#in my defense. a lot Must happen before savage garden

[antirepurp]

heehoo i've already got 8 chapters and some extra and im not even past savage garden im so good at fic planning

[onthevirgeofdestruction]

Plea for My New Self

Sanders sides Vampire College AU - it’s gay - it’s full of fun fluffy tropes - a bit o’ hurt/comfort - mostly fluff

Words: 5,659 Warnings:  Arguing, Violence,  Characters: Virgil, Roman, Patton, Logan, Thomas, Remy, Joan, Talyn Ships: Prinxiety, Anxceit, Roceit, Analogical, Remile, Joan&Talyn Universe: Plea for my New Self Rating: T Genre: Vampire Nonsense and Drama

Chapter 30: Full Moon in Scorpio

Chapter 1 for New Readers - ffn mirror

   “Jesus Christ Superstar, is this whole thing our room?” Roman asked, stepping into the hotel room in awe, looking around and taking a spin on the polished floors.

   “It’s just a step or two below a presidential suite or something. I don’t know the lingo, I just needed a place with a big enough living room,” Virgil shrugged. Roman called out to listen to his voice echo.

   “Oh, my gosh, I have to sing in here,” Roman declared, spinning into the living room and started singing A Whole New World from Aladdin. It echoed off of the marble enchantingly. Virgil waited and in the doorway, holding it open for Patton and Logan who took the elevator. Patton smiled and waved at Virgil when they turned the corner and Virgil waved back.

   “A whole new world! A new fantastic point of view!” Roman loudly crooned as he danced around on the glinting tiles.

   “Oh, he sounds so good!” Patton cooed as they stepped in, making a bee-line to the table to put their takeout food down. Virgil offered his hand to Logan when he strode up and Logan took it. They walked into the hotel room together, and Logan looked around with interest.

   “This seems a bit much just to watch movies in, Virgil,” Logan said after slowly examining the room.

   “It’ll be more comfortable for me, there will be lots of beings here,” Virgil said and squeezed Logan’s hand. “I don’t suppose I can have a hug?” Virgil asked and Logan nodded. Virgil pulled Logan in and kissed the top of his hair gently. “You’re sure you’re okay being in the same room with all these vampires? I honestly don’t mind taking you back to the dorms,” Virgil reminded him. He was confused when Logan said he wanted to come. He’d be a lamb in a den full of super-powered wolves, but his curiosity was greater than his survival instinct, it seemed.

   “I’m confident you wouldn’t let anything happen to me. I find the entire event intellectually fascinating,” Logan said, sounding excited and nodding brightly. Virgil heard Patton giggling and looked over to see Roman was dancing around the living room with them, now singing Once Upon A Dream. “I admit the concept is odd that I will be the only fully human person in the room, though,” Logan didn’t let go of Virgil and turned to watch the two dance around the suite. Virgil kissed Logan’s temple affectionately and Logan nestled in, looking amused at Roman and Patton’s antics.

   “Let me go unlock the balcony and show them where to land. Feel free to claim a room, there’s plenty. Just put a ‘do not disturb’ sign on the door and people should get the message,” Virgil pointed to a small pile of signs on a side table under an ornate mirror.

   “I look forward to utilizing the hot tub,” Logan smiled and slid out of Virgil’s arms, squeezing his hand before heading off to explore the hotel suite. Virgil headed to the balcony, passing Roman holding Patton princess-style and spinning around the room while Patton squealed in delight. Roman’s voice echoing against the walls as he sang was captivating. He winked at Patton while he passed them and Patton giggled and stuck out their tongue playfully.

   Virgil unlocked the large glass doors and stepped out on to the wide stone balcony. There was a sunken fire pit and a seating area out here, along with a small garden of flowers near the windows and a long thin pool. Virgil snapped a quick photo of the balcony and flitted up to the top of the hotel, taking a picture of the overhead. He jumped back down on to their patio and marked up the photo, then sent the two off to everyone else. The first one to come from above was Remy with Thomas over one shoulder and Emile over the other. He landed silently and put down Thomas and Emile, and Emile handed him a cup of iced coffee.

   “Hecate, dude, you’re not worried about getting attacked or something with your arms full?” Virgil asked incredulously.

   “I don’t need to worry about that kind of stuff, babe,” Remy set down a smiling Emile, and a very ruffled looking Thomas, who tried to fix his hair in the window’s reflection as soon as he got down. He had one of those pocket flip combs that were popular in the 50s.

   “Nice to meet you, Virgil! I’m Emile!” He beamed, holding out his hand for Virgil to shake. Virgil hesitated before shaking his hand. He wasn’t used to doing it anymore. His old life was blessedly far away now. Emile’s smile was very reassuring, and he had a kind face. He also had bubble-gum pink hair, which Virgil did not expect. It suited him, though. He was dressed like a dad in slacks and a soft tan cardigan. This being Remy’s type was also something Virgil did not foresee.

   “Hey,” Virgil said nonchalantly. “It’s good to see you again, Rem. I’m surprised we haven’t had to beat the shit out of each other yet, considering how close I am to Thomas,” Virgil motioned with his head to Thomas who was walking back over. He looked very put together and not like he had been lugged over a shoulder for a few miles. He wore a white button-down over a graphic tee and black jeans, which he admittedly looked fantastic in.

   “I’m probably far enough from campus, we live in a condo downtown. We’re out of range of little Thomathy most of the time,” Remy shrugged, leaning back against the wall. “I’m still happy to for fun, though,” Remy winked. “We’ll have to tonight, anyway, with my other Blood here,” Remy mused and Emile moved to lean against Remy on the wall. “Do you only just have the one turned? That’s wild. I’ve got way more than Joan and Talyn, they’re just the only ones that stuck by,” Remy asked curiously, his eyebrow arched over his mirrored sunglasses.

   “I don’t keep track of them if we weren’t romantically involved. I could have more, I don’t remember,” Virgil shrugged and shook his head.

   “Are you feeding on your Brood yet?” Remy smirked. He dusted off his red leather jacket absentmindedly. Emile leaned affectionately into his arm and stole a sip of his coffee.

   “Ro got me drunk and tricked me into it,” Virgil grimaced a little as he joked. He was still a little bitter about it he agreed that perhaps he was being extra again.

   “Darling, that’s not what happened,” Deceit purred, pulling Virgil in from behind right after he landed.

   “He’s right, Deceit tricked me,” Virgil laughed more genuinely and angled his head to kiss Deceit. Deceit hummed happily as he flipped Virgil’s hair out of the way.

   “How’s business, Remington?” Deceit asked, wrapping himself around Virgil and rested his head on Virgil’s shoulder. His cane held in front of Virgil, resting under Deceit’s hand with his normal level of class and panache.

   “Very good, thanks. Made a shit-ton off your boy. You seriously wear a suit and bring a cane to movie nights?” Remy asked, motioning to Deceit incredulously.

   “I’m not a savage,” Deceit smirked and kissed Virgil’s neck, tapping his cane on the ground dramatically.

   “People think I’m batty,” Remy rolled his eyes and pulled his mouth to the side. “So, remember any fun memories now that you’ve gotten the good stuff?” He asked provocatively.

   “Hmm, just some forgotten vocabulary and how to fish for some reason. I can’t believe I ever fished,” Virgil shrugged dismissively. He was hoping for something more fun, too.

   “You were probably looking for an excuse to go out to sea and hangout with merpeople,” Deceit laughed playfully and kissed his neck again.

   “They know how to rock, what can I say? Their instruments don’t work above water,” Virgil said defensively, flicked at Deceit’s side. Deceit dodged it with an evil grin.

   “You might have been in a merperson band or something, I wouldn’t put it past you,” Deceit teased lightly. Virgil softened quickly as Deceit carded his fingers through Virgil’s hair affectionately.

   “Oh, Hecate, girl, that must of fucking hurt to grow,” Remy said, possibly just noticing Virgil’s hairstyle.

   “My clan likes to heckle me and bully me into things,” Virgil huffed, crossing his arms and slightly motioning his head to Deceit.

   “You look so good with long hair. I think you should grow it longer,” Deceit cooed and leaned in to press a kiss behind Virgil’s ear.

   “It’s the least practical thing on the planet to have knee-length hair, D,” Virgil groaned in objection, shaking his head.

   “I’ll get him to do it by the end of the night, just watch me,” Deceit smiled impishly and nibbled affectionately at Virgil’s neck. “Oh! Thomas! My Child!” Deceit released Virgil swiftly and picked up Thomas to spin him around in the air, holding him up with both hands.

   “Did you adopt my omega without telling me?” Remy sipped his drink with a raised eyebrow, looking very amused at the baffled expression Thomas made.

   “He’s just so young,” Virgil smiled affectionately. “We want to buy him things and spoil him,” Virgil rubbed his hands together mischievously.

   “He is baby,” Remy smirked at Thomas knowingly and he turned a little pink.

   “I’m not baby!” Thomas groaned, jumping out of Deceit’s arms and landing a few feet away from him on the patio.

   “You have so many dads now, Thomas!” Emile clapped in delight. Deceit smiled wickedly and leaned against the wall.

   “Emile, gross, don’t call Remy my dad,” Thomas rolled his eyes and crossed his arms, sticking out his tongue in distaste.

   “Oh, daddy is okay, though?” Remy grinned darkly and winked at Thomas, who blushed wildly and shot straight in an instant.

   “I’m saying hi to Roman now, bye!” Thomas ran inside in embarrassment, causing Virgil and Deceit to cackle.

   “He’s so fucking cute,” Remy chuckled and shook his head affectionately. “Babe, you should order room service. Joan will be thirsty and Logan will make Thomas thirsty eventually,” Remy pat Emile on the butt. Remy cracked his knuckles. “We might also have a visitor,” He added cryptically.

   “What? I don’t smell anybody,” Virgil said, looking around frantically for any sign of another vampire.

   “Might, babe,” Remy smirked. “We’d win, it’s whatever. I just really want to crack somebody’s face in,” Remy motioned a punch with his free hand and flashed his fangs.

   “I keep wanting to throw people off roofs, so I’d love to do that if you’ll share,” Virgil said sinisterly, silently cracking his knuckles in his fist.

   “Don’t worry babe, I get it,” Remy nodded sagely and sipped his drink.

   “What vampire would be dumb enough to go where there are obviously two clans congregated,” Deceit hissed, walking back behind Virgil and resting his head on Virgil’s shoulder. “The smell here is ridiculous,” Deceit said, and the repulsion in his voice was clear. It really was bad. Virgil was ready to snap somebody’s neck, the scent was so powerful.

   “Maybe they want to fight and assume we’re fighting and not just watching humans get murdered for sport,” Virgil reached up to stroke Deceit’s face. “Speaking of, are Joan and Talyn almost here?” Virgil asked inquisitively.

   “Yeah, they’re closing in,” Remy took a long sip of his drink and set it down on the patio.

   “Do you feel like working a little of this out now before everybody’s here?” Virgil smiled viciously and flashed his fangs at Remy.

   “Babe, you know it,” Remy chuckled darkly and came at Virgil without hesitation. Deceit cleared away in a shot and Remy picked up and threw Virgil into the air, trying to go in for a kick, but Virgil grabbed him in the leg and tossed him back down to the ground, landing a hit with his knee on Remy’s chest.

   “Woah, woah, what the fuck guys?” Roman ran out yelling.

   “They’re just playing love,” Deceit purred, pulling Roman into his arms and backing against the wall while Remy flipped Virgil and socked him right in the jaw. Virgil snarled and kneed him in the stomach, and Remy sent him flying again.

   “That doesn’t look like fucking playing!” Roman shot while Remy landed a kick in Virgil’s back with a malicious laugh.

   “I’m-” Virgil got hit in the chest and lost his breath, but punched Remy hard enough to send him sailing back in return. “Fine, Ro, we’re just-” Remy came back and flipped Virgil onto the patio, knocking the wind out of him. Virgil had to catch himself before breaking the stones and used the momentum to launch Remy off the roof. Remy hissed and flung himself back at Virgil, and they both went tumbling and wrestling for dominance again. Emile cheered excitedly with his arms in the air.

   “The playfight is making it easier to sit in the same room together, dear,” Deceit kissed Roman’s cheek. Deceit paused, looking confused, and then grimacing. “… Roman, you didn’t tell Patton we are seeing each other, yet? They’re freaking out for two reasons now. Logan has the good sense to keep them indoors, at least,” Deceit sighed.

   “Uh, whoops,” Roman muttered, rubbing his head sheepishly.

   “Hey, Remy,” a person an orange knitted cap landed on the balcony while Remy waved and connected another punch to Virgil’s face. They were dressed casually in jeans and a black shirt with a big chunky watch. Virgil hissed and flipped Remy over, slamming his knee into Remy’s solar plexus.

   “Are they giving you trouble or is that Virgil?” A smaller person with bright lavender hair landed next to the one with the orange beanie. They wore a crop top, asymmetric shorts, and high boots and looked very fashionable compared to the other.

   “That’s Virgil,” Deceit provided, looking like he was keeping Roman safely in place. Roman was scowling and sometimes pushing at Deceit to move his arms, but Deceit held him firmly, which Virgil was grateful for. Remy was enough of a handful as it is. The fight was evenly matched so far. They were both holding back but keeping like that when his throat was right there was difficult and he didn’t want the distraction of one of his Brood in danger.

   “Woah, Deceit? What the fuck are you doing here?” The person in the orange beanie asked, looking surprised and leaning back.

   “I’m Virgil’s Blood. Don’t go advertising that,” Deceit said disdainfully. “Darling, you’ll need to stop soon and show Patton and Logan you’re okay or they might actually have a panic attack,” Deceit informed him plainly and motioned with his hand to the interior of the hotel.

   “Shit,” Virgil hissed, punching Remy in the back of the head. Remy spun around and his eyes flashed brighter red for a millisecond.

   “Boo!” Remy whined, grabbing Virgil’s shoulders and yanking him down over his kneecap. Virgil let that be the last hit and fell to the patio after Remy dropped him unceremoniously. He got up off the ground and dusted himself off. Remy laughed and patted himself off as well, going back over to pick up his drink. Patton came running out on to the veranda and immediately stared fussing over Virgil.

   “Are you okay? Oh my god! Why did- Ugh! You’re a meanie!” Patton shot angrily at Remy and glared at him before grabbing Virgil and surveying for damage. Picking a fight with a rival alpha vampire was not the best idea, but Virgil appreciated their spunk.

   “I guess I should have been more clear on the way here,” Virgil rubbed his head and pulled Patton in for a hug. Patton hugged Virgil tightly, pressing their face hard into his chest.

   “Virgil, why in the world were you fighting like that? You terrified me!” Logan bellowed, pointing to Remy. Remy just rolled his eyes as he sipped his drink and Virgil cringed. Oh, he fucked up spectacularly.

   “You didn’t warn them?” Emile asked incredulously, furrowing his eyebrows at Virgil. “Virgil, apologize to your friends right now,” Emile said angrily, motioning to Logan and Patton.

   “Sorry! I’m sorry!” Virgil held up his hands, but Patton stayed clinging on. “I didn’t know my heads up wasn’t enough, I’m not used to talking to humans about this stuff. I didn’t mean to scare you. Remy and I are fine. Claws and fangs were not involved,” Virgil reassured them.

   “I would have loved to sink my teeth into you,” Remy huffed, sounding disappointed and glowering at Virgil.

   “Me too,” Another hiss broke out from Virgil which caused Patton to flinch slightly but not let go.

   “Boys, I know the instincts are loud, but please focus,” Emile said firmly and Virgil fought back a snarl towards Remy. Remy looked like he was doing the same. They probably didn’t fight enough.

   “Listen, Remy’s an alpha. We’re sort of wired for killing each other. It’s what the whole territorial thing is about. We were blowing off some steam. I promise we’re both fine. We didn’t want this evening to devolve into a deathmatch. I’m sincerely sorry I wasn’t more clear on what vampire instincts meant. I should have warned you more clearly we were going to fight to try to trick our wiring. I won’t do it again,” Virgil explained quickly, trying to apologize.

   “Good job, Virgil. Patton, Logan? Do you have anything to say to Virgil?” Emile directed them.

   “Don’t scare me like that again!” Patton sniffled and Virgil pulled them up into his arms.

   “I’m so sorry, Pat,” Virgil apologized sincerely.

   “I accept your apology, Virgil. Thank you for understanding. I would appreciate further information for the future so we can avoid these misunderstandings,” Logan said, sounding stiff. Virgil grimaced slightly. He must have broken Logan’s trust for him to talk like that again. That hurt, but Logan was willing to forgive him. It was entirely Virgil’s fault, and he couldn’t blame Logan for being upset.

   “I know. Sorry, Logan. I forget what is and isn’t common knowledge sometimes. Maybe you could prepare some questions for me?” Virgil offered sheepishly.

   “I think that would be acceptable,” Logan nodded, crossing his arms. He at least didn’t look that angry, just upset.

   “He is battier than me,” Remy rolled his eyes and gestured dramatically.

   “Remington, you feed on me all the time. Virgil has been trying to respect his friend’s boundaries. It’s considerate of him,” Emile chided Remy firmly.

   “No, no, I’m batty, I know I am,” Virgil laughed slightly, still too upset with himself to genuinely laugh.

   “And Roman! When did you start dating D?” Patton said, pushing Virgil’s chest. Oof. Pat’s on the warpath. Virgil slid Patton down and Patton marched over to Roman sourly.

   “Are they always like this?” The one in the orange beanie whispered to Thomas.

   “I have no idea, but I’d kill for some popcorn,” Thomas whispered back behind his hand.

   “I, uh, the night we got the dancing video we were going to watch. I’m sorry, I was drunk and kind of forgot about telling you,” Deceit smirked and kissed Roman’s temple, releasing him.

   “You were drunk?” Patton yelled, perhaps even more upset now, and stomped right into Roman’s face. Roman held up his hands and backed up. Virgil was impressed at the amount of tiny fury Patton contained and was sincerely glad it wasn’t aimed at himself anymore. He still felt bad for Roman, who looked completely blindsided by the whole event.

   “Holy shit, this is better than a soap opera,” The orange beanie-wearing vampire whispered.

   “I know,” The one with the lavender hair whispered back, looking incredibly bemused.

   “I didn’t get cast as Semptimus or Bernard because of some stupid rule about freshman not playing leads and wanted to have fun instead of moping all evening,” Roman explained himself defensively, holding up his hands. Logan also looked upset at Roman, which was surprising.

   “Roman, you are eighteen, that’s illegal!” Patton shot, pointing a finger at him assertively.

   “I’m pretty certain most of the people out here are illegal, that doesn’t make their existence wrong,” Roman said warily. Oh, wow, he could almost hear a sports commentator shout ‘powerful misdirection by the defense’!

   “Huh,” Logan looked considerate for a moment. “I suppose you’re right,” Logan moved up one of his crossed arms to his chin with interest.

   “Logan, don’t you agree with him!” Patton said angrily, shooting Logan a glower.

   “Patton, the laws are created for those in power, not necessarily with the best interests of every being in mind. There are plenty of unjust rules. As long as Roman doesn’t make a habit out of it, I don’t think it’s significantly more objectionable than Virgil’s very presence in human society, which you are fine with,” Logan explained evenly. Oh, the misdirection landed! Fantastic play by the defense! Deceit arched his eyebrow curiously at Virgil who just shrugged. He had very little control of what was going on up there and had little explanation for it. Roman made him watch the Olympics recently, so that may have contributed, but he had long since accepted that he was batty.

   “Thanks? I think?” Virgil responded, but he was not entirely sure what was happening.

   “Damn, this kid should do law,” The one with lavender hair whispered in awe. Patton made a frustrated noise and Deceit pulled them close and spoke quietly right into their ear.

   “Young man,” There was a chorus of sputtered laughter at that angry declaration from Patton. “Don’t think I forgive you for being an accessory to Roman’s crimes,” Patton huffed, sounding less distressed.

   “His crimes? Darling, please, he had some whiskey. It’s a forgivable offense. You’re upset because you don’t want him to hurt himself,” Deceit corrected Patton and took their hand. That assuredly wasn’t the complete story, but Patton must want to keep it private.

   “I-” Patton cut themselves off quickly. “I am,” Patton muttered, drooping slightly.

   “It’s reasonable to be scared for your friend’s health, Patton. It’s okay that you’re angry at him for taking unnecessary risks. But Roman was with people who love him and surely made sure that he was safe, right?” Emile asked gently.

   “Of course, we made him drink a ton of water and he had two dinners. Roman was barely even hungover the next day,” Virgil attempted to placate Patton. Roman really did have so many pancakes he hated himself and a serious amount of water.

   “I wasn’t!” Roman piped up and corroborated Virgil’s story, sounding hopeful.

   “It was a misunderstanding, but I think it would be healthy to apologize to each other, anyway,” Emile smiled reassuringly and nodded to Roman.

   “I’m sorry I made you worry, Pat,” Roman apologized dejectedly. He sounded very sincere and looked down to the patio.

   “And I’m sorry I yelled,” Patton muttered back, walking over to hug Roman. Roman wrapped his arms around Patton and pet their hair. They both seemed much better already, and that impressed Virgil. Roman was the type to fume, and Patton rarely let things go easily.

   “Great! Let’s go watch movies, yeah?” Emile chirped brightly, motioning with both arms to head inside. Okay, wow, having him around was actually pretty awesome.

   “Thanks, Emile,” Virgil sighed in relief.

   “Anytime, Virgil! Especially during my office hours!” Emile chimed with a knowing smile aimed directly at Virgil.

   “Ugh!” Virgil groaned loudly in objection. Hopefully, he’d drop it.

   “Uh, well, that was a fucking event! I’m Joan,” The one in the orange beanie provided.

   “I’m Talyn,” The lavender haired one added.

   “I like your hair, Talyn,” Patton said shyly.

   “Thanks, I think you’re rocking that pastel rainbow, too,” Talyn offered. Patton blushed slightly. “We both use they/them,” Talyn motioned between themself and Joan.

   “I do too,” Patton smiled.

   “Roman, he/him. Glasses over there is also he/him,” Roman said, holding open the door for everybody to go inside.

   “My name is Logan,” he narrowed his eyes at Roman but seemed to let it go. “Virgil, are you feeling anything different today?” He asked mildly.

   “I’m don’t have any feelings about it at the moment,” Virgil shrugged. “Whatever you want to call me,” Virgil walked in and settled on the floor in front of the couch. Patton crawled up behind him and started playing with his hair again. Deceit quickly claimed Virgil’s lap with a smug smile.

   Roman examined a pile of movies left on the coffee table and Logan went to the dinner table and pulled out his food to eat, though he angled himself to watch the TV. Roman flipped through the movie cases with a disgusted look while Remy flopped on the couch, leaning against the arm and pulled Emile into his lap. Thomas sat next to Patton and Joan and Talyn claimed the recliners next to the couch.

   “Pat, don’t you want to eat your pizza while it’s hot?” Virgil asked. He wasn’t bothered by Patton playing with his hair, but didn’t want Patton to forget about their food.

   “Just let me do one hairstyle first,” Patton said, very focused and tugging at Virgil’s hair. Patton was excited about the pizza, so Virgil was vaguely flattered that they’d rather play with his hair.

   “Did you want to watch one of these movies first or would you like a few minutes of Virgil and Deceit fancy-dancing? Patton and Logan have been wanting to see it. I only just finished editing it today,” Roman asked the room, holding up the movie cases and a USB drive.

   “Show us the fun dance that Virgil’s so embarrassed about,” Remy smirked. Virgil shot Remy a glower, but he just looked amused. Emile looked very interested as well, rubbing his hands together.

   “Yeah, that’s chill. Then I want to see the one with the ghosts,” Joan piped up and shared his opinion.

   “Nice,” Roman nodded and slid the flash drive into the side of the large TV. “You think I can see the TV from the hot tub?” He asked curiously as he came around for the remote.

   “Babe,” Remy said stoically, looking intense. “Yes. Let’s fucking hot tub,” Remy said keenly, picking up Emile. He put Emile down on the couch and headed over to the hot tub. Emile chuckled and scooted closer to Virgil.

   “I will wait until an hour after eating,” Logan said, enjoying a slice of pizza.

   “Will you be able to hear through the jets?” Patton asked as Roman trotted off to his bag.

   “It’s fine if I can’t. I’ve heard the music before, I’ve watched it a million times editing it,” Roman said, pushing the big button near the hot tub and turning on the bubbles. Roman waved his swim trunks and disappeared into one of the doors in the suite. Remy just stripped down on the spot and climbed in, looking very satisfied as he sank into hot water.

   “Did you want to play with some, too, Emile?” Patton’s bubbly voice came from behind Virgil, and it felt like they were offering a handful of hair to Emile.

   “It sure does look fun. Would that be okay with you, Virgil?” Emile asked considerately, sounding fascinated.

   “Sure, whatever,” Virgil shrugged. He felt Emile’s hand take a section of hair and it felt like he started working with Patton on a style. Patton would poke Virgil’s head sometimes and hair would tug near the last poke. He wasn’t positive of exactly what they were up to, but Patton seemed to be entertained, so he was happy with it.

   “It would be more fun if you had more of it,” Deceit enticed him in a sing-song tone after pressing a soft kiss to his cheek.

   “Are we tempting Virgil out there? I want to join you!” Roman shot out of the bathroom and slid across the floor to lean against Virgil, looking extremely mischievous in his swim trunks. The smoothness of that move was for a human would have impressed Virgil if he wasn’t so annoyed. He narrowed his eyes at both of them.

   “Virgil would look fetching with more hair, wouldn’t he?” Deceit said sweetly, stroking Virgil’s face.

   “Oh, he would be dazzling,” Roman said affectionately and smiled flirtatiously at Virgil, fluttering his eyelashes playfully.

   “You have the weirdest clan, dude,” Joan said, leaning back on the recliner, looking up from their phone. Virgil sighed and shrugged. “Put the fancy dancing on already,” They motioned to the TV.

   “Virgil, can you turn it rainbow without feeding? The braids would look so cool,” Patton asked eagerly while Roman got up to grab the remote for navigating to the video.

   “Yeah, hold on,” Virgil said, leaning forward to get up, but Deceit pinned him on the spot.

   “Make it longer while you’re at it,” Deceit smirked, planting a small kiss on Virgil’s jaw.

   “For the love of- Fine, okay? I’ll lengthen my hair. Ro?” Virgil gave up and looked over to Roman. He was participating in this ridiculousness and may as well help out.

   “As if that wasn’t my plan all along,” Roman grinned impishly. Virgil got up, a very smug and satisfied looking Deceit clearing away so he could. Virgil went over to the mirror and turn his hair rainbow colors and grow it out with an exasperated sigh. The rainbows looked completely preposterous, and the length wasn’t rational in the least, but if it made them happy then he could get over it.

   “You weren’t kidding about your clan heckling you, huh?” Thomas sounded bemused.

   “Thank you, Logan, for not participating in Roman and Deceit’s evil nonsense. Roman, please order some room service with vegetables, no matter the amount of pizza you ate you’ll need nutrients,” Virgil exhaled with exhaustion as he pulled the last of the hair out he could manage.

   “You’re welcome,” Logan smiled knowingly and tapped off his mouth with a napkin. “Can I take your spot, Deceit?” He asked genially.

   “I suppose,” Deceit hummed, sitting up on the couch next to Patton instead. Virgil reclined back down on the floor in front of Patton and Emile. He tiredly motioned for Roman to press play. Logan relaxed into Virgil’s lap, much to Virgil’s surprise, as the video stared up. He was fiddling with his bracelet with one hand but latched on to Virgil with the other. It was nice that Logan was feeling huggy today. Virgil happily pulled him close and enjoyed Logan’s warmth.

   Honestly, they did look good dancing, and Roman did an amazing job recording them. His dress was beautiful to see from another angle, too. It didn’t make it any less embarrassing, though. Virgil opted to close his eyes and just focus on the sensation of Patton’s fingers resting on his head while they watching the video. They were too enthralled to keep braiding and kept squealing with delight as Deceit threw Virgil around the room. Even Thomas gasped at one point. Deceit felt so proud Virgil could feel it over his shield.

   “I’m not sure if I should be impressed with your athleticism since you are literally another species, but I do compliment you on your skill,” Logan said, sounding somewhat mesmerized with the video.

   “That was awesome,” Thomas said reverently. “Worth the wait!” Thomas cheered as the recording ended and Deceit requested Patton to thank him later.

   “Thank you!” Patton rejoiced, raising their arms in the air.

   “It was gay as fuck. I just want to take you dancing even more now,” Remy nodded, sounding hyped. Patton bristled much less than usual behind Virgil and hopefully was finally getting used to cussing.

   “There was great on-the-fly choreography,” Talyn mused, and Virgil was surprised at the genuine compliment from a stranger.

   “Uh, thanks,” Virgil mumbled. He wasn’t entirely sure how to process that.

   “Why thank you,” Deceit bowed slightly on the couch.

   “That was so cool! Can I have a copy of the file?” Patton asked enthusiastically, putting their hands back in Virgil’s hair.

   “Indeed! you can borrow that flash drive,” Roman replied airily from the hot tub.

   “Thanks again for editing, Roman. Please keep it offline, Pat,” Virgil said firmly, turning his head slightly to shoot Patton a glance.

   “Virge, you just got to change inputs to the blu-ray and press play,” Roman explained quickly. “I already put in the thing with the ghosts on the player, it’s all ready,” He melted down a bit into the hot tub, looking very satisfied with himself.

   “Woo!” Talyn cheered, holding up both their arms.

   “Fucking nice,” Joan pumped their fist. “The dance was cool, too. All the flips rocked,” They nodded sagely and grinned.

   “I want to learn how to do a ballroom dance now,” Thomas said dreamily.

   “I have to teach stupid Anton, anyway. Maybe Virgil and I will just offer to teach whoever wants to learn,” Roman considered sourly. “Better than teaching Anton alone… Remy, are you naked?” Roman asked incredulously, looking over and shooting his eyes up quickly.

   “You’re welcome,” Remy smirked. “Emmy, babe, are you joining me?” Remy flipped his hand towards Emile.

   “I’ve never played with hair this long!” Emile said defensively. “And I didn’t bring my suit, and I don’t know half the people here well enough for that,” He added slightly more sheepishly. It felt like he kept going while talking. Emile must have been really into it. Logan leaned to the side to look at what the braiders were doing behind him. He seemed satisfied and nestled back in again, still fidgeting with his bracelet.

   “I can’t resist, either,” Patton chuckled. Virgil’s head was being braided or plaited or possibly weaved into something by Patton and Emile together, Virgil couldn’t tell. But he was kind of too tired to care. He was very comfortable with Logan and everyone in his clan was feeling some variation of good, so even though he was exhausted he was extremely contented. He sighed happily as Logan leaned his head against Virgil’s to watch the movie.

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[p-artsypants]

The North Tower- (8) New Battles

Previous

AO3 | FF.net

This was supposed to be the crummy short story, and 320 State Street was supposed to be my masterpiece. But it’s turning out to be the other way around. Thanks for all your support!

This chapter was a reminder that I haven’t written a whole lot of horror.

—

“Gone?” Astrid breathed. “You mean you’re the only one left?”

The man nodded, sadly.

Astrid dropped into the chair, unable to comprehend this massive disaster that befell them.

“They all thought you were done for. Viggo was one of us. A resilient fighter, and a thousand years of fighting would make him a force to be reckoned with. We didn’t think you’d make it. And even if you did…maybe you’d leave.”

“I almost didn’t make it,” She agreed. Her gaze trailed around the dark room, a numbness setting into her bones. She noted the broken window facing the garden, and wondered if it had always been like that. “But I’m not going to abandon everyone.” She sat up a little straighter. “Where’s Hiccup?”

“I told you lass, he’s gone.”

“Where?”

Gobber gave her an incredulous look. “You don’t mean to go down there and fetch him, do you?”

“What else?”

Gobber shook his head. “It’s too dangerous. Things live down there, terrible, horrible things.”

“Like Mildew?”

“Mildew is the least of your concerns. There are others.”

“Then explain it to me,” She demanded. “I’m going down there to get Hiccup and fix this. I am going to stop this curse.”

Gobber could see the fire in her eyes and sighed aloud. “Alright, if you must.” He stood, and began to pace the floor. “Mildew, Savage, Alvin, Dagur, and Drago. These 5 men were killed in the raid on the castle. At one time, they were part of us, part of our family…but after the curse, their souls were dragged back from the beyond and twisted into horrible monsters. Some would say demons. They guard the tower at intervals to keep mortals out.”

“Question,” Astrid interrupted. “If the only living person allowed in the tower is the Master Hofferson, then how come there’s guards? What’s in the Tower that would need guarding? Surely not the Vikings who have left?”

Gobber blinked, a thoughtful look on his face. “I’ve never actually been down there before. Not all the way.”

Astrid furrowed her brow. “Then how do you know what’s there? You said there’s horrible things down there, but were you just talking about the guards?”

Gobber shook his head. “Astrid, there’s a fire deep within the castle and I don’t know where it comes from or how it burns. I can’t give you any help, I’m afraid.” He sighed. “Maybe it is just the guards…maybe it’s something else. But no one knows.”

Astrid frowned, her top lip scrunching up. “Well, I’m not just going to not go down there. What about you? Are you in?”

Gobber hunched his shoulders shyly. “Would if I could go with you, lass. But if I do, I won’t come back. That tower is damnable. Only the chief and his son have successfully returned. Once they go down.”

“Well, I guess it’s me then.”

“Not quite.” He added, standing himself. “I’ll go with you in spirit. Come with me.”

Curious, Astrid followed Gobber out of the room and down one flight of stairs. Only the candle he held provided light. As they travelled, Astrid dared a glanced down into the darkness. It was just an unholy abyss.

They reached the second level, and Gobber went to a door. He held a finger over his lips, a gesture for her to keep silent. She nodded.

By the light of the candle, the walls sparkled strangely, and it took Astrid a moment to realize what she was looking at.

Swords, shields, spears, axes…an armory worth of weapons filled the room.

“So,” he spoke quietly. “What’s your weapon of choice?”

“Uh…I don’t know if I have one.”

“What do you usually fight with?”

She shrugged. “I don’t really fight…I took some self defense classes, and I was in color guard and football…oh, and I’m pretty handy with a gun.”

“You can’t use a gun on a ghost.” The man looked at her like she was stupid. “Well, what do you think you could handle?”

Astrid flicked on the light on her cellphone, and perused the walls until something caught her eye. “Can I try to lift that axe?”

“Go ahead.”

The axe was smaller than a lot of weapons in the room, but it was still the biggest blade she’d ever seen. It had good weight, and took effort to hold, but it felt strong. She spun it experimentally, like she would a flag in color guard.

“You sure you haven’t handled an axe before?”

“I used to be a flag spinner.” She offered. “I think this will do.”

Gobber nodded, a hopeful look on his face. “Good to hear, but please do me a favor and come back in the day time.”

Astrid nodded in understanding. Together, they left from the room, and headed down one more flight of stairs. This time, the abyss had a very soft red light deep deep down.

They left the tower, and Astrid locked the door after them. Eret was still waiting in the East tower, his arms crossed.

“It’s best if you stay out here with Eret, I think,” She posed.  

“Aye, I’d rather not be alone.” He agreed.

“So what happened?” Eret furrowed his brows, seeing only Gobber come out.

“Everyone is gone.”

“Gone? As in gone gone?”

“They all left. Hiccup watched Astrid get kidnapped from the garden by Viggo, and assumed…” He didn’t have the words.

“Why didn’t you leave?” Eret asked.

Gobber shrugged. “I must just be resilient.”

Astrid looked at her phone, seeing it was just passed midnight. “Alright, I’m going to bed. I need as much rest as I can get, and then at sunrise, I’ll set out.”

Eret yawned. “Sounds good.”

—

Astrid rose with the sun. It’s light casting warm hopeful rays around the floor. She sat up, her body sore from her trial the day before. But she was wide awake. In her closet, she dug out a pair of hiking boots, jeans, kneepads, and her shoulder pads from football. And despite what Gobber had said, she took her handgun out of the safe and holstered it to her thigh. She probably looked a little ridiculous, but the more ‘armor’ she wore, the better prepared she felt. Finally, she clipped a cave flashlight onto her collar.

A specter knocked and then opened her door. He had brought a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast. “Astrid? Oh good, you’re up.”

“And I’m ready,” she nodded, determined.

After she had eaten, Gobber followed her down into the tower, and shook her hand as they stood at the black door.

“You sure you want to do this? You don’t have to…”

“What other choice is there?”

Gobber gave the saddest smile she’d ever seen. “I had a feeling that the curse would never be broken. No one else agreed, but…I guess that’s why I’m still here.”

She clasped both hands over his, “I’m going to prove you wrong.” She said simply.

“Stay safe.”

“I promise.” She smiled.

Inside, the statue of the ‘druid’ seemed to gleam in the sunlight. The glass windows at the top of the tower reflected colorful flecks off of every surface, which would have been beautiful in any other circumstance. Instead, she just took a deep breath and began her descent. Despite the huge chamber, there was no sound but the debris crushing under her feet.

With each floor, the light grew more and more dim, until she was four floors down, and could barely see the wall. She flicked on her light, and it illuminated the area just in front of her. It only made everything else harder to see. She walked carefully, taking soft steps to avoid making noise. She gripped the axe in both hands, prepared for any movement.

But as she paused for a moment, a iron door in front of her swung open slowly. Her hands tightened on the axe.

Long white spindly fingers stretched out and took hold of the door, soon followed by a bony arm and a ribcage. A creature emerged, one would hardly call it that. No, this was a demon, straight from hell. It’s skull was covered in crooked horns, and it’s teeth were long and jagged. A yellow light glowed from it’s empty eye sockets as it’s long snake-like tongue wagged.

“Mortal, you dare to enter this cursed place?”

Astrid didn’t speak, remembering the warning Hiccup gave the last time they were here.

“Have you a death wish?”

She shook her head and raised her axe higher.

“State your purpose.”

She hesitated, but finally said. “My name is Astrid Hofferson, Master of the Castle.”

The demon slunk out from it’s hiding place. “I know who you are. If not for the title of Master, I would have killed you by now. For what purpose have you entered alone?”

“Hiccup, your chief, is down there somewhere, and I need to speak with him.”

The villain, in all it’s foulness, crept closer, it’s tongue reaching out and swiping across her neck. She slammed her eyes shut to avoid a reaction.

“What sort of things do you need to talk about?” He pried.

“He thinks I’m dead. I want to assure him that I’m not.”

Mildew lowered down to look into her eyes, and she met them resolutely. “I see truth in your eyes. But not the whole truth, why else are you coming down here?”

It wasn’t any of his business, but ghosts are tricky things. Especially one that could sense her lies. “Part curiosity, and I wish to break the curse on the castle.”

He studied her for agonizingly long time. His piercing yellow eyes set a coldness in her bones and a lurch to her stomach. He circled her, like a vulture circles it’s dying meal.

She just stood tall, trying not to show fear.

Finally, he pulled away and slunk back to his hovel. “Your honesty has gained my favor, and I will let you pass. Know that my brothers are not so easily dissuaded. You will find Savage next.” Then he closed the door and locked it behind him.

Astrid let out a sigh. One down.

But the name ‘Savage’ didn’t sound any less horrifying.

On she continued, she began to notice the faces of vikings watching her from their cells, blankly, hopeless. She smiled and waved pleasantly to them, but no response was ever made. Just empty eyes and sullen faces.

Eight floors down, she noticed paintings hanging on the walls. All of them looked regal and poised, and held an air of importance. Everything was finitely detailed.

She studied them as she walked around the tower level, looking for the next set of stairs.

But then she saw the first painting again.

“Huh?” She said aloud. She went to the railing and looked across the landing. There was no staircases. In fact, she couldn’t tell which way was up or down. Darkness was in both directions.

“Is it night already?”

She turned back around to look at the paintings, but stifled a scream as the portraits now bore corpses with slashes over the necks.

Savage was here, somewhere.

She took off running around the landing, keeping her eyes on the paintings, searching desperately for a clue. But each and every subject had reached a horrible and gruesome demise.

All except for one.

Astrid came to a screeching halt when she came face to face with herself, as a portrait. Her blonde hair, that she usually kept up, was draped over her shoulder. Her neck was inclined, displaying her flawless white skin, and inviting a blade.

Astrid trembled at the sight. She glanced around the floor, and saw a figure several feet away. He was almost completely black, but in the light, his scythe shone.

Astrid glanced briefly back at the painting, but when she turned back, Savage was closer.

“Oh god please no.” She whispered to herself.

She stared at the ghost, unwavering. Her eyes watering from holding back a blink. Still he did not move any closer.

“Well, I can’t just stay like this…” she thought. “There has to be a way to stop him…”

Blindly, she reached out and touched the painting of herself. Vaguely, she felt fingers on her neck and shivered, but she did not tear her gaze away from Savage.

She lifted her painting off the wall, while keeping her axe firmly in one hand. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see something underneath the painting. With a great risk, she flicked her eyes over to it, only to see another painting. This one was of a man with dark eyes and a cold, tired frown. God help her if she was wrong, but Astrid swung her axe and embedded it into the canvas and clenched her eyes shut.

She heard a clatter, and then nothing.

Astrid pried her eyes open and looked to Savage. There was nothing there now, but his scythe laid on the floor, almost touching her. Just for a moment, she was frozen, adrenaline pumping through her. Then she exhaled, and her shoulders dropped.

The painting she destroyed had changed. Now the face on it was smiling ever so slightly and looked to be in peace. Her own portrait that she had released, was a blank canvas now.

Everything was still.

Behind her, the stairs to the next floor sat waiting.

With shaky legs, Astrid continued on, and glanced up to the tower above. The sunlight was back, but was growing dim. Evening would be coming soon.

“Alright.” She whispered quietly, resolved.

The stairs between the landings seemed to be longer now. The wrought iron cases groaned under her feet as she took careful steps. It just seemed to go on and on and even though she was going down, her legs were tingling from exhaustion. And was she crazy, or was the Tower growing wider too? Maybe it was a trick of the light, or lack there of.

She had lost track of how many flights she had travelled. Everything just looked the same.

In the end, she just came to rest at the railing and turned her gaze upwards. She couldn’t see the light anymore. The air down here was rank and stagnant, almost making it hard to breathe. She was thankful that her friends didn’t have lungs, so they wouldn’t be breathing this in all eternity.

“I can hear your heart beating…” A deep guttural voice spoke from the darkness.

Astrid swallowed. It had been a while since she saw a guard.

“It’s so loud…it makes my head hurt.”

From the shadows, a man hobbled toward her, his head nearly touching the landing above. Each step made the landing shake, and she feared he would break through. His beard was long and dragged across the floor, as his chained wrists swung back and forth rhythmically. His white eyes glowed in her torch.

“Your breathing, too. It sounds like nails on a chalkboard.”

Astrid then realized that her breathing was haggard and hard. So she held her breath.

“You can’t hid it. I heard you from the moment you walked in the door. I always hear you.”

Astrid swallowed heavily, her throat suddenly dry.

The monster stood directly in front of her, towering above her like a mountain. “Are you afraid of me?” He asked.

Astrid nodded, terrified of his soulless gaze.

“Speak. What’s your name?”

She whispered. “Astrid Hofferson.” If he could hear her heart, she couldn’t imagine how loud her voice was.

A pained look came over his face. “You’re only a child…” His fists clenched and his shoulders heaved. “I can’t kill a child…Don’t make me kill a child…”  

Astrid gripped her axe, ready for whatever was to come.

“Kill me instead.”

“What?” Astrid asked softly.

“Kill me!” He begged. “Kill me now!”

Astrid stepped back, her calf hit the railing behind her.

“I want to die…please let me die…”

“I don’t want to…” Astrid spoke, a little louder. “I’m not going to kill you unless I have to.”

He grunted, the chains on his wrists clanking. He rolled his shoulders back. “Then I’m going to make you.”

Astrid had just seconds to leap away before the ghost brought his fists down into the railing, crushing it like aluminum.

Her eyes widened, imagining her bones shattering under his fists.

The monster roared and swung his arms around, like a living wrecking ball.

Astrid ducked down to the ground, using her axe as a shield. The monster’s arms careened into the wall, breaking through the stone with a bang. Astrid covered her face with her hands to protect from the flying rubble, only to miss the beast’s next attack. He swung down, hitting her right between the shoulder blades. She broke through the aged floor, and crashed into the floor below and fell unconscious.  

Several hours later, Astrid finally awoke. She grunted softly.

“Hush, be still.” Fishlegs spoke from the dark.

“Huh?” Her head was swimming, as she felt something wrapped around her skull.

This time, Snotlout spoke. “Alvin attacked you, and you fell unconscious. You should be safe in here though.”

“But just to make sure,” Fishlegs interrupted before she answered. “You shouldn’t speak. It’s nighttime now.”

The door on the opposite side of the room opened, and indeed, it was so dark, Astrid couldn’t even see a silhouette.

“We found some extra blankets.” Tuff said from the door. “They’re pretty dusty though.”

Astrid felt someone drape the blankets on her. The smell of dust was overwhelming, but she was too tired to care. Her stomach growled angrily, since she hadn’t eaten all day. But there was nothing she could do about that now.

“Just rest for now, and in the morning, you can tell us all about what happened with Viggo,” Fishlegs assured.  

Grateful, Astrid closed her eyes to rest and soon fell back to sleep.

[god-hunter]

Astonishing X-Men #7-12

I know I already talked about Issue 7, barely... But as it’s part of this 2nd (and technically final) arc of Soule’s story, I had to include it in the photo set.

So this was the “A Man Called X” arc, which was very cleverly titled.  But it was ridiculously convoluted, which kept me from reviewing it for months!  Admittedly, it was way better on a 2nd read, so here goes:

Issue 7:  X reintroduces himself to the X-Men in this issue.  They had just defeated the Shadow King and rescued Charles Xavier, but it was at the expense of taking over Fantomex’s body.  And Charles acted younger and hipper, now suddenly.  He wants to be called X now.  There’s something they don’t trust about him, and I don’t blame them.

I brought this up before, but in this issue X fixes Archangel.  The first thing X does is stop Archangel dead in his tracks, who was in the midst of an air-battle with the Air Force, or whatever.    Basically, he force-calms him down, so that Warren can still cognitively think and feel like himself, rather than being cold and death-driven.  The Ministry of Defense is concerned about this sudden attack and subsequent ceasefire, and also that more chaos seems to be ensuing elsewhere in London.

This involves Bishop & Gambit, who are still under some sort of spell.  Only it isn’t the ShadowKing this time. It’s something else, which X has yet to discover.  Before Psylocke and the others let him help them though, she needs to see for herself what happened to Fantomex.  So she dives in his head via telepathy, and finds that Fantomex volunteered to stay behind in the Astral Plane. He sacrificed his physical body in order to bring Xavier to the fore.  [Which means that this can be reversed...]

Anyway, Bishop looks into this Green Sun that is looming over the people in his area and is controlling them.  It’s a Future death incident called the Mindkiller Apocalypse, apparently, which is a huge cause for concern.

X tries to stop this green thing, whatever it is.  But instead, all he did was set the green thing free.  This being is called Proteus.

Issue 8 - So, we went from stopping ShadowKing, to somehow setting Proteus free in the aftermath.  How those 2 connect, I don’t know, but I was still curious...

“The ShadowKing must have been using shards of Proteus’ soul to create a psychic feedback loop. It nearly ripped a hole between the Astral Plane and this World...” as X puts it.  The London X-Men quickly get fed up with this, but Psylocke reels them in.  “Can we just set everything else aside until we stop him?”  [That’s fair.]

Bishop spots Proteus absolutely eating people’s souls for energy.  He tries blasting him with his guns, but that only makes him more powerful too.

Old Man Logan claims that he knows how to kill Proteus.  They have to use Metal, which he and Archangel have in spades.

Then... this issue takes a left turn.  This is where I come out of it.

X and Psylocke get in Proteus’ head.  Apparently they’re in Scotland, where the human form of him is really Kevin MacTaggert? Moira’s brother???

He brings up their past history, which I’d rather not get into.  He does a lot of self-victimizing for his past crimes, and says that after years in the Astral Plane he’d like a 2nd chance. Something X should understand big time.

At the end of this issue, X attempts to kill Kevin with psychic guns(?) and Proteus retaliates.  He X & Psylocke together, leaving the rest of the X-Men confused and worries as fuck on the outside.  They’re literally melting into each other, which is quite horrific.

Issue 9 - I didn’t know what the Hell was going on, but Soule still had my curiosity.  

We come to find that this was some sort of mind-meld or something.  Archangel & Logan immediately use their metal to strike/guard them.  Warren protects Psylocke which is touching, because they were once an item.  And Logan decides to stab X in the shoulder, because Fantomex had healing powers.  Same body, same powers, he figures.  But no, that’s not the case.

He couldn’t heal and writhed in pain until Psylocke put him to sleep.

They imediately brought him to the Blackbird to recover, while Proteus shifted over to Scotland to... reclaim his Kingdom, as it were.

He literally invades a bar, where some random civilians are chilling, and.. ‘gives them what they want.’  One civilian was flirting with someone’s fiance big time, and by Proteus doing this, now he caused the person to just savagely kill his best friend. I already skipped a lot of stuff though.

First, Proteus makes this community. He literally builds a spherical wall, and convinces these people that he is their leader, and everyone gets what they want.  Having mind powers, presumably, this is not hard.

So bam. The chaos ensues in this community, and some people are transformed into soldiers

“NO!” X snaps awake, while the Blackbird Jet flies over to Scotland.  {And then I gave away the ending already.  Jealous boy wanted his friend gone, so boom. He blew up.}  This can only mean worse in the bigger picture.  Some sort of all out war, in this community, which may spread to the rest of the World.

Issue 10 - On their way to Scotland, they tell X that they voted that Psylocke is in charge of this gang.  “Nothing personal. We just don’t trust you. At all.”  Thanks Mystique.  He utters something about wanting to drop an atomic bomb on the place, which is super OOC for Xavier.  They remind him that that’s exactly why he is not leading and then say that they’re the X-Men. They Save people.

“You’re assuming there’s anyone left to save,” X says with a dark spin on life.

This is where it gets whacky.  We see all sorts of dragons and soldiers attack the Blackbird jet, while other civilians are having orgies, or exhibiting other such chaotic behavior.

Yet again, the Blackbird crashes, but our X-Men are fine, because telepathic device.  

Then the real fight goes down.  It’s quick and rushed, to get to the point, which I like.  Crazy layout of panels across 2 pages, or our guys fighting random people and creatures.  [I doubt this is what they wanted, and more of what Proteus wanted.]

Suddenly the people stop fighting, and the ground seems to sprout up to capture some of our team.  The Shadow King’s face can even be seen within the ground as Proteus talks to them.

“The Shadow King wanted a Hellscape... so that’s what the Astral Plane was.  But I think there’s another way.  That’s why I did my little experiment here...  If you create a World using only one mind’s ideas, you get something twisted, stunted.  But if you use many minds...you get a Garden.”

Logan is pissed because he believes he killed them 100%.  Proteus explains that he gave them what they wanted.  They’re just different now.  Then he shifts the conversation over to Xavier’s dream.  “Do you still believe in that dream?”

“I do,” X proclaims.  He also says that none of them would have chosen this, if they knew it would turn out this way.

Proteus then says it’s time to let his garden grow.  On the last page, the spherical walls are broken down, and I guess this reality is lopping itself onto the rest of Scotland.

Issue 11 - The Garden quickly spreads into Edinburgh, Copenhagen, Philadelphia, Dublin, Cairo... Tokyo!!

[Whenever things get Worldly like this, I can’t help but wonder, where are the Gold & Blue teams in on this, then??]  Or anyone else for that manner??

Proteus is at the point where he feels he’s won.  But Logan and Archangel go after him with their metal.  While Psylocke and X try to attack him from inside his head.

There’s a lot of slashing and beam throwing.  It’s cool to watch, but where’s the substance or the stakes, here??

X & Psylocke use their brain waves to calm down the people in Japan.  Or ‘stop the seed’ as they call it...  [Seed of Proteus’ ever-growing Garden, I presume.]

Inside Proteus’ head, Moira appears to comfort him, but he’s not buying into the illusion.  At least, not at first.

They pull a fast one on Proteus and X gets cocky.  He says that with this kind of power, they could do anything, with a sinister grin.  

The fight on the outside gets somewhat exciting with Gambit & Rogue involved.  Bishop jumps in to try to convert his energy as well.  I like the semblance of teamwork, happening here.  Proteus shrieks, “Why? Why?  Why won’t you ever let me live?”

Then at the end of this issue, X, drunk with power cracks open his skin to reveal that he is really the Shadow King, after all.  [THAT explains those black and white dialogue boxes!]

Issue 12 - This was Soule’s big bad conclusion, and I couldn’t care less by this point.  It was morbid curiosity by this point and a quest for all things to end, which was why I got it at all.  The artistry was way better on this, from Gerardo Sandoval, though.

So despite killing the Shadow King on the Astral Plane, Mystique confirms to Rogue that none of that is real.  He he is, living, breathing before them in the Real World and it’s a double splash page of the whole bunch ganging up on him.

Then we see something crazy.  Shadow King got to Old Man Logan and made him kill himself.  I recall reading that and being super-shocked, thinking that it could actually be permanent.  Everyone else dealt with their own shit as well, and as X narrates “Only Psylocke still stands.”

Psylocke fights him in panels, while we see Bishop feeling guilty that he let the Mindkiller Apocalypse happen.  Gambit apparently tries to kill himself with his cards.

Rogue and Mystique apparently have a fatal embrace with her glove off.  Archangel feels shame, and I think flies himself into space, where he can’t breathe, then lets himself fall to the ground.

But then, we eventually see Xavier put himself back together.  He’s wearing a new outfit now, but still looks young and buff.  He uses his mind powers to help Psylocke defeat the Shadow King.

We get to see more X-Men than just the Astonishing Team, which is neat.  (It’s a bunch of heads in the background, making me believe that it’s a psychic thing.) Betsy asks, “What is this?” and he says, “All of us. Together.”

As if he mentally siphoned the power of every living Mutant, to mentally help them against the Shadow King, I guess.

And it’s their bravery, which seems to shrink the Shadow King into a little bug, which X flicks away.

Betsy asks if he’s Xavier now.  He affirms that he’s still X, but whatever shadow was in him is gone now.

By the end of this, none of them still trust him, and he just tells them, “I said I had gifts for all of you... and so I do.”

[This was kind of interesting.]

He gives Warren choice, so I guess he can go back to Angel, Archangel or just Warren. Whatever he wants whenever he needs...  He gives Remy purpose and tells him to find Fantomex and pay him back whatever he owes him.  He gives Mystique & Rogue understanding.  This one, I don’t care to understand.

He gives Bishop permission to enjoy the world, and not always worry about the future.  He gives Logan vision, to see that he is walking towards the light from his dark past.

And then, the most fucked up, but also brilliant thing is him giving them all Oblivion.  “Forget.”

He tells them.  Then he mind-wipes all of them!  Except for Betsy. She gets to remember.

“For now, you’ll be the only one who knows I’ve returned. You’ll watch me. Keep me honest.”

After they exchange threats, she asks him what their Psychic be-all-end-all was.  She suggests that maybe he could find the stronger empaths, and bring them to the school.

He tells her, nah, though.  “Why would I go back to the School? I’m sure Kitty Pryde has things well in hand.  The school was Professor Charles Xavier’s place.  His dream... There is nothing for me there.” He smirks as the sun sets in the background.

“I am not Xavier. I am X...  I have a new dream.”

-The End-

Jeeeez.  Cool that he’s back, but man oh man.  Where was Soule going with this.  He just planted this giant seed, in hopes that someone else could pick this up and run with it???

I’m not sure if Astonishing got cancelled, or if it was always meant to be a 12-part mini-series.  But either way, Soule’s story was done by this point.

And I was NOT interested in getting Issue 13, with a new writer coming on board.  But I accidentally got it in my pile anyway.  And it was waaaay fucking better than any of this.

All things considered...  I like that Charles is back.  Even if he's younger and different... and, in the background.. and none of this really matters, ‘cause it’ll get reset anyway.

In the meantime, it’s still interesting.  And I guess that’s why I collected this in the first place.  Because it seemed interesting.  So that’s that.