#however dot dot dot i think visually it would look bad if i drew it driving on the right side of the road

[onesnoopyaday]

snoopy school bus

Snoopy #66

6/12/2024

[angelofthepage]

Renegade Rose: Return to the Cycle

I got hit with a brilliant idea for a potential Bendy fan game that focuses on characters from the books. Most notably, I'm focusing on the cast of Fade to Black, so if you're still spoiler dodging for that entry, here's your content warning. Disclaimer, I am not a game developer and have no idea how one would feasibly create this, this is all just for fun as a hypothetical. (That said, if any fan devs are interested in this concept, my DMs are open, would love to chat with you.) Now, let's get on with the show!

Let's set the stage:

It's been a few years (maybe 1956 since that's when the VCR was invented?) since Rose and Ollie Sorenson’s daring escape from Joey Drew's twisted cartoon world, the Cycle. Ollie is well on his way to becoming a teenager, and Rose has been trying to move forward with her life. But no matter where she goes, the hallucination of Bendy follows her, and the guilt of losing Evan and Archie still eats at her soul. 

By some miraculous chance, Rose ends up with a VHS tape with a recording of the Joey Drew Show on it (maybe she recorded a rerun, or maybe she found it in someone else's junk/the library discards). The special TV has been unplugged for years, and her 3D glasses are snapped in half. But she wonders if maybe, just maybe, there's a way to go back and save them. So she tapes the glasses together and pops in the tape to see if her access point is still there. And sure enough, she's got a way in! 

With the help of Ollie and Dot, Rose makes it her mission to rescue Evan and Archie from their inky fates. Will she be successful, or will she find the ink pulling her under?

Gameplay:

I imagine this would work well as a first person action adventure experience that's mission based. (That said, upon consulting friends, I've had the suggestion for a Nancy Drew visual novel styled game, and that feels like it would be fun and maybe more achievable if I tried to make it real.) It has elements in common with BATDR, but the world isn't quite as open. Taking some inspiration from FNAF Security Breach Ruin and FNAF Help Wanted 2, Rose puts on her 3D glasses to dive into the cycle, which is our primary environment for exploration. In the cycle, she travels through a variety of areas to look for Evan and Archie, encountering a cast of quirky characters, some known fan favorites, and some new. On her quest to find them, Rose finds several items to help her solve puzzles and leave notes for her friends/mark her path. 

Rose’s central hub is in the living room of her real world house. Here, she can consult Ollie and Dot, look through notes of things she's seen on her adventure, and equip items to take with her into the cycle. That said, some of the horror would come from having something in the real world that shouldn't be there. The farther Rose goes, the more her hallucinated Bendy shows up. Sometimes he's there to tease her, and sometimes he has helpful hints about how to traverse the cycle. (Keep this in mind for later, this will be story relevant.)

While having the VHS tape means Rose can enter the cycle whenever she wants, there is a limitation. She can only stay in the cycle for as long as the tape runs for. This means she has to get in, complete her objective, and get out. Given this game would have some puzzle elements, I would feel bad putting someone in a time constraint to solve them. So rather than taking a Hades or Splatoon 3 Side Order approach, I'd rather let the levels themselves take however long they need to. The time limit wouldn't be imposed until Rose has completed her objective, where it's a mad dash to get back to a designated safety area (like Joey's office) so she can take off the glasses and get out. Think of it kind of like Pizza Tower. It could also lend itself well to some close encounters running away from monsters at the end of a mission. It would be interesting to use the Little Miracle Stations as a potential safe area to pause and exit the cycle mid-mission, given the ad for them that exists in BATIM Chapter 5. (This is the thing I wouldn't know how to translate if this was tackled as a visual novel instead.)

I’m tempted to throw something in here with closing your eyes as a mechanic, given the scene in FTB where Ollie walks back up to the entrance by imagining he’s walking on clouds. Letting Rose have one moment to do something impossible by focusing and using her imagination would be great. It would take a lot out of her, having it as a once-a-mission kind of deal might make sense. 

Another mechanic is the tape player. Per the Fade to Black moment of Joey talking to Rose ala the tape player, Rose being able to communicate with Dot or Ollie would be useful. It could work as a hint system, but it also works for plot elements. Using the tapes as a walkie talkie of sorts would also be interesting for having some interference from our antagonist, or for keeping in touch with allies we meet along the way. 

Characters: 

Rose Sorenson: Our ever optimistic protagonist. Rose looks on the bright side, but more importantly, she’s driven. While other Bendy protagonists have endurance and magical powers to help them along, Rose has her wits and a strong imagination.

Ollie Sorenson: Rose’s little brother who has been through a lot. Ollie is a good kid, he means well, but he’s getting to an age where his whole world is changing. As his sister embarks on this heroic quest, he’s feeling like he’s brave and strong enough to take on the cycle and lend a hand too. This may get him into more trouble than he bargained for. 

Dot Lastname: Former writer at Joey Drew Studios, Dot is a curious soul who lost everything. Having never been able to find her friend, Buddy Lewek, she’s harbored so much guilt. Making sure Joey can never hurt anyone again would leave her satisfied, and being able to locate her lost friend would be even better. She agrees to help Rose one more time, in the hope that maybe, just maybe, Buddy is still alive. 

Buddy Boris: Since getting dragged down by the hands of the ink demon, Buddy has found himself trapped in the body of Boris the Wolf, struggling to maintain control. Upon encountering studio newcomer Rose, his memories are hazy. But the more she tells him stories of the past, the more he starts to remember. Buddy can’t speak verbally, but he can communicate through drawings and writing on the wall. (Need to have a moment where he hears Dot through the tape recorder and recognizes her, gotta have it be a little heartbreaking).

Evan: A former employee of Joey Drew’s and Gent, Evan is a big grump with big dreams of innovating the world. He’s a foil to Rose’s endless positivity with an air of irritation, but he means well. Except for trying to dismantle and steal the ink machine, that was a bit foolish and morally gray. Evan met his fateful death at the hands of the ink demon in Fade to Black, but as other characters have shown us, those who die in reality can end up reborn in the cycle. Where is Evan, and what has he become? Is there a way to bring him back home? 

Archie Carter: A mysterious Englishman who ended up as a lab rat for Gent, Archie is desperate to put an end to their reign of terror. Having gone from being suspiciously not human to a faceless ink creature, Archie sacrificed himself for Rose not once, but twice. He’s already encountered so many horrors in the studio. What kind of state will he be in if Rose finds him again?

The Projectionist: The monster that was once Norman Polk has caused a fair share of problems within the cycle, but perhaps he’s not as monstrous as he seems. After all, he’s only defending what’s rightfully his: a pile of ink hearts. (It could be fun to have him as a monster, then have Evan help repair his speaker so he can communicate with the group, showing he’s more confused than he is hostile.)

There are others I'd like to include of course. There's people like Jacob from DCTL that would make a fun ally, might be indulgent and put my “Abby Lambert is a perfect Alice” theory to good use. Depending on how far along Joey is, maybe there's an early attempt at Audrey somewhere in here. Maybe there's Wilson! There is a very small chance of Wilson, it's not likely, but I'm considering it. Twisted Alice showing up? Definitely considering it given the timeline would be fun to play with.

That's all I've got in my notes so far. Whether this ends up as a real fan game or stays as a concept for a fic/au, it's been really fun to brainstorm, and I want to keep playing with it. I feel like we're onto something here.

[bad-at-bullet-journaling]

Habit Tracking:

So when I first started looking at ideas for pages to use in my bullet journal, I sort of dismissed the idea of a habit tracker. Partly because the idea of “tracking habits” seemed weird and abstract to me in a way that didn’t sound helpful, and partly because of what some of the habit trackers you look up online look like:

[Image Source: @seras.bullet.journal]

[Image Source: @bountifulcolours}

[Image Source: @knitashajanice]

These are all cute, to be sure, but to my probablyADHD brain, they seemed both tedious to set up and not specific enough to actualy be hepful (save the last one, it looks very specific, just tricky/time consuming to draw out).

However, acting like a functional adult human being is hard, and other things I’ve been trying to use to help me remember to do things (dry erase routine list on the fridge, phone alarms, etc.) weren’t very helpful. Then, this habit tracker caught my eye:

[Image Source: @ohayobento]

Yeeesssss. Look at that. So simple, so easy to set up, a crisp, clear visual way to make sure you’re doing the things you need to do. It’s like a sticker chart, but in your bullet journal so you can carry it with you anywhere. What could be better? This month I buckled down to try it, and this is what I’ve got so far:

So as you can see, my tracker is a bit haphazard. I started it on the 12th of this month, so there’s a big blank gap that I made look worse by putting an x there, I drew the lines without any ruler so they’re a bit wobbly, and I think my flair pens are a little two wide tipped to draw the numbers on the dates small enough, but I still really like using it.

Some of the things I track aren’t the things you necessarily see on instagram, but I sincerely do need the reminder to do things like brush my teeth every day and wash my face, and since starting this, I’ve been SO much better at that aspect of self care. Other things I track help me make sure I’m prepared for the next day, got everything I needed to do on THIS day finished, and keep me from neglecting projects that I’ve started (BABJ stands for this blog, Bad at Bullet Journaling, I don’t want to start this and then drop it after only a few days, as I’m known to do sometimes XD) 

Some trackers have more elaborate methods of marking off a day, but I stuck to the simple dots for when I do a task, and an X for when that tast doesn’t get done. My goal is to never have more than one X per day, which hasn’t broken yet, but we’ll see how the rest of the month goes. Every day gets a different color, and while right now I’m just kinda going random, for next month I think I’m gonna go for a rainbow gradient, or maybe shades of purple in the pattern  of the ace flag (any month can be pride month with the right colored pens) ((also I forgot to write “February” anywhere on the spread, so I drew a heart in the blank space next to goals. It counts! XD)). 

One thing I quickly realized this month is that I have even more stuff I want to track that I was concerned about fitting on one page in landscape view, so I drafted out next month’s tracker to take up two pages to give myself more room. This granted me some extra space in the margins, so I also added a goal section so that I would be reminded every day of what I want to work towards in the coming weeks. You can also see I used a ruler for these lines and color coded the habits by category; pink for hygeine, pale purple for other self care, dark purple for planning, and blue for chores. 

I recently Marie Kondo’d my way through all the rooms in our apartment, getting them all truly clean and organized looking at the same time for the first time since we moved in (this past June), and one of the things keeping this spread has been helping me with is keeping the rooms that clean; “clear living room” means put the remotes away in their proper place at the end of the night and take any dishes to the kitchen, “clear office” means putting away my strewn about office and art supplies, work laptop, and anything else I may have put on my desk, as well as, again, taking any dirty dishes away. Doing at least 5 dishes a day helps keep the volume down, plus once I start with the thought of “I’ll do at least five of them” I typically end up doing much more. 

For me, doing these tasks simply because they need doing is not enough motivation, and it can be easy to fall back into having messy rooms, but knowing that if I do them I can put a dot down on my chart, they suddenly become much simpler tasks, because there’s a clear goal and reward in sight. For anyone else who needs that extra bit of external motivation to get tasks done, I highly recommend a method like this. Sometimes I get apathetic towards my daily to do list, but when “complete the daily to do list” is a bullet on the chart, I’m far less likely to put them off for the ever elusive time of “later.” 

If you’re feeling particularly inspired to make a more elaborately designed tracker like the first few pictures from instagram, they definitely lok fun, and they can obviously be customized to track whatever you need. But if you’re like me and want to track several, more specific things in more minute detail, I’d suggest just the simple lines and dots. I’ll let you guys know at the end of the month my ‘stats’ with the tracker, which is honestly just one more thing that will help me stay motivated, but if you guys are doing similar trackers I’d love for you to check in at the end of the month too, we can all be like, accountability partners as it were! What sort of things do you/would you track with a system like this?

[pagetgram]

Paget Brewster, Bay Dariz, and Oliver Thompson at the 18th Annual Dance With Films Festival Opening Night Party (x)

Paget: “I had worked with Kyle and Molly before. Molly sent me the script and my first thought was, “Ugh, first-time indie director — oh man, I don’t know!” And then I read it and instantly fell in love with the story. I’ve never read anything like it. So I emailed Molly back right away and said, “What do I have to do to get on this film?”  

(full interview below)

Interview: Oliver Thompson’s ‘Welcome to Happiness’ Is the Most Original Indie You’ll See This Year

by Danny Miller, for Cinehiled

Welcome to Happiness is a wildly entertaining metaphysical drama about a children’s book author, Woody (American Sniper’s Kyle Gallner), who is the secret gatekeeper to a magical door in his closet. Strangers show up at his apartment and go through a series of questions and tests, provided to Woody by an old dot matrix printer that seems to work autonomously, letting him determine whether or not they are worthy to pass through the door. Where they are headed and what they will encounter on the other side, however, is a mystery. Oliver Thompson’s first feature is one of the most refreshingly original films that I’ve seen in a long time. It had a jam-packed screening last night at the 18th Annual Dances With Films festival in Hollywood and recently won the Outstanding Achievement in Filmmaking Award at the 2015 Newport Beach Film Festival. Welcome to Happiness boasts an impressive cast including Nick Offerman, Paget Brewster, Frances Conroy, Brendan Sexton III, Olivia Thirlby, Molly C. Quinn, Keegan Michael-Key, and Josh Brener. Just before the film’s Los Angeles premiere, I sat down with writer/director Oliver Thompson, producer Bay Dariz, and cast members Paget Brewster and Brendan Sexton III. I sat down with writer/director Oliver Thompson, producer Bay Dariz, and cast members Paget Brewster and Brendan Sexton III.

Danny Miller: I loved this movie but as I was watching it I kept thinking that no studio would have allowed you to make it. They probably would have forced a lot of changes on you because they wouldn’t have trusted that audiences would “get it.”

Oliver Thompson: Oh, they absolutely would have, yes.

Paget Brewster: This could never have been a studio film.

Oliver: I mean, those are absolutely necessary people who are just doing their jobs.

But are they absolutely necessary? I guess I’m thinking of the 22-year-old studio executives giving you pages and pages of insane notes to make the film less “challenging.”

Ooh, that’s pretty accurate.

What I love about movies like this is that they’re like Rorschach tests — I doubt two people seeing it will have the same impression of what’s going on.

Brendan Dean Sexton III: We’ve certainly heard from people who completely identify with different characters.

Brendan, I think I identified most with your character, Nyles, I’m a little terrified to admit.

Bay Dariz: When you say “challenging,” I think that’s true in the sense that the movie challenges the way audience members look at life, but I don’t think it’s some weird art film that’s inaccessible.

Right. It’s more challenging for studio executives who think moviegoers need to always have the answers and know what’s happening.

Brendan: Yeah, I think “challenging” is a good word to use. The characters in the film are challenged to make some decisions after they walk through the door and the film challenges you in terms of how you think about humanity and the meaning of life.

I loved that we didn’t see what happened when they went through that door. Oliver did you ever consider showing that more explicitly?

Oliver: Never! It was suggested to me one time by a producer but I really think that would have wrecked the film.

Paget and Brendan, you are both such busy actors and you and the rest of the cast obviously don’t choose to be in a film like this for a big pay day. What drew you to the project?

Paget: I had worked with Kyle and Molly before. Molly sent me the script and my first thought was, “Ugh, first-time indie director — oh man, I don’t know!” And then I read it and instantly fell in love with the story. I’ve never read anything like it. So I emailed Molly back right away and said, “What do I have to do to get on this film?”

Bay: Molly showed us that email, by the way, did you know that? We all said, “Whaaat?! Paget Brewster is excited about US?”

Paget: Oh my God, really? But it was such an evocative script and I think the movie came together even more beautifully than what you see on the page. The themes are just extraordinary, you don’t find that very often.

Brendan: Yeah, I thought it was a visually compelling literary script that moved really well. Not only was it a great role and a great script, it also tackled big things. Just reading a great script is such a rare thing — getting a chance to be involved with one is an even rarer treat, especially a film that really tackles the human condition.

I love all the little touches like making Kyle Gallner’s Woody a children’s book author.

Oliver: I wanted him to have a certain innocence about him. I used to be a music teacher at a small private school in Michigan — I wanted to have him involved with kids in some way. I toyed with the idea of making him a teacher or even a nanny, but then I went with a more literary approach.

I love that you showed all those children’s books that he wrote. I know they weren’t real but I so wanted them!

What’s crazy is that there’s so much more to those fake books that what you see on the screen. We show the cool front covers but they all have back covers, too, with a photo of Woody, a bio, bar codes, even prices for the U.S. and Canada. Some of those books were completely written and illustrated by Bay!

I love that attention to detail, you should really sell them! How has it been showing the film to audiences?

Before Dances With Films, we only screened it at the Newport Beach Film Festival so far. The audience reaction was overwhelmingly positive — it was just fantastic, better than we could have ever imagined.

It’s crazy that you don’t have a distributor yet but I’m sure that will change very shortly.

We’ve had some people from that world sit down with us and try to prepare us for what we’ll probably hear: “You have to cut the film down to 90 minutes! Change the title! What were you thinking starting your title with a ‘W’?!”

Why is that bad?

Because when you’re on HBO GO, it’ll come up at the end of the alphabetical list.

Oy. Do audience members try to get you to tell them what the film means?

At Newport Beach, we had a phenomenal Q&A after the film. People asked very meaningful questions about things we couldn’t even believe they noticed. We went so long that the theater finally had to kick us out because they were turning off the lights. As far as what the film is about, I don’t think I’m in a place yet to pull the David Lynch “you figure it out on your own” card, but I’d love to get to that place. I think I have to be a little more giving but to tell the truth, it’s fun to talk about that.

You should give wildly different answers every time someone asks you to explain the film.

(Laughs.) That would be great. Did you see that documentary Room 237 about all the supposed meanings behind Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining?

Paget: Oh, that was great! All these conspiracy theorists saying that Kubrick was trying to tell us that we faked the moon landing.

Oliver: Yeah, they presented several different crazy theories including that it was really about the genocide of Native Americans!

You want it to be like that Marshall McLuhan scene in Annie Hall when McLuhan appears in that movie line to tell the pretentious blowhard that all of his theories about his film were total bullshit!

Oliver: I haven’t heard any crazy theories about Welcome to Happiness yet, but who knows?

Brendan: I think the world Oliver created here is so rich and compelling it could lead to crazy theories. I think it would make a great TV show, too.

Oliver: Well, two of my biggest influences for this film were Twin Peaks and Lost. They were buzzing around my head when I wrote this script.

Brendan: You could have a new case every week or maybe focus on three different characters each season who go through the door and see how they intertwine.

Bay: Sshhh! It’s been discussed!

Just promise me you’ll have a series finale that’s less aggravating than the one on Lost!

Oliver: I don’t know. I realize that ending didn’t really answer a lot of questions but I was pretty moved by it. In my opinion, people think they want all the answers, but they really don’t.

Paget: And we’re still talking about that finale five years after the show went off the air! I think that kind of response is a lot better than an ending that is just “meh.”

Oliver: I heard director Nicolas Winding Refn say that if you’ve made something that half the people love and half the people hate, you’ve made something great. But if you make something that everyone loves or everyone hates, you probably haven’t succeeded because it didn’t really penetrate.

He doesn’t have to worry about the lack of people hating his most recent film!

The truth is, I’m very aware that this movie is not for everyone. But look at how many viewers Lost had each week. There was never a more challenging hour on TV! “What did I just watch? I have no idea what’s going on!” And yet people tuned in. I really believe there’s an audience for that kind of stuff. People are smart — they like to think. It’s just that a lot of people controlling the money don’t always realize that people like to be engaged or challenged with thought-provoking material.

Bay: One thing I noticed about our Q&As is that we don’t get a lot of those typical film festival questions.

Oliver: Right. “What did you shoot it on? How long was your shoot?”

Ugh. Who gives a shit?

That’s the thing. In this case, people got right to the heart of the film and wanted to talk about the characters and the themes. People were so engaged by what was on the screen that they didn’t care about what was behind the screen.

[mediaeval-muse]

Book Review

Ring Shout. By P. Djèlí Clark. New York: Tor Dot Com, 2020.

Rating: 3.5/5 stars

Genre: horror, historical fantasy, novella

Part of a Series? No.

Summary: D. W. Griffith is a sorcerer, and The Birth of a Nation is a spell that drew upon the darkest thoughts and wishes from the heart of America. Now, rising in power and prominence, the Klan has a plot to unleash Hell on Earth. Luckily, Maryse Boudreaux has a magic sword and a head full of tales. When she's not running bootleg whiskey through Prohibition Georgia, she's fighting monsters she calls "Ku Kluxes." She's damn good at it, too. But to confront this ongoing evil, she must journey between worlds to face nightmares made flesh--and her own demons. Together with a foul-mouthed sharpshooter and a Harlem Hellfighter, Maryse sets out to save a world from the hate that would consume it.

***Full review under the cut.***

Content/Trigger Warnings: violence, blood, body horror, torture, sexual content, racism, lynching

Overview: I forget exactly how this book fell under my radar, but the premise intrigued me, so I bought it pretty shortly after it came out. The blend of historical fiction and horror - especially through the eyes of a Black woman with a magic sword - was enough to get me hooked, and I was eager to get my hands on a copy. As I was reading, I definitely encountered things I enjoyed; Clark has a talent for horror, and his descriptions of the monsters were some of the best parts of the book. I also liked the climax of the narrative, when Maryse (our protagonist) faces the Big Bad. Unfortunately, I couldn’t give Ring Shout a full four or five stars because I felt a lot of the elements were underutilized, and the first person narration made the story feel clunky at times (not a fault of Clark specifically - this is a complaint I have of all first person). Still, I liked the monster fights, so this book gets a 3.5 from me.

Writing: Ring Shout is written in first person from Maryse’s point of view. On top of that, it’s also written in African American Vernacular English (or something close to it - I apologize if my terminology is wrong). While I did like the AAVE and it was a good choice for a story told through the eyes of a Black woman, the first person narration made the descriptions of some things feel clunky. As I mentioned earlier, this complaint is one I have of all first person POVs - in first person, characters have to articulate things that people usually aren’t conscious of, or else don’t process in a way that a reader could follow. First person always feels very unnatural to me unless it’s being framed as a witness testimony or reflection - something where a character is relating events after they happened to another person in the form of a written statement or something where it’s self-consciously shaped to make narrative sense (I’m thinking like A Conspiracy of Truths or The Magnus Archives). Clark falls into this trap, making Maryse state something about her emotions or surroundings in a way that felt unnatural, but I can hardly blame him for something that exists across all first person narratives.

I also think Clark could have done more with his prose to make emotional moments feel weightier. Often, the pace of a scene would be so fast that something which was supposed to have an emotional impact felt rushed, and sometimes, the language around the moment felt straightforward to the point where it bordered on telling over showing. I would have liked to see more showing in these moments, creating a more visceral response in the reader.

Plot: The majority of this book follows Maryse and her companions as they prepare to fight a great evil unleashed by the Ku Klux Klan. We learn that Maryse is a “chosen one,” gifted with a magical sword by three otherworldly figures called “Aunties,” and she must use the sword to battle demonic monsters known as “Ku Kluxes,” which feed off the hate generated by the Klansmen. Overall, I found this premise intriguing, and I really liked the way the final showdown between Maryse and the Big Bad touched on themes of hate versus justice.

However, I don’t think Clark did enough to make each scene build on each other, which made the narrative as a whole feel disjointed. Most of the scenes leading up to the final Boss Fight consisted of Maryse talking to people - her companions, the Aunties, a figure named Butcher Clyde - which mainly seemed to be how Clark communicated worldbuilding information. I didn’t get the sense that Maryse was uncovering a grand plot; instead, it felt like I was floating from scene to scene, gathering info that would inform my interpretation of the big showdown.

I also think Clark could have woven his themes into his narrative a bit better. There seem to be running themes of hate vs justice, the power of stories, and others running through his book, but not much is done with them until the final showdown. I would have liked to see more scenes touch on these themes more explicitly, rather than conversations about the N-word or the ethics of socialism, which were important, but not integral to the plot. For example, in the scene where she and her companions go to Frenchy’s (a bar/inn), I would have liked to see Maryse’s interactions with Frenchy (the owner and her love interest) reveal a bit more about her mental state. Maybe they could have talked about how she refuses to open up about her past, or they have a conversation about Maryse’s feelings about white people. Those small changes, I think, could have made the twist in the big showdown feel more weighty. Additionally, I think these changes could have made her strategy with the Night Doctors (another type of otherworldly figure) more interesting.

Characters: Maryse, our protagonist, is likeable in that she’s strong-willed and highly motivated to take on a threat. I liked that she cared about the people around her, and I liked that she had some vulnerability in the form of her traumatic past and the voice of her deceased brother in her head.

Maryse’s companions were also fun. Sadie, a sharpshooter, was full of life and spirit, always wanting to enjoy herself whether she was eating, dancing, or having romantic liaisons. Chef, a former soldier and explosives expert, was also interesting in that a lot of her actions and attitudes are informed by her experience in the war.

Other supporting characters were less well-developed, from the German socialists that seemed to only be present to provoke conversations about politics, to Frenchy, who does little besides be a love interest in danger. Nana Jean, an elderly “Gullah woman” who does magic, could have been more interesting if Maryse’s bootlegging was more consequential to the story, and though I found her dialect hard to understand, I don’t think that’s a knock on Clark (more a knock on me for being less well-read than I should be). The Aunties, while a creative twist on the “three crones” trope, also felt a little useless in that they never gave Maryse direct information that was particularly helpful (or that she couldn’t have gotten on her own). Even Butcher Clyde and Dr. Bisset, two threatening supernatural figures, seemed to be devoid of charisma and were less intimidating than annoyingly chatty. They talked and made threats, more than anything, and while they were appealing visually (or, as visual as you can get in a written work), they didn’t seem to do much other than monologue.

But even so, I think Clark has a real talent for creating monsters that get under the readers’ skin. For all their faults as characters, Butcher Clyde, the Ku Kluxes, Dr. Bisset, the Night Doctors, and the Grand Cyclops were genuinely creepy, and I loved the images that Clark’s prose evoked.

Other: I personally found Clark’s worldbuilding something of a mixed bag. On the one hand, I loved the historical setting; historical horror is a genre I adore, and I love it when authors take on an era other than the Victorian period. I also really liked the idea of Maryse’s magic sword, which derives its power from the memory of the pain of enslaved Black people. On the other hand, I don’t think the way the supernatural world was organized made a lot of coherent sense. While we are told that  D. W. Griffith is a sorcerer and The Birth of a Nation is a spell, neither the man nor the film were really present, and I felt like they could have been removed without much change to the story. To make them feel more integral, I would have liked to see some commentary, perhaps, of the ability of movies or visual media to communicate ideas, and how the mass spread of racism or hate through visual media poses some danger.

I also thought the Aunties were useless, and they, too, could have been removed or their role expanded. Their main purpose seemed to be to drop bits of lore and background information, and they do little to actually help besides tell Maryse to look in her book of folktales. I also found their rationales for things kind of flimsy (”we couldn’t talk to you before because the veil was so thick” and “you can do X by wanting it enough”), and I wish they were more omnipresent, guiding voices than just figures who popped in and out at convenient moments.

TL;DR: Ring Shout is a novella with an intriguing premise and a host of creepy monsters that is sure to satisfy horror-lovers, even if it falls a little flat in narrative construction.

[chubbyooo]

Blurred Lines Chapter 35 - Ilum

ooo boy that was a tense chapter so let’s take a little break and calm down with a trip back to Kavaraa’s pilgrimage (descriptive word of the day is wumph :P)

Kavaraa arrives on Ilum and contemplates the past

Kavaraa zipped up her snowsuit as the ship began to descend to the planet of Ilum, she had no idea how to find the temple once they had arrived but hoped it would become clear once they got there. She was at least prepared for the climate with her big artic snowsuit, she’d learnt her lesson from her trip to hoth long ago that she did not deal well with cold. Since then Kavaraa had decided to have a coat custom made she’d be the first to admit she went a bit overboard with the design. She lifted the hood up fitting her montrals into their sleeves chuckling at the ridiculousness of the look, it was purely functionality over style but she didn’t care her montrals got frightfully cold without them. People told her it made her look like a bunny which she thought was a compliment, she’d also chosen to insulate it as much as possible as to avoid a cold chill and of course the thing had millions of pockets.

As she put on her gloves and snow boots she noticed Kormel lurking outside the door trying to act natural, he’d be there for ages if she didn’t intervene “Kormel do you wanna talk to me?” he seemed caught of guard dragging his feet as he entered the room nervously

he rubbed the back of his head “uh yeah I kinda might need some gear for the uh cold weather d-do you have anything i can borrow” Kavaraa frowned seemed like a lot of fuss over nothing she had plenty of spares no need to be embarrassed

She opened up the cabinet “sure I got some spares although they may be a little big on you, they’re Theron’s size and mine well they have these silly montral cosies on the top” Kormel looked up at the snowsuit Kavaraa had picked out and took it silently. Kavaraa’s expression softened Kormel was far too nervous something was up “so I’m assuming you want to talk about more than borrowing a snowsuit?” Kormel’s eyes went wide as he put on the snowsuit seemingly shrinking at being found out.

He stammered not making eye contact “i uh well yeah I just well do you remember what the Avulo Bysh guy said?” Kavaraa noddded, she’d been meaning to look up Avulo but they’d got so caught up in the pilgrimage that when they got back on the ship she just had a nap instead “well he said this is uh a test to see if we’re um worthy right?” Kavaraa nodded again staying silent she wanted to allow Kormel to say what he was thinking without her input. Kormel finally looked at Kavaraa in the eye “I fell to the dark side at least a little what if I’m not worthy” Kavaraa could see the fear in his eyes and couldn’t help but feel bad for him.

Kavaraa moved forward putting her hand on his shoulder “hey come on bud the fact that you’re even asking those questions is a step in the right direction” she gave a warm smile as Kormel frowned clearly confused

“what do you mean” Kormel sighed still looking fearful

Kavaraa tilted her head “it’s good to be unsure if you’re worthy because doubts about ourselves are some of the things that make us strive to be better people” Kormel began nodding slowly a look of understanding coming across his face “It’s perfectly natural to have doubts but we don’t let them overcome us, we let them fuel us to be better” she gave him a warm smile letting go of his shoulder, he seemed to be reassured of their goal Kavaraa wasn’t entirely sure if any of them were ‘worthy’ but they should at least try. As the conversation ended she felt the ship touch down on the ice of Ilum she was excited for the next leg of her journey she really felt that she was on the right path finally.

They had landed on a ridge not to far from a republic base and were now working out where to go from here. Kavaraa was trying to find the next temple or clue through the force while Theron analysed the area and Kormel messed with the starmap. However Kavaraa wasn’t looking yet she had just been looking across Ilum, the bright white snow and ice reflecting starlight to create a truly stunning visual. But Kavaraa didn’t feel in awe she didn’t have the fondest memories of this place especially given recent events, it had been many years but she still remembered being called in to stop the Sith attack. Empire vs Republic it all felt so trivial now but yet it wasn’t, it was the way the galaxy was going and what was she supposed to do? should she even do anything? was she obligated? she thought we were past that. She put the thoughts to the back of her mind and focussed on trying to find a sense of something special or a potent force connection. She began to focus trying to find the secret clue but as she did she was met with an array of powerful forces causing her to flinch back in pain. She held her head as it throbbed with pain and sighed, right Ilum home of lightsaber crystals is gonna have at least some potent force energy should’ve seen that one coming. She hung her head for a few seconds before she started messing with the snow, she drew a little togruta face with a smile but was disappointed when the wind caused snow to blow over it rendering it just snow.

She sat there for a few more minutes before she heard a voice from behind her “as expected schematics, mining records and other such underground data has elicited nothing on the spooky secret hidden jedi temple” Kavaraa chuckled as Theron sat down next to her “any luck on your end Barsen’thor” Kavaraa gave him a coy grin

“nah it’s a dud there’s too much potent force energy here for me to even sense the place” Kavaraa put her head on her hands pouting 

Theron put his arm around her “well let’s hope the kid has something we missed, if you’re done though why are you still out here then it’s freezing?” she told Theron to get a snowsuit like hers but noooooo and now he was gonna be the one whining, she certainly wasn’t cold.

Kavaraa looked out at the icy outcroppings dotted over Ilum “uh I dunno I was just well thinking about last time I was here” Theron nodded letting out a sigh of his own

“the whole Malgus thing?” Kavaraa nodded not making eye contact “look Kav there’s nothing you could’ve done about Oss-” Kavaraa interrupted before Theron could finish

Kavaraa snapped “yeah but there was something we could’ve done!” looking pointedly at Theron before her expression dropped “uh ah sorry I shouldn’t have snapped at you” she fidgeted awkwardly embarrassed she’d let that happen

Theron squeezed her shoulder “It’s ok Kavaraa don’t worry about it” Kavaraa knew she was better than that this place was just bringing it all back.

She stood up taking a deep breath “let’s focus up we should probably scout the area just in case of uh beasts or something” wow great excuse Kavaraa, but to be fair they probably should scout the area while they wait for Kormel

Theron stood up seemingly brushing off the awkward conversation “yeah sure might as well” they began to head towards a somewhat steep but scalable descent off the ridge. They began slowly edging down the hill Theron let out a grumble “man this is steep I can barely balance myself” he was right he was barely keeping himself up, Kavaraa for some reason was not having the same problem

Kavaraa chuckled putting her hands on her hips “really I don’t think it’s that bad maybe if you had allowed me to get you special snow boots you wouldn’t be having this issue” Theron let out a long sigh turning around to head further down. As they began to reach the bottom of the ridge Kavaraa saw Theron lose his balance tumbling down into the snow with a wumph.

Kavaraa let out a snort as Theron picked himself up out of the snow “oh yeah yeah real funny” he wiped his face clean of snow as Kavaraa continued to laugh

She managed to stifle her chuckles for a second “I’m sorry it’s just you gotta admit getting covered in snow is pretty funny” she continued laughing at her dork of a husband

She then noticed Theron begin to grin “oh yeah it probably is pretty funny” and before Kavaraa could react she felt a cold wumph of snow hit her face, she stumbled back nearly falling but managing to maintain her balance.

Kavaraa’s face scrunched up “hey cmon” Theron began laughing to himself

He grinned picking himself up off the floor “you’re right that is pretty funny” he wiped the snow stopping as he noticed a devious grin on Kavaraa’s face

She lifted her arms up “you wanna dance spyboy” as she did she lifted the snow around her with the force as Theron’s eyes widened. Kavaraa unleashed the barrage of snowballs as Theron dived behind a rock, evaded her for now.

After the barrage was over he popped his head over the rock angrily “hey come on the force is definitely fowl play let’s keep this above board” Kavaraa conceded that he had a point

She grinned at him “fine but I’m still gonna wipe the floor with you” she rolled to the ground hiding behind her own rock

Kavaraa could hear a chuckle from Theron “we’ll see about that Barsen’thor” Kavaraa instinctively rose up ready to aim but as she did she spied a snowball heading straight for her that narrowly avoided her traveling just between her montrals as she ducked. She let out a sigh of relief as she scanned the area for that distinct red coat as she did she prepared a small army of snowballs ready to go for Theron when he showed himself. There! she spotted him running between the ridge towards her position she let out a volley of snowballs each narrowly missing him as he slid into a small snow trench. Dang it now he hand the upper hand she began to run closer zigzagging as she went she could see snowballs being fired but only Theron’s hand was visible one hitting her leg. She managed to avoid the rest of the snowballs sliding behind a rock staying there for a few seconds creating snowballs before she jumped over the trench spotting Theron exposed. She rained down fire on him as he began to run getting hit a few times as Kavaraa landed in the trench, she spyed him leaving her vision heading back towards the ridge. She couldn’t let him get away she put together a huge snowball and sprinted out the trench, she was met with the surprise of Theron standing still waiting for her with a huge snowball. Oh no she began to try and slow down as Theron threw the snowball at her it clocked her in the face causing her to fall back onto the ground. She quickly regained her composure though throwing her own snowball at Theron causing him too to fall down next to her. They both caught their breath as they lay next to each other then Kavaraa started giggling to herself and Theron promptly joined in laughing as they lay in the snow. They laughed for a few seconds before they turned to each other

Kavaraa smiled at him “I love you you silly fool” she leant in for a kiss that they held for a few seconds

Theron grinned “you too you cute doofus” they began laughing again as they lay in the snow. 

Suddenly Kormel came down the ridge holding the map from before “guys guys guys the map has changed it’s got new coordinates here” he stopped noticing that Kavaraa and Theron were lying on the ground “um sorry am I interrupting something?” Kavaraa giggled loudly as Kormel looked on in confusion...

[gegenji]

Going Going Kugane, Part 1

Let’s Go by Ship! - Denz’s Doubts!?

The morning mists were still clinging stubbornly to rocky outcroppings and lattices of docks and walkways that combined into the naval city that was Limsa Lominsa. The sea air was thick with the smell of salt and brine, and the sounds of sea birds seeking that early sea worm. Harbored at the docks was a squat thing... less a ship and more looking like an oversized, upside-down floating ingot with sails. The Rusty Adamantoise was nothing elegant, but its purpose was transporting cargo first and its crew seemingly as an afterthought. Even now, its crew were focused on loading up the last of the crates and barrels for their trip. The voyage to Kugane was a rare and long one, so the 'Toise was to carry quite a lot even before accommodating the travelers that even now approached it.

Was Denz prepared? At the last minute he was. His armor was an indication of that, wearing the protective gear to both keep from having to pack it up, and because he had forgotten to pack his clothing prior to them leaving. Two bags were slung over his shoulders, carrying his clothes, amenities, and things he probably didn't need to take with him. Jancis' council on the ridiculous things he was going to take had been valuable. In return, he also would attempt to carry one of her bags in his plated hand.

For a long trip, Zhara packed rather lightly, she only had one large pack strapped to her back. She looked around the docks for Denz, Jancis and Chachan. She'd eventually spot the large armor clad elezen and would wave enthusiastically. "Hi!! Good to see you." she'd approach Denz and then stopped to inspect the ship.

Jancis continued to thank Denz for carrying her bag with some extra clothing and traveling supplies including an extra blank journal, asking vainly off and on if he wanted a break. Her own person had her medic satchel and a small blanket. "Lady Zhara. Good morn." Jancis popped out from behind the elezen as if she hadn't been dwarfed by him at all.

Zhara nodded and let out a yawn. "Morning." while in a cheerful mood, she did look really drowsy. She was not a morning person, unlike a lot of seekers.

Chachan seemed without luggage, but that was just because he had spent part of the morning helping load. Which meant his belongings had already been tucked on board. As things were wrapping up, he had moved down the docks to greet his friends and travel companions. "T'day's th' day, huh?" he chirped, looking over them with one of his usual freckle-dotted grins, though there was a tinge of concern to it. "A-ah, by th' by, I got a look at our... um... 'sleepin' quarters'? 's... mostly a few hammocks hung up fer our use in what space they could make fer us."

"Yeah Chachan..." Zhara responded with a tired smile. "The hammocks will be okay. I have a blanket in my pack somewhere and it looks like Jancis has a blanket too, we'll make it work."

"Warden's Grace! Is it not exciting?" Jancis on the other hand was nearly bouncing around. "Dawn here. Means it is deep night where we are going, yes? Just think, we will be holding Azemya's hand practically and enjoying the dawn with them again. I get my own hammock? Are we going to be in one of the cargo boxes?"

Zhara yawned again. "Oh yes, it's very exciting Jancis. I'm just... not a very good sleeper, especially when something exciting like this is on my mind."

Jancis nods at Zhara, motioning joyfully. "I cannot blame you; I am quite excited. To come with. See Chachanji's childhood home. And I am but a guest! For you it is to meet more new family culture."

Denz blinks at the ship as the information settles in. "Wait... that's -not- the cargo ship?!" His eyes widen as he looked at Jancis. "I'm getting severe flashbacks to the airship captain and his flying pontoon..." He swallowed, before shaking his head. "Well, nothing says bonding like breaking boundaries."

The hyur seems to reflect on what Denz brings up with some grief with great fondness, taking in a breath of the salty sea air as if she was once again airborne. "What flashbacks? Surely not my memories of it, nor yours. You were nigh asleep for the entire voyage. A pity, too. Was like I had mine own wings."

"It's th' cargo ship... 'n we're part'a th' cargo this trip," Chachan admitted apologetically. "'s th' best I could manage outta th' guild. I-if'n it helps, they're very NICE hammocks 'n they moved a lotta stuff outta th' way fer us."

"Very nice hammocks." Jancis Milburga smiles at Denz De'bayle.

"Who can argue with that? Worry not my friend. I shall not look a gift chocobo in the beak. Lest I wish to somehow conjure up mine own ship which..." Denz looks around the dock silently for a few seconds. "... I haven't learned how to do yet."

"That would take a great deal of concentration, love," Jancis countered. "And be smaller."

"It ain't much to look at compared ta th' other ships 'round 'ere..." Chachan admitted, rubbing at the back of his neck for a moment before continuing. "But th' crew says this is prolly one'a th' sturdiest cargo ships ya can find. Ev'n bragged tha' Leviathan'd get a headache from tacklin' it."

"Eorzea was just as mystifying when Armont and I left Ishgard," Denz continued. "I'm more interested to see how -you- handle culture shock." He grins slyly at Jancis, garnering a wide-eyed gaze from the woman. Zhara grinned at both Jancis' earlier statement and Denz's more recent one as she nodded. "Yeah I've always been curious to see Othard. I have never left Eorzea. Most exotic place I've been to is Coerthas."

Jancis blinks at that grin, one of the more rare times it didn't make her smile in return, her hand going to her face a moment before turning to Zhara. "It is quite exotic. Though I suppose one thing they will have deeply in common is recovering from being war-torn."

"The only things I've gathered from observing natives of Othard are a lack of pants, curved swords, and interesting accents."

Zhara blinked at Denz. "They don't wear pants? Chachan wears pants."

"I do wear pants," he agreed, looking down at said pants.

"I have only not seen him in pants. Two, no three. Wait Mister Eorzea... more... well less times than I have seen you without, Denz," Jancis added, garnering the usual fluster from Chachanji whenever that particular title was brought up. Meanwhile, Zhara just had a very shitty grin on her face. It took all her might and muster not to say something dirty about how many times she'd seen Chachan without pants.

Denz had opened his mouth, before pausing to let Jancis speak - clearing his throat a little and looking to the side as he did so. A hand came up to rub at his scar for a moment after the pants debate had quieted before speaking. "A-ahem. I meant the robe wearers. That seems to be the majority of the natives I've seen. Then again, everyone probably thinks Ishgardians bathe in armor."

"Forgive me," Jancis said. "I had not thought of that."

"Tha'd be pretty uncomfortable, bathin' in armor," Chachanji added. Zhara, meanwhile, gets pale. "Ooops... yeah you totally meant robe wearers. Anyways! Is everything loaded? Can we get in the boat yet or do we have to wait a little longer?”

"They were jus' gettin' th' last'a th' foodstuffs on board fer th' trip. I think we're good ta head on if'n ev'ryone's ready," Chachanji answered quickly and with a smile. And, indeed,  there seemed to be no more crates or barrels sitting outside the vessel. There were still sounds of movement from within, but that seemed par for the course for a ship getting ready to set sail within the next bell or so.

"Okay, I'm ready when you guys are," Zhara stated, giving the group a thumbs up. It was hard to tell if she was going to go straight to her hammock to take a nap or if she was going to stay awake. Jancis, however, followed up with a much more exuberant:"Navigator's Joy!"

Denz simply shifted the bags on his shoulders, nodding. "I'll need to change once we get on but..." His eyes scan over the vessel one last time, visualizing worse case scenarios and defects that could possibly happen. He lets out a small throat noise. "Hnngh. Ready."

"It is not the ship so much as the skillful sailing that assures the prosperous voyage," Jancis advised as she tried to take Denz's arm, helping with his commitment. "I am nervous, too. That is what is going to make it wondrous."

She didn't sound nervous, more excited like a girl going on a carnival ride, continuing on: "May I hold the bags? I am not as armored. And you have a longer reach." Jancis was already going for the two bags Denz was effortlessly carrying. At least effortlessly in her eyes.

As they drew closer, perhaps Denz would take solace that... while the ship grew no more aesthetically pleasing, it certainly looked sturdy. Made for function more than form as it sat low in the water due to its heavy cargo. The rope walkway leading inside had a bit of a downward tilt thanks to it, but it seemed safe enough if one made sure to use the rope handrails.

Denz's eyes continued to look look over the vessel before Jancis spoke to him, grabbing his attention from his worries, sucking in a deep breath and nodding. "Aye... I'm sure it will be, my love. Just need to." He began rolling his neck and trying to shake out his nerves as Jancis took one of the bags. He looked down to the lalafell, nodding him forward. "Right, after you."

Chachan nodded and hopped his way across and in, having made the crossing several times this morn already. He turned once a few steps inside and smiled to them, as if to show them just how safe it was!  Zhara smiled at the show and gripped the rope rails as she carefully made her way inside, once at the entrance frame she'd turn her head. "Yeah it's not too bad." she'd wink at Denz. "We're going to be fine, don't worry."

Denz was quick to follow, and it was far from the most precarious bridge he had to cross. Stepping over carefully, his eye twitched as his armor caused the boardwalk to creak. Taking a rather large step onto the deck, he began apprising the inside of it's contents. As expected of a cargo ship, the interior was stuffed quite full of crates and barrels. Various crew members were still at work lashing some into place to keep them from shifting about during the trip. There was still enough room to move about relatively comfortably, and a glance to the right would see a quartet of hammocks hung by what was marked as the galley. They'd be resting over by the foodstuffs rather than by the crates of ore and metal, thankfully.

"Hm? Right, right. Not a problem in the world." His slightly wide eyes tried to convince his friends that he was not internally panicking at all. Jancis missed most of Denz's worries, or at least dismissed them, her nurse-like countenance in showing no reaction that there was nothing to be upset over. Familiar with the Maelstrom and boarding a few ships in her 'service', she slowly walked over the bridge, her hand going from the robe rail out to Denz to help her with the larger step to board.

Denz, meanwhile, followed the rest of the group towards the hammocks, putting his and Jancis' bags down where they wouldn't be in the way. He started testing the rope, before hearing the creak and believing his armor was working against him. This left Jancis to pull her hand awkwardly back before stepping down the rest of the way and following suit, though she recovered enough to greet the crew and thank them for hosting her. The crew thanked by Jancis were taken by surprise for the most part, but gave nods and gruff reassurances that it wasn't a problem at all.

Zhara would look around the ship and curiously began to scout it over. "Oooo, this is pretty cool." she'd look out the windows of the ship, and walk around towards the bottom floor before heading to the hammocks and setting her backpack down. There was actually a lower hold to the ship, but it seemed pretty packed to the brim with crates, and any notions Zhara had of seeking to delve down there were gently but sternly waylaid by the crew who were busy lashing down the cargo there.

"So..." Denz spoke up suddenly, "how long does a voyage take?"

One of the crew members was over by the foodstuffs, apparently checking the contents of the barrels to ensure it was all good for travel. Salted meats, cheeses, and the most ignoble of breads - hardtack - seemed to dominate the supplies. He paused in his checks to look up at Denz's question, eyeing the man in full armor clambering into the hammock and garnering a raised eyebrow from the elezen in response.

"... About two moons, mate," he reponded gruffly, causing Denz's eyes to widen at the answer.

"Halone, I..." He cleared his throat, trying to hide embarassment at his belief they would be there in relatively short time. Zhara tilted her head at Denz. "Not expecting the trip to be that long? I was kind of surprised myself when Chachan first told me."

"A few weeks, at the most but... Two moons?! I did not realize it was so far away." The knight crossed his arms in thought as the crew member simply rolled his eyes at Denz's uneasiness, before resealing the lid on a barrel of fresh water and moving off to another part of the ship. "When the tale of the Warrior of Light going to Othard reached my ears... They must've had a faster boat."

The gentle chime of Jancis' staff was more noticeable as she worked on getting use to standing on the ship. "Is not too late to disembark, Denz. Shall write you often. It is most clear you are unhappy and that is the last wish I have for you. Not to be a burden. And return with breads and gifts. And you can give me some of your bread. Mayhaps another trinket and it will be like you are there."

"Wh-?! Jancis!" Denz's eyes looked hurt at the notion."Travelling is simply not my forte, when I've not control of our course." He rubbed the side of his head, pushing away his momentary outburst. "I'll be fine... and keep the whining to a minimum, I promise."

Jancis instead furrowed her brow as she once again failed to console him. Zhara, on the other hand, simply chuckled. "I think we'll have fun, I'll get to know you guys better since we'll be stuck on this boat for awhile."

The elezen let out a huff of air, pulling off his sword and shield to toss on top of his bag. When a soft landing was heard, Denz's eyes widened. "Oh no! Was that the bread bag?!"

"You guys brought a bread bag?" Zhara immediately asked.

"Bread bag?" Chachan echoed in turn, moving to one of the hammocks. It had a little rope ladder to help him get up into it, and a few bags set against one of the support pillars. As he did so, a more empathetic sailor leaned in from his work as the concerns settled from travel worries to foodstuffs. "You'll feel better once we're out on the open sea, mate. Sea air in your face 'n the wavekin racin' alongside will make ya ferget all yer worries."

Denz put his lips together, eyeing the sailor and nodding. "Right... right. Shouldn't be any different from walking through the Gates of Judgement. Enter a foreign land, have a woman punch me in the face, and boom, I'm acclimated." The sailor raised a brow at that and then guffawed at Denz. "Whatever floats yer boat, mate. 'm sure there's a lass ya can pay to be as rough wit ye as ya want over there."

Denz waved a hand as he knelt down at his bread bag. "Not necessary, but thank you!" His dismissal fortunately prevented him from realizing the extent of the sailor's meaning. Jancis simply mistook the suggestion as someone to punch him as well, an Othardian Grindstone? Taking a deep breath, she joined Denz, holding some of the items he had to make sure they didn't slosh back onto the bread bag. “Life always begins with one step outside of your comfort zone.”

"Aye, you are the walking proof out that," Denz responded with a light smile directed towards the hyur. Zhara, however, couldn't help but let out a snicker at the sailor's comment before adding: "I'm sure things will be fine, hopefully going to Othard will be more smoother than when you first came to Eorzea."

She paused for a beat.

"I mean the Shroud, the Shroud!" she corrected before rubbing her chin. Was Coerthas part of Eorzea? She thought it was. Meanwhile, Denz let out a breath as he pulled out a shirt from his bag, which he had rushed to open during all this.

"Nay, 'twas the clothes bag," he affirmed as his eyes went to the bag in Jancis hand - the poor hyur being clueless to the fact that she was, in fact, holding the precious bread bag - before a hand came up to unclasp his pauldrons, grinning at Y'zhara. "Worry not. Ishgardians do not count Coerthas among Eorzea either... At least, they didn't until the gates opened and we accrued a debt to never be repaid," he said without scorn, gratitude in his words.

Chachan had clambered up into his hammock at this point - an act that had gotten Denz's attentions as he began working on removing his gauntlets - and had flopped belly-first and sideways into it. His hands gripped one side as he watched them converse, kicking his little feet in the air. "This ain't so bad, y'know. Mama 'n Papa told me how crammed th' ships were leavin' Othard when they came ta Eorzea."

"You do not recall it?" Jancis asked, garnering a blink from the Lalafell before he responded: "Huh? Oh, I came a'fore tha'. I was in Ul'dah when th' whole razin' happened."

Zhara crawled into one of the unclaimed hammocks that was near Chachan's. She'd lay on her side and nodded. "Yeah he left beforehand. Sometimes I feel sad for him... that he left Doma and didn't realize it was going to be the last time he'd see it."

Chachan got a bit quiet at that, shifting in his hammock to stare up at the ceiling. "... I was more scared I wasn't gonna see me family again..."

"Though I heard it was taken back... so maybe they'll rebuild it," Zhara suggested with a smile before adding: "I'm glad your family's alright."

"Not the last time, apparently," Denz added in agreement, casting a smile in Jancis' direction. "Such thoughts cannot remain in our minds. I left Ishgard and feared I would never return. When I finally returned, who would be at the gates but this woman to greet me... I mean, after Nidhogg, that is."

He cleared his throat to keep Chachanji in the spotlight, but the Lalafell seemed content enough to fade back out of it, looking up at the ceiling and idly rocking side to side in his hammock instead. Jancis - however - caught part of Denz's smiles, easing the awkward boarding, her face and voice showing more heartening with it. "That is the news that goes through the Isle. The liberation, I mean. Though it will be ever changed regardless. For the better."

"As was Ishgard. For the better," Denz added, sitting down on the tame boat deck to work off his sabatons now that his gauntlets were removed. "While the sightseeing was nice, I'm sure everyone enjoyed not being amidst a war to experience Coerthas and the Far West. Fortunately we won't have to dodge imperial patrols to experience the Far East."

"Yeah, at least that. I think we'll for the most part be safe, as long as we're careful about where we go," Zhara nodded before glancing over at Chachan. "Hey you know what sucks about these hammocks?"

Chachan's ears wiggled at that, turning to get a look at Zhara. "Huh?"

"I won't get to snuggle you while we sleep."  Chachan flustered at that, scratching idly at a slowly pinking cheek with a gloved finger. "A-ah... I-I guess so..." he murmured.

Denz looked at Chachanji and his hammock, then to Y'zhara. The hammocks were sized so even the hefty Roegadyn crew members could use them without issue... so technically doubling up could be possible, as the elezen was quick to point out: "Well, if these are the same ones that our roegadyn sailors use, I could see it working."

Zhara would look over her own hammock. "That's true, I think it's big enough." she smiled. "We can try it out later. For now I think I'm happy just laying in here... it's too comfortable to move." she chuckled.

As if summoned by the talks of Roegadyn, one plodding his way over to them from the upper decks. Though, his sort stature and shockingly wide frame made it look like he had gotten comically caught under some heavy object and left squashed out like that. "Oy. You mates all good 'n settled in? We're goin' ta be shippin' off in about half a bell, tops."

"Aye, I think we're ready and settled in to go," Zhara responded quickly and with a nod. Jancis, on the other hand, waited for Denz to answer. Not that she had put down anything or settled in. The elezen in question stood back up, working off the felt coat that covered his breastplate, revealing the adamantite steel in all its golden glory. He worked the straps off as the roegadyn approached before pulling the protection off - making the elezen look a fair bit smaller - and nodding himself.

"I should float now, so aye." Turning about, Denz began to pile up all of his armor, knowing he could not leave it laying around on a moving vessel.

"Are you the Captain, Lord?" Jancis queried once Denz had said his piece. "I am ready to go! It shall be most wonderful."

"Aye. Captain Loezmann, atcher service." He bowed, or the best one of his proportions could, which seemed more a bowing of the head and a slight forward tilt of that wide frame of his. "'s been a while since we've had landlubbers hitchin' a ride, so I hope ya don't mind th' lodgin's."

Zhara smiled. "We don't mind, thanks a lot for helping us captain."

"Very grateful for all the room we have been granted. Four hammocks, even! Not taking shifts at all!" Jancis added, some Maelstrom training having apparently stuck, and got a surprised look from the Seeker.

"... You slept in shifts?"

"Yes, for the few times I served upon ships" Jancis answered. "There would be three to a. A bunk. Not very good at it, I am afraid, but I would not give up the experience."

Denz perked up at the question, looking at Y'zhara. "Not everyone got to sleep soundly," he stated before pausing for a brief blink of realization. "Wait... you're not a fighter, are you?" He gave the captain a sideways glance in acknowledgement, before looking back curiously at the miqo'te as he continued in the same vein as Jancis had. "Temple knights rotate who gets the tent out in the snow."

"Came down from the guild heads ta treat you lubbers right," the captain interjected rather bluntly before chuckling. "So jus' don't make a point of braggin' 'bout it ta th' rest'a th' crew and we should be fine. They're shiftbunkin'."

"Does that mean we are a part of the crew?" Jancis asked. "I am good at cleaning, besides regular mending. It works well because someone must needs tend the ship at each bell." Denz's ears perked up at that, turning to the man and adding: "Anything I can do to help, let me know. I've no skillset suited for sailing, however."

Zhara looked over at Jancis and then the captain. "I can cook and clean too." she shrugged.

"... We wouldn't turn it down, lass," Loez responds. "I know the wee one is doin' some work fer th' guild ta cover us bringin' ya along, but a little extra help wouldn't hurt none. We may call this girl th' 'Rusty Adamantoise,' but I make sure we keep a tight ship 'round 'ere." He glanced at all the other offers. "Well, galley's right 'ere if'n ya want to help wit the grub. As for -you-..." He eyed the Elezen up and down. More up than down due to how stout the Roe Captain was, of course. "... How good are you wit ropes, then?"

"Lady Zhara is right, you could help her cook," Jancis began to suggest to her elezen companion, though she stops talking as the Captain asks about ropes. Denz put a hand on his chin in thought.

"I've enough experience to tie a rope to an icy rock and support myself and her down a cliffside" He responded thoughtfully, tilting his head to indicate Jancis. "Nothing too impeccable."

"Well, if'n ya wanna help 'n ya ain't itchin' ta help in the galley like the lass suggests... we could always use another hand to make sure all th' lashin's are tight," the Captain offered. "Dun think ya'd want ta be woken up by bein' blindsided by a loose crate'a ingots."

"I've been woken up by worse, but I'll make sure nothing comes loose, if you need an extra pair of eyes."

"His eyes are quite sharp!" Jancis added. "He was already inspecting the ship before boarding!"

Denz's eyes leave the captain, as Zhara let out a chuckle at Jancis' comment, a finger running along his scar in embarrassment. The Captain didn't seem to mind, though, simply giving another nod before continuing. "A'ight. Well, make sure yers sit'ated. We's be castin' off soon." And with that, he rumbled his way back up to the deck.

"Hm... seems a nice enough man," the elezen stated. "Though I must raise the question..."

Jancis beams, clearly helpful. "Question?" Quickly followed by Zhara's own: "Hm..?"

Denz looks around at the party before continuing: "Are there any Captains that -aren't- Roegadyn?" A question that garnered an odd look from Jancis before she spoke: "Lady Odile you have met is a Captain. And your own beloved Captain Orenji. I think he would be awfully disappointed you were forgetful of him."

"Well he was a -sky- Captain," Denz interjected, raising a finger. "Different kind of ship."

"Well.... I know an ex pirate captain that's a lalafell," Y'zhara offered. "He's now with the Maelstorm."

"Th' Cap'n on me ship here I think was a Xaela..." Chachan mused thoughtfully. "From one'a them tribes what swim lots."

Zhara nodded. "Makes sense."

"Seemed a mutually exclusive title they held." Denz continued, looking at the Lalafell thoughtfully. "Then again, I suppose that's like asking if all dragoons are elezen."

Chachan blinks at that. "... A-are they?"

"... Weren't there a few hyurian dragoons too...?" The miqo'te again offered. "I don't know."

"E-eh.... Most of them were, but there were a few hyur," Denz answered, that finger still raised. Though it turned into a proud fist as he continued. "Ishgardian blood is the catalyst for dragoon powers to work, so most who claim to be of a dragoon's caliber but not of Ishgard are riding off the shadows of true Ishgardian glory."

A sailor came by as the group absorbed that revelation, lighting a couple of the lanterns. The reason for his passing quickly became obvious as the little rope bridge is pulled in and that hatch closed and sealed tight. Chachanji, however, was still quite focused on the talk of non-elezen dragoons.  "Huh. I thought Ms. Sei could do some dragoon-y thin's... I know she's really good wit a spear..."

"I think there's maybe a few miqo'te in Ishgard but they're rare to come by," Zhara stated with a shrug. "I don't know where Sei's from."

"'Tis nothing more than wind and fire aether at your beck and call to assist in the jumping. Dragoons utilized a fount of aether from a dragon aether to enhance their abilities, so..." Denz continued before nodded to the Miqo'te. "Ishgardian Miqo'te are rare, aye."

Jancis, in the meantime had founda loop to put her arm through, the other weaving around Denz's with the odd pretense as if she's simply wanting to cuddle the man's arm. "If I recall correctly, she traveled there for many Moons. Some thought her dead."

"Oh! Tha's right..." Chachan suddenly chirped. "There was a Miqo'te Dragoon lady I did work fer too when I was in Ishgard fer a bit... she came across a -really- nice naginata 'n wanted it fixed up... She was a friend'a Ms. Aya's too. Um... Ms... V... V'alerie? V'elma? Somethin' V-ish."

Zhara nodded. "Huh... okay." she began to rest her eyes as she continued to lay in her hammock. "I think I'll just stick to arcanima... and punching. A friend wants to teach me how to fight with my fists."

"Arcanima?" Denz repeated, leaning towards Jancis and her arm before finally taking a seat on the hammock. "The thing people do with the books?"

"It is a good weapon when all others are gone." Jancis agrees quietly. "And a good means to learn how to call upon your inner reserves."

"Mmhm.. yep we use tomes," Zhara affirmed. "I primarily fight with my carbuncles Bunky and Bunkle."

A sharp ringing of bells are heard, followed by the unfurling of large quantities of canvas. There's a short lurch and a creaking as the Rusty Adamantoise lazily shifts into motion. The hyur tried to keep her body and arm there for Denz, the expected lurch making her sway. More than the hammock? Probably not. Zhara, meanwhile, just grips onto her hammock. "Wooaah.. we're moving."

"Oh man. Ya think Bunky'd like to run 'round th' ship?" Chachan added, seemingly unswayed by the sudden movement of the ship.  Zhara gasped in response, brought back to the conversation at hand. "Yes! That's brilliant... hm.... but I don't want him to cause trouble with the sailors who are working."

"'m sure there'd be some time ya might be 'llowed ta let 'im out."

"Yeah maybe on the deck."

Denz, however, took the launch a bit less gracefully. Lurching forward with the movement of the ship, his fingers gripped both the rope and Jancis' arm as his feet stick to the deck. "Hnnngh!" A few quick breathes escape his mouth, before looking at Y'zhara. "Hah.... Sorry... what did you say?"

"I was just talking about my carbuncles." Zhara would then try to reach over and pet Chachan. She'd only manage to reach his arm and awkwardly pet it, thanks to the Lalafell being set to swinging a little by the lurch. He seemed well enough, though, with his attentions - and concern - seemed to be on Denz after that little outburst. "A-ah, ya akay, Mr. Denz?"

The elezen grits his teeth, cheeks flaming up with blush as he tried to recollect himself. "I'm... not good with ships, I've learned. At the least, this one is not hundreds of yalms into the air."

The bell on Jancis' staff clunked with the take off, her legs stiffening up to compensate, but she did glance over for the rewarding blush on Denz's face. Zhara giggled. "You want some of my anxiety pills? They calm me down really fast."

"Ah, well, um... as I said... they all said this ship's -super- sturdy!" Chachan offers, making a grand motion that just agitates his swinging further. "S-so ev'rythin' should be fine! Plus th' whole... not flyin' thin'."

The ship creaks again, almost on cue. There's a quiet groan of the crates against their lashings, but they hold fast. This doesn't seem to faze Denz as he quickly shook his head at Zhara's offer. "No, the last time I took something for needless fear, I was knocked out for the entire ride."

"... I would think bein' knocked out fer two moons would be bad too, yeah."

"Yeah...  that's one side effect, it makes you drowsy," Zhara admitted. "I don't think it would knock you out for moons though, maybe a few bells."

Denz looked at Jancis pointedly before adding: "Which I heard was quite the trip."

"It was wonderful," Jancis answered before trying her best to describe it. An air ride through the brisk winds over Coerthas in what basically a manacutter. "We were one with the clouds, dancing through them. But, but holding Denz through that was quite nice, too. You can experience it surely. In mine mind? And yet, Lady Zhara -does- have a point, especially if you had a hard time sleeping last night. A nap might do us good and make for sound beginning."

"When I think'a sailin' through th' clouds... I think'a tha' one trip me 'n Mel-chan 'n Virara went out ta th' Seaclouds," Chachan murmured, garnering a smile from both Jancis and Zhara.

"Oh that must've been interesting," the latter responded. "The only airships I've been on are the ones that go from city state to city state. I'll admit, I don't have a whole lot of life experience."

"Seven hells, this will be a long few months..." Denz murmurs, hanging his head a bit before squeezing Jancis' arm "But there would be no other place I'd rather be, my love. I swear it."

"'m sure it'll be fun!" Chachan chirped goodnaturedly. "I know it's a long trip but... um... 'm sure we can figger out ways ta past th' time."

"Yeah," Zhara agreed, "it'll be a long trip but I think it'll be worth it and fun to see a new place and to learn new things."

Jancis looks at the top of Denz's hung head, color coming to her face at his resolute words. Her hand renews her grip on him, fingers gentle with more than gratitude. "It is nice to travel so far, city state to city state. And you give people life experiences. Your singing. It is immensely encomapassing! And the lanterns! You have brought more than a few to us. Oh! And surprising Chachanji! We were in a room even smaller than this waiting for him to arrive!"

"Yeah um.. we can tell stories, I also brought a mandolin and harmonica," the miqo'te offered. "It's not my guitar but they're still fun to play."

"Very true. And we can train. The cargo is fairly like an obstacle. And so much water and wind," Jancis agreed, getting a nod out of Denz, who added: "Aye. Now you can't do anything -but- train with me on the ways of protection, aye Chachanji?"

"Oh, yeah. We were meanin' ta do tha', huh?" The Lalafell frowns. "... After th' last Grindstone, I prolly need it."

"You participated in the last Grindstone? A shame I was not there to cheer you on."

Chachan scratched at his cheek, looking away. "Ya didn't miss much. Lost in th' first round wit'out really doin' much'a anythin'."

"Hm..." Zhara shrugged. "Like I said before, I'm starting to believe that winning the Grindstone is more based on luck. So many people compete in that."

"The skill of the fighters there, it is anyone's match." Jancis agreed.

"Anyway, getting back to things we can do..." the miqo'te continued, returning to the original topic. "There's plenty of games that just need a pen and paper, we could go on deck. Lots of things."

"I do like games," Jancis continued. "We should start with one now!"

"Start wit a game?" Chachan echoed, canting his head. Denz likewise raised his eyebrows at the deviation towards games, adding a query of his own: "Like... card games? Or those games where everyone reveals their dark secrets?"

"Yes! This is a happy occasion so we can celebrate a little. The shipping off celebration! You have a preference, Denz? Besides, secrets are no good."

"Not exactly the place to play hide and seek, so..." Denz murmured, looking to Jancis before he set a hand on his chin in thought. "Any recommendations?"

Jancis pursed her lips in thought as well before answering. "There is one truth one lie. Or poker! Poker is good! The one to have the best hand can ask a question and everyone else must needs answer."

"Um... sure," Zhara assented before asking: "Doesn't poker need cards?"

"We do not have cards?"

"I di'n't bring any..." Chachan admitted with a frown. "Should I 've?"

"Yeah I didn't either," Zhara echoed. "I'm sorry."

Not to be deterred, Jancis provided a solution: "Sailors always have cards! Mayhaps I can buy someone's!"

"Ah, or jus' borrow 'em?" Chachan added, inspired by her idea. "Mebbe they'll want ta play too?"

"Hey yeah that's a good idea," Zhara chimed in as well.

Jancis nods, squeezing Denz supportively before freeing her arm, replacing it with the bag of bread. Because there's nothing more comforting. "Shall return anon!"

[blooblooded]

3500 words of BG doing nothing

This could have been way longer but I wanted to finish it up during my night shift so I’m saying it’s done. Ignore any plot set up this is literally Team BG doing nothing.

Nightmare Squad is so lame and awkward compared to Death Squad. Like. They kind of suck when they aren’t being deployed for their specific flavor of terror types of missions....also BG sucks as a leader and one of his big flaws I think is that he overlooks people doing bad things just because he is close to them (Silas, Lady). Also he is brainwashed and {Kip Voice} kind of a fascist. 

They all kind of suck except for Bizo.

#######

Stakeouts were the best kind of mission. Everyone wanted to be assigned to them. They provided copious amounts of free time out in the city. They allowed agents briefly to feel like they had normal lives if the mission involved hiding in someone’s apartment or going undercover. They were also very rare-- usually assassinations and secret executions could be carried out by a squad quickly over a single shift. Anything that could not be done in this fashion meant that the intended victim was weary prey that was difficult to track as well as dangerous, even for the secret police. Because of this, stakeouts were more rare than the usual ops and were only assigned to Elites.

Team BG was made up of Elites. However, they did not have a good kill record, even compared to Team Smiles, which was always held back by containing a B-Class and C-Class agent. Bubblegum’s squad just..ill-suited for physical combat. Their main purpose was basic counterintelligence and causing terror. There was a reason other agents referred to the group as “Nightmare Squad”. BG’s primary skill was agility, and quickly getting to places others could not. Lady was terrible in the field, on account of her being psychicly unstable and unable to take even a single punch. Bizo could fight, but she was better suited to demolitions. And Echo was the best physical fighter out of all of them but they were so moody that sometimes they didn’t want to act as part of the team.

It was all very hopeless, which was why the Directors rarely assigned them all to the field at the same time. Until BG realized that Team Smiles was getting more field missions and kills than they were and had petitioned to be assigned more Elite Missions. It had taken a while, and it had taken some arguing with the Handlers on duty.

It had also taken some convincing to get Echo to stop bitching about having to be outside of the dorms for an entire weekend. They were worried about not having access to a shower or soap or many of the other items that their vanity necessitated.

“Bro, chill,” BG told them as the squad prepared to infiltrate the apartment building that their target lived in. “Civies have showers and shit, and also you’re not gonna die if you don’t shower for a couple of days.”

-You have no way of knowing that- Echo fingerspelled crossly. They were standing next to him, hunched over with their arms crossed. Echo’s uniform was tailored better than everyone else’s. Black tactical gear and black boots. They were wearing their helmet unlike everybody else, but had the tinted glass visor propped open so that their hollow gray-blue eyes could be seen. Also unlike everyone else on the squad, they carried a firearm: a light rifle that they kept strapped across their back. -Just because you have awful hygiene doesn’t mean the rest of us are like that--.

“Ughhh!” BG rolled his eyes.

“Are you guys fighting?” asked Bizo. Her specially made, acid-proof uniform made her look dumpy. Even though the squad had only been waiting outside of the apartment building for 15 minutes, she was already bored and sitting down. By her side was a creature about the size of a cat, that was made entirely of black slime and unnatural wiry hair that looked like spider-legs. She was also bored and had all 2 dozen of her eyes closed. Zoey brought this creature, Dot, on all of the missions she went on. She-- and the rest of the squad-- didn’t want to risk another agent stumbling across her and exterminating it. “This is supposed to be a fun mission…” Zoey was not wearing a helmet. She never did. Her greasy brown hair, so different than everyone else’s shaved heads, sweetly framed her round face.

“We’re not fighting!”

It was 8pm on a Friday night and they were still standing on a rooftop across from the apartment building they were about to break into and make themselves at home inside. The 14 story apartment building in question was built in the Brutalist fashion that so many buildings in the lower level residential areas were. BG didn’t know much about architecture, but he knew that this style was ugly, cold, and associated with poverty. He also knew that this was the kind of building he lost his left arm to when he had clipped into one 5 years ago.

That was the kind of thing he couldn’t focus on. It made him feel phantom pains, and he massaged the skin of his shoulder where his metal prosthetic was bolted to. He shook himself.

Beside him, Lady was standing with her eyes closed as she focused on the 11th floor of the building. When she determined that the coast was clear, BG would simply teleport them all one-by-one into the room they were going to hide out in. Lady was a powerful psychic but an unfortunate telepath. Her skills were grounded in causing pain and accessing trauma memories, not reading thoughts as they happened. Her thin black brows were furrowed in concentration. In the past week, Lady had grown more decidedly frail. They had her working overtime up in the re-education rooms after losing another Elite psychic. Hopefully she was up for the job.

BG wanted to ask Lady how much longer she thought it was going to be, but didn’t want to distract her. He turned to Echo and tried to touch their firearm. They swatted him away. This continued for the next 2 minutes.

Finally, Lady opened her eyes. She swayed for a second and BG swerved to lend her his support. He was the only one she ever let touch her. She held onto his flesh arm. “Clear,” she said. She was breathing heavily. BG had wanted to ask her what was going on for a long time but at this point in their...friendship, he knew better than that. “There’s nobody in there and everyone on that floor is too far away or too occupied to hear the noise if you miscalculate and bang into a table or something. Next door neighbor just started a shower. You might want to hurry.”

-It took you that long to figure that out? Really? What’s wrong with you?- Echo fingerspelled before BG could slap their hands down.

Lady inhaled sharply, her lips pulled back from her teeth. The next moment, Echo made a terrible noise of pain and fear, their eyes went glassy, their face blank. It was the same face BG saw all the time on C-class agents who were trying not to let something truly nauseating make them feel bad. Echo made another frightened noise. BG had to quickly look away from his friend.

Other squads had a no-tolerance policy when it came to psychics hurting their own team-mates. Or at least, Smiles had a no tolerance policy. But BG didn’t want to do that to Lady, she didn’t have any other way of defending herself.

And she had been his partner first.

“Ok,” said BG. “Alley-Oop! Let’s get going, guys! Lady, you first.” He wanted to get her away from Echo, just in case she was still hurting them. He easily put his flesh arm around her waist. Lady was so thin. He could feel her bones pressing into him and it made him hold onto her tighter. She put both her arms around his neck. “Deep breath!”

The first time teleporting into an unknown area was always the hardest. There were too many variables like furniture that BG was unable to visualize, and it was common for him to knock into tables and chairs. His spatial awareness when it came to things like walls was supernaturally good-- unless he was stressed or otherwise impaired.

BG closed his eyes, concentrated on his spatial understanding of the blueprints he had studied prior to the mission, and then released his energy.

In less than half a heartbeat, he and Lady were inside room 113 on the 11th floor of the apartment building. They appeared right over an unaccounted for coffee table in the living room and tumbled over it with a loud crash. The two of them landed heavily, with BG mashing Lady into the floor.

“Sorry,” said BG. He bounded to his feet, unhurt, then helped Lady up. She winced like she had bruised something. BG helped her to the couch. “You good?” He started to move the coffee table out of the way for his next trip.

Lady sat down gingerly. “I guess,” she said bitterly. She looked very angry.

“You sure?”

“I said I’m fine.” She drew her dainty feet up onto the couch and wrapped her arms around her legs.

BG shrugged. “Ok,” he said. “I’ll be back in a jiffy” And he teleported back out to the rooftop where the others were waiting.

The first thing he saw when he got there was Bizo standing close to Echo and whispering to them. She had her back turned to BG and didn’t see him when he appeared. Dot was awake and wrapped herself around Echo’s boot, purring softly. Zoey had taken one of Echo’s slender, long-fingered hands into her own chubby one. It took a monstrous amount of effort for her to ever touch someone without burning them on accident with the chemicals on her skin. BG could count the number of times she had touched him. She must...really have wanted to comfort Echo for some reason.

It wasn’t like Echo had ever had to go through really horrible shit like some other agents. They were A-Class and had a cushy position. What could Lady find in their memories that could possibly hurt them that bad?

He cleared his throat. Zoey jumped. Echo pulled their hand back quickly.

“You ready, Zoey?” he asked, purposefully not looking at Echo because he didn’t want to embarrass them.

Bizo bent down to grab Dot and then shuffled over to BG. He put his metal arm around her. It was specially made to not corrode if it accidentally touched her. Dot oozed out of Bizo’s grip and up his arm, making snuffling sounds. Some of her gelatinous body seeped into the cracks of his metal joints and moved around. “Is this a bad jump?” she asked. Out of the whole crew, she was the only one who still occasionally threw up when he teleported her too far. It was hard on the human body to be spatially disrupted like that.

“It’s not bad. There’s a trash can in the living room too.”

Zoey nodded and squeezed her eyes closed.

This jump was perfectly smooth. They both landed on their feet in the middle of the living room. “Urgh,” said Bizo. She wobbled to the floor. Dot followed her and lost all her shape until she looked like a black puddle.

“You good?” he asked, for the second time in five minutes.

“Urghhh,” said Bizo, who had her eyes closed tightly. The black puddle beside her bubbled.

BG took that as a yes. He briefly looked at Lady, who had not yet uncurled herself from the couch. She seemed good too.

He teleported to the roof for a final time. Echo stood out there by themselves. Their eyes were still glassy, like they weren’t really seeing the world around them.

“Hey,” said BG. “Are you ok?”

Echo didn’t answer him.

BG walked up to them awkwardly. “Dude, seriously, are you ok? Your face is freaking me out right now, you look like Smiles does right before he goes crazy and tries to kill people, like all blank and shit. What did she make you see?”

Again, Echo didn’t answer him. But they blinked and their expression began to focus again. They looked at BG, their Primary and best friend, and swallowed hard. And then they put one arm out, in the same way everybody did when BG was about to teleport them somewhere. Operating under this assumption, BG walked up and put his flesh arm around Echo’s thin waist, but was caught off guard when Echo embraced him. For a second he froze, uncomfortable with this sudden display of intimacy. Echo was not usually the type of person who went for hugs. After a short hesitation, he hugged them back.

The hug lasted for a long time. Finally BG stood back. Echo looked like they still wanted to be touching. But they were both wasting time.

“Ok man,” said BG. “Enough of that shit, just know I’m here for you and all that junk.”

Echo nodded.

“Like, I’ll always be here for you bro. I mean, just because I have to make hard calls for the whole squad doesn’t mean I’m not specifically caring about you too.”

Echo nodded again. They still looked a bit sad.

And BG grabbed hold of them for a second time, held them as tightly as he could. Echo held onto him with both arms. BG took a deep breath and then teleported for the final time that weekend, determined to make it a good one for his friend.

######

The first thing that BG did when all 4 of them were settled into the apartment was go for the fridge.

The rations that they got at the cafeteria were nutritionally dense but bland. Any treats agents could buy at the commissary were very much the same. Unlike the rest of his squad, BG had access to snacks that were otherwise contraband— always gum and candy— because of his closeness to the Executive Director, the strange but wonderful woman who spent her time hidden behind computer screens at the very top of the Capitol Building. But civie food? He could only remember eating it a few times.

He grabbed a carton of something called strawberry almond milk. BG knew he liked strawberries, since he liked that flavor of candy. He wasn’t so sure about almonds. He had only a basic idea of what an almond was. He opened the carton and gulped some of it down. Very cold and sweet.

“Hey,” he said.

Everyone looked at him. Lady still hadn’t moved from the couch. She looked like she was curling in on herself. When she looked up at him, BG caught a flash of the bored buzzing malevolence she viewed others with. Bizo sat cross legged on the floor, still jump-sick. Dot was on top of her head, chewing a big strand of her hair. Bizo and Dot were so wide-eyes. Echo had slouched their awkward body into an armchair in a way that looked uncomfortable. They sullenly played with their rifle, pretending to work.

BG cared about all of them very much, but in that moment, he felt stupid and didn’t know what to say. All he could do was stare at them while holding the milk carton.

“You have a pink mustache,” Bizo said, helpfully.

BG wiped it away with his metal fingers. “Guys, let’s totally have a good time on this op,” he said. He gestured at the fridge behind him. “Let’s have fun. Let’s eat!”

“We have rations for the weekend,” said Lady. She unfolded herself from the tight knot she was in like a spider unfurling its legs. “We can’t just eat out of someone’s fridge.”

Bizo was already on board. She popped up so quickly that Dot fell off her head and landed on the floor with a splat. Shuffling up to the fridge, she said, “Yeah but we’re gonna kill the people who live here, we can do whatever we want to their stuff and nobody will even know or care!” Then she paused and looked around the apartment. She took in all the nice things and the luxuries they weren’t afforded at home. She looked at BG with realization on her flat, dull face. “We can pretend we live here. Like normal civilians.”

Like playing house. BG hadn’t thought about that. He just wanted to party, and unlike Bizo, he had no fantasies about civilian life. He liked working for the Agency. But since this idea made her happy, it made him happy.

“That’s boring,” Lady said flatly. Chances were, if she was ‘bored’ for too long, she would resort to entertaining herself by doing something terrible to Echo or Zoey. That needed to be avoided.

BG and Bizo started to paw through the rest of the fridge together. There wasn’t much fresh produce, but lots of pre-made or frozen food. Ingredients the two of them had never heard of. Salad dressing? Relish? Chicken livers? This was what normal people ate? Bizo took an olive out of a jar, put it in her mouth, then immediately spit it back out. On the floor, Dot snorkeled it up and mimicked human laughter.

“Ok,” said Bizo, after the horror of tasting an olive had worn off. “What should we have? We can eat a big breakfast after we sleep?”

BG picked up a can of whipped cream and considered its mechanics. “I’m not that hungry in the morning.”

“What about noon?”

“That’s better.” He figured out how to work the whipped cream can and sprayed it into his mouth. Echo was glaring daggers at him. “We can all pick out what we want and shit and get settled for this op. Targets have a pattern of not coming back until Monday, so we have some time to kill.” He sprayed whipped cream into Bizo’s mouth, then on top of Dot’s body. The little creature created a mouth on top of her back to slurp it up.

Although it was early, hr figured they needed to get some sleep. Despite playing house, this was still a mission.

“Lady, you get first watch,” he said. “Echo, you get second. Me and Zoey will switch off tomorrow night.”

The targets’ apartment was small. The living room opened up into a kitchen without a wall to divide it. To one side was the bedroom, which had a bathroom connected to it. Sparse living for civilians, but extravagant for BG and his team. Here there were couches and a tv and pictures and all sorts of treasures. There were all kinds of things to do and see. All while waiting to kill a couple of criminals in their own home.

This was what Team Smiles did all the time. No wonder they were so unruly. They had too much freedom…

And it was nice.

##

All 4 of them crowded into the bathroom to get ready for bed, They had only brought the necessary toiletries-- toothbrushes and deodorant. But like any people in their late teens and early 20’s, they were interested in looking nice, so their targets’ bathroom became a treasure trove of luxury.

Lady washed her face, then took a bottle of expensive looking moisturizer out of the medicine cabinet and smeared it all over herself. She stared at her reflection in the mirror with her big black eyes as if trying to recognize the person looking back. She touched her own face and watched her reflection do the same.

Echo clearly wanted to take a shower, but couldn’t since Bizo was already making herself an unmeltable sleeping space in the bathtub. Instead, they just brushed their teeth and rifled through the medical cabinet. They pulled out an old prescription bottle and rattled it, showing it to BG. It was made out to the female target; antidepressant pills.

BG didn’t have much of a bedtime ritual. He ruffled his hair and thought about shaving it but it was too late. He just wanted to go to sleep and was thinking about what a real bed with nice blankets would feel like. He stripped down to his boxers, since that was all he wore to bed. Lady must have been annoyed by his jostling, because she pinched some of his pudge. BG jabbed her in the ribs. This nearly caused an all out scuffle because he probably jabbed her harder than he should have, but he teleported away before Lady could get him.

He teleported right into the bed.

BG saw clouds in the sky whenever he made his forays into the outside. Laying in this bed was what he imagined sitting on a cloud felt like. He snuggled his chunky body into it and pulled the covers up to his chin.

Why were the beds in the dorms so spartan and uncomfortable, he wondered, if there were beds that felt like this?

BG closed his eyes. He heard the quiet padding of Lady’s feet as she made her way to the living room to keep watch. Probably to stare out the window for 6 hours without blinking. When he heard Echo’s familiar footsteps (always distinct because their feet were clammy and made weird sounds on the floor)  he opened his eyes again.

Unlike him, Echo liked to be covered up when they slept. They had their leggings and baggy grey shirt on. So cute. So grumpy, as usual.

“Bizo tucked in?” he asked them.

Echo nodded. Even though they would never admit it, they cared about Bizo like a sibling would and would go to great effort to make sure she was ok. People bullied Bizo a lot and made fun of her. It infuriated Echo. One time they nearly tried to fight the abnormal type agent, Pete, after seeing her pretend to be nice to Bizo while making jokes about her that went over her head. Both Lady and BG had stepped in on that one.

BG patted the bed beside him. “Snuggle up, bro, you get a couple of hours of sleep before you have to be on watch at 0200.”

Echo sneered. -I’ll sleep on the floor-

“You can’t be pissy forever, dude, and this bed is hella comfortable.”

Echo made a point of laying down on the floor without a pillow or a blanket. They just sort of stiffly curled up on the rug. BG grabbed a throw blanket off the end of the bed and a pillow. He jumped out of the bed, put the blanket over them and dropped the pillow on top of their head, then teleported back to his cozy nest before he got cold. He watched them situate themself under the blanket.

“You’re like, difficult on purpose, you know that?” he told them.

They didn’t answer, except for an irritated sigh.

BG shook his head, then closed his eyes himself and quickly drifted off to sleep.

#

BG slept in longer than the rest of the squad. He opened his eyes and then started, teleporting out of bed in a fright. For a brief moment, he had forgotten where he was. This was not the stark dormitory he loved! But by the time his feet touched the carpet, he remembered and relaxed.

He could hear Bizo chattering out in the living room. In the bathroom, the shower was on. BG stretched. He rolled the ball joints in his prosthesis. He had grown in the last year and needed a new one. By his estimates, he was only 18, and would need several more by the time...by the time...well, he didn’t want to think about that! Nope! Too fucked up!.

Lady, Bizo, and Echo were all a couple years older than him. He really, really didn’t want to think about what he would have to see happen to them eventually. That was extra turbo-fucked up.

Usually in the morning, BG did calisthenics, but he wandered out to the living room instead. Lady and Bizo were sitting at the small kitchen table with an assortment of food in front of them. Bizo had poured cereal into a mug and was eating it with her fingers. Lady held a jar of pickled eggs in her lap and ate one on the end of a fork. Both had mugs filled with coffee. He stood and looked at them. For a second, they didn’t notice him.

“And then in my dream,” Bizo was saying, “I was very small and I was in that rec-room that smells like pee, and I was trying to lift a weight that was bigger than I was.” And as she spoke, Lady just nodded along blankly, appearing to be listening.

He cleared his throat. Bizo jumped. Lady flushed as if she had been caught doing something wrong.

“Did you guys sleep good?” he asked.

“I love bath-tubs,” said Bizo. “I don’t have to worry about getting slime on the bed…”

Zoey’s ability was kind of grody.

“I stayed up all night and talked to Echo,” said Lady.  BG grimaced. He knew what that meant. She was still getting in their head, after he had specifically hoped that she wouldn’t. Don’t think about it, don’t think about it, don’t think about it…

He knew that his biggest flaw as a Primary was his inability to keep his Subordinates in check. He liked them all too much to ever reprimand them, it would feel too weird. He just wasn’t as….Bossy as Smiles or Creedo or Crossfire, who would snap at their underlings immediately, but were somehow able to keep any messed up inner-team bullying from within their ranks.

“I slept so hard,” he said. BG crossed the small room and sat down at the table. He took Lady’s mug of coffee and drank it. It was much better than what they got in the caf. Probably had caffeine in it too, which he realized as his heart began to pump faster. “I didn’t even know where I was when I got up. What’s with that?”

Lady put a whole pickled egg in her mouth.

On the floor, Dot was lapping up crumbs. She oozed over to BG’s bare foot and licked it gently. He kept drinking the coffee and jittered his leg.

One of the girls had turned the TV on. In the dorms, there were only TVs in the terrible common rooms, and they only played carefully moderated government news channels. This one had one of the big pop-news channels on. BG turned his head to watch it.

“There’s no more information on the terrorists who hijacked the truck that breached the wall earlier this week,” said a perky Artificial newscaster. “And since there’s no official footage, you’ll have to come to your own conclusion about what happened! Remember, it’s dangerous out there in the wilds! Anyone who goes out there, well, I guess they have nothing to lose!”

“Weren’t those the people who wasted Smiles and got away?” BG asked.

“He got sent up to see me after that day,” said Lady. She hummed to herself and smiled in a way that was almost sickening and made BG keep his eyes on the TV.

The TV rain to a commercial for chicken nuggets. All three of them watched, entranced. Chicken nuggets looked like the most wonderful things in the world…

BG jittered both legs. Fuck, was this what coffee did to people? Why was anyone allowed to have it? It should be a banned substance! Unable to stop himself, he began to tap on the table with his metal finger.

“You ok?” Bizo asked around a mouthful of dry cereal.

“I’m gonna check on Echo!” BG said, a bit too loudly and enthusiastically due to his excess energy. He teleported himself into the bathroom.

He ended up on top of the toilet. Echo screamed and fell over in the shower.

“Good morning bro!” said BG, like a train on fire.

Echo picked themselves up and poked their head around the curtain to glare at him. They looked extra tired. Their strange, high-cheekboned face was drawn and they still had that thousand-yard stare thing going on in the eyes. No sleep really took it out of a person. Lady took even more out.

The shower was still running. Echo liked hot hot showers and always took forever. Since BG wasn’t saying something for once in his life, they went back to their shower. The air was full of steam. BG ran his finger down the mirror and left a trail in the fog.

He wanted to say something nice to his friend, like he had last night on the roof, but he couldn’t think of anything. BG wasn’t good with words. He was even worse with words when his brain was racing a million miles a minute because of he had caffeinated it. Whatever he said was just going to annoy Echo, a person who was notoriously easy to annoy. And no matter what he said, it wouldn’t really matter would it? Because he was never going to talk to Lady about this, he was never going to tell her to stop digging around in her teammates’ brains for shits and giggles. What good would that do?

Suddenly he wished that he wasn’t trapped in the civilian world for the weekend. It was easier back at the dorms, where there was order and people to enforce the rules. It was better when all the decision making and power wasn’t in his hands.