#in anti mind control hat we trust

[rzeckism]

so, I have a theory about what is going on in prison, all bsd spoilers up to chapter 109 + stormbringer, my interpretation on what we have seen this far, source: trust me bro (/hj), call me delusional only when chapter 110 is out

first thing we need to talk about is something mentioned in the stormbringer light novel, as I love to call it: the anti mind control hat, or just: chuuya’s hat, which is the key to understanding the whole situation (or at least my understanding)

This is a fragment of Rimbaud’s journal in the light novel stormbringer (this is a fan translation as it’s the version I just had on hand); “When he puts the hat on the cloth acts as a coil and prevents any interception of his consciousness by instruction from the outside. On the contrary, it’ll be possible to heed to instructions from the inside, AKA he can obey his own will. With this hat, Verlaine can be one step closer to a free willed human.”

And who keeps the hat Rimbaud made for Verlaine, after the events of stormbringer?

You guessed it! Now that we know Chuuya is in possession of an anti-mind-control-hat, let’s get back to the manga and Chuuya’s vampirism; it would be easy to assume that the vampirism is somehow stronger that the ability of Chuuya’s hat, but... Well, why introduce the hat in the first place, when it doesn’t work to his advantage in such a crucial moment of the story?

What I think is that Chuuya was turned into a vampire, yes, that’s why he looks like one, but... the mind control doesn’t work on him. And if the mind control doesn’t work on him... Then Chuuya and Dazai are fooling Fyodor, as we don’t have a reason to believe that Fyodor read Rimbaud’s journal and knows about the hat.

But let’s backtrack and look over the vampire Chuuya panels, from chapter 98 to 109 (and of course we have to remember that he is wearing his hat all the time):

In ch98, we have a full on vampire

In ch101, much less so; in fact Chuuya looks mostly human.

In ch105.5, Chuuya’s face isn’t shown at all, which I found very interesting since the beginning.

Here, in ch109, we have a very vampire-like Chuuya

But the next panel shows us a very human Chuuya, he looks in control, he just wants to punch Dazai

We see less and less of Chuuya’s vampiristic traits with every chapter, but Asagiri reminds us of them in a single panel in 109, which I would interpret as a stylistic choice on Asagiri’s part, one that is supposed to tell us that Chuuya is in control of himself, not really a mindless vampire as all the rest, but lets Fyodor believe that he follows his commands against his will.

Now, why the hell would Chuuya shot Dazai if he is really in control of himself?

Well, this is the part where I go “trust me bro”; Chuuya shots Dazai’s shoulder right before we get to the “killing” bow. We see Chuuya’s gun touch Dazai’s forehead, he holds it there for some time, then the panel where he fires doesn’t show us much, and does so by design:

My best guess on what happened here, if we believe that Dazai and Chuuya are fooling Fyodor: Chuuya’s gun is still hot from the previous real shot when he slams Dazai with it in the forehead: I don’t know exactly what injury you would get when someone hits you with a hot gunpoint and leaves it on your forehead for a little while, But... I think it isn’t unrealistic to think that’s how Dazai gets the injury, not from the “killing bow” (we also don’t see Dazai’s forehead between Chuuya holding it to his forehead and Chuuya “shooting�� him in the head). When Chuuya shots Dazai’s head, we don’t see if the gun is still touching Dazai, and if it isn’t... Chuuya has perfect control over his ability: he very much could fire the gun and crush the bullet into dust before it touches Dazai.

And then Chuuya shots Dazai again, just for good measure and we see Dazai dramatically fake his death.

Fooling Fyodor, making him believe that Dazai is dead - which basically means he has won - could be the way Dazai choose to gain the upper hand. It could be Dazai’s plan to finally defeat Fyodor. And, come on, during the whole encounter with Chuuya, Dazai is unfazed - surely in part because this is a part of his persona, but I still think it’s a little bit weird; like he knows something we don’t. Remember, this is a battle again Fyodor, sure Dazai wants to die but considering the circumstances… I don’t think him being this carefree would be the case if he thought Chuuya is going to kill him any second.

And on why would Chuuya go along with Dazai’s play? Because he always does when it matters, when they’re playing on the same team to defend a shared enemy. This is the second coming of Dead Apple.

Now, we also have the random factor of Nikolai, but let’s remember he wants to kill Fyodor by himself.

And of course, Sigma; I’m guessing he isn’t dead either and chapter 110 will be about what’s going on with him - did Fyodor give him so much information that Sigma’s passed out? Dunno on that part, but I really think Asagiri did everything he could this chapter so that he could give us a plot twist after a plot twist

If you have read all that, let me know how delusional I am; but I mean, come on, we’re talking about soukoku, the guys who can read each other’s minds by just looking at the other, one soul in two different bodies etc. And of course Chuuya would shoot Dazai, very gladly in my opinion.

If my theory isn’t correct then let’s just hope Dazai isn’t dead lol

[conductivefabric5]

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[pawthorn]

So this is... long. But, after finishing ExU and processing a bit, I have to say I love love LOVE how it's built around narrative questions rather than a central conflict. Instead of being built around Good vs. Evil or Nature vs. Civilization, each arc explores questions about characters and their relationships to power.

In the first arc, we have Poska as the main antagonist and Orym taking the lead in directing the party. They both approach power and who should wield it very differently. Poska is anti-authority, while Orym is fairly trusting of authority. The question becomes who do they trust with power? Following Orym's lead, the party chooses not to trust Poska. They break away, taking the Circlet and the residuum to the Fire Ashari. But at the Scar of the Cinder King, an ancient power bursts from the ground. Orym’s authority figures are as baffled as the party, and they ask the party for aid. Returning to the city, Orym next looks to Gilmore for answers, for that authority, but Gilmore similarly puts the onus back onto the party. At the climax of the arc, the party is confronted by Poska and her people. They finally recognize the scope of her organization's power, but they refuse to submit to it. Then, Orym himself eliminates their chance to return the Circlet to Gilmore, putting the power of choice fully in the party's hands.

In the second arc, the Spider Queen becomes the antagonist, testing each characters' motivations and convictions-- what would they do for power, and what would they do with it? Fearne is confronted by a shadowy version of herself. Dariax has nightmares of being alone and helpless. Dorian especially bends under the Spider Queen's will, shifting his alignment as he tries to control the situation, to shield his friends from a power he doesn't understand. Fy'ra Rai stands in opposition to Lolth's efforts. Her convictions are unshakable, her power is directed with absolute concentration, and she drives the action of the second arc.

In the third arc, Myr'atta Niselor takes over as antagonist, pursuing the party in pursuit of power, power she thinks Opal doesn't deserve, power she feels entitled to claim. The question becomes what does it take to wield power? The whole party comes together to answer this question, defeating Myr'atta and restoring Ted in the process. It takes creativity, an open mind, care, passion, and most of all, will. Together, they call on ancient, deep magic and use it to mend a new power, a power formed from the love and devotion of two sisters who don't know what they're doing, but know they can't do without each other.

There was breath in the story they told, and a unique, authentic feeling of life. I love the way the players began to tap in with it and engage with the power and mystery presented to them, rather than relying on their mechanical skills and abilities. What a tight-rope to walk as a DM. What a beautiful, authentic resolution to a central narrative tension that can’t have a clear-cut ending, because there’s always more room to explore a question.

[olivish]

Some thoughts about Melanie Cavill and her beautiful mind. 

I agree with others that Mel is neurodivergent/ autistic. I think this helps explain her passion and focus, and also why, in S1, she was so adept at “putting on a mask” and pretending to be someone else. Basically, I think she had been masking in some way or another her entire life, so when the time came to create the “Hospitality Melanie” persona, it was already second nature. 

I think this also explains why it took Melanie so long to see Wilford for the monster he is, and why he was able to control/ manipulate her for most of her life, despite her superior intelligence.  On that note, here are some of my MC HCs (I hope it goes without saying, I don’t mean to imply that anything described below is necessarily an “autistic” trait. This is simply how I imagine Melanie the person, who also happens to have autism.)

1. Before meeting Wilford, Melanie struggled to find her place in the world. She dropped out of high school because she was bored with the lessons and couldn’t be bothered to complete assignments. She had no friends, and most adults wrote her off as a trouble-maker.

Her family was poor, so she “borrowed” things they needed for the farm (some of them rather LARGE things), which earned her a juvenile record for theft. 

2. Because of this, Melanie believed she’d never go to college. That was fine, she thought, she wouldn’t fit in there. She didn’t fit in anywhere. The only person who didn’t make her feel like a misfit was her father, John Cavill, who was a patient man who loved farming, and who taught his daughter everything he knew about the trade. 

It wasn’t long, however, before John ran out of knowledge to share. Melanie was 8 when her father took her to the local library. “So,” he said. “What do you want to know?” 

“Everything.” 

From that moment on, John watched his daughter surpass him in every subject, every field of study. It was hard, not because he was prideful, but because it felt like he was losing her. But not completely. At least, not yet. 

Because for years after that, Melanie would seek her father out, and she’d talk at length about the topics that interested her, and he listened, enjoying her company, even after he ceased to understand a single word that came out of her mouth. 

I mean that literally. 

“Certains nématodes posent problème en agriculture parce qu'ils parasites des plantes ou des animaux d'élevage, mais la plupart stimulent la croissance en améliorant le cycle des nutriments.” “Mellie.” “Oui, papa?”  “You’re speaking French again.”  “Oh. Sorry.” 

3. Melanie’s mother was a different story. Shanon Cavill, nee Shanon O’Connell, was stern, intelligent and, due to an undiagnosed mood disorder, emotionally unstable. She’d lose her temper at the drop of a hat, and although she loved her daughter, she didn’t understand her. Shanon didn’t understand why someone so brilliant was throwing her life away. Dropping out of school, getting arrested, fooling around with boys, and girls, who didn’t care about her, and who only got her into trouble. 

Shanon said many words in the heat of many moments that she could never take back. Foolish. Reckless. Lazy. Quitter. 

The day Joseph Wilford showed up at the farm looking for Melanie, Shanon peered at him through the porch screen door. “Did she steal something from you?” she asked. “Because whatever it is, we can’t pay you back, so you’d best just leave before I let the dogs out.” 

Looking back, Wilford deeply regrets not heeding the lady Cavill’s advice. 

4. Melanie saw Wilford as her missing piece. Melanie always knew she was “bad with people”. To her, human beings were confounding black boxes.  INPUT > [???] > UNEXPECTED RESULT, USUALLY BAD. 

But Wilford. Joseph Wilford was a social magician! She watched in awe. Everyone adored him. He’d tell a joke and everyone laughed. Anything they needed for their work - funding, IP rights, permits, materials, labor - he procured through sheer force of charisma. 

He was just like her, except he had that one missing piece. 

It was the apparent gap in their interpersonal skills that led Melanie to conclude that she could never be a leader like him. That’s why she allowed Wilford to take credit for her work, why she believed him when he said it was better for all involved if she remained a ‘silent partner.’ 

That’s also why she never tried to run Snowpiercer as herself. Despite having all the skills, Melanie couldn’t imagine anyone would follow her leadership. 

(I think she was wrong about that...) 

5. It was Wilford who sent Melanie to college, and it was Wilford who coached her on how to “mask.” As a sociopath, nearly all of Wilford’s social interactions are theatre. They have to be. So when he met Melanie, he immediately saw what her problem was - the silly girl wasn’t acting! 

So he sat her down one day and gave her a gift. “A chess game?” she said. 

“Not a game. This box contains the secret to the universe.” 

She smiled, but he was serious. As Wilford set up the pieces he explained, “This is the whole world. Every type of person you’ll ever meet is here. Pawns, knights, bishops. They all have their rules, their own little scripts. The trick is, figure them out, while revealing nothing about yourself.” 

She didn’t understand, but in time, she would. Wilford taught her how to survive, but not as herself. He taught her to hide, to blend in, and to trust nobody but him. 

And it worked, to a certain extent. Melanie earned degrees from MIT and Yale, graduating with the highest honors, lauded as a prodigy. A recruiter from NASA asked if she’d be interested in applying for the astronaut program. Elon Musk asked the same thing, but he offered more money. 

Melanie could have worked anywhere. Done anything. But she went back to Wilford, partly out of loyalty, and partly because she believed he was the only person in the world who truly knew her, and saw her, and valued her for who she was. 

They weren’t lovers, but Melanie considered him just as close. For many years, he was her one partner and closest friend. 

6. When Melanie got pregnant with Alex, she was afraid she’d be a bad mother. She worried that she wouldn’t have that mysterious ‘maternal instinct’ that seemed to come naturally to other women. She thought maybe she was “broken” in a very particular way and shouldn’t be a parent. 

Those worries disappeared once Alex was born. More than that, Melanie’s deep connection with Alex made her consider that maybe she’d underestimated herself. In motherhood, Melanie found courage. She built stronger friendships with Ben & Jinju, and she began to interact with Wilford on a more equal footing. 

She started speaking up about things she never dared interfere with before. She didn’t like the company’s environmental practices. Their anti-union stances. Their parental leave policies were atrocious. Wilford was beside himself. He didn’t recognize her. He couldn’t wrap his mind around what happened. 

At a loss, Wilford blamed his catch-all word for human behavior that fell outside his bounds of understanding. 

“Sentimentality.” 

7. When Melanie lost Alex, she lost faith in herself. It wasn’t just the grief, or the guilt, though those were enormous. Melanie understood now: Alex was her missing piece. Alex was the one thing that made Melanie feel like she could do anything.

It cannot be overstated what a colossal blunder it was for Wilford to return Melanie’s superpower to her. He thought he was being clever in saving Alex, but from the moment Melanie blew up Big Alice’s connector and Alex gave her that grudging look of respect, all bets were off. 

Melanie remembered who she was. The awakening started with Layton, but it ended with Alex. 

Final thoughts: Melanie’s particular neurology has been a hot-button issue in the past, so I’m a little nervous posting this. Please reach out to me with any comments or concerns. Everything here is written with an open heart in good faith, and while I’m allergic to argument, I am addicted to discussion. <3

[zeldah-writes]

Robbery Gone Wrong (Spencer Reid x Reader)

Masterlist

Note: This took way longer to write than expected. I’m not sure why, but for some reason I was having a really hard time writing this because I kept overthinking the way I worded certain things, so I’m sorry if this is a little rough D: (a for effort, I tried). Nevertheless, I hope you still enjoy and if you’ve checked out any of my other posts, thank you so much! :)

Summary: Spencer comes back from the store, horrified to find two guns, a dying body and a familiar face. All of which are spread out on his bedroom floor. 

Content: oneshot, angst!! and some fluff

Pairing: Spencer Reid and Reader

Warning(s): swear words, Mention of: robbing, blood, killing/death, guns, (slightly implied) sexual assault 

Word Count: 2,261 

------

“Oh no, I think I ran out of ice cream,” Spencer mumbled, digging through his freezer looking for snacks you two could share.

In response, you dramatically gasped and said, “Spencer Reid! We absolutely can’t have a movie night without ice cream.”

Having spent the whole day out with Spencer doing activities that you’ve had planned for awhile, you wanted to end the night as perfect as the day felt. After all, it wasn’t often that you were able to spend a whole two days with your boyfriend, despite dating each other for six months. With the nature of Spencer’s job, it was rare for him to even get one day off, so imagine your joy when he called you earlier in the day to tell you about his work-free weekend. 

“Okay, then how about this,” Spencer started, turning his body so he was facing you, “I’ll quickly go and stop by the 24-hour store to pick up some food while you stay here and get everything else set up.”

You looked up from your computer screen, taking a break from searching for a movie to watch. “And I even get to pick the first movie?”

“And you even get to pick the first movie,” Spencer repeated with a smile as he closed the freezer door.

Your tiny smile grew as you gave Spencer a small nod before diverting your attention back to your laptop.

Just as Spencer grabbed his keys and jacket that were hanging by the door, you made sure to remind him of your favorite ice cream flavor.

“Mint chip, please!” you grinned at him.

“As always, babe,” Spencer said before winking at you, which made you lightly giggle.

“See you soon,” you blew him a quick kiss as he walked out of the door.

After he left, you continued your movie hunt for a few more minutes, but eventually gave up and decided to just wait until Spencer got home so the two of you could choose together. 

Closing your laptop, you looked around and thought about what else was needed for movie night.

Alright, so we have our drinks. Most of our snacks are already sitting on the living room table. What else.

Um...Oh! Blankets. We definitely need those. Maybe some pillows too.

You got up from where you were sitting and made your way to Spencer’s bedroom to retrieve the extra blankets and pillows he had lying around.

While you were in his room, you saw your overnight bag that you brought from your own apartment and thought that it was a good idea to get changed into more comfortable clothes. Knowing you, you were most likely going to fall asleep during one of the movies, especially if Spencer were to put on one of his foreign films that only multilingual people with an IQ higher than 170 could understand. Despite not understanding anything happening in the films, you would always try your hardest to stay awake during them, which Spencer found adorable.

As you started to change your clothes, you heard the sound of a front door lightly creaking open, but you couldn’t tell if it was coming from Spencer’s apartment or one of his neighbors. 

Were the doors even loud enough for me to be able to hear them through the walls?

Thinking that you were just being paranoid, you shrugged it off and continued getting dressed.

Although... you couldn’t shake the feeling that something felt off to you.

It wasn’t until you heard footsteps and rustling noises coming from Spencer’s living room that you knew something wasn’t right. You stilled your movements and listened to try and figure out what was making the noises.

Was someone opening drawers? That couldn’t be Spencer, he wouldn’t be back that fast. Even if it was, he would always announce his arrival.

You thought about giving Spencer a call, but as you looked around the room, you remembered you left your phone sitting next to your laptop outside, which only fueled the unease that was growing within you.

Not knowing what else to do, you quietly crept towards the bedroom door that you left slightly open, and peeked through the opening. You weren’t sure what you were expecting, but when your eyes landed on an unknown man wearing dark clothes rummaging through Spencer’s belongings, you couldn’t stop the gasp of fear that came out of you.

As soon as the sound left your lips, the man stilled and the apartment was filled with silence.

You immediately covered your mouth and backed away from the door as your heartbeat quickened and your eyes widened. You didn’t get a good look at him because his back was facing you, but there was one thing you saw that stood out. It was tucked into the back of his jeans.

It was a gun.

You felt your blood run cold as your breathing increased a significant amount. I mean, sure, you’ve seen a gun in person before, but it was only ever in the hands of people you trusted, like Spencer and his coworkers. So, when you saw that the strange man in Spencer’s living room had a gun and he was definitely not someone you trusted, you didn’t know what to think.

A mixture of shock and fear took control of your body as you stood in the middle of the bedroom, unable to move. You tried your best to think, but the lack of noise ironically made that a difficult task for you.

I don’t hear him anymore...maybe my presence scared him away.

You desperately hoped that was the case, but your hopes were quickly diminished when the sound of light footsteps reached your ears.

Oh my god. He’s still here and he’s heading towards me. 

 Okay, just think, Y/N, think. 

As the sound of footsteps grew closer, you thought back to the intruder’s gun and as you did that, the memory of Spencer reaching you how to use his gun popped into your brain. You remembered that Spencer said it was for emergency purposes.

Well, this is definitely an emergency.

Not having time to think about it any longer, you ran to Spencer’s nightstand and yanked it open to reveal his revolver. With shaking hands, you picked it up and cocked it before turning around and aiming it at the door just in time to see it being opened by the mysterious man.

He was wearing a navy hat that was mostly covered by the hood of his grey sweatshirt and black jeans. In his hand was the gun you previously saw tucked away in his clothes.

You figured that your best bet was to try and scare him away with threats, so as soon as he saw you, you started talking.

“Get out. I...I have a gun,” you said, trying your best to mask the shakiness in your voice with false confidence as your arm quivered.

Despite your efforts, the fear in your voice was still obvious and you were sure that the man noticed it, because instead of turning away and running, he just stood at the doorway, seemingly unfazed, as a sick smile spread across his face.

You’re positive that you’ll never be able to get his face out of your mind.

“So? I got one too. And from where I’m standing, it doesn’t look like I’ll be getting shot anytime soon,” the man’s face didn’t falter as he spoke.

You tried not to show it, but you knew he was right. And you hated it.

Unlike Spencer, you weren’t very comfortable when it came to dealing with violence. It baffled you how Spencer could work on homicide cases almost every single day and not turn into a completely paranoid mess.

You swallowed the lump that formed in your throat before deciding to ignore his words and say, “If you don’t leave, I will shoot you.”

“Oh, c’mon pretty lady,” the man stood up straight and turned his twisted smile into a smirk as his eyes raked over your body, “put the gun down and we can have some fun. Just imagine the things I could do to you.”

His insinuation made your stomach churn as tears welled up in your eyes. The way he looked at you made you nauseous. What you felt was far beyond disgust.

“My boyfriend works for the FBI and he’s on his way home right now,” you could tell that your anti-violence mindset was slipping away from you the longer the situation was going on. At this point, you would do anything necessary to protect yourself against the dangerous and deranged man that was standing before you.

"Don’t you worry, darlin’. I’ll make it quick,” with his sadistic smirk and his head held high, the man took a step towards you and into the room.

All the fake courage you forced yourself to show came crumbling down at his comment. You didn’t want to show him weakness, but you couldn’t help it. The tears that were previously threatening to escape came rushing down your face as you let out a loud sob.

“What is wrong with you? Don’t come near me, you’re absolutely disgusting! You’re nothing but a horrible, sad excuse for a human!” you yelled out to the intruder as tears kept streaming down your face.

Your outburst must’ve triggered something inside of the man, because when you were done yelling, his whole demeanor changed. His body tensed up as his jaw clenched and his mouth turned downward into a scowl. What was most frightening to you, however, was his hardened eyes that glared at you with a look that made your skin crawl. 

He glared at you with murder.

“You fucking bitch! I’m gonna fucking kill you,” the man’s voice boomed and echoed throughout the apartment as he yelled, “wanna say shit like that to me? You pay the fucking consequence.”

What happened next felt like a nightmare. Everything happened so fast that you didn’t have time to think about what you were about to do.

The man looked at you and scoffed before looking down to his gun and cocking it. Before he could do anything else, however, you screamed at the top of your lungs, squeezed your eyes shut and pulled the trigger.

You weren’t sure how many shots you fired, but the only reason you stopped was because no more bullets were coming out of the gun. After you unknowingly emptied the revolver’s chamber, you noticed that other than the low ringing in your ears, the apartment became silent. Because of this, you slowly opened your eyes.

You knew that it was stupid to close your eyes in the first place, but when you opened you eyes and saw what you did, you deeply wished they stayed closed, because nothing in the world could have prepared you for what you saw.

Spencer’s mahogany bedroom door was now ruined with bullet holes, but that wasn’t what caught your eye. As soon as your vision cleared, your eyes landed on the figure that was sprawled out on the floor.

There the motionless man laid, covered and surrounded by his own blood. The man’s once plain grey hoodie was turning red, just like the floor beneath him, the longer you stood there.

After the initial shock wore off, the realization of your actions set in.

I killed him. I took his life away. I took it away and I can’t give it back.

“No, no, no, no,” you kept repeating as you sobbed and slid down the wall behind you, dropping the gun in the process. You buried your face in your knees, trying to get the image of the bloody scene in front of you out of your mind, but your attempts were futile. All you could see was his face and his lifeless body.

“Y/N? Are you-oh my god!”

The second you heard his voice, you whipped your head up, but despite the little relief you felt when you saw him, all you could do was cry harder.

“Spencer!” you managed to cry out.

With a panicked expression, Spencer quickly surveyed the room before rushing over to where you were sitting. Once he was in front of you, he kneeled down and gently grabbed your face in his hands. 

“Are you hurt? Injured anywhere?” he frantically checked your body for injuries and when he saw there was none, he looked into your eyes.

By now, you were hyperventilating and your entire body was trembling, but you so desperately needed to let Spencer know that you didn’t mean for this to happen. You were only trying to protect yourself.

“Spencer, it-no-I,” you were jumbling over your words, so you took a deep breath before trying again, “I was so scared.”

You wanted to say more, but that was all you could say at the moment. You were just hoping that Spencer would be able to use his profiling skills to figure out what happened.

It seemed like Spencer understood, because he wrapped his arms around you and whispered, “It’s okay, I know. You’re okay now.”

Feeling reassured from Spencer’s words, you took your own arms and wrapped them tightly around Spencer. 

“I’m so sorry, Y/N. I’m sorry I wasn’t here to protect you,” as he said that, you became aware to the fact that you weren’t the only one crying.

“But you’re here now.”

You weren’t sure what was going to happen next, but if you had Spencer by your side, you knew everything was going to be okay.

[bunnieresources]

paper mario: the origami king sentence starters.

“ ok. i don’t like that. “

“ don’t worry. i know just what to do in situations like this. you just gotta find ____, right ____? ...oh. “

“ wrong answer. right answer. it matters not. your replies are all paper thin. “

“ always gotta make a flashy entrance, huh? “

“ i’m not sure if i should be amazed or scared, but i’m kind of both? “

“ what a beautiful day. i feel like nothing bad could happen here. unrelated, i have amnesia. “

“ yeah... i’m just gonna play it safe and stay here forever-ish. “

“ if there are some snacks, you gotta give me some. finder’s fee. “

“ my therapist says i’m a contrarian, but i don’t agree. “

“ i can’t keep this up forever, but i’m gonna try... who knew frolicking could be so exhausting? “

“ okay, that’s probably enough... for you! i’ll never get enough! “

“ do you have any idea how deficient i am in vitamin d right now? i’m gonna stand here until i get enough! “

“ who am i kidding? you’re ____! you can do it. “

“ uhhh... tell me, ____. is this what doors normally look like? it isn’t right? "

“ i didn’t do it! ...all right, it was probably me. “

“ how do i look? powerful? imposing? magnificent? maybe even a little cute? “

“ why didn’t anyone tell me that the world could be so wonderful?! “

“ you know that memory loss thing? what’s it called... ambrosia? amnesty? thinky thinky panic? “

“ i could learn a lot from you. master and pupil! hero and sidekick! fate must’ve brought us together. you can’t deny fate... right? “

“ the amnesia must’ve sapped up your memories AND your brainpower. how cruel... “

“ this world is so big, ____... but i understand so little of it. “

“ having buddies is pretty cool so far. i’d definitely recommend it. “

“ i promise! i’d even pinky swear, if i had a pinky. “

“ i wonder why leaves turn red in the fall. do you think they’re embarrassed? “

“ could you read my thoughts? are you... reading them now? please don’t. “

“ that has to be it, right? wow, i’m cute AND clever! “

“ did you SEE that? did you see ME? i hope that looked as cool as it felt! “

“ whoa, ____! you’re out of control... in the best way possible! “

“ did it work?! i closed my eyes. "

" i was just taking a little cat nap. don't mind me. "

" i've been watching over this area for hours! nothing slips past me... even though my eyesight is awful. "

" i have achieved total serenity. my feet... are asleep. "

" this tea is so bitter. blech. should have gotten a soda like i usually do. "

" okay, so... i'm clearly bad at this. "

" wow. you really, really need to get out more. "

" somebody! anybody! preferably ____, if possible! save me! "

" it was dark and scary, but at NO point did i sob fully and uncontrollably. any fibs stating otherwise are just that! dirty, mutinous fibs! "

" can't move forward if you don’t know which way you're going... i read that on a twist off cap once. that bottle of juice was so wise... "

" if i can save a friend like this, it means i've finally become the sort of person i always wanted to be. "

" you watch, i'm gonna touch my toes one of these years! "

" wow, look at this! the lights! the sights! it's all so bright! what a night! i'm a poet, right? "

" ...don't you dare say 'i told you so.' "

" brooooo... i'm vibing so hard with this music. it's like i'm totally oblivious to everything else. "

" i'm incapable of embarrassment! "

" aw, who am i kidding... this isn't good! "

" i never gave up hope. not even when you passed by without seeing me 347 times. "

" is everything just, like, flashing green and purple in front of your eyes, or is it just me? "

" well, that was quite lively! i might have even tapped a toe or two. "

" unrelated... have i mentioned that i have a deep and debilitating fear of fire? "

" oh, uh... thank you for taking care of that. i would have helped, of course, but i'm literally terrified of my own shadow. "

" oh, man... why'd you have to harsh my groove? we had it bumpin' in here! "

" aww, you guys found each other. and now you're parading around in your weird hats. good for you. "

" don't you just love it? you love it. i can tell. "

" whoa! this looks bad! hang on, friend! i'm comin'! "

" are we about to fight? because i'm always ready. let's go! "

" do we get to fight someone? i haven't fought anyone in over an hour! "

" my work is finally complete. so... now what? i guess i could... find a new hobby? maybe i'll learn how to fold origami... "

" don't make a big deal out of it. i'm not used to receiving praise for a job well done... "

" i still hear screaming, but i'm pretty sure it's just in my own head. "

" hmm? oh, i'm not stranded here. i was just taking it all in... "

" wait, this doesn't feel right. i've never had anyone just take my advice outright. now i'm nervous! "

" what is that noise?! this is my first time in a jungle... are mysterious crashing noises good? "

" when this is all over, i'm buying a boat. call it a midlife crisis if you must. "

" eeee! look at that terrible thing! actually, i can't even look. it's too scary! "

" hey! what's the big idea, running away like that? you could've at least warned me! "

" all right, ____. i trust you can handle this. if you need me, i'll be quivering off to the side somewhere... "

" i'm going in─just try and stop me! "

" at the end of the day, i am but a humble servant who is overlooked by always correct... "

" something's in there, ____! i can hear it moaning like a ghost. maybe it IS a ghost! i don't think i can meet a ghost right now. maybe another time, over coffee... "

" they're gonna write a book about this, and then probably a movie that everyone will hate. "

" wow! this is... it's... it's really something! ...what is it we're looking at? "

" this is a magic broom. it's not for sweeping. although... i do already see a few dusty areas that could use some attention. excuse me... "

" do whatever you need to prepare yourself. i'm told some anti-nausea medicine may be in order. "

" i just became so blinded by rage. i did so many unforgivable things... "

" you were so brave to do what you did. we owe you everything. "

[raidbossmadi]

People Like Us: Chapter 13

Chapter 13: Blood in the Sand Previous Chapter: Here 

This chapter includes an appearance by JK who belongs to Jak

“Did you hear?”

“They would’ve taken the whole settlement out if one of the Carnivore Cities hadn’t shown up…”

The Cathedral halls were abuzz with gossip as Sloane stepped out of the private elevator on the way to a hastily called meeting. Before she could take another step one of her retinue of Handmaidens held a hand out to stop her advance. Another flagged down the nearest priest and signed to them where they needed to go. Sloane could appreciate that the Handmaidens vow of silence came in handy in situations like this where she otherwise would have to yell over the crowd.

The priest on the other hand was fully prepared to do so. Sloane watched as they inhaled a deep breath.

“Children of the vault, your Blessed Sister wishes to travel these halls. Please make way.” The words echoed over the commotion of the crowd high into the vaulted ceilings of the Cathedral. A moment passed before the crowd split, people moved to either side of the hall like a switch had been flipped.

“Thank you, Priest. You may continue your duties.” Sloane said as her handmaidens motioned her to continue their journey through the halls.

The buzz of gossip continued, albeit much quieter now that one of their gods walked among them. Sloane caught groups sneaking glances at her though quickly looking away before she could meet their glance, a few gave the CoV salute to her but most just lowered their voices and lowered their gaze.

The large doors to antechamber of the meeting hall swung open as she approached. She looked about the chamber and noted that a few handmaids were sat on one of the benches against the wall. The designs on the masks designated them sister superiors. She surmised that this meant that she was running late, the other department heads already arrived and inside.

Her handmaidens opened the door for her and she nodded in thanks as she stepped inside the meeting hall.

The other department heads were in fact already there. Jaxon, Juniper, and Lydia stood by a water cooler chatting while Hephaestus and Mouthpiece did the same across the room. Tyreen and Troy sat at the table frowning at a laptop in front of them.

“Sloane. Come.” Tyreen said not even looking up from the laptop.

On her way past Juniper and the girls Sloane made note of their body language and they seemed relaxed so she assumed there was nothing to worry about. Nevertheless the hair on the back of neck was raised, perhaps her siren senses picking up on something she could not.

She pulled up a seat to the right of Tyreen, the other department heads filed into their seats after her.

“Has everyone seen the video?”

Everyone nodded. The video in question being the Raiders attack on a CoV base. The CoV had been losing badly before the carnivore city Tartarus pulled up at the opportune moment and turned the tide of the battle. Sloane had not understood until she’d seen the video why they were called carnivore cities until the giant steel mechanism slid out of the undercarriage and ‘swallowed’ the Raiders vehicles whole.

“So you all understand what this means then right?” Tyreen asked.

The group of department heads all collectively shook heads no, this was an unprecedented event.

“It means,” Troy cut in “We’ll have to start fortifying our bases around the continent. This time we were lucky that Tartarus was nearby, otherwise that entire settlement would be gone. We have to protect what we have here, starting over somewhere else isn’t an option.”

Sloane shifted in her seat slightly, she had never been to a conflict assessment meeting before and was woefully under prepared for this side of the Twins public personas to come out.

“What would you have us do then, your Majestys?” Lydia chimed in, with talk of fortification on the table it was apparent that engineering would have to get involved.

“Halt production on the armoured T-7’s, we have enough vehicles in our armada at the moment. I want all engineers working on mobile turret units for deployment at every settlement we have here on Pandora.” Troy barked as he leaned forward, his over large prosthetic hand catching the edge of the table which strained under the push of his hydraulic powered grasp.

“Shall we send orders to Scrapburg as well?”

“Yes, I want a missive drafted and sent to Deimos by this afternoon.”

Lydia and Hephaestus nodded and pulled out their E-devs.

As Tyreen spoke Sloane felt Troy’s hand slip into her chair and wrap around the markings at her wrist. They had gotten good at discreetly siphoning energy in cases like this though the sting of the initial pull still caught her by surprise every time. He gave her a gentle pat when he was done, straightening back up like nothing had even happened.

“Juniper, I want the marketing and media teams working on getting anti-raider propaganda out ASAP. Remind them why they feel safe under our watch. The God-Queen would never let such tragedies befall her people.” Tyreen ordered as soon as Troy was done with his demands.

Juniper nodded. “As you wish.”

The rest of the meeting was dedicated to assigning priests to head out to the settlement to reassure the populace that they would be safe. The might of the twin gods would protect their flock forever more.

“Sloane, Troy, we have to go meet with the clan leaders to do damage control. I have one more thing to take care of on my way to the garage but I expect both of you to be loaded in my technical by the time I’m done.”

{ I will see to it Sloane gets there on time, my Queen} Agatha, Matron of the Handmaiden’s and Tyreen’s personal guard signed to the God-Queen.

“If you’re gonna escort Sloane who's coming with me?” Tyreen asked a clear look of surprise on her face that she tried her best to hide, it was easily apparent this was something she hadn’t planned for.

{Pallas will. You trust her to escort the blessed sister. She will serve you well.}

Pallas inclined her head at the mention, the blue and white mask obscured ever so slightly by her hood. {It would be an honor God-Queen}

“Yeah alright. Not sure what’s going on that I’m not privy to around here, but I trust your judgement Agatha if you think Sloane needs your protection for this I’ll take your word for it.”

Tyreen shrugged as she looked to her twin who rose to his feet and joined her as they exited the meeting room without so much as a glance back at their subordinates.

“We should be going too, Right?” Sloane questioned as she looked to the Matron Mother.

Agatha shook her head. “We will make it in good time, Blessed One. First though there is business here.”

Sloane blinked never having heard the Handmaid matron speak before, they only spoke in their cloister and Agatha was rarely ever there.

Juniper turned to look at Lydia who was stood with her ear on the door listening to the footsteps in the hall it would seem. Lydia nodded as she stepped away from the door and was the first to speak.

“I just want to start with I know how this looks, and you’re not in trouble nor are we planning treason.”

That got a chuckle out of Sloane who hadn’t even considered that every important woman in the CoV gathering together around her like this could have been cause for alarm. She was after all a Siren and no matter how innocent she seemed she could turn to murder at the drop of a hat were it her life on the line.

“We know what’s going on with you and Troy. That the two of you are moving on to something a little more official than before.” Juniper cut to the chase.

“Troy rambles a lot when he’s hanging around the Engineering bay of the Cathedral. I mean we wouldn’t tell anyone of course but it turns out Juniper already knew, and Agatha was filled in this morning.”

“It’s my job to know hun, and if I know it means she doesn’t which is better for all of us of course. “

Lydia gave a nervous laugh and Sloane looked between Juniper and Lydia as the pieces fell into place. She blushed, they knew granted it hadn’t been a slip on her part and she knew that Troy was not one to keep his mouth shut. The insinuation that she was in danger though, that pulled her out of the embarrassment and caught in her chest like someone had slipped a shard of ice between her ribs.

“Ok so you know Troy and I are seeing each other now is that a problem or something?” Sloane raised an eyebrow they had said she wasn’t in trouble but it sure seemed that they were here to look at her blossoming relationship under a microscope.

“Not on our part. Lydia, do you want to tell her? You were the closest to the victim after all.”

Lydia nodded. “I wasn’t always the second department head, Hephaestus was hired with his assistant, a man named Phillipe. When I joined the Children Phillipe became my mentor I learned most of what I know now from him. More importantly though, Phillipe and Troy were seeing each other. They were starting to get real serious too when Tyreen found out. She lost her mind about it, came storming into the Garage and grabbed him by the throat before having Agatha’s girls take him away in manacles.”

Agatha shifted nervously at the mention of what her girls were complicit in. Even though no one here thought lesser of them they had all had to do things against their better judgement in the name of the Twins.

“She executed him live during the morning sermon the next day. Said he’d stepped out of line. I became the new department head after that.”

“And Troy’s never had a serious relationship since…Then you came along.” Juniper interjected. She ran a hand through her curls and sighed. “We don’t want the same thing happening to you, which to be fair we don’t know how Tyreen would take the news. You’re not like Phillipe, you're one of them.”

“We‘re not even like ‘official’ yet. We’re just going on a few dates y’know. Are you sure this is something I should be worried about?” Sloane protested she felt a bit like a trapped animal she was still working through her feelings for Troy. While they were romantic in nature and she was willing to go on dates she had barely socialized with people. She barely knew what she was doing at all.

“I don’t think Tyreen cares much how official you are. If she feels threatened she’ll put the dots together in an order she likes and then you might as well be together anyway.”

“I appreciate you telling me this but isn’t it a bit late? I mean what do I do now I can’t just be like oh sorry Troy I’ve changed my mind the girls told me Tyreen might eat me?” Sloane asked a flash of fear ran through her mind like a cold river, she didn’t want Tyreen to be the enemy because as much as she had come to care for Troy the same could he said for the female twin as well.

“No not at all. We just want you to be safe.”

Sloane sat back for a moment to process this information she’d never had anyone but herself looking out for her back home. It was so strange to have them all care about her safety.

“We should get going, Iris will be waiting for you and Agatha, so can make it to Tyreen’s technical in time . You’re welcome to talk to any of us about anything Sloane.We might be loyal to the twins but we’re also loyal to each other.”

A soft murmur of agreement rose from the gathered women and Agatha motioned for Sloane to follow, they slipped back into their roles for the outside world once more.

She had a lot to think about, even so she couldn’t find herself afraid of Tyreen. Maybe the others had got it wrong, perhaps there was more to this story than any of them knew. Tyreen had only ever been friendly and accommodating but then again Troy had his hackles raised about Tyreen finding out too.

The twins were hardly ordinary people, then again she wasn’t particularly ordinary either. Though she was far less cagey about who she was before they came into her life and the trials she had faced since powers manifested. Even with the months of living under their roof and sleeping in their beds she was no closer to truly knowing where they came from save for the vague statements they made of not being from any of places they had taken her and they most definitely were not of Pandora.

She also knew that for a long time they were all they had and that perhaps it was this reliance on each other that led Tyreen to act in fear whenever it seemed her twin would need her no longer. Perhaps a fear that Troy would befriend people who did not like her and would try to take him away from her, effectively signing his death certificate without even knowing. There was only one way to get the answers to all this. Sloane would have to ask Tyreen directly, but now was neither the time or place so she set the idea aside for later.

—-

So lost in her thoughts was she that Sloane had scarcely realized that they’d been through wardrobe and that she’d changed into her ceremonial outfit which was a dress draped in silk flowers of all types and a floral crown that she was always worried would topple from her head despite the amount of hair pins she could feel against her scalp.

It was only when Agatha cleared her throat as she took a knee for Sloane to be boosted into the Technical that Sloane shook the mental fog and realized where they were.

“Oh of course. Thank you Agatha.” She muttered as she was boosted into the car. Troy and Tyreen sat with an empty space in the middle that was saved for her. Neither twin looked up from their echo devices as she sat herself down.

“Took you long enough.” Tyreen broke the silence though her gaze stayed fixed on the handheld computer.

“I was having trouble getting into the dress. But it’s fine now. You know how quickly Iris works.”

“Too small in the bust was it?”

Sloane caught off guard by the blasé tone of her voice and the small seemingly knowing smirk on her lips.

“We had that dress made before we had your exact measurements. I had Iris use mine and you can’t deny that you’re the more gifted one in that area.” Tyreen snorted the edges of her lips curling into a grin as the snort morphed into a cackle.

Sloane blushed and looked to Troy to come to her rescue but he too was giggling at his twins remark. She found that their laughter was infectious and she too laughed at the situation.

“Hoo man! That was too good.” Tyreen sighed as she settled down. Her hand came up and brushed her bangs out of her face.

This was the side of Twins people usually didn’t see, the side Sloane knew and relished the company of even when it came at the expense of her dignity.

—-

“It’s been a minute since we’ve been to the Ranch.” Troy remarked as he looked out the technical window. “Let’s hope the order has been taking good care of it.”

He was talking of course of the Ordo Agricola, a group of priests who had been absorbed into the Verdant Grove, her priests. Yet the twins had neglected to tell her what the Agricola protected only, that they were caretakers of the aforementioned ‘Ranch’ property. As such Sloane’s only contact with them in regards to running them so far was to insure they got their monthly shipments of supplies.

“Place was our first base on Pandora. We outgrew it eventually but Ty and I use it as a retreat still. We’re meeting the clan leaders here cos they don’t much like having to come all the way to the Cathedral and sometimes the easiest thing to do is the path of least resistance.” Troy cracked the door of the technical open startling the priest who was about to do the same thing.

The farmhouse and surrounding property was protected from the rolling dust storms by tall fortifications common in Pandoran architecture though they were notably newer than most of the ranch's buildings which were typical fair for a farm. Sloane recognized most of them from her childhood home farm on Eden-4. Those memories stung just a little bit, but they had been so long ago now, she had been a different person entirely.

Sloane was just about to ask where they were going when an excited yell went up on the other side of the vehicle.

“Jak-Knife my bro! Good to see you again.” Troy clapped the back of a masked bandit, dressed in gear splashed with bright neon colors. The two were clearly very happy to see each other.

Clearly not as subtle as she thought she had been Sloane found her gaze locked with Troy’s and he waved her over.

“Sloane c’mere I want you to meet my friend.”

Sloane approached, she hadn’t had much experience with bandits save for the few shopkeepers she spoke to on her errands in Temple Town. Troy’s general disposition around this one though eased her mind.

“Sloane, this is my good friend JK. They help us with the affairs of the locals that we might not be privy to and run security around the settlements. They don’t spend much time at the Cathedral which is why you've not crossed paths yet.” Troy explained.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you JK. That Troy speaks so highly of you I know you must have earned his respect.”

JK nodded, she could not see their eyes behind the mismatched lens of their mask but she felt as if they were seeing her as something other than herself.

A moment passed of the two of them just looking at each other before they turned to Troy and spoke in a whisper.

“Her verse in the song is not like yours. It is not like your sisters. Where did you find her?”

Troy blanched slightly clearly not expecting the question. He leaned down to better obscure the both of them “I’ll tell you later, yeah. After the meeting.”

He cleared his throat as he straightened back up.

“Anyway, JK here will be making sure you’re understanding everything that’s happening with the Clan leaders.”

“Oh my god, like hurry up you three we’re going to make fools of ourselves if we’re late!” Tyreen called from further up the road, impatiently waving a hand above her head.

The walk from the cars to the ranch house was a grueling test all on its own. The heat of the Pandoran day swept over all who dared walk the desert. The twins had informed Sloane that there would be no use of a parasol for this walk as there often was when they had to cross large swathes of desert. The clan leaders would see as much as a sign of weakness and they had promised that once they were inside she could have as much water as she wanted.

She cleared her mind and focused on the cacti scattered around the place. They could manage in such temperatures for their entire lives as could the bandits she was about to meet so what was her excuse? The heat melted away to a minor annoyance as they continued the trek.

Outside the ranch house several banners were freshly stuck in the dirt. The arriving clan members had stuck theirs into the soil before they entered the house to mark attendance. Tyreen counted them one by one seemingly making a mental note before she nodded to herself and opened the farmhouse door. The rush of the air conditioning inside the house quickly broke the cactus trance Sloane found herself under as she realized in that moment just how hot she truly was. She lifted the canteen that had been attached to her belt buckle to her lips and drained its contents before she sighed in relief, even though she knew that tapping into her powers like that meant she was at no risk of heat stroke when the trance broke it always made her feel so tired. Perhaps because it was an ability she had not used much until her time on Pandora and even so she did it sparingly, as it took an immense amount of focus to pull off.

Troy grabbed her hand abruptly, he pulled her in between himself and Tyreen. The door they approached had posted guards who looked them over before opening the door. Inside the room was simply the home's den, where one would expect couches to be instead sat a large wooden table ringed which was currently surrounded save for the head which was right where they were headed.

The people gathered around the table looked like they could snap all three Sirens in half and walk away none the wiser. They probably could and that was enough for Sloane to keep her eyes focused on the destination instead of letting them linger too long on any one of the clan leaders. Their tattoos and scars tell the story of lives carved from the roughness that Pandora gave its people, they were survivors.

“Good afternoon Venerable leaders of the Clans. My brother and I come before you today in the wake of an attack on our way of life. We-“

“That’s one way to put it God-Queen. I thought your MO was to avoid the Raiders detection at all. What was that settlement doing to attract attention like that?” One of the clan leaders, a well built and tall woman asked leaning over the table.

Tyreen’s eyes steel the way they always do when someone challenges her authority. “Moving ammunition. The same thing all of you do day in and day out. We have been particularly careful especially given the attacked settlement was so close to raider territory.”

“It won’t happen again. We’ve told Tartarus to stay in the area and we know the Raiders are afraid of the predator cities. Likewise we’re rolling out new defense turrets, your settlements will see them installed soon.” Troy cut in a scowl on his face as tapped his metal fingers against the tabletop.

“You weren’t here for the Lance. You don’t know what they did. Sure you read about it in your fancy books before you set foot on Pandora but you were here. The Raiders were made of people who defected but they still know the tactics they have no problem using our culture against us and you expect one lousy eating city to protect the greater population. You might want to get your eyes checked Troy you might be going blind.”

Chaos fell upon the meeting as leaders began talking over each other arguing about what the best course of action was.Then metal fist met the wooden table and the resulting crunch brought order back to the meeting.

“Enough! The next one of you to insult our intelligence gets their balls torn off and tossed out the window. So shut up or get up because I won’t repeat myself.” Golden fangs were bared, muscles tensed and ready to strike at the first sign of resistance.

“We meant no offense, God-king. To you or the Mother. Surely you can see why we would be up in arms after this. Your track record for keeping settlements safe has been fine up until this attack..”

A murmur of agreement rose from the crowd and the meeting began to disperse, however as one of the clan leaders walked around the back of the twins to go their guards snatched Sloane by the back of the neck like one holds a misbehaving Skag puppy.

“You really doing this Diamondfist?” Tyreen hissed which earned her a hard stare from the rugged man who had earned the name Diamondfist from the studded brass knuckles that were now on full display. “Kay, your choice.” There was a flash as Tyreen lifted her left hand and Sloane felt the grasp on her harden.

She looked down and saw the fingers around her neck had crystallized into Eridium and a sharp kick backwards sent the entire statue toppling over. She landed on the ground with a thud and pried the remaining fingers of her neck. She shivered as she flung the purple stone digits away from her, so perfectly preserved that even the fingernails were still present.

“It’s rude you know to not introduce someone who's gonna sit there and listen to us spill our secrets. Didn’t even hear a peep outta her.” Diamondfist growled as he observed the remains of his guards.

“My name is Sloane Idunna.Servant of the Twin Gods, who are you to lay such hands on me.” Sloane puffed up slightly in a bid to make herself look more intimidating despite the fact she was quivering in her boots.

“Bray Diamondfist, leader of the Diamondfist clan. You know nothing of our way of life and your God-twin handlers have sheltered you from it don’t think we don’t know that you stay cloistered away behind their walls. When the God-twins came to Pandora they started in the dirt like us all. They earned the respect of the leaders you see gathered here, just because they vouch for you and see some use in you doesn’t mean we all do. Even now they had to bail you out of this.”

“I’m… Sorry?” She tilted her head not understanding what the big fuss was.

“You should be. Words however, are hollow. You will meet me in the field outside the house and we will settle this the bandit way.” Bray stormed out of the house doors nearly flung off their hinges in his wake.

Sloane looked at the twins in confusion but it was Jak-knife who stepped up. “You will have to fight him. He will not hold back, one of you will have to die.”

“This is asinine let me handle it.”

“No Tyreen,” Troy placed his human hand on his sister's shoulder. “It has to be her. The others won’t accept her if she stands down. We knew this might happen, we had to do the same to earn their respect.”

Tyreen grumbled to herself but she knew her twin was right all they could do was have faith in Sloane.

The four of them walked out into the desert strip just outside the front door, where Bray was waiting. It felt like a scene from an old western, Sloane thought, all they needed was for a tumbleweed to slide in.

With little ceremony the man charged forward and with a flick of her wrist, a motion so well practiced she did it without thought seeds scattered from her pocket onto the sandy ground.

Vine erupted at her feet a moment later and latched onto the charging man. Her right hand lashed out and the vines responded in kind throwing Bray across the field. He kept coming though as she watched him pick himself off the ground and growl with renewed fury.

He was closing the gap faster this time and her blood was roaring in her ears. In all the fights she’d picked on Eden-4 she’d had the high ground, she had calculated her attack before she made, there was no time for that here. She was a bit too slow to dodge taking a hit to mid section that knocked her off her feet given the size disparity between them she tumbled head over heels in the sand. Troy growled from the side lines Tyreen trying her best to hold her larger twin back.

Sloane took stock of herself quickly and this time she threw herself, vines wrapping around her waist and tossing her skyward. Siren instinct took over as she got her bearings in the air and in a flash of green light her wings moth-like in appearance sprouted from her back and she turned in the air.

“This was cute, but I'm done messing around.” She hissed between gritted teeth. Below her the vines doubled and twisted around Diamondfist’s limbs. She was aware of a prodding in the back of her mind, more like an itch than anything else, A new source of plant life calling out to her and it was inside the clan leader. There was a wet tearing sound, a strangled yell, and a splash of blood as the leader of the Diamondfist clan was torn apart from the side by a thorny flowering vine unlike the ones that gripped at what remained of his limbs. The spores had just been there inside his lungs, exposure of some sort she supposed but this was interesting because she could feel them now in the people all around her. They had all been exposed, but to what.

As the adrenaline rush died down she fluttered to the ground and clutched at her side which she was aware now ached something fierce as she drew breath, broken ribs if she had to guess.

“Christ.” Troy breathed as he rushed to her “Good thing I was filming, plenty of content for the next let's flay.”

She snorted only to regret the action as it caused the pain in her side to flare up once more. Without words he scooped her up with his prosthetic.

“Get her back inside, We can get Allison air dropped to us faster than we can get back to the Cathedral.” Tyreen remarked. She bit her tongue lest she fall into a barrage of hounding the other siren for being so reckless and how that had made her feel.

It was a feeling Tyreen only experienced when Troy was injured, only there was something more behind it, she had found the nature sirens display of power beautiful and she wanted to shower her with praise between berating her for the carelessness. Now was not the time though there were more pressing matters to attend to.

As she watched Troy carry Sloane back into the house and she reached for her echo phone to call Allison, only one thought roiled inside her head. Sloane was the most beautiful creature she had ever seen and she wanted to make Sloane hers.

[witchcraft-in-wonderland]

Circus of Carelessness (Pt.2)

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

"What'd you mean? You saw both of us last night didn't you?" Remy said, tilting his head slightly.

"Nope, never met you in my life," Virgil replied, tapping his fingers on the table in front of him. Remy's face fell slightly behind his glasses.

"Well I uh, sorry for bothering you," he said, looking down slightly before walking away.

Virgil sat at his booth, giving out fortunes and talking to the occasional decent costumer.

That night there was no sign of Remy or Remus, so Virgil walked to Drew's cabin alone, took his pills, and fell asleep.

The circus was busy today, spring break had started and parents wanted an excuse to tire their children out before they got to much energy. Virgil didnt mind, he'd sing and dance for the children before showing them card tricks and giving out fortunes. He'd watch their tiny little faces light up with awe at the sparkles and ribbons and showmanship of his act.

But today, today was different. There were children, yes, but there were lots of men in suits and glasses and hats.

One of them approached Virgil's booth, a man with brown eyes that glinted yellow in the light and his hat covering the side of his face.

"Mr. . ." The man stopped to look for a sign of identification.

"Whitlock," Virgil offered.

"Whitlock, yes, I believe you remember me from yesterday? I asked about those two boys?" Said the man, showing Virgil the picture of Remy and Remus.

"I dont recognize them, and I don't recognize you, and I'd appreciate if you'd leave me alone," Virgil said.

"Very well, but I do have a few questions for you first," said the man.

"Fine, ask me your questions," Virgil said, crossing his arms and propping his boots up on the table.

"Can you tell me what your day here usually looks like?" Asked the man, there was a slight glint in his eyes.

"Well I wake up, then I get ready to come here and give out fortunes, then I do aerial performances in the main show, then I come back here, then I go home and take my pills and the Ring Master or one of my uncles takes me back to my cabin to sleep," Virgil said, as though he'd told this story a thousand times.

The man raised an eyebrow at him "And what kinds of pills are you taking?" He asked.

"Anti-depressants, birth control, anxiety medication, and sleeping pills," Virgil stated.

The man's eyes went wide "what do these sleeping pills look like exactly?" He pressed.

"They're sort of a pinkish color, I put them in my water before I take any of my other meds and I use that water to take them," Virgil said.

"Can you tell me more about these uncles of yours? How many are there? Where do they come from?" The man said.

"Oh they're not really my uncles, I just call them that because it's easier than learning there names, they've been helping the current Ring Master and his father take care of me since I got dropped here when I was seven," Virgil said, pausing to take a breath "they dont do much, they're in the shows of course but they mostly work as clowns or do the concession stands, though sometimes there'll be uncles that come from somewhere else," he finished.

"And what about this memory loss of yours, do you know what might be causing that?" Said the man.

"Its probably an ADHD or anxiety thing, isnt memory loss supposed to be common with those?" Virgil responded.

The man merely nodded and walked away. A few moments later Drew had run up to Virgil's booth, yelling at him about talking to people who were clearly not to be trusted and asking what all he told them.

That night Drew wasnt at his cabin, instead three of Virgil's uncles had come to visit him, Virgil took his pills and he went to bed, closing his eyes and hoping whatever was going on would be over by tomorrow.

It was about three in the morning when a chorus of sirens broke out over the cabins and tents. Virgil jolted awake, pulling his sleeping mask off and peaking through the window. He barely had time to register what was going on before he felt an arm around his waist, and felt something slip over his mouth. He tried to struggle against it, but he was much to tired at that point.

He woke up in a place he didnt recognize, laying on a cot in a dark room. He sat up and looked around, all that was there was a closet containing his work costume, his binder, a few t-shurts, and a few jeans; as well as a table with a lamp on it, a bookshelf, and a chair.

Virgil stood up and walked to the door, pulling on it in an attempt to get it to open.

"That wont work," the voice of the man from earlier sounded from under the door.

"Where am I! I havent done anything wrong! Let me out!" Virgil said, banging his fist on the door.

"You're not in jail, you're being kept here for your safety, the Ring Master of your circus, Drew Clairmont, as well as these uncles you've referenced, have been making and distributing illegal drugs, those things you call 'sleeping pills' are actually memory altering, and meant to make you forget specific occurrences, it's likely that these uncles were there to tell you exactly who and what to forget before you woke up," Virgil stepped back from the door, eyes wide.

"You'll be here for a few weeks, it seems as though you've had them in your system for nearly fifteen years, much longer than the other members of your circus," said the man.

"So what's going to happen when I get out? Huh? Where are you gonna take me?" Virgil said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Once you're better you'll have free range of Remy and Remus' house, they've offered to let you stay for as long as you need," said the man.

"I dont remember who those are!" Virgil said, he was shaking, his legs felt numb.

"Let me handle this Jan," Remy's voice sounded from beside the door. The door opened and he stepped inside, taking Virgil's hands in his own.

"Follow my breathes Virgil, you're going to be ok, we're going to help you," Remy said, Virgil merely listened for his breathing patterns, watched his chest rise and fall and followed along.

"There we go, now it's late, you should get back to bed," Remy drowned Virgil's protests out with soft whispers as he lay him back onto the bed, running his fingers through Virgil's soft hair, singing quiet lullabies until Virgil was fast asleep.

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

Tag list:

@meowthefluffy

@thecolorfulolive

@spooky-scary-virgil

@youtuberswithalex

@misunderstoodshadowling

@nerosdayinhell

@fangirlfiles1

[simply-ellas-stuff]

My thoughts on Zack Snyder's Justice League because I watched it

The opening sequence, bc even tho the repeated scream audio was stuipid this opening was better

The new meeting between batman and Aquaman - that drawing on the wall in the og was unnecessary

Diana's extra badassery

The design of Stephen Wolf, because now he actually looks scaryish

The Queens emotions about losing her sisters of Themyscira - QUEENS DON'T JUST SEND THEIR PEOPLE INTO BATTLE EMOTIONLESSLY THESE SCENES WERE NEEDED - FUCK

THE BIGGER WITH IN THEMYSCIRA WHY THE FUCK DID THEY CUT THAT OUT?! - oh right, its because the previous director is sexist as fuck,

Stephen Wolf's Daddy Issues because that's fucking hilarious

Bruce explaining his want to find everyone bc of his promise

The close up on the fly things because that actually made it scary

THE FUCKING LIGHTING CEREMONY IN THEMESCERIA HOLY MOTHER FUCKING SHIT

Diana's extra badassery after getting the Arrow because WHY THE FUCK WAS THAT CUT?! This explains SO MUCH about how Diana knows SO MUCH about a time she wasn't alive in and I have NO FUCKING CLUE why it was cut!?

Arthur Curry is a Stripper - Confirmed!

Arthur and his trainer talking, but idfk why they kept the bubble thing Although I do like that they clarify that it's not just Mera who can do that bubble thingy

The scene between Stephen Wolf and the stone-wall dude person was cool and it explained why Stephen Wolf was so desperate

Zeus, Ares, and Artemis prepped for battle along with Poseidon in the flashback was FUCKING AWESOME!!! Diana's Aunt as well, the shows of the Green Lanterns, and the ring returning to the planet [Although they should've named Artemis, bc she can easily be mistaken for Athena - Also; Artemis' roman equivalent in the goddess Diana ]

Darkseid being in the flashback, which explains a lot

The Gods vs Darkseid was FUCKING AWESOME

Barry's awkward rambling after running into Iris

ALSO IRIS FUCKING WEST!!!

The Big Belly Burger Reference, nicely done

My dad says Iris' car is beautiful

BARRY SAVED IRIS BITCHES

The slow-mo crash gave me anxiety

My dad says, "I know you got all the time in the world but c'mon this is ridiculous" about that scene then "That beautiful car..."

THE SCENE WITH STEPHEN WOLF AND THE ALTLANTIAN MAKES EVERYTHING MAKE SO MUCH MORE SENSE BECAUSE HOW THE FUCK DID STEPHEN WOLF KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THE MOTHER BOX IN ATLANTIS

Do. Not. Make. Diana. And. Bruce. Romantic. Don't. Fucking. Do. It.

The use of slow-mo is kind of redundant

Victor being fucking AMAZING even tho he's getting in trouble at school

Victor and Mama's discussion gives some life to the 2-Dlike Cyborg from the og movie, WHY THE FUCK WAS IT CUT?!

Victor's inner-world where he's still fully human

Barry being sarcastic as fuck towards his father lmfao

"Very attractive Jewish boy"

The reference to Grodd YAAAAAAAS

I still hate that Barry's lightning is blue and not red

The explanation of the Speedforce and Snacks

"What are your super powers again?" "I'm Rich" Still one of the best lines

I love Diana's shirt in the scene with Alfred

"Looks like you have a date, Ms. Prince" lmfao - Unless his name is Steve, I doubt it

I feel like Victor and Diana would be a good brother/sister duo, ngl

Burying the fucking box at your mothers grave was the stupidest shit I have ever fucking seen Victor.

COMMISIONER GORDON HELL YES

Barry's utter fail at being normal around Diana

The underwater click-like dolphin speak was cool, but still kinda dumb knowing that later Aquaman speaks underwater just fine - ngl

Nice Liquidkinetics, Mera. Amber you're still a cunt.

Also, Mera says her parents died - Wasn't her father alive in Aquaman??

Victor seeing the bat-signal explains how he knew how to find them, honest

The badass entry of Bruce, Diana, and Barry makes me laugh

Barry is far too close to Bruce

Victor scared Barry LMFAOOOO

If Victor's father is the head of STAR Labs where the fuck is Harrison Wells?????

THEY LEFT BARRY BEHIND, ASSHOLES

Diana's annoyance at Barry running ahead is such a Mom thing

Stephen using the bug thing makes SO MUCH MORE SENSE

Diana trying to make a plan and it getting ruined fits with the exasperated Mom theme she's got going on.

THE SONG HEN DIANA GOES AGAINST STEPHEN WOLF, THE FUCKING VOCALS ALONG MAKE ME HYPE AS SHIIIIIIIIT

"I Belong To No One" I FUCKING LOVE IT

HEEEEEEEEELL of a push Barry lmfaooo

"Thank you Alfred" "Don't mention it" Mans is bored of your shit

"Sword Lady" LMFAOOOOOOO

Diana's x-move thing against Stephen Wolf YAAAAAAAAS BITCH

Diana saving Barry's ass - Accurate!

Victor taking over the Crawler makes more sense this way, honest

OKAY YOU AN ACTUALLY SEE AQUAMAN IN THE WATER AND IT MAKES IT MAKE SO MUCH MORE SENSE

That jump onto the crawler was smooth as fuck Diana!

Stephen Wolf getting visions from the boxes also explains a lot about some shit

"I know the requirements, I wrote them" Suuuuuuubtle lmfaoo

Victor brining the box them also fits better

Why is this Stone looking mother fucker speaking Latin?

Hello Darkseid, you look particularly dramatic this evening

Victor's explaining how he knows about the box makes a lot of sense, why was this cut again??

Actually explaining the fucking Mother Box was Helpful

Mrs. Kent and Lois having a heart to heart holy shiiiit

Martha talking about how Clark's death was drowned out by Superman's - wooow

WHAT THE FUCK IS WITH MARTHA'S EYES IS THAT J'ONN J'ONZZ?! THATS THE MARTIAN MANHUNTER HOLY FUCK IT'S J'ONN J'ONZZ

Ironic that Ezra-Flash's hero is Superman while Grant Gustin's hero is superman lmfao

Diana and Arthur chatting was cute, the quote was awesome and the Atlantians totally copped that quote from the Amazonians

Alfred being a sarcastic fuck is my favorite

Alfred being the voice of reason, as always

Arthur helping Barry pick a hat is AMAZING

Diana telling the boys to change, mom or big sister?? lmfaoo

Barry's social awkwardness gives me second hand embarrassment

This little infiltration arc makes SO MUCH more fucking sense

Every one being suited up and triggering the alarm is amazing

Mr. Stone fucking trusting his son is my faaaaaavorite

THE SUITS ACTIVATED AND CAME OUT WHEN CLARK WAS MOVED PAST THEM DUDE WTF

IS LOIS PREGNANT?!?!?!

Barry looks like he's about to throw up

BARRY HAS ALREADY TIME TRAVELLED THAT LINE SHOULDVE BEEN KEPT IN

Arthur being antsy about not doing the resurrection makes so much sense

VICTOR SEEING A POSSIBLE FUTURE IS THE BEST SHIT

I love vision-Diana's Norse burial

EVIL VISION-SUPERMAN DUDE CMON

THE MISUNDERSTANDING MAKES THIS WORSE AND BETTER AT THE SAME TIME

HE REVERSED TIME WHEN HE RESURRECTED SUPERMAN WHAAAAAAAAT

The Military arriving was a sensible addition

The fancy ass dramatic ass arrival of Aquaman, Wonder Woman, Flash, and Cyborg when Superman gets to the monument is hilarious

Victor loosing control is the woooooorst

The Lasso of Truth almost got through to him but he's a stubborn fuck

Superman functioning in Flashtime is something I will never understand

Yeah lets shoot at the guy whose indestructible, right

"you should probably move" LMFAOOOO

Batman v. Superman part 2 insert eye roll here

headbutts like children - and that's cheating on the playground Clark.

Heat vision makes so much more sense than "do you bleed?"

Lois coming in cluuuuutch

I like Lois' appearance better than Alfred bringing her, it fits Lois better

Arthur and Barry now have rivalry lmfaooo

Mr. Stone being obsessed with the mother box is annoying as fuck

Mr. Stone is an idiot and he should've fucking left the box alone

That was a horrible death why was that necessary?!

Arthur being a pessimist in this movie is honestly hilarious, tho why is he anti-love??

Barry being surprised at Batman's richness is never not funny

"I'll take that as a yes" okay Clark, don't show off

IS LOIS PREGNANT OR NOT?!

"Its really me Ma" Best scene of the whole fucking movie

Barry and Arthur heart-to -heart "I thought you didn't car" "I never said that" BUILD THIS FRIENDSHIP

BRUCE TELLS DIANA OF THE VISION

Bruce talking about faith never bodes well

THE QUEEN LOOKS BEAUTIFUL

"uh with the power of love" "Barry" LMFAOOOOOO

THE KRYPTONIAN SUITS LOOK AMAZING

Since when does Superman have Geokinesis??

I LOVE HOW BOTH OF HIS FATHERS ARE TALKING TO HIM I FUCKING LOVE IT

THE SUIT UP SCENE ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME IT LOOKS AWESOME

"just have to knock a little louder" Well, that's one way to knock Bruce

Nice crash boy

Straight up sounded like "Loud and queer" lmfaoooo

Diana leading the teeeeeeeaaaam Hell Yes!

I do miss the "I think we're all gonna die" lasso-Arthur scene tho. it was stupid - but funny.

DIANA COMING IN FOR THAT SLICE AND DICE BAYBEEEEY

THE TEAM SHOOOOT YES totally taken from Marvel but fuck did it look good

"you really are out of your mind" says the idiot who talks to fish

"not done yet" vs "your welcome" I like the second one better

Glorious hair Arthur lmfaoo

Fucking chair eject

NICE SHISH-KA-BOB ARTHUR FUCK

Alfred doesn't even fucking blink when Clark arrives

ARTHURS TRIDENT DOES THE WAVY THING ON LAND TOO BROOOO

Oh yeah, step back for the demi-god princess

DONT PISS OFF DIANA AND DO NOT USE HER FAMILY TO FUCK WITH HER IT NEVER ENDS WELL

The familiar flash buildup power ring will never not make me happy

Daaaaaayum Diana!!

Nice catch Arthur

Diana knows her mother and sisters are alive bc they sent the arrow to her, so why is he even trying it??

NICE SAVE SUPERMAN!!

"Not impressed" Smooooooth

THAT FINAL BATTLE IS FUCKING AWESOME

TIME TRAVEL

BADASS DIANA WITH THAT DEPCAPITATION

You sent Today at 5:44 PM

Them all standing there was straight up "Fuck with us, I dare you"

The epilogue was great but that dream was confusing, are we doing Alt-universe shit??

MARTIAN MOTHER FUCKING MANHUNTER BITCHEEEEEEEEEEZZ

IS LOIS PREGNANT OR NOT?!

[mst3kproject]

Exo-Man

Failed series pilots were very much part of MST3K’s stock in trade.  We’ve sat through San Francisco International, Stranded in Space, Code Name: Diamond Head and I’m sure there were others.  I generally recall all of those movies being kind of dull and lacking in personality, and I can’t imagine this 70’s superhero mess being much better.  I don’t think anybody in Exo-Man was ever on MST3K but Jose Ferrer (the first Latino actor to win an academy award, for 1950’s Cyrano de Bergerac) was once in a movie called Zoltan, Hound of Dracula, which I am deeply remiss in not having seen yet.  You may also recognize Harry Morgan, who was Colonel Potter on M*A*S*H.

Dr. Nick Conrad is a wacky physics professor of the type nobody has ever encountered in real life.  He’s somehow both smart enough to invent anti-gravity and memory plastic, and stupid enough to chase after a fleeing would-be bank robber.  The latter stunt, set to wakka-chicka Mitchell music, makes Nick the target of a mafia assassin, who kills his lab assistant and leaves Nick himself paralyzed from the waist down.  He wallows in self-pity for a while, but then rediscovers his passion for invention and builds himself a suit of armor that will allow him to walk again… and to take on the mob single-handedly.

I don’t know why they called the movie Exo-Man.  That name is never used in the dialogue.  I guess the more accurate Fiberglass Avenger just wouldn’t have sounded as cool.

The first thing you’re likely to notice from the plot summary is that Nick’s story starts off as Dr. Strange and then takes a hard left into Iron Man.  I’m pretty sure the latter at least was an intentional ripoff, with bits of the first thrown in, knowingly or not, to distance Exo-Man from Marvel’s lawyers. What’s funny is that posterity has actually made it a hat trick: the movie opens with a weirdly homoerotic jogging scene, so now he gets to be Captain America, too!

Exo-Man is a really stupid, often boring, and consistently ugly movie.  The actors are mediocre, the music bland, the effects terrible, and stuff is made to look ‘high tech’ by sticking lots of blinky lights on it.  Way too much time passes before we get to the action and when we do, we find a deep pit of disappointment.  Yet at the same time… I kind of enjoyed it.

A major part of why has got to be the incredibly dopey super-suit the main character wears, which looks less like ‘Iron Man’ and more like ‘Fiberglass Commando Cody’.  It moves really slowly and I doubt the guy in the costume can see very much.  Nick controls the bottom half of it using switches on one sleeve, which appear to have simple functions like ‘sit’, ‘walk’, and ‘jump’ (there is, of course, no ‘run,’ because nothing happens fast in this movie). He puts the thing on by lying down in what looks like a tanning bed (or maybe one of those contraptions from Avatar).  My personal favourite is the warning light labeled malfuntion.

All this is in a movie that sometimes manages to be surprisingly subtle.  We are introduced to Nick while jogging, we watch him play tennis with his girlfriend, and see him maintain this exercise regime even while he’s supposed to be under police protection.  These shots are in brilliant sunshine, and the camerawork is as active as the subjects. Post-injury, Nick never outwardly complains about his inability to participate in sports, but we now see him sitting in his wheelchair in dark surroundings, with the camera held perfectly still.  We feel that he has lost something he loved dearly, and we never need to be told it outright.

We are also introduced to Nick as somebody who is devored to furthering minorities.  His two lab assistants are an east Asian student and a Jewish one (the latter identified as such by a surname, rather than appearance), and the reason he was at the bank was to help a Latino student get a loan.  Again, the script trusts the audience to get this without having to draw attention to it through dialogue.  These minority characters are, of course, still just accessories to Nick’s story. The Jewish guy in particular is there to be fridged – its his death that leads to Nick flaunting his police protection and getting hurt.  But the effort was made to say that minority rights are important to Nick, without hitting us over the head with it.

Theme-wise, Exo-Man is about a man coming to terms with a disability.  I should preface this by saying that I am not disabled, so my perspective is necessarily biased.  If anything I say below is offensive, that is out of ignorance, and please let me know so that I may edit or delete the review and do better next time.  I was actually pretty impressed by how the script and director handled the life-changing nature of Nick’s injury… mostly.  I’ll start with the bad stuff.

The attack on Nick comes with a heaping helping of victim blaming.  As an important witness in the bank robbery, he was offered police protection.  The assassin tries to get around this by putting a bomb in his car, but one of the lab assistants borrows the car for a late-night pizza run, and gets killed in Nick’s stead.  This leads Nick to deliberately place himself in a vulnerable position, hoping to draw the killer out for capture and punishment.  In the hospital with a broken back, Nick blames the police for failing to protect him, but I’m pretty sure the movie wants us to think that this is really Nick’s own fault.  Like the tragic accident victims in Days of our Years, he has nobody to blame for his own misery, or that of his loved ones, except himself.

After that, however, the movie’s treatment of Nick’s disability improves quickly.  His girlfriend Emily leaves him, but that’s not because he’s in a wheelchair, it’s because he’s too busy wallowing in self-pity to even let her into his apartment. Later when he apologizes to her, she takes him back and they resume their happy relationship, and the fact that they can’t play tennis together anymore is not an issue.  She does not treat him as something to be pitied, she speaks to him on his eye level, and they avoid that weird trope of having the abled partner sit in the wheelchair-user’s lap.  Emily loves who Nick is, not what he can do.  His colleagues and students, likewise, treat him with respect and help him with his chair, and never make the latter feel like a burden.

By the end of the film Nick has come to terms with his disability.  The suit he’s built is not a cure for his condition: in fact the first time he wears it out, it breaks down and he needs help getting back to his high-tech armored van.  It’s a tool he has built for a purpose, and he doesn’t feel the need to wear it in non-superhero situations.  Based on what we see, he could have built a legs-only version to wear under his trousers and let him go jogging and play tennis again, but that is no longer who Nick is.  And when and whether to wear the suit is always Nick’s own choice, not something imposed on him from the outside.

Of course, it would also be really helpful in later maintaining Exo-Man’s secret identity, and I suspect the writers were thinking of that a lot more than they were of things like parents forcing questionable ‘cures’ on disabled children.  The secret identity probably would have been a big deal if the pilot had sold, but in this stand-alone story, I thought the suit worked well as a metaphor about a disabled man at peace with himself.

Exo-Man also takes a quick little peek at the morality of vigilante justice, although this comes in pretty late and clearly isn’t something they wanted to get into in any detail.  The first person Nick confronts in the suit is the assassin who actually beat him up. He says he didn’t go into this encounter with any real plan… perhaps he just wanted to scare the guy.  What ultimately happens is that the assassin climbs a drainpipe to get away from the terrifying robot man, the pipe comes off the wall, and the man falls to his death.  Nick feels this is his fault, and so the next time he takes the suit out he does so with a particular goal in mind: he wants to capture the mob boss and provide evidence of his wrongdoing to the police, not to kill anyone.

The mob boss’ name, by the way, is Kermit Haas, which is probably the least intimidating name a movie has ever given to its big bad.

Would that work?  Is evidence a guy in a robot suit left in your dumpster for you admissible in court?  Isn’t where stuff was found kind of important?  I honestly have no idea and I’m not sure how to go about finding out.  People might wonder why I want to know and I don’t think saying it’s for my blog would allay their suspicions.

At the end of Exo-Man, I was more entertained than not, but mostly on the level of laughing at the dumb-looking suit and appreciating the fine art of ripping off comic book characters.  If that’s your kind of thing then this movie ought to put the fun in malfuntion for you. If that’s not your thing, well… this is an MST3K blog.  What are you doing here?

[princesssarcastia]

a veronica mars leverage au, i guess, because what else should i be doing with my life?

*deep sigh*

So I was thinking about the mechanics of a veronica mars leverage au—as in, veronica mars characters in a leverage like set-up, because the leverage setup is the golden standard™ of like, the known universe.

you have veronica mars, mastermind; the rest of the crew being made up of wallace, mac, logan, and weevil.  and mac is obviously the hacker.

but I also think that, in this au, the roles won’t be so clear cut.  the problem is that in veronica mars, all of these characters (except mac, who is an archetype) display different skills from each of the five defined roles in the leverage universe: hitter, hacker, grifter, thief, mastermind. 

veronica is a mastermind, sure, but she also makes killer fake IDs and breaks into systems like hardison does and is a hell of a grifter.

weevil can throw down, and lift things like a thief, and even pull one over on someone in a grifter-like fashion. and as head of the PCHers he has some definitive mastermind tendencies; he knows how to plan a fight, and a con.

wallace is more of a solid dude than a member of the criminal element, but when veronica needs him, he’s played roles like a grifter and pulled off lifts like a thief.

logan has a talent for violence, but also can lie like he breathes and put on shows to convince the best of them.

really i guess they all just have a little grifter in them.

if I had to had to had to give them all definitive leverage archetypes, though, it would be veronica: mastermind, logan: hitter, Weevil: thief, wallace: grifter, and of course, mac: hacker.

veronica is the mastermind because she knows all of them best, knows what they can do; because she’s capable of putting all the moving pieces together into one perfect plan; but also because she’s a control freak with maaaajior trust issues.  there’s no way she could ever let anyone else be in charge.

logan is the hitter because he’s just got that underlying current of violence about him at all times, but also because my absolute favortie scenes of his are when he’s being protective of veronica.  not that end of season three bullshit, mind you, but like the scene in season one when he rescues her from the federal agent, or the scene in season two when he bluffs his way into and out of the irish mob’s territory with an unloaded gun to save veronica.  make him the hitter and we get breathtaking violence from him, sure.  but we also get to see logan at his best: giving a damn about the well-being of others. 

weevil is the thief because this guy is smooth.  he pulled the heist at the carnival brilliantly in s2; and he stole that pen from the Kane household in s1 successfully even though the police arrested him and catalogued everything on his person, including the pen. it’s a bit of a square peg in a round hole, but I feel like he;d have comfortable knowledge of security systems and guard rotations and police jurisdictions.

wallace is the grifter because i’ve noticed that a lot of the times he asks veronica for advice on how to do stuff, its grift-related.  “how do I seduce the fake head cheerleader?” for example.  and he pulls some short term grifts for her, like when he infiltrates the silicon mafia at SD State.  also he’s got the best innate knowledge of who people are and what they’re like.  yeah, veronica can pull people apart, but Wallace is just good with them in a way she isn’t.  and also he’s got the most emotional maturity out of any of these basket cases.

mac is the hacker because she’s god’s gift to computers, duh.

what I really want, though; what any good leverage AU is an excuse to do, is to make a found family out of these losers.  imagine if these five people all...trusted and loved each other, in addition to liking one another??  i’m drooling just thinking about it.

I also think that, ironically enough, being righteous criminals in constant close contact would work wonders for veronica and logan’s relationship, lbr.  if veronica is mastermind-ing their cons, she doesn’t have to wonder what logan—or any of her other friends, for that matter—are doing, and go a little crazy to find out.  it’s an outlet for her control-freak-trust-issues.

aaaand if logan is their hitter/muscle, it’s literally his job to protect everyone, including veronica.  violently, if necessary. 

plus, they can both work out their paranoia on things that aren’t each other—cause it’s not paranoia if they’re really out to get you.

the best episodes always involved Veronica pulling her friends into cons with her; VM the show is already only a hop-skip-and-a-jump away from leverage, anyway!  solving mysteries, sure, but also getting revenge, retrieving items, getting even...providing leverage.

like, seriously.

Veronica and Wallace effortlessly pulling a grift out of their asses when they’re caught in a sticky situation, using that emotional drift comparability in their brOTP.

Mac, getting the respect and cash she deserves for finding information and recovering hard drives and also, giving her righteous side some room to move.

Logan and Weevil sniping at each other, maybe having not-so-faux fights as distractions or part of a con— but having each other’s backs.  playing partners in macho stoicism even though we all know they’re softies sometimes.

Wallace and Mac, standing to the side as exasperated captains of the maturity and stability team while Logan and Veronica share a dumpster fire.

Veronica and Weevil doing that thing, you know, where they’re kind of flirting and kind of pulling one over on their audience and pulling each other out of messes.

Wallace, prince among men, getting to play the handsome and charming credit to his gender he is.  imagine, if you will, him pulling honey-trap cons on marks like sophie deveraux did.  i am and it’s delightful.

the worst part about canon!VM is how much they all (veronica.  largely veronica) tore one another down; betrayed people; didn’t trust them; hurt them; expected the worst and got it in self-fulfilling bullshit.  imagine if all of that went away and then write it for me pleeeaaaseee

i’ve been brainstorming and like, there’s two paths you could go.  one is a complete graft to the leverage fusion, in which they never actually went to high school together but instead are professional criminals who all grew into their own on their own and came together.  in this path, we’d come in on our anti-heroes already in the thick of it—or at least, having deep histories together that allow them to trust one another right away.

the other is like, veronica falls to the “dark side” in high school and drags them all with her, handing out black hats as she goes. perhaps in a world where Aaron Echolls gets acquitted and Duncan Kane does not have an assassin at the ready to avenge his sister outside the law, where Veronica literally can’t sleep at the thought of him out there.  a world where Logan and Weevil have that same insomnia, and Mac and Wallace care about Veronica enough to help. 

and maybe it starts out as just a way to get new evidence so a judge can declare a retrial and get Aaron convicted; but ohhh, Aaron Echolls is not a man who can leave well enough alone.  He’s a rich, powerful, attention seeking mother fucker who likes to taunt logan and veronica about what he did to lily.  so even though it’s not Duncan paying for him to get assassinated, the end result is the same: Aaron dead as a doornail, like he deserves.

Maybe it’s a fake suicide, like Veronica planned out for her criminology course, the literal perfect crime.  Maybe he gets murdered and dumped on Lamb’s doorstep with an audio recording of him confessing—edited by Mac, of course, to make sure Veronica and Logan’s parts in the charade weren’t included.

also i’d like to think that, in this world where they wear black hats to better play white knights, Veronica and Logan have just...the best-worst reputation.  Yeah, they melt around each other, but ho-ly shit they’re still lethal—especially if you put one in danger.   Maybe Logan’s got a reputation as an attack dog, and maybe Veronica’s got a reputation as holding his leash, and maybe they’ve proven they’re willing to do anything to keep each other safe.  Maybe, they made a deal, a long time ago when they started out: Veronica gets to get into anything she wants, whatever crusade is currently pushing her buttons, as long as she brings Logan along to protect her. 

their story is epic, after all.

anyway! In Conclusion, tl;dr, someone please stop me from having veronica mars feelings, and if leverage could please stop being the best found family ever, that would probably help.

[thebladeblaster]

Pokémon: the Vanguard Descends The Movie: Celebi Lost In Time (part 1)

Aichi’s current team

???

???

???

???

???

???

Many years ago Arceus foretold that his messiah would appear as the offspring of Gin Gaillard…

“Subject 003v. The human to Pokémon ratio in his dna is perfect. As well the programming has been perfectly calibrated to account for his power. As for his power he is far stronger than our previous two successes in project Psyqualia.”, Ryuzu said.

Gin touched the tube with his hand looking at his recently born son: A familiar blue haired boy with blue eyes. He looked back at his father.

“003v is the one who will fulfill our ambition. The perfect life form who will allow us to finally take over the world and defeat that infernal god, Arceus. You understand right my son?”, Gin said, smirking.

However, much to the terror of the world and the mistake of Arceus he told Gin this. Thus Gin decided to take control of destiny and the messiah. Instead of being Arceus’s avatar to fulfill his will he turned him into his avatar to fulfill his will upon the world, Team Asteroid ultimate weapon, the strongest creation of project Psyqualia, the ultimate despair, the anti-messiah, 003v...

Emi rode as fast as she could on the back of a Galarian Rapidash. She looked a bit older than she should be, looking more in her teens. By her side flew a girl with vibrant red hair and red cat-like eyes. She wore a yellow and orange dress with a big yellow hat and red shoes. She had glowing white angelic wings. Riding upon a Corvknight by their side was a shadowed figure and weirdly Suiko.

They flinched as they heard explosions in the background they hurried as fast as they could through the greenery.

“Come on Kai, Miwa, Kamui, Kyou, *static*! You’ve gotta buy us the time we need!”, the figure grumbled.

“Your fools if you think you have anytime without Team Asteroid’s permission.”, they all froze and paled in fear as they heard a familiar voice.

Descending down in front of them covered in a murky dark blue aura and rainbow spirals in his eyes was none other than 003v. Like Emi he looked a bit older for some reason. He wore a long black general-like coat lined with red. The side of the shoulders had a yellow part hanging off. Underneath was some sort of white zipped up top. He wore grey pants and long white boots. He had a belt similar to his father’s with a red A. His arms were crossed, his expression had a bit of annoyance and exasperation. He simply raised his pointer finger sending a blast of energy that stopped their mounts and the flying girl in their tracks, a dark blue aura and two intersecting rings surrounded them, binding them. The rings were pitch black with an ominous red along the edge.

“Absolute lock!”, 003v said as he binded the girl and the other Pokémon.

“Stop this 003v!”, Emi pleaded as 003v turned his gaze to her, his expression looking a bit softer when he looked over to her.

“I should be telling you the same thing Emi. Seriously rebelling like this? It must be another teenage phase. Come on, it’s time to come home Emi.”, 003v replied as he rubbed the back of his head.

“Stop treating me like this is simply a phase! Team Asteroid isn’t protecting anyone! It’s merely an authoritarian power controlling the world!”, Emi replied, very red.

003v nearly scoffed at this.

“Wait, but he’s here does that mean he…?”, Suiko questioned.

“Oh, yes your so-called god is dead. You know, for the battle that had been hyped up my whole life it was rather disappointing.”, 003v answered smugly.

They all looked completely horrified.

“You killed Arceus!? You're supposed to be the messiah! The one who was supposed to bring peace to the world! How could you!?”, the winged girl questioned.

“I have brought peace to the world. Ever since I enabled Team Asteroid’s take over of the world there had been no wars, disasters, or conflict. Not until you tricked my sister and tried to mess everything up.”, 003v replied with his voice full of venom, glaring at the winged girl.

His presence that had been restrained before was leaking out. They felt themselves choking from his oppressive aura. It made them feel like bowing and groveling for forgiveness at his feet. If they had weaker wills they would be doing so. It was so impossibly strong and seemingly infinite that they shook. They knew internally that no being could defeat this monster, but they tried anyway.

“Hey idiot! Can’t you get it through your thick skull that you’re on the bad guy side!?”, the shadowed figure said as he got in front of 003v dismounting the Corviknight.

003v completely ignored him as if he wasn’t even there focusing his attention on Emi. The shadow figure growled at this enraged that he was being ignored like this. He raised his fist and Suiko looked very panicked.

“*static* I don’t think that’s a good idea! You’ll only piss him off!”, Suiko warned.

The figure didn’t listen, punching 003v which was also ignored. He threw a punch and heard a loud crackle as his fist bent at an unnatural angle and blood tripped from it. He fell to his knees howling in pain clutching his fist.

“*static*!”, All of them minus 003v and the figure cried out.

003v looked completely unfazed by this, single mindedly focused on Emi. The figure growled throwing out a master ball revealing the seed of destruction; Yveltal. 003v still didn’t seem to care, even with the destruction legendary right next to him. He simply didn’t fear it or seemingly anyone or anything else. What should an ultimate life form have to fear?

“I’ll keep this bastard at bay!”, the shadowed figure said.

This made 003v break into uncontrollable laughter.

“Oh so you can hear me you bastard! Grieon use oblivion wing!”, the figure ordered angrily.

“You think you’ll stop me. That’s cute. You people never learn do you?”, 003v replied.

Emi took this chance to slip by paling as 003v was hit by the red light shot by the legendary, only to look untouched. The others remaining gaped in disbelief as 003v stood in the crater created by the destruction Pokémon‘a attack unfazed. He casually looked over his coat.

“Dang. You couldn’t even ruffle my coat, this is going to be so boring.”, 003v groaned.

“You arrogant prick! Oblivion wing!”, the shadowed figure replied as Grieon fire at him again.

They gasped as 003v walked through the blast like it wasn’t even there.

“Man you're so weak. I’ll just have Imaginary Plane deal with you so I can pick up Emi.”, 003v said, talking as if the legendary was merely a minor inconvenience.

003v threw out a Poké ball revealing a Haxorus who smiled sinisterly at Grieon.

“Not her!”, the winged girl called out.

003v turned his back to leave as the Haxorus fired scales at the legendary. Grieon raises up its wings in defense. Loud bangs could be heard as the scales bombarded Grieon’s wings.

“Arceus was wrong about you! You're not the messiah! Your pure evil the opposite to the messiah! The anti-messiah!”, the winged girl yelled venting all her frustrations in tears.

003v just smirked at this.

“As I said before I am the messiah. I brought peace to the world as Arceus desired.”, 003v replied, holding out one of his hands and gesturing with it.

“You're so brainwashed you can’t tell the difference between right and wrong! What you’ve done subjugating the entire world! Taking away everyone’s choice! Having them live in fear! That’s wrong! ”, the winged girl yelled.

“Pfft. I’m brainwashed, sure. Emi completely changing her mind about Team Asteroid after years was totally natural.”, 003v replied sarcastically.

The winged girl fumed with anger glaring at him. The shadow figure growled as Grieon was losing ground.

“Haxorus! Haxorus! Haxorus! Haxorus! Haxorus! Haxorus! (You can’t lose yet! I’m still having fun!)”, Imaginary Plane said.

003v suddenly froze, realizing something. He looked around seeing Emi was out of sight now.

“You're stalling me.”, 003v growled with annoyance.

“Of course.”, the winged girl replied.

003v took a step forward, seeming to disappear to them. Emi jumped hiding something in her arms as 003v seemed to appear in front of her. Emi backed away a bit as he walked forward.

“It’s time to come home Emi. Stop this nonsense.”, 003v said, outstretching his hand to Emi.

Emi turned away as 003v frowned.

“I wish…I wish things didn’t have to be like this. I wish you could be the kind person you naturally are. I wish...we could have lived together with mom, happily far away from dad.”, Emi said quietly with tears in her eyes tightening the grip of whatever was in her arms.

003v narrowed his eyes.

“You know that can never…”, 003v trailed off, freezing as could see a yellow cloth-like appendage sticking out not covered by Emi.

She looked up at 003v, her brother who for the first time in a long time looked genuinely panicked. His eyes widened in shock Emi’s arms revealed what was in her arms as he shook in tears. It was Jirachi, the wish Pokémon. 003v quickly faster than humans could ever comprehend thrusted his hand forward at Jirachi. He sweated nervously as he realized it was too late the eye on its belly had opened.

Light enveloped everything and the winged girl was released from her binds being swept away by the light.

“Emi!!”, she called out as she held her hand out as she was swept away.

The next scene showed Shizuka holding an infant Emi and Takuto standing before her. Shizuka’s eyes widened with complete disbelief and betrayal as she read the hacked information about her son and Team Asteroid.

“I know you may not trust me Shizuka Dou. But, something that is an irrefutable truth that I have revealed to you is that your son is alive. And your husband hid that fact from you. You must realize the kind of man your husband has become and leave here with your children.”, Takuto said.

She just wanted her babies to be safe so she nodded. Takuto disappeared for a brief moment teleporting before reappearing in a few minutes with an unconscious boy. He had blue hair and blue eyes. He wore a grey dress shirt and pants with black shoes. It was 003v, only 3 years old. Shizuka instantly grabbed hold of her unconscious child holding him close to her chest along with an infant Emi.

“We have to go now. Grab a hold of my hand.”, Takuto said urgently.

“Get him!”, Gin yelled from behind the door.

In a flash Shizuka was gone with her children to the small region known as Kakusa. She calmed down the crying baby Emi. She still held 003v close to her chest as well.

“I’ve altered his memories. As far as he’s concerned he’s been raised by his single mother and that you fled Galar with him and his sister to escape Team Asteroid.”, Takuto explained.

“You messed with his head?!”, Shizuka questioned, glaring at Takuto.

“Trust me it’s better that he doesn’t remember. You remember what you read right? How Gin had been raising him?”, Takuto replied.

“I know but…”, Shizuka trailed off as she looked down.

“Wait, what about his name? Isn’t his name being 003v a bit suspicious?”, Shizuka questioned.

“What do you want his name to be?”, Takuto asked as he held his fingers up to Aichi’s head.

Shizuka froze remembering the name she had originally thought up for him.

“Aichi...I want his name to be Aichi. It has many meanings including love, wisdom and...light of hope. Also, I don’t want to find it easily so our last name will now be Sendou.”, Shizuka replied.

An aura flashed around Takuto as 003v now was named Sendou Aichi. To further distance themselves from Gin they said their names like those in Kakusa did with their family name first.

She finally got to sit down when they got to PSY Sweets and she would stay there till she found a place to live. She was rather anxious as Aichi gained consciousness after sleeping soundly in the room’s bed. She held in a deep breath as Aichi stirred, rubbing his eyes in confusion. He looked over to Shizuka who held Emi in her arms. Emi roused from her sleep laying her eyes on her brother for this first time.

“...mom? Where are we?”, were the first words she heard her son say groggily.

She froze as he heard her son call her mom for the first time, forgetting to breathe. She also noted his noticeable Galatian accent like her own and Gin’s. To blend in further in Kakusa she would later make him hide it till eventually he lost his accent all together.

“We’ve made it to Kakusa, Aichi. We’re in PSY Sweets.”, Shizuka replied, finally remembering to breathe.

Aichi looked around tiredly in a way that reminded her of Gin in the morning. The physical resemblance he had to Gin added to it though he had Shizuka’s colors.

“Oh okay…”, Aichi replied, half asleep.

He crawled over to Emi who looked over at him curiously in her arms. Emi giggled as he came near and Aichi smiled.

“I’m glad Emi’s alright.”, Aichi said as Shizuka felt a very warm feeling in her chest.

Later after they had found a home in Sanctuary town. Aichi had a fateful encounter with a certain someone.

Aichi walked along the street wearing a blue shirt, black shorts and a backpack. He had scuff marks and a bandage on his face. He looked down sadly walking back home. Tears were stinging his eyes and he was recently used as a punching bag by the local bullies again.

He stopped when felt someone wipe away his tears. It was Ahmes as Ralts with him was a younger version of Kai.

“Ralts! (Don’t be sad!)”, Ahmes said, wiping away his tears.

Kai looked equally stunned by the Pokémon’s action before smiling.

“Ahmes seems to have really taken a liking to you.”, Kai said laughing a bit.

“O-oh this is your Pokémon?”, Aichi asked.

“Yeah, but I think it should stay with you now it seems like you need it a bit more.”, Kai said.

“T-there’s no way I c-“, Aichi stuttered.

“It’s fine I got other Pokémon. Besides I have a feeling that together the two of you will be able to get real strong.”, the young Kai replied, patting Aichi’s back.

Later…

Aichi smiled as he and the Ralts, Ahmes played tag together. He had never had friends to do this with so he didn’t realize you were supposed to have more people play. They both chuckled as they laid in the grass.

Many years later Aichi met Kai again and finally got to battle him after he moved all those years ago. He miraculously beat the experienced trainer and promised to battle him again one day. This was the start of Sendou Aichi’s adventure through Kakusa. On his journey he met various people, many who had become his friends. He fought Team Asteroid liberating Megacolony town, Kagero town, Grandblue city, Oracle town, Tachikaze town, Palesville, Dai city, Sanctuary town, and eventually the league from its control. He trained with Alfred and Takuto to defeat them. With Kamui he battled Kyou. With Kamui and Kourin he fought Asuka and he later fought Tetsu alone. He battled Ren after defeating the elite four, saving the region and becoming champion. Afterwards a huge party was thrown in Sanctuary town with people from across the region joining in. Then, Mamoru who had recently been freed from Team Asteroid’s prison was sent by the Kakusa government to determine if he was truly on their side. He passed and was accepted by the government. For Christmas Aichi went above and beyond as a champion to make everyone happy. So, for him Emi and his friends came together to give him a happy Christmas. Finally, when the day came he finally fought Kai as a rival and equal. Kai left to help those outside the region suffering from Team Asteroid and they vowed to meet again one day. Aichi would stay to protect Kakusa as the champion.

A couple of weeks after Aichi and Kai’s battle…

Aichi’s current team

Level 78 Ahmes (Gallade) psychic/fighting

Moves:

Close combat

Solar blade

Swords dance

Future Sight

Level 76 Wingal (Lycanroc (dusk)) rock

Moves:

Stealth rock

Crunch

Stone edge

Play rough

Level 74 Llew (Golisopod) water/bug

Moves:

Sucker punch

Blizzard

Liquidation

First impression

Level 75 Gancelot (Lucario) fighting/steel

Moves:

Focus blast

Stone edge

Meteor mash

Dragon pulse

Level 80 Soul Saver (Haxorus) dragon

Moves:

Outrage

Iron tail

Dragon dance

Scale shot

Level 100 Alfred (Aegislash) ghost/steel

Moves:

Sacred sword

King’s shield

Iron head

Shadow Claw

Emi opened up Aichi’s door looking annoyed as Aichi was still in bed fast asleep when he’s supposed to go to school.

“Man that dream was so stupid. My idiot brother could never be a super villain like that. It was probably because of all the crazy stuff we were told recently that I had it. I mean come on, brushing off an attack from a legendary? Killing god? Taking over the world?That has to be an exaggeration.”, Emi thought, shaking Aichi to wake him up.

“Five more minutes…”, Aichi groaned sleepily.

“You don’t have five minutes! If you don’t get your butt up you’ll be late!”, Emi yelled, causing Aichi to groggily get up.

[diablcblanc]

           My thoughts on Gambit && non-comic book appearance.

The 1990s X - Men (Cartoon.)

The 1990′s comic while depicting a more cliche version of Remy, it’s the most accurate in terms of his motives && ambitions. I say it’s a more cliche Gambit, because it follows an earlier portrayal of Remy that used to be in my opinion you guessed it, a bit of a cliche. This was before Remy was given character growth, he was made to be the lovable rogue, charming, smoking, motorbike ridding ‘bad boy’ with a heart of gold. He was also originally created to be the heartbreaker that falls in love && that’s the Remy we get here.

It’s classic 90s Gambit through && through, and in my opinion on it's cliches aside, it’s the closest && by far best portrayal we’ve gotta outside of the comics. This is because as I’ve said earlier, his characteristics are in place, his motives are very in line with comic Gambit && that’s probably because he’s in no way an au version of the character.

Remy is a flirt, Remy is a xmen that's not always trusted, Remy is trying to do good. He forms a big brother type relationship with the teenager Jubilee [ Very on brand. ] && spends his time as a snarky side character that flirts with Rogue.

X - Men Evolution (Cartoon.)

Look I love Evolution, it was my childhood, && while they provide an interesting version of Gambit. In my eyes, it's probably the worst. Look I love the character designs for most of the characters. [ not Remy he has the worst facial hair / hair cut ever. ugh. ] But that aside, his morals && motives don’t add up with the Remy I know && love.

Here he is seen to work for Magento, [  ???? Yeah I know. ] something that will always be laughable in canon. Gambit we assume sells out his services for money && while it’s not totally out of the realm of possibilities to have him do so. It feels like in order for Remy to sell his skils no questions asked, means you’d have to first strip away all the hardships, all the development, all the small life experiences that make Remy LeBeau, Remy.  [ Also if Remy just wanted money...Idk it would be easier to just steal himself some gems. ]

It is however impossible that Remy would ever willingly attack children/teenagers for money. In Canon Remy has always put the safety of children first, he has a weakness when he sees a kid in trouble, && having him there as one of the bad guys fighting the teenage x-men, feels all kinds of wrong.  Also, Remy would not work well with others, he’s the type of character that walks on the line between right && wrong, && to have him as one of the bad guys (even if he’s redeemed later.) it feels wrong. I also feel kinda iffy about the implied future Rogue && Gambit relationship. Especially since Remy is shown to be at least in his 20s? &&  an adult, && Rogue is still very much a high school student…so….hard pass on that.

Wolverine and the X - men. (Cartoon.)

Wolverine && the Xmen was enjoyable, I was okay with his character design, he looked like Gambit, he sounded like Gambit…&& he even acted like Gambit.(somewhat.)…but…again for Remy to put so many people in danger for money, it feels very weak to me. This can only be explained as a young Gambit, Gambit before he lost control of his powers, an AU Gambit that never had to lose everything && was never banished.  But this would make him what 17 ? && that is not the Remy we get in this cartoon. This is the only way because as dumb as Remy is, he’s not that irresponsible. Usually when Gambit does something fucked up, (that he later regrets) it’s in the name of survival, or in order to save his loved ones.

If Remy needed the money he can easily get it through easier means, getting involved with an anti-mutant senator screams a bad ides, && Remy is not dum. (only when it comes to loved ones.)

Wolverine Origins. (Live-action film.)

I hate this film. I hate everything about it, from Gambit’s dumb character design to the way he talks. Why does Gambit have a dumb hat you ask me??? Who the hell knows, because I sure don’t. Why would Gambit owe anyone money? IDK, to give him a ‘cool’ line to say to wolverine? This movie was possibly the worst X-man film ever made, && you can’t change my mind. None of it makes sense, && Gambit doesn’t feel like Gambit. && it’s only made worse with the knowledge that one of Game of Thrones writers wrote this movie. (I hate them && I hate that they wrote the only movie with my boy in it.)

[gleefail]

Glee Memories: 1x10 Ballad

A long, long time ago, as Glee was approaching graduation in Season 3, I found myself nostalgic with some rare free time on my hands. So I decided to rewatch the series from the beginning and jot down some memories, discrepancies that have arisen since, fave quotes, tally solos - all that good stuff, strictly for shits and giggles.

8 years later (eek!) and once more I find myself with an unexpected abundance of free time. With so many revisiting or being newly introduced to the show between binge watching during Quarantine and all the tragedy that has surrounded the show since it went off the air, I figured I’d finish what I started. And by finish, I mean go through the end of S3. Cause I truly cannot acknowledge what happened after that. Except for 5B.

Kicking this off by reposting the first 15 episodes I already went through. Enjoy!

1x10 Ballad “Ok, who can tell me what a ballad is?” “It’s a male duck”

ok, I disagree with Schue’s definition of a ballad. “Stories set to music” – um…isn’t that every song? Or is it just in musicals that it’s supposed to be, lol?

“Looks like my weekly letter to the Ohio showchoir committee FINALLY paid off” and the look she gives Puck. Haha. This Rachel Berry is funny. Cause they’re letting us laugh at her right along with her. Not asking us to put her on a pedestal and/or take her seriously all the damn time. I’m not even gonna get started. I’m watching this post Props/Nationals, and though I didn’t think it could, my hate has grown. In abundance. Trying to keep it in check. Moving on…

“I bet that duck’s in the hat”

“Matt’s out sick today. He had to go to the hospital cause they found a spider in his ear” Um, ew. Also terrifying. However, humorous nonetheless. And an effort to explain a random absence of a Glee club member. Remember how they used to do that?

Aw, Artie drew Quinn’s name out of the hat. :) 2 seasons later and they’ll get 2 duets (both of which I loooove). Shame they didn’t do it this ep. Romantic or just friends, I ADORE the chemistry with Diana and Kevin. I really wanted to see more of that. :(

omg. Kurt’s face when Finn pulls his name. Adorable. Also, I love that Finn is not cool with it but a year later Sam is totes fine. Maybe that’s just cause I love dudes that are comfortable enough in their sexuality to do things that d-bags in high school might tease them about being gay for. Or maybe that’s just cause I love Sam Evans. Couldn’t tell ya. Except yeah, I totes could. It’s cause I wants a Trouty Mouth to call my very own. *lesigh*

“other asian” Ha!

Brittana!

“The fates talked, Mr. Schue” #BlessFinnsHeart

I love the voice-overs during Endless Love: “Screw him if he thinks he’s taking the Diana Ross part from me” “I love the days when I wear no underwear” “I never noticed how nice Rachel’s butt is…oh crap! I think Quinn knows I’m staring at it!”

I also love the facial expressions of Rachel and Mr. Schue here. Hilarious.

Haha – Brad’s like “wtf is happening?”

“Crap – she looks crazy right now!” hahahahahaha

Because of Rachel’s realization through this song, it means Lea Michele can’t squint nearly as much. Wow. It’s like a whole new Rachel with her eyes open while she’s singing.

Artie’s face after the duet. It’s like someone stepped in dog poop.

Ok, Charlotte Ross was in a show in the 90’s I used to watch that, if I recall, failed miserably but nonetheless had a brief stint as my guilty pleasure show. And I can’t remember what it is for the life of me and keep forgetting to look when I have access to google it. Anyone?

“I don’t want you to lift a finger for me. I’m your wife!” Oh wow. So unhealthy. So republican. Soooooo some parts of Ohio. These are the folks that voted for Bush. :/ Yep, I’m still ashamed to be from Ohio when I think of that election.

Suzy. Pepper. Yes. I love this actress. Bright and Hannah were my OTP on Everwood. I miss them.

“You knew it was me just by the sound of my breath. That’s so romantic.”

“Listen, you little psycho, this is Will’s wife, and if I don’t get enough sleep my anti-depressants won’t work, and then I’ll go crazy and I’ll kill you.” Oh Terri. So maternal and loving.

Suzy Pepper is sobbing to More Than Words. That was my jam back in the day!

“Your lashing out at me is fantastically compelling…and….inappropriate.”

“Thank God I never missed a piano lesson” – really Kurt? Is this the first and only time we’re to believe Kurt can play piano well enough to accompany someone from memory?

Finn singing I’ll Stand By You to a sonogram dvd on his laptop. I have no words. I don’t think I thought it was this weird the first time I watched it.

So Finn’s mom busts him singing to said laptop sonogram dvd…and he doesn’t close the laptop…or stop the dvd…or try to hide the screen. He sits up next to it as she approaches him, almost begging her to see it. I felt the same way then as I do now – it was an opportunity for him to not tell her necessarily but for her to find out anyways and I think he really wanted her to know so he could go to her for help and comfort and to relieve everything he couldn’t deal with about the situation. I’m just sayin’.

Oh old school Carol with her denim and that hair…she’s still such a great mom though. And this actress. My God. She’s amazing.

“You’re wrong, I’m right. I’m smart, you’re dumb.”

“Dude. Impulse control!” haha

“I dunno why I find his stupidity charming. I mean, he’s cheating off a girl who thinks the square root of 4 is rainbows.” #BlessFinnsHeart

Oh Young Girl/Don’t Stand So Close to Me mash-up. I fell in lust with you from the first moment I laid eyes on you.

Seriously. Matthew Morrison is so hot in this mash-up. Yowzah.

“So, Rachel, do you think you understood the message I was trying to get across with that ballad?” “Yes! It means I’m very young and it’s hard for you to stand close to me.”

“You’re a very good performer. He’s very good.”

Finn and Kurt bonding over their lost parents. This is a sweet scene.

“You think I should bring a gun?” #BlessFinnsHeart

“Casserole’s almost ready. Hope you like venison!” Ok. TERRIFYING to come home and find Rachel Berry in an apron, cooking you dinner, in your home.

Hey, remember that time that Rachel literally sang 3 lines of Crush and they released it in its entirety as a single from this episode? Ridonk.

“I found out today that my hamster was pregnant in biology class and I just started weeping!”

Aw, Mercedes and Puck are paired up for duet ballads.

haha. Babygate.

“Finn’s not the father! I am.” People be spilling out their truths to Mercedes y’all.

“Alright, look, you need to get something through your Mohawk real quick: you’re the baby’s daddy. It takes a hell of a lot more to be a father and that role’s already been cast because Quinn chose Finn. You need to accept that and move on cause you have no business messin’ up that girl’s life more than you already have. You need to back off. You owe her at least that much. ”Aw, Mercedes. Laying down tough love. And looking out for Quinn before they were even friends. Man. I love Mercedes.

Oh that’s right – Quinn has an older sister! Why did we never meet her?

“He wears a helmet when he plays, right?” – THAT’S WHAT I’M SAYIN’! #BlessFinnsHeart

“I have to go, they’ll think I’m pooping.” Hehehehe.

omg. So I love this still. Finn is doing karate moves in the bathroom mirror to pump himself up to sing to the Fabrays that Quinn’s pregnant. That is so effing funny. What happened to this Finn?

You’re Having My Baby. Haha. This song is so cheesy. This scene is so uncomfortable.

So Quinn’s parents, unlike Finn, are NOT simple-minded and have figured it out. And it’s terrifying.

“We didn’t even have sex” #BlessFinnsHeart

Quinn’s parents are kicking her out. Well, her dad is and her mom isn’t standing up to him. This is rough. Especially when you realize they’re supposed to be 15. So wrong. Poor Quinn. And her dad just screamed at her that she was a disappointment. Yeah…she’s had to deal with some shit. And in the end, they don’t acknowledge that she did and try to make her out to be the bad guy, and selfish… Way to go, RIB.

Oh good ole Carol, without a moment of hesitationlets Quinn stay with them.

“Honey, you can stay here as long as you want.” Carol’s the best. So glad she found Burt.

“We’re not so different, you and me. We’re both mildly attractive and extremely grating. Love is hard for us. We look for boys we know we can never have. Mr. Schue is a perfect target for our self-esteem issues. He can never reciprocate our feelings which only reinforces the conviction that we’re not worthy of being loved. Trust me. I’m a cautionary tale. You need to find some self-respect, Rachel. Get that mildly attractive groove back.” Suzy Pepper, ladies and gentlemen. Dropping truth bombs.

“There’s some boy out there who’s gonna like you for everything you are, including those parts of you that even you don’t like. Those are gonna be the things about you that he likes the most.” Hmm…might be true. Never thought about this, but I’d say that describes Jesse. But not Finn so much. Maybe recently. But…he has made several comments about her being annoying or controlling as they were dating. And not in a ‘those are my favorite things about her’ kinda way. Just sayin’.

Aw. Kurt seems like he feels really bad about Quinn getting kicked out.

“Open your eyes! I didn’t tell you to close your eyes.” “Is there a cake?” No, there’s no cake!” #BlessFinnsHeart

Lean On Me. Watching this now, with one ep left and it’s graduation…yeah, I’m crying. Dammit, Glee.

haha, Mercedes just kinda pushed past Rachel who was front and center to sing her solo. Probably not intentional but still funny.

Damn, Kevin McHale.

Damn, Amber Riley.

SOLOS: Rachel (1), Will (2), Finn (2), Artie (1), Mercedes (1)

[vexus-u]

Anti discourse is eating fandom from the inside-out at the moment. This sort of thing is everywhere in the past few years, because the minority of people who gun hard for that sort of thing are so widespread, self-assured, and so ready to drop vile accusations at the drop of a hat that they are almost impossible to ignore.

I feel like a lot of people see this going on but don’t want to talk about it or comment on it, because they’ve seen the sort of fire that can be drawn if you don’t toe the line absolutely. People skirt the issue, or avoid talking about it, because really, who does want to deal with that whole mess? Who wants to risk the backlash? And then there are the folks who haven’t engaged closely enough to see through the buzzwords; the people who see a post that proclaims that it’s condemning “real pedophiles”, and like any outsider rightly would, thinks, “oh God, that’s awful!” and clicks reblog.

It’s a good camouflage, maybe even the best. I feel like these people might even have one-upped the TERF posts claiming to rail against misogyny, but by analogy at least I think people can be shown what’s really going on.

If we are going to make fandom a safer and less toxic place, I think we need to start facing this behavior head-on and stop averting our gaze as a community. As an individual it’s hard, I know. But there are real world consequences; self harm, mental illness, and suicide attempts (believe me when I say that I know from experience), that cannot be swept aside as easily as antis/fandom police can proclaim that anyone who disagrees with them simply deserves to die. If you’ve ever had tangential contact with that sort of discourse and have internalized what these people say as the norm, I think it would benefit you to take a step back and realize how unhealthy a mentality that is to have. It’s easy to denounce anyone who questions you as a degenerate unworthy of life. Makes things a lot easier for you, but I think that we all know where that can lead.

If you are reading this and truly are unaware of what I’m talking about, let me give you a brief run-down. I don’t have the time or the stomach to jump into this discourse as deep as the rabbit-hole goes, but I will give some context as to where I am speaking from. I am a queer woman with clinical OCD. So called anti-shipping/anti-fic/fandom purity discourse started appearing in my sphere round about four years ago, and pretty much nothing since has been as dangerous to my mental health. I cannot begin to sum up how much self-hate and anguish this sort of gaslighting has resulted in for me, but let me tell you, it’s been bad. My compulsion to deal with this sort of thing tends to manifest as anxious research, and so, trust me. I know what I’m talking about here.

Namely, if you are a complete outsider, there is a school of thought that has taken root in certain younger fan communities, among groups that feel like they lack control over the world at large. As fandom is often the main community that these folks have (I counted myself among that crowd), this frustration has evolved into an reactionary ideology that takes ideas about the cultural impact of fictional works in our society to ludicrous, absurd extremes.

Ideas about poor portrayals having the potential to convey negative ideas to a reader have evolved into the creation of a code of morals that frames any interaction with fiction as a form of moral advocacy for that which it contains. Shipping is reframed as an expression of beliefs about desirable relationship dynamics. Depictions of abuse are reframed as advocacy for abuse. The concept of romanticization, which usually is only applied to ideas in the context of otherwise contextless mainstream works without prior warnings, is transformed into an indictment of any depiction of any that could be perceived as harmful which is not followed by an explicit condemnation of said act. This becomes even more absurd when you consider that these attacks are often aimed at fanfiction which has already been tagged with explicit warnings for the reader. Always invoked to justify this is the spectre of “negative influence on the children”, but this is both neither the responsibility of random internet users operating in adult-tagged spaces, and also, as with the video game violence scare of the 90s, mostly unjustified fearmongering.

Perhaps even worse, this logic is extended to fictional elements that might be thought to recall certain negative ideas in the mind of the reader. Short characters are, fairly offensively, dubbed “child-coded”, and it is verboten to include them in any adult works. Similarly, adult AUs of younger characters which include sexual content are condemned simply because the characters concerned were initially portrayed by a different author as younger! This leads into a deeper rabbit hole, where fictional characters, who are plot figments with no “real” version or portrayal, are effectively reframed as if they were actual people, who can be harmed by the way that they are portrayed in fanfic. In some extreme fringe cases, I have actually seen this been expressed literally; by invocation of alternate realities in which fiction is real, or through otherkin.

These people will claim glibly that they are fighting against real abusers, and who would want to hear what a dirty abuser might say in response? But don’t be fooled. This lens is almost solely turned back on people in fandom communities who are most vulnerable, and is driven by an underlying fear of sex, sexuality, queer expression, and perceived “degeneracy”. Any slight excuse to construe a transformative work as impure is taken as license to reframe the author or artist as scum, and therefore worthy of the harassment they will ultimately receive. Tellingly, the most affected groups are often queer women, and this sort of thing can and does destroy lives and careers. Moreover, the vicious cycle of social pressure and retribution for stepping out of line ensures that this toxic ideology holds people who step into it in its grip, lest they be expunged from their communities. Sight is lost of the fact that, at the end of the day, all that the perpetrator is guilty of is creating fanwork that some people might find distasteful.

There’s a lot more to say which I won’t, but I will stress again that the harm that this sort of thing is doing cannot be underestimated. It’s an insidious and toxic mode of thought that seeps into communities through the buzzwords it leverages - accuse somebody of being a pedophile and people pay attention! But these words are being misused, and this discourse distracts from actual predators even as it is cause for unjustified targets to be suicide baited, driven from fandom spaces, and vindictively destroyed. People who already suffer from mental health issues, and especially anxiety disorders such as OCD, can be driven to self-destruction by the repeated accusations and gaslighting. We need to remind people that these behaviors are not normal, are not the righteous causes they present themselves as, and are not tolerated. In fandom communities particularly, I honestly believe that this issue is one of the most insidious and dangerous that we currently face. Fandom has become nominally progressive, at the expense of trojan horse ideologies such as the anti/purity discourse positioning themselves as too risky to shout down.

I think it is time to stop turning a blind eye, recognize what is happening in our communities, deradicalize the people who are responsible for the harassment, and try to fix some of the damage that has already been done.

[sweetmemories2606]

Dangerous Game (Gruvia and NaLu fanfic) (Ch 2)

Dedicated to @mini me from Discord since today is her birthday, this is the Gruvia side of this angsty fic.

PS: Here's Chapter 1 in case you haven't read it.

Happy reading! 

Gray had known that leaving Juvia behind would lead only to heartbreak. He was well aware of how much she loved him and how it would break her if he suddenly left.

What he never expected, though, was for her to actually come after him-and find him in the first place.

It had been a few weeks since he had joined Avatar and they were having a meeting to talk about a new member. He went into the main room: unconcerned and uncaring; until he saw her.

She was wearing a midnight blue dress he had never seen before; with a silver colored skirt that went on behind her.

Instead of her usual hats; she wore a silver tiara adorned with sapphires and Gray did like the contrast it had with her light blue hair.

What was most different; though; were her eyes. It seemed they had somehow darkened and instead of love and warmth; he could only see coldness.

At first; Gray thought she was just mad at him. He tried to persuade her to leave and warned about the danger of being there; at the heart of a dark cult that mercilessly killed people.

Juvia didn't listen. She somehow convinced the other Avatar members that she was on their side and even promised to keep an eye on him.

They trusted her for some reason; which puzzled the ice mage. Why didn't they trust him as easily?

It took a few weeks since she had joined until he realized the truth and; upon doing so; Gray knew what to do.

"Did you really think I wouldn't realize it?" He had her trapped against the wall; anti-magic cuffs around her wrists.

"I didn't think it would take you this long." Juvia smiled; but it wasn't really her smile.

Gray took a deep breath; bracing himself for what he had to do.

Even if the last thing he wanted was to hurt her, it was the only way to save her from this evil.

"I wouldn't do it if I were you." Her smile turned into a smirk before she began explaining everything.

She told him how Juvia Lockser had been left vulnerable after his departure; thus Zeref had chosen to send a demon; the unofficial 10th demon gate; to possess her.

Lilith; as she was called; was different from the former members of Tartaros. She could only live inside a human; feeding off their life force and controlling their bodies.

She could also use their magic and amplify it; turning the weakest wizards into the most powerful. No one would know why; because no one could feel her presence.

Zeref had designed her to be invisible to anyone but demon slayers; and even those took time realizing she was there.

Lilith also told Gray that defeating her, even with demon slaying magic, would mean killing her host. The demon knew he would never hurt the woman he loved; thus the ice mage found himself at a crossroad.

After considering this new information for a while; Gray realized that he had no choice but to play by her rules. At least, until he found a way to defeat her without harming Juvia.

If only I had been there, this wouldn't have happened. It was his fault she had gotten possessed ; he had abandoned her.

Gray clenched his fists once these dark thoughts plagued his mind.

Lilith watched him, her smirk never fading. "I have a feeling we're going to get along very well, Gray."

The ice mage took in a deep breath. I don't have a choice. I need to protect her.

Then regretfully gave in, much to Lilith's pleasure. As expected, she promised not to hurt the water mage as long as he followed her lead.

He decided not to test her, worried for Juvia's sake. What if she decides to kill Juvia and find another host?

In the months that followed, Lilith remained in Avatar posing as Juvia Lockser and quickly rose through their ranks, gaining their trust.

Gray sometimes wondered if the reason she stayed was because of Zeref's orders or if she was there for him.

In any case; he couldn't get rid of her and; truth be told; he didn't want to.

Even if it was hard looking at Juvia while knowing she wasn't really there; this was the only way to make sure that she wouldn't be harmed.

                                        ___________

There were times when Gray wondered if; maybe; she was still there.

After all; from what he knew about demonic possession; the victim usually fought against it.

He was right. Juvia was still fighting; and sometimes she did manage to regain some control over her body.

The first time it happened caught him off guard and by the time he realized that it was Juvia; Lilith had already taken it back.

Now aware that the woman he loved wasn't fully gone; Gray regained hope that she could be saved. He began to desperately await for her to come back.

His constant encouragement; thankfully; payed off. Juvia managed to take control again and they were able to talk for a few minutes.

She told him that she forgave him for leaving; having long since realized that he had done it to protect her. He told her that he would do everything he could to save her.

There was more Gray had wanted to say; but they didn't have time and he didn't feel it was the right moment.

It took two months for him to finally admit the truth which had been nagging at him ever since joining Avatar: he loved her. Not just as a friend; but he was in love with her.

Juvia was surprised at first, but a smile quickly overtook her face. "I love you too."

"I know." Gray nodded before frowning. "I'm sorry it took me so long to realize how I felt."

"It's okay." She took a step forward and he didn't hesitate to wrap his arms around her, bringing her close.

"I missed you so much, Juvia." He hugged her tighter. Having her in his arms just felt so right.

"I missed you too." The water mage rested her head against his chest and sighed in content.

They stayed like this for a few heavenly moments, until the water mage pulled apart. Noticing the pained look on her face, Gray understood that Lilith was trying to take over. "Don't let her win."

"She's too strong." Gray was about to say something else, to encourage her, but suddenly she took him by surprise.

Wasting no time, the water mage grabbed his face with both hands and crashed her lips onto his. The kiss was passionate, desperate and way too quick for his taste.

No sooner had he began responding, she pulled apart, a familiar smirk upon her face. "Well, this was certainly a surprise."

He frowned before stepping away from her. "I'll find a way to free her from you. Count on that."

"Maybe." Lilith shrugged. "But until then, we can keep playing."

The game continued and; as time went on; the couple tried adjusting to this change in their relationship.

Thankfully, now that Juvia knew her feelings were returned, she grew stronger and managed to take control more often. Thus the couple was allowed to spend some time together without the demon's interference.

Still, Lilith always took over and used her ability to grow Juvia's powers to a frightening level. Ordered by either Zeref or Avatar; she killed many targets; innocent people; and the water mage couldn't stop her.

Neither could Gray. He was forced to watch those murders since she sometimes brought him along; taunting him with the promise to hurt Juvia in case he interfered.

It was a torturous; never ending game that he wished he wasn't playing. But what could he do except follow her orders while looking for a proper solution?

                                       ___________

Upon hearing that Natsu and Lucy came looking for him and Juvia, Gray thought it might finally be over.

Maybe they would figure out that something was wrong with her. Maybe he would finally be able to stop lying.

Oh, but how wrong he was.

Clever as always, Lilith came up with a charade to throw the Fairy Tail members off any suspicion they might have of her. She went back to Rainfall Village and pretended to have been waiting for Gray that whole time.

Somehow, the demon effortlessly managed to convince the duo that she was nothing more than depressed by his disappearance.

Once the ice mage was reunited with his friends, he found himself at a crossroad once again.

However, the reminder of all that could go wrong if he stepped out of line kept him from telling the truth.

Gray had to protect Juvia and his friends; thus he had to keep following Lilith's lead. For now.

As it turned out; Erza, Wendy, Carla, Happy and Levy all fell for Lilith's story. Gray actually resented his friends a bit for not realizing something was wrong.

He was glad, though, that Gajeel seemed suspicious. Unfortunately, the dragon slayer didn't say anything.

The next day everyone went back to Magnolia and Gray was a bit distracted once he saw all of his friends again.

It was supposed to be a happy time, but everything changed once Juvia suddenly called Lucy and hugged her.

Somehow, he felt like this wasn't really Juvia's action and his blood went cold once he wondered why Lilith would want to get close to Lucy.

While Gray tensely stared at the duo, he noticed Natsu's gaze on him. Glancing at the dragon slayer, he tried to convey that something was wrong without using words.

It worked. Natsu frowned deeply, seemingly ready to ask him a question he couldn't answer. Thus the ice mage looked back at the two girls, wondering if he should come up with an excuse to separate them.

That's when he saw it. There was a knife in Juvia's hand and she was about to swing it at Lucy.

Lilith wanted Lucy dead? Why? And was it Zeref's will or had the demon gone rogue?

Those questions should be asked later; the priority now was stopping her because it was clear Juvia was unable to do so.

Gray screamed Lucy's name at the same time as Natsu. Much to his relief, the celestial mage tried stepped away from the hug and stared at them in confusion. "What's wrong?"

The ice mage was about to tell her to run away, but there was no time. Suddenly Juvia was behind Lucy, pressing the knife against her neck, and Lilith smirked at him.

"What's it gonna be, Gray? Who are you going to save?"

PS: Next chapter should come at some point in the next few weeks.