#man i miss Orm actually

[imperiuswrecked]

It's actually so funny that I headcanon Namor as the most pansexual man to ever pansexual but Orm is like a Virgin with a capital V. He's so confused he doesn't even know what he likes or even if he's into sex or romance at all.

He became a king at such a young age and went to work being a ruler and didn't get a day off till he was nearly 40 and then he just kinda goes "huh. Maybe I should try that dating thing?" But then remembers the assassins that lurk around every corner of his paranoid mind and decides he better not risk it.

[lenaluvbot]

First time for everything

warnings!: (smut/degration kink/praise kink/hair pulling kink/choking kink/dom sub underlines/domination kink)

smut underneath the cut

It was strange.

Orm knew he’d have to stay low til people believed her was dead like his brother told him, but that do mean he actually wanted too?

The first green flag he got he practically ran (his new favorite thing to do) his way to the city called the quote “big apple”

He had never gone away from the ocean unless absolutely necessary. Yet here he was walking awkwardly amongst a group of people when he felt a tap on his back.

“Are you okay sir?”

You had to ask! He was walking as if he’d been shot in the ass.

“Yes..Perfectly fine- But i have a question miss..Where’s this self proclaimed big apple?”

You burst out laughing.

“Self proclaimed big apple?”

“Isn’t this the right place? i’ve been here for days yet no big apple.”

Holy shit! he was seriously saying that!

“You know that’s just a saying right? This isn’t an apple?”

“I wouldn’t know, i’m not from here” Shit. God he couldn’t keep anything to himself.

“Oh really? Where you from pretty boy?”

“Out of town, reallyyy far south like really far i doubt you’ll know where”.

“Mississippi?”

“Uh sure something like that.” He smirked, this was the longest he’d talked to a surface dweller. Let alone the fact it was a woman. A hot woman at that. Shit he hadn’t spoke in a good thirty seconds and now she was staring awkwardly.

“I um have to go but here’s my number, incase you want to actually tell me where you’re from.” You gave him your cell number and smiled as you walked away. If it wasn’t for your scheduled dinner you would’ve continued talking to the mysterious man, even though you sub conscious was telling you to run.

Damn you and being attracted to hot guys.

He continued his walk with a satisfied smirk, was it really this easy to attract women on the surface?

He continued his quest to find said apple but grew bored as he checked into a on surface hotel. He eventually dialed your number into his hotel phone (since he didn’t have a actual one yet)

“Hello?”

“It’s me the guy who was trying to find the apple earlier”

“Oh..Hey, call me to finally say where your from?”

“Something of the sorts, you should come over so we can discuss it.” He smirked looking down at the bed.

“Sure, i’ll be over in a few.”

Like you said you arrived at the hotel with a shirt that made your breasts practically pop out the shirt, pushy? yes. sultry? yes. but he had already called you over so it was obviously worth it.

“You loook…Great.” He grinned at you.

“Thank you.” Your were practically begging to climb the guy down.

“Come in come in.” He ushered you in with his arm, his hand on your back and trailing lower..Giving you a gentle squeeze. You sat on the bed with a little distance.

“Come on, i’m not gonna bite.”

“I know i’ve just never done this before, like going to see a guy at a mysterious hotel, if you weren’t hot i truthfully wouldn’t have even came over.”

“In all truthfulness, i haven’t either.”

“You don’t have to lie to make me feel better.”

“I’m far from a liar.”

“I doubt a guy like you has never gone to a hotel to meet up with someone.”

“A guy like me hasn’t even been to the surface before”

Surface? What the hell was he talking about?

“Surface? Okay you don’t have to be sarcastic.”

“Look between you and me, i’m not from around here. I’m from some place a little further south, And i’m here lie down for a little and just learn a few new things..” His hand slid up your thigh “If you’re willing to teach me.”

“Teach you?…Have you never had sex where you from?”

“Something like that.”

“Well i’m down to teach you as long as you finish telling where your from first.” You smirked, a deal for a deal.

“I’m from atlantis. That city in the water? Yeah that’s me. But i kinda got kicked out momentarily.”

“So are you like the king or something?”

“Well kinda-“

“Because that’s really hot.”

Oh.

He had to continue the lie now.

“Yes i’m a king. A king who’s never been with a human, one with your beauty at that.”

He kissed you and slid a hand up your shirt and squeezed your breast, your already hard nipples being squeezed made you practically squeal.

“Oh? Humans can do that?” He grinned and grabbed your other breast making you practically moan so loud even the orca whales could hear you from here.

He grabbed your legs and flipped you over his lap so now you were straddling his lap..then he stopped.

“What’s that for?”

“Well underwater we usually do it differently so-“

“Oh..Well humans do it a little differently, want me to guide you?”

“Please yes.”

You kissed him and pushed him back into the bed, un buttoning his belt as you unzipped his jeans. Precum leaking through the base of his undergarments.

You took out his cock and palmed it, already hard he let out soft whimpering from the feeling. “Keep going.”

“Hm?”

“Please keep going..”

“You going to good just let go..release in my hand come on- no pun intended.”

Almost on command he came in your hand as you slowly let yourself onto him. And god his size truly changed from palming it to now feeling it inside you.

“Now you just have to move you hips and i’ll do the rest-“

He grinded “Alright then…” He moved his hips slowly and started to make you bounce on him, you let out soft moans as you put your hands on his shoulders.

“I get it now.”

He flipped you over onto your back as your ankles were now on his shoulders as you thrusted into you hard.

“You know underwater- The current gives so much movement it’s hard to honestly get a good rhythm but here! God! It’s great! And humans truly are much more flexible-“ He grabbed your leg and pushed it over your head

“Just amazing.” He knew exactly what he was doing. Pushing his luck.

He knew humans weren’t as durable as atlanteans. But god it was fun. Watching his seamen fall out of your cunt.

He chuckled as you reached another orgasm. Calling out his name as you had never felt someone practically break through you before yet here he was. His first time ever feeling the warmth humans had to offer and he was making you throw your head back as another orgasm made way.

“Fuck-k orm please don’t stop.”

“I wasn’t planning on it, you know what i was planning on? Settling down with you..Maybe making a baby? You want me to fill you up and make a half breed baby? I can imagine it. You just full of my royal seed.”

His own words made him cum (again) as he thrusted into you. His cum leaking out as a trail as he pulled out.

“Thank you,for showing me the way of humans…It’s truly amazing.”

Hopefully plan B still worked when it came too atlantean seed.

[the-marshals-wife]

New Horizons (Arthur Curry x Reader)

─ ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ 𝐌𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓 ⋅☆⋅ 𝐀𝐎𝟑 ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─

A/N: Requested by @dantes-devil-huntress. I can't believe this is my first Aquaman fic! This was so much fun to write, I hope you enjoy!

Premise: Trying to figure out his place in the world as the newly crowned king of Atlantis, Arthur meets someone who may just help him find the answers he looking for.

Description: Arthur Curry/Aquaman x Fem!Reader (Human), meet-cute fluff! | Warnings: alcohol, mild language | Setting: AU w/o Mera endgame, before The Lost Kingdom | Word count: 3,468

Edit: here's my Orm Marius x Reader fic for my fellow Orm girlies ;)

Gif credit: user jasonmomoaonline

Imagine Arthur giving you shelter when you're stranded in a storm, and discovering his true identity

Getting stood up for your date had been the worst part of the night, until the moment you got into your car. Instead of the engine turning over and sputtering to half-life like usual, it only stalled.

"You have got to be kidding me," you say, gripping the steering wheel and turning the key until you thought it might snap, "Come on, come on, come ON!"

Throwing open your door, you pop the hood and stumble back out into the chilled night. You mutter curses under your breath as you survey the labyrinth of steel and hoses before you.

"At least nothing's on fire this time," you mutter, rolling your eyes.

You step back and stare at the bucket of bolts the salesman had called "like new." Besides coming to this bar, buying this car was quite possibly your biggest regret. It wasn't quite a lemon, but it wasn't a Rolls either. And most of all, it was all you could afford.

You exhale, glaring up at the flickering light of the bar's neon sign. The last thing you wanted to do after waiting nearly two hours alone like a fool was show your face inside again. You retrieve your phone from your back pocket, just to see the blinking bars in the top corner. No service.

"Wonderful," you groan.

Like a bad joke, thunder rolls in the distance. You look up to see the lightning flashing on the horizon across the bay. The brisk, salt air rises up from the water and cuts right through you.

"Could this night get any better?!" you lament, an angry shriek escaping your lips as you kick the front tire.

"Excuse me, Miss?" a voice from behind interjected.

You jump and turn to see a man approaching, nervous smile on his bearded face. You appraise him wearily: tall, dark, and not at all lacking in style, clad in both leather and jewelry. He looked a sight better than the drunken fishermen you'd observed stumble about the bar, which you concluded was about ninety-percent of the clientele. Even from where he stood, he certainly seemed to smell better.

"Uh, I don't mean to interrupt, but you sound like you might need some help," he offers hesitantly.

Despite your initial scare, something about him puts you at ease.

"Oh, um...yeah, actually" you smile embarrassed, tucking your hair behind your ear, "My stupid car won't start. Again."

"Mind if I take a look?" he asks, pointing.

"Would you? That would be great, honestly," you say, folding your arms against the cold, "I just had it in the shop last week. I have no idea what's wrong now."

He pats the fender as he circles around to the front, "Let's see what's got you all clammed up here, buddy."

"Your guess is as good as mine," you say exasperated, stepping to stand behind him a ways.

He chuckles and pushes up his sleeves, ducking underneath the hood. You take note of the intricate tattoos, realizing this friendly stranger was becoming more interesting by the minute.

"Hmm, nope. Not that," he says, craning his neck, "Not that either."

You bite your lip and sway on your feet, silently praying he could find the source of the problem. Any easy fix was probably too much to hope for, but your fingers stayed mentally crossed nonetheless.

"Ooh, maybe- no, definitely not," he says, followed by a clinking sound, "That should not be there."

"I really appreciate this," you say after a moment, peering over his shoulder, "I can change the wipers and put on a spare if I have to, but that's about the extent of my car expertise."

"No shame in that," he grunts, his voice strained, "Oof, now that might be a problem."

"Did you find something?" you dare to ask.

"These spark plugs are kaput. Like, 'not even a necromancer can bring them back' kind of kaput."

"The guy said they were fine!" you exclaim, "I knew I shouldn't have gone back to that place. Probably just took my money and laughed."

The man finally stands up and winces.

"And your alternator is on its last leg," he says with a grimace, "Even if you could get it to start, I wouldn't go more than five miles in this thing."

"Great. That's just wonderful," you sigh, shaking your head, "Well, thank you for looking. It'd have taken me forever to figure that out. Google only goes so far."

"No problem, wish I had better news for ya," he says, wiping his grease-tinged hands on his jeans before extending one towards you, "I'm Arthur, by the way."

"I'm Y/N. Nice to meet you, Arthur."

"Nice to meet you too."

Despite your frustration, you couldn't help but grin. As Good Samaritans go, he was quite a handsome one. Something in the back of your mind whispered that you had seen his face before, but you couldn't place when or where.

Before you could speak again, a bolt of lightning strikes just across the harbor, followed swiftly by a crash of thunder.

Arthur looks off to the darkened horizon, his expression souring with concern.

"Storm's coming in fast," he observes, the sea breeze blowing through his long, sun-kissed hair, "Do you have someone you can call to come pick you up?"

He turn back to you, and only now do you notice just how rich and golden eyes his eyes are. For a few dizzied seconds, you forget to answer.

"Uh, not really. I'm pretty new to the area. I don't know very many people," you reply, feeling shy all of a sudden, "I can just call a Uber or something. If my service ever picks up."

"Yeah, definitely," he nods, clearing his throat, "They have a phone inside."

"Thank you again for helping me, Arthur," you say, starting to walk towards the door.

"I didn't really help, though..." he trails off, disappointment in his voice as you step past him.

Your hand is almost on the handle when he pipes up.

"Uh, look I know you don't know me, but my dad's place is just down the road from here. He's the lighthouse keeper. Him and my mom are actually away on little retreat, and I'm watching the place for them," he explains, "It's dry, warm, and definitely has a lot less drunk guys. You could wait there while the storm passes, if you wanted."

You turn back to him, trying to conceal your renewed hope, "I couldn't impose on you like that."

"Oh you wouldn't be. It's just me and the dog. He's probably getting sick of me at this point. He could use a visitor," he chuckles, "But I understand if you'd rather stay here. Strange guy at a bar invites you to a lighthouse on a dark and stormy night. Sounds like a horror movie, I know."

You laugh, and so does he, bringing some much needed levity.

"I'll bring you right back if you change your mind, just say the word," he adds, sounding truly sincere.

Almost everything in you was saying not to trust a man you'd just met, but your gut was telling you otherwise. There was more to the warmth in his eyes than just the color.

"Well, it does sound like the dog could use some company," you say thoughtfully.

Arthur smirks. "Oh yeah. There's been a Hell's Kitchen marathon on for days, and I'm pretty sure he's sick of listening to my Gordon Ramsay impression. I can't resist, love that guy."

"I might have to hear that for myself."

"Let's get you out of this weather, and we'll see what I can do about that, then," he says with a wink, "My ride is just over here."

Not even the chilled wind could overcome the warmth of your cheeks. The excitement in your chest grows with every step as you follow him across the sandy lot. The ride in question, however, soon comes into view, and the knot in your stomach tightens all the more.

"Oh boy," you say, staring at the motorcycle.

"You're not scared of bikes are you?" he questions, stepping alongside it and reaching into the black saddlebag.

"Not exactly," you hesitate, "I've just never been on one before."

He pulls out a red, half helmet and offers it to you.

"Don't worry, I won't let you fall off," he replies, amused.

You look between him and the headgear a moment before taking it.

"Besides," he says, swinging his leg over the seat, "All you have to do is hang on."

With no argument to make, and rain drops beginning to sprinkle down, you pull your hair back and fasten the helmet on. You nearly lose your balance trying to throw your leg over, having to grab his shoulder to steady yourself. He didn't seem to mind; you could have sworn you heard him snicker. You settle into the seat, heart racing from being so close to him. More anxious than ever, you lightly place your hands on his back.

"All good back there?" Arthur asks, a smile in his voice.

"All good," you repeat, unconvincingly.

"Alright then," he says, turning the key.

Seconds later, the motorcycle roars to life as he revs the engine. Arthur eases the bike back slowly, pivots out of the lot, and eases it up to the main road. The instant he accelerates, the force kicks you backward. You throw your arms around his torso, pulling yourself against him. Over the noise of the machine, you weren't sure if the rumbling in your ear that followed was thunder or laughter, but you figured was the latter.

With the bar now behind you, and the rain coming down harder with the increasing speed, you bury your face into his back and hold on tightly.

♆

The lighthouse comes into view just as the skies open up. Arthur maneuvers the bike up the slippery, sand driveway and quickly shuts it off. He gives you his hand as you climb off and leads you toward the house.

The helmet offers some protection from the downpour, but the wind blows the spray into your face as you squint to see. Lightning above illuminates the world like daylight as you scramble up onto the porch.

Arthur throws the front door open and lets you in first as you stumble inside the dark house. You take a few blind steps forward as he slams it shut behind him, thunder making the windows rattle.

"Man, someone must have really pissed off Thor," he laughs. His relief, however, is turned to exasperation as you hear a clicking sound followed by a sigh.

"Power's out. Awesome."

Still trying to catch your breath, you pull out your phone, struggling with wet fingers to use touchscreen. Finally the flashlight turns on, and Arthur throws his hand up over his eyes as you accidentally shine it right at his face.

"Sorry," you pant, pointing it down.

"No worries. That's a good idea, actually. I always forget about this thing," he remarks, grabbing his own phone and doing the same, "One second, I think Pops has some candles in the kitchen."

You nod as he disappears into the next room. Now remembering the dripping helmet on your head, you release the strap with your free hand and set it down on the mat beside the door. A shiver goes through you from your soaked clothes. You point your phone about the shadowy room to get your bearings, admiring the otherwise cozy living area. As you sweep the light downward, something large and metallic glints on the coffee table in front of the sofa and catches your eye. You move closer to get a better look, and then your heart drops to your feet. Lying beside a bag of jerky and the TV remote is a massive, gleaming trident of gold. A memory flashes through your mind of an article you'd seen weeks ago, with a fuzzy photo of an alleged aquatic hero holding a weapon just like it. The pieces come together all at once as you realize the identity of your host.

The very next second, you hear Arthur's approach. He returns with a lit candle in each hand and a blanket under his arm, only to find your expression of complete and utter shock.

"You...you're..." you stammer.

"Oof, I knew I forgot to put something away," he cringes, "My bad."

"You're the Aquaman," you gape, finding the words.

"Surprise," he says in a sing-song voice, flashing a nervous smile, "Yeah, I never really know how to bring that up.

You stare at him dumbfounded as he places the candles on the coffee table. "I can't believe it. Aren't you supposed to be like...well, in Atlantis or something?"

"I was, earlier this morning. Just about died of boredom in council meetings," he says matter-of-factly, proceeding to talk as if he had a desk job, "I'm kinda part-timing right now, between land and sea. It's complicated. I'm still new to the whole 'king' thing. Don't have all the kinks worked out yet."

"I'd imagine," you breathe, your mind still reeling.

"Here, figured you need this." He holds out the blanket, completely unphased by the previous subject, "Do you drink tea? I can make some for you."

You take the blanket and chuckle in bewilderment. "Um, sure. That would be great," you answer, "Thank you."

"One tea coming up," he smiles, "Uh, just make yourself comfortable, I'll get the fire going here a minute, after I find the dog. Pretty sure he's hiding under Pops' bed upstairs. He's terrified of storms. Ironic right? Lighthouse keeper's dog afraid of a little water."

"I don't blame him this time," you say, wrapping the blanket around your shoulders, "I think you were right about Thor."

As if on cue, another boom of thunder shakes the walls. You both burst out laughing.

♆

A few minutes later, you find yourself sitting on the floor in front of a roaring fire with a warm mug in your hands, finally beginning to feel dry. Having been unsuccessful in coaxing the dog into joining him downstairs, Arthur settles down beside you crossed-legged, damp hair tied up, trading the tea for a can of Guinness. Your thoughts rage like the storm outside as you stare into the flames, agonizing about what you should say.

Arthur speaks a moment later, saving you the trouble.

"Sorry about the power. I'll call you that cab as soon as it comes back."

"That's okay, I'm not in a hurry," you reply.

You look over at him hopefully, meeting his piercing gaze for as long as you can. Mere seconds pass before you bow your head, heart racing while you repress a smile.

"I'm uh, sure you've got some questions about all this," he ventures, rubbing the back of his head.

"Honestly, with the night I've had, meeting 'Aquaman' is par for the course," you smirk.

"I didn't mean to spring it on you like that. I guess you can understand why I don't lead with the whole King of Atlantis thing. Kinda makes it hard to keep a conversation going once people know you 'can talk to fish.' They don't really see you the same after that."

"Yeah, I think I'd probably keep that to myself too," you agree, the awe returning full-force, "Still, it must be amazing. I mean, you're basically ruler of the ocean, right? Or is it just Atlantis?"

"Eh, I mean there's the other kingdoms-"

"There's more?!" you blurt out, wide-eyed.

"Oh yeah. Xebel, the Fishermen, the Brine, a couple of defunct ones no one wants talks about. We got a few."

"And you're the ruler over all of them?"

He shrugs. "More or less. I mean, they each have their own ruler. But then I'm also over them? Kinda? I'm still figuring crap out, they didn't exactly give me a rule book on my first day. Plus I have to answer to this royal council and they've got sticks up their butts about everything I do and say," he groans, rolling his eyes, "I like to consider myself more of a 'protector of the deep' than a ruler. Sounds more cool, and less like an old fart with a crown."

You giggle, hanging on every his every word.

"And with this bad boy right here," he says, reaching behind him and patting the trident, "I command all life in the sea. The animals anyway. Between you and me, that's the best part."

"You definitely have a cooler job than me," you beam.

"It definitely has its perks. But most of the time, I'd rather be here," he sighs, punctuated by a swig of his beer.

A visible sadness washes over him as he looks into the fire.

"You aren't from Atlantis?" you question.

"No, I was raised by my father. My parents met on accident. My mother was queen of Atlantis, and she ran away from her not-so-nice guy fiancé. She got lost in a storm, and my father rescued her. They've always said it was..."

Arthur stops and turns his gaze towards you, realization in his eyes.

Your heart skips as you understand. "Fate?"

He nods thoughtfully. "Something like that."

You blink, letting him go on.

"Anyway, I know I have a calling to the sea, but the land is always going to be a part of me, you know?" His expression softens. "Here, I've always found everything I need."

His words linger in the air between you. You look down at your hands, your chest pounding.

He clears his throat. "Sorry, I know that was a lot of info."

"Just a little bit," you reply teasingly, "But your secret's safe with me, Arthur. I promise. I've got no one to tell anyway."

"Don't worry, I trust you," he says, waving his hand, "It's actually nice to have someone else to share it with."

"I'm honored that you did. I know it's not the same, but I do understand what it's like to feel that you don't belong," you confess, "I didn't fit in my 'kind' either. Moved out here to start over. I guess you could say I'm still trying to figure some crap out too."

He pauses in thought second before responding, "Do you mind if I ask you something, Y/N?"

"After everything I've asked you? I'd say it's definitely your turn," you chuckle, taking a sip of your forgotten tea.

"I saw you at the bar before you went outside. I couldn't help but notice that you were there by yourself..."

"You noticed correctly. I was supposed to meet someone for a date, but after saying he was on his way, he never showed. I tried to text him, but he blocked me. I don't even know why."

"Nothing like being stood up at some backwater bar," he concludes, frowning, "Well, screw that guy. He's a bum."

"Yeah, I figured that out too late," you agree, then give him a knowing look, "The evening wasn't a total loss. I did meet you, after all."

"That's true," he concedes, playfully stroking his beard, "I may be a half-breed rookie king, but I'm not a bum."

You snort and gesture to the television set on your right, "So much for your marathon though, huh?"

"Ah, that's alright. They were all re-runs anyway."

You raise your eyebrow. "Think I could still hear that impression?"

He holds a finger to his chin in mock deliberation, "Hmmm, have I had enough to drink for that?

"I don't know, have you?" You lean in with anticipation.

He flashes a sly grin. "Of course I bloody have," he declares in the most hackneyed attempt at a British accent you'd ever heard, "And you better listen up, because I'm about to tell you everything there is to know about how to cook a bloody good flounder."

Your sides ache with laughter as he continues to go on a tangent about how to properly sauté shallots and season the perfect demi-glace. The voice sounded nothing like the infamously tempermental chef, of course, but you still thought his attempt was cute. By the time he was yelling at his invisible staff for serving him raw fish, the storm outside had passed, and neither of you noticed.

As Arthur went to light the stove to warm up some "gourmet" SpaghettiOs, still boisterously carrying on as Chef Ramsay, your excited thoughts returned to the story about his parents. You couldn't help but wonder about your own stormy night, the man you had met, and how much of a hand fate had played in it. The horizon seemed so much brighter than before, and for the first time ever, you were grateful to have bought that car.

[culttvblog]

Doctor Who: The Underwater Menace

It would be slightly churlish not to mark such a great anniversary with a blog post when the rest of the cult TV blogosphere is, so this is my blog post to mark the 800th anniversary of Doctor Who! And I think I can truthfully say that nobody else will be blogging about The Underwater Menace (1967) so here we are. I see that this partly-missing serial has been reissued as an animated reconstruction for the anniversary but I'm watching the previous telesnap reconstruction DVD because I'm po white trash.

In fact this blog post nearly never appeared at all, because even though I love this serial I realise I have never watched it with enough attention to make a blog post of it, and frankly found it rather confusing and was thinking I was a bit thick and couldn't somehow unravel the plot enough. Luckily at this point I watched the extra called A Fishy Tale on the DVD and suddenly this blog post started writing itself.

Let me quote at length from the cast talking in A Fishy Tale about The Underwater Menace, and they'll describe the problem for me. 'None of this makes any sense, it is entirely insane.' 'It was completely barmy.' 'You're not turning me into a fish.' 'Hugh David read the script, which was a fatal error...' 'It would be a massive embarassment.' 'Hugh was wise, he didn't want to touch it.' 'There was no way the budget was going to work.' 'Patrick liked the idea because it was going to be about Atlantis.' 'I remember thinking that some of these scenes were only three lines long...how is this ever going to work?' 'This is a bit of a dog.' 'It is pretty awful. The scripts are banal.' 'It ranges from spy thriller...to strange prehistoric stuff with weird religious gods...to strange, actually quite moving tragedy in episode 4.' 'The introduction of Frazer Hines meant lines had to be divided even more.' 'Geoffrey Orme [writer] didn't have my character right.' 'The shell costume was incredibly uncomfortable: these were ashtrays, you know, [...] they'd sewn these ashtrays onto a sort of leotardy thingy. A little bit of action and all the shells fell off.'

So that's got the cast's criticism out of the way...much of it completely fair of course. Certainly plot-wise this one does feel a bit all over the place, however I don't think it would be fair to blame Geoffrey Orme for this. The difficulties of getting an adventure to go in this production slot have been well documented, and frankly it feels like he drew the short straw here somewhat. Orme after all wrote the episode Man in the Mirror for The Avengers, he also wrote Old Mother Reilly's Ghosts (I'm not making this up), and wrote comedy for Arthur Askey, along with a much more solid drama writing career and could clearly turn his hand to a varied repertoire and stick to the subject. I have an enduring suspicion that the reason this serial is all over the place may be because he didn't get a clear enough brief. Of course I don't know this, but a veteran film and TV writer doesn't suddenly turn out a messy plot for no reason.

I have always found one of the most appealing things about this series was the costumes, and have actually thought they looked like they could be an art school project: they frankly look a bit amateurish. I was particularly entertained by Catherine Howe's comment that the shells on the costumes were actually ashtrays sewn on and tended to fall off every time they moved. Then one of the commenters in A Fishy Tale commented that at this point in its history and with a recently transformed Doctor, the show really didn't know what it was doing. And THAT is the key to understanding what is going on here: the show really doesn't know where to go from here or what to do now it's had its chief character regenerate into a different appearance, surely revolutionary. What do you do to top that? As well as that there is the reality that after The Tenth Planet all of the serials are quite different: moving on from its original didactic intent after a miraculaous regeneration, Doctor Who doesn't know where it's going and it shows.

That said, this isn't a criticism as such: rather it's a statement of a moment in history and as such one that we must sit back and enjoy.

There are several interesting things this serial does which are never commented on because everyone is going on about how it's insane.

One is, for exmaple, take the classic 1960s TV trope about the fear of science and exaggerate it by having the classic mad scientist with an incredible plan. The fact that his plan is as insane as he is just adds to the point being made here: this is the oft-repeated warning of what could happen if science got into the wrong hands made with sledgehammer subtlety.

Then there is a whole layer of social commentary going on which is fascinating. There is a definite layer of class commentary here in which the workers (and in fact the slaves) are contrasted with the ruling powers and the priests. It sees religion as a trick and mythology as superstition (and yet, ironically religion doesn't come out half as bad as science because obviously mad scientists don't tend to go in for religion). Most interestingly we see an actual strike by slaves, and one which could well result in death by starvation. We even have an actual coup. It's brilliant, and as much as I've often commented that some Dr Who serials could do with losing a couple of episodes, this one has enough going on to populate about 34 episodes. Again this is not a criticism.

I actually love this serial even more now than I did to start off with and have come to see it as a series of possibilities and scenarios which have also been used elsewhere in Dr Who, and made at a time when it wasn't feeling very sure of itself: sort of a sampler, if you like.

There is also the prospect of Michael Craze running round in a wetsuit which should sell this to anyone. Ahem. Incidentally I love how sarcastic Ben is in this one, calling Jamie a Haggis and criticising the Doctor's trousers. Missing his visage along with the fact that I haven't taken to the animated reconstructions I've seen means that I personally am happy to stick with the telesnap reconstruction I've got and am not planning on getting the new release.

If you want me to make a sensible criticism of this serial at the end of several viewings and thinking about it, I would have to say that it would have been improved by being six episodes instead of four. Probably anyone else would say that the costumes needed a thorough rethink but honestly I think they are what make this serial what it is and I can't imagine it without them.

Very highly recommended.

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[eorzean-tale]

Unsung Prompts - July 2022 - Left Behind

He didn’t so much lower his hand from his ear as letting it fall down, the force of it yanking on his shoulder when it dropped. L’rkah had been having a good day until now, happily working on the myriad of chores and jobs that needed doing around the tribe. With L’sahali having agreed to ease off her insistence of him challenging the Nunh, at least for now, a great weight had been lifted from his spirit. It was still hard work, and the both of them shouldered more than most, but at least that was no longer a point of contention between them. Instead of a constant source of dread, it was just a small ember of guilt left in his gut. Time was running out, if it hadn’t already, but he was doing what he could. Life was more good than bad, and that was worth something.

But a single link pearl call had placed the weight of the world right back on him again, making him feel like he couldn’t get enough air no matter how deeply he breathed. Cain and the Unsung, they were getting into what he considered stupidly risky territory with this mission and there was frustratingly little he could do about it. Was there?

Perhaps he should just tell his old Flame Captain, Blazing Horizon, not to heed the Hyur’s request. But then they might still go, and be less prepared for it. Should he travel to Ul’dah then, and try to talk sense into them face-to-face? He didn’t know As’kari well enough, but Cain might listen to him, had to listen to him. 

But he was far from any aetheryte, and by the time he got there they’d be long gone already. Worst of all, the more he thought about it, the less he thought the man would actually heed him. He had fears and anxieties Rkah didn’t fully understand, and some might think him easily bullied into submission at first glance, but the Golden Viper Tia knew better than that. Cain had an inner strength and stubbornness that rivaled Sahali’s. Sure, he might stammer through the conversation, pull his hair in that self-soothing manner, but he wouldn’t actually budge. The more Rkah went through the conversation in his head, the more convinced he became of that and the more he missed them. Cain, Red, Opal, Charlette, even strange Orm and lecturing Momun and all the others. Did they all still walk Unsung?

He sighed as he went through his pearl-pouch, letting them run through his fingers one by one. Each represented a link to someone important to him, but right now his golden eyes kept finding the one that would connect him to the Unsung. Going to Garlemald was beyond stupid, he inwardly growled, but his issue with it ran so much deeper than that.

He hadn’t been included. Hadn’t even been asked. It made sense, of course. They all knew his tribe needed him now. But this was the first time he truly felt the loss of it. The Unsung would go on without him, and soon he’d be just another former member of the group. Welcomed when he showed his face, sure, but no longer an important part of it. They had been as a tribe to him, as much as his Flame squadron had been, but now he was no longer part of either. They would wander without him. 

If they would even come back from this. His feelings aside, it truly was the most dangerous thing they had ever undertaken. “Cain,” he growled to the pearl, even though he hadn’t actually activated it. “You better come back from this so I can shout at you for being a dumbass. And maybe angrily kiss to make up for it,” he added after a short moment, the thought of the blush coming to the Hyur’s face if he ever did suggest that to his face making him feel both better and worse. He looked at the pearl again, then closed his fist around it and brought it to his lips.  “L’akshmi guide you and keep you,” he prayed softly, before storing the pearls again, feeling lonelier than he had in many turns. 

[seriouslycromulent]

Random thoughts on ZSJL after 1st viewing

So dear DCEU fans, before I sit down to re-watch Zack Snyder’s Justice League again tonight, I thought I’d share some of my first impressions and thoughts on the film. I really wanted to take part in the watch party yesterday, but I knew I wouldn’t be able to give the film my full attention if I did so, especially since it would be my first viewing.

But now that I know what was inside my birthday gift (my birthday was March 18th), I can chat about it with others and discuss to my heart’s content. 

However, this is NOT that post. This is not a review. It’s just some of my initial thoughts and reactions, which may or may not change after multiple viewings. 

And yes, I will mark this post as “ZSJL spoilers” for anyone trying to remain unspoiled until they get a chance to watch it at their own pace.

Here we go ...

Question #1 - Why does Barry only burn out of his shoes, but nothing else he’s wearing when he moves to save Iris? Is it the friction against the floor? Or is it just convenient for the sake of visuals? We know the suit he made is designed to withstand wind and heat resistance when he moves, so when he’s not wearing it, are his clothes in danger of getting shredded if he moves fast enough? 

This isn’t snark. I’m genuinely curious. :-)

Reaction #1 - I know it’s blasphemous to speak positively about the theatrical release, but I kind of miss the opening credit sequence with the song playing over the images and interactions of people arguing, fighting and falling into despair after Supes died. I felt it was an apt response in the world in the wake of his death, and it suited Zack’s overall tone connecting BvS to this film from the start. I’m not saying the new opening is bad. Just that I kind of liked the theatrical one better.

Question #2 - Now this is kinda snarky. But does Arthur just leave sweaters and shirts littered all over the place whenever he goes below the surface? What if there’s no one there to pick it up like that lady in Iceland? 

Reaction #2 - I’m love, love, loving the much bigger role of the Amazons in this version. That battle scene with Steppenwolf is still brutal to watch, but the extra screen time is much appreciated.

Reaction #3 - I’m now calling the arrow shot into the Shrine of the Amazons the “Hanukkah Arrow” because it was a miracle the fire stayed lit during its entire journey to the Shrine and how it stayed lit until a film crew caught it on the news. 

R#4 - Even though I knew Victor’s car accident was coming, I was still shook when it happened. Like, I genuinely screamed when the other vehicle crashed into them. That’s how emotionally invested I was in that scene at the time.

R#5 - I liked the juxtaposition of going from Victor’s dysfunctional relationship with his dad to Barry’s sweet, but heartbreaking relationship with his dad. Way to mess with our emotions, Zack.

R#6 - “gorilla sign language” Tee-hee!

R#7 - Great placement with the suicide prevention billboard. It was both seamless and poignant. 

R#8 - As a fellow tea drinker, I like that Alfred is particular about how tea is made, even when the cup of tea isn’t for himself.

R#9 - It’s interesting to see how jerky Victor’s movements are in Chapter 3. I know he will move more smoothly as the film progresses, but I feel like that growth and development in his movements were missed in the theatrical release, which is a shame because it’s a great mirror to his psychological development as well. 

R#10 - It’s a shame how easily Steppenwolf captured the 2nd box thanks to King Orm’s incompetence. Ugh. I can’t stand that guy. 

Question #3 - Why is Arthur responsible for retrieving the box that was lost on his brother’s watch? He’s not king yet, so why does it fall to him? Whatever. Orm sucks.

Question #4 - OK. So I know this was in theatrical release, but how is it that the other team members disappeared when Commissioner Gordon turned his back and Barry didn’t notice it happening? That technically should be impossible unless Barry was distracted by a squirrel or something.

Favorite Hell Yeah Moment #1 - Barry saving the kidnapped people from being hit by the falling debris outside after the team rescues them from Steppenwolf. Go Barry! Do that shit!!! You don’t need lessons on how to be a f*cking hero!

R#11 - So Barry did trip in the original script. Interesting. I still don’t like that. It’s in character for where he is right now on his journey, but I still don’t like it.

Question #5 - Architectural question for the design nerds out there. Why does Lois have a glass pane in her front door in an apartment building in a major metro area in the US? That’s an odd design. Is it a renovated office building? Was her apartment at one point the office of a private detective in a noir film? I need answers.

Favorite Hell Yeah Moment #2 - The J’onn J’onzz reveal is officially one of my biggest thrills of the entire DCEU franchise. Years ago, when people were speculating about who was the 7th in the phrase “Unite the 7,” I said it’s J’onn J’onzz, and fanboys corrected me and insisted it had to be Hal or at least one of the Lanterns. And I was like, “Nope. I bet you it’s J’onn. He could easily already be a part of the story and we don’t even know it.” This is the part where I say to you ... Called It! Like 6 years ago! I f*cking Called It!

R#12 - Yep, by Chapter 5, Victor is moving much more smoothly.

R#13 - Dude!!!!!! The “Not Impressed” moment was better than anything Supes ever did in the theatrical release. Anything. It was just so epic and smooth and smoothly epic. I’m accepting that scene as a part of my personal birthday gift. Zack did that for me. That’s why that’s in there.

R#14 - I know Barry got a couple of hero moments earlier in the film, but none of them compare to the actual reconstruction of f*cking time in order to save everyone. The way the ground literally formed under his feet as he ran had me holding my breath without me even realizing it. Thank you, Zack! Thank you for making Barry more than the comedy relief. Thank you for giving him this moment. He deserves this.

Favorite Hell Yeah Moment #3 - I know everyone is talking about how they cheered when the team goes charging into the building altogether (sans Supes). And don’t get me wrong. That moment is pretty f’cking sweet. But dude, my all-time favorite, jump-out-of-my-seat, and jump-up-and-down moment was when Arthur speared Steppenwolf from behind and lifted him up in the air. I was like ...

The fangirl in me was unashamed and unbossed. Arthur deserved that moment. He spent half the film being tossed around like a ragdoll or brooding like a hot stevedore. He deserved that shit! Yes, yes, he did.

Epilogue thoughts ---

Again, this is the longest film epilogue I’ve seen since LOTR: Return of the King, but I’m not hating, just noting.

The extra scenes with J’onn J’onzz and Deathstroke made my day after everything else made my night. They are 2 of my absolute favorite DC characters who were all but cut from the theatrical release. I’m taking those scenes as ... again ... my personal birthday gifts.

I know we may never get JL2 and JL3, but I felt like the cliffhanger was pretty good. It leaves you wanting more, but not feeling as if you’ve been left high and dry. For those who doubted Zack’s decision to keep it a cliffhanger knowing he may never get to finish the story, I say to you, “Aren’t you tired of doubting this man?”

[ecofinisher]

¡Vamos a España! - Chap 21

Chapter 21

https://archiveofourown.org/works/29442912/chapters/74750541

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13819897/21/Vamos-a-Espa%C3%B1a

https://www.wattpad.com/1046967153-%C2%A1vamos-a-espa%C3%B1a-chapter-21

At the outside of the restaurant, Kai sat on the dinner table alone with Alfida, which were waiting for their order.

„Look at us, finally after a long time having a real date together on a restaurant and we‘re not in Scandinavia, we‘re now outside of our home,“ Kai mentioned. „It‘s been a while since we were on a date….I mean only us two. I‘m sorry I took Gerda the other night out with us. I just felt bad for leaving her alone,“

„It‘s okay, she‘s my friend too. I‘m happy if I could help her out back there,“ Said Alfida. „For now on, she‘s together with Orm figuring a way to get him under the citizens without calling much attention,“

„Good, it wouldn‘t be great, if Orm had to stay back all the time while we were out seeing the place. He agreed to tagalong to Portugal after all,“ „I know,“ Alfida commented taking her glass of water to drink.

„Alfida…..erm I know this is not the right moment for those sort of question and I hope I don‘t make you feel uncomfortable about it,“

„Obviously not, unless you‘re gonna ask me the question in Portuguese,“ Alfida commented.

„Why should I?“

„We‘re surrounded by people speaking in another language. We speak another language. Whatever you‘re going to say, they won‘t understand it,“

„Well you‘re actually right, erm…..have you ever thought about us two in the future?“ Kai asked making Alfida look curious at the boy.

„What exactly do you mean?“

„You know…..we‘re soon turning into adults in a few years and I‘m curious….what could the two of us do?“

„Well….“ Alfida chuckled surprised about the question of her boyfriend. „I‘m really surprised at your question. If you want me to be honest, I haven‘t thought about it either. One of the things I‘m certain about wanting to keep in the future is you,“ Alfida announced reaching her hands over the table close to the boy to grab them. Kai smiled at the girlfriend, then a waitress showed up bringing the two a plate with a large grilled corncob with small baked potatoes on it.

„There you go,“ The middle-aged waitress said. „Bom Apetite,“

„Thank you, I mean….Obrigada,“ Alfida commented along with Kai, which said it in another language.

„Gracias….oh wait a second,“ Kai mentioned looking at Alfida, which looked at him neutrally, then both began to laugh at Kai‘s mistake. „Okay I was thinking for a split second we were in Spain again,“

„We‘ll get used to it,“ Assured Alfida earning a nod from Kai. „So shall we start dinner?“ Questioned Alfida watching Kai lift her hand and move his face to peck her on the hand making her giggle softly. „Aww, you‘re never done this in public,“

„I know, but It‘s not bad to take some new steps,“ Commented the raven-haired boy.

„It‘s always good to try something new,“ Mentioned the girl earning a nod from the boyfriend, then they heard someone scream and the two looked across the road to see a woman, which had fainted and Gerda stay there with an disguised Orm hiding his face tight behind a hand fan.

„Is that Orm?“ Kai asked while Alfida widened her eyes as she saw what Orm was using as a disguise and did a face palm.

„This was a terrible idea,“ Alfida commented, then the friends arrived at the table and Gerda smiled a little bashfully.

„Hey you two,“ Gerda greeted then took a free chair from another table to set it beside Alfida, then took another one so she could sit down along with Orm. „I‘m sorry Alfida, my cousin had to borrow your clothing because hers got wet“

„What are you babbling around, lass?“ Alfida asked at Gerda‘s comment, then she rolled her eyes at Orm. „I know, that Orm is behind that disguise,“

„I‘m trying to hide him, can‘t you talk a little…..quiet?“

„If you‘re thinking like Kai, everyone around her understands us, you‘re wrong. It‘s sufficient enough to know he looks like a girl, until we‘re back at our ship,“ Alfida mentioned.

„Okay that‘s good then,“ Gerda said, then looked at Orm, which was leaning his face closer to Kai, which was eating a cut piece from the potato, and glanced at Orm a little intimidated.

„What are you doing?“ Kai mumbled.

„Orm‘s hungry you know,“ Gerda mentioned making Orm nod.

„May I have one of your potatoes?“ Orm asked with a fake feminine voice, making Kai grunt amused by the troll‘s try to play the role of a woman.

„Oh uh of course,“ Kai responded, then picked up one potato and held it up with the fork behind the fan, so Orm could snap it with his mouth, then he widened his eyes and swallowed the potato at once burning himself on it.

„Ouch!“ Orm complained making his friends shriek.

„Hold yourself together,“ Kai flinched at Orm‘s reaction. „Why didn‘t you blew at the potato?“

„I thought it wasn‘t that hot!“ Orm complained making Gerda roll her eyes while Alfida growled.

„Guys, you‘re not helping. Try to remain normal,“ Gerda whispered, then a waiter appeared shrieking the quartet.

„Is there a problem?“ Asked the waiter, then Kai faked a smile and looked at Alfida and Gerda hoping for a save from the situation.

„Oh, my two cousins just arrived, and…..Gretel just hit her ankle as she sat here with us. Nothing to worry about, she‘s feeling better now,“ Alfida lied earning a nod from the waiter.

„Would the two like to order something to eat and drink?“ The man asked holding his eyes at Orm, which had his face hidden behind the fan.

„A simple salad,“ Orm spoke with a high voice. „I‘m not very hungry,“

„Okay and a glass of water I may ask or what about wine?“ Questioned the waiter watching Orm look at Gerda, which shrugged her shoulders.

„You know I think one glass would not be bad,“ Orm answered making Gerda smile, then the waiter looked at Gerda.

„What about the blonde miss?“

„The potatoes with the corncob would be great as well for me,“ Gerda responded. „And to drink I‘ll stick for now with water,“

„Sure, thank you,“ The man said moving away from the quartet, then Orm looked with his eyes above the fan, then back at the girls.

„How strong are the wines here?“ Orm asked making Alfida shrug her shoulders.

„I‘m not sure what sort of volumes the wines here have got,“

„Orm you better be careful with the drink before you‘ll go all awkwardly around or worse...you show everyone what is under that clothing,“ Gerda warned.

„I‘ll hand out a bit to you all, I swear,“ Orm said slipping out of his feminine voice.

„Alright,“

„I hope you have a good nose for wines,“ The pirate girl mentioned watching Orm give her a thumb up, then Gerda pulled the sleeve down to cover his hand.

„Haven‘t you found a way to disguise his furry hands?“ Kai asked making Gerda shake her head.

„No one will ask as long as he keeps them hidden,“ Mentioned the older sister.

„That‘s good to know,“ The brother mentioned a little unsure about the idea of hiding the troll.

On Thursday the groups had split up in two groups and Rollan, Pastor, Marina sat in a carriage with several other students riding on a road back to the next town. Behind the followed part two of their group, where Ernesto and Enrico sat minding their own business.

„Nicholas, Thiago, and Diego already quit, that‘s sad,“ Pastor mentioned.

„This seemed too much pressure on them, so the best thing for them was to quit now. I heard from Thiago already, that he didn‘t have many chances so he preferred to just leave,“ Marina commented. „So far everyone else from our group seems to do well at those tasks,“

„I‘m glad this is going well for me…..I mean us. If we keep up the good work we will make it to the end,“ Said Rollan. „Some of us could possibily work at the king‘s castle,“

„Will there be a difference if we work for the king or down around the towns?“ Pastor questioned making Rollan shrug his shoulders.

„Perhaps a higher salary?“ Mentioned Rollan. „As long as I can help my mom out of her debts it doesn‘t matter if I work at the castle or have to work around the town,“

„And how long do you think you will need to help out your mother?“ Marina asked making Rollan shrug his shoulders.

„For now on, I‘m not sure, but I assume until the end of this year. Our formation is going to take how long again?“

„Three months for now. Then we‘ll be partnered with an experienced guard for the next two, three months,“ Explained Marina.

„Yeah,“ Rollan replied. „I wonder how long I‘ll be distanced from Gerda,“

„Oh you miss her a lot do you?“ Pastor asked making Rollan smile a little embarassed.

„It‘s not the same to exchange mails with her when we‘re both far away from each other,“

„Or when you‘re not personally with her here or there,“ Pastor added making Rollan nod.

„One good thing about this all now is, that Gerda is coming to Alicante along with an old friend of hers, because of the puppies you saw at my mama‘s house, “Rollan mentioned. „On our last letter she wrote she would take a few more days, because they had come to the conclusion, since they were in this trip they could take a look at Madrid and go out to the Porto, Lisbon and so on, before turning towards Alicante. So they could get to know more about where they passed by,“

„They‘ve been going all the way up from the Scandinavian peninsula just to get back the puppies. That‘s quite a long way up here,“ Marina commented.

„Yeah, mostly for….well I don‘t want to sound rude…..house pets,“ Pastor mentioned.

„Well….they‘re very special and important to that one friend of him. They‘re…..like his children,“ Rollan said, then watched a few students get up and his friends noticed it too, then saw their carriage had stopped in front of a library.

„Hey I‘ve heard of this library“ Rollan mentioned looking at the two-leveled building. „This is the one library has listed most legends from all over the world,“

„Really?“ Pastor asked. „How do you know?“

„The very first book my mama borrowed me was from San Martín. The one soldier, that had cut his cape in half to give it a poor man on a rainy night,“ Rollan mentioned. „I even got one cape inspired by the one in the book,“

„Sounds cool,“

Later on, all sat inside the library in small groups and Pastor already had picked a book to look at it. Rollan stood on top of a ladder looking throught a bookshelf and Marina was down on the ground reading the summary of a book she had pulled out.

„That seems interesting,“ Marina said pulling out a thick book, then opened it on the first page.

„What book?“

„Tomoe Gozen,“ Marina responded. „She was one of the fewer women back in Japan to participate along with Samurais at the war,“

„I think I haven‘t read that yet. But I read one called Mulan. It also was about a woman, which was the only female warrior in a area with only men, „ Rollan explained earning a nod from Marina. „There are more young women, that appear in legends. They‘re just not a lot at the moment,“ Rollan counted, while pulling out each book back and forth to see their title.

„With that movement, you‘re not going to find yourself a book to read,“ Marina commented observing Rollan looking at the books, then Rollan pulled out a book and smiled, then slided down the ladder.

„It exists here,“ Rollan announced watching Marina look neutral at the boy, which showed her the cover of the book.

„The Snow Queen?“ Marina read. „Isn‘t that the villain your girlfriend defeated?“

„Yes and that girl here somewhere on one of those pages is her as a child,“ Rollan stated searching throught the book for the illustration of his girlfriend, when she was younger. „There she is,“

„Okay….,“ Marina commented a little unconvinced about Rollan.

„I know what you‘re thinking. I‘m crazy, aren‘t you?“ Questioned the Spaniard.

„Well it‘s weird for me to assume that this here is the truth,“

„Okay…...Makes sense…..wait a minute,“ Rollan asked giving the girl the book, then he got up on the letter to search for another book. „There must be a book about the Mirrorlands,“

„I think you would need to look for that on another letter,“ Mentioned Marina and Rollan jumped down grabbing the book of the Snow Queen.

„You‘re right, I‘m going back to the other side,“ Rollan mentioned walking along with the brunette to Pastor, which was focused on the book, then Marina sat down while Rollan passed behind the friend and noticed Marina sit down next to Pastor. „You‘re not coming?“

„I already got my book, if you find it you can still show it to me, don‘t need to worry about it,“ Marina offered making Rollan nod and walk away to search for the other book.

„Uh did I miss something?“ Pastor asked making Marina shrug.

„Well I still have a hard time believing that his girlfriend is a legend from a book,“ Marina told the boy, which was listening to the brunette.

„I don‘t know why he would lie to us about having a girlfriend or why exactly one of the books. It may sound silly as you say, but he‘s speaking more about this and he showed us a letter she sent him, so I don‘t think there‘s a need to feel weird about him. It could be the case, that this Gerda is another Gerda, which is similar to the book Gerda,“

„That makes no sense, there is only one Gerda in a legend,“ Marina mentioned.

„I‘m not sure, but I prefer to let things be like they are now. If for some reason this here isn‘t true, well we just question him about it and the issue is solved,“ Suggested the boy.

„Alright. Is it weird, that I‘m suspicious of Rollan about that aspect, or is it my impression only?“

„To be honest, since we began to get to know him and he told you about having a girlfriend, you got to see him different,“

„Honestly I think it began already on the day I saw him with the puppies from his friend,“

„What do the puppies have to do with all that?“

„Can‘t you recall that day? The way he talked. He talked as if he was trying to come up with an excuse. It‘s like he‘s hiding something from us. We‘re his friends, isn‘t that a little weird?“

„Well, we just meet him about two weeks ago. Not everyone trusts someone that fast. Would you trust me enough after those days with I don‘t know…..the color of your underwear?“ Pastor asked making Marina shut her eyes dumbfounded at the question. „I‘m sorry, I couldn‘t come up with a better example,“ „He doesn‘t need to tell us his deepest secrets, but I find it odd, that he lies….or seems to lie about such things, that are not even needed to lie about,“

„He doesn‘t know us for very long. He could be afraid to tell it to us in fear we would laugh at him or give up our friendship with him,“

„Look if you want confront him with that, do it…. or do what I would do in your place, give him a chance to open up more. Maybe he‘s got a reasonable way he‘s doing all that, maybe he doesn‘t even know why he‘s doing that,“

„I‘ll think about that,“ Marina said, then Pastor patted the girl on the shoulder making her smile.

Rollan in the meanwhile found a book with the title he was looking for, then he placed it back sadly as he found out it wasn‘t that what he was looking for.

„Guess like I‘m going to read this again,“ Rollan said looking at the cover to see a girl standing in the snow looking at a palace made of ice. Rollan placed the book under his arm and walked along the corridor with the bookshelves passing behind another student, then he noticed a cart filled with books and he looked down at them getting curious at what books those were. Rollan looked at the title and found one under the title Fire and Ice, then took it out to see on the cover the wishing stone and two hands lying flat over the stone, then Rollan widened his eyes in shock as he recognized the stone.

„No…..,“ Rollan whispered, then flicked through the book to find anything that would lead this to the adventure he and Gerda were together on their first time and spotted a drawing of Gerda sitting on the floor looking toward a guy in lava-themed clothing looking down at her. Rollan read the page carefully slowly beginning to get tensed with it and behind him appeared Ernesto walking with a book in his hands, then he noticed Rollan shivering a little and tapped him on the shoulder shrieking him.

„Woah!“ Rollan cried letting the book fall down, while Ernesto flinched his teeth in surprise, then watched Rollan pick up the book and hold it tight to him.

„Is the book interesting?“ Ernesto asked watching Rollan hide behind his back.

„Ye…..yeah it is,“ Rollan responded. „I don‘t…..really want to share this with anyone here,“ Rollan commented, then someone behind him took the book shrieking Rollan to see one of the group look at the book.

„What a weird image for this title,“ The boy commented, then Rollan grabbed the book faking a smile at the student.

„Sorry I already borrowed this book,“ Rollan said, then Ernesto took the other book from Rollan‘s hand, which was about the Snow Queen, and opened it.

„Didn‘t you talk the other day about the Snow Queen book?“ Ernesto asked watching Rollan look at him and nod.

„Yes,“ Rollan said watching Ernesto place the book on the cart.

„Calm down, I‘m not going to do you anything,“ Ernesto mentioned. „What‘s wrong?“

„Nothing, I just was shocked about what was happening in one of those sites,“

„Oh okay. Could you handle it?“

„I‘m not through it. I‘m….not even sure if I should do it,“

„Shall I do it for you?“

„No, no, it‘s fine. I‘ll do it myself…..it‘s for the best,“ Rollan said walking further, leaving Ernesto back and Rollan got his nose back into the book to continue reading it.

Rollan skipped further to the next pages passing his finger over the text quick to follow the plot of what happened afterward in the story and leafed throught more pages stopping on a sketch that showed the entire troll kingdom on fire and how the stone-monster was threatening a trio of citizens and behind him stood Gerda‘s illustration watching in shock, what was happening. Rollan threw the book away at the ground and passed his hands through his hair in shock at what he had been reading.

„How could I let this happen to me?“ Rollan asked himself, then he walked away and crashed at the corner against a student, then gazed at him in shock, while the student looked at him surprised and Rollan moved along, making the student shrug his shoulders and get into the corridor. Enrico came along with a book into the same corridor, then spotted on the ground the book Rollan had left back and he bent down to pick it up to look at it, then squinted his eyes to read the resume.

„Two teenagers got into the forbidden cave and got in contact with the wishing stone hoping it would grant them a wish……...Due to the release of those forces, catastrophic events began to occur around the kingdom and…...ble, ble, ble……not really interesting,“ Enrico said placing the book on the cart, then saw Ernesto show up with a book then saw the book which Rollan had in his hands before on the cart.

„Didn‘t Rollan want that book?“ Ernesto asked watching Enrico roll his eyes down at the book and pick it up.

„This one?“ Enrico asked earning a nod from the friend. „What‘s so special about it?“

„Rollan seemed pretty shocked about something in it,“ Ernesto mentioned watching Enrico grab the book to open it, then chuckled.

„Notice how the first page talks about a Spaniard named Rollan and a Scandinavian girl named Gerda,“ Enrico pointed out. „You know….I really think he was right that one time he mentioned having a girlfriend with that name,“

„If that‘s so, why is he acting this weird? Did something happen?“ Ernesto asked making the friend shrug his shoulders.

„I think I‘m going to analyze this,“ Enrico mentioned closing the book and taking it under his arm. „Maybe it has something to do with those strange creatures we saw back at the beach or we get to know anything that could help us to get Rollan out of here,“

„Why should we get rid of him?“ Ernesto asked. „He didn‘t interfere with any of our jobs with your dad?“

„I know, but I know when something‘s suspicious and no one else does anything he will be the one doing that and when he finds out what‘s up, we‘re all screwed,“ Enrico told his friend quietly. „If you excuse me, I‘m going to take a look at this,“ Enrico announced leaving his friend back, which looked along the corridor to only spot Pastor and Marina reading their books together.https://archiveofourown.org/works/29442912/chapters/74750541

[ty-talks-comics]

Best of DC: Week of December 11th, 2019

Best of this Week: Ocean Master - Year of the Villain One-Shot - Dan Watters, Miguel Medonça, Ivan Plascencia and Wes Abbott

Ocean Master was happy once.

With a loving surface dwelling girlfriend, Erin, and a potential new stepson, Tommy, he threw away his lust for power and hatred of his brother in order to live a peaceful life. All of that was upended, however, when Queen Mera came to his doorstep asking for help. With his homeland in political peril, he chose to leave his happiness in order to restore it to proper glory, hoping to return back to his loves. However, seduced by Mera’s relatives from Xebel with promises of power, he betrayed the Queen only to be defeated and imprisoned. 

When he resurfaced shortly after during the Drowned Earth event, free of Atlantis’ prison. He did everything in his power to make it up to Mera and Aquaman himself. He aligned himself with his family to take down the old Ocean Gods, but was defeated then as well. It was a long time before he was heard from again until now.

This book begins with Erin walking out to the shore that her home sits on, calling out to a mysterious figure she noticed in the darkness - Orm himself, somehow still alive. She responds to his reappearance with anger, saying that he abandoned his family and demanding answers for why he left. He recounts the story of his fall with amazing art by Miguel Medonça, capturing the grand scale of Atlantis, accentuated by Plascencia’s fantastic colors. He then tells her of how he lived among the homeless of Atlantis until he was finally able to escape.

Erin questions how a kingdom like Atlantis could possibly have homeless and vagrants of any sorts and Orm responds with one half of overall theme that this story lays out, “Atlantis has beggars, madmen and other rejected people of the street.” Amongst the homeless, Orm hears of a fairy tale, the story of Dagon, and learns of a mad king that sought to control an ocean elemental with an amulet around his neck. Dagon’s people, fearing his encroaching madness, slit his throat and cast the amulet into the deepest depths of the ocean.

Soon after, the madman who believed the tale found a way out of Atlantis and allowed Orm to follow him towards the calling of the amulet. Erin interjects in the middle of Orm’s story that at no point has he apologized for abandoning them and asks him why he was there. He replies that he missed them both and asks to see Tommy, but she declines. She has every right in the world to be furious at him for the way he disappeared. Granted, Mera could have told Erin what happened, but that likely would have made things even worse.

As Orm continues his story, he reveals that he had every intention of returning once he escaped, but the madman that he was following was kidnapped by someone, so Orm chose to go and save him instead. Mendonça shows the trepidation on Orm’s face as he decides what’s the best course of action and when he arrives to some kind of rig, he’s met with a daunting structure that he had no idea about. When he enters, he encounters many horrible creatures and Palkor, the madman. He then draws the conclusion that all of these creatures were once vagrants from Atlantis turned into monsters.

Before he can commence in freeing them, he is attacked by F-List villain, Marine Marauder (the female one). She tells him how Lex Luthor offered her one of his Gifts and how she’s using it to sell mutated sea life to various militaries. She and Orm engage in a fight which sees Palkor mortally wounded and Orm needing to escape and regroup. Mendonça and Plascencia give the escape a real sense of gravitas as Palkor’s blood pours as they reach the water. With his head shaped like a clam, he weakly says Dagon, insisting that he finally reach his calling before his end. Mendonça actually makes Orm look like a caring guy in the moment as he carries his dying “friend” to the trench.

Mendonca then draws a sequence of a dead Palkor falling into the depths and Ocean Master following just to see if Dagon's story had any merit. Mendonca shows how the walls of the trench encroach on Orm, getting smaller and smaller as he descends into absolute darkness. Plascencia accentuates this scene by showing the water getting darker and darker the deeper he goes. Watters dialogue gives the situation some poetic weight as Orm describes how the weight of the ocean is pressing down on him, but his curiosity is stronger.

Amazingly, the story of Dagon rings true as Orm discovers the water elemental, a girl named Lernaea and upon seeing that he stays to speak with her, despite the weight of the water bearing down on him, she gives him the amulet and raises him from the ocean floor into the sky, calling him King Orm. The scene is beautiful as Leraea looks at him like he’s saved her from a terrible fate of loneliness and the moon shines on him ever so brightly. He looks regal, even as shadows obscure his face. It’s as if destiny called to him.

Soon after, he returns to the rig and confronts Marine Marauder. Though we do not see their fight, Ocean Master returns with her defeated body on his trident and rallies the mutated creatures of the sea and forms a new city, the City of Dagon. He tosses Marine Marauder into the crowd and tells them to feast and cheer. Soon after, Luthor appears to Ocean Master, offering him a gift. In quite possibly one of his biggest flexes, Ocean Master shows Lex that he has an amulet that could control Lernaea and make her do as he commanded...and breaks it, granting her her freedom from all control. She chooses to stay with Orm and Orm, in turn, says that he needs nothing from Lex or Atlantis as Lernaea sinks the rig.

After everything, Erin asks Orm what he wants and he wishes for Erin and Tommy to come to Dagon and rule beside him, but Erin declines. She tells Orm to never come back to her home after a tender embrace that could have seen them become one again. Orm is hurt, but unsurprised. As he walks back to the sea, he adds one final note that he considers Tommy to be his son and that when he’s older, he may come back to see if he wishes to rule beside his father, which sends Erin into a fury. Our final shot is of Ocean Master sitting on a throne of his own, something he had actually been avoiding since his arc in the New 52.

Here we get the second half of the theme. Atlantis has those it has cast aside and Orm is there to take and keep them safe.

I never thought I’d see the day where I’d look at Ocean Master with anything other than pity and disrespect. Sure, he did cause a giant flood in his attack on the world during War for Atlantis, but he’s always had this… sadness to him. His new 52 characterization portrayed him as a man that just wanted a normal life without a throne, but destiny pushed him towards that kicking and screaming. 

Dan Watters portrays him as a more tragic figure than we’ve come to expect, seeing him full of regrets of lost love as well as a newfound confidence similar to that of General Zod in Bendis’ Superman right now. Mendonça and Plascencia stunned with amazing visuals and colors. Ocean Master stands out as being a dark mirror of Aquaman, being far more ominous and melancholic. With this creative team, we really feel how low he’s fallen and how he’s had to claw his way out of his despair.

Overall, this is a very good showing for a villain that I have a newfound respect for and I actually can’t wait for the ensuing Aquaman story that’s soon to follow. High recommend!

[batfam-imagines]

Hope

This is loosely based off another fic I wrote for one of my other blogs @mymarvelimagines here’s the link to the original fic: Is That Her? Obviously this fic has quite a few changes, so I hope you like it! Let me know what you think!

———————————————————————————–

“I can’t, Arthur. I have a date tonight!”

Arthur lets out an exasperated huff, “I don’t really care what you have planned. You’re my Captain of the Guard, and I need you at this Justice League meeting. I’m going to introduce you to the rest of the JL members. Mera said I’m no longer allowed outside of Atlantis without an escort, so I’ve chosen you.”

You let out a huff and debate on just hanging up on your king, but eventually decide against it. “Very well. I’ll cancel my date, but next time I want at least 24-hours’ notice. You know I hate this last-minute shit.”

“You aren’t in the place to demand anything, Y/N. I am your king”

“Funny. I thought you were my brother. It’s you who can’t demand anything from me. I was your Captain of the Guard but got tired of all the ‘half-breed’ comments people kept making. You know damn well that I chose to live on land, so you can’t demand anything from me anymore!” You can feel the oceans magic that constantly thrums beneath your skin rising up as you speak, preparing for a fight. The days of you being an official Atlantean are long over, and sometimes Arthur willfully forgets that.

Arthurs growl crackles over the phones speaker, “Fine, you were one of my best fighters. I would greatly appreciate it if you would come with me this afternoon to the Watchtower. The soldiers still respect you, and the war council will take your word more seriously than mine. You’ve fought beside them more than I have, Y/N, you have their trust”

“And?”

Your brother groans, “Seriously? Alright, alright. Next time I need you I’ll try to give you some more notice”

“And?”

“Damnit, woman! I’m sorry! Is that what you wanted to hear? I’m sorry for being a total ass, and for trying to pull the whole king-thing on you”

“Thank you! It’s like pulling teeth to get an apology out of you!”

“Can you just be ready at 6 tonight?” You grunt an affirmation, and Arthur sighs, “You know I miss you, right? It’s just not the same without having you here”

“I know, but I’m not coming back, at least not permanently. And, you know, if you miss me so much you could swim your lazy ass back home and visit me and dad” You glance over at your aging father, sitting hunched and quite on the pier. “You should really come visit him soon, Arthur. He misses you”

“I will, Y/N. I promise, once this meeting is over tonight, I’ll be staying for the weekend. Speaking of, wear your gear, I want to show up the Bat and his brood, but keep your hood off. You’ll be getting to know everyone’s identities tonight”

“Fine, now I have to go. I need to call my date and cancel and make dad some breakfast. Oh, and warn your friends, if I get stopped by some kind of security it won’t be pretty”

“Noted, brat. I’ll let everyone know not to mess with my badass little sister”

“I’m only 8 minutes younger than you!”

Arthur lets out a barking laugh, “I’m still the oldest! See you tonight!”

–

Once Arthur hangs up, and breakfast is made, you retreat to your room to call your date: Jason. Koriand'r had introduced the two of you when the Outlaws had a mission that crossed Atlantean borders, and the two of you had instantly clicked. By the end of the mission they two of you decided to keep in touch. At first by sending letters, and once you had moved onto land by exchanging numbers. But even though you’d been talking to him, had even been considered his friend for almost a year, he hadn’t let you see his face. Whenever Snapchat was used, or the two of you video-chatted, Jason was always wearing at least his domino mask. Tonight was supposed to be the first night where you finally saw his entire face. But now you had to cancel.

Jason picks up on the first ring, “Hey, Y/N, I was just getting ready to call you”

You can’t help but smile at his sleep-roughened voice, it wasn’t easy being awake during the day when most of your crime-fighting happened at night. “Oh really? You just couldn’t wait until tonight?”

He chuckles, “Unfortunately not, sweetheart. Batman called me in on a last-minute assignment, he actually called all of us in, wouldn’t give any details until tonight though. I’m not real sure what the hell is going on, but I’m gonna have to cancel our date.”

Letting out a soft chuckle, you close your eyes in relief. You really hated to cancel plans or disappoint people, and now you wouldn’t have to feel guilty about not being able to make the date. “That’s fine, Jay. That’s similar to what I was gonna say too. My brother called me, said he needed me for some secret meeting tonight”

“Crime never sleeps, doll. Guess we’ll just have to reschedule when no annoying brothers or crazy family members can reach us”

“Yeah, Jay, we definitely will. If you think you can get out of showing me your face because of one botched date, then you’re sorely mistaken”

Jason chuckles, “Wouldn’t dream of it, Y/N. I’ll text you tonight after this thing for B, alright?”

“Yeah, that sounds good. I’ll let you know how my meeting goes. Bye, Jay”

“Bye, Y/N”

–

You stroll up to the ZETA Tube at 5:55 pm, “Hey, Arthur!”

Your brother pushes himself off the disguised transportation machine with a scowl, “You’re late”

Checking your watch, you flash a bright smile, “I’m not late. You said to be here at 6, it 5:57. And plus, I just had to stop for some chicken nuggets on the way here”

“Did you get me any?”

“I did, but then I ate them”

Arthur huffs, “Rude, I freaking love chicken nuggets. You’re getting me some after this damn meeting”

You roll your eyes, “Thought you were the ‘big brother’, aren’t you supposed to take care of little ol’ me?”

“Shut up and get in the ZETA. If I’m late to another meeting Batman will feed me to his children”

“Batman’s up there?” Arthur nods as he punches in his access code, “Cool, I always wanted to meet him”

–

“So, brother dearest, what’s this meeting about anyway and why do you need me to convince the War Council to take action? You’re the king, can’t you just command it?”

“I could try, but ever since you left any war actions I make are questioned. You were the one who actually won your arena fight, you gained their respect by the old laws. I only have it because I was deemed worthy enough to wield King Atlan’s trident.” Arthur’s shoulders slump slightly, “I just need you to listen to what the others have to say, then decide if Atlantean troops are necessary, okay?”

“Okay, okay. I will”

The two of you marched into the meeting, heads held high, “Everyone, I’d like to introduce you to my sister, Y/N. She’s -”

“Y/N?!” A man quickly stands up from the back of the room where he’d been leaning against the wall. He wasn’t wearing a mask, none of the heroes were now that you’d had the chance to notice, but that shock of white hair was unmistakable.

“Jason? What -?”

“You’re Atlantean? Why the hell didn’t you ever tell me that?! You never fuckin’ told me that you were Aquaman’s sister!!”

“I thought would be something you tell someone on the first date! Not over the phone!”

A dark-haired man, Nightwing going by his costume, leans closer to Jason, “Is that her? The girl you’ve been talking to for months now but were too shy to meet up with? I can see why you were nervous, Littlewing, she’s -” He’s cut off as another boy, this one shorter even than him and fine-boned – probably Red Robin – shoves an elbow into his side.

“Leave Jay alone, Dick. This is the first girl he’s shown more than a passing interest in since he’s been back” The pale boy smiles at you innocently, but his eyes are calculating. He plays innocent, used to people underestimating him before he strikes.

Then your eyes turn to the smallest of Jason’s brothers, the current Robin, who has yet to say anything. He just continues to sharpen one of his many swords while watching you, and smirks when your eyes lock. You can’t help but wonder if he’s ever trained with a trident.

Superman clears his throat, drawing everyone’s attention back to the center table, “Back to the reason we’re all here … We’ve received word that your half-brother is planning to start a war, and we need to help us stop it”

“Orm is always trying to usurp Arthur and take back the Atlantean throne, this isn’t anything new. Unfortunately, he’s … exceedingly difficult to capture because several of our people are still loyal to him, and Mother does not want him killed.” You sit down next to Arthur and Batman, quickly scanning over the notes they have about Orm’s forces.

Batman turns slightly to face you, “He isn’t just planning to attack Atlantis this time. He plans to start a war between the Atlanteans and Amazons that will wipe out most of the human race. He managed to hack our servers with the help of Black Manta and found the file for when Flash went to an alternate timeline where Amazons and Atlanteans were at war, destroying both themselves and us. The only way to stop this war from happening is to work together”

Nodding along, you continue to read the list of possible plans that the Justice League have written out, “Mmhmm. So looking at these, our little brother was planning to kill Queen Hippolyta and blame it on our people, causing your people -” You gesture across the table at Wonder Woman, “- to retaliate and kill Queen Mera, thus causing a huge war. And let me guess, he would ride in, or I guess swim in, with his little army and turn the tides of the war causing the Atlanteans to be victorious. All of our people would hail him a savior, Arthur would be booted off the throne, and Orm would once again rule all the oceans as Ocean Master, but this time he would have control of the land as well”

Flash nods along, quickly demolishing 6 more hotdogs as you talk, “Yeah, that’s pretty much what’s gonna happen if we don’t do anything! You’re really good at this”

Jason leans over the back of your chair, “So, sweetheart, you got any ideas on how to stop the end of the world from happening?” One side of his mouth curls up in a handsome smirk, “’Cause, if the world’s at war, then we can’t go on our date”

Arthur’s hand tightens on his trident, “Watch it, brat. I’ll skewer you and feed you to the Karathen”

“I don’t need you to defend my honor, fish-brains, I can take care of myself” You wink up at Jason before turning back to everyone else, “As for an attack strategy, Arthur and I will go down to Atlantis and convince the War Council to mobilize our forces. We’ll set up a perimeter in Themysciran waters, that way when Orm arrives we can meet him head on -”

“Only women are allowed on Themyscira, we do not allow men to freely roam our island” Wonder Woman’s eyes lock on Arthur, “Not even kings”

You nod, “That’s perfectly fine. If you want, only our female soldiers will get close to your islands’ borders, the men can be kept further away. Queen Mera and I will need to talk you’re your queen and general about the upcoming battle, I can show you the places to attack on Atlantean armor.”

“Very well. My mother will be much more … amiable to your plans if the men stay away” Wonder Woman extends her hand towards you, “I am Princess Diana of Themyscira, you may call me Diana. Once you have met with your people, I will be the one guiding you”

“It’s nice to meet you, sorry my little brothers a little - ” You swirl your finger by your temple, “- crazy”. You and Diana spend the next few minutes discussing the layout of Themyscira, the entire time you’re completely aware of Jason still leaning on the back of your chair having a hushed conversation with his brothers.

“Okay, now that everyone knows how beautiful the island is, are we ready to talk about weapons?”

Batman’s eyes flash up to his son, “Jason -”

“I’m serious! If we base Amazon fighting technique on Diana, then they predominantly use swords or something similar, shields, arrows, and hand-to-hand: mainly close range. But Atlanteans have the technology to fight at a distance, they have weapons that only need water to power them. Both Atlanteans and Amazons are equal in strength and speed, but if Orm manages to drive the fight to the water then it’ll be a massacre! Shit, he won’t even have to drive anyone to the water, plenty of Atlanteans are trained in magic and can bring the water to the fight!”

Everyone’s eyes are locked on Jason now, and you can’t help the slow smile that splits your face. Knowing that Jason, someone who’s physically attractive and who you’ve wanted to go on a date with for a long time, is smart enough to see flaws in a potential battle is ridiculously attractive. “Then tell me, Jay, how should we plan to overcome these flaws?”

Jason flushes pink, “I-I mean you guys are the battle experts, I don’t know everything -”

“Don’t sell yourself short, Littlewing! You’re the one who pointed out the flaws, you must have a way to fix them!” Nightwing gives his brother an encouraging pat on the shoulder, “Come on, tell us what you got”

“Okay. Well, Black Manta is human, right? So if he was able to figure out how to use Atlantean technology enough to build his own suit then we should be able to teach Diana’s people enough to shoot Atlantean guns. First we need to lay a trap though, get Orm and his fighters away from the water. They’ll be weaker, and easier to take down without easy access their main power source. Plus, only royals can breathe air, so if we can plan a stealth attack and expose the soldiers to air then they’ll be useless to Orm and his cause.” Arthur looks up at Jason in surprise, both at his knowledge of Atlantean physiology and of the possibility that his strategy could actually work.

“We’ll fine tune the plan once we know exactly how many soldiers and weapons we have available to us” You glance around the room, “Meet back here same time tomorrow with more information?”

Diana nods, “Yes, that should give me enough time to contact my mother” The Amazon stands without another word and leaves the meeting room.

“Thank you for meeting with us on such short notice, Y/N. I know you had other plans tonight” Batman stands as well, holding his hand out for a brief shake, before leaving with a swish of his cape.

The other heroes take Batman’s departure as a que and all stand to leave as well. Arthur grabs his trident from where is was leaning against the wall, “Alright, brat, looks like we’ll make it home in time to see Dad before bed”

“Wait, Y/N, before you go -” Jason scratches the back of his head lightly and clears his throat, out of the corner of your eye you can see Arthur walk over to talk to Superman, “- I know this wasn’t exactly the way our first in-person meeting was supposed to go, but you were amazing discussing battle strategies with Diana. And I was wondering if …”

“Will you go on a date with me?” You interrupt, the words coming unbidden from between your lips, “Like a real date, not one where there’s a bunch of other superheroes around and we’re trying to stop World War III. Not that you weren’t amazing -”

“Ugh, you guys are horrible at this” Red Robin just seems to appear at Jason’s elbow, “Hi, I’m Tim, Jason’s younger brother.”

“Replacement!”

“Don’t mind him, his time dead kind of stunted his emotional growth. He’d love to go on a date with you! Jason’s a total romantic at heart, so he’s the kind to pack a picnic and watch the sunset, you know? But if you aren’t into that I can schedule a dinner at the nicest restaurant in Gotham -”

“Drake, do you really think Todd would go to you for assistance if he needed to find a decent eatery? You survive off of granola bars and coffee. Besides, I have a much more refined palate, I will be assisting Todd in choosing his dates with the Atlantean” The smallest brother, the current Robin, sticks his nose up in the air with an amount of arrogance that you’ve only seen from people born and bred as royalty.

“Damian! We’ve talked about being mice to Tim! Why don’t we all help Littlewing with his date. I mean there are so many great places he can take her! There’s the pier, the aquarium -”

You snort, “Are those all water themed because I’m Atlantean?”

Jason groans, his hands raking through his hair, “Will you three go away? I don’t want to shoot you, but you’re starting to piss me off enough where I think that might be a good idea” The taller man turns back to you as his brothers make their way down the same hallways that Batman had gone down, “After meeting them I totally understand if you want to take back your offer for a date”

“Nah, they seem like fun” Jason raises an incredulous eyebrow, “To mess with that is, I mean that’s what siblings are for. And honestly Tim’s idea of a date was the one that sounded the best”

“The fancy dinner in Gotham?”

“No, no. I mean packing a picnic and watching the sunset. Picking out constellations, talking, getting to know each other more” You reach up and gently skim your fingertips across Jason’s strong jaw, “Maybe one on the beach, away from the city”

“When this whole war this is over, I’m taking you up on that, Y/N. You won’t be able to get rid of me” Jason pulls you into a brief hug before he starts backing toward the same hallway his brothers had gone down, “I’ll call you tomorrow morning when I get off patrol, alright?”

“Yeah, Jay. Talk to you in the morning”

The imminent future looks dark and full of bloodshed, but beyond that there’s hope. Hope for a future, hope to rebuild everything that will be lost, and hope for peace. Already you can feel your phone buzz with a mew message, and your brother nudges you playfully when you finally join him. There’s hope for the future, you just have to get to it.

———————————————————————————–

Let me know what you think! Send any ideas or requests you have to my Ask Box!

[flurrin]

Tales From Earthsea Revisited

My ideal adaptation that the Studio Ghibli film might have been going for, but ultimately got caught up in the Shuna no Tabi development/too many plot details/who knows what else. It’s not true to the plot of any one book, but I feel it explores the themes and heart of the stories.

Open on: In the waves, a lone ship is overwhelmed when their weatherworking wizard exclaims that they cannot remember the True Names of the waters. The crew was afraid of this happening--in all corners of the world the Power of Names is fading. Dragons clash in the sky above the struggling boat, brutally attacking each other, raining sparks and blood.

Prince Arren is on this boat.

In the chaos, he is swept overboard, into the sea, and as he struggles under the waves, he sees a figure: a man, upright as though walking in the depths, beckoning him. He swims to follow, and suddenly he's no longer in the water at all but in a sunless twilight, following a dry riverbed, the man leading him far away. Fade out.

Fade in: On a calm day in the same sea, Sparrowhawk is sailing his little boat Lookfar. He sees a body in the water and pulls alongside. There are other ships around but surely none close enough, because the body is unrotted but floating facedown, jewelry glinting over the nape of their neck. Sparrowhawk hauls Prince Arren out of the sea. He examines the boy and, finding yet life, uses magic to pull water from his lungs. Arren awakens, wide-eyed and terrified, scrambling before clinging to the rocking boat.

Sparrowhawk takes them ashore. Prince Arren has been missing for several days. Sparrowhawk knows who he is by the finery on him, but doesn't see how it's possible he survived alone. "Where were you?" he asks. "I don't know," Arren says. "A dry land." He seems in a daze, unable to remember whatever dream he was in. He gazes out at the horizon in fear. Sparrowhawk offers to let him come along on his mission to discover this deadening of Names. Arren knows of Sparrowhawk--he was sent to find him for this purpose. It is said in his kingdom that the Archmage had once brought someone back from death, which Sparrowhawk insists is untrue, despite Arren’s interest in the story.

They go to a local town to help a former wizard named Hare, but the man is crazed. He calls Sparrowhawk a “man of power”, having lost the words to say “wizard” or speak of magic at all, and tells him there is another they must seek, and they’ll only find that man if they come again after nightfall.

Arren is tempted by dealers outside the house to try a drug, Hazia, that will rid him of fear. Sparrowhawk stops this transaction by pointing out that Hazia is highly addictive and causes one's soul to leave their body and go wandering, a concept that terrifies Arren.

In town, they also meet Akaren, a similarly crazed girl who is being exploited after her True Name was made known to all. To help her, Sparrowhawk does a terrible and wonderful thing: he takes her true name away entirely, and she is left blank and must make a new life of her own.

Moving on to the marketplace, they hear gossip about a dark wizard who promises immortality to his followers.

That night they go again to help Hare, but when Hare overdoses on Hazia and brings Sparrowhawk into a walking dream with him, Arren, who is supposed to guard the door, is pulled in too. It’s the same twilight world. He sees the specter again, who talks to him briefly about meeting at the edge of the world, and says he bears the name "Cob". Arren feels like someone is following him and he moves faster through the dream, only for the pursuer to speed up as well. When he is at last caught, he realizes it’s Sparrowhawk, and Sparrowhawk realizes he’s been following Arren and not Hare, just as they are attacked in the real world.

The nameless girl reappears, saving them by scaring off the attackers and allowing them to return to their bodies. Hare is dead on the floor already from his addiction, and the sight of his body makes Arren sick with fear.

The girl helps to lead them both, still dazed, to Lookfar, and together they set sail for the the end of the world, where the specter promised to meet them. Sparrowhawk talks a little to Arren about his dreamwalking: he is going to a real place, the place beyond life. Cob is the dark wizard they have been hearing of, and his interference in this deathly plane is what’s causing the power of names to break down.

Arren is afraid of death. Cob has given him undying life, which is why he did not drown at sea, but Arren was ripped in half by the gift, with his shadow, this story’s version of the gebbeth, taken from him.

As they sail, dragons fight overhead. Sparrowhawk tells, in a great rage, that the dragons can only speak in the language of True Names, and all the true names have gone from their tongues, and now all they can do is fight. One of the great beasts that Sparrowhawk recognizes, Orm Embarr, plunges into the sea, badly wounded. It sees the little boat, sees Sparrowhawk, swims close, and roars at him. It understands Sparrowhawk well enough to lead him to the wizard responsible for all this, Cob, in a fortress of dragonbone. Orm drags himself onto shore and lies there as though dead.

As they enter the castle, Cob draws them into the haze. The girl follows their bodies in the real world, staying hidden. Cob leads them to sleepwalk up stair after stair until at least they reach a high balcony, where Cob explains his madness, his lust for unending life to them, and boasts to Sparrowhawk.

The girl comes out of hiding and pushes Cob off to the shore below, where he lands right in front of the dragon. Orm Embarr destroys Cob's body with the last of his strength, but the physical remains are unable yet to die, and though now mad and senseless, he's still keeping Arren and Sparrowhawk trapped in the haze.

The gebbeth emerges from Cob's shadowy remains, and the girl has to defend Arren and Ged's bodies on the balcony.

In the dry land, Sparrowhawk gives up his power in order to set the balance right and restore the stolen shadows of death, but once the breach is closed and Cob is truly dead, Sparrowhawk and Arren return to their bodies, but the gebbeth waits in the real world.

Sparrowhawk doesn’t know the true name of the shadow because he gave up the language, and the girl says it's not nameless, she knows what it is to be a nameless being--then she asks Arren who HE is, and he realizes it shares his True Name, and in naming it with his own name, he accepts the shadow as part of himself. He accepts death will one day come.

With the evil defeated, language has been restored to the dragons, who find them on the shore and allow them to ride home: a prince, a dragonlord, and a girl who has earned a new name. The end.

Main changes: We meet Prince Arren sooner and follow him from the beginning. The emphasis is put on the world-ending consequences of Cob’s misuse of magic and they are actually dealt with by the end. Therru’s story doesn’t have the time to be told here, so we include her by fleshing out a different character from The Farthest Shore, and giving her a much more active role (she doesn’t have to be an action hero, but she does have to act, so her main actions in the plot are to disrupt the scene at Hare’s house enough to wake them and then to harm Cob’s thrall over them, as a nonmagic, nameless, unaffected being). Mortality is addressed earlier on in the narrative with Arren’s mysterious non-death and Hare’s overdose. The message about life and death is supported by having examples we can point to of what an immortal life leads to, both in Arren and his unending fear, and Cob in his rot and evil. Also, more sailing.

[silence-burns]

I'd drown you in a spoon //part 3

Fandom: Aquaman/DC

Summary: “Imagine Arthur bringing you Orm as a safe place before his trial.” by @thefandomimagine

Coming out of the room after changing his clothes, Orm expected you gone. He found you in a spacious living room, one side of which was made entirely of glass.

It  brought the last bits of light inside and showed a perfectly shaped coast and the sea, shimmering in the sunset. Orm admitted it looked peaceful, but it was still nothing compared to the view from his tower back in Atlantis. There, he could overlook the bigger part of the whole city, with its colorful, harmonized buildings and the range of sea creatures mixing harmlessly with the Atlanteans. Here, on the surface, there was just this emptiness and rubbish behind the glass.

“Whisky or vodka?” you asked over the counter that divided the living room from a small kitchen.

Orm gave you a blank stare.

“Okay, tea it is,” you shrugged, pouring yourself some more.

You started the kettle and begun rummaging through the rest of the shelves. The alcohol was easy to find, just like some snacks, but there was still a lot to discover.

“You sure you don't want some whisky? Bruce always buys the best,” you asked hopefully, crouching under the counter. You found a few empty tea boxes, collecting dust and sheltering a few spiders.

Orm looked around the room and after a moment of hesitation sat on a stool by the counter. He wasn't used to wearing human clothes, missing the familiar weight of his armor, he contemplated retrieving his armor from the other room. The fabric was not much to his liking, it was nowhere near as soft or strong as he was used to. He sighed.

“Is it a surface custom to drink so late and without a reason?”

“Only among the alcoholics.”

“I'm not an alcoholic,” Orm stated slowly, frowning.

“But my part of ‘us’ is.”

You appeared behind the counter again, victoriously holding an unopened box. You blew the dust off. You fished a fairly clean cup out of a cupboard and poured the water in. The tea you found seemed to be fruit-flavored. Orm seemed like a guy who'd rather appreciate some classic green tea, but he'd have to find it himself.

The radio in the background filled the air with some calm, slow music. It was a good idea to turn it on. Orm didn't seem overly talkative unless something interested him, and that could pose an awkward problem for a while.

Once again, you cursed Arthur and his dumb ideas. You weren't even sure what to talk about with this guy, which topics would be too painful or uncomfortable to use. You truly were a disastrous person to ask this favor of. Arthur should have known better.

“So, what are your plans now?” you asked, sipping your drink. “Besides, of course, sitting there all gloomy and scary.”

“I'm not doing that. Also, please don't pour any more alcohol into my tea, I already told you I'm not interested in drinking today,” Orm watched your hands. He took the cup from you, but didn't drink it.

“So, what you're saying is, we can do it tomorrow.”

“No.”

“Why not? You got any better plans?” you sat in front of him, curiosity evident in your voice.

Orm decided not to answer. He was already puzzled - on the one hand, you were clearly questioning him, which was something he didn't accept even in his own court, but on the other hand, you acted so casual about it, like you didn't have any trap planned behind it. Politics made him wary of people's intentions, but it also made him hesitant in what seemed to be a harmless conversation.

“At least you finally get to have some vacation. It must be nice to finally rest, without anyone bothering you.”

Careful, you reminded yourself, watching his expression grow suspicious.

“My time here depends mostly on you,” Orm finally admitted. It made him uneasy to address you without any titles, but as far as he was concerned, you didn't hold any.

“That's true I think, but you know, I'm not gonna force you to do anything, I'm not your guardian. You are a free man on the surface. I wouldn't advise you to leave the house without me though, but the choice is yours.”

“I'm very far from being a free man,” he let out a dry laugh, fixing his hands on the cup as if he didn't want you to see them fidget. “Not after what I've done both here and to my own home.”

“Maybe, but it's not like you didn't have a good reason. Skipping the parley and meetings with our leaders and going straight to war might not be the best idea, but overall you had a good point.”

Surprise showed on his face. It was the first emotion he let so clearly out from under his stoic mask. He looked younger when he did so.

Orm needed to make sure he heard you right, “You agree to that, despite living on the surface? Are you mad?”

You decided not to take offense.

“No, no, no. The war part is bad. But forcing responsibility for people's actions back onto them was a good one. I mean, everybody knows we've been polluting and damaging the seas for decades, but no one wanted to fix it properly. Throwing all the trash back onto the land could actually change that. Orm, don't look at me like that.”

“I'm sorry.”

He dropped his gaze onto the steaming tea. The way you spoke about the recent events, so easily and calmly, unsettled him. Ever since his defeat to Arthur, all Orm could hear were angry accusations and depreciation. He was so used to it by then, that hearing a completely opposite reaction felt like such an abstract concept.

“I'm sorry,” you broke the silence. “I shouldn't have talked about that. I guess I'm just tired after the whole day of driving here. If you'll excuse me, I'll go and get some rest. We can talk in the morning if you want.”

“Of course,” Orm nodded.

“The bathroom is behind that door, and if you get hungry, I've put some food in the fridge. Good night, Orm,” you smiled before heading upstairs.

“Good night.”

The house grew silent soon. Slow, dreamy radio music still played from the corner of the living room, so different from what he was used to.

Sitting alone, Orm appreciated the space you gave him. It’d been a long day for him too, and he had a lot to settle in his head.

The sea behind the window darkened when the moonless night came. For the first time in his life, he didn't hear its gentle call.

tagging awesome peeps:

@ninjathrowingstork @ancientgaylien @jacelynenursalim @capitanostella @lifeaccordingtojenna @lone-loba @damiminator @ijustreallycant @megmeg-chan @weakling-grace @iamthekingofsass @frozenhuntress67 @drakonwild @jacelynenursalim @spacegay-s @lotus-39 @purpstraw

A/N: I’m so happy with how much love this series is receiving! I’ve never thought it may be so loved! Thank you so much, guys! I hope you’ll enjoy the next parts too! <3

[riseatlantisss]

Hello hun ! Are you taking requests ?? I don't even know if you write for him but if you do, could I request a fluffy Orm x Surface dweller like, the story of how they met ? They fall in love and he manages to take her to Atlantis somehow ??? Thank you, love your work !

Hey nonny, thank you so much for the kind words ! And, uuuuh, do I write for King Orm???? Have you seen my content lately????? This shithead literally took over my whole life???? I love him more than anything??????

Anyway, this is what I came up with, I hope you like it I know it’s very cheesy but what can I say I am a hoe for soft Orm. Also, English isn’t my first language, please excuse the mistakes.

- Everyone has the ability to change for the better: That is what Orm taught Atlantis; and that’s what you taught Orm.

Ever since Arthur ascended to the throne of Atlantis, the great underwater city had quickly been regaining its past glory.

Arthur trusted Orm to rule beside him, but he knew that his brother still despised the Surface dwellers – no matter how much Arthur wanted to change that. He took Orm to the Surface several times and tried to make him realize the beauty of it… to no avail.

“Surface dwellers are destructive. They are destroying their world and if we aren’t careful, they will ruin our oceans too. Arthur, I swear to Poseidon, if they do not start taking better care of their environment, I will have no choice but to take matters into my own hands.”

“Yeah and we both know how that’s gonna end, brother. Just try to understand them; they’re not all bad. Some might even… surprise you – if you let them.”

Orm tried to make an effort for his family, but he stood firm on his position –until he met you.

He would mostly come to the Surface late at night and usually didn’t get further than the beach. Despite what his brother had advised him, he wanted to avoid contact with Surface dwellers as much as possible. Usually, he just took a long walk on the beach, watching the city lights from afar, trying to adjust to the salty air in his lungs.

But this night, something was different. This night, he was not alone on that beach.  

You were walking on the beach and carrying a trash bag for discarded or washed-up rubbish. It was more peaceful to do at night. It felt rewarding to clean the day’s mess, and at this hour, you were less likely to come across someone else. Or so you thought...

What is that guy doing in the water? It must be freezing! you thought.

“Is... Is everything ok?” You asked him.

Orm didn’t know how to interact with Surface dwellers. He had met Thomas once or twice, but he never particularly warmed to him. Still, he knew that a strange man standing waist-deep in the sea at night would be an unsettling sight for anyone.

He slowly approached you. “I’m fine, don’t worry. I was just, uh, taking a walk.”

The moonlight was shining down on his pale skin, enabling you to get a good look at this stranger and his gorgeous blue eyes. You could easily have been frightened by his imposing figure, but there was something fascinating about him.

At first, he didn’t seem to believe you when you explained what you were doing at the beach. A Surface dweller that wasn’t a complete unworthy idiot was unthinkable. But the more you talked to him, the more he seemed to open up to you.

“Hey, would you like to help me?” you asked him after a while.

And that was how everything began. This soon became a habit. Every night he would be waiting for you at this exact same spot, where you went on to spend hours talking and cleaning the beach.

It didn’t take you long to figure out where he came from. It didn’t change a thing for you.

He kissed you for the first time on that beach, just before diving under the waves to go back to Atlantis. You had leaned towards him and gently kissed him on the cheek to say goodbye. It was the first time you had seen him blush. At that moment, the mighty Ocean Master turned to a shy little teenager right before your eyes, but he soon regained confidence. He wrapped his arms around your back and slid his hands down your spine, pulling you closer to him. He looked deep into your eyes before crashing his lips against yours, letting you taste the salt on his lips. You had never known how badly you needed his lips on yours until the moment he actually kissed you. He kissed you with such passion and heat that it was almost surprising that his element was water, and not fire.

Around you, Orm tried to act like a normal guy, but deep down he was still true to his nature and would lose his temper every time he saw someone litter.

“I swear to King Atlan, if you do not immediately pick up the garbage you just discarded I will release the wrath of the Seven Seas on your miserable existence.”

And people, seeing that spark of fury in his eyes, obliged.

Even though your two worlds were at peace, you both found it very hard not to be able to see each other more often. Orm finally understood what his mother had felt when she had to leave Thomas, and he sensed that it was even harder for you not being able to follow him in his realm. He could tell that made you incredibly sad, and he couldn’t stand it.

And so one day he decided to change everything.

“You know, Atlantis is dying to meet their future Queen.” He had that mischievous look in his eye that you’d come to love. The word ‘Queen’ sent a shiver down your spine but you quickly brought him back to reality.

“You do know that I can’t breathe underwater, right?” you scoffed.

“I have something to show you, my love,” he grinned.

Orm had designed a suit with a limited supply of air especially for you, using Atlantean technologies. You were so happy that you jumped into his arms.

Once in the suit, you held tightly to his shoulders as he led you deep into the ocean and into his realm. You were simply in awe. Orm had told you almost everything there was to know about Atlantis, but you never thought it would be that breathtaking. It felt like a dream.

He was really proud to introduce you to everybody, but still he was worried about you and never left your side.

“Can you breathe okay?” “Are you feeling tired?” “Do you have any pain?” He wouldn’t let go of your hand the whole night.

Arthur, Mera and Atlanna were delighted to finally meet you, and Atlanna greeted you by saying “We are honored to welcome you in our family, Y/N!”

Arthur confessed to you that he was indefinitely grateful that you managed to show Orm there was more to the surface than greed and pollution. You respectfully thanked him, but said you were the one who was grateful, because Orm had brought you something far more important: Love and family.

“My Queen, it is time to go home now,” he said as the sun began to rise. “You have already been underwater for too long.”

“This isn’t fair. I want to stay here with you, Orm. It aches me to be apart from you so much.” You didn’t care about the fact that your body had slowly begun to feel numb due to the pressure of the ocean, or that your breathing had started to fall short. You felt like you belong here, more than you ever did on the surface, next to the man you loved.

He took your arms and gently placed them around his shoulders. “Trust me sweetheart, there is nothing I would love more than keeping you here by my side: But I can’t expose your body to such risks.” Seeing the sadness fill your eyes, Orm lifted your chin up and whispered “You are the Queen of Atlantis, my love. This is just a goodbye.”

You wrapped your arms around him and he rushed towards the surface at what felt like light speed to you.

Once on the beach, he helped you out of the suit and, after making sure you were ok, held you in his arms.

“I will be back for you in no time, my love”

Getting back to the reality of your surface dwelling life would be harder after this, but you knew Orm valued your safety above all else, and that he did everything he could to spend more time with you.

He even told you he wanted to come live with you on the surface for good, because he missed you so much. He asked his brother who already gave him his blessing. But you wouldn’t allow it.

“You are an Atlantean King. It wouldn’t be right if you changed who you are for me. We don’t need to choose between our worlds, Orm,” you breathed as he held you close, looking at you like you were the most beautiful thing he had ever laid eyes on.

“At land, or at sea, I will always be yours, my Princess.”

[heroicadventurists]

Top 10 Moments from Young Justice Outsiders episodes 7-9 **SPOILERS**

So much stuff happened in these 3 episodes, I had to create an honorable mention category

Honorable Mentions

-Nabu is Vandal’s son.

This was an interesting twist. Nabu is a powerful, magical spirit that controls Doctor Fate and takes over the mind of whoever wears the Helmet of Fate.  Nabu is currently in control of Zatanna’s Father, Zatara.

-Hot Lava

During a beach training sequence, Nightwing told Brion, Halo and Forager to come up with their Nom De Guerre (war name).  Brion came up with the name Hot Lava and I love him for it.

-Nightwing

Nightwing was soooo dramatically funny in episode 7.  From being EXTRA when telling the team to pick out their Nom De Guerre, and picking on Artemis about her stripper code name Tigress; Dick reminded us why we love him so much.

-Orphan slices Tetch/Clayface

In episode 8 we are introduced to Robin’s team consisting of Spoiler, Orphan and Arrowette.  They are tailing Jervis Tetch to get some intel on the meta-human trafficking ring.  Spoiler notices that something is off with Tetch and Robin points out that he is drinking a lot of water.  They notice clay in the bottom of one of his discarded water bottles.  Before Robin can say when, Orphan is gone and we get a shot of her slicing Tetch right down the middle of his body to reveal Clayface.  That’s a boss way to make your animated appearance.

10. Stephanie

I never had that much of an opinion on Stephanie Brown. I never read her Batgirl or Robin run; and  her role hasn’t been significant in the latest Detective run.  After her YJ debut, I am a new fan.  She was a good teammate and quick thinking on her feet.  If it wasn’t for her, they wouldn’t have found Jervis Tetch’s base of operations.  While Tetch was unfortunately able to escape, they put an end to his experiments, obtained valuable intel and freed several criminals from Tetch’s mind control.  I am definitely open to her becoming Robin (if Tim becomes Red Robin first) and/or Batgirl in YJ if she continues to operate at this level of efficiency. Also Cassie better watch out.  Tim was clearly impressed by her.                     

9. Victor Stone

Victor a.k.a Cyborg got a cool shout out, setting up his YJ debut.  During football highlights, Victor was mentioned on a radio program.  Victor was a promising football player until an accident cut his career short, leading him to become Cyborg.  Cyborg is a long time member of the Teen Titans and Justice League. 

8. Babies R Us

I loved this scene so much.  In episode 9, we saw the future of the superhero community as Will Harper, Iris West-Allen, Lois Lane, Mera, Raquel Ervin (Rocket), John Smith (Red Tornado), Lynn Stewart and Karen Beecher-Duncan (Bumblebee) gathered for the most exclusive play date in history.  We have seen the following babies this season: Lian Harper, Don & Dawn West-Allen, Jon Kent, Arthur Curry Jr, Anissa & Jennifer Pierce, Damian Wayne, Amistad Ervin and Traya Sutton.  The Universe will be in good hands with these Superbabies.

7. Tim

What an upgrade.  In season 2 of YJ, Tim was leading the Beta team.  Now in season 3, he has his own unit and is standing alongside Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Nightwing, Oracle and Miss Martian as the Anti-Light.  It’s good to see characters be elevated into higher positions this season.

6. Lobo

The Light hired Lobo to kill Forager in order to obtain intel on Nightwing’s new team.  Nightwing’s team gave everything they had to defeat Lobo but ultimately could not stop him.  It took Forager tricking Lobo into thinking he killed him for the fight to be over.  While Lobo ultimately failed, he gave The Light the intel they needed on Nightwing.  And Lobo left a finger behind, so that will probably be important in future seasons. 

5. Shiva beheads Prince Orm

During the ultimate playdate, a man watched the festivities from a house across the street.  We learn that it was Prince Orm (King Arthur’s brother) who wanted to exact revenge against the Superhero community by killing their offspring.  Suddenly SHIVA appears on behalf of The Light and encourages Orm to stand down.  After he refuses, Shiva beheads Orm. As quickly as she appears, the crime scene is cleaned up and the heroes across the street are none the wiser.  Orm’s death so early in the season is dumbfounding.  Do not cross The Light.  Even if you are amongst their ranks, you are disposable.

4. Vandal kills Olympia

The story of Vandal Savage (as told by his companions Olympia and his daughter Cassandra) took up the majority of episode 7.  Throughout the episode, it appeared that Olympia was suffering from dementia, as she kept asking Cassandra the same questions over and over.  Even thru her forgetfulness, she constantly displayed her admiration and love for Vandal.  At the end of the episode, Vandal snapped Olympia’s neck; in what could be considered a mercy killing.  After her death, we learn that Olympia was Vandal’s daughter.  This was a sad turn of events as Olympia clearly adored Vandal; he killed her in front of her sister Cassandra; and Vandal clearly loved Olympia.  This was the highlight of the Vandal story.   

3. Granny Goodness

Throughout the season, we have seen people wearing virtual reality Goode Googles. We learn that these googles are actually made by Granny Goodness. Obviously something is going to happen to whoever wears the googles.  So far this season, Garfield (Beast Boy) and Barbara (Oracle) have donned these googles.

2. 6 Teams

Surprise, Surprise.  Batman didn’t abandon the League after all.  In this episode we learn that six teams have been working undercover to fight the Light.  These teams are being led by Aquaman (Kaldur’ahm), Wonder Woman (Diana of Themyscira), Batman (Bruce Wayne), Nightwing & Oracle (Dick Grayson & Barbara Gordon), Robin (Tim Drake) and Miss Martian (M’gann M’orzz).  While they are affective in their objectives, Wonder Woman has serious doubts about lying to their respective teams.  When questioned if they would lie on the stand, the Bats were stoic while Aquaman and Miss Martian exchanged nervous glances.  Let’s be real, the Bats are the best liars in the game.  She has nothing to worry about.

1. Step Into The Light

We finally know who is in The Light and their objective.  The Light includes Vandal Savage, Lex Luthor, Klarion, Granny Goodness, Deathstroke, Queen Bee and Ultra-Humanite.  The Light is aware of Dick’s off the books team consisting of Black Lightning, Tigress, Superboy, Brion, Halo & Forager.  We also learn that Vandal and Darkseid made a pact to help each other take over the Galaxy.  Once they have control over everything, there would be a final battle between Earth and Apokolips.  The Light was assembled to battle Darkseid when that moment arrives.  The Meta-Human trafficking is to prepare for that final battle. 

What were your favorite moments in episodes 7-9

[malicerewatchesdoctorwho]

The Underwater Menace - Episode Two

Written by – Geoffrey Orme Director – Julia Smith Producer – Innes Lloyd

Episode Two

(“Just one small question.  Why do you want to blow up the world?” – The Doctor to Zaroff about his plans.)

Likes

- I actually liked the priest, whose name is Ramo, in this episode.  He is a man who can think outside his otherwise small POV to see the bigger picture.  He thinks and observes, not just blindly accepts.  Nice.

- Ara helping Polly because she can tell Polly is a nice person.  Helping the Doctor talk to Ramo and giving them all food and clothing.  She’s a nice girl.

- A POC who has a pretty big role that has quite a bit of speaking involved.  That’s always nice to see.

- Polly having enough sense to keep quiet most of the time and hiding to keep out of the guards arms and therefore not turned into a fish for cheap labour.

- Ben and Jacko helping Jamie from where he slipped down the wall.  Nice bit of team work there. 

- How utterly mad Zaroff is.  He may be the bad guy and is quite obvious about it, but he is just so much fun.

- The Doctor and his absolute love of dressing up in costumes, especially if they have an elaborate hat going on.  He is probably enjoying this so much.

Dislikes

- I’m not too fond of Sean.  He seems pretty shifty to me.  I have no idea why I think that.  I just don’t like him I suppose.  Maybe it is him deciding to go off on his own while Jacko and Ben go to fetch Jamie...

- How small Atlantis is. Is the entire thing under this one volcano?  I expected it to be bigger.  It’s a city, not a village.

Awesome

- The constant sound of experiments and equipment in the lab. That’s a nice bit of sound effect going on there, like the beach in the first episode.  You don’t need music if you have sound effects in this show.

- The set of the temple. I really like that creepy idol of their god.  That’s nice.

- The caves in this one are, again, quite good.  This one is a hit for them.  I expect the caves will miss next time we see them, lol.

- The model of the city being risen by the water level lowering.  Just...lol  Nice.

- I really like the hats the women of Atlantis wear.  Look at Ara’s hat?  Just...I really like it and now Polly has one too.

- Okay, now I can see the priest hats properly, I actually really like them.  So Ramo’s hat is like a shell with tendrils, while the Doctor’s looks like a lionfish.

Shitty

- The noise of the drills or other equipment used in the mines.  It’s there whenever the workers are working in the mines and it is a terrible sound to my poor ears.

- It might sound a bit silly, but the guards’ outfits are horrible to me.  They’re just so plain while all the other uniforms and costumes are either normal clothes or elaborate dresses/robes. 

- Also, I thought Zaroff was supposed to have a pet octopus?  That is a lionfish, not an octopus.

In Conclusion

Maybe it is because this episode is in full motion, but I enjoyed it quite a bit.

I liked Ben and Jamie meeting up with Sean and Jacko and splitting up in two groups of two to find the best way to go and finding a secret passage into the temple.  Good teamwork going there.

I like Polly not being an idiot and keeping herself out of harm’s way by being quiet and hiding.

I love the Doctor being one to put on a demonstration of what Zaroff is doing for Ramo.  That was a nice little science thing to show the kiddies at home.  That pot so went boom.

I like how utterly mad the plot is, because mad scientist.  I think this is the first mad scientist story this show has actually truly done.

This episode is a huge improvement from the first one.  I look forward to the rest of this story now. 

Body count – 0 again. Wow, there is suddenly a lot of episodes with little or no body count!  That’s nice. 

[annoyedfanfiction]

Arthur Curry x Kryptonian!Amazon!reader (2)

Aquaman spoilers. I forgot to warn for justice league spoilers but hey, it’s too late now sorry guys.

“No eternal napping,” Arthur interrupted, offering a hand to you, where you had flopped against the wall. “You and I have some words to exchange with a certain two queens, I believe.” You groaned, flopping your head back against the crumbling wall, but taking his hand anyway. “Remember the part about literally starting an entire war?” you questioned, as you all loaded yourselves into the jet. “A war between Atlanta and Themyscira could end both civilisations,” Diana pointed out, instantly. “Neither side could win a conflict like that without devastating losses, and it would require us to take sides.” “Atlanta will not go to war against Themyscira,” Arthur promised, calmly. “I will not allow it.” “Because your half-brother is well known for listening to you,” you commented, sarcastically. Arthur rolled his eyes, and leaned back, smirking.

“I am king now.” Every head turned to him. “Dude, like, actual King? Were we meant to be calling you “Your Majesty”?” Barry quizzed, immediately. “Have we all technically committed treason against the Atlantean throne?” “No! No!” Arthur panicked, grabbing the boy by the shoulders as he freaked out. “I don’t want to be called your Majesty, that’s the most uptight fucking thing. It’s all fine.” “So, what, Orm is dead?” you queried, furrowing your brows. “That doesn’t sound like you.” “He was imprisoned, briefly, but now he is acting as...co-regent and advisor,” Arthur admitted, scratching the back of his neck. “So you’re king in title, but you let your bro do it?” Barry clarified, scrunching up his face, “Why? You rule an entire kingdom but you let someone else do it for you?” “The amount of time, energy, and pandering to beuro-aristocrats that goes into leading an army, let alone a kingdom, is unholy, Barry,” you answered, closing your eyes as though the memory physically pained you. Diana rolled her eyes at your dramatics, as Arthur agreed. “Orm enjoys that bullshit,” he chuckled, easily. “I do not. He and Mera report back on everything, I can make and reverse any major decisions. I attend council once a month, and hold court for the people once a fortnight.”

“Princess Mera is your regent?” The question tasted bitter on your tongue, and you tried to ignore the pang of jealousy. “Regent, friend, and ally,” Arthur answered, looking over you in amusement. “She and Vulko helped me take the throne, and we grew close.” “Then there is no need for a meeting with Hippolyta and Atlanna,” you smiled, as though it relieved you. “Princess Mera will be a popular choice for Queen of Atlanta.” “Did you miss the part about ‘friend’?” Arthur sassed back, raising an eyebrow. “Not just any friend becomes regent,” Diana answered for you, as you glowered back at the smirking king. “We are good friends, and she is a wise diplomatic instalment as regent,” he responded, calmly, “I needed someone I could truly trust to work with Orm. I think you would like her, she’s got a similar...fire.” “Last time I saw Mera, I hadn’t even met you, and she was just a baby in Vulko’s arms,” you smiled, thoughtfully. “I should like to see the woman she has grown into.” The jet swept to a stop in Bruce’s familiarly dim Bat-Cave, and you all stood as the doors opened.

“Alfred!” you exclaimed, immediately, as the grey-haired man stood by the door. He looked up at you, in surprise, and his face split into a smile. “Miss (Y/L/N),” he greeted, politely, as you pulled him into a hug. “Come, Alfred, death has not had such an effect that I do not remember our friendship,” you assured him, feeling him relax into the hug. “It is a relief to see you back, (Y/N),” he admitted, smiling. “I don’t suppose death caused a forgiveness for Bruce’s...lapse of judgement?” “No, but I think he has suffered enough for it,” you murmured, eyeing Bruce off as he descended from the jet. “I will let it rest.” You felt Alfred breathe a sigh of relief, and then heard his groan of exasperation as footsteps clattered into the cave. “B!” You recognised Dick Grayson’s worried voice, as the mob of children, black-haired boys surrounding Steph and Cass, swamped into sight. “Father, I am pleased to see you home safely,” Damian Wayne intoned, approaching placidly behind his brothers. “Wait, wait, is that–(Y/N)!” Jason burst out of the huddle, and sprang onto you. “I thought you were dead! And then Bruce was bringing back Clark and I was all, what about you, and he was like, we can only do one, and I was all, fuck you then.” You chuckled, embracing the tall boy/young-man in front of you. “I appreciate the concern, Hubcaps.” You reached up and ruffled his hair, with a grin. “It seems the gods weren’t the happiest about ~the end of woooorlds~. Have you met Victor? He’s just as done with the world as you are, and I need to introduce him and Barry to Tim.” “I heard my name.” Tim popped up beside you, dark circles under his eyes, but hyper-vigilant as always. “Barry! Victor!” You waved the two boys over from where they had been standing, awkwardly, in the midst of the scene, beside Arthur, as Diana conversed with Alfred and you and Bruce waded through the sea of children. “Barry, Victor, this is Jason Todd, and Tim Drake. Jason, Tim, Barry Allen and Victor...” “Stone,” Victor offered, a little stiffly. “Victor Stone.” “Woah, you were meant to be dead,” Jason smiled, warmly. “Welcome to the resurrected club.”

so i definitely changed the timeline a bit let’s pretend Aquaman happened before Justice League and you can get back to Themyscira bc it is convenient for meeeeee soz

also sorry it’s short and reasonably actual-event-less but there is more to come i promise

@affabletimelady you wanted to be tagged? edit: also @zzeacat and @heckin-kat

[klbwriting]

Center of Two Worlds

Chapter 5: Finally Some Understanding

Fandom: DCEU

Pairing: Orm x female!Reader

Warnings: none

Summary: Arthur sent Y/N to hide with his father and mother at the lighthouse.  Orm volunteers to train her like an Atlantian.

Tags: @bookdragoneve @scuzmunkie @fangsweetpea @dulcerdzx

@downsideright @aggie-the-poet @weakling-grace

"You sent her where?!" Orm yelled at Arthur, jumping from his hospital bed and heading into the hall to find Y/N.  Arthur and Mera followed him.

"Arthur, I'm still confused why you are killing birds with stones," she said, trying to figure out what the saying meant.  Arthur sighed, not liking having both his brother and his girlfriend coming at him with questions.  He was a simple guy, being king and having more than one person in his family was going to drive him insane.

"Mera, its a saying meaning I can do two things at once, Orm chill dude," he said as Orm led them into the now empty room that Y/N had been in.  The ex-king rounded on the new king and glared.

"You sent her to stay with your father...on the surface?  Where Manta is from?  You remember that right?  You are an idiot," he said, shoving Arthur back several feet in anger.  Arthur just sighed.

"Ok, listen little bro..."

"Don't call me that."

"Ok fine, baby bro, Manta doesn't know she's half human, meaning he probably thinks she lives in Atlantis full time.  And if he ever did figure out there was an Atlantian living among humans he would go right for that place, sending her to stay with someone neither she nor Manta knows is safest.  Plus, mom and dad will be watching over her while she trains.  I do need to find a trainer for her though, Vulko will probably love to..." Arthur said, looking like he was in thought.  Orm shook his head.

"No!  I will train her," he said.  Like hell he was going to leave Y/N to train with Vulko, a formidable fighter but not as good as he was.  She deserved the best.  She was half-Atlantian after all, she should be trained as the noble she was.  

"You've never left the sea, you sure you can tolerate being among the lowly humans?" Arthur asked.  Orm glared.

"I am going to train her, she should be trained by the best," he insisted.  "I'll leave at once, where am I going?"

Y/N smiled as Atlanna sat down on the rocks next to her, watching the sunset and waves beat against the shore.  She appreciated that Arthur was keeping her safe and his father had so far been a wonderful host, giving her a nice room and hot tea as soon as she arrived but now that it was quiet, introductions were over, and she was nearly alone she found she missed Atlantis, missed the sights and sounds, and Orm.  She missed that arrogant prince more than anything. 

"Are you alright?" Atlanna asked, sipping her own tea.  "I'm sure you'll be returning to Atlantis soon, Arthur will find Manta and put a stop to his antics."  Y/N nodded.

"I know, I trust he will, but I still miss Or..Atlantis," she said, not ready to say out loud to his own mother that she missed him.   She knew instantly her slip up had been noticed, Atlanna was smiling knowingly.

"I'm sure he misses you too," the woman said softly.  They were distracted then by someone arriving on the dock, landing a little rough.  Y/N knew instantly who it was, standing quickly and heading down the rocks to the dock.  Atlanna followed a little slower, wanting to see what happened.  Y/N nearly ran down the dock but slowed up just a bit so she didn't seem too excited.

"What are you doing here?  On land?" Y/N asked, once again noticing the way Orm's hair sat outside of the water, looking mussed in the best way possible.  And now she also saw how the sun reflected off his blue eyes making them stand out even more and for a moment she felt she might fall over from a sudden weakness in the knees. 

"Arthur sent me, said he wanted you trained to fight like and Atlantian," he said.  He wasn't going to admit that he wanted to come.  Actually wanted to be on the surface as long as she was there.  He looked passed her to his mother a little further up the dock.  He also noticed a man approaching from the lighthouse, the man who must have been Arthur's father.  He felt a sudden anger rush over him.  This was the man that had taken his mother and almost erased his very existence. 

"Well, I guess I will have to thank him when I get back," she said.  "So I guess we need to get you a room."  He shook his head.

"No, we're going to train, best time to train in the water is at night, strengthens you eyesight," he said, making something up quick so he didn't have to confront Arthur's father yet.  Y/N frowned but shrugged.

"Well, guess I'm glad I didn't change clothes yet," she said.  She turned and waved at Atlanna and Tom before moving past Orm.  "Come on then."  She dove into the water and he followed.  She watched for his direction as he swam deeper into the ocean, then suddenly lost him as he surged forward in speed.  "Son of a bitch..." she muttered as she put on her speed to catch up.  She hit the bottom hard, bouncing actually and landing on her front, eyes adjusting to the deep water.  She sat up looking around.

"Well that was sad to watch," she heard Orm say from somewhere hidden.  "Always be aware of your surroundings."  She focused and heard movement behind her and was able to dodge just in time to avoid being hit by some seaweed.  "Well at least you knew that was going to happen."  She stood up and folded her arms looking at him. 

"I thought we were training me to avoid getting concussions?" she snarked at him.  He chuckled some and zoomed past her.  "No...not again."  She gave chase this time, keeping up better until he turned abruptly and headed back the way they came.  She growled and did the same, not expecting him to have stopped almost directly behind her.  They collided and toppled in the water, landing on the ocean floor with him next to her and her coughing up sand from the ground.  Orm rolled and hovered over her, worried that she may actually be hurt again. 

"Are you alright?" he asked, hand coming up to hold onto the back of her neck, cradling her head.  He looked down at her, the concern evident in his eyes.  She nodded slowly, unable to speak at the moment.  She swallowed hard and thought she would take a small chance and leaned up only a little bit.  Orm knew what was about to happen and he had to stop, he wasn't going to do this now, not after nearly breaking her back again.  He pulled back, bringing her to float a few feet off the seabed.  Suddenly the tension was thick, her confusion written on her face.  He tried to keep his face blank and think of what to do next.  He felt like he would rather meet his pseudo stepfather over talking to her right at the moment. 

"Orm..." she started but he cut her off.

"That's enough for today, don't want you to break a bone," he said before shooting back to the surface and heading up to lighthouse before she could get out of the water.

Y/N followed him, confused and a little hurt.  She had clearly been wrong about the feeling she got from him.  He no longer hated her but he most certainly was not feeling the way she was.  When he went inside Tom introduced himself and Orm just nodded slowly.

"Ya know, you look like you need to think, follow the stairs all the way up and take a few minutes to sort it out," Tom said.  Orm didn't argue, didn't even care to talk at the moment and just went up the stairs and out the door, coming to the top of the lighthouse, overlooking the sea.  He had to admit it was beautiful to see the ocean from this height, a completely new and awe-inspiring experience.  But he couldn't fully enjoy in, his head muddled with what almost happened below the depths just a few minutes ago.  He was so lost in his mind that he didn't hear Tom join him outside.

"What?" he asked, still annoyed that this man existed. 

"Atlanna tells me that you are conflicted at the moment, thought you could use someone to talk to," he said.  Orm scoffed.

"So she sent you?" he asked in disbelief.  What did his mother think he would gain from this?

"Yes she did, because I don't know you, and I just met that young woman in my living room and I already can tell that you two are entwined with each other," he said.  "And you seem to be having a tough time dealing with it.  I'm assuming its because she's not completely like you."  Orm finally looked at the man, noticing that his eyes were soft, not angry or accusatory like he'd thought they'd be.  Why didn't Tom hate him?  Hate his father and what he'd done to Atlanna and in turn hate him? 

"I..." Orm started.  What use was it now?  "I'm falling in love with her."  There now he had said it.  Now it was real.  "And I could have kissed her a few minutes ago...after almost shattering her spine in a collision I created.  I didn't think it was a good time."

"Sounds like a terrible time to kiss someone," Tom agreed.  "Hurt her feelings though, could see that when she came in.  Don't worry, if you're staying here to train her you'll get another chance, one that will leave a better memory behind for the two of you."  Orm nodded, actually feeling a little better, hopeful.  "Come on, its getting late and you need a room and probably some clothes."  Orm frowned looking at his Atlantian suit and then at Tom's worn clothing.  Would he really have to dress like that?  Tom chuckled, noticing the look on his face.  "We'll go shopping tomorrow, you and Y/N will need clothes." 

Y/N sat with Atlanna in her room, explaining what had happened.  It felt strange talking to Orm's mother about this but she didn't know who else to go to at the moment.  Atlanna listened quietly and then smiled.

"Would you really have wanted him to kiss you after nearly knocking you unconscious?" she asked.  Y/N sat in thought for a moment.

"No, not really," she said softly.  Atlanna nodded.

"Don't worry sweetheart, he will kiss you and I'm sure it will be under better circumstances," she said, standing and bidding Y/N goodnight. 

Both Y/N and Orm went to sleep that night imagining a much better circumstance in which to share a first actual kiss.