#kidd commander spoilers

[unpretty]

*YELLS*

[elkian]

If I had a nickel for every webcomic I read this year where a cosmic entity and a human soul struggled to coexist inside a body like-but-not-quite the human's body, and there were arguably sapphic overtones to the whole thing, I'd have ten cents,

[glassartpeasants]

One Piece Asylum AU idea

things are subject to change but here is a little short

~~~~

Characters include: Luffy, Zoro, Sanji, Law, Kidd, and Killer

GN!Reader for the moment

Warnings: drug use, mentioned death, murder/manslaughter, hallucinations, mental illness's, abuse, medical malpractice, slight gore, depression, made at work, kinda spoilers for Law's and Sanji's backgrounds, i tried my best to incorporate some things from each backstory into this so-,I AM NOT A MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONAL SO I DO NOT KNOW IF THESE COULD BE ACCURATE

~~~~

“Patient's name is Monkey D. Luffy. He was brought here by his grandfather after he failed to thrive following the death of his older brother.” Handing you the clipboard, the head psychiatrist looks at you before continuing. “He’s convinced himself he’s a pirate and trying to become ‘King of the Pirates’ with his ‘nakama.’ We believe it’s a coping mechanism and trauma response to witnessing his brother's murder.”

Looking through the pages, you read the test and charts. Upon seeing a particular line, you raise a brow. “Believes he’s made of rubber?”

“Ah, yes. It’s part of the world he’s built in his head. He thinks that things will bounce off him and that he can’t get hurt if he falls from heights. It’s caused multiple bruises and broken bones. One includes the broken femur he just recovered from. He’s a high fall risk due to these delusions.”

“That’s so sad. Creating a whole world just to escape the grief. I can’t imagine the pain of watching a loved one die in such a horrific manner.”

“Surprisingly, this pirate world is common in this hospital. Don’t know if it’s Luffy’s influence or if it’s a common escape method that hasn’t been fully researched yet. But it is a very regular delusion in here.”

“There’s more…pirates?”

“Yes. Three crews, to be exact. At least for now. Luffy’s charmed his way into a few other patients' minds and convinced them to ‘join his crew.’”

“Really? Who are they?”

“There's a lot. Are you sure you want to hear them? It can get pretty disturbing and slightly gut-wrenching. New World Asylum isn’t known for the mild cases.”

A sense of unease fills the pit of your stomach, but the curiosity is too much to endure. “I’m sure.” Nodding, the head psychiatrist leads you to a big hallway. The doors are thick metal with name plates on each surface. As you approached the dark, eerie hallway, it felt like a horror movie.

The head psychiatrist hands you a pen and a small notepad. “Take notes, rookie. If you want to survive, I suggest writing down as many notes as possible.”

“After Luffy, we have Rorona Zoro. Brought here by police after a welfare check discovered he was living with the decaying body of his lover after he accidentally killed them.”

“What? Why is he here instead of prison?” You question, looking at the psychiatrist with furrowed brows.

“It was an accident. He used to collect swords and practice swordsmanship, which had him collecting a total of 3 swords. One of them accidentally killed his lover when they sneaked up behind him when he was drunk, spooking him. He killed them instantly, thankfully, slicing them in half. In his despair, he kept the body with him for two weeks. His boss was the one to call the cops to check up on them since he hadn’t left the apartment or contacted anyone in the said two weeks.”

“That's so sad, but…that still doesn’t explain why he isn’t in prison?”

“After the death, he continued to speak to them like they were alive, and when the cops tried to separate him from the body, he flipped his shit. It turned into a standoff that lasted about four hours before they finally managed to take him down. Often gets aggressive and has violent outbursts when he has moments of ‘clarity’ and ‘can’t find them.’”

“Oh…”

“He’s part of Luffy’s ‘Straw Hat Pirates.’ From our observed behaviors, he seems to be the second in command. He now claims to be striving to be the best swordsman for his deceased lover.” Writing down the minor notes that you could, you continue to follow.

“Next up, Vinsmoke Sanji. After suffering years of abuse that he refuses to speak about, he attacked them ruthlessly. The only one surviving of the massacre was his older sister, who he deems ‘free of retribution.’ They counted him unfit to stand trial and sent him here. According to Luffy, he’s the cook for his crew. As far as we know, he’s never stepped foot in the facilities kitchen.”

Remaining speechless, you follow and try to calm down how your mind seems to run at a million miles per minute. How many people did this place have that believed they were pirates? Was this all Luffy’s doing? Influencing people into believing his world?

“Trafalgar Water D. Law. A raging wildfire took out his entire town overnight when he slept as a child. He has it in his mind that the government did it to hide the fact they were experimenting on them. A man adopted him only to witness his murder after his adoptive father got into an argument with a family member.” Your heart burned as you listen to the recounting of his story. Losing your whole world overnight twice sounded like hell.

“The next thirteen years seemed to go by quickly and relatively calmly. He’d gotten his medical degree to be a surgeon. He was known far and wide as a great doctor. It wasn’t until people began to find out that he'd been secretly experimenting on people. Trying to find a cure for an unknown disease that he claims killed his family.”

“The one that he blamed on the government?” You raised your brow, trying to comprehend what could possibly be going on in the man’s mind.

“Yes. It also came to light that his partner, who was constantly sick, was being poisoned by him. He always fed them a small amount of some drug, so they were too weak to do anything other than depend on him. Just so they couldn’t leave him. And just like almost everyone else, they concluded that he's not in the right mind to stand trial and sent him here.”

Walking past Law’s door, a sense of despair hits you, making goosebumps rise on your skin. You could hear him talking to himself, but what he’s saying was unintelligible. “He talks to his deceased sister a lot. Blames himself for not waking up his family in time to save them from the fire or warn them about the ‘sickness’ they had. When talking to him, don't be spooked if he starts asking you about your upcoming ‘surgery.’ He’s restrained in a jacket like Zoro."

"He’s another victim of Luffy’s influence, as he also now believes he’s part of a pirate group. But this one, he’s the captain of. He calls them the Heart Pirates. Another thing he discusses frequently is Corazon. We have yet to figure out who or what that is.”

“I’ll…keep that in mind.” The pen scribbled relentlessly on the paper, seeming never to stop as words repeatedly filled the small, lined paper.

“Good. Next up is Eustass Kidd.” Moving forward, next to the head psychiatrist, you are shown a door made of even thicker metal than the others along the hallway. There were even twice the number of locks on the door compared to the ones you've seen.

“Why are there so many locks?”

“He’s the most aggressive and hostile. It’s gotten to the point of him being unable to leave his cell and being chained to the back wall-”

“Let me out of here, you stupid-” A scream of pain came from behind the heavy metal door, causing you to rush up and slide open the slot in the door to check up on the man behind it.

“Sir?! Are you okay?!” As you opened the small opening, you were met with orange orbs staring right at you. Firey red hair could be seen from what little light was in the room. For a moment, the air seemed cold, quiet, and uncomfortable.

CLANK

Not a second passed before the man in chains jumped to his feet and rushed at you; the chains holding him back and the door separating you two did little to quell the scream that left your throat as you fell back on your butt. 

“He never learns.” The head psychiatrist sighs before you see her push a button on a small remote in her hand, leading to another scream of agony in the room.

“W-What are you?” Wide-eyed, you look at her.

“Shock therapy. It’s part of his treatments.”

“But hasn’t that been proven to be ineffective?” A stone stare was all you got, and it made you want to shrink and crawl into a hole to hide. Why would she use a technique that has proven ineffective? As punishment? There had to be some sort of explanation. There is no way they would use such primitive methods in this modern day. Unnerved, you slowly stand up, your eyes never leaving her hand.

“Moving on.” Quickly rushing forward, she moves to the final door. Not sparing you or the chained man a second glance.

Looking at the tiny slit in the door, you exhale a silent, “I’m sorry…” Swallowing down your saliva, you move to her side once more. What once was a calm introduction now felt wrong. The coldness of her actions shows a dark side that makes you want to run far, far away. What could he have done to get here and be treated like some sort of animal?

“What did he do that caused such treatment?”

“He was in a rock band, but there was an accident at a bar where he must have taken some substances that caused a manic episode. Whether it was knowingly or unknowingly is not charted. However, the episode caused some harsh hallucinations, which resulted in him running into oncoming traffic and getting hit by a car. The aftermath was multiple surgeries and the amputation of his left arm. Once he was awake and saw the damage, he freaked.”

“Freaked? Did they not explain to him what happened?”

“They tried, but from forced brain scans and multiple behavior therapists later, it was revealed that the accident had knocked some screws loose. Putting him in an eternal warped state of mind. A constant state of psychosis in a better term. No amount of medication has helped him. He’s a lost cause. No doubt he’ll be here for the rest of his life.” Frowning, you follow her to the next and last room in the hallway.

“Last but not least, Killer.”

“Killer?” You look at her in confusion. What kind of name is that? Is she pranking you?

“Yes. He was and still is Eustass Kidd’s best friend and the only person who can calm him down when he’s on a violent rampage after somehow escaping his room.”

“How did he get here then? Was he also in the accident?”

“No. He came a month after Eustass was sent to us. After Eustass’s spiral, he spiraled into his own depression after losing his best friend, and he turned to some drugs to soothe the pain. And just like his friend, he caused irreversible damage to himself after going on a drug stupor after his lover broke it off with him cause he was ‘too depressing to be around.’”

“What did he do?...”

Sparing you only a second glance, the head psychiatrist looked to be holding back a chuckle. “He used a sewing needle to stitch his mouth into a smile before going back to his ex’s house and trying to beg for them to take him back, saying he ‘fixed himself. ‘The cops took one look at him and sent him here.” An icky feeling rose in your gut at her reaction. How could she find something so horrific to be funny?

“That's horrible…it’s so disturbing how fragile the human mind is.”

“It is. Oh, something I forgot to mention is that Luffy’s influence hit them, too. Eustass took his words as a challenge and made his own pirate group, including Killer, called the ‘Kidd Pirates.’”

“How original?”

Stopping suddenly, the lady turns to you. “Now that you know them. It’s time for you to get ready.”

“Ready? Ready for what?”

“Ready to meet your new patients, Dr. (Y/N). I’m sure you’ll love it here at New World Asylum.”

[bluehairandpronouns42069]

I have been feeling unwell the last couple days, so I've been carefully resting... by making a Kidd Commander/Hadestown crossover, of course. AMV of "Flowers," from Hadestown, and illustrations from the @kidd-commander webcomic. Spoiler warning for all of the Wretched Analog arc, as well as content warnings for body horror, abuse, and forced memory loss.

[boss-duck]

I wrote a thing! It's for a really awesome web comic you should definitely check out. But if you haven't yet, read this anyway! No spoilers! Maybe it'll inspire you to read the comic :)

[prawnlegs]

ok sorry I just want to talk about webcomics now I think it’s worth mentioning that @shinesurge​‘s webcomic, Kidd Commander, has a character who is a queer man with a mysterious and painful backstory, he’s the brains of the operation, a charismatic, diplomatic bastard, AND he looks like this:

our boy is CHUBBY and at one point [mild spoiler?] he shows up looking incredible in a skirt

In This House We Love and Respect Ulrich Weiss

[kbstories]

Entangled

en·tan·gled (adj.) Twisted together; interconnected.

Eustass Kidd joins the Flying Six. The Kidd Pirates go to war.

(Or: Welcome to the worst timeline.)

Tags: Canon Divergence, Blood and Violence, References to Brainwashing, Rescue Missions, Hurt/Comfort (It’s a solid 80% hurt you have been warned)

Set in Wano, Act Three. Spoiler warning for all of Wano. This is an AU where Kidd is imprisoned on Onigashima and Killer doesn’t eat SMILE.

Content warning for some torture, some blood and references to brainwashing.

***

They’re dead, they said.

Wiping blood from his mouth, Kidd had laughed. “My crew? Dying to cock-faced cunts like you? Never.”

They fought to get to you and they died, they said as cruel hands dug into Kidd’s hair and put him under, over and over.

“They didn’t”, Kidd bit back. “They’re alive”, words fractured by the water in his throat, his lungs. Again – they will come – and again – they’re fine – and again – they’ll come for me. By then he couldn’t catch enough breath to speak but it was there, conviction burning bright in his chest.

They said, he’s dead, and even though his eyes could barely see and his ears were ringing, Kidd recognized blue and white and Killer. Kidd’s veins ached with whatever they pumped into him, his brain struggling to tell truth from lie, dream from reality.

The mask is there, real. The seams Kidd worked a full day and night on to get them just right, cracked apart and caked with blood where Killer’s temple would be–

They’re dead, they say and Eustass Kidd’s world shatters apart.

***

The Victoria Punk strains against the raging of the sea, waves mighty as mountains crashing against her skull and bursting into a thousand pieces. Killer doesn’t turn his head away from the spray, lets the ocean sting every inch of exposed skin.

Under his mask, his eyes stare straight into Onigashima’s soulless gaze.

“Hey, you there! Spikey’s friend!”

Strawhat’s voice rings true through the winds and the rain. Killer keeps his arms crossed and nods, the gesture over-articulated to carry despite the storm. “Stick to the plan, Strawhat! We’ll catch up to you on the other side!”

A smile and a thumbs-up from Strawhat to his right, a sardonic laugh from Law to his left. “Wouldn’t have pegged you for an optimist, Massacre Soldier.”

All Killer gives him is the bird. Kidd would’ve laughed at that, he thinks.

Wire is at the helm, hands steadfast and solid. “Keep course”, Killer tells him as he hops down on deck. “There’s a spot at the bottom of the bay. The Punk should be safe there.” Heat flanks him as the rest of the crew gathers, every face around him retaining that grim sort of tenacity that carried them through the past month.

There’s exhaustion there too, so keen Killer can sense it: None of them can quite shake that phantom presence permeating the Punk, the constellation of their very being-together fundamentally incomplete.

To sail into battle without Kidd is… wrong, inconceivable, almost. Killer has endured all magnitudes of that feeling while they scoured every corner of Wano Country in search for that element that will make them whole again, that unique gravitational pull that makes their individual parts click into each other like carefully-crafted machinery.

(It doesn’t get easier, being without him. Missing him. Killer can’t tell why he ever expected it to.)

“Stay low”, Killer reminds his crewmates, his voice as steady as it’s been since this nightmare started. “Find the Flying Six, that’s our priority. We have to get to Kidd before the raid starts, or things will get messy.”

For years, Killer’s mask has been a comfort; the immediate “Aye, Captain” he gets in return makes him wince where the crew can’t see it. It’s a necessity, for them to remain in the dark about his weakness – about the visceral fear that shot through Killer when he realized Kidd is gone and all eyes fell on him to make the next step.

(This has been a possibility since the very beginning yet Killer never expected to live long enough for it to become reality. Always together, even in death, that was the plan.)

*

From the moment their boots touch land, all Killer can think of is Kidd. Find Kidd, save Kidd, a near-obsessive mantra playing in his head on an endless loop as they leave the Punk behind.

For weeks he lived as Kamazo the Manslayer, every scrap of intel extracted in crimson splatters under moonlit skies. Alliances made and information combined for one purpose alone, and it’s worth it to pass by hordes of drunks and people-soon-to-be-drunks unnoticed. Every step the Kidd Pirates make on Onigashima is accounted for, their approach methodical sans the perpetual chaos Kidd’s mere existence brings.

Killer hates how easy it is, to become something other than themselves. There is no time to waste on regret, not here. They have to keep going.

Finally: There is the fortress, there are the Flying Six – and among them, a flash of red Killer would recognize anywhere, anytime. His vision narrows down to the shape of Kidd perched on the parapet, dressed black-on-black like the rest of them, and a murmur goes through the crew behind him. By some animal instinct, Kidd’s head turns and he stares right at them, too.

And for the first time in a month Killer inhales and feels his lungs unfold, his chest swell with a full breath. Kidd is there. He’s right there, and Killer’s too far away to pick up any details but Kidd is alive and now he knows they’re here, too. All that’s left is to get him out of here and regroup and–

“Soldier, watch out!”

–the shout is almost drowned out by Killer’s instincts. He tears his scythes up in the last second to deflect the little bits of something raining down on them. Shrapnel, the ground littered with it in moments.

What the…?

The thunderclap of Conqueror’s Haki precedes a furious roar he has heard a hundred times, a hundred battles over. Killer catches sight of Kidd, and how scrap gathers and swirls around him, the eye of a silver-tinged hurricane about to hit, and his mind stalls as that murderous glare locks on him.

Then Kidd is upon them.

Metal screeches against metal, the air turning sharp and heavy with Kidd’s will as his fists clash against Killer’s scythes. There’s not a shred of hesitance to the strike: A fraction of a second is all Killer gets to seek out Kidd’s eyes, glowing with the sparks exploding in all directions between them, and Killer’s gut drops at the cold fury he finds there.

That, and bloodlust so strong he can taste it. Oh fuck.

The force of the attack has Killer’s heels skidding back a few feet – motherfucker, Kidd isn’t holding anything back, is he? – before Kidd’s gaze flicks to the side and he scoffs, a pissed-off tch.

A breath, drawing deep. Flames engulf them both, then, the fire throwing up a wall that gives Killer some room to breathe.

“Heat”, he gasps, and they motion for him to move. Wire isn’t far behind, grabbing Killer by the elbow and dragging him away from the inferno swallowing the person they came to save. “You okay? Killer. Did he–?”

Killer can barely look elsewhere. “No. I’m fine, Wire, let me– What the hell did they do to him?” The last part is little more than a snarl, something venomous and ugly within him stirring. Just a glimpse of it sends Killer’s heart on a warpath, beating hard enough to throb even in his fingertips.

Wire’s expression is drawn, lips a tense line. “I don’t know but this is bad. There’s too much metal on all of us.” Which is by design, to help Kidd get around in a fight and– Fuck. Fuck.

A handful of seconds, that’s all Heat can buy them. Fire can’t hold Kidd, not for long, the man himself forged in heat and pressure just as the metal he commands. Killer grits his teeth to see Kidd emerge from plumes of smoke wiping soot off that same look on his face, lethal and so cold, and he pulls both Heat and Wire behind himself.

“Leave him to me. Take the others and–”

Wire’s hand goes bruise-tight on Killer’s arm. Heat hisses, “Killer–”

“Listen to me. Kaido’s forces will follow him here any minute. Keep them off our backs. Buy us time. Whatever this is, Kidd will fight it. I just have to make him listen.”

Two little words stick to Killer’s tongue, almost making it out of his mouth. Captain’s orders. He doesn’t have to say them, though, the tense sigh Wire exhales an answer in and of itself.

“Fine, just– Stay sharp. Let’s go, Heat.”

“Yeah”, Heat says with a final glance Kidd’s way, and they’re gone. Disappearing from Killer’s limited field of vision, and Killer trusts they will keep the crew safe. It’s not like he can turn and check, not with Kidd stalking ever-closer.

Coming for him, not the crew. Just him. A joyless smile stretches Killer’s lips wide. Good.

“Care to explain what game you’re playing, Kidd? We’re here to take you home.”

Kidd snaps at him, “Shut the fuck up”, teeth big and white against the backdrop of black leather Kidd is wearing. His face is bare for the first time in years, his hair slicked back like he couldn’t give any less of a damn how it looks. Killer’s gaze falls on the symbol of the Beast Pirates on the thick belts crossing over his chest and his heart lurches, skips out of rhythm–

“I don’t care who you are. I’ll fucking kill you for wearing that mask.”

Killer stares.

“Who I…? The mask is mine. It’s mine, Kidd, you made it for me. I’m–”

Oh shit, the earth itself shakes from the pulse of magnetism Kidd draws in every last bit of metal with, Killer’s arms threatening to snap out of their sockets as his scythes are pulled in, too. “Don’t you dare”, the words are a growl more than anything. “Don’t you fucking dare say his name”, and the pressure drops to be replaced by brute physical force as Kidd lunges.

Killer doesn’t stand a chance against Kidd, he knows that. There’s his Devil Fruit, his natural strength, his skill with damn-near every weapon he’s collected – ever since he unlocked the Haki to match, Kidd has shrugged off any and all limits imposed on him. Killer knows what Kidd can do, knows his body better than his own, some days, knows every emotion that flashes in that rust-red gaze of his.

And, with Kidd hellbent on ripping him apart, Killer knows he’s but one misstep away from a very violent death.

Countless times they’ve fought yet this is an entirely different beast: The only advantage Killer has is speed, and even that is rendered meaningless in the face of Kidd’s powers turning the metal on his body into anchors, his wrists and neck aching trying to withstand that particular gravity. Time and time again they collide, a spray of sparks and panted breath as Killer stares into the hate-filled eyes of the man he loves and doesn’t back down.

As he tells him, “It’s me, Killer, it’s me, I came back for you”, and Kidd snarls, beyond words.

Something has to give and for a moment there, Killer thinks it might not be him. Kidd is panting, growing pale and covered in sweat. This close, Killer can see the fresh wounds left to scar, dotting his chest with sickening precision, and the mottled bruises blooming on his neck, right over his pulse point.

Whatever they put him through, it’s recent enough for Kidd to look like he’s on the verge of collapse once he’s burned through his rage, and Killer despises himself for drawing hope from that.

Then Kidd stumbles, Killer hesitates – and Kidd nails him in the side, a punch too swift for Killer to block, and the taste of copper spills on Killer’s tongue as he feels his ribs give before he twists. The second fist is inches from connecting when Killer slips his hand out of the metal guard slowing him down and elbows Kidd in the face, stomach turning at the immediate gush of blood that clearly spells broken nose.

They fall apart, Killer holding the scratched-and-bruised mess of his midriff and Kidd groaning with his face tucked into his elbow. Struggling to breathe through the pain, Killer fumbles for his second scythe, throwing it to the side where it lands with a dull thud, unseen. Kidd is staring at him, mouth open and painted crimson.

Then Killer��s fingers hook into the back of his mask and he pulls it off, the world suddenly too-bright, too-loud, overwhelming – it all pales against the fear choking him, smothering any ounce of reason Killer clung to without Kidd there to guide him.

“Kidd, it’s me”, he says, the words small between them, on the brink of vanishing altogether. Well and truly lost, for the first time since they met. “Your partner. Please. I don’t know what to do. Please come back to me.”

And Kidd– He staggers towards him, like he can’t help it. “You’re dead”, he whispers, helplessly hoarse. “You died. You’re dead, Kil.”

Killer’s eyes sting as tears well up; he bites the inside of his cheek until it bleeds. Thinks, oh, and his mind puts together the puzzle pieces even if all he feels is his heart break.

“I’m right here. Right here, Kidd.”

Step by step Kidd’s fists lose their substance, metal falling to the ground in chunks and pieces and loose gears. Kidd asks, “…Killer?”, and it sounds so painfully uncertain, so threadbare and fragile that Killer throws caution to the wind.

Kidd’s knees give the moment Killer reaches for him. He doesn’t manage to catch the fall but it doesn’t matter, the feeling of Kidd’s arm sliding around his neck like breaking the water’s surface, like coming home at long last. His stump is left bare, bandaged and sore-looking, lacking the mechanics that have become Kidd as much any other part of him. Killer holds that shoulder before he does anything else, the tension there beyond unbearable to watch.

“Killer”, Kidd rasps, and Killer kneels so he doesn’t have to strain himself so much. “K-Kil, fuck, I didn’t– I thought–”

Half-realized words turning to heaving gasps, and Killer wraps himself around him as his shirt grows wet where Kidd’s head is tucked against his neck, equal parts blood and tears with how fucked up Kidd’s nose is. Murmurs against his hair, “It’s okay”, rubs a hand up and down the groove of his spine.

“Shh, it’s okay. I’m here. We’re all here, Kidd. Not leaving you behind, ever, got it?”

It’s there, with Kidd in his arms, that Killer becomes aware of their surroundings once more: There’s distant cannon fire, and battlecries cut short; the cracking of rifles and ringing of blades being drawn and crossed; bit by bit, the world reshapes itself into the beginnings of a war around them. The first thing Killer sees is a loose circle of backs turned towards them. Dead ahead, the signature woosh of Heat’s breath-turned-fire illuminates the silhouette of each and every member of their crew fighting tooth and nail to uphold the perimeter.

Closest to them, Wire’s trident blurs with motion as he smashes a volley of arrows out of the air, aimed directly at Kidd’s vulnerable back. A glance over his shoulder, and Wire’s eyes widen as they meet Killer’s.

Properly catching his gaze, for the very first time. Killer nods at him, mouths, we gotta get outta here. Wire reads his lips and smiles, unwavering.

Kidd is stirring as well, eyes red-rimmed and weirdly naked without the heavy black around them. He wipes at the blood that hasn’t quite stopped dripping down his chin before he looks up. Stares at Killer like he can’t quite believe he’s there, and then:

“Shit. Fuck, Killer, your mask”, Kidd mumbles urgently, an exhausted motion of his hand pulling closer the scattered remnants of their fight. “Where’s– Ah.”

And something in Killer breaks a little more at the gentleness with which Kidd handles his mask, his fingers unsteady as they wipe dirt and blood off the blue-white stripes before offering it to Killer, those red eyes tender with unspoken emotion.

Kidd doesn’t do apologies, mostly because there aren’t many actions he deems truly reprehensible, but... If apologies were Kidd’s thing this would be it.

Killer exhales a soft breath and presses a kiss to the line between Kidd’s shaved brows. “C’mon”, he says, and he hides his face before hoisting Kidd up to his feet, a breath shuddering out of him as his ribs shift in his chest. Kidd’s hand brushes over the furrows he left on Killer’s skin, frown deepening yet he doesn’t speak.

Piece by piece, they put themselves back together until they’re Eustass ‘Captain’ Kidd and Massacre Soldier Killer once more. There is hell to pay, a war to win and an Emperor to kill – when Kidd steps forward to rejoin their crew, he doesn’t waver and neither does Killer, following close behind.

[alas-poor-cesario]

The Ballad Of Klaes Ashford

I got way too passionate about this in the Discord server so I decided to make a text post that was a little bit more eloquent (and with more links! because we always need more links!) 

It’s under a read more because this got waaaaay too long.  

Spoilers up to season 4 of The Expanse!

The song that Klaes Ashford sings is Captain Kidd (best version I've found is Great Big Sea's) but also has similarities to Sam/ Jack Hall. There’s also the Ballad of William Kidd which I don’t think fits as well with what Ashford sings but it tells the story of Kidd quite well. 

Background on Captain Kidd:

Captain Kidd (1655-1701) was a Scottish sailor executed for Piracy. The song was printed in 1701. Earliest known recording of that song is 1964, I believe.

Kidd chose those he personally trusted to be his crew, and when he was sailing at one point refused to salute a Navy yacht and it fired on them in warning, so they showed their backsides to it. As you do. He had set out (with a letter of marque) to hunt pirates. Unfortunately he seemed to have the same sort of luck as one James Norrington from Pirates of the Caribbean, and was failing in that endeavour.  He ended up murdering a member of his crew (hit him in the head with a bucket, fracturing his skull, the man then died a day later). 

Acts of Kidd's piracy were well reported and he ended up keeping a prize ship to keep control of his crew, which definitely marked him out as a pirate, not someone the English could then trust considering the funding vs pirates caught and ships stolen ratio. His crew then ended up defecting and joining another crew under a different captain. When he was eventually caught and hanged the first time, the rope broke which people said was a sign from God that he shouldn't be executed. He was then hanged a second time and this killed him. Kidd became an inspiration for many pirate tales and ballads/ folk songs.

How this relates to Ashford:

I feel like by looking at the song we can see a bit more into Ashford’s character. He was a pirate, he left his morality behind when he became a pirate. He did all these awful acts and when we see him in the show he’s reached a point in his life where he can look back at that, and while not regret it, but know that he has learned from that. He can advise Drummer and the others he encounters because of this previous experience. The song is a warning to not be overly ambitious as you risk losing everything and risk ending up on the execution dock with your head on the block. 

He has a respect from the crew that he maintains by making tough decisions, but those that might look like he is going against the wishes of Earth and Mars. He makes the same sort of move that Kidd did in keeping the ship. He tried to repent and to “walk in wisdom’s ways” but soon forgot this vow in hope of ambition. If you keep bad company and do no good then you will end up in Hell, just like him.

Sam Hall:

The song Sam Hall fits better with the way Ashford sings it ( oh my name it is Sam Hall, Chimney Sweep works for  Oh your parents will teach you well, for you sail for you sail) . The tempo of the song doesn’t fit in as well with the versions of Captain Kidd that I  have heard, but Sam Hall is sang very much the way Ashford sings his ballad. 

In England, the song relates to a folk song dating back to the Jacobite Risings  - Robert Burns rewrote the lyrics to give an anti-war sentiment but still be anti-Jacobite. It questions what is "right and what is wrang?" and I feel like this also fits with Ashford's stance in the show (I haven't read the books but I know his character is changed a lot from that, so this is strictly show-verse) contrasting between Holden, Drummer and both Earth/Mars. There’s few characters who come across as having enough experience to be placed in that sort of mentor/ guiding role as he becomes as a First Officer and takes up a role in command of the ship. 

Ye Jacobites by Name (as previously mentioned) is an interesting song to listen to while thinking about Ashford. I’ve included a section below and it’s something I can almost hear him saying. 

What's right and what's wrong By the law, by the law What's right and what's wrong by the law? What makes heroic strife, famed afar, famed afar? What makes heroic strife, famed afar What makes heroic strife to whet the assassin's knife Or haunt a parent's life With bloody war, bloody war

LINKS

Ballad of Klaes Ashford (show)

Ballad of Klaes Ashford (recording by Granville)

Ballad of William Kidd

Captain Kidd- Great Big Sea

Sam Hall-  Irish Descendants

Jack Hall - Sam Carter 

Ye Jacobites by Name - Fiddlers Green

[star-anise]

I saw a post somewhere that mentioned you read a lot of books about the history of sailing. Do you have any recommendations? It sounds like an interesting topic but I don’t know where to start.

Loooool, this is like the fourth question I’ve gotten like this. EVERYONE wants to get into sea travel! Is it Terror? Is everyone trying to get onboard the Terror ship? (ho ho, I’m so clever) I personally do not understand the appeal, since my childhood social studies books were full of creepy illustrations emaciated sailors with enormous beards gnawing on their crewmates’ bones while the Inuit watching from the shore were like, “SURELY this is the most fucked-up thing we will ever see white people do. Right? RIGHT?!” (Spoiler: IT WAS NOT) but, yanno, it takes all kinds.

I don’t know if I’m the best person to ask for recs! Despite being 1000km from the nearest ocean, I grew up in a sailing family, going away in the summer to sailing camp and reading kids’ books about vikings and pirates and voyagers. As well as the Canadian public school education, which was very big on European maritime exploration. So I’ll try! I do tend to read historical fiction to get an individual perspective on events, and then spend lots of time diving into historical research like “Was nutmeg really that hard to get” and “what happened to Mauritius between 1806 and now”.

This is all TERRIBLY Eurocentric and honestly that’s a bit frustrating to me. Books about sea voyages written in English tend to be written by British men with beards they’re well proud of and carefully nurtured pipes who are very romantic about “the way of the sea” and very short on postcolonial analysis, so despite the fact that Europeans literally SHARE A SMALL SEA with Africa and Asia, there’s precious little use of Asian or African sources, and I’m just dying here, like, could you guys just check what contemporary Arabic accounts look like for this, pleeeeeaaaaase, and on that count I could use some recs.

So to ME, the first adult nonfiction book that felt genuinely interesting was Longitude: The True Story of a Lone Genius Who Solved the Greatest Scientific Problem of His Time by Dava Sobel. Which is a SUPER NERDY BOOK. 

And the book that primed my interest for that kind of nerdery is a deeply problematic novel, Orson Scott Card’s Pastwatch: The Redemption of Christopher Columbus. It was written as its author’s career just teetering on the brink between “deeply religious but principled man who writes thought-provoking science fiction” and “raving xenophobic nutjob” and kind of feels like he started writing it in one camp and ended up writing it in the other (there’s a character storyline that just didn’t make sense to me until I was like, “Oh right, the author is an Islamophobe”). So ON THE ONE HAND, it’s the book that really vividly illustrated, to me, the moment when Europe’s maritime traditions all pivot away from trade in the Mediterranean and into the Atlantic, which is a pretty abrupt change in the late 1400s for very specific reasons, and the enormous technical difficulty involved in making the Atlantic crossing. ON THE OTHER HAND, it’s a Mormon man trying to make his religion (which tries to say Christianity is indigenous to the Americas and that powerful white men are good) okay through the magic of handwavium and time travel. So like. You’ll learn useful things about the history of sea travel! But at what cost.

The books you probably ACTUALLY want are Patrick O’Brian’s Master and Commander books, which are a hugelong series of books about a pair of BFFs in the Napoleonic wars (1800-1815): Jack Aubrey, a bluff, hale, hearty man in His Majesty’s Navy who is very shrewd about the firing of cannons and cutting of jibs and not much else in life, and Stephen Maturin, an Irish-Catalan doctor who, embittered after every revolution he’s been part of has been brutally suppressed and/or betrayed, has turned to spycraft, laudanum, unrequited love, and keeping Jack Aubrey alive. THERE IS LOTS OF GOOD SHIP STUFF IN THERE. You learn all about charts and navigation and the constant re-rigging of sails and the Antarctic!  And it’s all deeply subtextually queer, a subtext that has been well-plumbed by generations of slash writers. If you’re into that kind of stuff.

The notable bit of European history I HAVEN’T read excessively on is the actual “Golden Age of Piracy”, 1650-1720, which is when you had Blackbeard and Captain Kidd and Anne Bonny and Mary Read. I dunno, I just… never got interested in it. But my friends who all recced Master and Commander to me seem to all be in Black Sails fandom now (it’s a TV show with lots of POC and LGBTQ+ rep) so uh, that might be worth a look too.

[neverwatchedonepiece]

629: "Violent Shock! Incredible News that Shakes the New World!"

A rocky old place, ain’t it? No white sand beach resorts here. Lots of sunflowers, though. And a Colosseum. Even trattorias and quaint cobbled streets, according to the preview.

This is Italy, isn’t it?

Only had time for one episode but that wasn’t a problem at all. Thankfully, there was a lot to unpack in 629, plus more highlights than 

There was the return of Thriller Bark. Updates on the whereabouts of key OP figures. Luffy yelling down the line at Doflamingo. The reveal of why Law is set on sailing to Dressrosa. Why Kinemon is also keen to go. The arrival of new villains. The reveal of Doflamingo’s cunning plan to snare Luffy. And the reshuffling of the Shichibukai and the appointment of a VERY FAMILIAR CLOWN.

I’m still laughing, btw.

Also have to say I liked the new opening. Seemed spoiler free and it was interesting that they have pitted Luffy so openly against Blackbeard (and Akainu, I suppose. Now there are two Big Bads. Actually beginning to wonder if there ever will be a Final Villain in One Piece).

They Call Him Scoop McGee Absalom

The action picked up with the immediate aftermath of Doflamingo’s resignation from his throne and the post of Shichibukai, which sent ripples through the OPverse. Now the protection conferred by Doflamingo’s Shichibukai status had vanished, his subjects lamented, “Dressrosa is done for!”

Elsewhere, an unwinnable war raged. Unwinnable because the side in question had struck a deal with the Donquixote family. Now Doflamingo is no longer king, the supply chain has dried up.

Various famous faces who had grabbed newspapers were next. Jewelry Bonney was a nice surprise! I thought she’d been arrested by the Marines after that whole thing on the burning island with Teach. She’s obviously in hiding (standard hooded cloak) but still in action. That’s good. There was also a brief shot of Jimbei and Crocodile’s hook.

But who was the mysterious journalist behind the leaking of the Strawhearts alliance? The Kidd/Hawkins/Apoo Alliance? The fact Doflamingo had resigned both throne and warlord role?

He is known only by the name Absa.

I would have struggled to predict who Absa might have been, had they not shown a tiny Thriller Bark satellite ship.

It’s obviously Absalom. Invisibility is his thing. He’s obviously been sneaking about. For what purpose, I have no clue. Maybe Moria is out for revenge? I’m pretty certain he’s still alive as Doflamingo said he disappeared in front of his eyes. I like the thought of Moria getting angry enough to come back into the limelight. (I’m still crossing my fingers he’ll help Luffy and Law with Kaidou. Moria definitely has enough of a grudge to do it.)

We also got hard confirmation that Kidd and co. are after a Yonko. Their target is as much of a mystery to me as Luffy and Law’s is to them. (I still think it might be Shanks.)

I love it when Oda takes time to set his arcs within a wider context. Even more so now. It’s especially relevant here, given the recent emphasis on the interconnected nature of the New World.

And speaking of connections...

Hello. Is it Caesar You’re Lookin For?

Once the contextualisation was out of the way, the action cut back to Sunny. At the end of 628, Doflamingo had finally picked up (after deliberately making Law wait to ramp up the tension. The theme of control is strong with this one).

Of course, Luffy had to formally introduce himself.

“HELLO. I AM LUFFY. I WILL BECOME PIRATE KING. OI, MINGO!” I love Luffy has already given him a nickname. “So you’re that idiot Caesar’s boss? That bastard hurt Brownbeard and the kids! We’ll give Caesar back since we promised but if he ever does anything like that again--” at this point Caesar himself was cringing hard in a corner “-- I’ll beat the crap out of you too!”

To his credit, Doflamingo did not rise to the bait. Sure, a few veins pop and he does questionable things when angered, but in negotiations, he remains cool as a cucumber.

“Strawhat... two years have passed since your brother died and you disappeared from the New World. Where were you and what were you doing?”

At that point, I never realised the significance of Doflamingo’s reference to Ace, so I just thought he was getting a, “Lol, ur brother is ded” dig in.

Of course, Luffy wouldn’t tell.

“I was hoping to run into you,” Doflamingo continued. “I’ve got something here that would make you drool.”

Since Luffy doesn’t do metaphors, he thought Doflamingo was talking about high-quality meats. To be fair, I had no idea what Doflamingo had up his sleeve at that point, so it could have been high-quality meats for all I knew.

Law was annoyed that Luffy had given Doflamingo the chance to control the conversation and snatched the DDM.

“Joker, we will hand over Caesar as promised.”

Doflamingo is not dumb, though. “That’s wise. You know well what would happen to you if you backed out now. First thing’s first, though. I want to confirm that my vital business partner is safe.”

Law held up the receiver. Caesar scooted over.

“JOOOOOOOKEEEEEERRR, I’M SORRYYYYYYYYYYY! YOU LOST EVERYTHING BECAUSE OF ME, BAWWWWWWW--”

And Doflamingo was like, “Yup. Sounds like he’s fine.” 

I lol’d at that. (Was that a lowkey burn from Doflamingo?)

Law continued to keep matters strictly business. “In eight hours we will be on Green Bit. We’ll drop off Caesar there. Pick him up yourself. We will make no further contact.”

“Awwww...” Doflamingo retorted. “And I wanted to have a drink with you now you’re all grown up--”

At that moment, Luffy decided the conversation was at an end.“JUST HANG UP ALREADY!” 

He cut the connection. The Strawhearts were left alone on deck to process what had just happened. Sanji was smart about a loophole Law had left in negotiations. Law had never specified how many people could accompany Doflamingo to pick up Caesar. Theoretically, Doflamingo could arrive with an army at his back.

Law wasn’t worried. The Caesar handover was just a distraction. (Rather bold of him to discuss this in front of Caesar himself, by the way.) Destroying the Smile factory was the real mission. The only issue? Law has no info on the factory. I’m assuming they’ll have to infiltrate Dressrosa and locate the place.

Luffy was like, “You ever been to Dress Roba?” (Lmao, I’m sure he’ll get the name right eventually.)

Interestingly, Law said he had never been! There go my theories of Law growing up in Dressrosa and working for Doflamingo. :(

He definitely hates Doflamingo, though. His reasons for not stepping foot on Dressrosa? “He is king of that land.” Something has gone on between them in the past. Doflamingo has known Law since he was a kid. So did Vergo. What is the connection here??

At any rate, Luffy was blase about the whole affair. Infiltrating hostile territory to find and destroy a factory that will cause shit to hit the fan and draw the ire of the entire New World? Yeah, let’s just make up a plan as we go!

For Law, who is a clever, patient and careful man, this was just too much.

As the Strawhats filed past him into the kitchen for sandwiches, he stared with the vacant expression of a man who has stared into the depths of the abyss and found Luffy’s grinning face staring back.

He snapped.

“I HATE BREAD!!”

Then you have have a gluten free wrap, Law. Chill. Everything’s going to be fine.

At least, I think.

In the kitchen, away from Caesar’s sensitive ears, they discussed where they would dock and other important initial steps of their master plan. Kinemon also revealed why he wanted to travel to Dressrosa.

Apparently, they had set out for a place called Zou but were shipwrecked. Only one of the other samurai reached the shore with Kinemon and Momo. Doflamingo’s people pursued them. Momo tried to slip unnoticed onto a ship but it unfortunately sailed straight for Punk Hazard. Their other companion, Kanjuuro, was taken prisoner.

Law was interested in the whole Zou thing, as he had planned to travel straight there to reunite with his crew (Yay! They’re okay!) after taking care of business in Dressrosa.

Luffy was like, “EXCELLENT! WE’LL GO TO ZOU, THEN TO WANO KINGDOM. I WILL SAVE YOUR COMPANION TOO!”

And Brook randomly farted right in the middle of it, lmao.

There’s a Starman, Waiting in the Sky

And while Luffy and Law were busy making plans for Nigel, an Important Meeting was taking place at Marineford.

A grave Marine called Brannew took the podium in front of a room full of serious-looking, high-rankers (Brannew, get it? He’s a Brannew Marine to the story, ahahaha.) 

“As you all know,” he announced, “there are only seven Shichibukai. They are pirates who have been given permission to plunder by the World Government. In return, they grant us overwhelming power and prestige. Their allegiance to the World Government instills fear in pirates around the world.”

A line up of the more recent Famous Faces flashed across the screen.

Mihawk, Kuma, Hancock, Law, Donquixote Doflamingo, “The Celestial Yaksha” (I have yet to google that to find out what it means) and a newcomer.

Who was this newcomer?

He is the man who rapidly grew strength over the past two years. Commander of the Pirate Dispatchment Org and Living Legend: THE STAR CLOWN BUGGY!!

I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN!!

Of course it could be no one else that Buggy! Who else would have such INCREDIBLE, BEWILDERING LUCK!

Even Buggy admitted he was totally winging it. “It’s not like I asked for this. The World Government kept bugging me so I had no choice. That said, this is only a rung on the ladder. I’m moving up in the world now. In a few years, I’ll be a Yonko.”

And you know what?

I believe it.

Only Buggy would be able to become a Shichibukai by accident. Why not a Yonko too? The World Government must be pretty desperate to fill spare seats if they asked Buggy. 

The serious Marine also spoke of the grave situation surrounding Doflamingo’s sudden resignation. Law’s activity and alliance with Luffy is under suspicion. Depending on what he does next, Law may be stripped of his title too.

Akainu agreed. “We cannot allow Law and Strawhat to do as they please. Smoker from G5 sent me a rather annoying message yesterday. We should observe the situation for another day. I have dispatched Fujitora.”

A couple of things.

Did Smoker send Akainu a message from Kuzan? Is that why the message was “annoying”? Maybe it’s both inconvenient (bad news) and annoying (it came from his old rival).

Who is Fujitora? A new Marine villain, high on Justice? I can but hope.

At any rate, the Marines are also on the move and are watching events in Dressrosa closely. This is good. The more conflict, the better!

You Magnificent Bastard

Meanwhile, in sunny Dressrosa, Doflamingo was also cooking up plans and future conflicts of his own.

In his palace, Doflamingo sauntered down a long corridor and entered a room with four high-backed chairs carved into card suits. As he is the Joker, I’m guessing Doflamingo has a theme going.

He apologised for keeping the others waiting. We only met two of the suit card squad. Diamante and Trebol. Trebol occupies the Clubs suite chair and is creepy. He does not understand personal space bubbles (even with Doflamingo) and he keeps insisting Baby 5 wants to marry him (creepy). His Devil Fruit power is also slightly gross (he blorts everywhere) and he has a perpetual hang snot. Not my kind of villain.

Diamante is at least funny. Example:

Doffy: “The colosseum is as popular as ever. That is thanks to you, Diamante.” Diamante: “Not at all, Doffy.” (I love that they call him Doffy.) “This is due to your charisma as king.” Doffy: “No, it’s because of your talent.” Diamante: “Oh, stop talking like I’m some hero of the colosseum.” Doffy: “But you are.” Diamante: “You exaggerate!” Doffy: “Fine, you’re not.” Diamante: “OKAY. IF YOU INSIST. I AM INDEED THE HERO RAAAARRR!”

Lmao.

That was weirdly humanizing. I get that Doflamingo is the villain here and he has no qualms over sacrificing his people if it needs to happen, but he knows these guys pretty well and gets on with them. Maybe it’s successfully manipulating them, sure, but the man still has social skillz.

Once the comedy moment with Diamante was over, Doflamingo asked Trebol to bring forth the Important Thing.

Trebol handed Doflamingo a mysterious box. “This is sure to pique Strawhat’s interest,” he said. “Their alliance can very easily become a disadvantage to them. I will entrust this super important box to you, Diamante.”

After some funny reverse psychology back and forth, Diamante agreed.

Then Doflamingo made the Big Reveal. The Big, Glowing, Shiny Reveal.

When he said he had something that interested Luffy, he wasn’t lying.

But it wasn’t high-quality meat.

He has Ace’s fruit.

And he is going to use it as leverage to break up Luffy and Law’s alliance.

What a magnificent bastard.

Law was attacked by a pack of wild loaves in his youth. He’s never been the same since.

[lucaniisdellamorte]

Romance Month

Prompt: "Hey, I’m with you, okay? Always.”

WC: 1250

Fandom: Far Cry New Dawn

Pairing: Thomas Rush x Captain (Cassidy Kidd)

Warnings: Probably minor spoilers for New Dawn if you haven’t played and don’t want to know anything about it. Talk of injuries though nothing graphic

After rescuing him from the highwaymen, introducing him to Kim, and fixing his knee, Cassidy helps escort Thomas to the upper floor of Prosperity with Carmina in tow. She walks next to him despite him saying that he doesn’t need help, she’s there just in case as they head up the stairs and he has to put weight on his injured knee. He doesn’t cry out like he had when she first found him but he’s still limping of course and flinching occasionally. It makes her worry that maybe the damage is worse than they thought but she keeps that to herself as she guides him to the room that the two of them will be sharing now.

“Sorry you two don’t get your own rooms,” Carmina says from behind them, shifting the dufflelbag she’s carrying from one shoulder to the other.

“Ah, we’re used to it. At least we get actual beds this time,” Thomas replies as Cassidy opens the door to the room. He limps inside first while she takes the duffel from Carmina, nodding in agreement with his statement.

“There’s clothes in there and mom put a first aid kit in there too, just in case,” she says gently, giving a meaningful look towards Thomas.

“Thanks,” Cassidy replies, slinging the bag over her shoulder. “He’ll probably need it.”

“I’m fine,” Thomas tells them both. Carmina just barely manages to catch herself before she laughs and gives Cassidy a good luck with that, you’re going to need it look before heading back downstairs.

Cassidy turns to enter the room, closing the door with her foot as she takes off her hat and lets her dark hair fall out of it’s ponytail. It's not a very big room just enough for two twin beds, a crate, and a dresser that she’s been using to store extra clothes along with her weapons and ammo.

“She’s a good kid,” Thomas remarks as he leans against a crate -which she still isn’t sure if it's there just to serve as a table or if there’s really some kind of supplies inside- taking some of the weight off his bad knee.

“The world would be much better off if there were more people like her in it, and her mother too,” Cassidy replies, tossing the duffel and her hat onto the closest bed and opening it. True to her word there’s a first aid kit right on top and enough clothes to fill up the rest of the bag beneath it, not that she ever doubted Carmina. The kit is even in an old white plastic box with the words First Aid printed on top of it which is pretty impressive given that most first aid kits are just random medical supplies thrown into whatever sort of container can hold them these days.

“Shirt,” she commands over her shoulder, half distracted as she sorts through the surprisingly well stocked kit. It's not pre-Collapse well stocked of course, it's not like you’re going to find real bandages and Tylenol in there, but it has enough of the post Collapse equivalents to be a pretty damn good kit. She has to remember to ask Kim where she got all this stuff and if there’s enough left to make a few more for the road.

“Cassie,” Thomas says softly but his voice is strained, the nickname that only he uses for her when they’re along cutting through her train of thought. Immediately she looks over to him and for the first time since she saw him in that garage, he looks fucking exhausted sitting on top of the crate, his body slouched as he rests an elbow on his good knee. The long horrible days he spent with the highwaymen written in the bruises and scrapes that dot his bare chest and arms.

Now worried, Cassidy goes over to him carefully slotting herself into the v of his legs. Thomas drops his head so it rests on her shoulder, his thumbs hooking through her belt loops and pulling her as close as she can get. She wants to wrap her arms around him, give him the comfort he’s seeking and that she needs too, but she can see even more bruises and scrapes across his shoulders and down his back.

“What’s wrong?” Cassidy asks gently, worry obvious in her voice as she pulls away a little so she can cup his face in her hands since that seems to be the only place she knows she won’t accidentally hurt him. It also makes him look at her and there’s something in his blue eyes that makes her chest tighten. Her mind suddenly kicks into overdrive wondering if he’s been hiding just how bad off he really is. She got a hint of it coming up the stairs sure but this wouldn’t be the first time that he’s hidden an injury for the sake of keeping up the appearance of the unbreakable Thomas Rush.

“Just-” He cuts himself off, shaking his head before he leans forward enough that he can rest his forehead against hers. “With your fall and the highwaymen and everything else out there,” Thomas swallows hard and takes a deep breath, “I really really didn’t think that you’d ever be coming for me. I wanted to hope but after everything-”

This time Cassidy cuts him off by pressing a lingering kiss to his lips. His hands move from her hips to the small of her back, keeping her close as he balls his fists into her shirt. She kisses him again, deeper this time, trying to pour all her affection and relief to finally have him back in her arms again into it before pulling away.

“Hey, I’m here with you okay?” She presses their foreheads together again, thumbs trailing over the dried blood and dirt still on his cheeks. Thomas’ eyes are downcast, filled with guilt that he has no business shouldering and if he wasn’t so injured she would shake him. The train, Barnes, none of that was his fault and if he did doubt her ability to come save him for the first time since they’ve known each, it was only because he didn’t think that she was alive enough to do it.

Because as they both know, only death is going to stop her from getting him back. Well at least she knows that, seems like one of them needs a reminder.

“It’s going to take a hell of a lot more than you shoving me off a cliff, the Twins and their highwaymen, and whatever the hell else lives up here to stop me from saving you from whatever kidnappers or hostage takers or wild animal has you in it's sights this week,” Cassidy tells him full of conviction and steel, ready to take on the world in order to keep him safe if she has to. Thomas lets out a tired little chuckle at their old joke that he’s always in trouble and she’s always saving him. It's only partially true, trouble follows them like a shadow so he’s saved her almost as many times as she’s saved him.

“I’m with you, okay? You aren't getting rid of me that easily Thomas Rush,” she tells him sternly, gently poking the middle of his chest.

“Good to know,” he replies with a warm smile, taking her hand in his and bringing it up so he can press a kiss to the middle of her palm. 

[qqueenofhades]

Historical People of Color in Europe (and America): “It’s Not Historically Accurate!!” and Other Nonsense

Right, so. Rather than hijacking the Black Victorians post with a lengthy addition, I decided to make a separate one to talk about something I have wanted to have a good rant on, especially given the current state of racial rhetoric, concerns about whitewashing and the representation of non-white folks in a fictional (particularly fictional historical and/or fictional historical-fantasy) setting, and all the other time-worn “I’m Not A Racist (tm) But There Weren’t Any People of Color In [Insert Your Setting of Choice Here]” arguments that appear.

If you would like to save yourself some time and get on with your day, spoiler alert: It’s bullshit. Complete and utter bullshit, and moreover, these arguments are made for a specific political reason. Narratives of past “nonexistence” are always used to try to justify present repression (or rather, these arguments represent a thinly-veiled desire for an imagined time when racial and ethnic diversity presumably did not exist, or that said racial and ethnic diversity was acceptable to discriminate against without consequences, or that a monolithic “white default” population was the only existing paradigm). Claims of a past “white Europe” (which is supposed to be superior to multicultural Europe) are always, ALWAYS right-wing, nationalist, and racially charged. The underlying assumption is that multiculturalism is modern liberal PC rubbish, that people of color are the “invaders” disrupting an imagined timeless “Aryan” ideal, and that somehow, much like gay people, they only started to exist in the 20th century when the establishment admitted they did.

(Let me just put right at the top here that the Nazi project of applied racial and religious genocide was thoroughly based in the work of the American eugenics movement, and that Hitler wrote a fan letter to one of its creators.)

You may have heard of the recent kerfuffle when Mary Beard, professor of classics at Cambridge University, endorsed a cartoon depicting a multi-racial Roman family with a black father as accurate to the diversity of Roman Britain. The alt-right trolls went all in with their determination to prove that Roman Britain (and the Roman empire in general) was white, which, if you know anything about the borders and demographics of ancient Rome at all, was completely ludicrous. (Many of the trolls freely admitted to never having studied a damn thing about actual history, but they were still convinced they knew more than, you know, a distinguished professor at Cambridge.) But as Beard pointed out in a response to her critics, this reflects the fact that any claim to historical diversity (or more specifically, the purported lack thereof) has become the realm of people who are insistent on their interpretation, don’t care about facts, and are using them for a specific and damaging political project.

So.

Let’s make some racists angry, shall we?

The idea of “Europe against the barbarians” as a political project goes back at least to the crusades and their inception in 1095, but it was conceived in its quasi-modern form by the Duke of Sully, minister to Henry IV of France, in the seventeenth century, as the “Grand Design.” It proposed keeping the peace in fractious Europe by fighting the “infidels” -- the same argument that had often been used to justify the crusades. (For a very good discussion on all this, see Anouar Majid, Freedom and Orthodoxy: Islam and Difference in the Post-Andalusian Age, esp. page 211-13.) The crusades remained a potent metaphor throughout all of Europe long after their official “end” in 1291, and were used to justify racial, colonial, and imperial projects of all kinds. Sir Winston Churchill praised the wisdom of the Grand Design in a 1948 post-war speech for the reunification of Europe -- i.e., this racial violence was exactly how they intended to move Europe forward into the modern age after so destructively fighting each other, by giving it back its old enemies. I have literally written a master’s thesis on the post-1291 intellectual and legal inheritance of the crusades and the racial construction of the Euro-American historical narrative, so I could go on for a long time here, but this is the takeaway point: the academic (and elite) practice of history, especially Western history, has always been used to justify the erasure, destruction, elimination, and removal of agency from non-white individuals and civilizations alike. So even if you’re claiming “history” as a legitimating tool for your racial fantasia of lily-white Europe, this history is an intentional and actively tailored instrument of racial prejudice that does not reflect reality.

Now that the theoretical stuff is over, let’s get into specifics.

Medieval Spain (Iberia) and medieval Sicily in particular were richly diverse societies that supported numerous distinct racial, religious, and ethnic groups, including Jews, Muslims, Greek/Eastern Christians, Latin/Western Christians, Normans, Africans, and other communities from around the Mediterranean.  I have linked only a quick/initial source for each, but there is tons out there. These communities had episodes of strife and tension, of course, but also lived together for extended periods of time in essential cooperation. Spain in particular produced an incredibly rich intellectual climate in the early medieval era, such as the golden age of Toledo.

While the crusades were a project of warfare against non-Christian, non-Europeans (and sometimes also against Europeans, such as the Albigensian and Northern Crusades), they were also the first time many of the Northern European crusaders had met Arab Muslims and Africans -- encounters which were not always uniformly hostile, and which were shaped by recognizable diplomatic customs. One of my favorite examples is in the Itinerarium peregrinorum et gesta regis Ricardi, a Latin prose narrative of the Third Crusade otherwise hostile to the Muslims. See especially pages 276-283 above, where the author cannot help but be impressed by the graciousness and generosity of Saladin and his Muslim forces hosting Christian visitors in Jerusalem (after a treaty was made to end the crusade) and which includes Saladin inviting Bishop Hubert Walter of Salisbury to dinner, where they have a long and friendly chat and are both impressed. My feelings on the genuine respect and admiration that existed between Saladin, his brother, and several of his generals, on the one hand, and Richard the Lionheart, on the other, are probably well-known. (See also Thomas Asbridge, Talking to the enemy: the role and purpose of negotiations between Saladin and Richard the Lionheart during the Third Crusade.)

Even after the crusades, Elizabethan England was deeply connected to the Islamic world and its empires: Ottoman, Persian, and Moroccan. Trade between them was frequent, so many Englishmen settled in Arabic Muslim societies that there were attempted royal proclamations and incentives to lure back expatriates (see Majid, 55), and a proposed Anglo-Moroccan alliance against Spain was a key feature of the foreign policy of the later years of Elizabeth I’s reign. (It should be noted that early modern England’s fairly friendly relationship with the Islamic world, so unlike Spain’s driving hatred of the Moors, had to be jettisoned as they moved into the realm of competing colonial conquests.) Abd el-Ouahed ben Massoud was the Moroccan ambassador to England during this time, and may have been part of the inspiration for Shakespeare’s Othello. “Cinthio’s Tale,” published in 1565, purported to tell the true story of a Muslim/Moorish captain serving in the Venetian army and deceived by a treacherous ensign, which was also drawn upon by Shakespeare.

The Golden Age of Piracy was strongly black, Indian, and Native American. Famous pirates like Blackbeard, Edward England, Samuel Bellamy, William Kidd, and others had up to one-third black/Native crews, who were treated equally (this was not universal among pirates, but attacking slave ships and disrupting the slave trade was one thing for which they were principally known). John Julian, the sixteen-year-old Mesquito Indian who was the pilot of the Whydah, a former slave ship captured by “Black Sam” Bellamy, was later one of the only two survivors of its wreck in 1717. Bellamy’s crew of 150 men had between 30-50 free blacks; Blackbeard’s crew was over half black; Edward England’s nearly 300-strong cohort had over 70 black men.

There were also mixed-race captains in the Royal Navy, such as John Perkins. In his long and vastly adventurous career, he commanded half a dozen ships of the line in at least four wars, served as a spy, and nearly got sentenced to death for smuggling weapons to revolting slaves. His obituary in 1812 records, “he annoyed the enemy more than any other officer, by his repeated feats of gallantry, and the immense number of prizes he took.” (See page 373 of the pdf.) By this time, there were a considerable number of free blacks in England, who had founded the learned abolitionist society known as the Sons of Africa. The late eighteenth century saw men like Ignatius Sancho, Olaudah Equiano, and Ottobah Cuguano. All of them were literate, accomplished men who wrote letters and memoirs, including passionate manifestos against slavery, corresponded with high society, were internationally best-selling authors, and, in Sancho’s case, is the first black man known to have voted in Britain (around 1780). There were also women like Dido Elizabeth Belle (great niece of William Mansfield, author of the deciding opinion in the landmark 1772 Somersett case against slavery and subject of the 2013 film starring Gugu Mbatha-Raw) and the American poet Phillis Wheatley. There were important figures in the American Revolution like Agrippa Hull, and political radicals like William Davidson, who was part of the “Cato Street Conspiracy” in 1820.

There was Alexander Crummell, the Episcopalian preacher, theologian, and African activist who graduated from Cambridge in the 1840s. How about you check out Black Oxford: The Untold Stories of Oxford University’s Black Scholars? Or Alain LeRoy Locke, the first African-American recipient of the Rhodes Scholarship in 1907, after it was founded in 1903 (something that would doubtless terribly annoy noted white supremacist Cecil Rhodes) and who also studied at Harvard University? Oh yeah, Locke was the intellectual father of the Harlem Renaissance and was also gay.) Speaking of biopics, about Victoria and Abdul, which tells the story of an aging Queen Victoria and her deep friendship with Abdul Karim or the “Munshi,” who taught her Urdu and Hindustani, and who, yes, faced incredible prejudice from the deeply starchy and racist British court?

We can definitely mention how a majority of cowboys were black or Native American (it was a grueling, dangerous, unforgiving job with low pay and no glamour, of course they made the people of color do it -- don’t believe everything the heroic, rugged-white-man-Americana John Wayne myth tells you). The inspiration for the Lone Ranger, Bass Reeves, was black. Ira Aldridge was a world-famous black Shakespearean actor and anti-slavery activist in the 19th century. I could go on, but this post is already long enough.

(Lastly: Read Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas In America, by Ibram X. Kendi, an award-winning young African-American historian and director of the Anti-Racist Research and Policy Center at American University.)

So yes. If you’re invoking “historical accuracy” for the convenient nonexistence of people of color in a historical/historical fantasy/fictional narrative:

a) You’re wrong.

b) You’re super wrong, please stop.

c) If you don’t stop, You Are A Racist. Time to work on that.

The point is: imagine, create, and write black/POC Roman centurions, medieval scholars, soldiers, pirates, Royal Navy captains, spies, political activists, best-selling authors, public intellectuals, famous actors, talented lawmen, etc, and write them existing in Europe and the Americas at pretty much any time you like. Not only will you make a racist mad, you will be hella historically accurate, can flip the bird with both fingers, and moonwalk out of the room. Remember: denying the existence or agency of historical people of color is always tied to a desire that they didn’t exist or have agency in the present, and that isn’t how things “used to be done,” ergo they must be wrong. This is the appeal of a certain kind of history as an imagined “legitimate space” for racism, misogyny, homophobia, etc, where these attitudes used to be accepted and promoted without challenge. The people who hold them now want those views to enjoy the same kind of hegemony. And if you’ve paid any attention to the world recently, you’ll realize how dangerous and pervasive those narratives are, and how badly they need to be challenged and upended.

[thegeekherald]

One Piece Chapter 998 Spoilers And Plot Predictions; Latest Update On Raw Scans And Release Date

One Piece Chapter 998 is just around the corner. And fans are super hyped about the upcoming instalment. The previous chapter has discussion forums on fire. Fans got to see three Devil Fruit reveals in just one chapter. And they are not resting until the next chapter comes out.

Discussions And Spoilers For One Piece Chapter 998

Fans had already theorized about Sasaki being Triceratops and Who’s Who being a Sabertooth. So seeing that actually happening was a triumph. The fact that Who’s Who was shown with his crew all dressed as cats finally made sense.  

The next chapter might have the inevitable Luffy reaching the roof. Luffy is most likely going to carry out Ace’s will– The will of the D! And now, it all comes in a full circle. Additionally, Ace’s flashback is to be shown. Yamato sees a statue of a beaten dragon, says that a friend broke it. It did look like it was Ace’s doing.

Marco v/s King?

Marco uses his skills to stop the spread of the virus. It seems that the virus depends on the physical capacity of the person. Any doubts about who is the top commander for all those who continue to underrate him shall now be cleared. He took on the 3 admirals at marineford, took on blackbeard post marineford and is being the mvp once again.

Apoo is wounded but gets up, and Drake defeats him. To give Apoo a fair chance, he did tank some big shots from Kidd and Zoro, who he wasn’t even prepared for it as he was fighting drake and still gets back up. He shouldn’t be seen as weak because everything considered he hasn’t done bad. Most of the battles he has been in, he has been ganged up on. We could totally see him getting back up again in a few chapter only to be defeated again.

Sanji v/s Black Maria

Which one of them was a user of the Kumo Kumo no Mi (Kumo means spider) model? Well, fans were a little surprised at this one. Black Maria as a Spider was a bit of a curve ball. And yet it felt just right. Here’s hoping that Sanji gets away from Maria despite his hangups. Unless he’s throwing his rule aside but there is no way that’s happening. Sanji doesn’t hit women even if they are ugly. That’s because Zef taught him that way.

Raw Scans And Release Date For One Piece Chapter 998

The imminent chapter is set to be out on Sunday, December 13, on Viz Media. The manga went on another break. And fans were disappointed that they had to wait for 14 days to see the new chapter. Its creator, Eiichiro Oda, has been going on a regular breaks every three chapters. It seems to have become a pattern now. However, word is that there’s no break next week. Thus, detailed summary and raw scans will be out by Thursday.

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