tunnel vision and is primarily focused on family and work. At least he'd call if he had to cancel on you. That being said, I feel like his relationship advice would either be too nebulous or encourage you to just forget things and move on. He's also a Debbie Downer if you achieve something he aspires to. So, if you need a cheering section, I wouldn't trust Ben fully.

Debbie Novotny- If you need a cheering section, she's the woman to call. She'll come with literal bells on and bring half the diner with her. She would try (and absolutely fail) to give worthwhile advice. However, she pries, and she puts her nose in everyone's business. She'd force you to listen to unsolicited advice and demand to know personal details about you whilst spilling hers that you don't want to hear. That being said, she'd give you the shirt off her back and let you stay at her place indefinitely, provided you meet certain rules. She'd be the mother every person deserves (and I certainly wish I had), minus the occasional bout of horrible hypocrisy.

The top people in my trust list are Ted, Melanie, Justin, and Emmett. Who are yours? Tag me if you do this!

Inspired by @buffy--the--vampire--slayer 's post.

[unscapedgoat]

SEE the thing is I feel so strongly about this because 6 months is. a LONG time. and I understand feeling distant from someone because you just recently witnessed the death of people you love, but they really should've at least TOUCHED on the topic. Felya and I have been talking about this for so long and I may have something in store for this specific reason :D I just need to find the motivation to draw it out...

I still believe that the other teens should've been much closer to Honeycutt than they were in actual Space Arc, because from a writing perspective isn't it so much more fun for every one of them to have a dynamic of some sort. It just doesn't ,, make sense really. It's like they spent two weeks together not six whole months.

Space arc just makes me so mad HHHHHHHHH

edit I forgot to mention that Honeycutt is Splinter's replacement not only for the characters, but the WRITERS treat him as such. The thing is that they use him as a Splinter replacement, so when Splinter is back they don't need him anymore so that's why they didn't even bother to bring him back with a new voice actor.

They could've even used the fact that he was blown up to get Donnie to install a voicebox/voicebank for him so he would sound different, it's insane how easy it is to solve their non-problem

I have a question and I'm not sure if it was really touched upon in the series, or if I'm nitpicking a cartoon with cartoon problems, but if the black hole generator can only be destroyed with a 'combination of fusion and dark matter', couldn't honeycutt leave it on the ship (powered by dark matter) and fly it into the sun (fusion)? (assuming the ship can be set on its own course without somebody operating it)

was this ever brought up??¿¿ is it a writing problem? am i forgetting something? did they not have enough fuel or time left to do this? did the writers need to quickly conclude the space arc in some way and so decided this was the best case scenario? discuss w me plox

[felestina-stilton]

So my younger sister has some avatar-maker on her phone and she gave it to me to make something and we were playing together BUT I made some TMNT IDW characters there and they were lookin' really cute...

...and then I remembered that I finished my art school just great which means I can actually draw so I grabbed my pencil and tablet and drew these lmao

Here's the original picture I made in that app btw:

[helloliriels]

37. Do you research before writing or while you write? Is it fun or boring for you?

Feel better, dear!! Sending virtual soup ❤️

I typically don't *hides*. BUT! I have been researching quite a bit for 'Christmas in Honeycutt' (at least trying not to offend history completely, and finding some gems along the way. hard for me to keep things straight without images/timeline to reference tbh). And i really tried on L.O.V.E. (forgive me @kettykika78 !). I'd be a terrible research partner. I squirrel to easily. I'd rather study how words are structured or draw maps. Walls of factual text outside of a storyline context are almost impossible for me to retain.

Ty for the ask!!!! 💌💋

[sustraiii]

TEAM ZRCN ARC 4 - CHAPTER 1

Annddddd we’re back with the first chapter of the fourth and final arc! No prologues this time round, we’re jumping straight into the action!

Belleza’s chaos levels: rising by the day

BELLEZA

Two days.

That was all the time Belleza had been willing to give Calantha to decide whether she would trade herself for those that Belleza had taken prisoner.  What Calantha did not know was that they had already been sent away to Olympia, Belleza deciding she had had enough of chasing around after her younger sister, and had taken fate into her own hands and decided to push ahead into phase three with or without her.

Perhaps the most surprising thing in all of this was Calantha seemed to actually be waiting two days to give her answer. Knowing what she was like, Belleza had expected her comments about Bianca would have appealed to her gentle nature and she would have willingly complied to come home, but she hadn’t. True, she hadn’t outright said no, but she had questioned what would have been the alternative had she done so, and that alone was enough to surprise Belleza.

That surprise had turned to irritation hours later when - thanks to Ulysses’s security hack that Lunick was able to modify for them - she learnt that there were plans in motion to arrange for a set-up to try and capture Belleza. Oh, how she had raged when she saw those messages, and how her impatience grew when Calantha’s call didn’t immediately follow.

When the call finally came that morning, Belleza knew what to expect; she had seen those "covert" messages. But just because she knew what was coming didn't mean she couldn't have a little fun with it.

As her scroll began to ring, she waved Miho into the next room, and shut the door behind her.

"You're cutting it awfully close," Was the first thing Belleza said as she answered the call. "I was beginning to think you weren't going to respond."

"Of course I was going to respond," Calantha responded, "I just needed time to think things through."

You needed time to plan with your new 'friends', Belleza thought to herself, rolling her eyes as Calantha prattled on.

"I'll come back with you, but you have to promise to let the others go."

"You don't have to remind me, little lamb," Belleza chided. "My memory is nowhere near as bad as our father's is - I remember what I said two days ago."

Calantha made a small noise on the other end of the call. "Right, well...we would like to hold the trade at Astrolabe University tomorrow. I will be there waiting with Wren, and you will bring the others as promised." There was a pause before her sister added, "You know where it is don't you?"

Although Calantha couldn't see it, Belleza leaned forward in her seat, looking out the window where the university could be seen in the distance. So large and imposing was the school you would be hard pressed to find somewhere in Highpoint where you couldn't see it. "Well for starters - I'm not blind," Belleza answered in a wry tone. "And secondly, I've been there before, remember? You know...when I picked up the Oxford brat and the little redhead."

"Oh, right."

"So why Astrolabe may I ask?" Belleza asked, leaning backwards in her seat. She already knew what the answer was - that it was easily defended and had already been chosen by the Mob Ops and the Security Team as it was deemed the most suitable to stage a trade off. "I half expected Mr Oxford would have wanted his precious firstborn delivered right to his door."

"We decided it would be easier to meet there," Calantha started to explain. "It's a nice central location, it's where you took Rosie and Mira, and if we hold the trade off at the sports hall, we can avoid any unnecessary contact with the students or faculty."

"I hope Major Honeycutt isn't planning on challenging me to a hockey game whilst she's at it."

"What?"

"Well that's where their local team plays isn't it?" Belleza couldn't help but laugh at her sister's confusion. "Or at least that's what I assumed based on the posters I’ve seen around the place.”

“I wouldn’t know,” Calantha admitted. “I didn’t even realise Highpoint had a hockey team...”

“Well now you do! But don’t worry we won’t be playing any games tomorrow. I swear to be on my best behaviour if you are!” Belleza said in a faux sweet tone. “I look forward to seeing you again tomorrow, little sister.” She was about to end the call when Calantha stopped her.

“You don’t even know what time to meet us!” 

“I’ll decide when I want to arrive,” Belleza snapped back, practically yelling directly into the scroll at that point. “All you and the rest of your new friends need to do is make sure you’re there and ready to go. Do you understand?”

Calantha hesitated slightly before responding. “Yes, Belle.”

“Goodbye,” Belleza said, satisfied she had gotten out all needed to say for now. After disconnecting from the call, she was quick to her feet, and hurried to the door, shouting to her companion.

“Miho! Gather your things, we have somewhere to be!”

**

After summoning Miho, the two women were quick to depart the building, but not before putting some clothes for outside. Considering they were still targets for the military and the security team, Belleza knew they had to be careful and try not to draw too much attention to themselves, which was easier said than done for Belleza whose snow-white hair made her stand out like a sore thumb. In an effort to hide her appearance she wore a slightly oversized woolly hat, and removed her earrings temporarily to be extra safe.

Stepping outside they moved quietly, and kept away from people for the most part, managing to find a good balance between making their movements seem natural and not drawing attention to themselves. Once they were safely away from the most populated areas, Belleza was willing to converse with Miho a little as they walked.

“Did she say everything you thought she would?” Miho inquired.

“Pretty much,” She nodded. “Naturally she tried to dumb it down for me, and claim she was thinking it through, rather than conspiring with our enemies to trap us as we know she was.”

Miho made a small scoffing sound, as though she couldn't believe the audacity of Calantha's behaviour. 

The two continued to walk, until they came to a nondescript building, a small warning sign on the chain link fence surrounding it being the only true hint of what this place was.

Miho took a step forward to read the sign, and turned back to Belleza with a raised eyebrow. "Why are you taking me into the mines?"

"This is where Sparrow and I stashed the supplies from a few weeks ago," Belleza explained as she walked ahead. Realising she wasn't going to stop to talk, Miho quickly fell back in line, and followed her into the building. A small rusted lock was the only true deterrent from getting further inside, but a sharp tug was all it needed to loosen enough for her to take it off. Belleza held the door open for Miho, further explaining what they were doing here. "Bianca took the majority home with her, but I'm hoping you might be able to make some use of what's left."

Miho nodded her head silently, and as they walked she looked around the building. There wasn't anything notable about the place to Belleza as most of it had been gutted of any defining furniture. The two women made their way to a back room, where a simple elevator waited to take them down to the mines.

"Is it safe?" Miho asked, stepping into the elevator, which rocked under the sudden weight.

"Well I can't imagine this thing has gone through any health and safety tests recently," She replied dryly, focusing more on powering up the elevator rather than whether it was safe or not. "You're not scared are you?" She teased.

Miho was quick to deny she was afraid, but was unable to hide the startled expression on her face when the elevator shuddered into life and began to descend. "I meant the mines."

"Yes, they're safe - or stable at least," Belleza explained. "When we first arrived I had Bianca look into the situation regarding the mines to see if it was something we could use to our advantage. Whilst no longer active per se, apparently this whole place acts as a sort of underfloor heating for the town. They regularly have surveyors come out to ensure the place isn’t on the verge of blowing up.”

Miho nodded approvingly. “That was smart of them.”

“Seems like a waste of good dust if you ask me,” Belleza huffed. After a short descent, the elevator came to a stop at the bottom of the mine shaft, which split off into three different tunnels. “But surprise, surprise, the Atlas elites wind up hoarding all the- Wait!” An arm snapped out, preventing Miho from walking off into the tunnels without her. “Do you hear that?” “Hear what?”

Belleza moved her head, trying to determine the direction where the sound was coming, eventually deciding it was coming from the right tunnel - conveniently the one they needed to go through. With a wave of her hand, she gestured for Miho to follow her, and they made their way through the tunnel. As they walked the sound - which started off as the faintest of tapping noises - continued to grow louder and louder until they found the source of the noise.

Crouched in front of the wall, hammering away at a vein of fire dust crystals, was a young boy who had to be around Calantha’s age if Belleza had to guess. However, the colourful emblem on the hoodie he wore made him seem slightly younger. The boy had a pair of headphones in his ears, and was humming along to whatever song was playing through them, so wasn’t aware of their presence until Belleza kicked a loose pebble at him.

After the rock hit him and he became aware of their presence, he lost his balance and tumbled backwards in surprise. He quickly managed to scramble to his feet, and might have made a run for it, had it not been for Miho reaching out to grab his hood, and holding him in place, before forcibly turning him around to face them once he ceased his struggling.

He seemed nervous when he finally plucked up the courage to talk to them. “What are you doing here?” He asked.

“What are you doing here?” Belleza countered, putting her hands on her hips.

The boy looked down at the floor. “I was trying to get a crystal from the mines to impress Daisy Tisane,” He admitted shyly, speaking as though Belleza was supposed to know who that was. “Please don’t tell my mom about this, okay? She grounded my ass for a solid month the last time I tried this and even threatened to pull out my application for the academy.”

“I don’t even know who your mother is,” Belleza said flatly.

“What?” The boy seemed taken aback by this. “Captain Bougainvillea? Surely you must know her. I’m her son - Maroon.”

“What do you want - a medal?”

“I-” Maroon seemed at a loss for words.

“Listen boy, I couldn’t give a shit who your mother is. I have no intention of seeking out Captain Boogaloo, or whatever her name is, I have a job to do, and I’d like to take care of it without any interference from you or her. Believe me when I say telling on you is the least of my priorities!” Belleza snapped. She took a step toward the boy. “I won’t tell anyone that I saw you here, if you don’t tell anyone about us. Do we have a deal?” Belleza held out her hand almost as soon as she finished speaking, not giving the boy any other option but to say yes.

Reluctantly, he stretched out his hand to hers and gave it a weary shake. Before she let him, Belleza tightened her grip and leaned in even closer. “Be a good boy and run along before I change my mind about being so nice and decide to break your legs.”

The boy’s eyes widened in alarm, and no sooner had Belleza released  her grip, did he take off down the tunnel eager to get away from them. In his hurry to leave, he left behind the dust crystal he had been hammering off. Miho bent down to pick it up, and tossed it in her hand. “I’m guessing he won’t be needing this anymore.”

Belleza smirked. “Keep that close, Miho. You might be able to make some use of it later.”

After the brief interruption, the two women finally made it to where Belleza had stashed the last of the supplies they had taken. At the end of the tunnel, the mine opened out into a large cavernous space, which was connected to even more tunnels.

Miho whistled. “Wow. How big is this place exactly?”

“Big enough,” Belleza said simply. She signalled for Miho to join her by a crate she was standing next to. As her companion joined her, she lifted the lid to show the contents inside - several dust crystals carefully packaged together with several wires and pieces of scrap metal.

“Will this be enough to do your thing with your semblance?” She asked.

“That depends.”

“On what?”

“Whatever it is you’re planning on using it for,” Miho laughed, reaching into the box to pick up a crystal.

“Think of it as a distraction. A really big distraction,” Belleza said, watching as Miho studied the crystal carefully. Belleza never really had much use for dust, so had never bothered to learn much about it other than the basic uses. “When Cala and her new friends come to the meeting they’ll find these waiting for them instead of us. Of course, it would require one of us to stay behind to ensure they found their intended target...” Although she was certain Miho would have offered herself up regardless, she fluttered her eyelashes at her, hoping that playing nice would serve as a further incentive for Miho.

“If you want me to stay behind I will. No questions asked,” Miho said. “I would give my life for you if you asked it.”

“That is good to know,” Belleza smiled. “But don’t try and pick any fights afterwards.I still have use for you back home and would rather not see you wind up in an Atlesian prison or meeting your maker at the end of a hail of bullets. We can use the chaos from what happens in the aftermath to flee.”

“But how? Won’t the city go into lockdown or something?” Miho asked, sounding a little doubtful.

“Oh, it will,” Belleza confirmed. “But you’re looking at our escape plan right now.”

For a split second, Miho looked down at the crystal she was still holding.

“Not the dust, you idiot,” Belleza scolded, smacking Miho on the arm. “The mine! You see, a couple of these tunnels lead right out of town.”

“Really?”

Belleza nodded. “So whilst you ensure Cala finds our little present, I will wait down here in the tunnels for you. And then, whilst everyone is running around in a panic, you’ll escape, join me in the tunnels, and we’ll skip right out of town and straight back to the O.R.C.A.S!”

[thecomicsnexus]

TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES #17-20 DECEMBER 2012 - MARCH 2013 BY KEVIN EASTMAN, TOM WALTZ, BEN BATES AND RONDA PATTISON

The turtles are trying to obtain more information about Stockgen, so April arranges a metting with Chet Allen, only for him and the Turtles to be swept away into a war in the planet Neutrino.

SCORE: 8

It took twenty issues, but the Turtles now are aware of Krang and his plans. However... they are still to understand the Foot Clan’s role in all of this.

There are some noticeable changes. I am not sure if the reason is Ben Bates, but these issues felt heavily influenced by the 2012 cartoon. The turtles look too much like in the cartoon (to the detail of their eyes) and the group dynamics are also the same (with Mikey being a bit silly and Raphael occasionally bullying him). With Eastman being involved with that as well... I wouldn’t be surprised.

But this story also takes from the Mirage series. With the Turtles’ first space mission.

I like Ben Bates way of drawing the turtles. His style is very dynamic and he is clearly having fun with them. However, the human faces are a disaster. The Turtles faces remind me specifically their first space adventure in the Mirage continuity. Same eyes.

Spoilers after the break...

So much to discuss, i will probably forget something.

Chet being Honeycutt and being involved in the Turtles “creation” is in itself a beautiful nod to the original Chet from the Mirage continuity (the kid that lost the turtles).

For a moment when Honeycutt mentioned “Krang’s other enemies” I thought of the Triceratons. But then I remembered Fugitoid was working with the foot clan. Sine Fugitoid ended up in the wrong place at the end of this battle, the Turtles are unaware of the connection.

In the meantime, Karai was able to steal ooze from Burnow Island. This paralleled the Turtles going ninja to rescue the king and queen of Neutrino. I think Karai deserves more credit than Shredder gives her.

Also... creepy moment. The Turtles died in issue #17. Then were replicated when they tele-transported to Neutrino. Technically, Krang dies all the time. Someone just needs to turn off the device on the other end.

[xfilesnews]

FanWorks Wednesdays - Vickie Moseley

Gather round kids, we’re going to tell you a story from the X-Files Fandom days of old. For the “old timers” like me, join in and smile at the remembrances of EMXC, Gossamer, and the old alt.tv newsgroups. This week’s author was there for all of it. Vickie Moseley and her stories were a staple in the fandom for years. Her fantastic body of work will keep you occupied for ages, with 252 credits to her name on Gossamer alone. Vickie also contributed to the “Virtual Seasons” project that spun off to continue the stories of Mulder and Scully in a different direction when Season 8 took to the TV airwaves. If you’ve never explored their seasons, bookmark that page for when you’ve finished reading this interview and then dive in.

If you like family fic, “Flight Into Egypt”  is a long series I revisit frequently when I need to forget that Mulder and Scully didn’t get to raise their son. It soothes that pain quite nicely. Another favorite series is “By Her Side” which is told through Billy Scully Jr.’s eyes. Vickie does a wonderful job looking at Big Brother Bill as something other than a jerk and fandom’s favorite punching bag. In “Joy and Sorrow,” Maggie Scully guides us through the moments of Mulder’s rebirth in “Dead Alive.” It’s touching and sweet and will have you wishing they would have given us more screen time with Mom Scully in Season 8.

I could go on and on with recs but I’ll cut to the chase and get to the interview. We talked with Vickie about writing, inspiration, fandom, and of course The X-Files.

How long have you been a Phile?

I stumbled onto the fandom in March 1995.  I'd been a fan of the show since it first aired (actually, I was a fan once I read the TV Guide Fall Preview issue for Fall 1993 and saw the small blurb about the 'new science fiction show about aliens').  When my husband 'gave' me the internet for my birthday I immediately typed 'X-Files' into the yahoo search engine and after some sites dedicated to the actors and character bios, the old Rutgers Fan Fiction site came up.  From there, I was hooked.

What was your first episode?

The Pilot. I saw every episode as it aired up to Season 8. I watched “Within” and couldn't stand the changes so I resorted to reading about the episodes on Haven until David Duchovny reappeared. I am very much a Mulderist. I have only watched “Trust No 1” and “The Truth” from Season 9.

How long have you been writing fic?

September 1995 was my first posting -- “Aftermath.” You can read it, warts and all. I was attempting to write a fill in the blank for the summer after the season 2 finale “Anasazi.” Within a week of posting the story became 'alt.universe' because Chris Carter went in a totally different direction than I had taken.

What inspired you to start writing?

Guilt. Back then we were a small community. People were always begging for more stories (myself included) and since there weren't that many writers, everyone was encouraged to 'give back' by writing stories of their own. I got a lot of encouragement from the early writers and the brave souls who had fan fic sites. Later, with the Ohio State archives (this archive was the birth of what became Gossamer, check here for more information ) and the .alt.x-files.fanfiction newsgroup and EMXC (E-Mail X Creative) it was almost a requirement that if you wanted more stories, you better write some of them.

Who is your favorite XF character to write?              

My favorite character to write is Scully. I can get in her head. I can hear her voice as clear as a bell as I'm writing her.  She's not my favorite character, however. I think I see too much of myself. All the flaws and dark places that I would like to change in myself, I transpose onto Scully. Sometimes I just want to shake her!

Are there any XF characters you dislike or find too difficult to write?

Krycek was always a problem to write, even in the Virtual Seasons. And I can't write Doggett. I've tried but my annoyance with the character always shines through. Same is true of Diana Fowley. I once vowed to kill her off in a story and damned if she didn't slip the noose and come out alive. I was very happy Carter did the deed for me.

Is there a story you're most proud of or that's a favorite?

“Out of the Cold” is probably my favorite of the stories that I wrote solo. But the most fun was writing with a partner. I've had such wonderful partners and group writing exercises. I am also very proud of the work we did on the Virtual Season.

With so many archives to choose from these days, where is the best place to find your work?

Gossamer has almost all of my stuff and my own website has it too. Many thanks to Mimic for giving me a home: http://vickiemoseley.mimicsmusings.com/

You've been well known in the fandom for a long time, do you still write for XF or have your skills been focused elsewhere?

Lately, I've been involved in politics to the exclusion of other activities. I worked on a local race last fall and I've been advocating for healthcare since January. I'm also doing work on a grant project and I keep an eye on our legislature so all of that keeps me away from fan fiction.

If you do still write XF fic, where does your inspiration come from after many years?  If you're not, is there anything in particular that caused you to stop writing XF fic?

I haven't written much in the past few years. I could chalk it up to writer's block but it feels like more than that. I still love the fandom and I reread a lot of my favorites. I guess I was hoping for a real revival. I was excited by the prospect of a Season 10 with the original cast, but once it aired I found I really only liked two of the episodes and the way the relationship was presented between Mulder and Scully just left so very little room to play. It didn't mimic real life, it was sadder than real life. There seemed no way to 'rescue' them and that's the type of story I prefer to write. I'm not big on 'angst for angst sake' and it almost seemed on overdrive in S10, especially the season opener and finale. So I haven't been able to come up with anything by myself. I did help a little with the last Virtual Season story “Aveum” that was posted recently. Not to spoil too much, the story contains an infant and at the time it was being written I was helping my daughter and her new baby so it was almost too easy to write.

Have you written your own original characters outside of fandom?

Only as far as drawing up a few characters. One day I'll do something with them . . . maybe.

Anything you’d like to share about your writing process?

I tend to write the stories that play out in my mind. Most of the time I just start typing and 'the characters' take over and write the story. There have been times I read what I've written and think “wow, where did that come from?” But I write as therapy. I used to joke that fan fiction is much cheaper than Zoloft or a therapist. It was a way to escape after a particularly painful episode in my life and after it got me over the hump, I just kept going.

What do you find most difficult about writing?

Making it happen when it's not there. When it's there ('it' being the spark, the life force, whatever you want to call it -- the Muse), when the story is inside me sometimes I can't get to the computer fast enough, I can't type it fast enough (as my beta readers will attest). But when I sit and stare at a blank screen, even when I have an idea floating around in my head and it just won't happen -- then it just hurts.

Do you have a favorite author? (fanfic or published!)

My favorite authors published are Ray Bradbury, Issac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke (hardcore sci-fi -- no dragons, no elves). 

My favorite fan fic writers are too numerous to mention (go to the Authors Index at Gossamer and start with A). I love reading Dawn's “Blood Ties” series -- I read it every year at least once. I read Susan Proto's “Life Cycles” over and over again. I've read all of MalibuSunet's stories a dozen times. Same is true of Suzanne Bickerstaff's “The Magician” (the ONLY fantasy I'll admit to reading). Dee_Ayy's stories are my Mulder fix, especially “Short of Breath.” I'm right now rereading Kronos' “The Abyss Looks Back.” All of her stories just draw me in and won't let go.  I'm still mourning that she never finished “Ascent into Hell.”

Is there any advice you'd give to aspiring writers?

They say “write every day” and I would imagine that's good advice, but I would say simply “write.” Write even if you don't know where the story is going, or if you just have an idea for a character or just the setting or even just an outline of a plot. My youngest son is going to college for game design but all his life he's had ideas for games and stories. He tells me his stories in the car and I try to get him to write them down. My second to the youngest son actually has written a few stories -- now I just want him to finish them and get them published.

Anything else you'd like to share that I missed?

I have met so many dear friends in this fandom, particularly through fan fiction, writers and those who read. I love them all. I would like to thank everyone I partnered with: Susan Proto, Donna Honeycutt, Sally Bahnsen, Summer, Michelle, Starfleetofficer1, Martin, Theresa Jahn, Suzanne Bickerstaff, dtg, all the VS producers -- if I forget anyone chalk it up to my advanced years. Writing with someone is by far the most fun anyone could have.  I used to joke that it was like playing 'Barbie and Ken' in the backyard with my cousins.

Also, I would like to thank all the people over the years who have read my stories and sent me feedback. You have no idea how much those emails brightened my day! It is such a rush to know that someone somewhere (some pretty far away, even) read something I wrote and liked it enough to send me a note. The nearly instant gratification that comes with feedback is one of the reasons I wrote so much. I just loved hearing from people.

I've had other shows I loved, Star Trek (original and Next Gen), Battlestar Gallactica, Probe (if anyone remembers that one) but X-Files was the first time I got so engaged I wanted to be part of it. From that perspective, fanfiction kept the series alive for me and brought me into a wonderful community. Oh, there have been some all out wars (shipper v. noromos, Mulder v. Doggett, original pairings v. next gen, etc) but overall in fan fiction there really is room for everyone. If you like slash stories, or stories that center around Skinner or even stories around Kim, his assistant, fan fiction is the place. When Melissa Scully was killed off in the series, she lived on in fan fiction. When baby William was given up for adoption, he was reunited with his biological parents many times over in fan fiction. Some of the stories are so well done that you will swear you saw the episode (what season did Mulder's brother Grey show up? <wink>) If you have never picked up a fanfic and read it, I encourage you to do so now.  If you haven't read anything for a while, go to Gossamer and find something. It will be like the series never ended.

[pasoroblesdailynews]

Sip and Savor: 7th annual Garagiste Wine Festival draws a record crowd

Sip and Savor: 7th annual Garagiste Wine Festival draws a record crowd

Bob Tillman, Neil Roberts, Stewart McLennan, Curt Schalchlin and Doug MinnickPhotos by Mira Honeycutt California artisanal winemakers showcased in Paso Robles -Celebrating its 7th year, the fun, friendly and unpretentious Garagiste Wine Festival kicked off its new edition with activities packed into three days over the weekend of Nov. 10 – 12. The festival is a mecca for adventurous consumers…