#move over kliff it's my turn

[four-loose-screws]

FE2 Novelization Translation - Chapter 3 Part 1

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Chapter 3 - To Zofia Castle

Part 1 - Rescuing Clair

On the main road that continues directly south from Zofia Castle, overlooking all the people and goods that travel it, lies the southern fort, half a day's walk away. Though it was called a fort, it had not actually been built for combat. The watchtower, which jutted out from the castle like the horn of a unicorn, felt as if it had been moved from elsewhere and attached to the building. The fort otherwise did not at all look like it was made for combat. It was built to exclusively serve as a central facility to train the Knights of Zofia, placed atop the coastal cliff to increase the amount of naval training the new recruits received.

When Desaix's coup-d'etat ended, he no longer had any need to maintain control over the fort. And with the Knights of Zofia utterly destroyed, it was of even less use to him. 

In fact one day ago, when Lukas was on his way to Ram Village, he had seen how empty the castle was as he passed through at dawn.

Gray, now transcended from a villager into a Cavalier unit, pulled Sister Silque atop his sacred horse to allow her to ride behind him. The Deliverance traveled down the road towards their next destination with Alm currently in front, gradually speeding up as he went. If he stepped off the road briefly to stand on the coastline and gaze at the seas to the far east, he would have seen the ship carrying Mila's restoration army, led by Celica, who he was soon to finally have his fated meeting with. But he had no way of knowing that right now.

Once the southern fort came into view, it would be dangerous to continue along the main road any further. If they were to make it to the cave without being discovered by Desaix’s army, they needed to travel away from the main road and into the waves of bushes and trees. To keep an eye out for the fort, Lukas followed directly behind Alm and raised his hand to his brow to shield his eyes from the bright sunlight.

Eventually, he saw the top of the fort peeking through a deep forest. He also saw the signal light flickering even though it was the middle of the day, that could be seen from a two day’s walk away.

"Get off the road and into the bushes!" Lukas shouted, though not to guide them down the road to the base. 

There was not supposed to be anyone in the fort, but Lukas knew the light meant someone was there, keeping watch over the main road. And since he knew there was no one from the Knights of Zofia who could be there, it had to be occupied by Desaix's forces.

At Lukas' uncharacteristic tone, Alm rolled into the bushes and laid down on his left side. "What's wrong?" He asked.

Lukas answered, "Desaix's army is in the fort. He might know about the resurrection seeds, and that there are survivors."

"Dammit, Desaix’s army would figure it out!" Tobin cursed from behind them as he placed his telescope up to his eye. 

He then offered it to Lukas, who took it, and now that he could see the fort several times larger in size, he noticed several people gathered around the signal light, all wearing Desaix’s army uniform.

Gray returned from entering further into the trees to hide his horse, laid down with everyone in the bushes, and stared intently at the fort in the distance.

"What's that? The white thing." Silque asked. 

Everyone turned around to see her hiding behind Kliff, crouched down and pointing up at the sky.

Lukas looked through the telescope at what Silque had found.

"It's a pegasus!" Lukas was the first to identify it, but Kliff was the one to whisper what it was. Flying high in the skies, but having lost its freedom because it was tied to a thin rope connected securely to the castle, was the unmistakable silhouette of a winged white horse. 

But what made Lukas' voice finally tremble was the sight of a curly lock of mane hair that sat between the pegasus' eyes, which he could see clearly through the round lens of the telescope. "That's Clair's pegasus! This is bad! It means the base was attacked!"

-

"There's seven units from Desaix's army in the castle. One Archer, and seven Soldiers."

Alm had ordered Tobin to go out and gather reconnaissance. He returned not even half an hour later to the camp the rest of the group made in the forest, hidden completely among the tree branches. Tobin was already used to performing this duty thanks to his history of facing off against the Brigands in Ram Village, but after transcending and becoming a unit, those skills were even further honed, turning him into a true Soldier. Gray and Kliff were the same.

"The only one that will be a pain is the Archer. They aren't that threatening of an army." Gray said, and Kliff nodded.

"Did you see a sacred horse?" Lukas asked.

Tobin shook his head.

Lukas' expression clouded over.

“Only two nights have passed since you went to visit Mycen, but the remaining members of the Knights of Zofia must have been killed except for Clair. And even then, all I really confirmed was that her sacred mount is safe.” Tobin said with his head down.

"Clair was the last person to see me off before I left. She said to me under the starry sky that she wanted to understand how her older brother Clive felt. Even more so than the rest of us, he felt deeply indebted to the elder units that chose to sacrifice themselves for us. And he was holding back his desire to go save Mathilda right away. So Clair told me to go bring back Sir Mycen as quickly as I possibly could. But I was too late." Lukas said with tears in his eyes.

"Sounds like Clive is a really good guy." Alm said.

Lukas nodded deeply. "He is. Clive dedicated everything to liberating Zofia. Taking down Desaix is the only offering he can make to the regrets of all those in the Knights of Zofia that lost their lives, and so he has closed his heart to the sadness in front of him and his memories of their deaths. He swallowed his resurrection seed faster than any of the rest of us, because the elders' will left the biggest impression on him."

Alm turned around towards Tobin and asked, "How long would it take for us to get from the southern fort to Zofia Castle?"

"About half a day." Tobin answered.

"Lukas, you said the Deliverance's base is west of the castle, right?" Alm asked Lukas as tears still continued to stream down his cheeks. 

Unsure of what Alm's question was getting at, Lukas was puzzled when he answered, "Yes, in a cave alongside the coast."

"Then that place is no good." Alm said. "It won't be of any use to us. We won't be able to organize into an effective formation to attack the castle. The Zofian winds blow from east to west, or from the castle towards the sea, in the afternoon. And at night, they blow from west to east, or from the seaside and the base straight to the castle. The winds never deviate from this pattern. The sacred horses in Desaix's army will immediately pick up our scent, and they'll know everything about us, including how many of us there are, and what types of units we are. For a group as small as we are, that would spell out our end."

Lukas knew that Alm was right, and hung his head. He'd thought there was no way the cave would be discovered, but that was probably the exact reason why it had been found and attacked.

"Clive's soul and will were commendable, but it is clear how unaccustomed to real combat the Knights of Zofia were. It is a misfortune caused by living in peace for so long, but saying that now won't get us anywhere."

Alm called out Gray, Tobin, and Kliff by name. "We will seize the southern fort. The wind does not blow from the fort to the castle, so the fort should become the main base for the Deliverance. Half a day is the perfect distance to be away from the castle. We can observe Desaix's army and their movements from the watchtower."

"Understood!" The three all said, and began to discuss their strategy, with Gray facilitating the conversation. 

Lukas agreed that their only option was a full frontal attack. No matter how they looked at it, the cave had already been conquered by Desaix's army, meaning that securing a new fort for the Deliverance to utilize was currently of the utmost importance.

Still, Lukas felt that their situation was hopeless. Even with the prodigy Alm leading them, their forces were still critically weak. The only members of their army were three units who had just transcended, and Sister Silque. In a worst case scenario, their only option would be to rely on Alm and himself. 

When Alm saw that the unease in Lukas' eyes was not going away, he slapped his shoulder and said, "If a sacred beast is alive, then that means the unit controlling it still lives. Clair is alive and being held captive in that fort. And none of our other allies are there.

"You know what that means?" Alm asked rhetorically, and continued on, "Desaix's army is merely using Clair as a hostage to provoke the others into surrendering. If their hostage is still alive, that means our allies must still be alive, too. The cave is still safe. Desaix hasn't found it. I swear it on my life.'

Lukas looked up, and the color returned to his face.

"Lukas, you can't reunite with someone as amazing as Clive empty handed! Let's take back Clair and the fort, and when I meet them for the first time, I will vow to our allies that I will liberate Zofia and go down in history." Alm said with an invigorated smile on his face.

-

Tobin did not only gather information about Desaix’s forces at the fort while on his scouting mission. He also ascertained the best location in advance to position themselves for a frontline storming of the fort.

There were absolutely no downsides to the shaded rock he selected. One side of it jutted out like a hawk's beak, from which could hide them all from the fort's watchtower, even Gray's large horse. And if they maneuvered themselves through the bushes not far from the rock's walls, providing the perfect defense, they would be able to survey the entire fort through the thick, thorny stalks and branches. Both Alm and Lukas praised Tobin for his reconnaissance skills.

"Ever since we were kids, hide and seek is the only thing you've been good at!" Gray said to Tobin, and everyone laughed, including Alm and Kliff. 

As soon as they were done laughing, though, Alm said, "Lukas, does the fort have a dungeon?"

Lukas shook his head. 

That meant Clair would be inside the watchtower. According to Tobin's intel, seven of Desaix's units were at the fort. From the shadows underneath the rock, they confirmed that four of the Soldiers were guarding the entrance, and the Archer was positioned high up at the top of an embankment in front of the castle. The last two Soldiers were guarding the watchtower, and had to be keeping watch over Clair as well.

"Our main objective is to rescue Clair. We probably won't be able to do so easily, but even if we are injured, once we safely rescue Clair, everything after that will be easy! The only question left unanswered is how quickly we can make it inside the watchtower." Alm said.

Silque responded apologetically, "Please forgive me. I am still in training, and have not even mastered Warp yet."

Warp was a classification of strategic magic that warped space to instantly send a unit right next to an enemy. Clergy units, as units that manage an army's defenses, are considered to also become offensive units once they master teleportation magic. It is often said that offense is the best defense. From that perspective, for units like Silque, no matter how great they were at healing, if that was all they knew, then they were still only half trained.

"Don't put yourself down." Alm reassured her. "Healer units are always vital on a battlefield. You and I will rush straight to the watchtower. Kliff will come with us, too. You will support us by healing Clair. I will take care of the two Soldiers." Alm turned towards Gray and said, "Let me borrow your horse."

"He's all yours!" Gray replied simply, and raised the wings on the helmet that covered his horse's face. The horse looked straight ahead, ready to gallop as fast as it could.

"Can you take care of the Archer?" Alm asked Tobin. 

"Leave him to me!" Tobin said, and nocked an arrow.

"Alright! We'll deploy when you shoot your arrow. Lukas, Gray, you defeat the four Soldiers at the bottom of the fort. Tobin will support you from the rear. Now go!" 

The moment Alm gave the order, everyone moved in unison.

Tobin climbed out to the top of the rock, drew back his bow string, and aimed his weapon at the Archer in the embankment. The Archer quickly realized that he was being targeted, but by that time, it was already too late, and Tobin's arrow pierced his right arm.

Alm took the reins of Gray's horse, and with Silque and Kliff atop it with him, they kicked up a huge cloud of dust. Gray grew up running through both hills and fields, and so the sudden assault from his horse born from his Achilles heel caused the four Soldiers to panic, fall out of formation, and go flying in different directions. Lukas and Gray jumped right into the fray without hesitation. Though his right arm was injured, the enemy Archer bravely attempted to attack. However, Tobin dodged his arrow by no more than a hair, and followed-up by shooting his own arrow through the Archer's throat.

The horse did not resist Alm's directions even in the slightest, tackling the fort's tightly closed gate and smashing it to pieces, then galloping excitedly up the long staircase to the watchtower. The force of its hooves were so great that it damaged the stone steps and made chunks of them break off and fall down bit by bit, making it as if a torrential rainstorm was assaulting only the fort.

When they arrived, they saw a young woman and a Soldier attempting to slice open her neck with his dagger. The moment they saw her beautiful blue hair, a defining feature of many Pegasus Knights, they knew she was Clair. Alm pounced like a leopard from atop the horse's back and sliced off the Soldier's head.

Having just witnessed the death of his ally, the second Soldier unsheathed his sword and pinned Alm down. While Soldiers are a unit that excel in lances, the watchtower was by no means a wide open space, so the fact that he did not choose to wield his lance was a sign of his great combat prowess.

Silque watched the two swords collide to make a cross-shape with a loud clang, then ran over to Clair. Kliff followed after Slique without a moment's hesitation and stood in front of her, already holding Clair's shoulders to prop her up. He waited for a sign that the Soldier would point his sword even slightly in his direction, ready to immediately cast a Fire spell when that happened.

"He's…"

As Alm's shouting and the Soldier's growling battle cry mixed together to produce a strange sound, Kliff heard a weak voice from behind him. Clair was trying to ask Silque a question. And as she prepared to cast a healing spell on Clair, the answer she gave shocked Kliff.

"He is Alm. He has a cross-shaped mark on his right hand, meaning he is the person who will one day unite Valencia." Silque said.

'Silque knows Alm's secret! Only Mycen and I should know it, but so does she!' Kliff did not turn to look at her, but his eyes did open wide as he watched Alm's sword stab effortlessly through the Soldier's torso, blade glittering in the midday sunlight shining down through the window.

[gamebunny-advance]

Doodle Dump

A mix of doodles from last year and this year.

Notes under the cut.

1) 1010 Pictograms: This project will probably never come to fruition, but I got the idea to illustrate the 1010 Headcanons Series in the style of these pictogram people and maybe publish it as a zine. I dunno if I'm gonna actually do it though. This kind of thing is really better with vector graphics, but I dunno if I have the patience to learn how to use Inkscape and CSP's vector tools are very lacking.

But I still really like the idea, so maybe I'll do it anyway. We'll see.

2) Young Fyra + Kliff. I'd like to draw them a lot more, but I don't have any clear designs for their younger versions. Had to censor and cut an entire panel from the comic on the side for being a little more risqué than I'm used to posting. Use your imagination I guess~

3-4) Goatlings doodles. I started a thread where you draw the OC of the person above you. Since I started the thread, I had to draw whoever was below me, and this is what I did. It's a shame that the thread pretty much went nowhere. I do realize that that's partially that my rules were so strict and basically guaranteed that the thread would move at a snail's pace regardless since the next person has to finish their art for the person above them before posting their OC, but I just didn't want this to turn into a thinly veiled begging thread for other people, ya know? But maybe I just need to have more faith in people... I dunno. I'm just really turned off from trying to start another one.

Other doodle is just a DonutCrumbs doodle. I'd like to eventually update my profile to use only my own art so I don't have to list 1000 credits for my images, but it's a slow process. I may just have to start commissioning people in the art thread for some profile art~

5-6) Human!R.O.B. & Pac-Man. I'm still surprised that people seem to really like my updated R.O.B. design. I like it too, but I just kinda thought it would stay here, ya know? That aside, I'd like to start drawing the Smash guys a little more. They really fell to the wayside when NSR took over my life, but I think that my obsession with that has finally started to wane a little bit, so hopefully I'll start drawing other things.

7-9) Various Kun3h0 + Kahon doodles. Nothing much to say about 'em. I like the idea of the second image, but it wouldn't be possible (unless Kahon created a version of itself to be in the game, but I dunno why it would that).

[robot-diver-and-poison-punk]

Greetings rotomblr. "Yo fuckheads!"

I am WYD-01 of the elementbot line.

"and I'm Roya an ex rainbow rocket grunt from another world and has beedrill genes" - roya

And after some mulling and processing over it we've decided to do a move from the old blog due to it being too cluttered.

"and we wanted to have a more organized mess rather than a complete mess."-Roya

Regardless I'll start off 1st as agreed.

I'm as said before WYD-01 of the element bot line refer to me as they/them. I prefer to do deep diving underwater as a hobby. I'll be posting some of said dives on this blog

Keystone the lokix: he/him rash nature, wears a navy and silver scarf, is very aggressive for the most part and is much stronger than average. Irritate him at your own risk.

Judi the Pheromosa: she/they Adamant nature, wears a wide brimmed, black sun hat with a gold strip, curious to the world around her, and is less strict about cleanliness, sadly this led to them being an exiled sheep.

Magic the Alpha Galarian Mismagius: quirky nature, is what seems to an alpha due to their size, is a troublemaker, and is the leader of all the misdreavus in this beach house. they also recently evolved during at a halloween party

Grave O'Neil the spiritomb: ??? Nature, was found in my house and forced my hand to catch them, is also a trouble maker like magic, has a strange liking to coffee grounds (they eat them somehow when no one is looking)

Pot lid the Klinklang : recently transferred from a kalosian shelter thanks to an event, evolved during the naming of Tafiū, really likes jazz

<<Dredge the dhelmise>>: quiet nature, is barely heard in general, clings on to me the most, was found in a double shipwreck.

Tafiū the Delta bisharp: jolly nature, had just evolved during the naming of them, is a Delta Pokemon from the Torren region, was given to me by pri- I mean Roya

A shiny clawitzer who has yet to be named, bold nature, seems to be through dozens of battles and the scars show.

"Alright enough shit from ya it's my turn"

"Names Roya and as said before I'm ex rainbow rocket and part Beedrill. I love poison and dark types, and I practice polearm and staff based combat as a hobby. (And Mecha enthusiast) anyways here's my own team!"

Reacta the delta vespiquen: Delta and starter over at the Torren region, has a mild nature, wears a orange tuxedo vest, and prefers to tend to be a neat freak. loves Petrol

Spines the cacturne: relaxed nature, found somewhere in a desert area i cannot remember where, wears a poncho, likes to eat and hog sour berries. A bit too friendly for his own good sometimes (loves hugs but tends to forget he's a Cacturne)

Dagger the sharpedo: found in torren, hasty nature, likes to be blunt on what he does, and will stare at you judgementally.

Petrol the Dragalgae : hatched in an egg, bashful natured, im trying my best to care for this lil guy till hes ready to go battle if he desires to. He's recently getting

Alia II the shiny Mega beedrill: ace and partner pokemon, is a shiny, adamant nature, wears a cap like mine own but green and black, is the 2nd beedrill i own, likes to be with Reacta and petrol (will protect with her life). She's decided to stay permanently mega evolved after an incident...

a weavile that joined my team without consent: somehow snuck their way in while i was in the wild area of galar, impish natured bastard, likes to scheme behind others, hates ribbons for some odd reason...

Kliff the shiny alpha Sneasler: was given to me by a stranger as a sneasel during my time at hisui, prefers to laze about in the sun for the most part but is no slouch in battle despite this. naughty nature.

A shiny Mareanie I have yet to name: Caught on Route 9 of Akala Island and trade to me by Water bucket's electric brother. This little guy ain't all too interested in fighting, but certainly packs a punch when it counts! Also mild natured.

"welp thats it for us intro wise, now go home you lazy fucks."

Roya please you godamn prick do not call strangers on this site lazy fucks when you're one as well.

"fuck you"

fuck you too.

// Hey yall this is mod wiral, i've decided to move house from the old blog. it was getting too messy for me and i couldn't bring myself to do all that work to brother with that. anyways there are TWs for death and water related fears here. wyrdo has a major hatred towards plasma but has relaxed on it since then, roya's hate for rocket is immense and has a major dislike to cults. nonetheless these kind of things are welcomed to interact. ENJOY!

//pelipeper mail is on

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@amperage-speedway

@miss-fairylight-magician

@skyborne-kalosians

@average-escavalier-enjoyer @acedarrowslingers

[erigold13261]

:/ your NSR AU is Dark... I like it!! Sorry for asking so much but How does West feel after all of this? How will NSR look like in the 5 years?

Don't be sorry for asking questions about my AU, I love talking about it so any questions are welcomed! (also, glad you like the darker aspects of this AU! I was scared people wouldn't like it because it is a darker take on the game)

At first West feels extremely guilty and at fault for everything, mainly because he was already in an emotionally vulnerable state from Zuke disowning him as a brother. He felt like a shitty brother already and that just grew as he found out his brother almost died to 1010.

He was so full of guilt that he sold his house and land to move back to the city and take care of Zuke. And Mayday, but only because Zuke asked him to since the 3rd rap battle never happened so he had no reason to end up liking May (as a friend, not anything more).

Overtime though, that guilt turned to anger at NSR. It's one thing for NSR to come after him, but they went after his family and he is willing to do anything for his brother now to make things right.

As for NSR in 5 years, it really depends. I have been tossing the idea around of another revolution taking place (either with just Ex-Jay, or Kliff getting someone new, or Neon J being an insider for the revolution) so that would change things whether or not a new revolution takes place.

Either way, I would say that after the revolution failed, any story I tell with characters would be about 2-3 years later. So either NSR starting to collapse or a new revolution would take place then, and not directly after the failed revolution. That would mean, depending on what happens, 5 years after the failed revolution there are different outcomes.

If no new revolution takes place, NSR slowly crumbles from the inside with the current Megastars. DJ definitely gets fired, Eve might get demoted from second in command (in case Yinu/Mama would become second in command), and Neon would either have been fired and separated from 1010 or would be slowly drinking himself to death while 1010 stay the same in the public eye but get more dysfunctional behind closed doors. Sayu's crew would be the only ones who prosper because they would finally be old enough to get away from their families and live true to who they are (but still with a lot of trauma and unhealthy habits to unlearn). Tatiana keeps her control and power over NSR with no real change taking place. She just keeps replacing artists when she can hoping a new EDM artist would fix things but it never does.

If a new revolution does take place and succeeds, then NSR goes under a lot of internal reconstruction and fixes a lot of problems that were going on. Robotic fears and musical monopolies fade away. DJ, Neon J, and 1010 are able to quit and live their lives away from the public. Eve gets therapy and comes back better than ever after a small leave of absence. Yinu and Mama work through their problems with each other and take a long leave of absence (but Yinu probably come back around the 7 year mark with a new passion while Mama retires fully, just being there to support Yinu). Sayu's Crew get help earlier from their families which allows them to start healing sooner than if no revolution happened. There are also more charters, not just new ones to take the place of old charters, but also extra ones in each district (so like Dream Fever has Eve and like 2 other megastars that have different genres). Tatiana takes a small leave of absence while Mystery Man takes her spot, she works trough some stuff and comes back willing to change and hear people's complaints. She now actively works to make things better and tries her best to correct the wrongs she did in the past, to the city, the people, and her employees.

And if a new revolution occurs but it fails again, then NSR will probably be dead by the time the 5 year mark hits. The company would not be able to fully survive the reputation they now have as controlling and inefficient. Slowly a new company (or companies) would pop up and take over NSR's position. Or a whole new city would take the title of "Musical Capital of the World" leaving NSR old news. Yinu and Eve would probably go to one of these new companies (Yinu probably without her mother, she would get a new agent that could get her away from Mama). 1010 probably don't survive, either being destroyed or sold by NSR as a way to make a profit, which leads Neon to have nothing in life to fight for and he goes back to live with his parents or drinks himself to death. DJ tries had been fired for a while and tried to be there for Neon but just couldn't. He would try to get back into teaching but probably fail and live a miserable life with nothing to motivate him to actually work or get better.

Sayu's Crew are either forced to resign (before NSR dies) because their parents don't think their job is worth it considering revolutions seem to take place every few years (which makes it hard for the Crew to survive living under their parents rule with no outlet, and even makes adulthood hard because they all get kicked out with no warning once they are old enough), or they are forced to take a new job at one of the new companies so their families can still get money from them. If they go to another company they would have a better chance of surviving and will even cut contacts with all their families once they get old enough and can finally strive and make Sayu how they want with no repercussions. Tatiana would have tried to keep even stricter control on everything, letting her paranoia and pride get in the way of her judgement. She refuses to step down and ends up running NSR into the ground trying to keep order. After NSR officially dissolves she vanishes into the world, probably changing her name again and tries to start over somewhere new.

[Safe to say, a new revolution that succeeds is the best option for a happy ending to occur. Otherwise there is a lot more tragedy than happiness that happens.]

[no-worshiped-roads]

Though id take a crack at a short piece for @wisteriarotting and their horror au

Prepare yourself for the angst

So i know you said besides zuke and kliff, gigi would likely be the only other survivor

i kind of wanna include aunty and kayane

Anyway this is set after they’ve beaten all the artists and are getting ready to leave

Zuke walked out the front doors of NSR tower, the dull light in the city briefly stinging his eyes. The sun hasn’t shone in the city in a long time, but it was still brighter outside than it was in the darkness of NSR tower. His body was battered, exhausted, and sore beyond belief. But it was over. All they had to do was run for the main gates, finally leave this cursed city behind.

With everything and everyone they’ve lost, it would be a blessing. His companions trailed behind him, though Zuke only listened and didn’t turn around, no his focus was on the pathway that would lead them out. West flashed across his mind and he winced, wiping at his eyes. He was grateful that he had been able to reconcile with his brother, but it still ripped his heart apart that the very next thing had to be a final goodbye.

Zuke remembered how Yinu’s mother had been burying all the artists, giving them a funeral as best she could. She had known them all to some extent before the infection... yeah. She had even been kind enough to give his brother one, and would probably come collect Tatiana’s body soon. Zuke had been so grateful for her doing that for West.

He was also grateful to Mayday for being the one to put West down. He’d never would have been able to do it, but he didn’t to leave him suffering in a body that was no longer his either. He glanced behind him to see his companions. Kliff was right behind him, followed by Aunty who was helping Kayane and Gigi not fall behind. But then there was May, who was definitely trailing behind.

At first Zuke thought maybe she was just tired, after all she was as beaten as him. But he noticed it was like she was walking slow purposely. Her head was downcast, and she was gripping her arms in way that tucked her hands mostly out of sight.

“May? You good?”

Upon Zuke calling her name the others stopped to look at Mayday who had paused as well. Her body was trembling and she was breathing hard. Mayday still didn’t look up, but shook her head ‘no.’ Aunty took a step towards her and she quickly, clumsily, stepped back. Away from them.

“I’m sorry.”

It was said so suddenly and quietly that it didn’t really register to Zuke what she had said at first.

Kliff suddenly spoke next to him “What do you-”

Before he could even finish that sentence, Mayday suddenly stiffened like she was in pain.

And then she ran.

“Wh- MAY?!”

Kayane’s surprised shout snapped Zuke out of his stupor, and he ran after Mayday. Despite something being wrong, the girl was still able to run full speed. He could hear footsteps behind him as the group tried to keep up. Mayday dodged and weaved around trashcans and broken pieces of buildings and other structures in her way. Eventually she ducked down an alleyway, and Zuke found himself having trouble keeping up with her.

He hit down the alley just in time to see Mayday dive into sewers. Hearing the footsteps stop behind him, Zuke turned around.

“I’m gonna go after her, go ahead to the main gate.”

Not waiting for a response, Zuke climbed down the ladder into the sewers. He flicked on a small flashlight he had to see better in this darkness. His footsteps echoed in the tunnels as he followed May’s footprints.

“May!” He called out, his voice echoing back at him.

“Come on where are you?”

Sudden movement down a tunnel to his left had him shine his flashlight down it. He just barely caught a flash of red as it turned left at the end of the tunnel. Taking off after her once again, Zuke kept talking.

“May why are you doing this?”

“Just go away Zuke, get out of Vinyl City while you still can.”

“Not without you!”

“You have to!”

“Bull! Come on lets go!”

May said nothing as they kept running around the tunnels, Zuke getting frustrated with her.

“Why do you suddenly want ti stay?”

“I don’t.”

“Then come with us.”

Mayday paused on a ladder, halfway up to an open manhole. Her body shook and her voice cracked as she spoke.

“I can’t. Not anymore.”

Mayday rapidly ascended the rest of the ladder and was out of the sewers. As Zuke climbed after her, he heard startled shouts. Upon reaching the top and lifting himself our, he glanced up to see Kliff, Aunty, Gigi, and Kayane.

“What are you guys doing here?”

“We never left, you all circled.” Gigi answered.

“Why didn’t you go to the gates?”

“We weren’t about to leave without either of you.” Kliff told him.

Zuke shook his head “Well where did May go?”

“Back to the NSR tower, but wait man-“

Zuke ran on ignoring whatever else Gigi might have said. He managed yo reach the tower and pushed his way through the doors. Mayday stood just ahead of him, hunched over, breathing even harder than before.

“You need to leave Zuke. It’s not safe here.”

“Yeah, I know. So why are you here?”

“I mean it’s not safe for you.” She paused glancing over shoulder a bit. “Any of you.”

Zuke looked behind him to see the others just outside the tower’s doors.

“And it is for you? Why are you acting so weird?”

“Just go, please.”

“Not without you!” Zuke stepped forward.

“Uh Zuke there’s something you don’t-“

Gigi was interrupted by Mayday “I told you I can’t leave anymore!”

“Why?!”

“Zuke wait!” Kayane this time. He still ignored her.

“I, I just can’t. I-“

Zuke grabbed May’s arm only to find himself shoved back. He lost his grip on her and stumbled.

“Don’t. Please Zuke. I’m going to be gone soon.”

Zuke startled at that and shone his flashlight on her to see better in the darkness. Maydays stared back at him sorrowfully. Scales had begun growing on her arms, and her feet had begun to change shape to something more animal like. Her breath rattled out in huffs and he could see her teeth looked mangled as they also started to change shape.

No.

Nonononono.

Not her, not Mayday too.

“When?”

Zuke thinks it was Aunty who spoke, but he was too lost in his spiraling thoughts to be sure.

“Since Sayu. It was small at first. Bad headaches, body pain. I just chalked it up to the horrible noises and the fights though.”

Mayday coughed, a strange sound accompanying it from her lower throat.

“But then with Yinu and 1010 my skin started to hurt and burn. Till i noticed the bumps. By the time we got to Eve scales started forming. I grabbed those shoes for a while when I noticed my feet changing.”

“Why didn’t you say anything?!” Zuke finally found his voice.

“Because you would’ve stopped trying to escape.”

“Go, please.”

“But-“

“I SAID GO!”

May suddenly shoved him out the doors and slammed them shut. Zuke fell to the ground, hearing a latching sound. He immediately jumped to his feet and banged on the now locked doors.

“May don’t do this!”

“I have to Zuke. This isn’t curable, you know that.”

“Then I’ll stay.”

“No!”

“Like hell I’m gonna just leave you!”

“You are not throwing away your life just mine is done! Do you got that dammit?!”

Zuke paused at that. May spoke again before he could respond.

“I’m sorry. But you need to go. Our time together was great, and I wish it could keep going. But it can’t. I’m finished. But you’re not. Live your brother’s life, mine too. Do what we didn’t get to. Please, for me?”

“I-I can’t just-“ Zuke slammed his fists on the door, leaning his forehead on it.

“Aunty.”

Zuke suddenly found himself hoisted over Aunty’s shoulder, as she began to walk away.

“Wait no what are you-“

Aunty looked at Kliff who hadn’t moved.

“I’ll carry you too if I have to you better get moving.”

Kliff paused for a while longer before dragging his feet, stumbling, and glancing back again and again till the tower was out of sight. Zuke limply lay on Aunty’s back as it really sinking in that May was going to die. Sure her body would still be there but eventually it wouldn’t be hers anymore. She would just be the infection. And she was gonna die alone.

Zuke didn’t even realize how long everyone had been walking until he saw large gates shutting vehind everyone.

They finally made it out of Vinyl City.

I may make another small companion piece from May’s POV tomorrow. But for now, bed.



[fayesdiary]

Since I've been feeling like crap lately (AGAIN, and I'm starting to suspect it's an allergic reaction rather than stress in and of itself so I'm gonna do a check after Summer) I stopped playing Conquest for a little while and started replaying Echoes instead! As a bit of a comfort zone and to not have to constantly worry about new stuff and getting my butt kicked. I'm playing on Classic Hard, since you can rewind turns in here, thank Mila. Seriously, how was this feature introduced fifteen games late into the series? Do you have any idea how much I'd love it in Conquest? At least with older games you can cheat with save states! ...Anyway, I played until the Deliverance Hideout, have some unprompted rambles:

I used the first Pitchfork on Lukas so he could reclass into a Cavalier! He works really nice, retaining the relatively high Attack and great Defense, but getting a whooping +3 Mov in the process, which is amazing in the earlygame! And in a game where units have a base movement of four and there is no Rescue or Pair Up, every little bit of extra movement matters. Needless to say, Forsyth and Valbar are getting the Pitchfork too! (Fernand really is an ignorant wit for looking down on soldiers with pitchforks when the Pitchfork is one of the best items in the game)

Speaking of extra movement, I gave all of my stat boosters to Faye. Is it optimal? Not even a little, but who cares! Would have loved to have her go to Celica's route, but Alm's side desperately needs a second cleric. Helps that Faye has a button of unique spells as a Cleric which are super useful. Guess that will happen in the meme playthroughs...

That scene before the Southern Outpost where Gray asks Tobin if he likes girls and he halfheartedly answers "yes, I guess" makes me think Tobin's in the closet and has a crush on Gray. Helps the fact he gives up on Clair really quickly saying he doesn't want to ruin his friendship with Gray, soo... (then again, this is a really healthy approach to have regardless of Tobin's sexuality. Gets a double approval since I hate love triangles with a passion)

After playing any other FE title but especially Conquest, playing these maps that are just open fields full of nothing except the occsional forest and heal tile hurts. And these are just Alm's maps that are boring at worst, I'm really dreading Celica's...

The Faye/Silque and Kliff/Tobin supports are such a waste. This game has few enough supports as is, and these are just a waste of time. There aren't any fun interactions because Faye and Kliff refuse to talk and immediately leave until the A support, they don't reveal anything new about the characters involved and it feels really insulting especially to Silque and Kliff, since these are the only supports they have. If I ever rewrite these, I think I'd keep the C supports as-is but have Faye and Kliff apologize in the B support and, you know, actually talk.

Faye's first base convo mentions the attack at the prologue and how Alm rescued her, and honestly? She might as well just write "I obsessively cling to Alm as a coping mechanism", especially after they leave Ram and you start reading their support together. I mentioned before I really like how Faye has a reason to obsess over Alm (not that it's in any way justified mind you) and how her behavior gets actually treated as creepy instead of romantic for once (but she still sees Celica as a friend rather than a rival or a threat), but I hate the fact she never gets any chance whatsoever to heal, find some happiness or friends on her own, and let's not forget that garbage endcard. God forbid a Catria ever moves on or finds a purpose for herself that's not crushing on the main lord, right?

Since Faye references Mycen in her victory quotes and has a support bonus with him, I like to think she's the one he trained the hardest after Alm, since you know. She was taken hostage and almost got killed by Slayde in the prologue. There's a reason why she's implied to be the most traumatized of the Ram gang.

Python's voice reminds me of Xigbar's, and I wonder if they share the same VA. Helps that they're both snipers and love to mess with everybody.

You know the Thieves' Shrine at the start of the game? You spook the bandit watchman and he runs away, but you can leave, come back and he'll have new dialogue before fleeing again. If you want to be a jerk, you can bully him by repeatedly leaving the shrine and coming back!

[nsrtypebeat]

Broken Roads, some unspecified genre of au for NSR

HOOOOO BOY this has been at the back of my mind for like...awhile now? It’s still a WIP but I have a basic idea of where I’m going with this.  This is inspired by @wisteriarotting ‘s Nowhere Roads. Again, still a WIP, I’m still putting in basic info for every bossfight, and the only two that are actually truly finished are the Natura and Metro Districts. This is also inspired by Razmerry’s Cursed Three AU. So..a lot of inspo, most of the story is inspired by Cursed Three though, and Nowhere Roads inspired me to make this.  I’d put it under horror but it’s more of a tear jerker if anything, some body horror baby of tear-jerkers, post-apoc, war, and horror TW: Mentions of death, hand injuries/body horror, grief, war, metal/organic clashes of body horror, mentions of self-harm  Story below the cut!

So, Broken Roads takes place between the Tatiana bossfight and the Final FINAL act. Kliff succeeds in what he does, and the satellite crashes into the tower, with Mayday and Zuke inside. 

Turns out, they’re not actually dead? In fact, they’re back at the sewers, their trophies and items are gone, and so is Kliff. It���s as if everything had gone back to normal, as if it were all just some...bad dream. 

Spoiler warning, if that was a dream, it would rather be a good dream, to what B2J was about to face now. 

Buildings have shifted around, the city is ruined and ghostly, and within that are corpses that smell of decay but aren’t rotting away. The air is constricting, and there are no more flags of NSR, only of something else.

A former ruler beyond Vinyl City, a signed once feared decades ago. 

AZF. 

Or, break from the tone, the Azkar Faction.

oOOH yeah we’re going there. 

Mayday and Zuke see Kliff standing near DJSS’ district, and Mayday snaps, running after Kliff with a full on ‘what did you do?!’ kinda moment. Kliff is extremely confused as to who these people are, and Zuke has to pull Mayday away. Zuke calmly asks what the FUCK even happened, and Kliff softly explains that ‘It’s always been like this’, although even he doesn’t seem to remember how. Looking down at DJ’s planetarium, Zuke and Mayday slowly agree that...it seems they have to do this, all over again. 

They just don’t know what to even expect. 

So, since these are not fully fleshed out, I’ll brush over them quickly. 

DJ Subatomic Supernova

’s planetarium is rather a labyrinth of a laboratory, those being under his music’s influence having black ooze shoot out of every hole, DJSS is talking to corspes, each having clothing related to the only people who came to listen to DJ that...one...time, including the janitor. His voice can be heard from the intercom, yelling everytime you hit or run over a corspe, saying that those are his ‘‘‘friends’‘‘. 

Sayu

is...Sayu, except she’s her own complete AI with Tila’s voice. After getting this AI she flipped completely, killing the Sayu crew and taking their ‘abilities’ to use for herself. She can only ramble on constantly about ‘love’, as her AI is slowly corrupting on her. The last phase, instead of being a fish with legs, is a horrific clash of fish and human parts. 

---

NOW we get into the detailed stuff. 

Instead of Yinu and Mama, it’s

Papa

. Yinu and Mama died when, as Papa describes it, ‘Their red and black flags came.’ ...He’s referring to the Azkar Faction, which Kliff points out. 

The Natura district is overrun with birds and vines, and you can hear Papa’s wails from his halls from even the edge of Natura. 

Papa has been playing the piano for a long time...and not in that way. He’s been playing ever since the death of his daughter and wife, the piano is covered in blood as his fingers are becoming nothing but stumps, screaming with every note as his body is deeply in pain, but he HAS to go on. He doesn’t want to disappoint Yinu, he doesn’t want to disappoint Miss Natura, he doesn’t want to disappoint Lord T. He doesn’t even notice B2J and Kliff, instead accidentally hurting them with the vines that grow around his piano. By the end of the fight, Kliff pulls Papa away from the piano as Mayday and Zuke break the piano, freeing Papa from his self-made prison for good. Papa panics, saying ‘T’ is going to kill him, that Yinu and Natura are mad, so Mayday ends up knocking him out just to calm him down.  Mayday and Zuke go to the briefing room, expecting Kliff to provide a briefing on 1010, except he’s not, instead wrapping bandages around Papa’s fingers, slightly confused as to what ‘1010′ even is. Papa, who’s still trying to adjust to real life again, only blurts out that 1010 means 10 in binary, and then laments on Yinu again, saying that there was a toymaker in the Metro District who they went to often, so much so the toymaker had been able to make toys JUST for the Natura family as thanks. Zuke and Mayday have no clue what he’s exactly talking about, and asks if Kliff is coming with.  Kliff politely declines, saying he needs to help Papa out.  So, the Metro District is different, it actually looks like a normal part of the city, and you know how I talked about the building being moved around? This is a HUGE example of that. The buildings are dark, there seems to be no sign of life here...not even corpses. 

A light flickers from a small building with the name ‘BenToys’, a small beacon of hope in this horrid world. 

Inside there’s a man known as Benjamin he’s kind and soft-spoken, albeit a little startled at Mayday and Zuke’s appearance. Mayday is stunned he seems so well, especially with how it is outside. They manage to get Benjamin outside, trying to get him back to their Sewer home, Benjamin looks towards a corspe and says that ‘People here are so silly, they sleep in the streets!’ He sounds...out of it. Something is horribly wrong. 

Mayday suddenly snaps, telling Benjamin what’s supposedly going on, that everyone might be dead, that the so-called ‘Azkar Faction’ has taken over Vinyl City, all that stuff. Benjamin is slightly stunned, but then walks away. Zuke has an entire ‘good job may’ kinda expression. 

So they manage to follow after Benjamin all the way towards the edge of the Metro District, which encompasses the docks. Benjamin weaves his way into a hospital, and Mayday and Zuke lose him until they come into one of the rooms.

Benjamin is sitting over a rotting corpse, one of the ones that actually is rotting, it’s clashed with metal, and it seems as if it’s still moving even if it’s obviously dead. Benjamin looks up at B2J and laughs, saying that that’s him, but he’s still alive, right? By this point he’s talking with himself, and accuses Mayday and Zuke for being agents of the Azkar Faction,  he rips off his own body’s head, replacing it with the broken TV on the nearby table. His corpse somehow comes back to life, and you’re now fighting two Benjamins, great! The corspe acts far more like actual Neon J, but instead of giving out orders to a non-existent 1010, he can only scream. Benjamin’s clothing changes to fit that more of a captain’s, being the one to give out orders, except in a far more calmer tone to represent him still...being in denial, and still thinking he’s just a toymaker. Except, after you destroy Benjamin’s corspe, all you can do is RUN. Benjamin IS dead after all, dead and pissed off. 

The only time Benjamin even stops is when Kliff and Papa arrive, and Benjamin flips his shit, he stops trying to kill B2J and...sobs. That’s all he can do by this point, is sob. He comments on how powerless he was to stop them...he apologizes to Papa for not being able to protect Mama and Yinu, he apologizes to the entire city for not being able to protect them from Azkar...that maybe, MAYBE if he really tried, if he killed B2J, maybe that would somehow put a stop to this. Maybe he could finally rest. 

Papa ends up being the one to try and comfort him, and that’s where we,,,leave the scene. It’s better if Papa does this alone. They’re still close incase Papa hurts himself again in some way, but for the most part he’s fine. 

That’s where I’m going to leave it off for now since this is WAY too long, I hopefully will continue it tommorowwww  

[gear-project]

Annon-Guy: How do you feel and/or what's your stance on short characters in fighting games? Examples: Yoda in Soul Calibur and Charlotta Dania from Granblue Fantasy Versus.

Honestly, the people who complain about characters with small hurtboxes are the SAME people who complain about comeback mechanics, Danger Time, BlitzShield, and whatever else have you in terms of game balance.

In my book, the whole POINT of small characters (or even BIG ones or overpowered BOSS ones) is to provide DIVERSITY to the fighting game experience.

It's a challenging opponent, so you have to overcome the challenge!

A lot of people griped about Kliff Undersn, Bridget (for his mobility), May (Aqua Rolling), and even Baiken (Guard Cancels everything), Dizzy (for her neutral game), I-No (her mixups/Megalomania)...

I think if you can't get over the wall, then either ask for advice, fight someone closer to your skill level, or at the very least lab (Training / Practice Mode) against the opponent until you're more accustomed to what they do and find ways to beat their advantages.

Especially in the case of Yoda in Soul Calibur IV, the funny part about him is that he has to commit to his normals, so all you really have to do is side step and have him jump out of the ring on his own.

And even if you're not in that situation, it's not that hard to get him to get his back turned or 8-way run around him or just keep zoning him with long range attacks (i.e. keep your own personal space, check him with lows that have horizontal and vertical protection to limit his moves).

With a character like Charlotta, she's mostly effective at close range, so what you need to use is normals that can cover a lot of space in front of you to keep her out.  That can be anything like anti-airs (think Hakumen's 2C, or Ky's 2H), projectile pressure, or even just setting up camp (Jin's Ice Ball, or Order-Sol's Blockhead Buster Fireball which he sets in place, even Raven's Scharf Kugel Sharp Ball will suffice).

The whole point is to restrict movement and limit the amount of space such characters have access to.

With a character who IS small and HAS range (like Kliff Undersn), you have to learn what his normals can and can't do, much like how Axl Low works.

Just sticking his normals out to poke and chop at you means he has to commit to something, so learn the recovery frames, learn what to reversal out of, learn to Instant Block, Slashback, Parry, or whatever other tools are at your disposal (I believe GBVS has a side step, in which you dodge normals).

Get used to patterns, get used to habits, learn to anticipate and counter (like Hakumen's Zanshin).  If it's a character who abuses fuzzy mixups, keep that character out of whatever situation is best for them.

Above all else, stop whining, start ADAPTING.

[seasaltmemories]

Mors Debitionem Onem Retribuit: Chapter 1

Rating: T

Summary: The year is 1897, and Alm Schafer is just another university student looking to find his place in the world.  However, when his studies take him into foreign lands, he finds himself in the strangest manor he has ever encountered.  From the maid's too large eyes to the cook's fondness for knives, what ties them all together is their mysterious mistress: Countess Celica Vaduva.

The Countess is many things: brooding, eccentric, capricious, yet also alluring.  As the two are drawn together, Alm starts to wonder if the secrets lining her past just might be the key for understanding his own.  Still all information comes with a price.  The only question is if he'll regret paying it.

~

As Alm hugged his overcoat closer to his body, he couldn’t help but bemoan just how far from Ram Village he was.

Back when he had first left, gifted with Gray and Tobin’s teasing remarks and Grandpa’s warnings to carry him to the train station, Berlin had felt like the ends of the Earth. All he had to his name was a newly discovered yet dead father’s inheritance and a burning desire to learn. It was too much to waste away in the countryside, but the sheer volume of universities and libraries the capital had to offer him seemed like it might swallow him whole.

Yet here he was, in the heart of an entirely foreign country with nothing but a satchel and the clothes on his back to call his own.

It had seemed like such a romantic notion back in Berlin. When his professor had waxed the wonders of field research, the chance to engage with a living history and build an entirely new understanding of culture and society, he had wanted nothing more than to be a part of that. He had signed up for the program that day, ignoring Kliff’s letters questioning the practicality of such study or Faye’s worries for his safety. He was going to be a man of science, a pioneer of philosophy, and nothing like inconsistent funding and dubious travel plans was going to stop him.

But reading of Romania and navigating it were two very different things. Asking the locals for directions only revealed just how awkwardly his tongue curled around words he had thought he had known. Their rat-a-tat replies sent him diving for his translation dictionary with an embarrassing frequency. And with only the ever dimming autumn sun to light his way, he was becoming acutely aware of just how alone he was.

He had been lucky to find himself a carriage driver who knew the manor he was looking for. The fact he had charged double of what Alm had prepared to pay had been unfortunate, but he had been too eager to get out of the chilling winds to complain too much. If he had possessed half a mind, then perhaps he would have been prepared for the sight that laid before him once he arrived.

It seemed the estates here less resembled the clean and modern architecture he had grown familiar with in Berlin and more the ancient castles of fairy-tales. Vaduva Manor was a twisted labyrinth of spires and dark stone. He couldn’t imagine any man to have designed such a monstrosity. If he didn’t know better he might have convinced himself the place was some ancient, eldritch beast that had decided to rest on this cliff. It seemed primordial, alien to all conceptions of humanity.

It was only the whine of a horse that managed to bring him back to earth. Alm turned around just in time to see the carriage driver take off back down the hillside.

“Wait!” He ran after him. “Just give me five minutes--please don’t leave me alone!” But despite his cries, the most the driver gave him was a quick “God bless,” and the sign of the cross across his heart.

Alm felt his blood run cold. With a sigh, he mirrored the cross as well and turned to face the manor again.

It was hard to get out of that loop, stewing in the unfortunate turn of events. It was like his thoughts were a runaway train. There was a reason he had described the place as a sleeping beast. It seemed as if it had been untouched by humans for centuries. With the driver gone, he’d have to stay the night here no matter what, possibly doomed to wander an abandoned citadel home to dangerous creatures of all types, and oh why had he ever left Ram if this was all university was going to bring him?

With a surge of energy, he slammed the brakes on his thoughts by slamming the knocker against the door. The heavy thud echoed in his ears, consuming his mind until there was no room left for worry. All he could do was wait.

When the door opened, Alm finally remembered to breath. Quickly he reached for the speech he had prepared.

“Greetings...freends!” He cringed at his mispronunciation. “I have come to request an audience with the Count.” He glanced at the servant, hoping he had made a lick of sense. However instead of the old maid he was expecting, a young girl stood before him, staring.

“Excuse me?” That by now he had at least memorized. Alm had expected to be received in a variety of ways, with confusion or frustration, maybe even disgust, but he hadn’t expected this: a girl swallowed in amber-golden puffs of hair blankly assessing him.

“Count Lima Vaduva.” At this point he was trying to grasp at anything, provoke something in the maid, but her face stayed just as undisturbed. “Please I’m from Engel College you see. My adviser is Clive Herrmann. He told me the Vaduva’s have been benefactors of us in the past, so he might be interested in helping me with my current study and--”

“Count’s dead.” The servant girl voice came out in a slow wisp.

“Dead?” Alm whispered. It was only one word, but it managed to kill all his hopes in one fell swoop. A gust of wind tore through the slips of his overcoat, slithering across his bare skin. He wondered if he had ever been this cold in his life before--if he had even been so lost and alone.

“Yes dead.” The girl’s tone was firm, yet a furrowed brow marred her otherwise empty countenance. “Perhaps you would like to see the Countess?”

Relief flooded his veins, a more heady champagne than the bottle Python had stolen for the gang back during their first years. “Yes, thank you, thank you so much!”

As he was led inside the manor, he felt his nerves calm for the first time in days. The dim candlelight and finely furnished interior proved that the girl was not some ghost haunting an abandoned estate. With a polite yet professional briskness, the girl set him down in a parlor.

“Wait here.” With that she vanished into the rest of the manor without a sound.

Left to his own devices, Alm tried to study his surroundings, hoping it would put the strange exterior into context. After all the, um, eccentricities of the place probably had its own charm. He probably just had to get adjusted to its taste.

Looking at the parlor closely, he could tell that it had been decorated with both care and taste, even if it wasn’t his particular style. Although the more he thought about it, this style didn’t seem to look like anything that had been made in the past twenty years. So strange, usually the parlor was where a family displayed their finest dressings, but then these were probably antiques that had been handed out. Well then again he was just an uncultured country boy, that’s what Alm kept telling himself when he noticed the layer of dust coating the tables.

There was a creak, and he couldn’t help but flinch. Now that his eyes had adjusted from the darkness of outside, he realized just how much the candles left unlit. The corners of the room shifted with shadows. Obviously it was just do the flickering lights, not because there was something there. With a little more time he’d adjust to--

There was a tap on his shoulder, and it took all his willpower not to jump out of his skin. Slowly he turned to find that the girl from before had entered again without him knowing.

“Announcing the Right and Honorable mistress of the manor,” She fell into a deep curtsy. “The Countess Celica Vaduva.”

Immediately, Alm stood bowing just as fully.

“Your Ladyship...” It was only know that he was bent did he regret not pulling out his dictionary to practice this beforehand. “I am honoring to be in your pree--”

Before he could continue, a hand gripped his chin. As it lifted his face, he couldn’t help but gasp. Maybe it was the loneliness of his trip getting to him, but in that moment all he wanted to do was stare and take in the stranger that stood before him.

The Countess was beautiful, that much was obvious to anyone with seeing eyes. But Alm wasn’t a lecherous pervert, he had seen many pretty ladies and gone on his day without giving them a second though. Still for her simple, black silks, there was an unearthly grace to her entire silhouette. From how she held her elegant neck to the way her red curls fell gently across her shoulders to frame her face, it all moved him in a profound yet incomprehensible manner.

“Please don’t try that again.” Her nails scraped lightly against his jaw. “Do you speak German?” Her grasp of his mother-tongue was much more thorough than his of Romanian. What trace of an accent that lingered only gave her words a gentle, soothing lithe.

“German, yes, thank you!” God, even her speech was captivating. Her ruby red lips against her pale white skin were a striking contrast. He wanted to commit everything about them to his memory, from their shape to their texture.

With a jerk, Alm forced himself to look away. Swooning over a noblewoman was not the way to start his field research.

The Countess giggled. Her laughter was thick and weighty, like a warm cloak had suddenly been fastened to you. “My when Genny described you, I didn’t expect you to be quite so shy.” She laughed again, but before he could self-combust from her teasing she graciously let go of his face and moved to sit across from him. “I’m curious about what kind of creature would show up at my door at this hour. Pray tell what is your name?”

“Schafer--Alm Schafer.” He scrambled back to his seat, grateful to move back into familiar territory. “Engel College...Clive Herrmann, does any of that ring a bell for you?”

“Not a single chime.” She laced her fingers together.

“I was surprised to find out that the former Count is dead,” Alm couldn’t stop himself from thinking out loud. “If we hadn’t been under the impression he was still alive Professor Herrmann would have never sent me to disturb his...” He trailed off once he realized he had no clue just who in fact this woman was.

“Daughter. I’m his daughter. Forgive me for not informing the entire world about his death while I have been grieving.” Her apologetic tilt of her head did nothing to hide the bitterness of her words.

“Oh, no, no, I understand that is was just a miscommunication error, please--”

“--Pardon me, Mr. Schafer, but all I really care to know is why you are here.” The Countess huffed. “I’m a busy woman, and you can’t ever regained wasted time.”

Alm took a deep breath. This had not been how he had anticipated his proposal going. It was all moving so much faster than he had prepared, banking on Count Lima’s pride as a patron to secure him a fortnight or so as he eased him into the idea of his research. Yet his sharp daughter had yet to turn him down. He had to adapt and make use of what goodwill he had if he truly cared about his studies.

“I’m very fascinated by aristocracy--” Alm tried to find words that would make sense to someone unfamiliar with academia. “--particularly in how it functions in newly-born modern nation such as Romania, and how the nation-state in turn influences the aristocracy.”

“I see.” The Countess said as if she clearly did not understand. “I’m not sure when Wallachia stopped being Wallachia, but I can tell you are a pupil of sorts, however peculiar you are.”

“See that’s what I’m talking about!” Alm leaned forward, carried away by the insight. “My research is all about learning what people like you think and why you feel that way. The past and present are not two separate planes but shape one another constantly. You must understand both to even approach one. Getting to observe your daily life, talking with you about various issues, why even just being allowed to access your family trees would make me the most blessed of scholars!” He fiddled through his satchel for his coin purse. “I know it is strange to request room and board before it is offered, but I can compensate you. Please understand that I come with nothing but sincere intellectual curiosity. Your compliance could help us expand our understanding of humanity like never before.”

The Countess was quiet, entwined hands hiding her expression. He didn’t quite understand what, if anything, had changed about her in their short time together, yet it still seemed as if something had soured between the two of them. The rancid odor of the faux pas seemed to consume the entire room.

“You play the ingenue quite well, Mr. Schafer, but I also see the true fox that hides behind your eyes.” There was a raspy quality to her voice now. “You come to a maiden’s abode at sunset, begging to know her. To turn you away from shelter at this time would be completely unexpected, a monster’s choice. You’re only mistake though was assuming that I couldn’t be cruel.”

She looked back up at him, those enchanting red lips quirked in a sly grin. “So tell me again Mr. Schafer. Why should I invite you into my humble home?”

Panic settled into his skin. When she put things like that, he did sound like quite the rake, asking to live with an unmarried woman. His first instinct was to try and defend his character, but the Countess gaze was so intense it left him speechless. Why was he here? He knew the steps that had carried him from Berlin to her doorstep, but now with an outsider’s eye, his actions seemed that of a madman’s. Disturbed, Alm cradled his temple. He was trying his best to string his thoughts together, but his mind was like a fogged moor. All he could do was wander it aimlessly as the shadows in the room seemed to grow larger and larger.

And yet just when he was sure they would swallow him, the Countess’ voice managed to dispel the darkness with just a word.

“It was wise of you to not try and deceive me. I have no need for your money, but honesty is quite the rarity.” She stood. “You may stay and conduct your odd research, but by it’s end you must convince me why I have also profited. If I find your answer lacking well--” She smiled, but something about the action was wrong. The vast whiteness of her teeth seemed as if it might devour him whole. “--I’ll suggest my own payment.”

Before he could respond, the Countess had already turned her back to him. “Genny can show you to your guest room. I suggest you retire soon. You’ll find Wallachian nights are often best avoided.”

After the constant back and forth his heart had endured, Alm find it difficult to muster much of a reaction at all for the rest of the evening. Even when the maid and her too quiet steps guided him into another equally alien and dark room, he found sleep was all that could move him.

But before dreamland could claim him, he remembered his journal. He had only gained it recently for this trip, but without proper notes, all his travels would be for naught. Dutifully, he tried to record the day’s events in as neutral and objective manner as possible. Yet when it came time to describe the Countess, he found his mind wandering.

Her eyes were the most exotic of shades. Even know I struggle to name the particular hue. They were likely a unique shade of brown, one that would be perceived differently depending on the lightning.

They were quite stunning, sometimes even appearing to be red.

A.N. Happy Halloween!  To celebrate I decided to give these two a vampire au to have some Gothic fun, expect heavy shout-outs to Dracula and general nerdiness!

[sireneia]

bookoftriumph: ✿ IDK if I'm late but... Kliff and Faye? :O

pre-established relationships ( always acc. )

FRIENDSHIP.     childhood friends  / work buddies or coworkers  /  family friends  /  friends with benefits  /  smoking buddies  /  adventure buddies  /  fake friends  /  recently friends  /  party buddies  /  friendship of need  /  dying friendship  /  circumstantial friendship  /  partners in crime  /  old friendship  /  [ your muse ] is the good influence  /  [ your muse ] is the bad influence  /  [ my muse ] is the good influence  /  [ my muse ] is the bad influence  /  opposites attract  /  ride or die  /  frenemies  /  roommates or flatmates  /  penpals  /  exes to friends  /  enemies to friends  /  other .

ROMANCE.     childhood sweethearts  /  [ your muse is mines ] childhood crush  /  [ my muse is yours ] childhood crush  /  exes  /  exes to lovers  /  forbidden lovers  /  highschool sweethearts  /  secret relationship  /  opposites attract  /  long distance  /  unrequited [ from your muses side ]  /  unrequited [ from my muses side ]  /  unrequited [ from both sides ]  /  skinny love  /  friends to lovers  /  enemies to lovers  /  spurious relationship  /  power couple  /  newly entered  / soulmates [ metaphorical ]  / soulmates  [ literal ]  /  awkward  /  turning toxic  /  toxic love  / cheating [ on your muse ]  /  cheating [ with your muse ]  /  other .

FAMILIAL.     siblings [ half ]  /  siblings [ step ]  /  [ my muse ] is an older sibling figure to your younger sibling figure  /  [ my muse ] is a younger sibling figure to your older sibling figure muse /  [ my muse ] is a parental figure to yours  /  [ my muse ] is a child figure to your muse  /  guardian figure  /  legal guardian  /  adoptive child  /  foster child  /  [ your muse ] is taken under mines wing  /  [ my muse ] is taken under yours wing  /  other .

ANTAGONISTIC.     dangerous to each other  /  dangerous to others  /  unpredictable  /  rivals  /  petty  /  developing into sexual or romantic tension  /  based off family matters  /  based off circumstance  / based off professional matters  /  based off misunderstanding or lies  /  conflict of ideology  /  betrayal  /  hero - villain dynamic  /  enemies  /  fight club  /  friends turned enemies /  lovers turned enemies  /  exes turned enemies  /  other .

HUCK’S THOUGHTS:

i would’ve replied to your post but figured to save my thoughts for here! i’m a pretty big fan of kliff/faye as a ship, so us both liking it is already an easy step to move from! 

i particularly like their relationship as a friendship that starts primarily from the circumstance of “oh we all live near each other” but more importantly i’ve always seen their dynamic as kliff being the one to ground faye ( he’s the one to point out the fallacies in her dreams ) and faye knows that, even if she thinks he’s being a party pooper. she appreciates him and definitely strongly cares for him. potentially, she can eventually be the one to encourage him to allow himself to just enjoy things more? dream a little? which can lead to the angst of kliff wanting to leave to travel the world, and faye can’t will herself to try and tell him to stay with her because she told him to go for his dreams in the first place. 

they have contradictory wants ( faye loves home, kliff’s sick of it ) and i think overcoming that hurdle could be interesting! i put penpals / long-distance as a suggestion for a compromise of their two conflicting desires! 

i also am a big big sucker for wanting to write their relationship developing and faye eventually realizing she has feelings ( i know your kliff already has feelings for faye ) but i’m also chill with jumping around and instead writing them as they’ve already just entered their relationship! i think these two with their different ideals and personalities can make for a fun ship to write trying to get over misunderstandings and become better, stronger people as a direct consequence of their relationship and any bickering they might do! 

friends turned enemies is more for heroes verse since there’s always the potential for faye to be in askr’s army while kliff’s under embla’s contract and whatnot! but i get that that might not seem your alley. O:

[bluepunkmon]

FE Gen Week Prompt #3: Rest

In which Faye tries to wake Kliff up. Rated G, though there is non-graphic violence and death

Kliff must have been tired.

Faye could always tell. They spent a lot of time together, because they were both slow and sometimes they fell behind Alm, Tobin, and Grey, and it was easier to play with each other than try to catch up with the others. It wasn’t always good; They liked different games and to talk about different things, and the mixture could end in disaster. Him getting frustrated and saying, “Why do you keep talking about Alm? He doesn’t like you, and he’s never gonna like you,” and her getting mad and calling him stupid and running home happened fairly often. But they always managed to come together again the day after.

The magic must have sapped his energy – it’s the newest thing to change between them beside age in a village where it felt like nothing worthwhile ever changed. She remembered when he first showed it to her behind her house, how she watched in wonder as a faint, tiny spark hopped around his palm like a rabbit.

“Kliff, that’s amazing! You’re a real mage!”

“M’ not a real mage yet.” he muttered, face turned away and flushed. He still smiled, though.

He worked hard with what little information he could glean from the torn-up musty old tome he’d found. He soon grew bags under eyes, liked he’d been staying up late to practice.

He must have been so tired.

“Do you want to learn too?” Kliff asked once, after the two of them took turns feeding dead leaves to a small but slightly larger magical flame that flickered uncertainly in a patch of dirt.

Faye frowned. “I don’t know… I don’t think I’d be very good at it.”

“You’d be great.” Kliff said with iron certainty, like he was stating a fact. “And there are other kinds of magic if you don’t like fire, like healing. My tome only mentioned a few, but I’ll try to find something you like.”

And he did try, spending the few chances he had to go to town town looking for a new tome, all the while practicing with the tome he had, alongside working and avoiding his mother. It made Faye felt nice, to have such a friend.

It all must have made him so, so tired. That must have been why he wasn’t waking up.

Faye crouched next to where he lay in the underbrush, ears strained for any sign of the soldiers that tried to take Celica. When Sir Mycen had pulled out his sword and told the children to hide, they’d all scattered for the woods around them. Faye hid behind a tree and listened to the fighting, heart in her throat and more terrified than she ever thought possible.

A twig snapped. Faye flinched, hunching closer to Kliff. He still wasn’t moving.

Everything felt strange, too blurry and too clear all at once. Her memory was shaky, uncertain images, like trying to see with rain flying into your face. She couldn’t remember running, scrambling for her hiding spot, couldn’t remember how long it was until a soldier crashed through the bushes like a thunderstorm and found her.

But Faye remembered how the soldier’s eyes (horrible, cruel eyes) locked on hers for a split second before a bright ball of flame exploded in his face. She remembered the way he fell back, the way Kliff rushed out of his hiding spot to avoid being stumbled into, remembered a flash of steel, remembered his scream, remembered him falling, remembered other soldiers shouting in the distance, in anger and pain, and remembered the burned man rushing away to join them and shouting until he screamed too.

She didn’t remember going over to Kliff. One moment she was hiding, the next by his side.

Eventually the sounds of fighting stop. There’s quiet, and then a noise started coming closer, crashing through bushes and grass towards them, and Faye thought they were both going to die.

But the voice that broke through was higher than the soldiers’ – “I think I saw them go over here!’ – and the answering low rumble was familiar, not strange and hostile. It was Sir Mycen, and Alm.

Faye let out the breath she’d been holding. Everything was going to be okay. The world started turning again – she felt the cool breeze, smelled summer flowers, heard the leaves on the trees overhead rustle. She’d never been so glad to be alive.

She shook her friend’s shoulder. “Kliff, wake up, Sir Mycen is here!”

Nothing.

“Kliff?”

She shook his shoulder again, and when she pulled her hand away, it was wet. Why was it wet? Her head felt numb. What was going on?

He must be exhausted. Yes, that was it. He must be resting. But they had to leave, he’d be grumpy when he woke up but he could rest later. She regretted not learning healing magic; maybe that would make him feel better.

The sun went away. Faye looked up to see Sir Mycen standing over her, quiet and strong as a mountain. Alm and Celica stood behind him, wide-eyed.

“Sir Mycen,” She said, and couldn’t understand why she didn’t feel like herself, her tongue numb and head odd. “Kliff wont wake up. I keep shaking him but I can’t wake him up.”

Alm looked at Kliff (the whites of his eyes were huge), then her, then looked up. “Granpa..?”

Sir Mycen sighed, slowly, and the lines on his face looked like they were etched in stone. It was the most emotion Faye had ever seen from the stoic knight. “Alm. Celica. Take Faye home.”

He led the way out of the thicket, carrying Kliff, while Alm and Celica walked on either side of Faye. She saw Tobin and Grey across the field, coming to meet them. She saw soldiers too, lying motionless under the sun.

Alm and Celica were trying to tell her something, but she didn’t understand them. Didn’t understand why their eyes were shining, either. While they walked, she looked ahead, to Sir Mycen carrying Kliff. It must be uncomfortable, to have your face pressed into armor like that. It was good he was being carried, though she knew he’d be mad when he woke up later. For now, he needed to rest.

[roraruu]

wip: red

just a lil faye and lukas bonding... a big old wip

Lukas is sent to Ram Village with a mission. The moment he gets there he realizes that it is full of the same nothingness that all other villages in Zofia have. The same decrepit well, sloping hills that crack and brown within this drought, and the drab colours of villager’s outfits, all worn and patched up.

The knight in red is greeted by four villagers—three of the four holding hilts of swords, the last hands itching for a wood axe.

“What should we do?” The one with brown hair says quickly.

“Keep it down Tobe. Act natural.” Another, dressed in green, says with keen determination. The silver haired one beside him holds a thick book, most likely a used tome. There’s a distinct heaviness in the air that lingers. Lukas can feel the hairs on the back of his neck ripple and prick up. A mage, or at least, the makings of one. Lukas thinks.

He offers a thin smile, something to make the villagers feel comfort. He knows the lance on his back is disconcerting. So far south, the poor village had probably not heard of Rigel or the King or the rising war.

So the knight in red would be the bearer of bad tidings. But not before a proper hello and introduction.

“Good afternoon.” He says softly and gently. The mage and the brown and black haired boys rest uneasily against a broken fence. “Would this be Ram Village?” He asks.

“It depends on who’s asking.” The black-haired one says. His hand grazes the hilt of a rusty sword. It’s bad for fighting, but Lukas knows he will use it if need be. “Knights of Zofia aren’t welcome here.”

He notices the last of the crew—a girl with her fingers upon a wood-chopping axe—shift nervously. “I do not serve the country, but instead, her people.” Lukas says. “I am Lukas, with the Deliverance.”

“Never heard of ya.” The brown haired one says. The black haired one shoots him a look and says his name in a warning way.

“I fear it is not the same. I’ve come to beg a boon of Sir Mycen. Would he be here?” He asks soothingly.

“He’s busy at the moment.” Says the girl. Her voice is drags and whines, not quite annoyedly, but more so pulled by something weighing her down.

The black-haired one shoots her a look as he heaves himself off of the broken fence. The other two boys do the same. “You can wait here. Don’t wander though.”

“Of course. Thank you.” Lukas says.

The girl waits for a moment. Lukas moves his hands behind his back, watching as her feet make marks in the dirt. The other three have moved away, closer to the watchtower, keeping a keen gaze on him as they mutter back and forth.

“Why do you need Sir Mycen?”

Her voice is quieter now, but filled with a certain defensiveness that Lukas can understand. “I was sent with intentions to call him to action again.” Lukas says.

The girl’s thin brows furrow, knitting on her forehead. “Like... a ceremony or something?” She asks, muttering that it’s been years since Mycen was honoured.

“Perhaps at the end.” He suggests. “But I do not come with any intent to harm your village.”

“Doesn’t suit noble tastes, huh?” She asks snappily.

Such a sharp tongue for a young girl, he thinks. His lips curve into a smile. “On the contrary, noble tastes would enjoy it, but I am just a backwater noble. I’ve nothing to gain and nothing to give if I made any move on this place.” He says.

“I don’t think my friends would ever let you.” She says. Her eyes trace to the other villagers, two holding their hilts, the other staring with such a focused gaze that Lukas swears he’s throwing daggers. “It would be easier if we knew your name, sir.”

“Lukas.” He repeats softly. “And may I have the lady’s?”

She begins marching back to her friends, most likely ready to give away all she knows. One of her plaits falls over her shoulder as she nods. “Faye.” She says quietly.

Faye, he thinks. A lovely name. He sees the slow movements toward her friends, the quiet hums as she moves towards them eventually accepted into the group. Not long after a green haired boy approaches the group—most likely a friend—and escorts Lukas back to the hovel where Mycen now lives.

***

The march from Ram is gruelling for the young. Before they’re even out of the village, they’re attacked by rogues and Lukas tries to guide the villagers as best as he can. They’re all rearing to go, except maybe Faye, who sticks more towards the back.

Perhaps she isn’t cut out for fighting. Lukas thinks after a battle against bandits. The other three have proven themselves worthy and he suggests to Alm that they select classes.

“What about Faye?” Alm asks while they march. Lukas isn’t that great of an educator, let alone a marker, but with Alm’s guidance he is able to give solid advice on which paths they should follow.

“I haven’t seen her use her weapon once, so I cannot speak to her.” Lukas says with such thought. It’s true. While he did see her fingers itch for a woodcutter’s axe back in the village, she never once drew her sword to fight.

Alm rubs his chin in thought. “She was always very good with the horses back home. Her uncle ran the village’s vineyard for a while, so she has experience with them.” he says. “I think she mentioned that a relative was a pegasus knight or something...”

“And what about the other paths she could follow? Doe she know white magic?” Lukas says. “A healer will be necessary to survive the coming battles.”

The words sober Alm. His eyes widen as he nods. “Right.” He then calls to Faye who hurries towards him with such vigor. Lukas watches as the dim girl brightens quickly with just a few words from him. She agrees to at least try white magic and she walks with Kliff, taking his tome and reading it over and over.

However, theory and practice are two separate things. She is not gentle in the least, grabbing Tobin’s broken arm with such force that he cries out. And when he tends to Gray’s cuts he asks if she’s a healer or a hell-sent fighter. Half her spells do not work on poor Kliff and she ends up using first aid.

The rest of the group breathes a sigh when they meet a cleric in an old shrine. Faye thankfully is able to awaken her, but after that Faye swears off white magic. The battle in the shrine is enough to prove her worth. Lukas ended up being wrong—the girl is incredibly strong and fast, and knocks down brigands critically before her fellow villagers even have a chance to glimpse her way.

The cleric has a different beauty around her. The cleric’s beauty in devotion and modesty and kindness. After she wakes, thanks to Faye’s quick thinking and bare-bones first aid, Silque sets to work checking old wounds and breaks and correcting them with her staff.

It’s long before Lukas can introduce himself. And even then he begins thinking up names for she. But it’s when she is marching with Faye and the latter breaks off to sullenly walk by herself that they are introduced formally.

Silque is bright and cheerful and sweet, offering a hymn or sermon to every woe and pain. Never a sentence leaves her lips that isn’t graced with Mila’s words. Thus, very quietly in the back of his mind, Lukas calls her Mila’s Messenger.

Sometime later, they rescue Lady Clair from the Southern Outpost and Lukas finally feels a sense of comfort in the motley band of villagers he’d recruited. To the eyes of Clair they are not just a handful of villagers, a soldier and a cleric—they are the Deliverance. And that instils a modicum of hope in Lukas.

***

Faye is put on night watch. She sits diligently in front of the fire, listening and watching for any strange people or noises. It’s tiresome, but it’s the duty of her path.

Clair—the pegasus knight—had said there were resources left behind after the liberation of the Outpost, one of which was a workhorse. It was quickly given to Faye, with a set of armour and she was told that she would be blessed at the next shrine. Cavaliers are to be strong and diligent knights, to protect those around them. Besides, it keeps her from sitting with the rest of the villagers who moon over Clair’s allure and mystery.

She thinks of how different the women in the Deliverance are. Silque came from an island and prays to Mila before and after every battle and never breathes a word of bad. She is small and kind and seraph-like in appearance with dark eyes and robes of white. She provides little interest to anyone, except maybe Kliff when she uses her black magic. Faye always turns her head when Silque is about to cast her spells—for such a kindhearted and gentle woman, Mila’s magic is gruesome.

The pegasus knight, Clair, is a door to another world that none of the villagers have ever been through. A world of the sublime, the delicate, the plenty. It’s not that Faye doesn’t get along or doesn’t like Clair—on the contrary, she’s interested in the simplicity of village life and even helped Faye calm her steed when they were first united—it’s more like Clair is unattainable. That she is an ideal that Faye could never become. Someone proud, someone strong, someone ever-so-slightly arrogant. It’s the exact same with Silque, who is soft-spoken, devoted to the Goddess who has deserted her people and gives more than she takes. Faye cannot be either woman; she can only be herself in all her meagre glory.

So while Tobin and Gray listen to Clair’s tales of Zofian high society and Kliff watches Silque guide him through basic white magic, Faye tends to the fire. She is content with sitting by the flames, protecting her friends and love with only a lance that she fumbles with. In truth, she doesn’t mind the solitude that much. It gives her time to write to her family and to Mycen, where ever he is. He always said she’d make a remarkable knight, and that she’d outclass the village boys.

It’s fairly quiet tonight, only the hum of insects and night birds fill the air, and the dying cackle of fire. She hears hooting and hollering and her hands wrap around her lance slowly, listening for footsteps closing in on her.

She brings her lance up and then—

“Ah, it’s just the village girl.”

“She has a name, Python!”

Her grasp loosens on the sword. She lowers herself back against the log. She can see Forsyth, Lukas and Python in the darkness. The latter is draped around his fellow knights’ shoulders in a drunken haze. “Apologies miss Faye.” Forsyth says, shuffling Python along. The smell of alcohol radiates off of them, probably at the tavern. “I was just making sure Python got back safely.”

“Don’t worry about it.” She says, lowering the lance against the ground. The three stop. There’s a few hushed words spoken and Forsyth lumbers away with Python.

“Did Clive assign you to night watch all by yourself?” Lukas asks with a furrowed brow.

She nods. “Everyone else was tired from the day’s march.” She’s not entirely sure it’s true. It may be, it may not be.

“Would you like some company?” He asks. “I doubt it feels good to be up all by yourself.”

Faye glances to the archer and soldier that walk away. “What about your friend?” She asks. “He seems drunker than a skunk.”

“He can wait until the morning for a reprimand.” Lukas says.

It’s enough reason for Faye to slide along the log. She rests the lance on her lap, hands curled tightly around the weapon. Her knuckles go white. Faye doesn’t say anything as Lukas sits across from her. The dying fire separates them as they keep watch, hands on their weapons and avoiding each other’s gazes.

She’s never been one for small talk. Always to the point, always quick. Except maybe with Alm. She’d try to guide him in conversations with flowery words and hopeful tones and flickering glances but he rarely caught on. She doubts she will be different with Lukas, even if he tries to speak.

So instead, she speaks. “I’d like to apologize.”

He peels his gaze from the flames and glances up to her. “Is there one needed?”

“Yes. I was rude when you came into Ram.” She says.

He states at her, the fire making his armour more orange than red. She shudders in the night time chill and summons the cavalier strength in her bones. “I was only doing what I thought best for my village.” She says. “Like Gray said, we don’t like Knights.”

“I do not need nor want your apology.”

She glances up, brow furrowing. She’s ready to give him an earful but he quickly corrects himself. “Had I been in the same situation, I would have acted the same way.” He says. “I did not take any of what you said to heart.”

“Really?” She asks, concerned. He nods.

Then in overwhelming nervousness she bows her head and tightens her fingers around the lance. “Thank you, Lukas.” She says. She doesn’t know why she’s saying it, but she means it, with all her heart. And Lukas only smiles from across the flames, turning his eyes back to his own weapon.

***

Lukas isn’t a good cook. He’s not at all confident in the kitchen, but doesn’t have the heart to tell Clive or Alm. Instead, he tries his best to make something satisfying for everyone. His mental recipe book is thin though, the steward at home had always prepared foods. Still, like everything he does, he tries his best, and prepares for the worst, which comes in form of a smoking cauldron and horrible stench.

Faye is the one to rescue him. She smells the scalding meat and milk first and comes running into the cook tent. The tent flaps flutter in the wind as she runs through the entrance. Lukas is relieved when he sees her face. “Do you want a hand?” She asks.

He nods, thankful for her speedy response. “I’m afraid I’m out of my realm of comfort.” Lukas says softly. He’s never been able to summon forth panic, not even in the worst of situations.

“What were you trying to make?” She asks, looking at the cauldron on the fire pit.

“Stew.” He says as she looks it over again. Using the edge of her apron—she stills wears her village clothes when they rest, it gives her some respite—she picks up the cauldron and hauls it off the fire.

“Have you cooked before in your life?” She barks. She shakes her head, murmuring a swift apology. “You usually have to cook the meat before.”

“I’ve only made it once prior. The recipe is rusty in my mind.”

“All right. I’m here now.” Faye says. She finds some vegetables from their pantry packs and orders him to chop them while she salvages the stew, searing the meat in a separate pan and using the bones to make stock.

“How long have you been cooking for?” He asks, glancing her way as they cook. In a flash she’d rolled up her sleeves and tied up her hair.

“Since I was little. Some fifteen years.” She says simply. “I hope you don’t mind but I’m using my Nana’s recipe.”

“Not at all. It must be good if you trust it so.” Lukas says.

It earns a thin smile from her as she turns the meat. It squeals in the pan. “She’d surely blush if she were here now.” She says more to herself than to him. He focuses on cutting vegetables and once again, like at the camp fire, they work in silence.

The soup is ready within the half hour. Together, Lukas and Faye set the cauldron onto the hook over the fire. She sets a wooden spoon in the pot. “Stir it every few minutes so it doesn’t stick.” Faye instructs, firm as a school teacher.

“Thank you for saving our supper.” He says. “I appreciate your help.”

Faye nods. “It’s no problem.” She says.

The compliments fall in at supper, everyone praising Lukas’ cooking skills. Even Faye says that he has promise. The bottom of the pot is scraped clean and their bellies are full for once. Silently, as they’re gathering tin dishes and tainted silver forks, Lukas thanks Faye.

***

The Deliverance is celebrated when they reach Zofia castle. It’s loud and bustling, with wine flowing like the rivers and gold to spare. The castle, a sign of Zofia’s pride and heart, is returned to her people.

Clive encourages everyone to take in this moment, enjoy it and savour it’s every minuscule benefit; but for Lukas, it reminds him too much of the dances and cotillions he wished to flee back home. Instead, he slinks away to the armoury where their weapons have been thrown.

There’s a light in the dim room, illuminating a cavalier’s shadow. He sees an iron lance and then a tin of wax. Her head is bent, her pigtails over her shoulder as she rubs wax into her lance’s tip.

“I didn’t realize someone else was here.” He says quietly. “Good evening, Faye.”

She glances up, quickly stiffening. “Hi Lukas.” She says.

“You’re not upstairs with the others. I would have thought you’d like to explore the castle.” He says. “Or attend the dance at least.”

She shakes her head, turning back to her lance. She rubs the rag down the blade. “I wanted to make sure everyone’s weapons were ready when we march again.” She says. There’s a small pile of shiny, freshly-waxed weapons on a tarp beside her, and a few lances, swords and shields on the ground at her feet. “You never know when we’ll be hit.”

“That’s very diligent of you.” He says. “Would you like a hand?”

“I thought you would like to see the castle again.” She shoots back. “Or attend the dance.”

Lukas smirks thinly. “I wanted to make sure we were ready to march too.” Lowly, he adds. “Besides, I’m not that great a dancer.”

Faye stares at him for a moment. Slowly, she slides along on the brickwork, moving her cleaned pile aside. She hands him a rag and puts the wax between the two of them. They work in silence, the hum of the dance above their heads.

***

Lukas finds a book, just something from Kliff. It’s a nice distraction in the night when he is with a wrenching and moaning Python; but nothing that he would reach outward after battles. Such time is precious and spent training or resting or helping around their camps

Faye is sewing when he sits down by the fire with his book. First it’s in silence but slowly, she begins to ask questions when she moves through torn sheets and ripped leggings. “What’s the book about?” She asks, not looking up from her stitching.

“Horticulture.” He says. Her dark eyes flicker up in confusion. “Flowers and gardens and the like.”

“Why would you want to read about that?” Faye asks. “There’s flowers everywhere in Zofia.”

“I just wanted something to pass the time.”

Faye’s voice breaks again. “Do you enjoy flowers?” She asks.

He nods. “They’re beautiful. Wildflowers especially.” He says. “Our nobility could never properly cultivate them.”

“We have all sorts in Ram.” She says quietly, like she’s ashamed of her home in front of a nobleman. It’s more emotion than he’d ever received from her before.

He shifts closer to her, resting the leather cover against his knees. Her eyes flicker to the pages. “Do you recognize any?” He asks.

Her fingers slip from underneath the sheet she’s stitching. “Foxglove, Anne’s lace, forget me nots, violets...“ One of her long, dainty fingers trace the page. “Every one is in Ram.”

“Are you a lover of flowers?” He asks.

“I have a garden back home.” She quickly corrects herself with a hard brow. “My parents do. I just water it from time to time.”

And then, surprising him more than the enemy on the field, she turns back to her work. “One day I’ll send you some.” She says, looking out from the side of her eye.

“Or I could visit your village again. And see them myself.”

Her attention goes back to her thread and needle and his eyes return to the page.

***

Faye’s steed bucks her off. She hits her head and retches into the mud while training with Mathilda. Lukas is there to take her back to the infirmary while Mathilda calms her steed.

“Take her to Silque.” Mathilda orders. He obliges as soon as the words leave her lips.

He holds our his arm to Faye, as though they’re about to dance or walk leisurely around the courtyard of his childhood home. But they are not in Zofia, and she is nothing more than a villager in a knight’s garb. Yet she takes his arm, clutches onto it with a fierce hold and stumbles along.

The entire time the cavalier looks at him with a strange and bewildered gaze. She almost falls into him, and he ends up carrying her back to the medical tent, bridal style. He gains a few eyes but none are scarring as hers. Dazed and dark and staring up at him glassily.

“Lukas,” She says when Silque says it will be a moment. She’s seated on a stool, a basin close in case she retches again.

“Yes Faye?” He’s concerned and tender.

“I understand why everyone says you’re not bad to look at.” She says without a blush. She’s serious, not chittering like a milkmaid or smirking like a noblewoman. She’s confused more than anything. “You’re very handsome.”

He feels a shiver down his spine. Usually there’s be a giggle following, or something to suggest flirting. But it’s stone cold truth. “You’re actually really handsome.” She says louder, more clearer, as if he was hard of hearing.

“Thank you Faye.” He says with a nod. He’s grateful, truly. After all, the girls who’d said that before would giggle and smile and act like children after the words left their lips. But Faye is different. It’s most definitely due to the concussion—not even to Alm had she been this candid—she was demure had the makings of a noble lady, given the time and care and—

He finds himself saying it without thinking. “You’re quite beautiful yourself.” He says softly.

She doesn’t flush, nor cower back. Instead she stares at him with such confusion and exasperation that silences the both of them until Silque gingerly took Faye by the hands and led her behind a veiled curtain to treat her.

When she returns, she’s bright eyed and giddy to get back to the training grounds. Silque has to touch her arm. “Sir Lukas brought you back,” she says in such a calm and motherly tone, as if reminding her like a mother would to a selfish child.

“Oh.” Faye breathes. She offers a polite curtsey—something Mathilda taught her most likely—and a bow of her head. “Thank you Sir Lukas.”

Another shiver trails down his spine. Not at the addition of ‘Sir’ to his name, something to discredit all the gentle goodness he had given Faye. Not even for the curtsey and the nod that sent the fragrance of soft flowers her way. But for the fact that there was no flush on her cheeks or embarrassment from having told him he was handsome, and that he, having thought he was cold and indifferent to adoration, felt heat up the creases of his ears and across his face.

[thecollegefootballguy]

2019 Big 12 Coaching Power Rankings

Welcome to the second part of the 2019 Coaching Power Rankings. It’s basically how it sounds: I’m going conference by conference and rating how good each head coach is relative to his peers.

The Big 12 is in the middle of the pack as far as the P5 is concerned. Oklahoma continues to dominate the conference and maybe Texas is back. They’ve got a some good teams, some bad teams, and a giant middle section all fighting to compete.

The Big 12 joins the ACC with a whopping four coaches being replaced. The Big 12 has only 10 members, so proportionately they’re churning through a whole lot more talent. The legendary Bill Snyder (#1 on last year’s list) retired after a long and successful career in Manhattan. Dana Holgorsen (#4 last year) and West Virginia more or less moved on from each other after the marriage grew stale, though it’s a bit embarrassing that Holgo went to a G5 program over WVU, even if it is Houston. Kliff Kingsbury (#6) was fired for underperforming at Texas Tech, though he now is an NFL head coach, which tells you all you need to know about the state of NFL coaching talent right now. David Beaty (#10) was fired at Kansas because they just totally sucked his entire career there.

I wouldn’t be too worried about the Big 12 considering the hires they made. I’m a big fan of all four men stepping into their new roles, this should really strengthen the conference overall, even if we lost an all-time great like Snyder.

Here is a link to the list from last year if you’d like to check that out first.

-

10. Matt Wells

Overall Record: 44-34

Movement: N/A

That Matt Wells is the 10th coach out of 10 on this list is a good sign. Wells was one of the more successful coaches in Utah State’s history, at least since the 1960′s. Wells overcame all the deficiencies inherent to the program and terrible injuries in several seasons to craft his second 10 game winner in Logan last year. If he can work his magic in Lubbock, the Red Raiders are going to be a competitive team, and perhaps work against the normal Big 12 template. They probably won’t get real good this year, so be patient.

-

9. Neal Brown

Overall Record: 35-16

Movement: N/A

Neal Brown turned Troy back into a powerhouse after the Trojans fell off at the tail end of Larry Blakeney’s career. Brown was one of the hottest coaches that somehow seemed to fly under the radar. I’m sure he’s going to do real well at West Virginia. Again, it might take him a year or two but I also wouldn’t be surprised if he just hits the ground running and starts winning right away.

-

8. Matt Rhule

Record at Baylor: 8-17 Overall Record: 36-40

Movement: Up 1 Spot

Matt Rhule is getting the ball rolling at Baylor. The Bears jumped from 1-11 to 7-6 in his second year. It’ll get harder and harder to add more wins per year, but even averaging seven wins a seasons is pretty good for a school like Baylor. I’m not sure high Rhule can climb, but if he builds the program up, we’ve seen that the Bears can field a really good team. Just, maybe this time we won’t have the Briles issues.

-

7. Tom Herman

Record at Texas: 17-10 Overall Record: 39-14

Movement: Up 1 spot

Well hey, Texas might actually be back. Tom Herman has got the Longhorns back to 10 wins in year two and the recruiting is on fire. The shellacking of Georgia in the Sugar Bowl probably helped. Herman is doing all of the right things in Austin. If he keeps them up he’ll be much higher on this list in no time.

-

6. Matt Campbell

Record at Iowa State: 19-19 Overall Record: 54-34

Movement: Down 1 spot

Boy I feel real bad bumping Matt Campbell out of the top five. He really doesn’t deserve the demotion, he’s done such a good job at Iowa State so far. It’s not every year that two coaches join a league after having already won national championships. Unfortunately that pushes Campbell down a spot. If he keeps winning in Ames like he’s been doing I’m sure he’ll shoot right back up the list.

-

5. Mike Gundy

Record at Oklahoma State: 121-59 Conference Championships: 1 (2011)

Movement: Down 2 spots

Now this move is really breaking my heart. I’m a huge Mike Gundy fan so I’m pretty bummed to have to do this to him. It’s just that the “new” guys have pretty impressive resumes, even when compared to one of the more successful coaches in the country like Gundy. Oklahoma State did have a pretty underwhelming 2018 campaign, but that’s not the reason he’s falling down the ranks. The only thing busting him down is just the sheer talent ahead of him, including the man he replaced at OK State.

-

4. Chris Klieman

Overall Record: 72-13

Movement: N/A

Chris Klieman is probably the perfect person to take over Kansas State. In fact, as much of a god Bill Snyder was, North Dakota State was even better than the Wildcats in the past half decade. Chris Klieman inherited the best FCS team from Craig Bohl in 2014, and went 69-6 with four national championships at the lower division. If Klieman can build that kind of machine at K-State we’ll be seeing something very special in Manhattan. I can’t wait to see what he can do.

-

3. Les Miles

Overall Record: 142-55 National Championships: 1 (2007)

Movement: N/A

You know, I never thought I’d put a Kansas head coach so high up my list. And I’m thinking I probably should put him a bit higher, even at the #1 spot. The only thing holding me back is the time Miles has been away from the game (and the very recent successes of the two coaches ahead of him). Les Miles was one of the great coaches of the 2000′s, winning a national championship in 2007 and coming close in 2011. Kansas, at this moment, seems like a particularly hopeless case. Miles is going to need to use all of his talents in recruiting, fundraising, and program development to make an even passable winner out of the Jayhawks. Godspeed, Les. 

-

2. Lincoln Riley

Record at Oklahoma: 24-4 Conference Championships: 2 (2017, 2018)

Movement: Up 5 spots

I think I’m being a bit optimistic here, coaches usually don’t rise this high in one year. And I’m really not sure about putting Riley ahead of a legend like Miles, but this is a power ranking, and recent success is weighed more heavily than older accolades. In two years Lincoln Riley has taken Oklahoma near to the peak of their historical successes: they’ve won the Big 12 in back to back years and earned two successive Playoff bids. OU is in the conversation among the perennial powers in college football, though perhaps just a step behind Alabama and Clemson. If they keep this up, you can easily see them winning a national championship one of these years. And my god he’s so young, please keep him away from the NFL.

-

1. Gary Patterson

Record at TCU: 167-63 Conference Championships: 6 (2002, 2005, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2014)*

*Won in Conference-USA, Mountain West, and Big 12

Movement: Up 1 spot

Gary Patterson takes away the #1 spot from his old mentor, Bill Snyder. Very fitting. Patterson has done such a wonderful job at TCU it feels good to reward him and put him at the top of this list. Yeah the Horned Frogs didn’t have their best year in 2018, but they never spend more than a year or two from competing at the national stage, I expect they’ll be back real soon.

-

We’ll miss you, Bill.

[no-worshiped-roads]

Mayday RtU fight

so this is for @the-nsr-family Roads to Unity au

my crack at the mayday fight

go check out their blog they got lots of fun stuff, also this is long i lost control and it’s like 11 pages

Phase 1

Zuke dodged a flash of lighting that struck the spot he used to be standing in. He skidded a little across the smooth floor since it was already completely wet from the storm Mayday summoned. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Neon J and Eve also dodging both lightning and attacks from May’s guitar.

“Mayday please just listen to us!” Zuke pleaded.

“NO! WHY SHOULD I?!”

“Because there’s something you really need to know! We know who is behind all of this!”

“Oh I’m sure you do.” May spat out sarcastically.

The guitarist jumped back onto a higher part of the platform and began to sing. “Show me how to lie, you’re getting better all the time.”

Zuke dodged a blast from her guitar and slipped in the water on the floor. He slid till he crashed into some equipment in the room. Zuke hissed from the pain and rubbed his head where he had hit it. He could hear May still singing but was more focused on the stars in his eyes. Zuke looked up just in time to see lightning heading for him and braced for impact. When he felt nothing but the rain, he opened his eyes to see that Neon J had thrown one of his weapons in front of him, making a sheild.

Zuke shakily got to his feet, trying to get a better foothold on the slick floor “Thanks.”

Neon J gave him a nod before returning his attention to the fight. “We may have no choice but to fight back like we did before.”

Zuke winced at that, as fighting these people hasn’t been easy for him. He loved these people, and hell, Mayday was practically his sister by all means but blood. But he knew Neon J was right. If they just kept dodging there was no way they were going to survive, Mayday was too angry to be holding back. Beside Zuke wanted to get through to her before she got REALLY angry. He knew what would happen if she did but his companions didn’t. And while he knew what would happen, he wasn’t sure if that would help him stand up to it.

“Alright. I’m really sorry May but we’ve really got to talk.” Zuke pulled out his drumsticks and charged forward.

“So you talk with your drumsticks now?” She sneered, before returning to singing.

“Now dance sucker dance! Man, we never had a chance. And no one even knew, it was really only you.”

Zuke flinched at the lyrics, knowing exactly what May meant by them. He could only hope he could convince her otherwise. As he continued to try and make his way to Mayday, Zuke found himself mainly dodging and just trying to keep up with her, but like Kliff said before, this girl was an acrobat. She was dancing around them and avoiding most of their attacks. So while she had gotten a good number off on them, they could count the number of hits on her on one hand.

“Well I’ll admit, this is definitely challenging~” Neon J’s auto tune singing carried over the pounding rains.

“This rain certainly isn’t helping.” Eve added, as she nearly slipped off the platform she was on.

“With a thousand lies and a good disguise, hit them right between the eyes”

“I feel like she might be saying something to you with this song choice.” Neon J muttered unhelpfully.

“When you walk away, nothing more to say.”

“Yeah I noticed.” Zuke droned out. He liked Neon J, but he had a bad habit of stating the obvious and not understanding rhetorical questions.

“Mayday please listen, none of the EDM artists had anything to do with those attacks, those were staged!”

“You call those attacks fake?! Do you even know how much damage they did?”

“He’s not saying their fake! Just that they were set up by someone who isn’t us!” Eve argued back.

Eve was using her reality warping abilities to redirect Mayday’s attacks away from her. At one point of redirecting lightning, she managed to make it strike Mayday in the back.

“Gah!” Mayday stumbled forward a bit, but quickly got her footing back and strummed an attack towards Eve. “And yet here you are, attacking all of us. Wasn’t you indeed.”

Eve jumped out of the way and landed next to Zuke. “I believe I may have just found a way for us to actually fight back.”

Zuke frowned, as he really didn;t like the idea of shocking Mayday with her own lighting but knew they had no choice. They weren’t getting anywhere going about this like a normal fight. Zuke nodded and dodged another attack by rolling out of the way. Banging his drumsticks together he sent a wave at Mayday who moved away, but left her open for Neon J to get a hit in on her.

“Nice work you did, you’re gonna go far kid, trust deceived!”

“Mayday, we don’t want to fight, But we’re also not gonna sit here and be wailed on. We really did talk to the others. I don’t know why you can’t contact them but we didn’t do anything to them, I swear!” Zuke called out again.

“Oh you swear? Yeah, like I’m supposed to trust anything you promise.”

Zuke winced. “Yeah alright I deserve that.” A dodge. “But please can we just talk, there’s a lot I have to tell you, a lot you need to know.”

“SHUT UP!”

Zuke jumped out of the way of a large bolt of lightning and counterattacked with his drumsticks. The fight continued like this for a while till Eve got one more of her lighting attacks to hit her, this one causing Mayday to slide down to her knees. Mayday huffed, whether from exhaustion or frustration was hard to say. She growled and forced herself back to her feet.

Phase 2

Mayday played a different tune on her guitar as the weather around them changed. The rains stopped, but the room turned white. A thick fog now permeated the area, reducing their field of vision to  where they could barely make out their hand in front of their own face.

“SHOT THROUGH THE HEART AND YOU’RE TO BLAME! You give love a bad name.”

Guitar riffs could be heard through the fog as musical blasts were shot at the group. Everyone dodged but when Zuke looked back up, he saw that they had lost each other in the fog.

“Eve, Neon J?!”

“An angel’s smile is what you sell, promise me heaven then put me through hell.”

Zuke felt the ground beneath him being blasted away and he was flung back. He grunted as he hit the ground behind him.

“We’re alright!” Neon J’s voice called through the fog. “But we aren’t going to be able to find each other much less Mayday in this fog. GAH!” Another guitar riff sounded off, clearly hitting Neon J.

“That’s kind of the point.” May’s voice drifted through the fog somewhere ahead of him.

Zuke acted quickly and smashed his drumsticks together in the direction he heard the voice. A small grunt greeted his ears, knowing he had hit her. Zuke then had to dodge again as a blast was the returned favor in his direction.

“Mayday those attacks really weren’t caused by the EDM artists. None of them even knew about the attacks till they were on the news!”

Another guitar riff was his only answer as he rolled to the side.

“Oh, you're a loaded gun, yeah. Oh, there's nowhere to run”

“Listen to where she is to find her! Use that to try and get to her!” Zuke called out and dodged another blast.

“No one can save me, the damage is done!”

Zuke continued to use his drumsticks to attack in the general direction that he could hear Mayday, and could hear his companions doing the same as well. Wherever they were in this fog. Of course this strategy went both ways. As they attacked they also made noise, which was how Mayday was finding them. Though to be fair, she had figured out that strategy long before Zuke did.

“I played my part and you played your game! You give love a bad name! You give looovvvveee---a bad name.”

Mayday was definitely picking songs that expressed what she was feeling towards Zuke. What she thought was going on, even though it wasn’t true. They had to keep pressing through and prove to her that Grunge was the only problem here. Not the EDM artists, and not him. A louder cry interrupted Zuke’s thoughts as he looked up to see the fog slowly clearing away. As it cleared out Zuke could make out Neon J near to where Mayday was, the latter on the ground again, panting. He watched her fist clench around the neck of her guitar and she swung at Neon J, making the man fall back and off the platform when he tried to move out of its way.

Phase 3

Mayday hopped back to her feet, with a bit more struggle this time, and started playing once again. Neon J grunted as he hoisted himself up from his rather big fall, given that this platform was well off the ground. As Mayday played her guitar she backflipped up to one of her trapeze platforms. The rock girl hopped from platform to platform, doing tricks as she did, all while playing her guitar. Zuke was so focused on watching her, and trying to keep her in his sights that he didn’t notice the drop in temperature.

“Wh-why is it s-s-so c-cold?”

Eve’s stuttering brought Zuke out of his trance as he huffed and realized he could see his own breath. The air was bitingly cold, and he found himself shivering much like his companions. Though Eve had it worst of all. Her outfit was beautiful, but not exactly warm. Zuke shuddered again in a vain attempt to warm his body as snow began to fall.

“Oh p-p-perfect, as if it w-wasn’t c-cold enough-AAHH” Neon J’s biting remark was cut short as the cyborg took a step back, only to slip on the ice that had formed on the floor.

The snow picked up to be more like a flurry now. Great. So now that had to deal with snow, the cold, the ice, and that Mayday was jumping and leaping around above them. She was already a hard target before, and all of this just made it harder. Mayday glared down at them, though more specifically him. Zuke did his best to hold her gaze and not wither under that glare. It was hard to say if she learned that from her mother or Kul Fyra. A familiar tune reached his ears as the rocker began to sing again.

“I wouldn't hold my breath if I was you, 'Cause I'll forget but I'll never forgive you. Don't you know, don't you know? True friends stab you in the front!”

Zuke grimaced, it really did seem that May felt that all ties between them were cut. That he was a traitor of the worst kind. He tightened his grip on his drumsticks and got into his fighting stance. He had to convince her that she was wrong.

“Listen Mayday, We know who was really behind the attacks. She started out just sabotaging the other EDM artists.”

A rather solid blast of wind and snow pushed him back, with him sliding further due to the ice. He immediately had to dodge a guitar riff, which was harder given that the ice messed with his movements. After scrabbling in place for a bit, Zuke finally managed to skid out of the way, feeling the blast move his hair as it just missed him by inches. Zuke could see Eve and Neon J continuing to attack her, and struggling just as much as he was with all the ice and snow messing with their movement.

He watched as nearly no attacks were hitting her with her using her aerial equipment to swing around and avoid them. Zuke could feel his frustration beginning to build up and took some breaths to try and calm down.

“Mayday you have to listen to us!”

“Like hell I do!”

“Mayday! There’s an inside person at NSR! She staged those attacks, she set the EDM artists up to take the fall!”

“You got a lot of nerve, But not a lot of spine. You made your bed, When you worried about mine.”

“Gah will you just listen to me?! What is your problem?!” Zuke was losing his patience.

“MY problem?! Have you seriously not figured anything out yet?! How do you not understand?!”

The snow was beginning to pick up into something more like a blizzard, not that Zuke paid it any mind. Eve and Neon J however did notice,

“Um, Zuke?”

Zuke ignored Neon J. “Come on why are you being so stubborn? The Mayday I know would actually listen!”

The blizzard got stronger, and the air got a heavier feeling to it. “What the hell do you even know about me?! You abandoned me five years ago! You left me to deal with all of that crap on my own!”

“Zuke, this isn’t helping.” Eve hissed.

Zuke again ignored the words of his companions and continued to argue with his former friend. If she would just listen to him so things could be fixed. “For crying out loud it’s Grunge! It’s her fault all of this happened! She ruined EDM’s name, she arranged the attack on you, on everyone! She is the one to blame!”

“Seriously?! Now you’re blaming someone else! At least she stuck by our side through this, unlike you!”

Mayday blasted her guitar at him and Zuke leapt out of the way. Zuke didn’t know what came over him, but he just felt so angry, so frustrated. It was like it was with West when he just didn’t listen to his side of the story. So he brought his drumsticks together and hard. The blast was too big for May to dodge and knocked her straight off her aerial swing to the platform below. Her scream of pain definitely snapped him out of it though. The snow died down and the temperature returned to normal, with the ice starting to melt away.

Phase 4

Zuke didn’t pay any of it any mind as he could stare in horror at Mayday just lying on the platform unmoving. He could vaguely see his companions getting to their feet, having no idea how they got knocked down, but guessed it was the blizzard. The two looked up to see May’s crumpled form on the platform, her guitar laying away from her, having fallen off of her when Zuke had hit her.

“Um, what happened? The blizzard made it hard to see.” Neon J asked, unhelpfully.

Zuke could only swallow hard as his ears rang. Mayday’s body twitched, and Zuke breathed a small sigh of relief knowing she was okay. The girl slowly dragged herself into a sitting position, and hugged her sides. She was breathing hard, head down, obscuring her face. Zuke couldn’t read her expression.

“...did we win?”

“Not the time Neon J!” Eve bit back.

Mayday’s breathing got harder, harsher, till she was huffing in what Zuke had to guess was anger.

“Get away.”

Mayday’s voice was low, shaky. If Zuke had been smarter he would have picked up on what that meant. But instead he just assumed it was because of her fall. He took a step forward and Mayday stiffened.

“Go away.”

It was a lot harsher this time, though still shaky. Zuke ignored her demand again and stepped forward once more. “May please, I-”

“Don’t. Leave.”

The wind began to pick back up, a strange sound filling the room. Rains started again, but much harsher than before. Zuke paused looking around at the weather, he had to get her to stop before the weather became a problem again. He stepped forward again, ignoring the  winds and rain worsening around him, even as his feet splashed in the water pooling on the floor.

Mayday’s body twitched, and her hands clenched into fists, slamming down on the platform. “I said”

“GO AWAY!” Mayday suddenly screamed, throwing her head back.

The winds were so strong now that they picked up the three companions and threw them to the back of the room. Everyone slammed into the walls and fell to the floor with a splash. Zuke pushed himself up to his knees and hands, and glanced towards Myday. Winds circled around her as the rain absolutely downpoured, reducing anything in the distance invisible. Mayday was hunched in the middle, shaking. Glancing up he saw exactly what he thought he would be forming above her.

“IS THAT A HURRICANE?!” Neon J screeched.

“Yeah maybe I should have warned you she could do that?” Zuke yelled back weakly.

“That would have been nice, yes!”

“Well we were supposed to have this taken care of before this happened.”

“We could have if it weren’t for you Zuke.”

Eve’s harsh voice made him flinch. “Hey what the hell does-”

“I may not have been able to see what happened when that blizzard picked up but I could hear it. You two arguing.”

The winds and rain continued to rage around them as Zuke stared at Eve. “She’s being stubborn! Nothing I say is getting through to her!”

“So are you Zuke.”

Zuke jolted back like he had been slapped. “I’M actually listening though!”

“Are you?”

“I’ve been helping you this entire time yes!”

“I’m not saying you’re not listening to us.”

“You just-”

“I’m saying you’re not listening to her.”

“...yes I am.”

“Are you? You seem to hear her when she argues back against us, total strangers to her. But you fail to hear the reason why she’s upset.”

“But it’s a misunderstanding!”

“Mostly yes. But she doesn’t know that, and you’re acting like she should. And like I said, mostly.”

“What does that even mean?!”

“She’s not wrong about you abandoning her.”

“Bu- hey!”

“She’s. Not. Wrong. And you have to accept that Zuke, she was attacked so badly that she apparently landed in the hospital for a week. And then, when she was recovering back at home, she finds out you’ve left NSR and are helping the people she believes attacked her. How do you think she felt in that moment?”

“...”

“And now you’re also throwing the blame all at Grunge’s feet, while not accepting your own fault in this. You could have handled how you left better. Not to mention you’ve come here and blamed her for being ‘too stubborn’ like it’s her fault she feels angry and hurt and betrayed.”

“...”

“I’m not saying you are a traitor, but you did leave her. And you need to own up to that. You can’t let your anger control you, or you’ll do things you’ll regret forever.”

“...” 

Zuke thought back to the second encounter with West when he disowned him, and how they had somewhat made up in the third encounter. He wonders what would have happened had he not run into him again. Would that have been it? Would he have never seen West again? Would his brother leave the city for good? Zuke thought on it further and frowned, remembering it was Kliff who got across what Zuke couldn’t say. Wouldn’t. Too stubborn to.

Zuke sighed. “...you’re right. I’ve only made things worse. I kept thinking about how this affected you guys, and how I felt. And completely ignored what Mayday was feeling.”

“So what do we do now then?” Neon J had walked over to the two as they had argued. It was slow going given that the winds threatened to throw him again.

“I’m gonna try talking to her again, but I need to get close. Can you two cover me? I don’t think I can get to her through the hurricane and if she starts attacking again.”

“What are you going to do?”

Zuke turned to Neon J. “What I told Kliff I was going to do. What I should have done from the beginning.”

The two nodded at him and Zuke began to walk forward. He had to take precise and heavy steps, the hurricane's gale force winds threatening to throw into the wall again. As he trudged onwards, May’s head snapped up slightly. He could just make out her eye’s glaring at him in not just anger, but pure anguish.

“GET AWAY FROM ME!”

Lightning began to rain down from the hurricane above him, and as Zuke braced for impact, Neon J and Eve came to his rescue. Neon J fired off his weapons to stop the lightning before it reached him, while Eve redirected it harmlessly behind them. Zuke continued to Mayday while his friends kept him from getting hit.

“NO! GET BACK!”

May’s attacks became more erratic and frequent. Though with how wild they were, more and more of her attacks were missing. Zuke finally reached the platform Mayday was on and gripped the beams holding it up. He hoisted himself up on the first beam and began climbing up, he didn’t have time to try and find the stairs. Heck, with what Mayday could do, there probably weren’t any. At this point Zuke wasn’t being attacked at all, and he couldn’t hear lighting cracking against the ground anymore. The hurricane was still going strong, but she had stopped directly attacking them. At this point she really was just trying to make them leave her alone.

Zuke finally reached the top of the stage and forced himself up on to it. He could see Mayday’s body trembling in the middle of it. Zuke had to drag himself across the stage, knowing that if he stood up he would be blown off. He could feel himself getting even more soaked from all the water pooling on the floor but he didn’t care. He had to get to May. Finally an outreached hand touched May’s leg.

She slapped his hand off. “Go away.”

Zuke pushed himself up so he was sitting in front of Mayday on his knees. “May, I’ve not done anything right by you since that day five years ago.”

“....”

“I left without saying anything, or explaining myself. I come back after all this time and I just hurt you more, and that’s not right. I’ve been so focused on what I want I didn’t consider how you felt.”

“...”

“I know my words are probably empty coming from someone who abandoned you, but I promise you the EDM artists won’t hurt you. They were sabotaged and set up by Grunge. She wants rock to rule as the top music genre, no matter the cost  And was going to ensure it by any means possible.”

“..is that all you came here for?” Mayday’s voice is quiet, quivering.

“No.” Zuke reached forward and pulled Mayday into a hug. The girl flinched, and though she didn't pull back, she didn’t reciprocate either.

“I’m sorry. For everything. For what happened to you, for what you went through afterwards. For just leaving you like that and not explaining anything. For not really trying to get a hold of you for five years. For being a coward. I’m so, so sorry May. You have every right to be mad at me, and I understand if you won’t forgive me. But I’m not going to hurt you. Not again. I promise.”

He could feel May’s body tremble against his and suddenly felt a tight grip around his back as she hugged him back. The winds began to die down and the rain stopped pouring. Mayday just sobbed into his shirt, letting out all that built up hurt she had been shoving down for five years. Zuke just held her for a long time, apologizing over and over again till she finally stopped crying. He had thought all he had to do was stop Grunge, but now realized that even when they beat her, and she was gone, there was still going to be a long road of recovery ahead of them. 

Everything that had happened had left lasting marks on the artists that weren’t just going to go away like that. And for once, Zuke was really going to stay by Mayday’s side, and help her through all of it. This was a promise he wasn’t going to break.

[l0vey-d0vey-moved]

The Strangest Occurance (pt. 1)

summary: An alternate title to this could be: The five times Kliff wordlessly said “I love you”, and the one time he actually says it.

words: 529

pairing: sawyer/kliff, aka “💕: young in love”

warnings: fluff. its just pure self-indulgent fluff.

part one of six. (2) (3) (4) (5) (6)

1. Wrapping a blanket around someone to comfort them.

This wasn’t the first time Kliff and his friends had encountered something strange. I mean, they could encounter God himself and still brush it off as something normal. However, encountering a random person in the woods that wasn’t from their world? That’d have to go up high on the “weird experiences” list.

Said person was quietly sitting in the next room over, their arms wrapped around their torso in a weak attempt to comfort themself. Kliff watched them for a couple more seconds before turning his attention back to his friends, who were talking about what they should do with this mysterious person.

“I mean -- It’s not everyday that we just have someone drop from the sky and say they aren’t from around here,” Clive argued,“We should ask them where they came from and how they got here.”

“While I do agree with you, I think it’s best that you give them some space. I mean, did you see them? -” Lukas gestured towards the room that the mysterious person was currently residing in,“- They looked scared.. I think we should wait until tomorrow to interact with them, just so we don’t frighten them more.”

In response to that, both Clair and Faye hummed in agreement. It took a couple more moments before anyone spoke, but Alm sighed and continued,“Alright then… It’s settled. Someone should check on them, though, just to make sure they’re okay.”

“I’ll do it.” The words came flying out of Kliff’s mouth before he knew what was happening. Correcting himself, he added on,“Most of you guys would probably scare them away, and I bet they’d rather have a calming presence than Delthea talking their ear off.”

“Hey! Unfair!” An indignant Delthea replied, huffing in annoyance. Before Delthea could say anything though, Alm nodded,“Don’t scare them, and don’t stay up too late. Everyone else, get some rest.”

As everyone slowly headed off to do so, Kliff quietly prepared himself before entering into the room. He stepped into the doorway, seeing them sitting on the windowsill, curled into themselves pitifully. They quickly turned to see him in the doorway and managed to uncurl themselves, frowning.

“Um…. Hello..” Kliff raised an eyebrow and gave them the slightest of waves. They waved back as Kliff moved towards them, moving their legs so Kliff can sit down next to them. Usually he would be against this closeness, but he figured that they could use some kind of silent comfort.

They suddenly wrapped their arms around themselves, shivering and leaning against the wall. He noticed quickly and stood up to grab the blanket off of the bed on the other side of the room, before sitting right back beside them and wrapping the blanket around their shoulders.

They leaned into his touch. He flinched in surprise, relaxing soon after while maintaining an extremely flushed face.

“Thank you…. uh..-”

“Kliff.” He answered swiftly, looking the other way. They made a small noise of confusion and continued,“Well.. thanks, uh, Kliff. My name’s Sawyer, and I have… some questions about your world.”

A small smile crept onto his face before he replied,“Ask away. I’ll go when you get tired,”

[summoner-peachy]

May I request Kliff and prompt 28, please?

a/n: here you go! sorry if kliff is ooc since i’ve yet to play echoes or summon him in heroes. i wasn’t sure if you wanted the kiss prompt 28 or the valentines day prompt 28, but i went with the v-day prompts since it’s the most recent. 

reader’s name is avatar for this, but everyone calls them ava or av! a name makes it easier for me to write, so sorry for the inconvinice this causes anyone! 

prompt is from this list right over here! feel free to send one in!

28. confession 

Traveling around the world after the war was over is Kliff’s dream. To strike out on his own, traveling and learning more, never giving Ram Village a second thought (why when he wouldn’t be returning to that boring place?) to go wherever he pleased. 

Yet here he is, pack in hand and his tome under the other arm standing at your door. Kliff cursed his own self for his feet bringing him to your door, out of all doors he should be taking to leave he still walked to yours without realizing it. 

He really is a love-struck fool, isn’t he?

 He should just turn on his heel, walk towards the front door and never look back at this place. Not sparing it one goodbye or thought as he set out on his journey for knowledge, but… for some reason, he couldn’t move. His feet were firmly stuck to the stone floors that all he could do was laugh. Well, he might as well at least speak to you and say his peace of mind before leaving even if it’s only to your door. 

“I’m a downright fool, aren’t I Av? For believing that I could just walk away without saying a single word to you… such a fool. I… won’t be returning to the village Av there’s nothing there in Ram Village for me anymore, nothing left for you there either if I remember correctly,” Kliff paused, straining his ears to hear for any little sounds of you awake behind this door. He was met with silence, you must already be awake and working, but he just kept talking. 

“Oh, that’s a secret, by the way, if the other’s knew you know how they are Av. Everyone would cry, try to stop me and Alm… ha let’s not even get started on how that dork would react to my leaving. Doing this… doing this means that I can go wherever I want to, this time hopefully without near as much bloodshed.” 

The words just kept flowing from his mouth, once he started he should have known that he wouldn’t have stopped he always had a little too much to say to you. Never finding when to stop talking. Av this and Av that. Or just the little boyish yelling of your name, how he’d cling to you and God’s he just needs to shut up. 

“I’ll… try and find the time to at least visit you Av. Even if it’s just writing, even if I have to spend a little extra time waiting for a letter in reply I’ll wait just for you Av. Because despite my bad attitude, my words at my very core, I’m truly and madly in love with you, so, please… don’t be surprised when I turn up. And be happy, even if the person you chose is not me.” 

Kliff waited, he waited for a response, to hear anything from beyond your door for what felt like hours until he had stood there for too long, the other’s would wake soon and he needed to go. 

The sounds of his footsteps echoed in the empty halls, each step weighed heavily on his heart the further and further away he got from your door. Once he set his first foot outside he didn’t expect for arms to wrap around him and hold him firmly in place. 

“Kliff you fool! You absolute fool! To think that I’d just let you walk away after saying that without saying my own piece??” You were angry, Kliff could hear it in your voice, but all he could do was smile while his eyes started to burn.

“I love you as well, Kliff you curious soul and absolute fool. Wherever you go I go that’s the promise we made as children, and I for one am surprised that you would even suggest me being happy with someone else other than you.” 

Kliff is happy, so, so unbelievably happy. His heart feels lighter than it ever had before, the meaning of his words reached you despite his awkward way of saying them. Taking your hands Kliff raised them to his lips to kiss them, noting that the war and constant combat had made them calloused from your weapon, the little-raised bits of skin healed from scars… and Kliff kisses each one. 

He doesn’t realize that tears could taste like the sea, but also be so sweet when he’s finally able to kiss you. He wouldn’t be traveling alone, his heart would always be with him.