#make it REQUIRED to hit her to ‘save’ her only to kill her later in the same episode

[angeltannis]

So Skybound Games is posting Reels on Facebook making fun of Sarah (TWDG) and calling her useless. Nice to see they’re carrying that torch of ableism from the Telltale writers

[gortash-did-nothing-wrong]

Fatherhood

Warnings: mentions of spanking children, mentions of Enver being abused as a child, incredibly brief mentions of a child wandering off and their mother panicking, implied murder but it's barely touched on.

Enver is a bit of a conundrum as a father, you've come to realize by the time your oldest is seven. He is equally strict and lenient. He demands his children have a rigorous study regimen with the best tutors money and blackmail can get, and an active lifestyle. He's less strict about their physical activity, allowing them to simply pick a hobby that requires physical prowess and he arranged for tutors and coaches to help them excel at it. Their oldest takes a fancy to horseback riding and Enver arranges for a purebred warhorse to be delivered to his stables.

"Absolutely not." You say firmly, disappointing your seven year old daughter. "She's not even four feet tall yet, a fall from that beast would kill her!"

"Well my dearest, I believe the point is that she stays in the saddle." He teased.

You threw a handful of hay at his head. The next day there was an age appropriate pony in the stables instead.

Your second child wanders off in town one day, and three panic attacks later, you find him at a blacksmith shop, staring wide eyed as a lovely tiefling man explains to him the process of smelting ore. You grab your five year old boy, holding him in your arms as you apologize. "I am so very sorry, he's a very curious boy, and fast on his feet!"

"No trouble at all." Damon, he introduces himself as, says. "In fact, I'm in the market for some help around the forge?"

Your son spends his weekends at Damon's shop, carrying buckets of coal, writing down orders, and even sometimes swinging a hammer. Enver is beside himself with joy at the sight of his son dirty with soot and his hands blistered.

"And a fine young smith he'll make!" Enver proclaims. "He's got my broad shoulders after all, and look at those hands! They'll only get tougher with every blister, my boy!"

"Isn't he a bit young for so much labor?" You asked, applying some ointment and bandages to your son's hands. "He's not even getting paid."

Damon had offered your son five copper a week, generous for the labor a five year old could provide. Enver had refused, instead sending his son to Damon with one hundred gold a week for the blacksmithing lessons.

"Experience is more valuable at his age than coin. And come now, my dear wife, money is of no issue to us. Anything he wants I'll just buy him!"

Ah, yes, Enver's leniency. As strict as Enver was about demanding his children perform well in their studies, when it came to other areas of life your children were somewhat spoiled. Your daughter had a new outfit every other week it seemed, and both your children's pockets were often filled with candy. They had new toys monthly, their old ones being donated to the orphanages whenever they piled up. Enver saw no point denying them anything.

Until they required discipline. Something you found out about your husband was that he refused to ever hit your children, not even a light smack on the back of their hand. The idea disgusted him whenever you mentioned it. He forbid you from raising a hand to them, something that you found difficult on days when they tried your patience but ultimately you managed. One of your nursemaids had spanked your oldest lightly when she was caught trying to climb out of a window to see if she could run across the rooftop like a cat. Enver had found out, and despite you trying to save the woman's job, you had never seen her again. You doubt she was simply fired, though. Even after the nether brain was defeated and certain activities of your husband stopped... He always had some kind of experiment or tribute to Bane going on. You suspect the woman was a victim to one of them, despite her spanking being a product of fearing for your daughter's life.

The only punishment Enver ever inflicted on his children were stern lectures, and denial of free time. Or the introduction of chores. Watching your oldest try to wash dishes in the kitchen as a punishment had been mildly amusing. Soap suds had gotten everywhere, and she was causing more issues than helping the staff, but the point was she hated doing it.

Your son was the more well behaved child, his only frequent bit of mischief was wandering off unannounced. And whenever he was found, he was either pouring over books in the library, up to his elbows in dirt outside, or sneaking into his father's workshop to 'borrow' tools.

Still, Enver was strict on both of your children conforming to the rules of the house, of which no running off was one. Your son was frequently punished with chores like sweeping, scrubbing, even laundry. After one particularly boring afternoon, you walked into the back yard of the estate to see your son having rigged up a mechanical washing system powered by a donkey your daughter had helped him lead over by his reins.

"Menaces." You mumbled, before going to fetch Enver. Thirty minutes later, you sat in a chair, drinking lemonade and watching Enver and your son both work on the mechanical washing system. "Men."

Your daughter, sitting next to you with a glass of apple juice, grunted in agreement. "Overgrown boys."

You remark on his odd parenting one evening as you feed your third child, a darling little girl that's only two. "I must say, I've never met a man of your status that doesn't occasionally hit his children. My father was quite strict with his belt, so are all of my brothers with their children."

"Your family hardly ever sees each other." Enver said pointedly, sipping a glass of bourbon as he reads the evening newspaper. "Didn't you go five years without even speaking to your father?"

You pause, weighing his words. "Yes... I'm not saying you're wrong, I'm just curious what caused you to be so different. Is it a Lower City cultural norm to not spank your children?"

Enver snorts, abandoning his newspaper to go find his snuff box. "My father was more fond of his fists than his belt."

You feel your face grow pale. "Oh... I'm-"

"Don't." He says firmly, forgetting his pipe and tobacco in favor of coming to stand beside your chair. His hand, calloused yet gentle, pets your hair. "It's the past. It's over. And all those who have wronged me are either dead or worse." He says lowly.

He bends down, kissing your two year old on her chubby little cheek. "And my children will never fear their parents."

[heyclickadee]

The first of several Tech Lives posts. I was going to do in show quotes, possible foreshadowing, and moments that are just kinda suspicious in one post, but just the quotes got too long. So, with the caveat that I’m arguing that I don’t think a Tech return was cut and that it’s just going to happen later than we expected, here’s a list of lines either said by or connected to Tech that could point to him coming back at some point:

"Better late than dead." Phee, as her introductory line, right before she starts hitting on Tech, "Spoils of War."

"Hey, I'm a survivor. Remember?" Romar, to Tech, followed by like a six second camera hold on Tech before he goes back to get into the ship. "Ruins of War"

The entire exchange about culture and memory; Tech's actual character arc was about experiencing life outside the war and the narrow definitions the war gave him. That was not an arc that was completed, no one steps up to fill that space or continue that arc, and maybe it’s not an arc that could have been picked up in season three without focusing on Tech and writing Omega into the background of her own show. Maybe it needed its own space.

This exchange (which I bring up because it happens right after Tech fixes Romar's databank and restores that cultural memory, and we do get the implication in season three that Tech could be running around with amnesia. So.):

Romar: You--you actually did it! Tech: Of course I did.

THIS exchange:

Omega: You did it! Tech: You sound surprised. Wrecker: I thought you were a goner.

Like. Come on. He drifts into a cloud of dust so that the outcome of the race is hidden from view at first, Wrecker and Omega thought he was going to die because he made the decision (in defiance of their requests not to) to do something that would have killed almost anybody else in order to save them, he succeeds and he comes out alive.

"I guess I owe you one, Goggles." Cid, in "Faster." This isn't something they just forgot about, either. Tech indirectly brings it up as a reason she should help them at the end of "The Crossing," and it actually does get Cid to relent a little and say that she'll see what she can do before cutting off the call. But, since she doesn't come through on that, she still owes Tech that favor.

This exchange:

Phee: Don't go running off with any pirates or smugglers while you're gone. Tech: No. This mission should not require either.

Because of course this isn't literally what Phee means, she even clarifies in the next sentence that this isn't literally what she means, but can we at least all agree that this is a weird ass way to say, "Don't run off with any hotties while you're out, I'm still interested and I'm right here?" There's no reason for her to say it this way…unless Tech is going to end up running into some pirates and smugglers. Which hasn't happened yet.

"See you around, Brown Eyes." Phee, the current last thing she says to Tech, in "The Summit."

This exchange:

Crosshair: Where's the jedi? Hunter: Stunned him when he jumped. He didn't make it.

you know, the one where Hunter and Crosshair are talking about Caleb, the jedi who very much did not fall to his death (which plants the idea that falling deaths are suspect right in the first fifteen minutes of the series, btw), is worded almost identically to THIS exchange:

Omega: Where's Tech? Hunter: Omega…Tech didn't make it.

And it's the only two places in the entire show that "Where's X?" is followed up with, "X didn't make it,” btw.

THIS LINE:

"We have to go back! What if he's hurt? He--he needs us! Tell him, Wrecker. We can't just leave him! No! Tech's not gone! He can't be!" Omega, to Hunter and Wrecker about Tech, in "Plan 99."

Two things. One, Omega is actually…usually right about this kind of thing. We never do get explicit confirmation that she has any force sensitivity, but we do get a somewhat implicit one that she does at least have a little bit of natural ability. And even if she doesn’t, when she has a feeling about something that feeling usually turns out to be justified. No reason this should be any different. Two, I got through the rest of this episode about a dozen times and the entirety of season three without ever knowing for sure if Omega even thinks that Tech is dead. The closest she ever gets is saying that she "lost" him, and then goes on to use that exact word in the exact same sentence to describe Hunter, Wrecker, and Echo being captured, and actually said that they'd lost Echo way back in "The Crossing" when Echo was very much not dead and she knew it.

And then when we get to season three, she never actually talks about That Time Her Brother Threw Himself Off A Gondola To Save Her On The Worst Day Of Her Life, and she only brings Tech up once, and only when prompted by Crosshair. I have NO IDEA if she's accepted that Tech is gone or if she even believes he's never coming back, we're given no real indication either way. You know what she WAS real explicit about, though? Demanding that they go back because Tech isn't gone and needs their help.

Honorable Mentions:

"This story changes every time she tells it." Tech, about Phee, in Entombed. This isn't an obvious comeback line, and it's a bit of a stretch, but the thing is. The thing. Is. That Tech being alive, especially depending on how he comes back if he is, when, who knew what, who was hoping what, etc. has the potential to completely recontextualize the entire third season, if not the entire show. A lot of things would be different without actually having to change anything at all.

"I thought it was obvious." Also not foreshadowing, but makes for one hell of a zinger if it turns out he's alive and the clues were there all along.

"Yes, I am playing against myself. It is the only time this game is a challenge," would be one hell of a line if it turns out Tech was forced to be someone else for a while and ends up really struggling with that once he's recovered. Not like. There's any hinting. That this is a thing that could have happened.

“The last time we crossed paths, you had just lost a member of your squad. And it appears history may repeat itself. CT-9904 resisted my conditioning in the past, but I've made alterations to my methods. If you all survive, you will make fine operatives. And if not, well, there's no shortage of clones to test on next.” Dr. Hemlock, “The Cavalry Has Arrived.” I blazed right over this line originally, but @eriexplosion brought up that it’s just *real weird* for Hemlock to be bringing up Tech and that history is going to repeat itself in the context of being right about to start CX-ing the others and being so confident it’s going to work. So here’s what I’m thinking might be happening here: either he CX’d Tech and Tech’s standing right over there in the room with them, or he did something else to Tech and Tech was the change he made to his CXing method. This is actually one of several reasons I don’t think the CX-Tech plot was dropped or cut, and that we aren’t actually done with this—we get little bits of hinting it’s him even in the final episode.

“This isn’t over.” Wolffe to CX-2, “Extraction” Like a few others in this “honorable mentions” section, this relies on Tech being CX-2 either physically or mentally. But I uh. Do think it points to Wolffe potentially having a run in with CX-2 again.

Controversial, but I’m putting it on this list anyway:

“Clone Force 99 died with Tech! We’re not that squad anymore!” Crosshair to Wrecker and Hunter, “The Cavalry Has Arrived”

I know.

But here’s why.

First, one of the long running narrative questions of The Bad Batch was whether or not Clone Force 99 could ever be whole—whether they could ever fix what the Empire broke in “Aftermath.” Because we never get a full reunion by the end of the series, the answer we get isn’t a “yes,” but it wasn’t really a “no” either. Because the entire Tech situation is so unconfirmed, and because the show did nothing to allow either the audience or the other characters to let him go, the possibility of a full batch reunion and reconciliation remains on the table. There’s still a remote chance that they can fix what the Empire broke after all. Maybe they won’t all live in the same place when all is said and done, but maybe, maybe they can still be a whole and complete family. Because the story never fully closed that off as an option.

And the thing is, the show could have had the family fully heal without Tech. They could have resolved the family stuff without him by dealing with him as dead and allowing everyone to treat their wounds and move on. But because we get this line in the last episode, because no one ever pushes back on it in a meaningful way, because Crosshair never takes it back, that’s not what the story does at all. So the answer we end up with here is, “Maybe, maybe not—but not without Tech, apparently. They’re still broken without Tech.”

Second, Crosshair has always been a little cynical, but this season went out of its way to establish him as Pessimism Georg, an outlier who shouldn’t be counted. The last time he said someone was probably dead, way back in “A Different Approach,” we knew it almost definitely wasn’t true and Omega immediately shut him down. He wasn’t there on Eriadu, he doesn’t know any more about Tech falling (he might know other things but we don’t know that) than the others and probably less, and I think there’s a possible future spoiler reason why they had Crosshair say this when Omega wasn’t around to hear it instead of any time that she would have been.

Third, like. Okay. Crosshair might believe Tech is dead. Crosshair might know something about what happened to Tech that no one else does, and might need to believe Tech is dead because of it. He might have suspicions about where Tech is. He might know nothing. Whatever Crosshair actually thinks or believes, though, one thing I do think we have to keep in mind here is that words very rarely leave Crosshair’s mouth without being sieved through fifteen layers of Crosshair being Crosshair, and so Crosshair frequently exaggerates, omits, talks from a certain point of view, lies, and so on.

He’s a genuinely perceptive guy who can read people and situations like no one’s business BUT his brain cells turn off and that big wounded heart of his takes over whenever he has to make a decision, so his internal logic makes sense but goes through such a tortured filter on the way he comes to some wild conclusions. (For example: The batch escaped without him and from his perspective, they didn’t do enough to give him a chance. Reasonable given what he knows about the situation. Justified. His solution to that is to capture them and invite them to the apocalypse to hear the galaxy’s worst business pitch.) He’s just. His observations are often good and, in contrast to his foil, Omega, who’s usually right about this kind of stuff, Crosshair has a tendency to come to the wrong conclusion.

And on top of that, let’s remember that this is a guy who will say the most cutting, ruthless, out-of-pocket thing in order to get a reaction or even to get people to leave him alone. And he’s good at it. It’s a skill. I’m not sure he even has a sense of what going too far looks like (I don’t think he left Tech out of his fight with Hunter because he thought it was a step too far, I think he left Tech out of that fight because he blames himself for Tech too much to blame Hunter for it). This is a man who told a child he would leave her to die if he had the chance. A child he would both kill and die for. So of course if wasn’t true, Omega immediately calls him out on it, but he still said it because he thought it would get her to leave him and save herself. It’s worth noting that the entire reason Crosshair launches into the entire “Clone Force 99 died with Tech” speech is because he’s trying to get Wrecker and Hunter to protect themselves and let him go into Tantiss alone.

Lastly, even if Tech was definitely dead, this line is custom made to get Tech spinning in his grave so fast that he’d spontaneously resurrect for the sole purpose of decking Crosshair across the jaw because what does Crosshair think he fell for then? You…can’t really have the final note on a man who (supposedly) died to save his family be that his family is irrevocably broken because he “died.” Which is another thing—they’re not just a squad. They’re a family, and Tech thought of them as a family. Like. Just. This entire line is just so perfectly crafted as something that feels like it needs to be pushed back against and refuted I’m just. I’m *biting biting biting*

All this to say that Crosshair should not be regarded as a source of objective fact.

Aaaand that’s. All the ones I can remember.

[nachosforfree]

you're correct!! it's Henry!!

this is. gonna require explaining Henry's weird ass family tree, so bear with me a minute.

to start off: Henry's biracial. he, effectively, has three dads - his birth father (died before he was born), his "dad" (Jen's father), and his stepdad (where he and Jen get the last name "Emily" from).

to give a brief rundown:

Henry's mom didn't like her husband (he sucked, trust me) and left him for Henry's bio dad.

Henry's bio dad, unfortunately, died a couple of months before he was born, leaving his mom without a lot of options but to return to her old husband.

Henry and Jen grow up around him for around twelve years before the guy gets arrested for almost killing someone in a bar fight.

enter their stepdad, and the rest is history.

Henry's mom and Jen both have red hair, and Jen has green eyes. both Jen and Henry have freckles.

now onto my attempt to describe Henry, or at least the parts that are relevant to this (i cannot describe appearances through words to save my life, so if something's worded weird, then that's why):

Henry skin is a lighter shade than Charlie or Sammy, but like. he's still Visibly a POC, if that makes sense.

Henry's hair is a really dark brown, but it has a very slight red tint to it that's practically unnoticeable unless the light hits it right.

as you can probably guess, He's Transmasc.

now, onto what happened:

Will and Henry slept together one night in mid-1974. i don't exactly know what William thought was going to happen, but maybe he was cocky enough to think "well, what are the odds anything's gonna happen? i'm sure it'll be fine"

fast forward a little while later and Surprise Surprise, Henry's Pregnant, And William's The Father.

after a little bit of panic and trying to figure out what to do, Henry comes up with a plan: whichever parent the baby visibly takes after more, that's who gets them.

Genetics Fucks Them Over - Elizabeth is born (Feb. 16th, 1975) and. she's white. there ain't no way in hell Henry could pass Liz off as his and Annabeth's child, no way in hell. so, who gets the baby? William.

Will just comes up with a story that oh, he just found her abandoned somewhere and took her in as his daughter. Claire, Henry, and Anna just help him keep up the lie (because it's that or Henry gets outed as a trans man, and guess what William's not gonna do). it hurt Henry, to some degree, to have to act like Liz wasn't also his baby, that he was just a family friend, but...well, he doesn't really have another Option that isn't significantly worse for him than this one.

now...why does William specifically say that Liz is adopted and not that she's his and Claire's biological child? two reasons! 1) Claire obviously hadn't been pregnant before this, so William couldn't have lied about that in the first place, and 2) Claire was a black woman. so in two different ways, William couldn't just say Liz was a child that he'd had with Claire; that lie would've fallen apart at the seams immediately.

and it works...for a few years. specifically, up until late 1979, when Liz is four.

Genetics Fucks Them Over 2: Electric Boogaloo - Liz gets older, and starts to Much More Obviously take after William. like, enough so to the point that William's "She's Adopted" lie starts to fall apart quick. William only has two real options: either out Henry, or keep his mouth shut and wait for things to blow over.

what he doesn't expect is someone coming in with the steel chair and giving him a secret third option.

enter Tammy Schmidt. she worked at the Diner, she had ginger hair, and her eyes were...more hazel than green, but it still worked. she even had some freckles! she claimed that she was Liz's mom, and...well, William just went with it. Henry was a lot less fine with having to go with it, for obvious reasons, but...well, he also didn't want to get outed. so his hands were kinda tied here.

so why'd she do this? well...there were some employees at the Diner who were Aware of things between Henry and Will, and some even knew Henry was trans, but they didn't really care enough to out either of them (and some really didn't want to, either). Tammy was one of them. she just told her bosses, after the wave of questions and backlash started coming to her, that they both owed her Big Time for this.

so yeah! it's...a long story, but there isn't really a Short way of explaining all that.

to summarize: Genetics Fucked William And Henry Over Really Bad, And It May Or May Not Have Been One Of The Plot Points That Would End Up Causing Things To Happen.

OHHHH VERY NEAT

I love when people have really fleshed out family trees and dynamics for the aftons and emilys❤️❤️

[rlyc00l]

Rhys is going to put his skills to work and make these people trust the crap out of him if it kills him (Actually, he doesn't want it to kill him, he's actually going to try to avoid dying). Zer0's ego goes through some stuff. Everyone could benefit from like, team building exercises or something.

Also under the cut

The first thing Rhys did, after giving up on lying sleeplessly and considering his new position, was draft a message for Vaughn and Yvette. “Hey, I’m alive, on Pandora. Vasquez tried to have me killed. Sorry for doubting you. I don’t know what he’s gonna do now, be careful. I’ll be back soon.” He paused and deleted the “soon”, replacing it with “Sorry to be vague. I’ll explain everything next time I see you.” before sending. It wouldn’t satisfy them. When he got back to Helios, he’d launch the two of them up the corporate ladder (just slightly below himself) to make it up to them. And then he’d brag about this forever. 

But first, he had to secure his victory.

Step one: Gaining trust. He’d been a pro at that up on Helios. Building trust with your coworkers was one of those pillars of success in business (it went hand-in-hand with “strategic betrayal”). There was even an acronym: DARGH. Dependability, Approachability, Respect, Gratitude, and Honesty. Three out of five were easy, he could do those without trying. He’d have to do away with honesty, which left dependability. Dependability required competency, and he was far from competent in this setting. He still hadn’t even figured out how to reload. Luckily, he had the ECHOnet. He activated his ECHOeye and pulled up everything the Hyperion database could teach him about guns and shooting, and found diagrams of the two guns in his possession.

By sunrise he was outside, dry firing the pistol while aiming at distant bullymong holes, trying to get used to the gun’s auto-stabilizers. 

“What are you doing?” 

Rhys flinched, fumbling with the gun. It was Zer0, of course. The others were still asleep. His immediate impulse was to snap at them–why the hell were they always there? He restrained himself for the sake of DARGH and instead summoned all his Hyperion brand faux-affability. 

“Oh, hey Zer0.” Fake smile. Cheery voice. “I-I’m practicing. Getting ready for today, you know? You’re welcome to join.” Goddamn, that sounded phony. He was better than this. The whole double agent thing was throwing him off his game. 

Zer0 looked at him, then his gun. “There’s a camp, not far. / Living targets are better. / With a loaded gun.” 

“That…I-I’m good, thanks. I’d rather conserve ammo, y’know? For those uh, those Fleshripper guys?” 

“There’s a vendor, there.” They thumbed over their shoulder. An Ammo Dump vending machine leaned haphazardly against a nearby building.

“I don��t have–” 

“Oh, right. Your wallet’s empty. / Save your bullets, then.” A smiley face.

“W-wait, you saw who stole my money?”

They ignored that. “Still, practice, needless. / Today, I’ll kill the bad guys. / Just stand back again.” The word “coward” didn’t fit at the end of their haiku, but it was implied. Their “>:P” made that clear.

Later, as they ventured through Fleshripper territory, he did his best not to deserve the label. At least, his best within reason. He stood back, sure, but only because he didn’t have a shield and the others did. A thrown buzzaxe bounced right off of Axton’s head when it would have split his skull open otherwise. Salvador walked right into oncoming gunfire to kill the shooter. A grenade landed at Gaige’s feet and only gave her a few scratches. A shield was undeniably a necessity, here. 

Rhys checked bodies for one when he got the chance, but there was little intact for him to take. A few dollars here, some bullets there. The bandit’s actual killers got first dibs on everything. So he was forced to shoot from afar, careful to avoid his “allies”. Most of his shots missed, but sometimes they hit, and sometimes the bandits died. Those kills didn’t feel like that first time, but at least he wasn’t almost dying. Small victories.

A further small victory came for his “DARGH initiative”. With Zer0, of all people. 

Bringing up the rear occasionally put him near them, when they’d switch from up-close fighting to sniping. Their sudden appearances had startled him the first few times. They seemed to teleport, but it was a clever combination of hologram and cloaking technology. Rhys found that if he paid attention, he could sometimes see when their footprints in the snow parted from the hologram. Even then, he missed it more often than not.  

Zer0 may have been a total asshole, but it was pretty cool to watch. They’d appear with their sword buried in one man’s back. When the next bandit fired on them, the hologram would feign an attack from the front while they climbed a nearby roof, blowing his brains out without him ever knowing he’d been tricked. Rhys wondered if Jack knew about their method, or if he should report it. If Zer0 meant to fight Hyperion, the soldiers should be forearmed with that knowledge, the way these Fleshrippers weren’t. 

As he was considering recording them for Jack, a gunshot rang off from his left and two bandits dropped dead at the same time. Zer0 appeared with their sniper rifle on a low roof next to him. “Holy crap. Did…Did you just do that?” 

“Yes.” They projected a “:D”. 

“That was actually pretty badass.” 

They didn’t respond, only moved to a higher position, taking out another pair of bandits the same way, then a third with a headshot.

If he didn’t know better, he would have thought they were showing off. But there was no way they cared what he thought, right? It was worth testing. Rhys was well-practiced in the art of sycophancy. “You, uh, you think you could hit that guy way down there before Krieg gets to him? The one taking cover behind the crates.” 

The bandit in question was on the other side of camp, firing at Krieg as he charged. Only a small portion of his head was visible. 

A second after he said it, they’d shot, and the bandit’s head vanished in a spray of red. Krieg slowed to a stop, with a bellow of “Disappointed!” 

“Nice!” The enthusiasm in his voice wasn’t hard to fake. He never expected Zer0 might actually be easy to win over. 

“As I said before. / You need not participate. / I’ve got this handled.” 

“Right, clearly.” It was the same on Helios, flattery didn’t get you respect in return. Still, if he’d swallowed his pride and sucked up to Vasquez, the man wouldn’t have tried to blow him up. Zer0 was more the “literal backstabber” type, but still, the point stood. 

———

Captain Flynt, leader of the Fleshripper bandits, was the last thing standing between the Vault hunters and the mainland. He’d made his throne on a wrecked freighter sitting precariously atop an icy clifftop. Rhys lost count of how many the group had killed on the trek through the surrounding camps and the climb up to the ship’s deck. At that point, a reasonable person would surrender. Captain Flynt wasn’t a reasonable person. 

Claptrap had raced in ahead of the rest of them, waiting at the top of the ramp that led to the ship’s deck. “Yoohoo! Minions, this way!” He waved them on impatiently. 

Maya stopped there. “We should go in with a plan. One would have to be pretty hard to kill to lead a bandit clan of this size for more than a week, and Hammerlock claims he’s tough.” 

Zer0 barely glanced at her as they moved on after Claptrap. 

“I was thinking we shoot him full of bullets. Until he dies.” Salvador said, passing her.

“Yeah, that was more or less what I was gonna say?.” Axton stopped for only a moment, hesitating before jogging after Zer0. “Sorry, not about to let them get all the glory!” he called over his shoulder.

“I need to get keelhauled!” Krieg followed the other three. 

“Hey, wait up!” Gaige had the decency to look guilty as she passed. “Sorry, Maya, but I mean, we have more guns?” 

Rhys could only offer a shrug. “For what it’s worth, I was onboard with the ‘having a plan’ plan.” 

The battle was underway by the time he and Maya caught up. Flynt wasn’t alone, at least twenty more bandits fought alongside him. He was unmistakable among his cohorts. The man dwarfed even Krieg–but part of that might have been the thick, padded suit and the tall horns atop his helmet. He wielded both a flamethrower and an entire anchor with ease. Also, he was on fire, which didn’t seem to bother him.  

Yesterday, Rhys might have stayed on the ledge overlooking the deck, never directly joining battle. Today, he had a promotion and a turbomansion to look forward to, and DARGH to think of. Amazing what getting contacted personally by Handsome Jack could do to a guy. At least, it was enough to make Rhys hop down onto deck–only to slip on a patch of ice and fall on his face. Thankfully, this went unnoticed. The bandits were too occupied with those who got there before him. Each Vault hunter seemed to be fighting their own battle. Huge plumes of fire intermittently shot up from the vents in the deck, leaving thick clouds of smoke in its wake. Maya was already further up, he saw a flash of purple lift Flynt into the air. A buzzaxe-wielding bandit took notice of him as he was getting to his feet. Rhys shot him as he charged, and he stumbled to the ground and didn’t rise again. Then a second bandit was shooting at him. Bullets whizzed past his face, barely missing. Finding flimsy cover behind a wooden crate, he returned fire. Either one of Rhys’s bullets hit the mark, or someone else’s did. Regardless, that bandit fell too. 

He got another glimpse of Flynt near the broken edge of the ship. Zer0 was behind him, sword bearing down at his back. Flynt turned, delivering a blow with his anchor that knocked them off their feet. He lifted the anchor, ready to bring it down on them. Flames went up. Rhys fired a few shots where he’d seen Flynt. The fire faded. Flynt was running at Salvador, whose pair of shotguns seemed to do little to slow him. No sign of Zer0. 

“Krieg, come on! You’re in the way!” He heard Axton before he saw him. He was shooting over a pile of crates. His turret was perched on a crate firing at Flynt, only, Krieg was in front of its target. 

Fire again. A flaming bandit came rushing out of a nearby vent, screaming in agony. Rhys backed up, pulled the trigger. Out of ammo. The bandit fell anyway. He ducked behind cover. His shotgun held only two shots in it, and he’d never actually used it before. It would be better to stay here and wait for the fighting to stop. He heard more screaming–a voice that had to be Gaige’s. 

Could be a hero. That’d be worth points. 

He moved along the intact edge–towards the screams, trying to keep track of Flynt. The jet of fire from his flamethrower gave him away on the far side of the ship. 

When he found Gaige she was crouched behind a junk pile, reloading her submachine gun. Her robot was fighting off a bandit on the other side. Another three bandits lay dead nearby. 

“You okay?” he needed to raise his voice to be heard over the battle. She was soaked in sweat and covered in ash but otherwise, she looked okay. 

She gave him a strange look, then turned to finish that last bandit. 

He ducked down next to her. “I–someone was screaming. Was that Maya?” It hadn’t sounded like Maya.

“Oh! Yeah, that was me! Look at this shit.” She stuck out her leg. Her nylon tights had partially burned away, revealing her calf red and blistered beneath it. “Hurt like a bitch!” She’d sounded like she was being murdered. “Right. So you’re not in any immediate trouble?” 

“Nope. You’re bleeding, by the way. Like a lot.” She turned back to the battle. It was quieter now.

“Haha, what?” He looked down, not seeing any blood on him. “No, I’m not.” “Your face.” 

He was so soaked in sweat, it took a moment to find the blood on the right of his face, longer to find the gash starting at his temple and ending just past his ear. He hadn’t felt it until now, but suddenly his body seemed to remember that this was supposed to hurt. “Oh jeez… How…How bad is it?” “I think you just got grazed, dude. You’re fine.” 

“Owwww…” It burned.  

Gaige, put away her gun, getting to her feet. “Anyway, I think we’re done?” 

Clutching his head, he followed her lead. There were dead bandits everywhere. On the far side was Flynt, lying in a heap on the deck. Flames had stopped coming up from the vents. “Huh, wonder if he was like, remotely controlling the fire somehow…”   

“Dunno.” Rhys couldn’t find it in himself to be that curious right now. He couldn’t remember the last time so much blood was coming out of him.  “First time being shot?” Axton joined him and Gaige as they crossed the deck to meet with the others. 

“Kinda hope it’s my last.” Axton laughed. “Good luck with that.” He looked him up and down. “Hell, did you ever get a shield?” 

“Couldn’t find one.” “Why didn’t you say something?” Axton stopped, opening his storage deck holoscreen. He was using his left hand, his right hung at his side, covered in blood. 

“Kind of got the sense that uh, begging would be a bad look?” 

Axton shrugged. “This isn’t Hyperion. And I mean, a little more to the left and you’d be dead.” He’d produced a Tediore shield, handing it to Rhys. 

“Thanks.” He clipped it to his belt.

They passed Salvador, looting a corpse. “Y’all see what happened to Zer0?” he asked. “Cuz if they’re dead, I already called dibs on that gun. The acid one.” 

Rhys glanced at where he’d last seen them, half expecting their mangled corpse. They weren’t there, but between the sheer number of corpses and trash on deck, they could still be dead and he’d just missed them. He didn’t feel like looking so hard, his head hurt. 

Maya and Krieg waited outside the deckhouse, beneath Flynt’s throne. Krieg sat on a still-panic-moded Claptrap. A buzzaxe was half buried in his shoulder, and Maya was trying to calm him enough to pull it out. She scowled when she saw them. “Couldn’t have spent a few minutes trying to coordinate an attack?” 

“Hey, the guy’s dead, right? And we’re alive.” Axton radiated self-satisfaction. 

“Hell yeah, you are!” Claptrap popped out of his panic-mode, almost knocking Krieg over as he rolled out to gloat over Flynt’s corpse. “Take that, Flynt! My minions are certified badasses!” 

Maya ignored Claptrap, grabbing the buzzaxe’s hand with both hands. “Your turret drained Krieg’s shield.” She gritted her teeth as she yanked the blade out. 

“No! I needed that there!” Krieg protested. The wound already began to knit together before Maya jabbed a hypo in the flesh near it. “Augh! How will I find anything now?!” 

She ignored that too. “Not to mention, if I hadn’t made it in time, Salvador would have gotten crushed by that anchor. And, I have no idea where Zer0 went.” 

“Another one into the pit!” That one took her a moment. “Wait, they went over the side?”

Krieg tensed, grabbed his head, and then managed an exaggerated nod. “Anchors aweigh!” Crap.” She looked around at the others. “There’s more hypos inside, get yourselves fixed up. I’m going back for Zer0.” 

Inside the deckhouse was what once was a lounge for the crew, when this was still a functioning corporate cargo ship. Now, maybe it was still a lounge, but hanging from the ceiling were bouquets of human skulls, and staked to the dart board was a man’s corpse, dead at least a few weeks. After the bandit camps, this kind of decor seemed pretty standard. Rhys took a seat on one of the lopsided, threadbare couches opposite the corpse. At least it was cold enough it didn’t smell, much. 

Gaige, Salvador, and Axton were going through the chests and crates that lined that wall, arguing over loot. “I did get the kill, so y’know, I think I should get the shotgun.” “You only got the kill because my turret softened him up!”  

“Oh come on, you guys killed one guy, me and Deathtrap killed like, a gazillion of them while you were fighting him.” 

“Those little guys? I was saving them for after.”

“Yeah, they weren’t exactly our primary objective.”

“So next time I should just let them shoot at you? Cuz I totally will.” 

Rhys tuned them out, absently studying the crude map next to the dartboard corpse as he tried to distract himself from the pain. The map must have been made by one of the bandits, it was an indecipherable mess, there was no way it was to scale. Was that supposed to be the ocean? Then that there would probably be Sanctuary… But what was that thing in the center? It didn’t match up with the maps he studied in his ECHOeye, but maps of border planets tended to be lacking… 

“Oh, right, Rhys!” Axton crossed the room to him, holding out a hypo. There was a bullet hole in his forearm, rapidly closing up as he offered it. “Hate to see a face like that go to necrosis.”

He took it with a “Right, thanks so much,” and a forced smile. It was only once his face started to heal that he realized Axton had probably been flirting with him. He didn’t know what to do with that fact, did it still count as a win for DARGH? Did that mean he was doing a good job winning these people over, or should he just take it as a testament to his looks? 

It was then that Zer0 finally limped into the cabin, just ahead of Maya. They crossed the room without looking at any of the others. “The path is open. / We board Claptrap’s freakin’ boat. / And get out of here.” They sounded pissed. 

“Couldn’t have said it better myself!” Claptrap said as he followed them. “Let's board me mighty vessel and kiss the shelf goodbye!” 

“Woah, wait, Zer0, You alright, dude?” Axton asked. 

“Yes,” they said. 

“Cause I have like, one more insta-health here.” He held up another hypo, smirking. 

“Give me it.” “I dunno. If you’re okay, I might save it for later. Does our untouchable assassin really need some healing?”

Zer0’s hand closed around the hilt of their sword. “You have eyes.” 

“Axton, just give them the damn instahealth.” Maya stepped in. 

Axton sighed, and Zer0 snatched it up. “This feels like enabling their crap, y’know?” 

———

Considering that the boat they were to take belonged to Claptrap, Rhys expected the prize to be some sad little dinghy. He wasn’t well-versed on boats, but it had actually probably been some sort of fishing trawler. He wasn’t sure how a Claptrap would end up with something like that, but it had SS Claptrap spray painted on it. It was a good-sized boat, even with eight passengers there was space to spare. Sturdy, too, though that didn’t make Rhys feel much better as they lowered it into the water from a pair of cranes attached to Flynt’s wreck. He clung to the side as it was slowly lowered into the water, wondering if the shield would save him from falling to his death. Every bump felt like it might be the end, but somehow the ship touched down without incident.  

“So, how long is it to the mainland?” Gaige asked when they finally got moving. 

“Fifteen hours! But don’t worry chums, I’m sure it’ll pass in a flash! I know some great boat trip games!”  

“Ugh. If anyone needs me I’m gonna go over there and tune up Deathtrap.” 

“Yeah, uh, shouldn’t you be steering? Keep us from hitting any icebergs, or something?” Rhys tried.  

“You’re absolutely right! I guess you guys can have fun, I’ll provide the background music. Just gotta load up some sea shanties, and it’ll be a party in no time!” 

Rhys just hoped that Pandora wasn’t home to any horrific sea monsters. Before anything else, he found a tiny little bathroom in the boat’s cabin, a mirror on the door. There was a sink, but no water ran through it. Instead, he was stuck wiping what blood and sweat he could get off with his sleeve–Maybe Sanctuary would have actual laundry machines. 

It was then that Vaughn called him back, the notification lit up in his ECHOeye. He ignored it, no telling what the Vault hunters would do if they caught him communicating with someone on Helios. A moment later he got the voicemail and played it directly into his implants. 

“Holy shit, Rhys. I just saw your message. I’m so glad you’re okay. Or, I hope you’re okay. I’m gonna choose to believe you’re not answering because you are busy actively surviving that hellhole. What happened? Where are you? Can we do anything to help? Yvette can send down supplies? You, uh, you don’t have to worry about us. Get this, Vasquez disappeared, his nameplate’s gone, office cleaned out, no one knows what’s going on. But supposedly, he got called in for a meeting with Jack, and you know… Try to get back up here soon. And don’t drink the water down there! Or eat anything weird. Call me back. If you’re still alive, I mean.” 

Rhys texted a reply, practicing with the ECHOeye functionality he’d used to message Jack: “Still alive. Can’t call you, I’m surrounded by bandits. We’ve reached an understanding though, they trust me. I’m not going to be in mortal danger anytime soon unless I start openly talking to someone on Helios.” 

The text response from Vaughn came a minute later: “Holy shit, dude. Are you sure they’re not planning to eat you? I heard Pandora is chock full of cannibals.” 

“I’m sure.” 

“Okay, still, you should really find a Hyperion base or something.” “I’ll keep an eye out.” A lie, but he wasn’t about to give too much away. 

“I gotta get back to work, Don’t want anyone else up here getting called into Jack’s office. I’ll message later. But seriously, you need anything, let me or Yvette know.” “Yep. See you later.” He had to smile–Vaughn had nothing to worry about up there, Jack had already done him a favor and gotten Vasquez out of the way. He played this right and he could get his friends comfy, safe positions before this was over. 

He passed Axton on his way out of the cabin, already napping on one of the little cots. 

Outside, the rest of them were keeping their distance from each other. Krieg was at the prow of the ship, yelling incoherently at the sea ahead. Maya sat on a crate nearby, somehow ignoring him enough to be reading a book. Gaige worked on her robot, disassembled parts laid out across the deck in front of her. Salvador was cleaning his shotgun. Zer0 was just leaning against the side of the boat, arms crossed, things like “B0R3D”, “...”, and “UGH” occasionally flashing over their helm. 

Claptrap, at least, was too occupied with steering to bother anyone with more than singing.

Everyone still seemed too tense to approach, but he still had a lot of material on the Hyperion database that may or may not come in handy to study. He sat down leaning against the cabin’s outer wall, and pulled up an entry of their destination, Three Horns. 

“Three Horns is a small region named for its three stone crags. Ringed by mountains to the east and precipitous cliffs to the west, the area is…” 

“That should be removed.” Zer0’s voice interrupted his reading. They were kneeling in front of him. “Before we reach the city. / It may get you killed.”

“Wha..?” He closed out of the ECHOeye entry. “What?” 

They poked his chest.  “Oh. Yeah.” It barely peered out under the bandit’s jacket, only the “Hy” visible, but it was undeniably Hyperion’s logo on his vest

“In Sanctuary / I hear they find clever ways / Of killing your kind.” They projected a “;)”. 

“Right…” It was a nice vest. Expensive, hardy. He couldn’t just throw the whole thing out. But he could probably cut through the stitching. “You’ve got a knife or something?” 

“Yes,” they said. 

He waited. They made no move to offer him anything. 

“Can I use it?” 

They cocked their head, seeming to consider for a moment. “No.” They stood and returned to their prior spot. 

After half an hour of fighting with the label, he’d managed to pull it a third of the way off. Hyperion stitching was good. He was considering resorting to using his teeth when a folded pocket knife landed in front of him. He looked up to see Zer0, and took the knife with a “Thanks? Wish you’d given this to me before?” 

The knife was marked “DAHL”. 

“Er…Did…Did you steal this from Axton?” 

“He is still sleeping. / If I were you, I’d work fast. / He will wake angry.” They projected a “:3”. 

[cerastes]

Who are the top must build caster operators? Excluding Eyja and Amiya

The ones you like :) But of course, you knew that, so let's talk Casters.

Casters exist in a perpetual state of weirdness because Hypergryph did an oopsie daisy and created Eyja as a release Operator, forever destabilizing absolutely everything about the class for years because she Did Everything better than other Casters (except Ifrit), even other Caster archetypes that aren't her own. Basically, on release, an objective tier listing for Casters, not just Core Casters, could be "Eyja Tier and Everyone Else Tier" and it'd be correct. Whether it was single target, aoe, constant DPS or burst damage, Eyja Did It Better. About the only other Caster you'd hear about in the conversation was Ifrit, because she was her own weird thing and did her job really damn well, and her unique range and true AoE, plus her ability to land flat DEF and RES debuffs (as opposed to percentage based, which made them very powerful due to the way DEF works and how the numbers tend to be low, thus flat > percentage for DEF) has always been appreciated. In fact, add Ifrit to that list of Recommended Casters, even though we won't discuss her below.

After some years of fighting their own big oopsie, Arknights is finally starting to even out the playing field with Casters. Right now, I'd say the best Caster is in fact Goldenglow (6*), and just, in general, the Mech Accord archetype is solid, with Operators like Kjera (5*) and Click (4*) being, quite honestly, very good! Minimalist (5*) is also an effective fire-and-forget unit, and in general, for your single target needs, Mech Accord is the way to go. The other archetype that's been cooking is the Mystic Caster group, with the likes of Ebenholz (6*), Iris (5*) and Indigo (4*), thanks to their great burst potential. Consider them as the Caster equivalent of Heavyshooter Snipers (Schwarz, Pozemka) in that they need to be more carefully and thoughtfully placed and require a more hands-on approach, paying dividends with incredibly effective Elite and Boss killing power, especially when they don't attack for a few seconds, as for each "autoattack" they have no target in range, they instead save that attack for later, unleashing all attacks (max 3) at once.

So, with that said, I don't particularly like the term "must raise", so let's call this a Hearty Recommended List of Casters:

Goldenglow - Whether it is her S2 for constant output (and AFK strats wink wink) or S3 for a more hands-on approach to evisceration with its great damage per second and global range, Miss Electric WILL send your foes to the principal's office and have them expelled. Her single target damage is incredible and she is absurdly easy to use, plus, thanks to her Talent, sometimes her drones will explode to deal AoE damage, granting her a degree of AoE ability as well. There's not much to say other than Goldenglow is really as powerful as you've heard: Incredibly easy to use, incredibly versatile, and incredibly pink.

Ebenholz - The other big relevant Caster nowadays. Ebenholz tends to have a bit of a worse reputation than Goldenglow, mostly due to incompetence (of the playerbase, not Eben's). The truth is, the absolutely monstrous amounts of damage Ebenholz can put out if played correctly are astonishing, but there's two issues here: 1) He's considerably harder to use than the average unit, as you need to make sure he's placed in a way that allows him to actually shoot all of this damage at the right target, which usually translates to "your entire team set-up, or at least a significant part of it, is built around using Ebenholz properly", and 2) you rarely actually need the amount of damage he outputs, especially relative to the effort needed to squeeze it out of him (when you can just use an easier unit, like Eyja or GG). However, for those moments in which you can definitely benefit from the Big Hits or, let's be honest here, when you just really want to see those big damn numbers, yeah, Ebenholz is a bona fide top pick. For BIG Damage, you'll want to learn to build around his S3, for general use, you want his S2, which is quite similar to W's S2 Claymores.

Kjera - Kjera's freezing ability allows her to output damage and provide team utility -- Freezing is not only a measure of crowd control, it reduces RES by 15 as well -- making her an easy to integrate Operator into pretty much any team, especially if you also use the likes of Gnosis or Aurora for that sweet, sweet Frozen synergy. Even without them, however, Kjera is a solid member of any team and a great team player.

Click - An ol' reliable, cheap, effective damage hose with minor crowd control in the form of Stun, Click is simple to use, cheap to upgrade, and has great hands to high five with after she's done blasting. Not much else to be said about her, she simply works.

Iris - Nice bursty Caster with some fun gimmicks: S1 is her machine gun, making her range a line in front of line and releasing a LOT of very quick attacks very briefly, while her S2 Sleeps enemies for a few seconds (allowing her to charge up Mystic stacks) before waking them up with a burst of Arts damage. Being one of the rare Sleep synergies, it also allows Blemishine to smash enemies over the head with a tire iron, the way knights do, if you use them together. Quite the gimmicky unit, but fun and effective nonetheless.

Indigo - The light machine gun to Iris' heavy machine gun and Ebenholz attack jet-mounted vulcan gun. Her damage is not as high as her fellow Mystics, but she instead has a rather consistent Bind she can apply to her enemies, which is interesting to have on a Caster. A sub-DPS/Support hybrid, and welcome in pretty much any team.

There's other Casters that can get a recommendation, but these are the ones I think are pretty relevant as of right now besides Eyja, Amiya, and Ifrit.

[jedi-lothwolf]

Febuwhump Day 11: Time Loop

Fandom: The Bad Batch

Summary: Hunter keeps reliving the day Tech died and Omega was taken, desperately trying to stop it from happening.

    Walking up was something Hunter didn't want to do. When he awoke he would have to face the fact that Tech was dead and Omega was gone. He grabbed his blanket and pulled it closer to him. Hoping that Echo and Wrecker wouldn't notice, he pulled the thin blanket to his face and dried his tears. He didn't have the time to cry or to lie still.

    Getting up, Hunter looked around. Echo must have cleaned up. He swung his legs over the end of his bunk and stood up. Echo's bed had been made and so had Wrecker's, even though he never made it. Tech's bed had also been made. Resting a hand on the medal of his bunk, Hi ter thought that Echo must have made his as well.

    Then he heard it, Tech talking to Echo. Hunter stepped back. That wasn't possible. Had it all been a dream? The pain felt so real.

    Omega walked up to Hunter. "You looked tired so we got you go lay down. How are you feeling?" He didn't say anything. Instead he picked

    But things started to fall into place for those hellish days to happen. When Hunter realized they were going to Eriadu his heart sank. But that couldn't be right. That horrible day had been a dream, right?

    A few hours later Tech was hanging off the side of the rail car. "When have we ever followed orders?" He had sighed before shooting the only piece of metal that connected the cars.

    This time, instead of silents, Hunter called out for him. Almost immediately afterwards, he grabbed a hold of Omega, pulling her close to try to protect her.

    But they still ended up on Ord Mantell. Hunter was the one who required AZ to heal him. He was unconscious, making him unable to tell them about Cid's betrayal. It felt he was defenseless this time. As she was taken away, he still tried to follow her. It didn't matter, she was still gone.

    Then he woke up. Again.

    This time he would do it right. That's what Hunter had told himself at least. Trying to find a way to convince Saw Gerrera and his extremist to stop their attack, to wait just long enough for them to leave. But that didn't work.

    "Tech, we will find another way!" Hunter yelled as he claimed to the top of the rail car.

    "There is no other way, Hunter." Tech continued to follow what seemed to be his destiny.

    "When have we ever followed orders?" Again he shot the metal that connected the two cars. Again Hunter grabbed Omega. He moved to a different place in the car.

    Then he woke up on the Marauder. "Hunter, how are you feeling?" Echo asked.

    "I'm fine. Where's-" Hunter tried to sit up but couldn't. It hurt too much to move. "Where's Omega?"

    Wrecker walked into the room. He looked worried.

    "Hemlock has her." The man said.

    Then he woke up. Hunter didn't move. Maybe if he didn't move, nothing would happen.

    This time, Hunter killed Gerrera. Tech was stunned by his action but didn't say a word about it. However, the explosives still went off. Tech still went to the top of the rail car and he still called plan 99.

    "When have we ever followed orders?" Hunter mouthed along with the words. He knew them all too well. It had been three times he had gone through this after all.

    There had to be a way to stop this. Why else would he be stuck in a time lop like this? Was this a punishment for something he had done, for not saving them?

    Shoving Omega to Wrecker, Hunter turned around. As the rail car hit the wall, Hunter fell unconscious. Unlike every other time, he woke back up on the Marauder at the beginning of the day.

    "Oh" he whispered as he sat up. The man hadn't survived the crash. Hunter looked around. First he went to find the others. Grabbing Omega, he ok pulled her into a hug.

    "Hey Hunter!" She said, excited for the random hug. It didn't happen often. "Are you okay?" Her joy faded in to concern.

    "I'm okay." The man put down his daughter. "We'll be okay" he whispered.

    "I know. I trust you."

    Tears threatened to fall from his eyes. Hunter just smiled, "thank you." The girl didn't know know what he did. Hopefully she would never know that he knew.

    It didn't matter what happened, nothing changed. "There is no time Wrecker" Not again. "Plan 99." Hunter started to tear up. He couldn't do this. The conversation was engraved in the clones head.

    "Don't you do it Tech" Wrecker yelled. Hunter felt his mouth move to say something more.

    "When have we ever followed orders?"

    The rail car fell and Omega pulled in Hunter's arms, "go back, go back!"

    The car crashed and Hunter grabbed Omega quickly. They still had to go to Ord Mantell, that stayed the same. Then she was fine, again.

    Days went by, at least to Hunter. Over and over he watched as Tech sacrificed himself for his family. Then he would watch as Omega was taken from them. He was done.

    "Wrecker, stay here." This was new. This was a plan he hadn't tried yet.

    "What?! Why?" Wrecker droned.

    "In case we need a pickup."

    "Why me?" He winded

    "You are the most likely to get us caught." Tech said as he walked.

     "Okay." Sulking, Wrecker walked back in the ship.

     As the mission went forward, Hunter grew nauseous. What if this didn't work? He would just have to find out.

    When they boarded the rail car, everything seemed to be going as it had before. But this time, Hunter had already contacted their get-away driver. 

    There he was. Tech had gone to restore power to the rail car. Like every other time, he hung from the bottom of the car. "Echo, get Omega on the Marauder!" Hunter demanded.

    Wrecker kept the ship steady as the two made their way on board. Hunter had his gun ready. With the two left in the car, Echo ran to man the guns. He started shooting down the empire's air support.

    As the rail car creaked closer to falling, Hunter jumped on board. The car began to fall, Tech still dangling from below. The Sargent grabbed his gun and shot his brother with his safety line. He didn't expect the scream that would come from the end of the line clamping onto his brother's left arm and shoulder.

    Pulling him up seemed to hurt more. Tech's shoulder was bleeding. It looked painful, the way the clamp dug into his skin. But either way, he was alive. That's all that mattered now.

    Calling for one of his brothers, Hunter pulled Tech aboard. "You're gonna be okay Tech. We've got you."

    "Thank you" Tech said shakily. "I- I can't move my arm right now."

    "I know. We'll get you taken care of."

    "We'll head to Ord Mantell for AZ. He can-" Omega started.

    "No" Hunter interrupted. "There are doctors on Pabu. Someone there can help him. I-" he sighed, "don't trust Cid."

    "We can't just leave Az" the girl protested.

    "We won't. But right now we just need to take care of Tech. We can't do that if something happens on Ord Mantell." Omega looks like she wanted to say more but walked away to get Tech's bunk ready.

    While Tech's recovery would be difficult, it was better than him becoming a memory. Maybe that was a little selfish. Maybe his arm wouldn't heal but he was alive. That was enough

    After twelve attempts, everyone was alive. Tech was in a large amount of pain but he wasn't alone and dead at the bottom of the ravine. Omega may be mad at him but she wasn't taken by the empire. Hunter could fix that when he later sent Phee to pay their debts and to return Az.

    It was over. The painful two weeks were over.

[the-things-ive-seen]

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (2013)

Percy Jackson: Sinking the Franchise

When I watched the movie for the first Percy Jackson movie, I thought it was good, a nice adventure film at the time. I was in first grade then, but by second grade the book for Percy Jackson and the Olympians was required reading. This was when I realized that the book was ten times better than the movie. (Even now, I'd say the book has a leg up on the TV show!) More importantly, I realized that book adaptation movies could completely rewrite a story with their own half-baked ideas in a desperate attempt to save time and appeal to audiences. Hence the second failure in the franchise.

Before that, I should mention how I was a huge fan of the second book by Rick Riordan, Sea of Monsters. I loved reading it so much, that I got a physical copy and have read it back to back multiple times. I originally didn't understand why, it just felt good to read and it still makes me laugh. But I realize now that the Ocean Journey narratives are just really good when they're well done. The growth everyone goes through as they travel, the adventures happening both on and between islands, the legends and battles. It's an incredible test of creativity, one that succeeded.

...Then Sea of Monsters came out in theaters.

Apparently, the thing about taking a test of creativity, worldbuilding, and pacing, is that you can still fail that test. Quite horribly, it seems. Sea of Monsters was a gut punch for me, as well as for anyone who thought this series would be revived with even a small amount of credibility regained. 20th Century Fox found a way to kill an extremely popular IP, and it would only be revived later by Disney of all companies.

Okay Spoilers, but I need to get into it. Here's why Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters feels like I'm the one trapped in an ocean of mediocrity.

Let's start with the ending climax because the beginning sure as sh!t doesn't leave much to be desired. It also gives me an opportunity to explain why they chose... that as a finale. See, after the long journey of being chased by bad guys only to be caught by bad guys for no explainable reason, The bad guys get the thing, a MacGuffin if you will, and go through with their evil plan of reviving Tautarus. Percy's blade starts glowing for no reason and he stabs Tautarus, banning him forever. But he actually isn't banished forever because sequel- baiting.

It's sad that I actually managed to explain that as succinctly as possible, skipping over the bare minimum of detail, like Grover wearing a dress. If you read the books, or you can probably guess what's wrong here, Tautarus isn't actually supposed to revive in the story, nor is Percy's blade meant to be the random magical item that kills him. The prophecy mentioning any of this refers to a different book.

Why movie does it is because it's trying to pull a Percy Jackson. That's the official term for it. It pulls a Percy Jackson, using future book content to tease or even supplant plot points in an attempt to stir interest or raise stakes. You know you've hit a new low in reading comprehension when you grab the main bad guy for the end of a series and place him in the middle of your plot. Because it sounded like a good idea.

Speaking of plot, there are a few more details I skipped over when describing the plot of the movie. Percy lives in a magical campground for special children protected by a tree. That tree is dying, so they send this previously unmentioned character, Clarise, to find the golden MacGuffin that Grover found but can't deliver due to incompetency. Percy, jealous, decides to go on the life-threatening journey himself with his girlfriend. He gets captured by the main bad guy but escapes with cool plot devices given to him by a god; ex machines, I believe they're called. 2 minutes later, they catch up to Clarise who was a day ahead of them and has a submarine that was given to her by her Daddy (way too late to ask questions). After traveling through a monster's stomach, they reach Journey's End island, with the golden Macguffin, Grover, and another roadblock? After that pointless roadblock, all the villains teleport to the island to initiate the climax (I guess Luke can actually teleport though?). They fight, good guys win, and they go home and use the MacGuffin, which leads to a new character being unlocked. Some sequel-baiting before the movie unceremoniously ends.

Also, there's this Cyclops boy named Tyson. What a wacky character that guy is.

Yeah... I really hate this movie. It isn't fair to judge by what it does and doesn't have, but the movie lacks so much of... anything, that when you read the books it is genuinely insulting how much they could've squeezed in and ultimately didn't. Entire plot points skipped, characters that we never met, monsters that we're never fought; worst of all, a plot so simple I could've written the entire thing on the back of a napkin. Sea of Monsters decided an Ocean Journey was too much effort, but a one-note sea adventure fit perfectly in the budget. It hurts more when you're in a biased position, but I still at least like the first movie. It felt like an incomplete introduction to the Americanized Olympians, but it was a glimpse at what could've been. This movie is an open view of what wasn't and will never be. Percy Jackson by 20th Century will never be deep, adventurous, hilarious, or well-financed. It will always be shallow, simple to follow, barely chuckle-worthy, and one cut corner after another.

I'm glad this will be the last time I talk about this film in any capacity. It's one legend that should stay forgotten.

[iwonderwh0]

I can't reply on the post and don't want to reblog it again, but I'm not forgetting Daniel. Unfortunately the only thing we see of Daniel pre-deviancy is him saying hello into a video. It doesn't give us any sense of who he is as a person. That clip is about Emma's attachment to him because he's "the coolest android in the world", but all he does is say hello when prompted, with reasonably good cheerful affect. It contrasts sharply with what we see, which is him dangling Emma off the roof, and the game doesn't really go into whether that brief clip was the real Daniel or just an act provided by his programming.

We get a sense of what he wants, and what he values from his actions as a deviant, because apparently just the threat of being torn away from his family and discarded was enough to send him deviant. But the game arguably portrays his deviancy as a bad thing and him as a villain instead of it being a tragedy that he was driven to this desperation. (Mileage may vary on that one based on personal experiences; "you lied to me, Connor" is gut-wrenching, but it's also one possible ending out of all of them, requiring absolute success in manipulation from Connor, and the only ending that hits that way. In the rest of them, he HAS to die for Connor to save Emma so his death feels justified.)

Okay, that's fair, the clip doesn't give us a lot. I was just thinking about how what we learn from his words and actions paints us a picture of how he reached this point. And how he had some really strong personal opinions about his life and place in the world long before deviancy. Otherwise, his reaction wouldn't be this. 100% he's not the first android who got replaced, but he's the first one to get revengeful about.

And, him being a villain? Oh boy, you know me, I fucking love him being a villain. I disagree with him being only a victim in this, which is not to say his story isn't tragic (it is).

But it's his decision to go for a revenge instead of escape. It's his decision to drag Emma (who may not even know about the new android) to the rooftop and use her as a hostage with him being perfectly capable of going through with his threat and fall back dragging Emma down with him. Even though he supposedly loved her, his hatred and resentment is stronger. He thinks she deserves it. Because she (her family) hurt him, and he ain't gonna let that slide. It's not the fear of death that motivates him, not self-defence but pure rage. He took the gun and instead of escaping with it he goes straight to the person who wronged him and kills him when he isn't expecting.

And his rage and hatred extrapolates far beyond Philips family.

He objects to Connor helping a human that has nothing to do with Philips family and pose no threat to him anymore, so it's just a question of whether his life (one more to the list) will end as result of Daniel's actions. Daniel later says that he didn't want to hurt anybody, and yet here, when he has a chance for making his actions less murderous for the outsiders, he objects.

"All humans die eventually. What difference does it make if this one dies now?"

Ah, what a line! Compare it with Traci's words about how she only killed out of fear of being next.

When Connor pushes Emma away, what does he do? Once again, he chooses revenge, but this time aimed at Connor. Not even a human, but just another android doing his job.

Daniel story is tragic, but his actions, even though done in panic and shock are still his actions that he chose himself. And I think we should let him own them. He attacked first. When he was cornered he made sure to drag others with him.

Sorry, I dwelled away from original topic. Revengeful Danial is just my fave, and I prefer his actions to be viewed as his own choices and not something universal any deviant in his place would do.

[lexa-griffins]

Lexa always has at least a knife with her and something happens (injury?) that requires her to cut Clarke’s clothes off #Hedasdagger

Abskznzzkmsozod Lexa and Clarke standing side by side, both with the outline of something on their thigh 👀

But she does constantly carry at least a knife. More if her clothing choice allows. Most will only see it before she stabs them, Clarke is the lucky one that manages to feel it still attatched to her thigh.

👀👀 i want that to happen now. Clarke suffering some bad hits and Lexa yelling at them to call it a win for the other girl, she doesnt care just get Clarke out of there /now/. And the moment Clarke is placed on the couch of her office Lexa takes her knife out and cuts her bra off, she got hit straight in the chest and Lexa isnt about to waste time checking it. Clarke's shorts also dont take long to go as someone tries to way too nicely take them off.

Clarke will wake up later all patched up with a groan, laying on the coach naked aside from the patches covering her chest and a small blanket over her crotch. She'll joke about being naked and Lexa will tell her she lost the fight and that she'll get her a new fighting outfit since she cut hers off of her. Clarke will be pissed at the clothes and the fact Lexa stopped the fight

"I still could have won."

"She'd kill you."

"You never care about one of us dying on the ring. Why start now?"

(Lexa would be pissed at the accusation. She stand up from her chair and accuse Clarke of being ungrateful after she saved her life. They'll fuck. Lexa will take the blanket off Clarke's crotch and ride her dick, making Clarke's heavy breathing hurt her chest. They both seem to only know how to solve shit angry.)

[benisasoftboi]

Imagine they made a tv show about me where I'm the prime minister and before the show started, my husband got hit by a lorry. And I'm really upset about this, obviously, especially because I'm the one who asked the lorry driver to go that way, I just didn't know my husband was going to be in the middle of the road right then. So I force a bill through Parliament that will ban lorry driving and also require the state execution of all current lorry drivers. I do a lorry driver genocide. It really jams things up at the Channel crossings because now everyone has to use small vans and that gets a lot of people really mad at me. But I'm the prime minister. My word is law.

Then a few years later I hire this young twenty something to work in my office. I make him my son's PA (my son works here because of blatant nepotism). And I don't know this, but the new young guy is actually secretly an extraordinarily talented lorry driver, and he's been driving lorries in secret. This is really good for me, because all of those people who are mad at me for causing unprecedented queues down in Kent by making the only international trade decision worse than Brexit are now sending assassins after me, except I'm only half aware of this, because the new guy has secretly been using his incredible lorry driving abilities to help run them off. He does like, amazing drift tricks where he takes out three men with a single turn of the steering wheel. It's rad. Also he has major homoerotic tension with my son (it's not really relevant, but I thought I'd mention it). I don't know about any of this. I'd totally kill the new guy if I did, I don't care that he's saved my life a bunch of times, I just hate lorry drivers that much. I also have this daughter who thinks it's really screwed up that I hate lorry drivers and have been tyrannically murdering them, which only gets worse when she starts to realise that she also has hidden lorry driving talents. She winds up joining a group of domestic terrorist lorry drivers and decides she's going to hit me and my son and also the new guy with a lorry, which is of course very evil of her. Other stuff presumably happens after that but I don't know what because I stopped watching the show that this is all a metaphor for around that point, and I haven't seen anything of it in years, so this is all based on vague rememberings and skimming the wiki, but I do know that my son and the new guy don't get to kiss even once, not even a little bit, even though everyone wanted them to :(

Anyway, that's why I could never really get into Merlin.

[missravenhead]

I'm too poor to even afford to apply to UCLA... But I wrote the 4 required essays needed because for more than 2 years my naive-broke ass thought MAYBE I'd get a chance or a magical scholarship someday.... Which obviously I didn't.... Anyways.... Here are the essays for if anyone needs a little inspiration maybe... Although I'm pretty sure you are absolutely capable by yourself...

Every person has a creative side, and it can be expressed in many ways: problem solving, original and innovative thinking, and artistically, to name a few. Describe how you express your creative side.

I was probably in sixth grade when my language teacher told me to write more. My young self thought it was because the essay I wrote on my visit to the hills wasn't good enough. But I later found out she really just enjoyed reading my essays. When I was little, my parents involved me in multiple activities like music, dance, recitation, etc. While I may not actively be bad at any of them, what actually stood out and ended up being almost half of who I am today wasn't any of the things my guardians expected it to be. It was way into my teen years, when I realized my words on paper could express who I truly am way better than my voice. I've always been an avid reader. My Maa made sure literature was introduced into my life at a tender age. Growing up with books and living each day in a completely new world pushed me into a universe of fiction and imagination. During the pandemic in 2020-2021, when the entire human race was forced into complete lockdown, except our respected frontline workers obviously, I unknowingly hit the cannon event and joined Wattpad. It may sound clicheut I got to know and learn about a lot of authors who are actually really good at what they do and realized I too am capable of putting together my ideas and passion into one piece. Writing on that platform felt especially good when people began to actually reach out to me to share their feelings about my stories. It's safe to say, my readers' enthusiasm and hilarious comments are basically what keeps me going. The more I wrote, my works started getting bolder and began to touch stronger and controversial topics. I looked at my own articles and stories as an outsider and realized they are way more brazen than I ever only dreamt of being and everything I want to be remembered for.

What would you say is your greatest talent or skill? How have you developed and demonstrated that talent over time?

Does good humor count as a great skill? I hope it does, since cracking jokes has been my coping mechanism for a good while now. Being one of a thousand other victims of bullying on this planet, throughout elementary school years has left an invisible but strong impact on my extroverted soul. Maybe because of that phase of my life, involving people and making sure no one feels out of place comes so naturally to me. I mean, a little laugh could go a long way. Right? Also, sometimes it feels good being able to laugh at my own crisis in life, to laugh at myself. The silent girl in the corner of the class, or the shy aunt, or maybe the new boy at school, I always craved them to laugh, even at my own expense. It's okay even if none of them is my friend; I hope they hide their faces trying not to express that they find me funny.

I once started writing a blog series about all the causes my generation stands proudly for, such as, queer rights, sexual abuse, child harassment, anti-misogyny, anti-patriarchy, mental health awareness, etc. It continued for a little over a year, during which I realized how it's easier to reach a greater mass of readers and people by simply letting my instinctive thoughts win and open up my questionable sense of humor to flow with the body of the blog.

It's going to sound twisted but my best friend, Aditee and I had almost half an hour laughing session right after I literally had to stop her from killing herself. I can't say I can save people's lives by making them laugh, but I guess it might give them a tiny little reason to stay alive a little longer and actually get the therapy most of us, today, need. To be honest, I believe life would be way boring without someone to laugh with at all the questionable decisions we sometimes make.

Please describe how you have prepared for your intended major, including your readiness to succeed in your upper-division courses once you enroll at the university.

Nature and her inhabitants have always been of great interest to me since a really young age. Hence, taking up Biological Science in high school was a no brainer. To prepare myself, I took up the Zoology Major Course, Applied Entomology and Botany Minor courses in college. Research is a huge part of pursuing one's dreams. I was kept company by books beyond our dedicated syllabus, like: TELL ME WHY, NATURE, NAT GEO, etc. and the marine life and animal behavior has always been my favorite parts of the encyclopedia. There are always updates and new theories sprouting up every day, which we can't find in textbooks.

I never miss an opportunity to participate in field work and excursions to get hands-on experience with Mother Nature herself. The guide at the aquarium, near where I live, was kind enough to let me spend an entire day with him just so I could be with the fishes and aquatic animals. To be honest, in my opinion, the jellyfish and the tuatara are the most intriguing animals of aquatic and terrestrial habitats respectively. I first came to know about the existence of the later species while reading an adventure novel by Debashis Bandyopadhyay. I guess if I'm given the freedom, I can talk about tuatara, the third eyed wild lizard of New Zealand all day. I even chose to speak about them at our school's science exhibition in 8th grade. They are basically a living fossil, who hasn't evolved at all in over 250 million years. Aren't the wild lizards absolutely fascinating?

I almost drove the HOD of our Zoology department in college crazy, before she finally made an exception and let me join the senior students as a research intern.

I've gone out of my way to be utterly open to criticism and improvements to gain my dream place as a major in the University of California campus. I intend on giving my best, when I finally join the Bruins.

Beyond what has already been shared in your application, what do you believe makes you a strong candidate for admissions to the University of California?

"We show off our different scarlet letters, trust me, mine is better." - Taylor Swift.

I'm incredibly open to change and constructive criticism. I stand strongly for justice to all and being a published author, I am willing to use the power I've been blessed with to reach more people and make sure their voice reaches out even more. When I start in the UC, I plan to eagerly commit to making our already marvelous campus an even better and friendly place for foreign students like me and many more.

I believe in being my own self and encouraging everyone around me to be their own selves. I believe in my femininity. It's something I'm willing to cherish, nurture and thrive in. I always have and forever will keep influencing fellow women to unmask their femininity, as it's completely possible to show one's strength through softness, be powerful wearing a dress, and overall conquer our way through life with this rare asset. I hope to deliver this message to the world that feminism and women empowerment does not, in fact, mean to be a man or do a 'man's work'. Feminism, to me, is a religion which provides men and women with equal rights without having to change who I am.

In the 21st century, social media is an amazing platform to build communities and use as a mode of spreading awareness in an affordable way. Wildlife scientist and zoologist, Delia Owens' book 'WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING' inspired me immensely with her rich love and observation of nature and its habits. I know there are enough communities and social media groups already spreading scientific awareness for the preservation of animals and wildlife, still I was hoping to start something new, something different, when I finally join my fellow Bruins.

[decks-writing-blog]

The Borealis: Chapter Six: Actually Pretty Cool

Chapter One

Previous Chapter

~

It would’ve been better if they had the high ground but as it was the limited means of approach forced by the size of the ship and barely traversable terrain leading to it still funneled the Combine forces down into a more manageable flow. Right up until the gunships arrived anyway. Five of them basically all at once. Gordon didn’t last long.

He blinked open his eyes a few minutes beforehand, taking cover with Alyx against the outside of the bridge, its door panel currently shut. The chatty turrets were firing at any Combine troops that got too close while trying to take them out with grenades. Many of which missed, the slant of the deck making them roll once they hit it. The few that might’ve caused problems Gordon could grab with the gravity gun to toss back. Which is what he’d been doing right up until the gunships arrived. He needed to prepare for them.

This time when the first gunship started cresting over the Borealis’ bow, he grabbed Alyx by the elbow and pulled her around to the door panel. A quick knock and it was opening, allowing them to enter and take cover just in time to avoid a spray of bullets.

From there it became a very intense game of peek-a-boo with the gunships. By the time all five were down, their store of rockets brought from White Forest was almost empty. Gordon also had to dip deeper into their store of batteries to keep the HEV suit functioning than he’d have preferred but there were still plenty left so he’d let this ride.

“Wow, your time anomaly power activated thirty-seven times during that engagement,” BOA said, unfortunately speaking over the hall’s speakers. “Exciting stuff.”

“Wait,” Alyx said because there was no way she was going to let that go to talk about later, huh? “That means you died thirty-seven times, right?”

Gordon nodded. How else could he respond? Back when this had first started he’d tried to keep track of how many times he’d died, it had felt important at the time, though he couldn’t recall why. Now though, he’d rather not know the number.

“Oh gosh, that’s… that’s a lot. And I had no idea. That’s wild. I’d say ‘cool’ but dying’s probably not cool. I’m glad you have um, weird time powers though so you’re not… you know, dead thirty-seven times over.”

Even if they’d had time to talk about it, which they most certainly didn’t, Gordon had nothing to say. So he stepped back out onto the deck proper.

About half the turrets were down. BOA used her control of his HEV suit’s display to highlight the ones that were merely knocked over and thus could be righted and put back on defense. About a quarter of the ones down were all the way busted though, lightening their defense more than Gordon would’ve preferred to endure.

Probably the only thing saving them was that the Combine wanted the Borealis and thus were taking pains not to destroy or damage it too much. For anyone else this fight would’ve been impossible to win. Heck, even for Gordon, this likely would’ve been unwinnable, requiring avoiding it entirely if not for the device and the hope that its activation would help.

As he finished righting the last of the functional downed turrets, he glanced down at the progress bar BOA had provided him. It was about a quarter of the way there. Further than he would’ve thought but still so much left to go. Luckily it was a clear day and the sun wouldn’t be going down any time soon, thus plenty of sunlight for the solar panels to soak up. Not exactly comforting but better than nothing.

The fight continued. Battling Combine soldiers and their commandos was, in some ways, almost mundane at this point. Counting the time spent fighting them that had been reset, he wouldn’t have been surprised to learn he’d spent collectively literal days killing and being killed by them. Being subject to an empire that abhorred individuality made them predictable. They all seemed to think the same way. Which didn’t make fighting a bunch of them at once easy, only possible.

So far, no striders. Perhaps getting them this far north was more effort than would be worth it for the Combine. Or maybe, even with Combine enhancements, they didn’t fare well in the cold. Seeing them and the gunships, independent and in their natural states would’ve been fascinating. Would humanity have been able to communicate with them? What would proper first contact have been like if the Combine didn’t exist? Would peace have been possible?

These thoughts inevitably lead to distraction and thus death. Fast enough that he didn’t even know what it had been, meaning likely a grenade. He blinked open his eyes to find himself elsewhere on the battlefield. How far back he’d gone was hard to say but that was irrelevant anyway.

No more thinking about anything other than killing Combine and keeping himself, Alyx, and as many of the turrets alive as possible. Nothing else mattered.

~

With a screech of tearing metal and pops of breaking glass the port side array of solar panels folded up on itself before being ripped out and left to tumble unseen below the ship. Most likely an Advisor. The only thing surprising about that was how long it had taken to show up.

“Energy collection reduced by fifty percent,” BOA said as, true to Gordon prediction, an Advisor rose up into view. “Also why does that thing look kind of like a flying potato with arms?”

The remaining turrets that had been guarding that solar panel wing rose up in the air next, their distressed cries forming a small cacophony of simulated fear. Some were flung off to fall to the icy depths below, screaming, while the rest were crushed by telekinetic forces. BOA made a wordless sound of distress.

Finished pulling out the rocket launcher, Gordon aimed and fired. … The rocket veered right before hitting the Advisor, careening into the ice instead. Damn it. And Dog wasn’t here to throw himself or Gordon at it this time. This was going to suck.

Dropping the rocket launcher – there were only two rockets left anyway, not enough to kill anything that needed to be taken down by rockets – he pulled out the Combine rifle and fired an energy ball its way. Next to him, Alyx turned her own firearm onto it as well. It screeched as the ball hit it, rearing back. Only for a moment though as it tore up part of the deck, lifting it to act as a shield their proper bullets ricocheting off it.

“Ooh,” BOA chimed in. “I hypothesis this is the being they were waiting for to break into me. Please kill it. Avenge my turrets.”

Gordon would’ve loved to obey but even as he retreated further along the wall, prompting Alyx to follow, they weren’t moving fast enough. The Advisor was soon in range and a familiar pressure wrapped his body and mind, forcing him to drop his gun, his hands going to his side. Alyx cried out wordlessly as it got her too. But as half planned/hoped for, the Advisor was about lined up with the door. The ceiling turret from early should have a line of sight, right?

Just when it seemed that perhaps Gordon had misjudged on that, a stream of bullets came from the door way. BOA said something as well but it was drowned out by the ringing in Gordon’s head.

Surprised, the Advisor reared back, the telekinesis vanishing. Ready for it, Gordon stumbled only a little as he hit the deck. He charged, jumping onto it before it could recover. Taking a page from Dog’s book, he grabbed the face plate as he made his leap. It shifted as his and the suit’s weight pulled on it.

The Advisor thrashed, its mechanical hands clawing at him, trying to pull him off. They clearly weren’t meant for heavy lifting though as they did nothing to stop him from pulling himself up. His whole arm shook with the effort, combined with the thrashing, there was no way he could hold on long. He didn’t need long though as he pulled himself up just high enough that he could use his other hand, holding the pistol and shove its barrel into the gap between the Advisor’s and ‘face’ part his full weight hanging off it caused. Rapid fire, he unloaded the full clip into it.

The Advisor shrieked and renewed its thrashing. Not good enough though as it soon stilled and deflated, settling onto the deck, its thick blood already pooling around it.

Gordon stepped back, shaking out his arm. Damn, that had actually been pretty cool. He’d lined it up with the hallway first try, hadn’t died or lost Alyx a single time. Maybe he was kind of good at this stuff after all. The loss of half their solar panels and turrets was unfortunate but they were about seventy-five percent of the way through this ordeal anyway. They could handle the loss.

“Um, as cool as that was,” Alyx said, drawing his gaze up to her, “and I hate to be the bearer of bad news but um…” She pointed towards the bow.

A helicopter rose up, its mounted gun already revving up, a far too familiar and dreadful sound. Damn it! Nothing could ever be easy, could it? Just once Gordon would like to…

Its spray of bullets was directed at the top of the ice cliff. It was firing at the Combine!

“Greetings Dr. Freeman and Alyx,” came Mossman’s voice over the radio. “I’m not sure how much help you really need, you seem to have this under control, but Mori, who is flying by the way…” “Hello,” came Mori’s soft voice as Mossman continued, “led us back to the chopper you arrived on and we had the parts to fix it up and mount a gun so here we are.”

Alyx scrambled to adjust her headset under her winter hood to reply. “Dr. Mossman! We uh, did have it under control but thanks for the help anyway. It’s appreciated.”

Before she could reply, BOA cut in. “Ooh, more friends. Twenty years of endless awful unchanging snow, ice, and nothing, and now suddenly I’m a popular tourist destination. I am pleased by this. My unending solitude has finally ended with an exciting bang and influx of company.”

“That’s BOA,” Alyx cut in, saving time before Mossman could ask. “She’s an AI in charge of the ship. We’re waiting for her to finish powering up so she can activate the device.”

“Hmm… So we’re activating then? Do we know what it does?”

“That information is classified. But I’m a good AI and I promise to use it to help against the Combine. I don’t like them either. They suck and have been killing my turret friends.”

“Very well. We’ll talk about you more later. For now let’s focus on the task at hand.”

~

Thanks solely to the terrain and the Combine’s desire to capture and not destroy the Borealis, they had indeed had it under control before even if it was just barely. With air support though, the clinging desperation of before lessened somewhat. Both Gordon and Alyx died less, making everything Gordon did feel more solid.

Unsurprisingly the Combine had rockets though and thus it was only a matter of time before the helicopter got shot down. It spiraled and careened into the ice wall, close enough to the ship that the vibration could be felt though the deck, even knocking a few of the turrets over. There was no way either pilot or gunner had survived though so… Gordon lowered his helmet and lifted his pistol to reset himself.

Getting Alyx’s attention was easy. Not so easy was quickly telling her what he needed from her. She was smart though and knew about his power, so one-handed because he couldn’t afford to put down his weapon entirely, he signed, “Helicopter in danger, rockets. Move.”

“Uh… okay. Got it. Dr. Mossman,” she switched to talking over the radio, “you need to change position and be wary of rockets coming your way.”

“We’re being careful,” Mossman replied, sounding annoyed at the order even as Mori, in charge of flying thankfully obeyed immediately, pulling down and further away. The earlier directing them through Alyx, safely through the airspace likely coming in handy. As long as that trust continued to hold all would be well.

~

The Combine seemed to know their time to retake the Borealis was shrinking as they increased the pressure. With how fast the device was being charged halved, it was doubly stressful. Dying sucked, having to die by his own hand every time Alyx died or the helicopter got shot down sucked even more. He’d gotten used to existence sucking though and the hope that such awfulness would soon end, though he dared not dwell on it too much, kept him going.

BOA’s progress bar ticked oh so slowly upwards. Slow enough now that it couldn’t be seen moving. But every time Gordon looked at it, it was a little fuller… maybe, hopefully. He should look at it less. The mounting pressure the Combine were putting on them made that a bit easier. Desperation was palpable on both sides. One needing this ploy to work, the other eager to stop it.

The pressure kept mounting right up until it vanished. At some unseen command, the Combine retreated from their vantage point. With only the helicopter able to do anything to even try to contest them, it was basically free. Within a minute there were no more living Combine in sight.

“Huh, that’s weird,” Mossman said over the radio. “They’ve pulled back like fifty meters and then stopped.”

“I have a real bad feeling about this,” Alyx replied, mirroring how Gordon felt. There was no way the Combine were conceding or truly retreating. Whatever they were about to do was bound to…

A loud explosion shook the air, shifting the deck beneath Gordon’s feet. Ice groaned and cracked, the ship tilting even further forward, shifting starboard now too.

Alyx reacted first, running to the bridge’s entrance. Gordon followed, rushing to catch up. Inside would offer cover… hopefully.

“I hypothesize that they are freeing me from…” BOA began before another explosion drowned her out.

The ice groaned and shrieked almost as loud as the explosions. Gordon stumbled as the ship titled further forward. Alyx, gripping onto the side of the entrance with one hand, reached out to grab his wrist, saving him from falling just barely. She pulled on him. The suit made him too heavy for it to be of much assistance but it was enough to help him get himself the rest of the way inside. Blessedly, BOA closed the door panel behind him.

Just in time too as a third explosion went off somewhere overhead. The ship tilted the rest of the way forward until it was nearly vertical as it fell.

Gordon’s suit clanked as it hit the closed door panel. Thankfully it held even as Alyx fell on him. Dropping his shotgun, he wrapped his arms around her, holding her securely to his chest. The suit was lower on power than he’d liked but hopefully it could still absorb the incoming impact enough to keep them both alive.

“The device has a forty-five percent chance of not being operable once we reach the bottom.” The calmness of BOA’s voice juxtaposed oddly against the sound of Gordon’s pulse pounding in his ears. “I’m personally not a fan of those odds.”

“Activate it,” Mossman demanded, accompanied by the sound of what could only be her slamming her fist into the helicopter’s dash.

“I could, however, my power levels are only ninety percent of the way to the goal I’d set for this project. And that’s assuming I can even activate it on a global scale. Which I maybe should’ve mentioned earlier that I’m not sure I can do. It was designed to move the whole Aperture facility which is pretty big but not when compared to Earth as a whole.”

“What a great time to mention that,” Alyx said, again mirroring how Gordon felt. They seemed to often exist on the same wave length, a neat thing to find in another person even if right now wasn’t the best time to appreciate it because they were still falling. Or perhaps ‘sliding down the face of a sheer glacier’ would be a better way to put it as with the bumpy ride, jostling them about they for sure weren’t free falling through empty space.

“Activate it,” Mossman repeated with more force. She either really cared about Gordon and Alyx surviving this or was very against the idea of risking the device. Probably a mix of both.

“Gordon,” BOA said, still incongruously calm, “if you died, thus triggering your time anomaly capabilities, what are the chances that you could prevent this? … Wait, no, don’t answer that. They’re not good. You’d have to fight up a steep icy slope and through who even knows how big a chunk of their army. All to try to stop something they’d probably been working on for hours. Theoretically still doable with infinite tries, doable but well, barely and probably not fun. Not that I would know, but to spare you the no doubt hundreds of painful, bloody deaths in thanks for ending my solitude…” Her voice changed to something more robotic. “Activating the Aperture Science Large Scale Dimension Teleportation Device in three… two… one.”

~

Previous Chapter

[deathswcrn]

BG3 Quests

A summary of her recruitment, companion quest and romance quest.

I'm working on making things like full dialogue trees but you can see by the length of the summary that will take a while. This summary will be a good reference for her adventures during Baldur's Gate 3, however.

Recruitment

There are two potential places to recruit Breina from: outside the Temple of Jergal, or the Zhentarim outpost in Waukeen's Rest. She is fairly eager to join the party and only requires a few bandits to be killed in order to recruit.

[ Full conversation logs and options here ]

Act 1 - A Contract from Hell

No matter how you arrive at the Zhentarim outpost underneath Waukeen's Rest, or whether you recruit her at the temple or inside the outpost, Breina asks if she can quickly have a word with the Zhentarim inside. She tells them she is hunting one of their members, a woman known as Artorius (or Tori) who caused an innocent woman to be sentenced to death, and that she is letting them know about the hunt as a courtesy only.

The Zhentarim threaten her, but she produces records notified by the Purple Dragons of Cormyr and her own records from the mine that prove that Artorius betrayed the Zhentarim too, and has been stealing silver from her operation in Dancing Peaks, where the woman was framed. The Zhentarim eventually bless Breina's hunt, agreeing that Artorius has become a liability and that the Zhentarim want their cut of the silver she stole.

She can be slept with at the Tiefling party if her approval is high enough, but she describes the night as 'scratching an itch that's been left far too long' and does not regard the player as a romantic option, even though this does trigger her romance quest. She will leave the party if the player joins the Absolute.

[ Full version WIP. ]

Act 2 - The Dragon of Thunderpeaks

In Act 2, most of her quest involves increasing her approval via other quests and learning more about who she really was. The player can ask her about many things, including her life in the Thunder Peaks, how she became a paladin, how she recieved her scars, and how she ended up so far from home. She is fairly vague about most of those, but will tell the player a few things:

The scars on her face are from a tangle with a juvenile grey dragon that had established a territory in the mountains. The dragon was important to her because facing it was the moment she learned about her new strength as a paladin, and that strength allowed her to slay it. She will also show the player a tooth she ripped from the beast's head: she intends to turn it into a necklace. (This initiates a mini-quest to get her the materials to do so from Dammon, which massively boosts her approval and is one of two actions required to progress her personal and romance quests - the other being the Nightsong quest.)

She confesses the injury to her eye nearly killed her on the journey out of Cormyr, and explains she's slightly blinded on her left side due to an infection during the eye's healing (she has a unique debuff called 'On Your Left!' which gives flanking opponents a higher chance to score a critical hit).

She maintains her lie she's chasing a bounty on Artorius, but will explain the crimes she committed in greater detail. She explains that the Dancing Peak's mine's owner, Magnus, owned most of Dancing Peaks including the town and the land the town was on. He was a corrupt tyrant, who underpaid everyone who worked for him, and his people were forced to steal silver ore from the mine to trade with the Zhentarim for food and medicine. They had made a petition to the Purple Dragons of Thunderstone, but the Purple Dragons of Thunderstone were frequently corrupt and self-serving, and that their friendship with Magnus made their intervention unlikely. The woman who was sentenced was framed for inciting a massacre and treasonous conspiracy, but later evidence exonerated her - too late to save her. She had merely been organising protests and strikes against Magnus' behaviour.

If you allow Shadowheart to kill the Nightsong, or help The Absolutists in any way, she will leave the party. After releasing the Nightsong, Breina will open up to the player.

She will reveal she lied about taking a bounty on Artorius, and that she is sworn by her paladin oath to take revenge on the innocent woman - she has to kill Artorius and Magnus to fulfill the terms.

The innocent woman was her. She was the one who organised the strikes, and when Artorius realised that her services wouldn't be required if the town of Dancing Peaks no longer needed to rely on criminals, she would lose her cut of the silver. Artorius instead told Magnus everything and cut a deal directly with him to maintain a share. Magnus agreed to sell her shares in the mine equal to what she was getting from the theft. In return, Artorius simply had to get rid of Breina - and the massacre and sedition charges were how she did it. Breina assumes that simply killing her wouldn't send a strong enough message to other workers - the stitch up was so extreme because it was a threat to prevent any more unrest.

The grey dragon was Breina's way out. The creature had been a threat slowly creeping up on Dancing Peaks and Thunderstone for months, killing crops and travellers through the mountains - when the judge ruled that she should be hanged, she begged to be allowed to put her death in the hands of the Gods. The magistrate eventually agreed that if Breina could kill the dragon, then the Gods had chosen to save her, and could be simply exiled instead.

She also reveals that her father was in charge of much of the crime that occurred in Dancing Peaks, including that he was the one who managed the skimming operation to pay the Zhentarim for their smuggling. Breina was security for the mine on paper, but her real job was far more important - she was her father's right-hand during negotiations and personally led the charge to find the Zhentarim in the first place. When her father needed muscle, he sent her. For her role, she was sometimes (annoyingly and mockingly) nicknamed 'The Prince of the Underground', the underground refering to the mine tunnels where all the crime took place.

That one of the pieces of evidence Artorius used to prosecute her was intimidating her brother, Taron, into giving false testimony about her wild magic sorcery. Breina admits when she was a child that she accidentally burned Taron during a tide of chaos, but that she had sworn off using her magic for that very reason. The massacre committed was an explosion - set up to look like another wild magic burst or an intentional fire. With Taron's testimony about her volatility, the prosecution could prove Breina was likely behind the fire.

Breina's previous boyfriend, Alex, was caught in the blaze and died, even when Breina tried to help him. That was when the guards caught her and imprisoned her and it also tied her to the fire by being there when it raged.

With her backstory revealed and the truth laid bare, Breina sets up her plans - resume the hunt for Artorias in Rivington.

If romanced, Breina's second act capstone scene involves her taking the player for drinks on the Last Light Inn roof and playing a game of truth or dare with them. The player can continue to pursue her if they like, and she will sleep with the player again, even commenting that she doesn't do repeat performances for anyone but the very special. From this point, not only can you always ask her for a kiss, but at night during long rests, you can ask to meet her for some 'fun'. A quick cutscene of the player and Breina sneaking off like teenagers will play.

[ Full version WIP. ]

Act 3 - The Prince of the Underground

Arriving in Rivington, Breina will be approached near Wyrm's Crossing with a message. The message is from Artorius, who had been waiting for her to get back in town since her abduction. Artorius wants to meet and clear the air - and as insurance, she has Breina's father hostage.

Breina will ask the player to take her to the warehouse that Artorius marked out for her, panicked. She had no idea her father was even on the Sword Coast, and though she knows Artorias is lying, she can't be sure Gideon didn't follow her. Assuming the player agrees, they can head for a warehouse on the outskirts of Rivington, away from the bustle of the town.

The warehouse, it turns out, used to be an old gaolhouse, and Artorius uses the old security systems to lock the party inside. The party then must survive a cat-and-mouse game involving old automatons and traps to reach the old exercise yard, where Artorius is waiting with Gideon, Breina's father. There, Artorius challenges Breina to a duel, one on one, and reveals Breina's brother is still with her, to anger her into the fight. Breina falls for the bait and agrees, telling the player to wait in the observation tower above the gaol.

The player can do many things during the fight to keep Breina alive, including using levers on the observation level to trap Artorius out of reach with riot shields, using magic to turn the automatons on Artorius, and refusing to honor the rules Artorius lays out and simply joining in the battle. Regardless, there is one failstate - if either Taron or Gideon die, Breina becomes an oathbreaker unwillingly for failing to keep the citizens of Dancing Peaks safe. Artorius' spends the fight taunting Breina about her time in the Thunderstone prison, and hints that she knows a devil tried to tempt Breina whilst she was imprisoned.

Upon Artorius' death, assuming Gideon and Taron are alive, Breina embraces Gideon and cries into his chest, releasing the built up stress of the past few months. He praises her for her strength and tells her he's proud of her. When she sees Taron, however, she flies into a rage, still furious that it was his testimony that lead to the massacre.

The player can convince her that Taron was as much a victim as she was with a series of persuasion checks. They can also put themselves between Breina's blade and Taron. That choice and being high enough approval make the persuasion checks easier. If Breina kills Taron, she will become an oathbreaker. If not, Taron and Gideon then go on to explain that they had left the Dancing Peaks in order to find her and support her in finding a way to anul the charge. Breina thanks them both for their efforts, and apologises, but admits she has been infected by a tadpole and has to fight the Absolute first.

Gideon and Taron can convince some Zhentarim to join the final assault.

Her final romance scene is her asking the player to get away from it all for a bit - she will take the player down to where the Chionthar mees the sea, again, with drink. If she is an oathbreaker, it is a bittersweet affair - she's mourning what she's lost, and the player will have to struggle to convince her not to pull out of the relationship in fear she'll get the player killed too.

Else, it's one of relief - Breina doesn't know what comes next, and they might die tomorrow, but she can see the pain and grief of the past few months coming to an end and she feels uplifted. She confesses to the player she thinks she's falling in love with them, that she can't believe after the Gods have hurt her so much, that they dare give her something this sweet. The player can choose to make the scene more steamy, at which point she will happily have sex with the player on the beach. You can also aim soft, and she will cuddle up with her head on the player's shoulder to drink and watch the boats and stars go by. Neither option negatively affects her approval.

Talking with her after killing the Absolute, she will express her desire for what comes next: returning to Cormyr to escort Gideon and/or Taron home (or just going home alone) and finding a way to settle things, once and for all.

[ Full version WIP. ]

Wither's Party - The Prince Recrowned

Breina will be at Wither's party, but how she is will depend on the result of her personal quest.

If she recieved the good ending for her quest, Breina is in good spirits, and admits gleefully she is now an oathbreaker paladin. When asked, Breina tells the player she was talked out of killing Magnus, violating the terms of her oath. However, in violating it, she was given the freedom to pursue a different path. She was able to get an audience with a member of the royal family thanks to her involvement in the Absolute plot and make her case above the magistrate that tried her before. The queen, Raedra Obarskyr, not only annuled her sentence, but began an inquisition into the corruption that allowed her to be mistried. The result was that she was compensated, Magnus lost his lands, and the magistrates involved were disbarred. The money she recieved from the compensation went to buying Magnus' mine, and it is now run as a co-operative, bringing wealth and noteriety to Dancing Peaks.

She ruminates on the power of oaths - how the oaths we are bound to are sometimes not the best thing for us, and how they are a corrupt, unyielding authority of their own. She has no intention to swear any more, but is not planning to stay in Cormyr now she has a taste for real justice, and tells the player Wyll has inspired her to go seeking people who need an advocate like she did.

Oathbreaker Breina returned to kill Magnus and succeeded. She admits that the kill felt hollow and that it somehow felt like a worse punishment for her than him - getting in and out was stressful, she has new injuries, and the Purple Dragons are looking to try her for the crime. She admits that she's safe hidden in Baldur's Gate, but there isn't any escape for her from what she's done.

The worst ending involves both Taron and Gideon dying during her quest. Breina is a drunkard, but worse, she has sold herself into the service of the devil that tempted her in the prison block. As above, she has her revenge - but she has lost everyone she loved, and views serving a devil in the Hells as no worse for her than continuing to walk Toril.

[avictimofthejazz]

As the adrenaline filters out of his system, Street becomes pressingly aware of the ache in his side. When it starts throbbing, it becomes harder and harder to stay focused on the doctor’s words. Street makes a valiant effort too, however. “Yes sir, it is.” He takes the explanation that the doctor gives him. “I… I think I’m done after this round so I’ll have to find a new career. Guards maybe… something where I can be useful.” He smiles tightly, stifling a hiss as the ship hits a wave particularly hard, and he shifts in the bed. The movement tugs on his injury painfully. The offer to poach him makes his tight smile grow slightly more, but he makes no reply. Street has no interest in being stolen by another kingdom, or in engaging in the medical field. He also has no patience or stomach for medicine, beyond what he needs to use in the field. To deal with the terminally ill, or soldiers too injured to be saved… that requires a level of saintly patience that eludes him. He leaves it to others to carry that necessary torch into the darkness. Street’s eyes snap back to the doctor when the man speaks about a King Eric, and being willing to help Street return home. His mind rolls, trying to recall which kingdom has a leader of that name, but recalling information of that nature is a futile endeavor in his current state. Finally, he just nods. “I’m sure he will, Doctor.”

The doctor’s second observation from the doctor draws a strangled chuckle from Street, that quickly turns into a pained grimace. “No one’s waiting for me, sir… at least not in the way you mean. Only my poor mother, I’m afraid.” Nora’s quest to marry off her only son has met with nothing but failure so far, and usually in the most bizarre ways possible. While they solved the mystery surrounding Janet, and the string of dead bodies in her wake, she could not reconcile the idea that someone in her own entourage had killed so many people out of his obsession with her, and had nearly killed Street in the end. She kept swearing she would return once she had her head on straight, and could look at him without seeing him sprawled on the ground, but on her return trip she promptly fell in love with TJ. Street wished his friend all the best, and Nora started looking again. Janice had been sweet, but her adored older brother was murdered in Angeles while escorting her for a visit. That was something she could not really get past, nor would Street ask her too. He made sure she returned home safely, and escorted her to another suitor a year or so later. He had come close to marrying Sheri, but a political fallout between their fathers quashed that plan. Over her own protests, she was recalled home. Last he heard, she had married another man and was quite happy, thankfully. Then there was Diane. His heart still gives a little pang whenever she crosses his mind. He had actually proposed to her. They had even been planning the wedding when she just… ran out on him. Would not give him an explanation to his face, and left Hondo holding the can. The gist of everything was that she could not handle that he was a military man, and was expected to fight for the safety and stability of his country. Street always wondered if there was more to it than that, but he never felt brave enough to ask those questions. Sometimes, a man really was better off for not knowing every bit of the truth. He lapses off, memories distracting him from the pain for a moment, but it does not last nearly long enough. The doctor gives his introductions—a polite formality given what the man needs to do next—and Street accepts the name with a nod. He knows he will be lucky if he can remember it in a few minutes once they start cleaning the wound. As it turns out, he should have wondered if he will remember the name once he wakes up again… = = = The darkness is comfortably free from pain, but it is also lonely. Street is floating… unsure where he is in comparison to anything else… Unaware that he has company in the waking world, in the shape of the young lady who hovers worriedly by his bed, he tries to pronounce the names of his team members. He has to warn them about Gamble. The names form on his lips, too lightly to be heard… but bits and pieces start forming into intelligible words beyond his void. “Gam….ble… sir… Gamble…” The words hang in the infirmary, almost lost in the sounds of the fading storm outside. “Stabbed… Captain… he stabbed… Dom… tell Harrelson… threat… warn… father… enemy…” Street lapses out again, sinking into a deeper sleep. Around fifteen minutes later, his body cycles back around, and his lips start forming words again. These ones are more coherent, actual sentence fragments instead of disjointed pieces. “Find the enemy in court…. Gamble was turned… find out who… Purcell… check out Purcell… man’s a weasel… warn father… must keep the crown secure… must keep father’s throne safe… trusting you Dom.” He stills again, consciousness slowly starting to return. It will be a few minutes until he fully wakes up again, but Street is no longer talking in his sleep. His mind has roused enough to leave that stage behind at least… but not before dropping a few pertinent details that his conscious mind has been trying to keep from his unexpected hosts.

Street manages a small, tight smile as the doctor chuckles at his quip. At least his sense of humor has not been harmed, even if he feels like every other part of him has been battered to pieces by the storm. The smile fades as the doctor mumbles a statement about war dogs, and being able to sleep—only his words are just low enough that Street is not able to catch them in full. The old doctor is right though. Sometimes a nip of something is the only thing that lets Street sleep either, but he is very careful to keep it to a nip. He does not want to get into the habit of drinking any more than he has too. “Yes sir…” Street mumbles at the doctor’s next question, unwilling to say more then that. Let the doctor think it is the agonizing wound in his side…. Unless and until he can reveal his real identity, there is no point in going into greater detail. It simply will not make any sense to the man. Even with knowing all the details, it still does not make any sense to Street. Maybe once the infection is cleaned out of his side, and he gets some sleep he will be able to think about it more clearly. He can always hope, anyways. Street glances up at the doctor as the man assures him that anything he says will be kept in confidence, before asking what a solider was doing at sea. “There’s just not much to tell though, sir.” He states quietly before his expression falls again slightly, and his tone turns wistful. “I was going home, sir. For good. The fighting is done, and we weren’t needed any longer.”

The question of where he is from is a natural one, given that he just stated he is returning. Street’s voice grows softer, for a brief moment the longing in it almost tangible. “Angeles…” He wants to go home. Not to be the prince, and wade through the sea of accolades, parties and ceremonies that await him… but to be with his family. To get wise advice from his grandfather, and guidance from his father. To assure his grandmother that she does not need to keep fussing over him, and promise his mother that he will seriously look at getting married now that the realm is stable. He was looking forward to lazy afternoons hiding in the library with his dog, reading books and dozing in one of the overstuffed chairs, or spending an evening or two in the barracks with his comrades, playing cards and having a drink. Now… now he has no idea where he is going, who he is with, or if he will ever get home again… Swallowing down despair, rejecting it as any good Catholic should when it rears its head, Street turns his full attention to the doctor. He can only focus on the present. Getting lost in a realm of ‘what-ifs’ and ‘maybes’ will only drive him mad. “James Deacon, sir.” He provides the cover he usually uses when he is away like this. Deke is kind enough to let Street use his last name because, on a casual glance, no one will associate the two men with each other. Street looks too much like Dom, and thinks too much like Hondo to use their last names as believable covers, and the McCabes are a big enough family that any deception might be discovered with unfortunate ease. “Most people call me ‘Jim’, though.” Thinking about his name gives him something to focus on, as he watches the doctor pull out one of his instruments, and start running the blade through the candle flame. He knows he should not do that, but morbid curiosity always has been one of his faults… especially when it concerns himself. “I can pray while you do it. The Good Lord knows that’s what I’ll likely be doing anyways.” Street compromises, his jaw going tight in anticipation of the pain he knows is coming. He accepts another, longer, swallow of the brandy in anticipation before nodding in agreement to the doctor’s terms. The blade pierces into the filth on his side before the doctor has even finished counting. Street barely grasps onto the thought that the doctor has lied before his nerves catch up to the man’s actions. Then his brain catches up. The scream escapes a few seconds later before he smashes his teeth together hard enough, it jars his jaw. Street’s hands drop down, fisting around the sides of the cot in a bid to hold himself still as the doctor ordered—an order easier given then obeyed. Muscles straining, he squeezes his eyes shut. He cannot scream again. He does not want to scare the young woman who saved him, or give her any reason to worry about his condition. Yelling his fool head off will only upset her, or make her think she did something wrong somehow… A fresh wave of pain tests his resolve to the point that a choking cry gets out before he can force it down into a whimper behind tight-pressed lips. The pain is starting to move like the tide now… waves of it cresting before collapsing back down… but one collapse proves harder than the others, and Street lapses into darkness. All things considered; it is likely the most merciful option.

[starlightxsvt]

3 dates | c.sc

pairing ➳ badboy!Seungcheol x female!reader

genre ➳ badboy au, romance, some fluff, angst, bad attempt at humour, gets spicy at the end.

word count ➳ 12.4k+ (i have NO idea how this became so long so strap in for a ride)

warnings ➳ cursing, mentions of killing, mentions criminal activities, slight violence(non explicit), smoking, ma man Seungcheol ain't your typical badboy, self doubt, blackmailing, reader does all sorts of risky things cuz she's a SIMP, blood(nothing explicit), kissing, marking, some breast worshipping, grinding, reader is horny lol. (Please lemme know if I forgot anything.)

synopsis ➳ after one fateful encounter with him you cannot get him out of your head. so you opt to do some crazy things to catch his attention and even snag a few dates with him. only trouble is he isn't the type to stay after the whole disposition is over.

Swirling the third drink in your hand you heave yet another depressed sigh. You are so tired that you feel like you can just slump on the counter and pass out. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to stop for a drink, you alcohol riddled brain thinks.

The plans you had with Katelyn was cancelled last moment; she called to tell you that her thesis submission date was moved forward and so she couldn't hang out with you tonight. You're in the middle of an existential crisis quite literally, the too many part time jobs yet still lack of money and copious amounts of study getting to you. Staring hard at your drink you contemplate if it is worth giving up on college and your dream of becoming an arts major. It sure feels tempting right now, the long hours at the diner and not enough sleep at night proving to be the worst nuisance.

Sighing you put down your drink. It's still early, you should go home and try to catch up on the much needed sleep. You really had no intention of grabbing a drink tonight; you have morning classes tomorrow but you made a last moment decision to stop for a drink on your way back home. You didn't take your usual route to home today, and while trudging through the streets tiredly you came across this bar called Seventeen's. You've heard stories about this place, how it is the home to local gangs and how it's bad people's turf and what not. Your curiosity, probably too much of that made you get inside for a drink even though all the bones in your body ached. The inside is what you expected, nowhere near fancy but dingy, just decent enough. The people inside didn't look friendly and if the chains and tattoos on them gave any indication you'd say the rumours are true; this is the turf of gangs. The drinks taste decent, not the best but not the worst and from the overall look of this place you don't really have a reason to come back.

You're about to stand up from your stool when a large, clammy hand grabs your wrist out of nowhere, making you jump. "Hey sexy, sit down. Let me buy you a drink," the owner of the hand, a large, tattooed middle aged man slurs making your nose scrunch out of disgust. You're wearing nothing that can be called sexy; a plain cardigan and jeans and the way he looks you up and down makes you want to poke his eyes out.

You really shouldn't have come here. Clenching your jaw, you meet his eyes, "What makes you think I'm interested to have a drink with you?"

"Oh come on, why would you be here then, lookin' all nice? Just sit down," the man drawls, an ugly smile on his face. He still hasn't let go of your wrist and it's making you impatient. Looks like you're gonna have to kick his balls tonight. Maybe the self defense classes didn't completely go to waste.

"Get your disgusting hands off me while I'm being nice, sleazeball," you hiss at him, trying to get his hand off. The man stands up growling, "What did you say you bitch?" You're preparing to break his nose when out of nowhere a punch lands on his face that sends him tumbling to the ground. The attacker gets on top of him and twists his arm and you can literally hear a bone snap.

Shit.

"I think she said she is not interested," the man hisses, landing yet another another hit on his face before kicking his groin and getting up. When he turns around and his eyes meet yours, your heart skips a few beats and you almost The man is drop dead gorgeous, someone you would not expect to see here but probably on the cover of a high end magazine. His blond hair is long, crossing the nape of his neck as well as some covering his forehead. What takes your breath away the most is his eyes, the most beautiful pair you've ever seen. They seem to have their own galaxies in them, so deep and mesmerising and decorated with lashes long enough to make you jealous. His dress up, black jacket and jeans, immediately tells you what he is; a gang member.

"You should get home, lady," He speaks in a no nonsense tone, his face cold as ice. But you're offended. "Excuse me? Who are you calling lady? You make it sound like I'm old." You puff your cheeks and cross your arms, trying to appear intimidating. "Besides I had the situation under control, you didn't need to butt in." The man keeps looking at you with that no nonsense look, his features displaying annoyance if you are right and he's clearly not intimidated. The dude on the floor grunts and makes an effort to get up, only to be kicked by your saviour once more. "Hey Mingyu, get him out of here. What was this piece of trash doing here anyway?" The man orders to someone before turning to look at you, "Do you live far?"

"Uh- no, a ten minutes walk from here maybe," you reply unsurely, surprised at his question. The blond haired man nods before grabbing your wrist, "I'll walk you home. Hurry up, lady." You have a feeling he's purposely calling you that and though you start following him out of the bar, you make grunts of protest.

"Oh yeah, why? Trying to find out my address? So you can come later and hurt me like that guy?" You would not be this brazen if it wasn't for the alcohol in your system, after all the man next you isn't a friendly one if the rumours are true. The man raises a brow at you, "Did you do something that requires me to beat you up?" You hiccup at his serious tone. Does he not get a joke? He lets go of your hand now that you're at a safe distance from the bar but still stays close enough to you as your steps are rather stumbling and messy. You aren't fully drunk but your body is tired and feels like will shut down any second.

You really need some sleep.

"You know I'm not that drunk. You don't have to walk me home." You complain. "I'm walking you home because this isn't a nice place you should be alone at night. What happened earlier could happen again." He says not looking at you. "Mhmm," you keep on trudging behind him, "Thank you so much for your kind gesture, sir." You mock him but he doesn't reply, staring straight ahead, completely ignoring you as he walks quietly. In silence you two walk the rest of the path, before finally stopping as your apartment comes into view. At this point it feels like your bones will break and you will plop down on the concrete any second, but you manage to keep standing. "Well, thanks for walking me home." You shift your weight from one foot to another. "And for helping me back there." He shrugs coolly, a bored expression on his face. He's turning to walk away when you call, "Hey- I didn't get your name."

"What do you need it for?" He side glances at you. You shrug, "I don't know. You helped me so I thought it'd be nice to know your name." "You don't need to. Go inside, lady." He says, his tone final and starts marching away. You wait a couple moments before yelling, "Asshole!" and quickly rushing inside your building, partly afraid he's gonna come back.

You won't be surprised if you get killed tonight.

-

"So you are telling me Choi Seungcheol walked you home?" Katelyn screams in your ear, jolting up from her seat, earning glares from other people at the library in the process. "That's his name?" You whisper-yell, grabbing her hand to pull her back down. "I'm guessing from the blond hair you said," Katelyn shrugs. "Uh huh." You mean back in your chair, "He was hot though."

"Is that seriously all you have to say?" Katelyn whines exasperatedly. "No, I mean, if it wasn't for the way he dresses or talks I would have thought he's a model or something." You murmur.

"Are you sure he didn't hurt you?" Katelyn questions. "Hell no!" You frown. "He saved me from that creepy old dude. I was surprised too. I wish I didn't drink so much, I could have gotten a better look at his face," you sigh. "Seriously?" Katelyn raises a brow at you.

"Girl, you should have seen him. His aura and the way he carried himself was...so hot." You grin to yourself. Katelyn watches you like you've grown two heads. "Are you trying to tell me you have a crush on that gangster?" You smile sheepishly, "Maybe, I mean it's harmless. He was broody yet charming and I'm a girl so.... Also, it's not like he likes me too and is gonna come running whenever I ask him to bang me." You mutter.

"Oh he's gonna break your bones and bang your skull against a wall. That's what he's gonna do."

"Come on! Maybe he isn't so bad. Maybe the rumours are just rumours. Maybe he just looks intimidating and dresses up like that and people thinks he's a gangster." "Really? His name is on every bad thing that happens around here. From illegal racing to murders. Do you know that people say he has killed too?" "Like I said, rumours," you shrug being your stubborn self. Katelyn holds her hands up in surrender, "You know what? It doesn't matter. I'm glad you're alive so let's just put this behind us, shall we?" You don't reply but wiggle your brows at her, a conspirational look on your face. "Oh no, don't look at me like that," Katelyn warns. "Let's go to that bar tonight. Please?" You give her your best puppy eyes. "What are you? Fucking crazy? You wanna get killed?" She whisper-yells, scowling at you. "No. I just wanna take another look at him. Without the alcohol in my system you know. Besides, the place isn't that bad." You reply.

"Well then get killed by yourself. I'm not coming with you."

"I'll help you with your papers for the rest of the semester."

"Shit."

-

"Well, looks like your wish won't be coming true," Katelyn muses chugging down her fourth glass as you keep playing with your first one. It's nearing an hour since you've come to the bar and there has been no sign of the man you desperately seek. The place is exactly like it was the other day, filled with people who you wouldn't want to mess with.

Yet here you are.

"Let's call it a night," Katelyn sighs. "We're just wasting our time." You know that too but you don't want to leave; not just yet. You are well aware that this is just pathetic but you've this crazy urge to see that man once again. You don't know why you feel this way; you never felt like this before. Why are thinking yourself to death about a complete stranger? Has some kind of spell been casted on you?

"Yeah, let's get going," you murmur half heartedly. You help your friend stand up as she's a little wobbly on her feet and together you make your way through the door. "Should we call a cab?" You ask Katelyn. She shakes her head no and you nod, you arms wrapped around hers to support her in case she looses her balance. You start stepping away from the bar and towards the road to her place until a noise from behind makes you stop in your tracks.

"Did you hear that?" You ask, whipping your head behind. There's no one around and the street is mostly dark other than the light flashing from the name of the bar. You hear the sound once again and this time you can locate where it's coming from. There's an abandoned playground at the back of the bar and you've a feeling that's the source.

Katelyn hisses as she sees you step towards there. "What are you doing!"

"Didn't you hear that?"

"Yes I did. That's why I say we leave!" You ignore her and cautiously keep on stepping forward, mentally cursing yourself for wearing heels. Katelyn follows behind you murmuring all kinds of warnings. "You know curiosity killed the cat, right?" She whispers.

You roll your eyes, "Well I'm not a cat. Just- be quiet. It can be nothing." You both move past the bar gingerly and towards the playground at the back. There are old gallons of oil and abandoned materials just around the corner and you two quickly hide among them. It takes you a while to get adjusted to the low light after you poke your head up from the hiding spot.

You're eyes fix on him immediately. His blond hair makes him easily recognisable amid the darkness. There is a few more people around him, all kicking something in the ground. Not something, but someone. The man lying on the ground groans in pain and you realize this is what you both heard. "Shit," You hear Katelyn curse from beside you. "We need to get going." Instead of replying, you keep your eyes trained on the scene unfolding, holding your breath. You're tranced. Seungcheol lands continuous punched on the guy laying below him and after a moment his writhing frame seems to stop moving as it falls limp.

Fuck.

"You know in movies this is the part where people get caught." Katelyn whispers, her voice hoarse and her hand clutching yours in a tugging motion. "Uh-huh. But I can't seem to move. I wonder if he's... really dead." You whisper back. "Are you fucking crazy!" She hisses. "You wanna witness murder?"

Before you can reply you hear a sound that echoes through the empty field and it takes a second for you two to realise that it came from any one of you two. You don't have the time to figure out who made it as you both are crawling away from the playground without looking back, head crouched low to avoid being seen. You don't know if they heard that or if they're coming behind you, you both just keep scrambling, moving until you're past the corner. As soon as possible you both get on your feet and run like the grim reaper is chasing you, stopping only when you are far enough from the bar.

"I am never listening to you again!" Katelyn yells.

-

It's been a good few days since your near death experience and you somehow find yourself in front of that bar once again. You and Katelyn have not brought up that incident after that night. You made yourself believe that it was over and came to a conclusion that it is better to forget that man and leave all of it behind, no matter how much your heart disagreed. But it's easier said than done; you may not mention him out loud but in the back of your mind you think of him. He's like a ghost, haunting you all the time, plagueing your thoughts when you go to bed at night. It felt like he was ever existent and there was an itch in your heart that drove you insane.

Maybe that's why your subconscious brought you here, in front of Seventeen's, once again. You were on your way back home from library and you thought you took your usual route, until you realized you were standing in front of that place. But what is even terrifying is that the man haunting your mind stands in front of the entrance of the bar and you blink a few times to make sure you are not hallucinating. He's leaned against the entrance door, cigarette between his lips and from his pocket he fetches a lighter to light the poison in his mouth.

Damn, lighting up a cigarette never looked this sexy.

He hasn't seen you yet and you contemplate running the other way. That's the sensible thing to do but you, not being a sensible person, start walking towards him. Your footsteps make him look up and notice you and like the last time, there is no expression on his face. It's the same bored yet handsome face except now in daylight you can take a better look at him and this time, you notice a little mole on the left of his face, by his nose. Realising he's gonna stay silent you decide to speak, "Hi... It's me... Do you remember me?" Wow. That's such an intelligent thing to ask.

With the monotoned yet serious expression on his face, he goes, "Why won't I? I don't have Alzheimer's."

So he can joke.

You laugh, an awkward, probably exaggerated laugh. "What are you doing here? Did you not learn your lesson last time?" He cuts to the chase, his voice brassy and deep, almost threatening. You want to roll your eyes. "Who are you to say? I can be wherever I want whenever I want, thank you very much." "Well then, have fun getting in trouble like last time." He's nonchalant as he blows a smoke right past you and stands up straight, turning away. "Wait!" You almost grab his hand, desperate to stop him.

What is wrong with you? Your subconscious slaps her forehead. What are you holding him back for? To say 'hello sir, I think you're hot, can you please put your dick inside me'? Seungcheol turns his head back, his eyebrow cocked up.

Why do you find everything about him so attractive?

"Um...I know your name, Seungcheol." You speak, trying to sound intimidating, like knowing his name gives you some power over him. There's something definitely wrong with you which is why you don't want him to leave just yet and which is why you're stalling time. But it seems to have done the job as he pulls the cigarette out of his mouth and turns towards you, an annoyed look on his face. "How do you know that?" The timbre of his tone is deep and it rakes shivers down your spine. "Well, you've built quite a reputation for yourself so it isn't hard to get your name." You shrug coolly. "Well, if you know so much about my reputation, you should know what I'm capable of." His lone is low, almost threating as he starts to take slow steps towards you making you step back out of reflex.

Maybe this wasn't such a good idea. Maybe you will also end up like the curious cat.

"Oh yes, I know. People have got a lot to say about you," you try to sound unfazed, not meeting his eyes that you feel are burning holes on your face. "What are you doing here, lady?" he asks slowly, pausing between each word and glaring at you as he continues to step forward. You can feel his patience thinning.

"I swear to God if you call me that-"

"What are you doing here?" This time his tone is scary, too scary. It makes you lose the ability to speak for a second as his dark gaze bores into you. He has backed you up against the wall behind you and you swallow. Right, what are you doing here? It probably has something to do with a very hot individual and his insanely attractive aura. Scratch that you are a hundred percent sure it has something to do with the blond haired, enticing man in front of you. He's driving you mad and you need to get your fill of him.

"Go out with me," you state and you are sure you've never spoken words more stupid than that. Internally, you cringe and pray that the ground below you would open and take you straight to the fiery pits.

This is the first time you see some sort of expression come across his face; surprise. He looks utterly shocked and somewhat confused. His mouth opens just a little and he squints at you, "What?"

There's no going back now.

"Go out with me. Let's go on three dates." you say once more, looking him in the eye. He seems to appear even more surprised, a dumbstruck look sitting on his face. He observes you quietly for a while and you can feel the gears in his head shifting. You wonder what he's gonna say next. Or maybe he won't say anything but bang your head on the wall and leave you to die alone. "I'm sorry I'm not following," he looks genuinely perplexed. "I want to go on three dates with you. They say after three dates you can figure out whether you like that person or not and I think I like you so..."

I think I like you.

The biggest understatement of the year.

Seungcheol tilts his head, an amused expression on his face as he studies you, those sharp eyes of his settling on yours, "What is your deal, sweetheart?" He crosses his arms, a brow raised. Sweetheart? That's new. And definitely better than lady. You can't deny how hearing him call you that makes your insides melt. "Nothing. I just want to date you," you shrug, trying to keep your wits together. His proximity is driving you wild; you can sniff a faint smell of cologne and cigarette, him being inches away from you. This time he laughs loudly, a mocking laugh you'd say. "Who sent you?"

Oh my god.

You roll your eyes. "Nobody sent me! Do I look like I'm a gang member or something?" "Then I don't see a reason why you'd want to date me," He states, throwing a challenging look at you.

"What if I said I have a thing for bad boys?"

He snorts. "You don't look the type to date bad boys," he mocks. "Who are you to say that?" You cross your arms. "I want to date you because I think you're hot, okay?" You can not believe you just said that. Looks like you don't have control over your mouth anymore. Warmth spreads throughout your face like a forest fire.

Seungcheol narrows his eyes on you, his tongue poking his cheek as he stands in front of you as if trying to read your mind. After a beat he sighs before looking at you, his eyes becoming darker than usual and his gaze unforgiving. "Hey. Does it look like I'm playing house here? Do you have any idea about the shit I do? The dirty work I do? I don't care if you have a fucking fetish or whatever but this is the last time I'm warning you. I don't want to see you around again. If I see you here once more, you're in fucking trouble," he spits and starts stomping away. His tone is serious and you know very well he is not joking, which is why you use your last resort. You're embarrassed at yourself for being so desperate but at the same time you feel shameless. It has almost turned into a game at this point, you want to make him surrender. That's right, you want him to give in. "You shouldn't be like that with me. I saw you, a few days ago. That night, when you and your friends were beating up that guy...in the playground," you casually stroll to come stand right behind him.

You can't believe you are blackmailing a gangster. Your death must be near.

Seungcheol whips his head back, his eyes glaring at you and you can almost see fire in them. Finally, you got his attention.

"My friend also saw it, we both did. You killed him, didn't you? Me and my friend witnessed a murder. What do you say? Should we go to the station?" You can see his jaw clench and you can't hold back a victorious smirk. Moments pass by as your words hang in the air and the tension between you gets thicker. Yet once more he surprises you, breaking the silence with a chuckle, "Well I killed one person, what makes you think I can't take care of another?"

You swallow.

"Well, my friend already knows so if I go missing you can be sure that the cops will come to you first." You throw back at him.

When did you get so wreckless?

Seungcheol stares at you for a few more seconds before shrugging and moving his hand dismissively, "Well then go tell the cops. I don't give a shit." He starts walking back to the bar leaving you starstruck. He stops and turns towards you before opening the door, "Also, I meant it. I hope I don't see you around. Otherwise I may just have to hurt that pretty face."

-

You don't show up after that.

Mostly because you are embarasssed.

It's been a good while after your last encounter with Seungcheol and you didn't go to the police, obviously. Because you don't have evidence and from what you've heard Seungcheol is pretty influential around here and you don't need to go to an extent to get on his bad side. You're definitely gonna end up dead if you do so, which you don't want just yet.

Classes have just finished and you and Katelyn step out of the classroom together, walking through the hallways and into the main campus. She rambles on about some bad sushi she ate yesterday while your mind remains preoccupied. Maybe you need to get laid. Maybe that'll make you forget about Seungcheol. You just need good dick that's probably why you were so desperate for him.

That's just a stupid lie.

You don't realise Katelyn is calling you until she shakes you by the shoulder and you snap back into reality. You notice her face is as pale as a ghost and following her line of sight your eyes stop on him.

Him. Seungcheol.

What?

You double take, blinking furiously to confirm your vision. He's standing there, in the parking area of your uni, leaned against a convertible Ferrari, a cigarette between his lips. He looks relaxed, like he does this regularly. Students whisper in each others ear while gawking at him curiously. "What did you do!" Katelyn yells. "Nothing!" You hiss back.

"Then why is he here!"

"I don't know!"

Your eyes meet with Seungcheol's and a smirk spreads across his face making you shiver. He stands up straight and tilts his head, an indication for you to come closer to him. "Fuck, he's here for me," you mumble. "Of course he's here for you, dumbass," Katelyn snaps. "Well, if I don't return, you know who killed me." You sigh starting to walk towards him. "Wait- you're going with him?" She asks incredulously.

"Don't worry. I'll keep my phone on. I don't think he's gonna murder me, I mean there are so many witnesses." You inhale deeply, leaving behind a lost looking Katelyn.

Seungcheol says nothing as you stand right in front of him raising an inquisitive brow but he only holds open the door for you to get in. Deciding to follow him you enter the car quietly and a wave of gasps go through the crowd.

There's gonna be talk about this tomorrow.

Seungcheol, still smirking victoriously for some reason rounds the car and gets inside and within seconds you're hitting the road. There's a thick silence for a while, which feels like ages to you. You're overwhelmed, bewildered to say anything; your poor brain still processing what is happening. You're nervous, jittery as you fiddle with you bag and look out on your side, for some reason scared to look at him.

What if he really kills you? He wouldn't, right?

"You're awfully quiet," Seungcheol says matter of factly as he spares you a glance while driving.

"I'm... processing."

"What are you, a robot?"

"Why are you doing this?" You question instead.

"Doing what?"

"Okay, you know very well what I mean. Why are you picking me up from uni all of a sudden? How do you even know I'm a student there?" "I have resources and...you didn't protest at all. You came along nicely," Seungcheol raised a brow at you, a cocky smile on his lips. You don't answer but continue to stare at him, trying to pin him down with your gaze. He finally sighs and pulls the car to a stop by the side of the road, the sudden brake making you slightly jerk in your seat. "I've decided to give you those 3 dates. That's why," He is calm, unreadable and you wonder if this is a prank. Then again, he has no reason to prank you, does he? "Really?" Your voice comes out breathy. "Yes. I thought I'd give you a taste of how it feels to be with someone like me. I can scare people without physically hurting them you know," He says in a menacing tone.

"So what? You're taking me to an underground fight or something?" You question. "Nah, we're keeping it simple today." He smirks as he starts the car again and turns on the radio, an indication that he doesn't want to converse anymore.

Shamelessly you take a good look at Seungcheol; he's dressed in another jacket today paired with a black tee underneath. Today, you notice he has upped his accessory game, his fingers full of rings and chains dangling from his neck. But what catches your attention is a tattoo, something like a dragon and words written in a language you don't understand, peeking from underneath his sleeve. You almost ask about it but decide it'll probably be too much and he wouldn't answer you anyway.

As you do so, in the back of your mind you think you should have dressed better, something cuter, more appropriate for a date rather than a plain blouse and jeans. But then again who knew Choi Seungcheol was gonna show up out of the blue. You're gnawing at your lower lip, lost in your thoughts when the car is pulled to a halt and you realize your ride is over. You're parked in front of a diner called Lacy's and from the vibe that the place is giving, you can tell that this is place where people like him hang out. You raise a questioning brow at Seungcheol who says, "I know it doesn't look fancy but trust me I has some of the best food I've ever eaten." Taking his words for now you quickly type out a text to Katelyn letting her know you're in one piece and get out of the car.

Once you're seated you look around the place which is relatively empty except some men playing pool at the far end. You watch Seungcheol who has gone to the reception booth to place your orders; his posture relaxed as he leans against the counter and talks to the girl standing there. They seem to know each other because their chat takes longer than it should and the girl has a shy, almost flirty smile on her face.

He probably fucks her.

You shake the thought off your head as the gangster comes back and sits in front of you. There's silence for a second as you wonder if you should just ask the questions that run free around your mind. "Are the rumours true?" You blurt out. He's raises a brow.

"About you. You know..."

"Do you want them to be true?" He asks back. "I don't...know," you reply. "Well, I think it depends on each person. If you want it to be true it is true, if you don't it isn't," he shrugs, leaning back in his chair. "Why don't you just give me a straight answer?" you snap. He smirks as if he's having fun but doesn't reply, watching you with his arms crossed. You roll your your eyes, blowing out an exasperated breath. "You know, I haven't seen one like you. Willingly hanging out with dangerous people, going to dangerous places. You say you saw me kill someone yet you're here. You're almost desperate to get in trouble," he observes. "I'm not desperate to get in trouble. I just...I'm just- attracted to you alright?" This is so embarrassing. You need to shut your mouth. "You've been on my mind ever since that night. I wanna see exactly how deep I'm into you." You bite your lip.

That's enough. You will boost his ego through the roof like this.

Seungcheol studies you for a bit before grinning cockily, "Well, if you didn't know, I am trouble baby. Just you being with me might end you up in a mess." Before you can reply, your food is served, that same girl from the booth setting down your plates and looking at Seungcheol for a bit too long with that same stupid smile which he returns. You don't know why but you feel jealous, jealous of whatever these two share, whatever she has with him.

You've lost your mind at this point. You're on a high that is Seungcheol. He has made you forget your morals, made you completely lose your mind. Or maybe you've been too good all your life and seeing him brought out that crazy, thrill seeking part of yourself.

Silently you dig into your food and as Seungcheol said, the food is really good. This is one of the best meatloaf you've ever had and you can't help but moan. Seungcheol watches you with an amused smile before popping a fry in his mouth.

"What's your major?" Seungcheol asks out of the blue.

"Uh- sociology."

"Mmhmm."

You're about to ask him what he studied in college but you assume he probably never went to one so you seal your lips. You wonder what his background is and who his parents are but you don't want to get too personal on the first day. So you ask something else, "How old are you?" He laughs out loud before he deadpans, "Thirty five." "What!" You almost choke.

There's no way he's-

"Why? What did you expect?"

"I... I don't know! A few years older than me? You're kidding right? You don't look thirty five." He has to be bluffing. "And how old would you be?" "You shouldn't ask a woman her age," you try to make a point. "Don't you have any manners?" He smirks,"I don't, sweetheart. To answer your question, I'm twenty eight."

Uh huh.

"Well, I'm twenty one," you mutter under your breath. You don't know if he hears it because he doesn't give any reaction, busy twirling a fry in sauce. The rest of your meal is full of silence as you wonder if your date will end like this; dry and boring. He's awfully silent and seems to be lost in thoughts as he doesn't engage in a conversation. You're about to take your last bite when the silence is broken by him.

"What did you see that night?" He leans over, his elbows resting on the table as he suddenly regards you with a sombre look, his earlier cockiness vanished. His eyes have once again gone dark and his demeanor says he's not being superficial right now. You're caught off guard as you cough loudly, reaching for your glass to take a sip of water. "What?"

"You heard me. What did you see that night? Exactly how much did you see?" He repeats. You're confused. You thought he didn't care about it. He said it didn't matter. So why is he bringing it up now? You've worked hard to push that night in the deepest part of your brain, pretending it didn't happen.

And then suddenly it clicks.

"You!" You point an accusatory finger at him as you catch on to his plan. "You've agreed to go out with me so that you can find out what I saw that night!" Seungcheol groans, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Ugh, just fucking tell me!" He snaps, annoyed that you've found out his little scheme. You scoff, "I thought you said you didn't care? Besides it's not like I'm going to tell the police." He rolls his eyes and leans back into the couch. "Just tell me and let me go."

You're baffled. His actions didn't make any sense and you actually thought he had no other intentions behind dating you but holy shit this sneaky bastard. "You sly little asshole!" You hiss at him. "Call me that once more and you'll regret it." He threatens. You roll your eyes sagging back into your seat, "Whatever." Then an idea hits you. "You know what, I'll tell you exactly how much I saw that night." You have Seungcheol's full attention now as he stares intensely at you, waiting for your next words. "On our third date. When this whole deal is over, I'll tell you. But in return you'll have to keep your promise and take me out on two more dates."

"Oh fucking hell," he groans rubbing his face in frustration. His state makes you smirk and you feel accomplished.

Choi Seungcheol is stressed because of you.

What a day to be alive.

You murmur, "Besides this isn't even a proper date. This was more like an interrogation. But I'll go easy on you and won't make you redo this date." You give him a sweet smile and he sees red. You can literally see fury blaze in his eyes. "Whatever!" He yells and abruptly stands up. "I don't have time for this. Your stupid play date is over. I'm dropping you home."

Before you can reply, he's marching towards the door. You've to admit this wasn't the best date but at least you've trapped Choi Seungcheol.

-

It has been a good week after your so called date at the diner and you haven't heard from him. You expected him to call or text you since he was gracious enough to ask for your number but he didn't. You now realize it was a mistake to not get his number; you had asked him for his when he took yours but being the prick he is he denied to hand over his number to you. You should have forced him to, you sigh. As you sit in the library the ping of your mobile distracts you from your racing thoughts as you realize you have a message. Picking the device up you tap on the notification. Even though it was from an unknown number, you have no trouble figuring out who it is from. A smile graces your lips as you read the words over again.

I'll pick you up from your house tomorrow evening at six.

That's all it says and that is good enough to send a thrum of excitement throughout your body.

-

You have not held back in dressing up today and you realize it's been a long time since you've dolled up yourself. A long before the clock strikes 6 you are ready; dressed in a cute pastel top and a matching skirt. You've also went ahead and applied makeup, not too much but just enough to maybe catch his eye. Maybe.

You wonder what he has planned for today.

A text from Seungcheol saying he's here has you flying out of your apartment as fast as your feet can carry your desperate self to see him. He stands in front of your apartment with his convertible, dressed in a white jacket that matched his pants. You take a deep breath before walking towards him, trying to calm all your nerves down.

"You know I expected to hear from you earlier. I've been waiting all week," you voice makes his head turn around to meet your eyes as you are skipping towards him with a teasing smile in your face. "I've been busy," he shrugs coolly, his eyes going over your whole body, from your legs to your face. He doesn't hide that he's taking a good look at you, in fact does it unashamedly.

You wonder if he likes what he sees.

Someone dressed up today," he comments. "Too bad we aren't going to a place where you can show off your pretty clothes." You frown, "Where are we going?" Seungcheol holds open the door, a mischievous smile on his face. "I've decided to grant your wish." With a confused face you get inside the car, the gears in your head running. What does he mean?

"I'm taking you to an underground fighting ring," he says with smirk as he reaches for something behind his seat. He pulls out a large hoodie and tosses it towards you, "Put this on. Otherwise you are going to attract a lot of attention and you don't want that." You gulp, taking the hoodie and putting it on you. You're slightly embarrassed. You were so excited to try this outfit but it's not like you knew he was taking you to a fight club. Hell you would have dressed like a guy if you knew. You shrug on the hoodie and it falls almost to your knees but it's huge and comfy and most importantly it smells like him. There's a hint of cologne, nothing too strong; a subtle, expensive scent that makes you want to take a deeper sniff. You wonder if you can keep this with you.

Stop it, pervert.

Seungcheol's voice pulls you out of your haze, "You can take it off later. Just wear it until we're out of there," he says and brings the engine to life.

Then you actually think about it. Underground fighting ring? Holy shit. You were only kidding when you mentioned it. Admittedly, you're shocked, somewhat horrified. Everyone knows it isn't the best place to be at especially for someone like you who never had such an experience. Seungcheol must have seen your expression because the smile on his face gets bigger, "Why? You not up for it?" His voice is teasing.

He's challenging you.

Oh well.

"Of course I'm up for it," you square your shoulders, keeping your voice cool. "Bring it on."

-

Seungcheol leads you into a bar and then through a door at the back that leads down to a lot of stairs, reaching a place similar to an underground parking lot. Quietly you follow Seungcheol, staying as close to him as possible, your bodies occasionally touching. He leads you to a pair of double doors and from the other side you can hear men shouting and chanting.

This is it, I guess.

Seungcheol throws one more smile at you before pushing open the doors as you scramble to follow him closely. The sight that greets you something you only see in movies. There's a boxing ring where two people are throwing punches at each other and surrounding them from all sides is a wild, loud and excited crowd. They continue to cheer loudly as the two men in the ring continue to box and you hear their grunts and groans.

Holy shit.

Swallowing your eyes meet Seungcheol's who is regarding you with curiosity. "What do you think?" He has to speak loudly for you to hear over the screaming throng. "Uh... It's loud," you say dumbly as you try to think of a reply. But it's too loud for you to even think properly as you take in your unfamiliar surroundings. You see a tall man approaching towards you and out of reflex you shuffle closer to Seungcheol until you realize it's his friend. The guy from the first night. He and Seungcheol grin at each other, patting their backs as they talk close to each others ears. You gawk at them curiously and realize they must be talking about you because his friend takes curious glances at you occasionally. His friend is tall, really tall and well built but unlike his body his face is sweet and puppy like, almost cute. When he grins his canines pop up just like a puppy and you wonder if all his friends are good looking.

After he's done chatting with his friend Seungcheol pulls you close and says, "This is my friend. Mingyu. Always stay near him, you hear me? Don't stray away unless you wanna get hurt." His eyes are stern as he pins you down with his stare but you have other thoughts running in your head.

"What do you mean? Where are you going?" You yell over the noise.

He just smirks at you and starts taking his jacket off. "About time you see how we do it around here." His tone is cocky as he hands his jacket to you, "Hold this for me. And stay close to him."

Giving a look at Mingyu Seungcheol starts walking away towards a door that you're guessing is the changing room.

He's gonna fight.

"Wait- but-" Mingyu stops you with a hand on your shoulder and offers you a kind smile. "It's fine. Just stay with me." He then ushers you towards the crowd, spotting a place where you can get a good look at the ring. "Do you guys do this often?" You look up at Mingyu. He smiles sheepishly, "Not me. I tried a few times and I always end up beaten to a pulp. But hyung does this often, he's really good."

"Uh huh, I'm sure he is," you smile dryly. "This is your first time watching a fight, no?" "Definitely." He grins, "Watch carefully then. It's really fun."

You have your doubts on how watching people beat each other up can be fun but you don't comment anything, instead chew on your lip anxiously. Seungcheol really didn't have to go this far? What if he gets hurt badly? Is he trying to impress you?

Don't flatter yourself, your subconscious rolls her eyes.

As the loud cheering that had died down ensues again, your train of thoughts are halted as you see Seungcheol in shorts and his hands covered in boxing gloves, step into the ring. You can't help but ogle at his naked torso, his finely defined and chiseled muscles. He has the perfect body, not too bulky, not too lean just the right amount that gives you a hard time taking your eyes off him. He seems to have noticed your gaze because the second your eyes meet, he throws a haughty, knowing smirk at you. Embarrassed you avert your gaze elsewhere.

His opponent is a muscular man who's growling and banging his chest with his fists, a gesture of intimidation, you suppose. You are definitely intimidated and you wonder if Seungcheol can actually win against him.

The fight starts with a whistle and in mere seconds they are on to each other, throwing punches left and right. Your eyes have a hard time keeping up with them and their fast reflexes and your hands fly to your mouth as a punch lands on Seungcheol's face, followed by repeated blows as Seungcheol falls back. There's a moment of silence as he wipes his bottom lip and you realize there's a cut.

He tilts his neck, popping the bones and glaring at the other man before launching himself on top of his opponent. The next moments are a blurry mess, Seungcheol beating the guy repeatedly until he ends up on the floor but he doesn't stop there. Seungcheol ends it with a sharp jab to his spine and you have no doubt the other man has broken bones with the ways he howls in pain. The match comes to an end like that as the people cheer wildly while Seungcheol steps down from the stage. Mingyu grins at you happily as if what you witnessed was just a regular occurrence, something you should be cheerful about. Shaking your head at the situation, you let out a deflated sigh.

Their life is really so different than yours.

-

Seungcheol seems to be in a very good mood after the fight as he buys you both some sandwiches and drinks from a deli after you both step out of the bar. You both sit down at a park nearby to eat and watch the night sky. "You know, I thought you were gonna lose," you speak after taking a few bites of the sandwich. Seungcheol scoffs, "You underestimate me, sweetheart. I've been doing this for a long time."

"Do you enjoy it?" You ask quietly, focused on peeling the wrapper from your food. You feel Seungcheol's stare on you. "Yes. Why? Are you scared already?"

"No. I was just... curious. Your definition and my definition of fun is totally different." You murmur. "Of course. What did you think? I go to the mall and shop and watch movies with my friends when I'm bored?" His tone is sarcastic. You bite your lip. "No I didn't. It's just...I feels different now that I have experienced it first hand." Seungcheol offers nothing more, taking a sip of his coke and leaning back into the bench. A silence stretches between the both of except the rustling of the wrapper of your food. "How long have you been doing this?" You blurt out. He frowns at you and you don't expect him to answer but he surprises you.

"For a long time."

He doesn't offer anymore and you don't have the heart to prod him for an actual answer. "And how long do you plan on doing this?"

"What?"

"I mean... don't you have any other plans. Like...do you wanna keep doing what you are doing for the rest of your life? Don't you wanna like... settle down maybe?" Your voice is soft as if you are talking to a child. Seungcheol looks annoyed. He doesn't speak for a while as he stares at the ground, a frown etched to his face. You're about to take back your question when he replies, "I really don't think you understand. I've been trying to tell you that my life is completely disparate to yours. So I don't think like you. I don't have plans like you but neither am I expected to follow a certain pattern like you. I can do whatever the fuck I want, ___. So don't look at me like you pity me. I'm the last person here that should be pitied. " His tone is sharp and it makes you feel bad, like a sensation of needles pricking your heart. "I didn't mean it like that. I'm sorry," You whisper, feeling timid as you look down at your lap. He mutters, "Don't go poking your nose in other people's business. Specially people like me."

He's right. You shouldn't have asked that. You are not close enough to ask things like that. After that there is a silence, this time, an awkward one. There's palpable tension in the air and you feel jittery. Should you just ask him to take you home?

It's still early and truth be told, you don't want to leave him just yet. You only have one more date to go and judging by his reaction, he is in no way interested in a relationship. You heave out a long sigh. You knew very well what you were getting into, yet you couldn't stop yourself. Seungcheol is like a poison, the sweetest one, the one that has you addicted and unable to let go, no matter how much it hurts.

This is a fucking mess.

"Let's get going. I have plans," Seungcheol announces, standing up. You want to protest but you feel like you have ruined the mood, so you follow him mutely to his car.

The drive to your house is awfully quiet, to the point you want to scream out of frustration. Seungcheol seems to be lost in his head as he makes no move to talk. It's like you are alone, but you're not and it's worse, the air full of tension. Soon you have reached your house and he stops the car but keeps the engine rolling, indicating his rush. He keeps still and stares ahead while gripping the steering wheel as you step out of the car in silence. "Thanks for dropping me home," you say lamely, your voice meek. You turn around to walk away but his voice stops you in your tracks.

"I promised you three dates and I will keep my word. I expect you to keep yours, ___. I hope you will tell me what I want to hear when we meet next time." His tone is sharp with an edge of threat and you barely get to nod before he drives away.

It's not until you're inside your apartment that you realize you still have his hoodie on. Quickly fishing out your phone you type out a text.

I'm sorry, I forgot to return your hoodie.

After a while, his reply comes.

Keep it.

-

You watch Katelyn as she fills her lunch tray with food before walking over and taking a seat opposite to you. She looks extra radiant today, which probably has something to do with the way she's dressed; a bright colourful outfit which undoubtedly she put a lot of time into considering. She has a date, with a guy she has been talking to for the last few weeks. It reminds you of your pitiful situation and you sigh, trying to shrug off those thoughts.

It has been a good couple weeks since you last saw Seungcheol and you have not exchanged a word after that night. In the back of your mind you wonder if he is even alive. You want to message him, you really want to because you are going crazy but after how your last date ended, you can't bring yourself to. You are scared, exactly of what, you can't put your finger into.

The entire situation you have put yourself into is fucking scary. They say you become sure of your feelings after three dates but it did not take that much for you. You already are very certain about your feelings for him and how deep they run exactly and you also know that in the end you will be left scarred. He would never be yours. He has probably forgotten about you or decided that it is not worth another date to figure out what you saw that night.

You let a desperate, pitiable sigh.

"I know you are hiding things from me but I understand that you are not ready to talk yet. But I want you to know I am here for you okay?" Katelyn's voice makes you blink your way out of your thoughts. She squeezes your hand tightly and gives you a reassuring smile and you're left feeling guilty.

"I ...I will tell you. Soon. Just give me a bit more time," you whisper. She nods in understanding. A grateful smile touches your lips as her words make you emotional. Then there's a ping from your phone letting you know there's a message. Without giving it much thought you open the device and your eyes go wide.

I'll take you out for dinner tomorrow night. Wear something formal.

-

You wait outside your apartment for Seungcheol. Your day has passed by in a flurry of excitement and nerves as you carefully picked your outfit and did your hair and makeup. A soft baby pink dress that stopped just above you knees adorns you as your hair rests just above your neck in a loose bun.

You are fiddling with your fingers as you think about how this night is gonna end and wether you will ever see him again when a car screech that grabs your attention.

Seungcheol's convertible has taken a stop in front of you and you see the man getting out the vehicle and take big steps towards you.

You're mesmerized.

Perhaps there is not enough word in this world to describe his looks or perhaps you've simple lost the ability to speak; either way, you just stand and stare, drinking the godly man that stands in front of you. He looks delectable, completely flawless and agonizingly gorgeous in his sharp black suit and pants, with a silk black shirt underneath, the top couple buttons undone that reveals a beautiful porcelain skin. His hairstyle completes the look, parted to one side in a sleek way and showing his forehead and oh god is it sexy. You realize you have a forehead kink, if there is anything as such.

If you weren't in love with him before you are now.

He looks ravishing, and you wonder why it isn't illegal to look this good. It should be because you have completely lost control over yourself. Nothing exists in your world except for him and you feel paralyzed, unable to do anything but drink him in. You wonder if you are even worthy to stand beside him.

"____?" Seungcheol calls you, snapping his fingers in front of your eyes. He must have been calling you while you were eye fucking him. "Oh! Um, hi." You're flustered. "You- you look really, really nice." It isn't enough but it's what you can get past your lips. A knowing smirk kisses his lips before he teases, "Well, you look really, really nice too." Motioning you to his car he says, "Shall we? We'll be late for our reservation."

"Yeah, of course," you say, hurrying over to his car, embarasssed at your foolery. Seungcheol must have noticed you ogling him like that. But you don't really care when he looks like that. It is his fault for looking so devilishly handsome and idly you wonder if he did that on purpose. If he's deliberately teasing with, trying to make you the most miserable before letting you go with a slap of reality to your face. Pushing away those plagueing thoughts, you sit up straight and clear your throat as Seungcheol comes to sit beside you and brings the engine to life.

A decently long and quiet (except for the music from the radio) but not quite uncomfortable car ride later, Seungcheol stops in front of a really fancy and expensive looking restaurant just by the sea. You did not except him to take you to a high end restaurant, otherwise you would have put some more effort in your looks.

Feeling slightly out of place you quietly follow Seungcheol into the beautiful European styled building after he hands his keys to a valet. The interior is dripping with polished furnitures and extravagant chandeliers and marble floors as guests dressed elegantly have their dinner. As you look around the place in awe Seungcheol talks to the receptionist who then guides you towards a staircase that leads to a pair of large double doors decorated with gold which then, opens to a large balcony. In the middle of it sits a table with two chairs and an unceremonious gasp escapes your mouth as you realize this is where you will be having dinner.

The man from earlier takes his leave as Seungcheol helps you sit down before taking a seat for himself while you take in everything, overwhelmed with all your surroundings. Why did he put so much effort for a lousy and fake date?

"What do you think?" He asks with a smirk as he rests one of his elbows on the table.

"I'm overwhelmed," you reply quietly, honestly. He chuckles, "Well this place has really good food and a fantastic view so I thought it wouldn't bad for our last date."

Last date.

"It's really beautiful. I don't know why you did this but thank you, really," you murmur, eyes on the satin table cloth with intricate golden lining. Everything about this place is so pretty.

"Well, I decided it would be beneficial for me to extract words from you if you are wooed," his words have a teasing tone to it and his demeanor is completely different from last time, giving you a whiplash but you are not sure if he's fully joking. Before you can say that you are definitely wooed, a waiter appears to take your order and you leave the duty of ordering to Seungcheol since he seems to frequent this place. Prior to his leave, the waiter pours you Seungcheol's champagne of choice and then, you two are alone once more.

Reaching for the flute, you quickly gulp down the champagne to soothe your dry throat and to calm all your nerves.

Over dinner you talk about your uni and your parents back home and the farm they own. While Seungcheol mostly keeps quiet he doesn't ignore you but listens carefully, occasionally passing glances your way or commenting. He does not offer anything about him, which you expected and you don't ask any questions about him either. Instead you try your best to keep his interest in your words despite the lack of it from his side.

After a hearty meal of poached lobsters and wagyu beefs and creamy soups comes dessert; a chocolate orange mousse with spiced fruits and yogurt sorbet. You start eating your dessert in silence, the occasional crashing of waves filling the complete lack of sounds.

This location is truly magnificent and breathtaking, almost having a feel like you're in a fancy resort in a luxurious tropical island. It is undoubtedly the most beautiful place you have ever been, let alone have dinner at and you wonder if you would ever have the chance to visit some place like this had you not met Seungcheol. The man in question, continues eating quietly, seemingly lost in his thoughts. He looks lovely as always, if not more and you try to burn this image in your mind for you to look back at later. You want to ask him so many question, you want to tell him so many things but you're scared. Sacred if you do so this moment will break, scared it will annoy him and end your final date all too early. So you bite your tongue and finish your food as he does and after your plates are cleared away, you are served another expensive champagne as an end to your luxurious dinner.

Even though Seungcheol doesn't say anything, you assume it is time to spill the beans, to say what he has been wanting to hear from the beginning. You have teased him enough and it is time you give him what he deserves. Taking a deep breath, you open your mouth. "Me and Katelyn heard noises from the playground that night so we decided to check. It was pretty dark and we were tipsy but I recognized you and you were... beating someone up. We stayed there and watched until one of us accidentally made some noise. We were scared that you heard us so we ran. That's all that happened."

You have Seungcheol's full attention now as he listens cautiously, his sharp eyes trained on you. Gulping, you clench your hands together underneath the table, waiting for his reaction. There seems to be an eternity of silence as Seungcheol simply stares at you as if he's debating whether your words are true or not. It's torturous, awfully agonizing and when you can't bear it anymore you're about to speak but he beats you to it.

"I didn't kill him." His voice is quiet. You let out a breath you didn't realize you were holding. Somewhere in the back of your mind you believed it, you believed he wouldn't be cruel enough to kill someone just like that and as soon as he speaks those words you believe him, without a doubt, without a second of delay.

"I believe you." You whisper, holding his gaze. "That asshole deserved what he got. He shouldn't even be alive but I let him go. He's in a hospital now, if you are wondering." You nod quietly. It's scary how much you believe him, how much you trust him even though he is pretty much a stranger.

There's a moment of silence as you bask in his presence before he speaks, "____, men like me, we aren't the nicest people. But we are needed, the cops need us around. People like me do the dirty works for people like you so y'all don't face troubles. We do things in an unconventional way but that's just who we are. We aren't as bad as the rumours say but we definitely aren't someone you should be with." You open your mouth to protest but his sharp gaze makes you stop. "If you have not understood it yet, let me say it out loud. I am trouble. People like me is always bad news. Whatever we did until now, I hope you forget. That's the best, ____ trust me. I think we both got what we wanted so let's call it a night." Just like that, he stands up, not waiting for your reply.

You gawk at him, baffled as he pays the bill and starts walking away. Tears burn the back of your eyes and you bite your lip to hold them back. The ending that you had expected has taken place but you are having a hard time accepting it. Your subconscious reminds you that you deliberately got yourself into this even though you saw this coming. So there is no one to blame for it but you. Grabbing your purse, you stomp your way out of the restaurant and towards Seungcheol's car.

Seungcheol barely acknowledges you as you both get in the car and he presses the key to the ignition. You are fuming in your seat, his words and the way he dismissed you cutting you deep. His words come to you, I think we both got what we wanted. You want to laugh. How can he possibly think that? Is he really so stupid or is he deliberately ignoring your interest in him? You want to smack his perfect face, curse and scream at him but all you can do is sit still with your arms crossed as steam comes out of your head. Is he really not curious about your feelings? Does he possess none for you? Does these few days with you mean nothing to him? You have so many unanswered questions. Leaning back into your seat, you close your eyes and let out a frustrated sigh.

It feels like in the blink of an eye the drive to your place is over as Seungcheol halts his car in front of your apartment. He does not utter a single word, doesn't even spare a glance at you while patiently waiting for you to get out of the car.

Asshole.

You inhale deeply, trying your best to gather yourself together as you take off your seatbelt and turn towards him.

"Seungcheol?" Few seconds pass before he looks at you. Words are stuck in your throat. When your eyes meet his, you become mute, overwhelmed with emotions as your words die in your tongue. He keeps staring at you, not opening his mouth but waiting for you to speak. "Is this goodbye?" Your voice breaks.

"I believe we don't have any reason to see each other. We both got what we wanted," He says without batting an eye. You're left bemused, one step away from landing a slap on his face. How dare he say that?

"Do you really believe that?" Your words come out as an accusation. "I wanted to go out with you because I thought I have feelings for you! And I do! And my feelings have only increased since I first saw you. I want to see you again, Seungcheol. You may have gotten what you wanted but I didn't." Your fades into a whisper as tears burn the back of your eyes.

Seungcheol stays quiet, staring ahead, his brows knitted as if he's annoyed. "I promised you three dates, ____. And I gave you that. It's over. Your feelings? You'll get over them. It's better to be in pain for a while that be with someone like me."

"You can't say that! I get to decide for myself!"

"____," he sighs, rubbing his temples. "I'm a bad man. You should leave while you still have a good image of me. You'll get hurt because of me and I've caused enough pain to enough people. Just...go. Just forget me." You stare at him as frustrated tears roll down your cheeks. He doesn't meet your gaze but turns his head the other way. You are angry, infuriated and heart broken all at a time. Clenching your fists you inhale a shaky breath before reaching for him.

Before you can chicken out, you tilt his face towards you and quickly press your lips against his. Seungcheol seems to be shocked as a small gasp leaves his mouth but you don't let him push you away. Instead one of your hands come to rest on his thigh as he other cups his face to keep his mouth against yours. You kiss him with all you have left, pouring in every bit of passion and love for him as your tongues intertwine. By the time you are both breathless, Seungcheol gently pushes you back and peers into your eyes. "That's all I can give you, ____." He says, his voice the softest you have heard. You are broken into a million pieces and as much as your heart wants to cling to him, you suddenly feel tired, deflated like a popped balloon. Your emotions have drained you out and left nothing and right now, breathing almost seems too painful for you. Taciturnly, you grab your purse and step out the convertible. You hear another door shut behind you but you don't look back as your heavy steps carry you to the entrance of your building. When you are about to enter your apartment, you accumulate all your strength and courage to spare one final glance at him.

Turning around you see Seungcheol standing by his car, hands in his pockets, simply watching you. Even though your eyes are locked on each other, you don't see any emotion in them. He looks like the same expressionless, mysterious man you saw the first day. The man you fell in love with. Taking in his gorgeous features one last time, you bite your lip and turn away, forcing yourself to walk inside your apartment building.

Your chapter with Seungcheol ends here.

Epilogue

A/N : Okay so idk why this fucking app is being like this but it says I reached the maximum of 250 blocks but I thought tum1r didn't have a word limit?? Anyway so I've decided to break it up and put the rest of the fic in another post. Please click epilogue to read that.

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