#probably cause I re read the first chapter and it’s the best thing I think I’ve ever written

[loveshotzz]

[sugarpasteltmnt]

Hi, I'm someone who's interested in making a long-fic but just been struggling to do so. Alot of it just cause I really I'm not confident in my ability to write it well or that people will read it. Even though Neon Void was your first fic (I think) you managed to not only reach so many, but tell a story so deep and personal and moving that every time I re-read a snippet I find myself wanting to read a whole chapter.....and then the entire series.

If I can be so bold to ask, how did you do it? How did you take Neon Void and make it? What kept you from giving into the voices within and without that tell you to give up? How did you make sure the story was the best it could be. If you could go back, what would you do differently? What strategies would be best for someone who also wants to do a longfic?

Sorry if it's alot.

First, thank you so so much. It makes me super happy to hear that you thought it was moving and enjoy reading it!!

and don’t be sorry!! I’m super flattered that you wanted to ask me such a cool and thought provoking question!! Gunna hide most of this answer under a read-more as I get a little autobiographical, but in short:

You must be your own biggest fan

I’ll be honest— I had NO idea so many people would read my fic. The amount of positive feedback has blown me away and I couldn’t be more thankful for how nice the TMNT fandom has been to me (and my sister!!)

And you’re right! Neon Void WAS my first fic I ever published!! But I’ve been writing every day since I was a tween. I just love to write. But even then, I was nervous to post. No one except my closest friend had EVER read my writing before. I wasn’t sure if anyone would read it, or even like it since it was kind of a wacky premise.

But also in a way, it was okay if no one else read it, because I liked it. And that’s kind of the secret sauce to it all.

I have never, ever written anything this long before. Originally, TNV was going to be like, ten chapters max. I have no idea it would evolve into a nearly 30 chapter fic. And i think there were several factors that contributed to that.

First, I was utterly and totally obsessed with my own AU. When i started daydreaming about certain scenes over and over, i knew i had to write it. Being so invested in my own story was the biggest factor in actually finishing it. Which sounds so obvious, but the thing is I have a tendency to think of new AUs constantly. (Sometimes even daily.) The fact I kept revisiting this one was a sign that if i wanted to write it, now was the time.

Second, and this is piggybacking off of that last confession of always daydreaming new AUs, i knew i was on a personal timer. If i was going to do this, I had to make sure I did it. So i gave myself a goal of trying to post on a rough schedule to keep myself accountable.

(But remember!!!! It's just fanfiction!!! you never, ever have to put that kind of expectation on yourself! You don't need a posting schedule. You don't even need to finish. I personally pushed myself so hard to see it through because for years I told myself that if i was ever going to post fanfiction, i HAD to finish. It's okay if you don't!! I would never ask a writer or an artist to slog through something that doesn't bring them joy anymore. Because at the end of the day, fanfiction is meant to be fun!!)

BUT

Here's a bit of a confession. I didn't want to give up on it because it brought me a lot of joy during a rough year. I found myself sneaking on my phone at work to write a paragraph or two whenever I had the chance. I would think about it 24/7. I was in love with the story I was making up and looking forward to writing helped get through some not so Cowabunga times. I know posting your work is super intimidating-- and you might be tempted to stop-- but remember, if it makes you happy-- even for a while-- it's worth it. TNV was making my days a bit brighter even before I started posting it.

Which leads to my next confession-- and this is probably the biggest reason I was able to actually pull it off with a posting schedule:

I had already written 50%-60% of TNV before I even posted chapter 1.

And that was on purpose for several reasons. One, I was having so much fun planning easter eggs and planning long-term foreshadowing bits. Second, it was a test to see if this AU was really rotting my brain enough that I wanted to spend a lot of time writing it. By the time I had a lot written and scenes I was super eager to get to, I knew I wanted to post it. But having a bulk of it already written was a huge reassurance in trying to maintain my posting schedule. (But again, that was just my style! You can hit the ground running if you'd like, start and then pause for a while to figure things out-- whatever works best for you!!)

But even when i was insanely obsessed with my own AU, it still took a lot of time and energy to write. There will be times you will find yourself trudging through bridging scenes to get to the scenes you actually wanna write and it's sooooooooo haaaaaaaaard. BUT!!! It's worth it!!! Getting through it and seeing how it sets up the exciting part just right is soooooooo satisfying.

As for making sure the story was the best it could be??? I'm not sure!! Because there were definitely times I went whining to my sister and best friend about certain plot points or scenes, worried it wasn't good enough. There were a LOT of times a scene or idea just didn't feel right. Heck, a lot of chapters ended up in a different order than when I originally started writing!! The lesson I learned throughout the whole thing is that the original idea doesn't have to be absolute. Sometimes rearranging the scenes is just what you need!

But when i was REALLY struggling, I'd find myself referring back to the original source. It was what inspired a fanfic after all! Sometimes taking a step back and reevaluating each character's personality helped me shape the scene into something that felt better. Other times I had to step back and remind myself about what was actually important to the story. (Example: originally, I had no idea how to get Donnie to the hidden city by himself. At first I tried to think of some lore on the mask to give Donnie a reason to go investigating Void... but it didn't feel right. The mask wasn't important. Not even Void was the most important thing to Donnie at the time. Leo was. And that helped me sort of get rid of the loosey-goosey idea of giving a complicated back story to the mask that made the story feel muddled.)

But even then, I wasn't sure if certain moves were the best they could be! I was always worried (and continue to be) that I poured too much into descriptions, or spent too much time talking about emotions with too little action. Or that I overuse phrases. But so long as each chapter made me happy, I figured readers would enjoy them too.

If I could go back and do something different... I wouldn't have goofed with Leo's kraang parasite adaptation in Mad Dog Part 2: Prom. I was trying to make his parasite enter an obvious 'stage 2 boss battle' look, but later I realized I didn't like how I described it lol.

But!!! I will confess, I'm no saint-- when i started getting lovely comments, it helped pour gas on the fire to keep going. And that's why I'm so thankful for every comment or doodle or ask sent my way. You guys are amazing and helped me get the fire under my ass to keep going, even when things were really hard.

I know it sounds so corny and like a cop-out answer, but ultimately, it's YOUR personal investment in YOUR story that is the secret sauce!!! So long as your interested in it, it won't feel so impossible to write a long fic. There will be challenges (like there is with any project) but honestly?? If you're head over heels for your own story, it will be fun and fulfilling. Even if you don't finish-- so long as it made you happy, that's what matters the most. (Again, that's so cheesy... but just like Master Leonardo tells Leo, 'cheesiness makes the best pizza pies in life'.)

Thank you again so much for this fun ask-- and I believe in you! You've got this. Have fun, enjoy writing, and have confidence in your work, because it makes YOU happy, and that's the greatest thing a story could be.

[writingquestionsanswered]

Hello there!! Thanks for all the advice you’ve given thus far!! It’s been a huge help in my writing journey, though I find that the ONE thing I still struggle with is finding time to work on some of my current writing projects.

I work an 8-5 through the week, and on weeknights and weekends I’m trying to catch up on energy to prepare for the next week ahead. Do you have any tips or suggestions on what I can do to try and sneak some writing in? Thanks in advance!

Tips for Sneaking Writing Into a Busy Schedule

#1 - Figure Out Your "Three B's" - If you're struggling to fit writing into a busy schedule, the first thing you should do is figure out your "three B's"... the bare minimum, better, and best amount of time you can commit to writing each day. The bare minimum amount of time should be a ridiculously low number, ten minutes or less, that you can manage even on the busiest of busy days. The better amount should be the most reasonable amount of time... a balance between a logical amount of productivity and the reality of your schedule. If you have a lot of busy days, this should probably be somewhere between fifteen minutes and an hour. And finally, the best amount is kind of the "pie in the sky" number... the reasonable amount of time you'd commit to writing if you had a day off and not a lot to do. The goal here is to aim for that middle number most days, but on long days when you have no energy leftover for writing, you've still got to hit that bare minimum. You don't even have to actually write during this "writing time." You can re-read a scene or chapter, edit, revise, brainstorm, research, look at inspiration photos, read a craft book... anything that moves the needle on your WIP in some way.

#2 - De-Stress Writing - Our brains are wired to avoid things that cause us stress, and stressful things also take a lot of energy to deal with. So, if you get even a little stressed thinking about your WIP or writing in general, you're gonna have a harder time committing to that bare minimum, better, or best writing time. The best thing you can do to de-stress writing for yourself is to stop giving yourself a hard time for not writing, not reaching goals, not completing tasks, etc. Give yourself grace, tell yourself it's okay, you'll hit that bare minimum tomorrow. Other things you can do: set up a reward system for yourself for when you hit small but important goals, eat or drink a favorite treat while you write, burn a scented candle, or listen to some soft music.

#3 - Create a Writing Ritual - Sometimes it helps to take a few minutes to switch your brain into "writing mode." This can be any number of little things that tells your brain "it's time to write now." It can be putting your phone on silent, sitting in a particular spot, lighting a scented candle, repeating a mantra, doing some stretches or meditating, listening to a certain song or putting on a particular type of soft music, or even a particular treat or beverage. When you choose a few things like this to do every time you sit down to write, and only when you sit down to write, your brain will start to associate those things with writing which helps it slip into "writing mode."

#4 - Eliminate Distractions - This one is really important when you have limited time... When you sit down for your writing time, put your phone on silent or set up "do not disturb" so that only really important calls/texts will come in. Avoid radio stations or music with lyrics if the talk is going to distract you. Use an internet blocking app if you can't trust yourself to fall down Google rabbit holes. Let people know you're going to be writing during that time and ask them not to disturb you. Anything you can do to eliminate distractions will help.

#5 - Boost Your Energy - No matter how busy you are, most of us have time in our schedule to commit to writing, even if that means getting up fifteen minutes early. However, if we feel tired and lack the energy to write, it can be very easy to pretend that fifteen minutes isn't available or that we need every last minute of sleep we can get. In that case, try doing a little energy booster before your writing time. This might be having a cup of coffee or a high energy breakfast smoothie, it could be taking a cold shower or listening to an energetic favorite son. If you can move your body for a few minutes, that helps, too. Walking, running in place, or jumping jacks are great if you're able to do them. If not, energetically moving any part of your body can give you a little energy boost... enough to get you through that bare minimum writing time.

I hope that helps! ♥

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

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[pruneunfair]

I was re-reading some remarried empress chapters and it made me realize that Rashtas only trust worthy "friend" so far is a maid names Nikki who steals Evalies necklace for her and in general is pretty loyal to Rashta (so far)

And it got me thinking "what if Rashta had a group of women that would be by her side and make her feel loved" but since none of the nobleladies outside of Viscountess Verdi (who at this point is an unwilling ally) would actually like Rashta beyond basic manners, the friends Rashta would have could be the maid equivalent of Naviers ladies in waiting. Gossipy, sharp tongued, but with a difference of doing what it takes to survive. They would all have varying backgrounds but all would have grown up in some level of poverty, some maybe went days without food, maybe one was even a former slave and felt that Rashta being the hope for commoners was the best thing to happen in the eastern empire. At first Rashta would hire them both for brownie points and because she could relate to their struggles. They weren't noble enough to be official ladies in waiting but their support would be real and not fear.

However the maids I'm thinking of wouldn't dislike Navier just because Rashta said she was bad, they wouldn't hate Navier but they'd probably not care about her problems caused by Rashta since to them, Navier really didn't do much to improve or worsen their lives when they were still in poverty. This was inspired by the fact that the only people that rave about how amazing Navier is are other nobles and Evalie, the token common girl who's actually the long lost daughter of nobles. It could be a sweet moment for Rashta where she realizes that these maids actually care about her, and while they probably can't convince her of anything too powerful like Duke Ergi being a scumbag who's only using her, they could help steer her back into her humanity where she tries to be a better empress.

This doesn't mean that Rashta would have undying lackeies though, even if Rashta lived a life like they did, they wouldn't justify all her cruel deeds, I thought of some conflict that would occur once of them discovers what Rashta did to Delice and it becomes a whole "how do we you know you won't do this to us if we say something you don't like?" And even if Rashta explained her reasons and gave reassurance that Delice only lost her tongue so her safety could be guaranteed, most of the other maids wouldn't buy this and since Rashta has the journalist guy already causing problems for her, she would play it smart and promise it was a horrible mistake she would never repeat. They'd all stay but only because they are afraid of that they could end up like Delice and switch back into survival mode where they overflatter and exist to serve Rashta to save them from a fate worse then death.

This causes huge levels of pain for Rashta because now her own friends only fear her now that they know what kind of levels she would go to, spiraling her further into depression.

[alma-rita]

Re:Zero Arc 9 Chapter 13

Spoilers~ But I actually read this chapter on midnight when it came out. Just that this talk post is coming rather late~~

-> REINHARD HAS ARRIVED-- I REPEAT, HE HAS MADE A COMEBACK. (My beloved Rein--!) -> According to some tweets I saw in X, Al and Alcanica might end up going to the floating island where other dragons fled/went to.

-> Why the hell is it when Reinhard and Al were facing off, I was thinking of the Capitano vs. Mavuika in the Genshin 5.0 trailer-- Cause epic music, hehe (and the dialogue ain't too dissimilar, ish)

-> Special mention to Flam for being quite~ troublesome to Al~

-> We do need to prioritize stabilizing each other and letting Al go. This thing for sure lmao: the Watch Tower is now just a big bundle of bad experiences and memories to Subaru.

-> And for some odd reason... why do I want Reinhard to lose against Al??? It's just me thinking about some Ayamatsu/Kasaneru stuff and the effect Al had on Liep is very terrible....

Al will probably escape, this the most logical route.

Reinhard loses??? Some mind fuckery is going to happen, and oh boy I am not ready for that---

As always, there will be another Domain Expansion. Sheesh, Re:Zero truly being Jujutsu Kaisen now, ahahahaha~

-> I remember reading a theory saying that Garfiel's future trial is actually him needing to end Subaru cause he cannot die at some point(at that time, people thought it would be due to Capella's blood). So Subaru entrusts Garfiel to kill him so he can loop.

Looks like that theory might be coming true, but instead of dragon's blood it's because of the seal (but dragon's blood preventing RBD might still happen)

-> TAPPEI-- GIMME NEXT CHAPTER PLEASE--!

-> I seriously wonder what will happen next.... ughhh, I wanna know!

Some Theory Stuff:

-> Shadow has an interesting picture guessing that Heinkel could have also been pokeballed. Another person suggests that Al could even have sealed Yae Tenzen. I seriously don't know if Al did decide to seal Yae (I will be re reading that part.)

At first, I thought it would be crazy for Yae or even Heinkel to be sealed, cause they both DO NOT have Witch Factors (unless? but no) So I doubt they'll be even sealed in the first place. Both Yae and Hinkel are just... missing.

>> But if we push that Witch Factor aside, Al actually has very good reasons to seal both of them.

For Yae, seeing that she was sent by Chisha Gold so Priscilla can be tested, I do feel that Al might have figured that out and decided that it will be best to remove her (seal Yae).

For Heinkel, this means that in the time Al spent locked in his room, he was already set and planning to go against the world. Since he will be going against the world, Al decided to seal Heinkel and use him as hostage against Reinhard if he shows up.

-> For me... we'll see. But I seriously believe that they aren't sealed because the magic spell failed on Sphinx. Text out right said it was because Sphinx didn't have a Witch Factor, Al wasn't able to seal her.

Tappei pls gimme next chapter--

[zoobus]

What's your favourite entry on mangadex with a 6.xx score?

(Re: #Everything on mangadex with a 6.xx rating is either a powerful contender for best of the year or extremely niche fetish softcore)

Ugh, this is a hard one because I haven't been reading a lot lately and I lost a huge chunk of my saves after mangadex was killed off for some months. (Also because I don't actually finish anything I read, lots of my "favorites" are a first volume I loved so much I couldn't finish it. That's how my brain works. I haven't finished anything on this list.) Also best of the year *for the kind of story it's telling.

TW, a good chunk of these have sexual assault and/or skeevy sexual themes

Manga about girl with strong signs of BPD using sex to self-harm, I don't remember the name, sorry - Extremely pathetic girl, desperate to not get bullied ever again, thinks she can fool her peers into thinking she's one of them but nahhh, you see the looks the popular girls give each other - it's like cats watching a wet and whimpering mouse wearing cat ears bite the throat of other mice, looking over her shoulder for proof that this is worth it, that they think she's a cat too. Made me understand how self-harm sex works.

I Would Die for Your First Time - Okay, it's sitting at a 7.09 *now,* but when I read it like five years ago it at 6.18. Guy who looks like a stereotypical fat faceless hentai man marries so far out of his league, it causes him immense distress. Even though his super hot wife clearly loves him, he's unnerved by the fact that she's had so many partners before him, while he only had her. She swears that if she could go back in time, she would make him her first and oh wow is that literally the worst thing she could have said.

Because he does go back in time, and he does try to hold the assurances of his 30yo wife to her 15yo self who doesn't have a clue who he is, and he does find himself ruining the life (and the original timeline they shared) of the poor woman who made the mistake of loving him over and over and over again.

Tamarowa/Who Wants to Marry a Billionaire? - I both get and don't get the hate for this one, harem stuff seems to make people very mad. Anyway, Tamarowa is like if Danganronpa was about Who Wants to Marry A Billionaire, uncut HBO version. And if Danganronpa was good. Great example of horny and good story. Whenever some cornball suggests good writing and fetishistic, hand in pants writing are mutually exclusive, I think of Tamarowa. "I need you to psychoanalyze one of the contestants in my place. Go do ageplay with the milf and deduce the odds she's trying to murder me."

His Favorite Idol Moved Next Door - A fan has a crush on his idol. The idol has a merciless and cruel crush on him back. 6.02 because god forbid we cater to actual female sadists rather than masochists for once 🙄

The Villainess Wants To Punish The Sadistic Prince - I will probably get around to translating the final volume. One day. Please see first paragraph about loving things so much, I don't finish them.

By the way, it might be my pride speaking, but I wouldn't include the last two entries in the niche fetishcore category. That's more for like "my childhood friend is annoying! and also keeps getting splattered with smushed bug goo every chapter" or those collection of pics titled stuff like "The women in your life flirt with you while insulting your gf's small boobs"

[adventure-showdown]

What is your favourite Doctor Who story?

ROUND 2 MASTERPOST

synopses and propaganda under the cut

Mad Dogs and Englishmen

Synopsis

"Grrrrr."

The greatest book ever written.

Professor Reginald Tyler's The True History of Planets was a twentieth-century classic; an epic of dwarves and swords and wizardry. And definitely no poodles. Or at least there weren't when the Doctor read it.

Now it tells the true tale of how the Queen of the poodles was overthrown; it's been made into a hit movie, and it's going to cause a bloodbath on the dogworld — unless the Doctor, Fitz and Anji (and assorted friends) can sort it all out.

The Doctor infiltrates the Smudgelings, Tyler's elite Cambridge writing set of the early twentieth century; Fitz falls for flamboyant torch singer Brenda Soobie in sixties Las Vegas, and Anji experiences some very special effects in seventies Hollywood. Their intention is to prevent the movie from ever being made. But there is a shadowy figure present in all three time zones who is just as determined to see it completed... so the poodle revolution can begin.

Propaganda no propaganda submitted

The Crooked World

Synopsis

The people of the Crooked World lead an idyllic existence.

Take Streaky Bacon, for example. This jovial farmer wants nothing more from life than a huge blunderbuss, with which he can blast away at his crop-stealing nemesis. And then there's Angel Falls, a racing driver with a string of victories to her name. Sure, her trusted guardian might occasionally put on a mask and menace her for her prize money, but that's just life, right? And for Jasper the cat, nothing could be more pleasant than a nice, long nap in his kitchen — so long as that darn mouse doesn't jam his tail into the plug socket again.

But somebody is about to shatter all those lives. Somebody is about to change everything — and it's possible that no one on the Crooked World will ever be happy again.

The Doctor's TARDIS is about to arrive. And when it does... That's all folks!

Propaganda

I think that the best thing about EU stories is that, by the nature of their medium, they can tell stories that couldn't be shown on the TV due to constraints ranging from TV sensors to budget limitations to the fundamental laws of reality. This is maybe the best example of how the novels can transcend all of that. The action takes place in a world of cartoons, where goofy characters chase each other around and do comedy bits. Sometimes they blow each other up, but they're always fine by the next scene, so it's okay! Enter the TARDIS. The Doctor gets shot in the chest within literal moments of leaving the ship, and his apparent inability to heal sends shockwaves through the denizens of the Crooked World. The travelers' attempts to repair the damage only result in worsening it, as for the first time, the cartoons learn about violence, death, sex, and the fundamental inequalities of their society, culminating in riots in the streets, murder, and the attempted destruction of the world. (Spoilers: the Scooby Gang discovers the corpse of God!) It's fascinating, the vast tonal shifts throughout are masterfully handled, it traumatizes and re-traumatizes you every chapter, and for my money, it's one of the best portrayals of the 'Dr. Nyarlathotep' concept in the EU (though that probably wasn't intentional) (6&7)

[dreamsndmadness]

hellooo!!!(sorry in advance for all of the rambling)

first of all, im absolutely gushing from all of the soft moments in ch9: feyd nearly crying from being cared for, paul helping feyd with his nightmares, and feyd being protective/caring in both the breakfast scene and throughout the spice field inspections :333. It was all VERY adorable and paul finally being unhesitating about his sexual relationship with feyd and them communicating (both implicitly with paul reading feyds body language and explicitly with paul making feyd ask for what he wants), it's all very rewarding in general :)

Also, ive just been thinking nonstop about all the stuff going on with paul. so, my first theory about pauls exhaustion was because he was staying up because of feyds nightmares waking up but then i re-read it and saw paul was tired even before they shared a bed, and then i remembered that lack of sleep is a common symptom of pregnancy so thats my leading theory rn, that OR paul is staying up late reading lol. im also so interested in what paul and lady jessica are plotting, they mentioned controlling feyd and learning more about him in the beginning and then theres the date palm scene. I remember in the movies that date palms are definitely on arrakis so my first thought was that feyd was being a paranoid little freak about it but then i thought lady jessica might be trying to assess pauls health or something?? its safe to say im super hyped for the paul POV

sorry about the length and INCREDIBLY half formed theories

( •̀ - •́ ) ₊˚⊹ ᰔ

The wonderful bowl100!!

I love your questions ☺️. Omg yay!!! I’m so glad you liked the chapter. I always have a crisis of confidence when I post new chapters 🙃. Yesss. The softness. Feyd cutting the fruit and making sure Paul eats was one of my favorite moments from the chapter. It’s so hard to write moments of tenderness from him without it seeming out of character. And then he can never be honest with himself about why he’s doing things or why certain things are making him feel certain ways. Man. This guy. Feyd used his words FINALLY!!! And yes!! I’m so happy for Paul. Starting to enjoy himself. It’s so important.

Okee so here’s what I can say. You aren’t wrong about any of your guesses per say. It’s been such a joy to write from Paul’s pov because he’s a much more emotionally evolved person so I can write him being like “ah yes. This is making me feel this way!”. So one of the biggest reasons for Paul’s exhaustion is that he has been having dreams. Some of them good, some of them pretty disturbing. And yes, we will be seeing them in the next chapter. He is also (not really a spoiler cause it’s in the tags) pregnant! Another big reason! That’s going to be a plot point of the next chapter as well.

Lol the date palm scene!! You’re right on both counts. Feyd is being a paranoid little freak. He’s like “they are speaking in code!!” No you weirdo, they are talking about date palms. However, I am going to give him a little credit because he did pick up on the weird energy of the scene which is basically due to Jessica trying to draw Paul out of his funk. She’s worried about him and thinks he’s not doing well, and she’s trying to cheer him up and also trying to subtly (probably too subtly) signal to Feyd to do the same. Which he kinda gets! Cause he then invites Paul to come with him on inspection and Jessica is like “thank fucking god you are so fucking dense”. To Feyd. Not Paul. Paul can do no wrong in Jessica’s eyes lol.

Anyway! All of your theories were pretty spot on and perceptive!!! Sorry it took so long for me to respond 😔. I’ve been sick this week and it’s been a struggle. I have most of Paul’s chapter finished (it’s sitting at 5,500 words right now 😀). And I hope to edit and post tomorrow!!

Thank you as always for your lovely questions. I look at your wonderful art every day 🥹.

All the best 🫶.

[chaiandsage]

hi um. Having just finished my fourth (?) read of trust life, i have a couple things to say/ask

the first thing is Oh My God it’s incredible probably one of my favourite fics ever your writing is amazing and the characterisation is always on point

The next thing is how much planning went into the fic before writing? Theres so much detail and you clearly knew where everyone was and when

also just out of pure curiosity, did you have any sort of map of the world its set in? Or just the mental image ?

"You clearly knew where everyone was and when." Raph let me tell you it was a literal miracle I only had like one or two slip-ups on that end (that I know of). To this day I have no idea how I got away with it. There were just so many moving parts with five teams, fifteen people, and however many breakups/makeups/exes/friendships to keep track of. I had to remember which characters knew which bits of information at any given time, which characters were still left in the dark about certain things, and what lives everyone was on. I kept forgetting that players do NOT respawn with their belongings during this game and had to keep fixing that, same idea with trying to remember where everyone's last sleeping spot was so that they'd respawn in the correct locations whenever they died. It was… a lot. Not saying this fic wasn't still insanely fun to write though. It was both of those those things.

I did have an outline made that I roughly stuck to that covered a decent amount of what happened from beginning to end. A lot of it got cut out cause that fic was getting WAY too long. But to answer your question, yeah, there was a LOT of planning. My outline for this fic literally just consisted of a bunch of 1-3 sentence paragraphs explaining what events would pass and why in very simple terms, and even that took up like a couple dozen pages. But there was also a lot of stuff that I threw in while the fic was still being updated.

Like, I still wanted to try to work in what was going on with the cc's in the real world since most of this story was suppose to take place 6 months later. So when 6 months later had passed in real life I tried to tweak the story accordingly as best I could which really just required me to change up a few of the places they went to once the game had ended. The decision to have Jimmy flee to Evo was also something I changed while still posting chapters. I was thinking about somehow making him go back to the Third Life server instead but then thought: "How cool would it be if Grian's emotions were tied to Evo and that caused his, Jimmy's, and Bigb's conversation to be 10x more dramatic?" So I did that instead.

Then there was also a change with the Deep Frost Citadel, the location for that setting getting changed a couple of times. I was originally gonna have Scott tell Tango he loved him for the first time back in Tumble Town but then only realized months later that "wait- wait a minute… It NEVER RAINS desert biomes!!" So yeah, more tweaking of the story went on there but I definitely think the change ended up being for the better regardless of the whole rain problem, lol. But yeah, once again: a lot. A lot of planning went into that story (what I wouldn't give to be half as enthusiastic about actual important life stuff as I was with this fic). But there was also a lot that was changed and cleaned up as it was still being written.

As for a map, I HAD one at one point but ended up tossing it once the fic ended. But here's a hasty re-drawing from memory that I may or may not have forgotten to include a few things in:

I actually had some fun remaking this, so thank you for that! Also huge thanks for reading my fic! I am losing my marbles at the fact that you liked it enough to read it four times and that it’s one of your favorites too? Oh my god?? Thank you so much!

[salternateunreality2]

I’ve got to ask, because the video you linked in chapter 80 makes me think I’m right…

Are the firsts parenting styles based on Gwenna’s (pleasant peasant media) parenting videos? Cause I’m living for the comparison.

Great chapter btw. I really want to cuddle Kadaj!

Answering your question:

She definitely influences them. I like to think there's an FF7 Gwenna out there making content that Angeal watches religiously. He's right there, cocoa and dressing gown ready, for Every Video.

They all have their own styles and did their own research, but her basic concepts around respect for the kids and gentle parenting are things all the Dads keep in mind. They also bend towards those principles naturally for various reasons.

I didn't set out to make her influence the story, but since I watch her stuff, it's going to bleed over. (My other sources are watching parenting irl, reddit, other fics, that weird phase I had where I got super into adoption for a few years and read a million blogs and things, and my own experiences with kids.)

Excited rambling because I can't help myself:

Angeal is a big fan of Gwenna and gentle parenting. He's also a natural by nature and his experience with Zack. He's not the "fun" parent--he's probably the most strict about everyday and risky things alike. Bedtime is always at bedtime. No playing "yeet the baby as high as you can", even if the giggles are EPIC. Healthy food. Educational field trips.

Sometimes it can be hard for him to let himself or Cloud off the hook for crazy kid stuff, but especially himself, and he needs those reminders from her about taking a deep breath and remembering that it does work. Patience yields focus.

You don't have to and can't be perfect, but you can be the perfect Dad for your kid by loving him and trying your best. And sometimes your best is collapsing on the foldout couch holding onto the baby all night despite what the books say about sleep schedules because your baby needs you.

-

Genesis respects Cloud and treats him like a small adult because that's how Genesis expects to be treated (minus the small part. Genesis is tall. He is! He just has mammoth friends. Shut up). Genesis also doesn't want to helicopter/tiger mom his baby; he got enough of that growing up and he's over it.

He wants the world to take him seriously, so he offers that same courtesy to Cloud. He offers it to everyone unless they prove themselves to be unworthy, in which case Bitchesis comes out.

He's more likely to risk Cloud's physical and emotional health than Angeal, but less likely to risk Cloud's physical health than Sephiroth. He has no qualms about teaching Cloud the hard way about the ways of the world; if Cloud gets smart with him, he says "bet".

"I cursed at Heidegger because he's a bitch." is a perfectly rational response to Cloud asking why Papa cussed, in Genesis' mind.

-

Sephiroth strives to do The Opposite of what Hojo did to him, so he treats Cloud as a tiny but respected new recruit SOLDIER under his command. He strives for excellence from both himself and Cloud, but the instant he starts feeling too much like Hojo, he re-evaluates. He tends to be more risky with Cloud's physical safety, because when the bar is set to "don't make a 2yo fight a monster", letting a 4yo handle a weapon doesn't seem like a big deal.

He also feels inadequate and a little out of his depth emotionally with Cloud; to combat this, he regularly seeks advice from Tifa, Angeal, and Zack to understand Cloud and provide appropriate responses.

-

Zack is definitely one of the funnest dads. His philosophy is to meet Cloud where he's at. Both he and Genesis are great at engaging Cloud's imagination and playing with him, but Zack gets way more into it.

Zack gives Cloud freedom and respect because he's a kid and he deserves to have fun. As long as no one's getting seriously hurt, why the heck not?!

---

They all drive each other a little batty sometimes with their choices (see: the petting zoo incident + any and all motorcycle outings), but ultimately their main goals are: physical needs fully met, emotional needs fully met, then education and other things. They love their baby 🐥 and he loves them! ❤️🐱🐶🐻🦜🐥❤️

[yeehanfrf]

Week 4 Recs: The Rivalmance

This week's Yeehan fic recs were all about "The Rivalmance." That's enemies-to-lovers, rivals-to-lovers, competitive assholes-to-lovers. If you like Yeehan, you know the vibe! Check out the recs gathered from the Yeehan community below, organized by rating then alphabetically by title.

Teen and Up

Hana Song's Guide on How to Not be Weird by LeftHand [27,710 words] Reccer comment: "Still uses the old cowboy name but I love it all the same"

Hanzo would never believe that Hana Song could give such stellar advice or display such wisdom beyond her years. He never expected to make a home for himself among the members of Overwatch. To make peace and find hope in life once again. But he did. He also never expected to get lassoed onto a mission with the most reckless, infuriating, irritating man he'd ever meet. A man in serious need of some guidance. With Hanzo Shimada as his best bet for a clear head? Not being weird is a lot harder than it sounds.

Author's note: This work is not officially completed and has a very round-about ending. I do not plan on ever writing a true final chapter but would still consider the work worth reading. Thanks!

Mature

The 85th Annual King County Bake-Off by venvephe [WIP; 37,995 words] Reccer 1 comment: "Warning: incomplete Still a good au tho" Reccer 2 comment: "Unfinished (4/5 chaps and currently ends at a cliffhanger) but set in a fun AU that makes for charming rivals to lovers YH fic and a fun read."

It’s October first, and it’s all come down to this.

The cake is perfect. He’s been waiting for this moment all year, since the previous baking competition. This is his chance at redemption, at reclaiming the crown of the best baker in the county. It’s a title only the winner of the county fair can hold. He’s waited a year and spent hours upon hours at work. Early mornings and late nights, scrapped ideas and tons of flour and sugar went into his masterpiece. It’s all led to him to standing here, awaiting the announcement of the winners.

This year, it’s going to be Hanzo. Last year’s winner - his rival, his nemesis - is going down. Hanzo’s not going to let his mortal enemy take the crown for a third year in a row.

What kind of name is Jesse McCree, anyways?

Howlin' for you by Mifune [17,489 words] Reccer comment: "a good ff if you enjoy bounty hunter Hanzo×wanted Cassidy!"

McCree makes a stop in Dorado, Mexico, before answering the Recall and meets a mysterious man in a bar that promises to make his night a lot more interesting. or McCree wants to do the right thing, Hanzo is sarcastic and there is a lot of emotional baggage unpacked in one night.

Ricochet by robocryptid [24,016 words] Reccer 1 comment: "Cassidy doesn't want to rejoin Overwatch. Too bad Overwatch doesn't take no for an answer and sends a hot stranger to hunt him down."

Reccer 2 comment: "A fun cat-and-mouse spin on Rivalmance. It’s super engaging, the pacing is impeccable and the chemistry is off the charts. I had so much fun reading (and re-reading) this!"

Cole toppled a government or two, caused a few explosions, murdered more bad guys than he can count, and probably a few innocents too. He caused more collateral damage — ruined more lives — than he’ll ever account for, and the world didn’t change a bit. He did his time, and he’s not going back.

Too bad Overwatch doesn’t want to take no for an answer.

Explicit

Acceptable Substitute by mataglap [47,494 words] Reccer comment: "I go back and reread this so often i think I'm at least 30% of the read stats"

Hanzo has lived without certain things for so long that he has all but forgotten about them. Cassidy is a bright red exclamation mark of a reminder, and Hanzo discovers that the saying "out of sight, out of mind" unfortunately also works in reverse.

Meanwhile, Cassidy is an exceptional liar, and the most egregious of his lies are the ones he tells himself.

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea by KittenzCaboodle [WIP; 34,828 words] Reccer comment: "Then I can't not push this ff enough! It's probably one of my favorites!!"

The man first in line for the Shimada throne was the last picture that Cole had been given to memorize. Hanzo Shimada. They had said it was unlikely that he would be sent, as he was too important for such menial tasks, but he was the next likely candidate according to Genji.

He gazed longingly towards the door, aching to step outside and get a fresh breath of the cool night air. As he silently grumbled about the sweat rolling down his back, the bodies grinding against each other in the club making the place hot and steamy in all the wrong ways, he saw him.

Of all the people in the world, Hanzo Shimada, the worst possible person, had just walked through the door and was putting their entire Blackwatch mission at risk.

Somehow, Cole had to distract him long enough to for Genji to get out, and he was willing to do whatever it takes, even if he was caught between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea.

But when the Devil buys you dinner and is one of the nicest people you've ever met, then things get confusing.

Binary System by mataglap [14,150 words] Reccer comment: "it's one of my comfort series for this ship, it's really funny, both characters are really well written and very in character, and honestly i just absolutely adore everything this amazing writer make"

Hanzo is arrogant and Cassidy is stubborn, which results in the world's strangest game of chicken.

Ichigo by morrezela [27,121 words] Reccer comment: "Qualifies if you squint? YeeHan break-up and aren't very civil to each other for a while"

They break up on a Wednesday.

Nocturne by delicaterosebud [61,160 words] Reccer comment: "This is probably the most bittersweet 'enemies to lovers' I’ve ever read. Some parts of this fic made me a bit uncomfortable, but in a good way (if that makes any sense…)"

After his mentor goes missing in the forest of Aokigahara, Jesse McCree, a member of the world-renowned Overwatch hunting guild, finds himself alone in his desire to save him. Receiving little support from his teammates, who have deemed his rescue effort to be too risky, Jesse must turn to an unexpected - and rather unpleasant - companion for aid.

During their travels together, however, he and the demon named "Hanzo" grow closer, and Jesse learns that the concept of good and evil isn't quite as simple as he had presumed.

One Man's Hero by mataglap [WIP; 99,485 words] Reccer 1 comment: "I can't not rec this one for enemies to lovers!!"

Reccer 2 comment: "A superhero AU ripe with action, beautifully charged and meaningful emotional scenes, superb characterization, meticulous world-building and just stellar writing. I especially enjoyed the side characters in this!"

Hanzo Shimada is an assassin, a murderer, and decidedly not a hero, let alone a superhero — and yet.

Popcorn Redemption by wyntera [WIP; 266,692 words] Reccer comment: "A classic, unfinished but great"

They say life isn't like the movies.

Well, partner, they ain't never worked for Overwatch.

Shift, Refresh by robocryptid [3,168 words] Reccer comment: "bursting through the door with this"

There are worse ways to start the morning after than with the walk of shame. It's not at all what Hanzo planned, but it might be what he deserves.

Survival Instinct by mataglap [36,485 words] Reccer comment: "Very well written, Hanzo's characterization was on point. Also I love remorseful/guilty Cole."

Cassidy takes a new monster hunting contract. It's pretty decent as contracts go: the pay is good, the perks even better, and he's got two competent companions to fight at his side when the monsters come.

Then a third companion arrives and ruins everything.

to lie down with dogs by motorghost [65,540 words] Reccer comment: "practically bursting at the seams with tension, at times almost suffocating (I mean this in the most complimentary way possible)."

Hanzo and Cole are on a top-secret reconnaissance mission in the industrialized wasteland of post-Crisis North Dakota, hunkered down in a factory ill-fit for human occupation. Cole seems fine with the situation, but Hanzo's doubts extend far beyond their little room.

That brings Week 4 to a close! Thank you to everyone who sent in a recommendation! Keep an eye out for next week's theme: "Golden Oldies," or fics from 2016 and 2017!

In the meantime, you can also check out the Week 3 recs here or see the list of past and future themes here!

[ask-alphabetboyluvr]

Okay so I have a few things...

I'm so excited for slut war, when will the first chapter arrive?

Then I wanna thank bd jk because of him I had the best orgasm of my life ever. His fingering game is strong damn... now I get why b squirts and everything... cus I fucking did too... freakin everywhere

And the other day I was making up scenarios in my head with them. I have a face claim in my head for byeol. And him and Kook were playing this edging game where he instructs her and she has to edge herself again and again... I tried one and could barely make it through the whole thing.

And to all the girlies out there, once in your life try masturbating with your bladder full.. like it doesn't have to be you on the verge of bursting but just a little pressure like even half full works so well... The sensations will be so intense and the climax absolutely mindblowing.

OK lmao I went too much into detail sorry... thank bd jk for me (aka the person who wrote him) thanks for bringing him into existence

I also wonder how would Jungkook react if b asks him to wear a condom. They're so reckless it scares me sometimes. They should have a talk about if they want kids, it seems like the right time in their relationship to talk about it. People don't and then break up after years of being together because they don't want kids or the number each one wants differ...

OK bye now I'm waiting for slut war and bd too patiently

i saw this come in when i was at work and almost tripped up the stairs hahahahahaha

i wanted to have a few more chapters under my belt before starting uploads -- I've found I really enjoy the schedule releases I did for the last two short stories (slut war wont be a short story, but yk). i'd say not until may!!

there is just.... so much information here hahahha um thank you?? I'm literally reading this over and over kind of unsure how to reply but I'll take it a compliment. it's tickled me a lot hahaha. glad I could ... help? hahahahha

im curious about the face claim!!!

re: condoms he'd probably see it as a little spicy cause it's different lmao. i think they literally used one the first time and from that point forward it was all freewheeling?? so maybe they'd do it to remember the good old days of cockwarming in place of therapy <33

thankyou!! im excited for them to!!

[love-fireflysong]

Hi Firefly!! I hope it's okay that I'm gonna be rambling a bit here, but I want you to know you're one of my favorite authors!!

All or your stories are amazing, and I keep coming back to re-read them; ○ Final days (Wonderful, amazing, chapter 3 brole me while reading O[-[, but i keep coming back to chapter 5) ○ The Outlast AU (I know next to nothing about Outlast and yet I read the entire thing in a day!! And it's Ashley POV!! Literally couldnt be more perfect!!! Can't wait for more!!!) ○ The Baby AU (I'm not usually one for stories where the characters are married and have kids - I prefer the awful pining LMAO - but I'm inhaling every last scrap I can find about it) I also absolutely adore the one shot fics!! The ones I most frequently come back to are I Just Want To Feel Safe Again, Burning The Midnight Oil, It's A Cookie Molassacre, and Mario Party!! It just feels like them. The puns, the fluff, the PINING. I LOBE THE PINING

I saw a mention of a fic somewhere on your tumblr about Ashley yoinking some of Chris's hoodies and then wearing them when he asks about them, and I need you to know the concept of it is so funny, i haven't been able to stop thinking about it LOL. Literally Chris showing up and Ash I just wearing it. Chris being all, ''... Is that mine?''. Ash, wearing a hoodie 3 times her size: ''.... No'' I really hope you're gonna write it, I can just see the awkward fluff in my head!!

I'm pretty new to the Until Dawn Fandom, but I'm so happy that I came in at a time where you are writing these stories!! You've helped fulfill my Chrashley cravings to the utmost degree. If you ever doubt your writing, I hope you remember this rambling and know that I will always inhale everything you write. There's so much more I could write, but AGH I'm so happy you're writing!!

SDFKLSDKLFJLSDKJFLKSDJF?????????????😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

Okay, first of all I need you to get off of anon this instant so I know exactly who I should be getting ready to cover in these blubbery happy tears as I sob and hug the life out of them cause OH MY GOD?????? This was absolutely the BEST message I could have woken up to this morning HOLY SHIT😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭

But man oh man, just the idea that I'm listed among ANYONE'S favourite authors is just 😳😳😳😳 but I'm so happy and overwhelmed to hear that you enjoy my work enough to come and find me over here and let me know! God I wanna try and respond to all these super nice and amazing things that you're saying about me and my fics but I don't even know where to start?????

Oh god, um. Okay. It will never not be the biggest compliment when I hear that the third chapter of Final Days managed to break people. To this day, I don't think that I've ever had more fun planning and writing out a chapter as unorthodox as that one was, so to hear that it actually did it's job as odd an addition as it was will always bring the proudest smile to my face and smug shimmy to my shoulder lmao. (And don't worry about continuously coming back to the last chatpter, I do too asjdhsjjashd)

And to hear that someone else out there loves the things that I'm doing with the outlast au is AMAZING. Like you would think it was the baby series, but no it's the outlast au that is my literal baby in all sense of the word. I have so many stupid gory and traumatic plans for that one and the day that I will finally sit my ass down and get them all out will be a day for celebration that's for sure ajksdkhajksdh But oh man, just the idea that you read that 30k whump fest that is Artificial in a single day is among the highest compliments I could receive (I say as though everything you sent me isn't the highest compliment 😭). (Also I think you're probably the only person who's read the newest addition to it so far so please please PLEASE message me again and tell me your thoughts on it cause I desperately want to know🙏 or you know just message me again for any other reason that's very cool too)

And, not to sound like a broken record over here lol, the highest compliment once again when I hear that my own series of baby fics as managed to reach past the understandable distaste most people have for them to find something fun. What exactly that thing is that I do or add that sets them apart I have no idea but I'm always glad to hear that someone else likes that little slice of life verse I have for them askdjklasdklasd

But you are completely right, there is just something about Chris and Ashley that makes the pining so fucking good. Best friends to lover extreme pining edition is my favourite flavour of ships and by GOD do those two have it in spades and then some! There is a reason that a good chunk of my fics with them involve just so much pining before they get together and its because they do it so fucking well holy shit. Will never get enough of them and their shenanigans (as Josh pulls his hair out and continuously smashing his forehead into a wall in the background of course lmao)

And good news, bad news involving the hoodie stealing fic! The good news it that I have actually started writing it as of last week! The bad news is that, well, I had it in my suitcase which (I believe) was sent to Calgary and NOT following me home to I have none of it here. Which is a same because not only have been excited to start working on it, but now this message just makes me want to start doing more writing for it like this INSTANT and I don't have the book with me😭 Hope that they ship my suitcase back here soon not only so I can have my clothes and toiletries (and $60 toothbrush😒) back, but also that stupid notebook so I can get back to writing it.

Ignoring all THAT though, I am so sorry that I've been extremely quiet on the fic front down here recently, but the fact that all my older work has been helping to fulfill that Chrashley craving (with the climbing chrash one to a lesser extent I expect lmao) with more to hopefully come! Especially with summer and good weather here so I can sit outside and write some shit down! Cause boy oh boy cause the natural vitamin d boost you're girls creativity levels!

...Once I get my notebooks back that is 😡🤬😡🤬😡🤬😡🤬🤬🤬

[apocalypticavolition]

Let's (re)Read The Great Hunt! Chapter 5: The Shadow in Shienar

It's that time again folks! Yadda yadda yadda, heavy spoilers for all of the books, the TV show, the RPG, the video game, and the limited run commemorative cups that have all either gone missing or been confirmed destroyed. Oh wait that is the spoiler for the cups. Sorry. Don't keep reading if you don't want more spoilers!

This chapter has the sun of the Whitecloaks, which symbolizes how we're getting our first Whitecloak POV this chapter. There's a lot of POV hopping really, kind of too much. Sometimes I wish Jordan had stayed more focused in each chapter instead of hopping around the way he does, but oh well.

So seldom had it been done that every novice was required to learn the name of each Aes Sedai since the Breaking of the World who had been stilled, and her crime, but none could think of it without a shudder.

Terrifying to think that over three thousand years, the list is still small enough to be easily learned. At this point, two of them are Amyrlins (though the upcoming third example is in the room right now!), but there were obviously more. Did the Compendium list them all? I really need to read that someday.

“Both of the Red, and both replaced by Amyrlin from the Blue. The reason there has not been an Amyrlin chosen from the Red since Bonwhin, and the reason the Red Ajah will take any pretext to pull down an Amyrlin from the Blue, all wrapped neatly together. I have no wish to be the third to lose the stole and the staff, Moiraine. For you, of course, it would mean being stilled and put outside the Shining Walls.”

I think the reason that the Red Ajah has such a shit track record is in part because of the poorly formed nature of their cause (yes, gentling dudes is important, but dedicating themselves entirely to it clearly led to a poor moral character) and in part because the apparently best time to turn to a Red to lead is exactly when having no tradition of leadership leads to disaster.

Having a Red during the Trolloc Wars makes a lot of sense considering all the Dreadlords and whatnot. Bonwhin against Amalasan was probably a great idea at the time (though I expect even the Hall got played here because this False Dragon is the most plausible candidate as a Tar Valon puppet). But Tetsuan was consumed by her petty squabbles instead of being able to play the political game correctly and arguably the fall of Manetheren was the reason the Ten Nations as a whole were unable to withstand the war. And Artur Hawkwing beating Amalasan meant that Bonwhin's best strength was gone and her attempts to replace one puppet with another backfired so hideously that the White Tower was nearly destroyed.

Other Amyrlins were screw-ups; there were at least two who were exiled by politics, but only the three Red Amyrlins really had a chance to be as disastrous as they were. And to be honest, it doesn't say great things about the Tower as a whole that they were allowed to be the failures that they were.

“For me, it would be different. Even stilled, an Amyrlin who has been pulled down cannot be allowed to wander about loose; she might be seen as a martyr, become a rallying point for opposition. Tetsuan and Bonwhin were kept in the White Tower as servants. Scullery maids, who could be pointed to as cautions as to what can happen to the mightiest. No one can rally around a woman who must scrub floors and pots all day. Pity her, yes, but not rally to her.”

So like obviously this whole section is foreshadowing Siuan's eventual fate, but this bit in particular is the nice dramatic irony. Siuan manages to wander around loose and while she doesn't quite get people to rally around her, she does pick candidates for them to rally around to her advantage (Logain and Egwene).

“The Pattern pays no heed to human plans, Siuan. With all our scheming, we forgot what we were dealing with. Ta’veren. Elaida is wrong. Artur Paendrag Tanreall was never this strongly ta’veren. The Wheel will weave the Pattern around this young man as it wills, whatever our plans.”

On the one hand, it's smart of Moiraine to acknowledge this. On the other hand, it's very dumb of her to refuse to internalize this in any way.

“ ‘The grave is no bar to my call,’ ” she translated, so softly she seemed to be speaking to herself. “The Horn of Valere, made to call dead heroes back from the grave. And prophecy said it would only be found just in time for the Last Battle.”

I feel like maybe in the planning phase the Siuan/Moiraine chat was meant to be one chapter with the Horn being discussed there (hence the icon) and the other disparate POVs meant to be their own thing, but ultimately the one chapter got too long and the other too short and Harriet said "Why not a good chapter break on a dramatic moment?" cause that's good editing advice but they never changed the icons to match.

“Agelmar pushed it into my hands as soon as the Welcome was done. He said he was afraid to go into his own strongroom any longer, with it there. The temptation was too great, he said. To sound the Horn himself and lead the host that answered its call north through the Blight to level Shayol Ghul itself and put an end to the Dark One. He burned with the ecstasy of glory, and it was that, he said, that told him it was not to be him, must not be him. He could not wait to be rid of it, yet he wanted it still.”

Mad respect to Agelmar here, but also: would blowing the Horn at Fal Dara even do anything? The prophecy about salvation instead of glory might well mean that blowing the Horn in any situation except the desperation that Mat and Olver feel at their respective moments would be as effective as if a Darkfriend tried to summon the Heroes to fight for the Shadow.

“And it was not to be found until just before the Last Battle. Can it be that close? I thought, hoped, we would have more time.”

Hey, y'all have a bit over two years to go. That's not nothing.

 “Never more than one false Dragon in a generation since the Breaking, and now three loose in the world at one time, and three more in the past two years. The Pattern demands a Dragon because the Pattern weaves toward Tarmon Gai’don. Sometimes doubt fills me, Moiraine.”

Moiraine of course points out that the Pattern doesn't accept Dragon substitutes, but there is reason to think there's more purpose to so many I-Can't-Believe-He's-Not-Therin products on the market at this point, especially since the two still standing will get struck down when Rand makes his declaration. Basically, since this particular iteration of the Third Age is pretty clearly way off course (hence three ta'veren at once to correct the Pattern), the false Dragons are doing a bunch of the work that Rand no longer has the time to do himself: rallying armies together and giving them and the Aes Sedai combat training so that as many people as possible will be ready for the actual Last Battle. Hence their locations: Ghealdan and Murandy where Rand never has a chance to personally intervene, Illian where Rand doesn't really have time to organize the armies, Tear where he needs them ready as soon as he arrives, and Saldaea that receives the first blow from the Shadow at Maradon. None of the Seanchan-occupied territories get False Dragons because they get their own combat boosts, the two middle Borderlands get nothing because they're just kind of there (and Shienar got its training from hell last book), and Andor and Cairhien are places where Rand has time to source things anyway (plus Andor has the civil war and Cairhien gets the Shaido).

The secret hidden from the world, if the world ever thought of it, was that no Amyrlin Seat had known where any of the seals were since the Trolloc Wars.

Frankly, it's probably mythology that the Tower ever knew the locations of all seven seals. One was in the Eye, made at least 100 years before the White Tower existed. One found its way to Rhuidean, which means it was probably in Aiel hands the whole time and again this predated the Tower. A third seems to have ended up in Seanchan, which the White Tower probably didn't know about even back then.

Losing track of the others though, that's extra sad. The one in the Stone of Tear was almost certainly given to the people of Essenia for safekeeping. The one the Panarch had may well have been distributed similarly - and that suggests that the other two were meant to be safeguarded as well. Both allegedly came from Saldaea, and I'm going to suggest that Bayle's legitimately did so and had been put in the northwest corner of the known world to match the southwest and southeast - and that as a result we can theorize that the fourth may well have been safely in Malkier (and its predecessors) for generations until, y'know. Then Taim the Darkfriend was given it to give to Rand.

“I saw the boy, you know, in the courtyard during the Welcome. It is one of my Talents, seeing ta’veren. A rare Talent these days, even more rare than ta’veren, and certainly not of much use. A tall boy, a fairly handsome young man. Not much different from any young man you might see in any town.”

I'm a wee bit surprised Siuan didn't mention how he really looks less like a town boy and more like an Aiel, but I guess since Rand isn't nearby fretting about his parentage there's no reason to twist that dagger.

“If he is the one, then we truly may have time enough. But is he safe here? I have two Red sisters with me, and I can no longer answer for Green or Yellow, either. The Light consume me, I can’t answer for any of them, not with this. Even Verin and Serafelle would leap on him the way they would a scarlet adder in a nursery.”

Nice of Siuan to suggest that the Browns might be remotely useful (frankly I think the reason these digs aren't tossed at the Whites is that they don't even have hobbies enough for the other Aes Sedai to remember they exist half the time), but frankly I suspect that Serafelle, like Verin, would just start studying Rand for whatever her current book project is.

“I have purposely let him think I no longer have any interest in him, that he may go where he pleases for all of me.” She raised her hands as the Amyrlin opened her mouth. “It was necessary, Siuan. Rand al’Thor was raised in the Two Rivers, where Manetheren’s stubborn blood flows in every vein, and his own blood is like rock beside clay compared to Manetheren’s. He must be handled gently, or he will bolt in any direction but the one we want.”

No Moiraine, you really fucked this strategy up. Ghosting the boy so quickly and thoroughly only made him hurt and resentful about everything, especially since he's already going through so much. It would have been a far wiser move to keep up some degree of communication with him, even if it was just inviting him to tea and a game of stones once a week.

“His two friends, Matrim Cauthon and Perrin Aybara, are ripe to see the world before they sink back into the obscurity of the Two Rivers. If they can sink back; they are ta’veren, too, if lesser than he. I will induce them to carry the Horn of Valere to Illian.”

She's literally already back to scheming and forgetting what she's dealing with. Moiraine. Girl. Get a clue.

“He must be let off the leash for a time. There is no help for it. I have had all of their old clothes burned. There has been too much opportunity for some shred of what they were wearing to have fallen into the wrong hands. I will cleanse them before they leave; they will not even realize it has been done. There will be no chance they can be tracked that way, and the only other threat of that kind is locked away here in the dungeon.”

Like... she literally veers from "Two Rivers stubborn" to "I can make them do whatever" to "I burned their clothing" and it never occurs to her that these claims are all very contradictory. "The Pattern gives no fucks about our plans" gives way to "I will see to everything in Illian" as if she hasn't spent an entire book watching as the Pattern carefully picks up each of her plans and then flings them against a cuendillar wall.

“I have the means to see him named Dragon whether he wills it or not. And even if I somehow fail, the Pattern itself will see him named Dragon whether he wills it or not. Remember, he is ta’veren, Siuan. He has no more control over his fate than a candle wick has over the flame.”

More dramatic irony. Rand has a good deal of control over his fate: he demonstrates in The Gathering Storm that not only can he commit suicide if he feels like it, but omnicide to boot. He had every ability to slay the Dark One at the climax of the series, for all the good that would have done anyone, and walks away. When Rand interprets the Karatheon Cycle, he's correct about what it means, a privilege given to exactly zero other characters. He gets to fall in love without the prophecy of its inevitability hanging over him: it's his own choice, not his capitulation to the Wheel like Min.

Meanwhile, Moiraine has no control over Rand's fate whatsoever. He doesn't go to Tar Valon or Illian until she's long gone and never for the reasons she intends. She doesn't want him to have Thom as a mentor figure, but when she gets rid of him Rhuarc and a fucking Forsaken step up to fill the gap. When she goes through the rings, she sees that the vast majority of timelines - every one where she abandons all concern for Rand the person and embraces any desperate and cold method to save the world - her manipulations only make the situation worse.

The column would have made an impressive sight under the waxing moon, moving through the Tarabon night to the jangle of harness, had there been anyone to see it.

Oh thank god. Hopefully since we're changing POV I'll stop ranting so much.

“My Lord Captain Commander, may I ask why I was called back from Caemlyn, and with such urgency? A push, and Morgase could be toppled. There are Houses in Andor that see dealing with Tar Valon as we do, and they were ready to lay claim to the throne. I left Eamon Valda in charge, but he seemed intent on following the Daughter-Heir to Tar Valon. I would not be surprised to learn the man has kidnapped the girl, or even attacked Tar Valon.”

I think Geofram is missing the bigger picture here. With winter magically over and spring making up the difference, the political situation is now much less tenuous than it was.

“There are forces at work beyond what you know, Geofram. Beyond what even you can know. Choose your men quickly. Now go. Ask me no more. And the Light ride with you.”

Say what you like about Niall being a vile jackass who leads the continent's worst organization (and when I say continent I am including Shara and all their mess), but damn if he's not perceptive. Dude has absolutely no clues about what's going on in the world except an unnatural winter, an uncertain western invasion, and whispers of Trolloc sightings in Andor and he's already deduced that the Last Battle is around the corner and it's time to get ready for it. Such a shame he's so morally repugnant or he could have been a great asset for the good guys.

I have been sent here to meet Questioners?

Shame you're not being put to the Question yourself, buddy. You can be all "Oh yeah they're totally corrupt," but you're fucking allied with them. That's your choice.

Pacified. He wondered if the bodies had been piled outside the village, or if they had been thrown into the river. It would be like the Questioners, cold enough to kill an entire village for secrecy and stupid enough to throw the bodies into the river to float downstream and trumpet their deed from Alcruna to Tanchico.

WHY ARE YOU PART OF THIS GEOFRAM? YOU CLEARLY KNOW BETTER!

(Also weirdly Einor Saren will show up again. I have nothing in particular to say about him though. He exists and if I wasn't obsessively checking which minor characters do in fact recur I wouldn't even realize we're going to see him again in Lord of Chaos.)

For a moment, Bornhald stopped breathing. “Then the rumors are true. Artur Hawkwing’s armies have returned.” “Strangers,” Saren said flatly. He sounded as if he regretted having mentioned them.

You can't just use insistent terminology to bend the world to your will, Saren. They're a very big threat and calling them "Strangers" is just happily living in denial. Bad enough I have to put up with this crap from Rand. Oh well. Onto the next POV!

Twilight was a troubled time for Liandrin of late, that and dawn. At dawn the day was born, just as twilight gave birth to night, but at dawn, night died, and at twilight, day. The Dark One’s power was rooted in death; he gained power from death, and at those times she thought she could feel his power stirring.

Liandrin is quite a glass half empty kind of lady, isn't she? Maybe if you didn't focus on how birth and death are so intrinsically linked there'd be less power for the Dark One to claim, did you ever think of that Liandrin? (Except of course she didn't go Dark out of nihilism, so her focus on death isn't remotely like Ish's despair.)

It was The Dance of the Hawk and the Hummingbird, by Teven Aerwin, which purported to set forth the proper conduct of men toward women and women toward men. Liandrin’s mouth tightened; she certainly had not read it, but she had heard as much as she needed about it.

Liandrin thinks that the proper conduct of men toward women is groveling and pleading for their life and that as long as the woman doesn't like the man or do anything kind to him she can do whatever she likes. Anything that says otherwise is scandalous, anything that suggests men and women might enjoy each other's company offensive.

“Do you walk in the Light, my daughter?” There would be none of that foolishness of calling her sister here. The other woman was older by some years, but the ancient forms would be observed. However long they had been forgotten, it was time they were remembered.

See what I mean from last chapter? Liandrin absolutely hates the idea of respecting someone who might be behaving as if she's even remotely an equal.

Casually she threw the book into the fire. Flames leaped as if it were a log of fatwood, thundering as they licked up the chimney. In the same instant every lamp in the room flared, hissing, so fiercely did they burn, flooding the chamber with light.

We're not even being remotely subtle about Liandrin's general disposition here, are we?

In that moment of doubt and confusion, Liandrin struck. She did not move, but lashed out with the One Power. Amalisa gasped and gave a jerk, as if she had been pricked with a needle, and Liandrin’s petulant mouth perked in a smile. This was her own special trick from childhood, the first learned of her abilities. It had been forbidden to her as soon as the Mistress of Novices discovered it, but to Liandrin that only meant one more thing she needed to conceal from those who were jealous of her.

Just another reason why the general secrecy of the Tower about weaves is stupid. If people knew about Liandrin's trick more generally, they'd have more understanding of her character and she might not have been allowed to progress to the shawl at all.

It was not a perfect ability; Liandrin could not force anyone to do what she wanted—though she had tried; oh, how she had tried. But she could open them wide to her arguments, make them want to believe her, want more than anything to be convinced of her rightness.

Interesting that this kind of Compulsion is so limited compared to what Graendal can accomplish. Is it just a less effective weave, or does Graendal's knowledge of physiology and psychology let her accomplish more outright than Liandrin can?

“Moiraine came to Fal Dara with a Darkfriend.” Amalisa was too frightened to show surprise. “Oh, no, Liandrin Sedai. No. That man came later. He is in the dungeons now.”

And this is an interesting twist on it as well. Amalisa is still quite capable of arguing logically because there's a reasonable way by which she can interpret Liandrin as mistaken but not lying. Is this confusion part of why Liandrin won't name the ta'veren as Darkfriends?

“The Black Ajah is real, child. Real, and here within Fal Dara’s walls.” Amalisa knelt there, her mouth hanging open. The Black Ajah. Aes Sedai who were also Darkfriends. Almost as horrible to learn the Dark One himself walked Fal Dara keep. But Liandrin would not let up now. “Any Aes Sedai in the halls you pass, a Black sister could be. This I swear. I cannot tell you which they are, but my protection you can have. If in the Light you walk and me obey.”

It's also worth noting that except the quote just before this one (which may well be in-character confusion), Liandrin doesn't really say anything explicitly false from her perspective. Even her threats are based in the truth. Either Jordan hadn't quite decided that the Blacks had abandoned the Oaths yet or Liandrin is masterfully keeping her alibi by acting as if she is still bound by them in these public interactions.

Pulling the door shut behind her, Liandrin suddenly felt a prickling across her skin. Breath catching, she whirled about, looking up and down the dimly lit hall. Empty. It was full night beyond the arrowslits. The hall was empty, yet she was sure there had been eyes on her. The vacant corridor, shadowy between the lamps on the walls, mocked her. She shrugged uneasily, then started down the hall determinedly. Fancies take me. Nothing more.

I listed a bunch of possible causes for Rand's paranoia last we saw him, and it was pointed out I neglected the possibility it might be the Gray Man who is going to be a problem soon. I would thus like to note that I am very confident that's what Liandrin feels at this point.

You! No...

Wait no I'm getting way ahead of myself. A fuller quote would be:

Fain stood. “You! Not who I expected.”

Who did Fain expect to break him out of jail? Ishamael himself? Graendal for reasons related to my above quote? Liandrin? A Fade? Not Ingtar, obviously. Guess we can conclude he definitely wasn't at the Darkfriend Social.

Ah well. Next time: Moiraine's plans are smashed with the Pattern's finest cuendillar hammer.

[natedogx15]

Kamen Rider Deku Mission 23: Two-Prong Attack

Previous Chapter / AO3 / Master List

Eraser Head has a look of frustration on his face as he faces another dead end in his investigation of Slidin' Go. He's been going through all of the false leads Shinonome set up to prevent any investigators from discovering where Slidin' Go is. He's already gone through four false leads and still hasn't figured out who is helping Slidin' Go. He does think Shinonome might be involved. But he has no proof. Sighing, Eraser Head pulls out his phone to make another call to Chairman Hikage to inform him that his lead came up false again. To his surprise, Chairman Hikage answers before the first ring ends.

"Eraser Head, perfect timing. I found something more important that I need you to do that could help us find the Meta Liberation Army and Slidin' Go." Chairman Hikage states in a slightly urgent tone.

"Good. Because I've come out empty-handed today, Shinonome has covered his tracks well." Eraser Head states.

"Forget about Slidin' Go for now. Instead, do you remember the Nomu called Overdrive Nomu by the public? It was the second Nomu to appear after the Kamen Riders debut." Chairman Hikage asks.

"Yes. Akira Ichibangase. After that event, the Ichibangase family were placed under investigation for child neglect and abuse due to Quirkism." Eraser Head reads off his memory before he realizes what Chairman Hikage is getting to.

"You think he has something to do with the Meta Liberation Army?" He asks, causing Chairman Hikage to nod on the other end.

"Yes. We've noticed some strange transactions while investigating them. While this and their son's treatment isn't out of place, it's too suspicious given the current circumstances." Chairman Hikage states, causing Eraser Head to nod in agreement.

At this point, it's probably better to change targets since his search for Slidin' Go has given them nothing.

"Alright. I'll get to work." He sighs before hanging up the phone and rubbing his eyes.

"I miss being able to sleep." He mutters in annoyance before heading to work.

-------------------

Tiger Man and Bat Man are waiting in a hotel a few blocks from Giran's. After they explained everything to Skeptic, including how Giran seems to be getting weaker, he told them to hold off on doing anything until a few more Warriors get there.

"Who do you think they're sending this time?" Bat Man asks curiously.

"They'll probably be some muscle in case things go bad." Tiger Man explains with a shrug as he reads a book.

Hearing this causes Bat Man to suddenly tense as he realizes they may have to fight a bunch of Nomu, including Giran.

"Do you think we can do this?" Bat Man asks in an unconfident tone.

Tiger Man pauses. He's been thinking about that too. He's unsure if they can do this, but, like others in the Meta Liberation Army, he doesn't care and is willing to risk everything for the cause. All he's thinking about is how they can get this done while wondering what Meta Abilities their new allies will have.

"Forget about that and start thinking about how we'll complete it." Tiger Man orders, causing Bat Man to sigh before nodding.

However, he can't shake the worry gnawing at him. His instincts tell him this plan may not work as they want it to.

-------------------

Re-Destro barely manages to control his anger as he contemplates how the Meta Liberation Army can't defeat two Quirkless individuals. It feels as though even the slightest annoyance will cause him to destroy the office around him. He's been like this ever since Giran paid him another visit. All army members in his tower have done their best to steer clear of him for worry of their health.

He's willing to accept that they keep failing if it wasn't for the fact the people they're losing to are those his beliefs look down upon the most. While he doesn't quite have the same hierarchical view of their cause as some of the other members of the Meta Liberation Army, like Geten, he still has trouble believing around a dozen strengthened Warriors have failed. This outcome forces him to target K.E.M. and causes him to want the Kamen Rider system for his company even more now. However, he tries to push those thoughts away before they grow too strong, lest Giran learns about him the next time he shows up.

"Forget about that for now," Re-Destro tells himself before pulling out two Nomu Coins.

One has the grey image of a fire hydrant on it, while the other has a snowflake.

"Sadly, our young student has outlived his usefulness." He mutters as he stares at the two specially selected Nomu Coins for this next mission, which will take a different turn from the ones before.

Soon after this, someone knocks on his door.

"Sorry to disturb you, sir, but we were told you need us immediately." The man states with a slight bow.

"Come in, come in," Re-Destro states as he instantly changes his attitude to a welcoming one, already knowing why they're here.

He ordered his people to find him individuals with impressive water or cold-based Meta Abilities. Hoping they'll do better since they'll be after K.E.M., Re-Destro is about to say something before the window behind him shatters, and two giant arms of ice suddenly slam the two members into the wall behind them.

Upon seeing this display of power, Re-Destro gets over his shock and quickly realizes who's behind him. That doesn't stop him from angrily turning around to glare at the assailant.

"What are you doing, Geten?!" Re-Destro demands to know while turning around to glare at the M.L.A. ace.

If Re-Destro didn't know about the Proto-Driver, it would be hard to tell if Geten is using it. His entire form remains covered by his heavy clothing. The only tells are Geten's size and body volume increase and the snow-white fur covering his hands. However, Re-Destro does see these changes and is worried Giran or his superiors did something to the Proto Driver to cause Geten to betray the M.L.A.

Geten doesn't say anything. Instead, he walks off the ice trail he used to get to Re-Destro's office and stares at the man. It's the first time Geten looks down at his leader, who is preparing his Quirk in case Geten has betrayed him. However, Geten suddenly bows to Re-Destro to put his leader at ease and let Re-Destro know he's still in control of his actions.

"I heard you are looking for people with strong water and cold-based abilities. Please allow me to handle whatever you need." Geten requests.

Re-Destro stares at Geten with some suspicion. However, he soon calms down as he realizes it is Geten and he's not a puppet. He then looks at Geten's waist but can't see the Proto Driver under Geten's parka.

"Have you mastered the Driver?" He asks Geten, causing him to nod.

"I believe so," Geten tells him.

"What are the results?" Re-Destro asks.

Hearing this, Geten answers in a tone showing his excitement and pride about how strong he's grown.

"It's amazing, Grand Commander. It's like I can kill All Might himself. My Meta Ability's grown to the point I don't know its limits. But I can control it with ease."

Hearing Geten's giddiness, Re-Destro grins but isn't sure whether it's a good idea to send him out yet. Geten sees this and immediately pleads with his leader.

"Please allow me to demonstrate the power of the Meta Liberation Army after our many failings against the Kamen Riders, sir." Geten pleads.

Re-Destro wonders how Geten knows about those failures since he hasn't told Geten anything. However, he decides it might be best to send Geten out to get an idea of what he can do by comparing him to the Kamen Riders. Besides, he thinks it's only a matter of time before Geten tries taking things into his own hands.

"Fine. I will allow it as long as you don't say anything about the Meta Liberation Army and come back. We must continue being cautious until we're sure we're ready to fight the heroes of Japan and the world." Re-Destro tells him, causing Geten to nod.

"Of course, Grand Commander. I'll crush those Kamen Riders and claim their Drivers for our cause." Geten says while clenching his fist.

When he does, the ice seems to harden and become more jagged, causing the two Meta Liberation Army members to scream in slight pain before Geten releases them. Luckily, there don't seem to be any horrible injuries.

"Good. But this time, don't focus on the other Kamen Riders. I want you to fight ours and take away his." Re-Destro commands while giving one of the files he had prepared to Geten.

"Ours?" Geten asks in surprise, and Re-Destro nods.

"Yes. I want you to take K.E.M.'s Driver." Re-Destro tells him.

"Why are we not taking the Drivers from those two failures?" Geten asks, referring to the Quirkless Kamen Riders.

"They've proven tenacious. Everyone we've sent has been unable to beat them no matter what we do. And it doesn't seem like we'll get K.E.M. back on our side any time soon. It would be best for us to take the Driver from him by taking advantage of his weaknesses." Re-Destro explains.

Hearing his leader's words, Geten doesn't look happy. Re-Destro sees this and tells him something else to make him more willing to destroy K.E.M.

"He's also claiming he's the strongest. So, he would have tried to take away your spot as our ace, Geten." Re-Destro warns, causing Geten to growl suddenly.

Geten is protective of his position as the ace of the Meta Liberation Army and refuses to let anyone try to claim it. Re-Destro knows that and is making full use of it here.

"As you wish, Grand Commander. However, what about the other Kamen Riders? Or the people giving us this equipment?" Geten asks.

"For now, focus on K.E.M. We'll get the other Drivers later. Don't risk failing by going after them. If you feel like you may lose, get out of there and return here. Only attack our allies if they attack you first." Re-Destro says in a grave tone, causing Geten to nod but not believe he'll fail against the Kamen Riders.

"What about All Might? What if he shows up? Do I test my new abilities against him?" Geten asks in a slightly eager tone, wishing to see how his new power compares to the golden standard of heroes.

"Forget about testing your strength against All Might and avoid him if you can. We can test your strength against him later after you've defeated the Kamen Riders." Re-Destro tells the man, causing him to seem disappointed before realizing something.

Despite Re-Destro's words about trying to avoid All Might, that will likely be impossible. His Meta Ability is extremely flashy, especially with the Proto Driver's enhancement. So, he'll likely start a large enough commotion where All Might will show himself. Imagining this causes Geten to grow excited.

"Do you understand, Geten?" Re-Destro asks, causing Geten to nod.

"Yes, Grand Commander. Leave it to me." Geten nods before leaving.

-------------------

 Neither realizes that Skeptic has been watching them through the security cameras. The executive of the Meta Liberation Army nods his head as he notes things might be moving quicker than expected with Re-Destro's decision. If that's the case, they must learn more about their benefactors now rather than later. If not, it could come back to bite them at a crucial moment.

"With that in mind, I better check where the rest of the team members are. They should all be enough to get in and escape with enough information to give us a better idea of what's going on." Skeptic mutters as he types on his laptop and sees a few G.P.S. blips heading to where Tiger Man and Bat Man are. From the looks of it, it shouldn't be long before they meet.

"Perfect, they should meet before Giran leaves to intercept Geten. If we're lucky, Giran will fight Geten to weaken himself further. If not, there's still a good chance we can do this if he's their strongest weapon." Skeptic mutters while checking to see if the cameras he installed on each member's person for insurance's sake are working.

From the looks of it, all of the group members' cameras are working, meaning he's all but guaranteed to gain some information from this assault. With that in mind, Skeptic grins.

-------------------

Many heroes are currently surrounding the apartment complex, with H.P.S.C. officials also doing a thorough investigation to ensure the Nomu didn't leave any surprises since it's impossible to tell how long the Nomu has been around the apartment complex. This same thing has been going on for the last few days. During this time, other apartment residents wonder how they didn't hear or see anything the night of the fight.

"Do you think we should move?" Inko asks her husband worriedly, causing Hisashi to shrug in uncertainty.

The two are sitting in their apartment and enjoying each other's company. However, they're also talking about the seriousness of their current problem. Hisashi himself isn't sure if they should move or not. There's the chance they'll find out their new residence anyway. It might be best to stay where they are and increase security. It's not like the attacks have been once a week.

"We'll see. For now, keep waiting for the groceries instead." Hisashi tells his wife, causing her to nod.

"Do you think Izuku is okay?" Inko asks him.

"He's doing fine. He's spending time with that coach and the chairman's grandson at the beach. It doesn't seem like he's that affected by what happened." Hisashi promises his wife, but she still has a worried expression.

"Are you sure?" She asks, having never forgiven herself for not noticing the problems her son faced during middle school.

She doesn't want to make the same mistake again and wants to ensure her son feels happy or safe this time, or at least as secure as he can in his current situation.

"Yes, I assure you he's fine. We'll be alright." Hisashi says while giving her a comforting smile, causing Inko to sigh in relief.

"I can't believe Izuku's friend got attacked at his home. Where were his parents during this?" Inko asks Hisashi as she decides to change the subject.

Hearing this causes Hisashi to pause, starting to wonder the same thing. Now that he thinks about it, he hasn't met anyone besides the chairman and doesn't know much about their family.

"Now that you mention it, I don't think I've ever met Shiki's parents," Hisashi states, causing Inko to narrow her eyes at him.

"You never met them while making his Hero Driver?" She questions him.

"No. I barely knew the kid. I mainly dealt with the chairman." Hisashi explains.

"Does that mean he's been living alone this whole time?" Inko asks in worry.

"I don't know. We can ask Izuku if he's seen the kid's parents. Maybe they're like me and had to spend most of their time overseas but didn't want to take their kid away from his friends." Hisashi points out, but Inko looks angry.

"But I was here for Izuku while you were gone. He might be completely on his own." She argues back.

Hisashi taps his finger on the counter as he thinks about this new information, trying to figure out how he feels about it.

-------------------

Shiki rests on a bench while chugging down some water at the training beach. Toshinori watches him uncertainly while Izuku tries to carry a fridge to the truck. He notes that Shiki has been working harder recently. However, Toshinori never notices Shiki rubbing his neck more often.

"Are you alright, my boy?" Toshinori asks as he walks over to Shiki.

He has a decent idea of what happened with Shrinking Nomu. However, Shiki didn't discuss what happened between him and the Nomu in his room. Toshinori has a good idea of what happened, though.

"I'm fine," Shiki tells Toshinori in his best nonchalant tone.

"Are you sure?" Toshinori asks, causing Shiki to sigh in annoyance.

"I said I'm fine." He promises in a slightly aggressive tone.

"Are your parents alright, then?" Toshinori asks, causing Shiki to pause before letting out another heavy sigh.

However, he doesn't say anything to answer Toshinori's question—no sarcastic comment or a simple yes or no.

"Young Hikage?" Toshinori asks worriedly, but Shiki blows him off.

"I'm fine. Don't worry about it." Shiki says before returning to his training, rubbing his neck again.

While walking to a large piece of trash, Shiki thinks about what happened with Shrinking Nomu. The feeling of being helpless at the time is similar to what he went through while growing up. Not having a Quirk makes them a target for bullying, and he hates feeling helpless like he did back then. However, this is a worse feeling. He knows Shrinking Nomu could have killed him at any point if she wanted to. The only reason he's alive is because he got lucky. That frustrates him to no end.

"I have to get stronger." He thinks to himself as he carries heavier pieces of trash and rushes it to the truck.

Izuku and Toshinori watch him push himself. Seeing this causes Izuku to try extra hard as well. Toshinori watches as the two work hard and can't help but smile. A sense of nostalgia hits him as he sees these two push themselves similarly to how he used to when he was young.

"These two will be amazing heroes when they grow up. Hopefully, Young Hikage will recover from whatever happened." Toshinori mutters as he watches them go to work.

While working, Izuku looks at Shiki and gives him a worried expression.

"Are you sure you're alright, Hikage?" He asks in worry.

"I'm fine," Shiki promises before going for another piece of trash.

"You're rubbing your neck a lot, though. Are you sure it's not still hurting?" Izuku continues to ask.

"It's not hurting. It's just phantom pains causing me to remember what happened." Shiki explains again to ease his friend's worries.

"Alright. So, are we still going to practice fighting together?" Izuku decides to change the subject.

"Actually. I have a few things I want to do. Sorry." Shiki apologizes, but Izuku doesn't seem offended, more disappointed.

"It's fine, really," Izuku promises before awkwardly backing down and returning to focusing on his training.

With that conversation over, the two seem to do the rest of their training in silence.

-------------------

Bakugou Katsuki is sitting in his room, writing a school report with his usual aggravated expression.

"Hey, brat! You better be finishing that report!" Mitsuki shouts toward her son's room, causing him to growl.

"Shut up, hag! I'm doing it now!" He screams back, causing the older Bakugou to huff in annoyance.

Katsuki grunts before returning to work but soon gets a phone call from Shinonome. Seeing the caller's I.D. causes him to scowl before answering it.

"What?!" He demands, causing Shinonome to sigh on the other end.

"Nice to hear from you too, Bakugou. Anyway, I would like you to meet me at the park where you and Slidin' Go trained to meet your new mentor." Shinonome tells him, causing Katsuki to scowl further.

"Fine. I'll be there." He tells her before hanging up and angrily getting out of his seat, obviously not looking forward to meeting whoever Shinonome got to babysit him.

He quickly grabs his shoes and heads out of his room. Before reaching the front door, he shouts toward his mother.

"I'm heading out, hag. Shinonome wants to see me!" He shouts toward her.

"Don't call me hag, damn it! And you better be back soon to finish your schoolwork!" Mitsuki shouts at him, causing Katsuki to grunt in annoyance before slamming the door shut.

It takes him around fifteen minutes of jogging before arriving at the park. He wants to get this over with as quickly as possible. He looks around and soon sees Shinonome and someone else at a park bench. He doesn't recognize the person he assumes is his new mentor, causing his scowl to deepen, having hoped Shinonome would have gotten someone decent. With a growl, he stomps toward Shinonome but ignores her to glare into his new mentor's face, hoping to get a better look.

Sure enough, he still doesn't recognize the person before him. They look like a generic, uninteresting hero that hasn't reached the top hundreds, let alone higher. Seeing this causes him to glare at Shinonome.

"I thought I told you I wanted someone I would recognize." Katsuki snaps, causing Shinonome to sigh.

"You make it sound like that's easy. You realize most top-class heroes are busy with other responsibilities that come with being the best, right? Most don't have time to waste on training an apprentice that hasn't even gone to a hero school." Shinonome tells Katsuki in an uncaring tone while motioning toward the new mentor.

"He's the best I could find on short notice. You'll have to make do. He still has plenty of experience in the field and will have a lot to teach you." Shinonome states before looking in the air, like she's waiting for something.

Katsuki doesn't notice this, though. Instead, he returns to sizing up the new hero. That is until he feels a sudden chill up his spine. It suddenly feels like the temperature has dropped in the area around them. Looking around in confusion, he soon notices a shadow overcasting them and looks up to see a bridge of ice above the park. He sees Geten in his Nomu form atop that bridge, looking down at them. Seeing this causes him to turn his attention to Shinonome to see her nervously getting off the bench with a look of shock.

"What are you waiting for? That's a Nomu." She suddenly snaps at Katsuki while Geten raises a furry hand.

Giant nails of ice start to form around Geten before he launches them at the trio at high speed. Katsuki instinctively uses his explosions to propel him to safety while Shinonome dives for the ground to try and protect herself.

After safely avoiding the initial attack, Katsuki savagely grins up at Geten, planning to enjoy taking out some of his aggression on the Nomu and proving he's still strong. With that in mind, he pulls out his Hero Driver.

"Are you ready!?" The Hero Driver shouts when he puts it on his waist.

"Explosion + Explosion, identical match!" The Hero Driver shouts after Katsuki puts the Power Coin in while Geten prepares another round of ice spears.

Orange particles surround Katsuki right as Geten launches his attack. However, to his shock, explosions intercept the attacks as they get close to Katsuki and prevent him from getting hurt, allowing Katsuki to safely transform with the Hero Driver screaming.

"KAMEN RIDER KING EXPLOSION MURDER!"

When the particles disperse, he launches himself at Geten while screaming.

"Die!"

"You first." Geten calmly shoots back as he creates more ice and launches it at K.E.M. However, K.E.M. propels himself out of the way of the attacks and closes in on Geten. As he's about to deliver a heavy blow to Geten, though, Geten creates a wall of ice from the bridge between K.E.M. and him. K.E.M. expects to break through the ice like how his explosions seemed to destroy Geten's earlier attack. However, to his shock, his attack only leaves a slightly melted area. K.E.M. stares in shock as he falls while Geten rubs salt in the wound.

"Did you think you'd be able to hit me that easily? I didn't put much effort into those previous attacks, and that's the only reason you destroyed them." He mocks K.E.M., causing the teen to scowl behind his mask.

"Don't look down on me, you bastard!" K.E.M. screams before launching himself at Geten again and planning to put his full power into the next attack.

However, his instincts suddenly scream for him to dodge. He propels himself back just in time to avoid the jaws of a jagged ice dragon that Geten creates out of K.E.M.'s line of sight. K.E.M. lands on the ground and looks up as the serpent-like dragon curls around Geten's ice bridge to add to Geten's defense.

"I heard you want to be the strongest. Too bad you'll never achieve that with me around." Geten laughs in a condescending tone that hurts K.E.M.'s pride.

"Shut up!" K.E.M. shouts as he charges at Geten again.

However, this time, he's paying extra attention to his surroundings and plans to deliver a full-power blast to the dragon's head when it charges at him. As he thinks, the dragon charges at him. K.E.M. propels himself above it at the last moment before launching an attack with both palms. The attack is far better than anything he's managed before and is enough to destroy a fair chunk of the dragon's head and cause its jaw to fall off.

When K.E.M. sees this, he grins viciously and decides to mock Geten back while launching himself at the Nomu.

"Not so tough now, huh, you bastard!" He shouts at Geten as he charges forward.

The practically headless dragon tries to chase after him, but Katsuki manages to stay ahead. He then launches an attack of similar power to his last directly into Geten's face while the Nomu raises another ice wall from his bridge to intercept the blast. To Geten's surprise, K.E.M.'s blast does manage to break through his ice slightly and singe his parka.

"Die!" K.E.M. screams as he prepares to launch another attack before propelling himself back to avoid the regenerating ice dragon as it tries to take a bite out of him with its now fixed maw.

"I can see why the grand commander wants you on our side now. But I refuse to allow you to take my position. I will be the one to lead us to glory." Geten tells K.E.M. as he becomes more serious about the fight.

"The hell are you talking about!?" K.E.M. screams before launching another powerful explosion into the ice dragon, destroying its head again.

He's about to charge at Geten again before needing to dodge as another dragon tries to bite into him. Surprised, K.E.M. has to propel himself far away from Geten to get a better perspective. After doing so, he realizes there are not one, not two, but three different giant ice dragons, making it abundantly clear that this Nomu is likely in a whole other league compared to the others. However, that's alright with him, as it'll only further prove his superiority over the other Kamen Riders once he defeats Geten.

"Let's see how long you last against my Meta Ability now," Geten states as he sends all three dragons after K.E.M.

The dragons silently fly toward K.E.M. like vultures toward a carcass while the Kamen Rider grins behind his helmet.

"Bring it, Frosty!" K.E.M. excitedly and viciously shouts as he charges in, having a secret up his sleeve.

You see, the nanobots that make up his armor mimic a quality he has. The longer a fight goes on, the more his sweat will build up to increase his explosions' potency. The nanobots will do something similar where they'll duplicate around the palms, meaning the strength of his explosions will also grow. The only reason he hasn't caused any major destruction recently is because of Shinonome's warnings. However, in the air, away from anything destroyable besides his enemy, he can attack without worry.

With that in mind, K.E.M. launches a right hook with the same strength as his previous attacks into one of the dragons. It destroys that dragon's face before K.E.M. has to dodge the other two dragons. He then launches two explosions into both dragon's torsos before charging at Geten.

"Die!"

Surprisingly, Geten doesn't only try creating another ice wall to protect himself. Instead, he has a chunk of the ice bridge break off before manipulating it with his Meta Ability to make it fly in the air. The piece of ice flies away from K.E.M. at a speed that makes it difficult for him to keep up, causing Geten to mock him again.

"You don't stand a chance. I'll show you the difference between an awakened Meta Ability and yours." Geten promises before raising a hand.

Suddenly, massive chunks of ice form around K.E.M., far more massive than the ice nails Geten previously made. They look like stars of ice with spikes surrounding the body. Geten then launches these ice stars at K.E.M. while having them spin, making them seem like massive buzzsaws.

Realizing the danger these constructs provide, K.E.M. uses a similar strategy with the dragons. He dodges the first two that come at him before launching an attack on the third one coming at him.

-------------------

On the ground below, Shinonome and the Meta Liberation Army hero watch as these two enhanced individuals battle. Shinonome looks frustrated about how things have turned about but is amazed to see what these two can do. From what she remembers of Geten's Meta Ability, he needs a source of water to use it. However, it doesn't seem like he's using any visible sources in this fight. The fact that K.E.M. can seemingly keep up with Geten despite this is also an impressive feat.

"Damn it, if only the brat conformed to our ideals like a good student like he should have," Shinonome mutters as she realizes the Meta Liberation Army could have had both these individuals on their side if it wasn't for K.E.M.'s stubbornness.

"It won't matter once we get his device, though. We can always find someone more suitable for it." The hero calmly states as they continue to watch the battle.

Shinonome nods but still feels bitter about how much her plan backfired. Now, the Hero Public Safety Commission is searching for the Meta Liberation Army, and they might learn Deika City's secret despite her best efforts. Now, she can only watch and wait for Geten's inevitable victory over K.E.M.

-------------------

At the beach, Izuku and Shiki are working together to carry a massive fridge since it's too heavy for either of them alone. To make matters worse, Toshinori, in muscle form, stands atop it while giving them supportive words.

"That's it, boys. Push yourselves to the limit to create new ones. That's what it means to go plus ultra." He says proudly, to Shiki's annoyance.

"Can you get off the fridge!" He shouts at All Might in irritation.

"Yeah, All Might, this is harder to do with six hundred extra pounds." Even Izuku talks back to his mentor as he struggles to carry the fridge.

"How rude. I'll have you know, I only weigh two hundred and fifty-five kilograms." Toshinori reprimands the two.

"That is not much better. I'm pretty sure that's still over five hundred pounds!" Shiki shouts.

"It is." Izuku nods as they slowly inch the fridge toward the truck.

All Might releases a boisterous laugh as he looks down at his two proteges before hearing his phone ring with an emergency announcement. He quickly pulls it out and sees a photo of Geten and K.E.M. battling.

"Set it down, boys. You have another Nomu to fight. It seems like Young Bakugou is already there, fighting." All Might tells the two.

Hearing this, Izuku immediately drops the fridge on alert, accidentally causing Shiki to fall as the refrigerator's entire weight hits him.

"Ow, get this thing off me!" He shouts in pain as he feels his hands getting slightly crushed.

Izuku's eyes widen when he sees his friend lying in the sand, and he runs to help him. The two try to get Shiki's hands out from under it, only for All Might to lift it for Shiki. When the teen gets his hands back, he immediately begins blowing on them to calm the pain.

"Ow, ow, ow, ow." He keeps muttering while continuing to blow on his hands.

"Walk it off, Young Hikage. There's justice to fight for." All Might announces in a dramatic and boisterous tone, causing the teen to stand while still shaking his hands.

While Shiki waves off the last bits of pain, Izuku pulls out his keys and presses a button from the remote on his keychain. Hisashi made another upgrade where The Plus Striker can automatically insert the Unicorn Power Coin and head to him. When the mechanical horse arrives, it affectionately nuzzles him, causing the teen to smile before grabbing the Hero Driver in his bag. He also reaches for Shiki and throws it to the teen.

All Might watches as the two transform before Deku gets on the Plus Striker, and Chamber uses the Fierece Wings Power Coin to fly off. After they're out of view, he looks at one of his hands before clenching it.

"I still have plenty of time left if things go bad for them." He tells himself before flying off at high speed to watch them fight.

He soon arrives far ahead of them and watches as K.E.M. battles Geten. He sees K.E.M. trying to catch up with Geten but can't keep up with Geten's ice platform while dodging the various ice constructs he makes to attack.

"It seems like Young Bakugou is stronger than before." He acknowledges before watching as K.E.M. lands.

-------------------

Seeing that he's not getting anywhere despite his growing unrestrained strength, K.E.M. growls and finally decides to use his best attack. With that, he pulls out the Explosion Power Coin and inserts it.

"Explosion Power Finish!" The Hero Driver announces as orange energy envelops K.E.M.'s gauntlets to make it look like he's wearing a second pair over them.

With this power boost, K.E.M. returns to his efforts to get close to Geten. He propels himself at Geten with incredible blasts and shortens the distance as Geten creates more killer ice stars. He barely manages to avoid them before turning to Geten and unleashing his attack.

"Die!" K.E.M. screams.

With that announcement, K.E.M. throws his energy-covered gauntlets toward Geten and launches a massive explosion that wouldn't be out of place with a missile barrage. The only thing Geten has time to think about is his shock at the suddenly powerful attack. This move is far different from anything K.E.M. has demonstrated before.

K.E.M. and All Might watch as the explosion envelops Geten. However, neither can tell if that was enough to do him in. Soon, Deku and Chamber also arrive and see the smoke from K.E.M.'s attack.

"What the hell did you do?" Chamber asks in shock as he stares at the massive cloud of black smoke.

Upon hearing Chamber speak up in surprise, K.E.M. turns to him with a scowl before smirking.

"I took the bastard down before you extras got here," K.E.M. says in a provocative tone that causes Chamber to scowl.

But he doesn't say anything in favor of looking around for any damage to the area.

"You didn't hurt anyone besides the Nomu, right?" Chamber asks.

At this point, Deku would usually try to break them up. However, he's curious, too. Their doubt in him causes K.E.M. to scowl before going on another tangent.

"Who the hell do you think I am, Pompadour!? I can hold back when I want to! The bastard kept buzzing around like a damn mosquito and let me go all out!" K.E.M. shouts at the other Kamen Rider angrily.

"A mosquito?" Geten's voice suddenly rings out through the smoke, causing the Kamen Riders to look up in shock, especially K.E.M.

However, they soon realize the voice isn't from above but from their level at the ground. They look around and soon see Geten crouching on the ground, missing one of his parka sleeves and some singed fur. Surrounding him are pieces of ice shield he made that somehow managed to survive the heat and force of the explosion. That said, it's clear he made it late, and it couldn't stay together in the face of K.E.M.'s attack.

"I wouldn't get so cocky. Not when you haven't even seen a sliver of my full capabilities," Geten warns, causing K.E.M. to growl as he realizes what Geten infers.

"You were going easy on me!" He angrily shouts at the Nomu, causing Geten to laugh.

"It's amusing you think you can make me fight at full power unless I want to. I think you need a better explanation of how Meta Abilities work." Geten tells the trio before holding a palm out to the sky.

"You see, Meta Abilities are like muscles. We can develop them and push past previous limits. Eventually, there comes a time when your ability reaches its natural limit. When that happens, people usually are unable to go any further. However, a select few aren't like that. They're able to break through that limit and unlock a new part of their ability. It's similar to what your Hero Drivers are supposed to do. Now, let me ask you, what do you think would happen when someone who goes through this awakening process further enhances their powers?" Geten asks while staring at the three.

Hearing his monologue causes everyone to pause, even All Might and a hidden Shinonome. Not even Izuku knew this information about Quirks. The closest thing was an old theory, called the Quirk Singularity, about a Quirk's strength growing to the point it's difficult for the wielders to control. From Geten's words, though. It sounds like the Quirk Singularity is one step above a Quirk awakening.

"The answer is that it results in the person having overwhelming power with no foreseeable limit, effectively making them the next coming of All Might," Geten tells them in a tone of absolute confidence.

Hearing the confidence Geten has about matching All Might causes the Kamen Riders to tense. They have heavy doubts about that, but the fact someone is willing to say that while knowing how powerful All Might is makes them worry. Izuku and Chamber hope it's a bluff formed by arrogance while K.E.M. dismissively scoffs. The angry Kamen Rider is sick of hearing Geten's stupid tangent and launches himself at Geten to finish the job.

"Like hell, a worthless extra like you is at All Might's level! Go to hell with your damn awakening!" K.E.M. screams at Geten as he charges at the man.

"Wait, Kacchan!" Deku shouts in alarm as he holds a hand out to try and stop the Kamen Rider, but he's too late.

K.E.M. shoots toward Geten, planning to stop a few feet before the Nomu and deliver a surprise mid-range attack with his explosions. However, Geten doesn't move or put up any guard. Narrowing his eyes, K.E.M. continues with his charge and launches a wide mid-range blast that should be impossible for Geten to dodge.

But Geten does dodge. Or, more specifically, the ground under him suddenly breaks apart as a fortress of ice rises under him at high speed, causing him to avoid the attack. It also forces K.E.M. to propel himself backward before landing in front of the other and shocked Kamen Riders. The three Riders stare at the massive structure that dwarfs the buildings around them. While standing atop it, Geten continues his speech.

"For example, my power runs off of controlling temperature, but I usually need a body of water to wield it. But with this device, I can use the moisture in the air to such a high degree that it's better than usual. Now, imagine what I can do when using it properly with water." Geten orders, making K.E.M. realize how easy Geten had been going before.

The other Kamen Riders tense, but before any can attack, a dozen dragons of ice rise from the ground and surround the castle. For a moment, the Kamen Riders each wonder if Geten's boast is more than empty words. This display of power is better than any Nomu they've seen before, even from Octopus Nomu. Geten is many leagues above anything they've faced before. That much is obvious.

"You heroes like coming up with flashy names for your moves, right? Well, here's one of mine. Welcome to the Frozen Fantasy!" Geten shouts before ordering the dragons to attack the Kamen Riders.

Seeing this, Chamber immediately uses his wrist guns and fires at them while K.E.M. and Deku jump out of the way. His bullets look ineffective, and one of the dragon heads destroys the ground as it slides toward him. He barely manages to roll out of the way in time and is about to shoot at the dragon's side before getting grabbed by another. The dragon flies Chamber up while clenching down on his body with its jaw. Chamber is doing his best to struggle out of its hold and stop himself from being crushed while the other Kamen Riders are too busy dealing with their dragons.

Right now, Deku is jumping on the different dragons' bodies to avoid them and doesn't even see Chamber getting grabbed by one of the dragons. Even if K.E.M. did care, he isn't in a situation where he can help. He's too busy destroying the ice dragons, seeming to be the only one able to, as the Mighty Knuckle is only cracking it. It's taking everything they have to avoid Geten's attacks, let alone getting close to him.

" Even if we get past his dragons, we probably won't be able to get close to him because of that castle." Deku thinks while continuing to dodge.

"How is this bastard so strong? Is this what he meant by an awakening? Did All Might go through an awakening, and that's why he's so strong?" K.E.M. questions while continuing to destroy the dragons.

Geten's speech and strength make K.E.M. question whether he can actually beat All Might. He's also wondering how he can attain this kind of power.

"If I can unlock this power, I can crush anyone and prove I'm the strongest." K.E.M. thinks, trying to figure out how he'll achieve an awakening while fighting Geten's regenerating dragons.

However, this line of thought seems to have been a good thing in the current situation, as K.E.M.'s determination causes his blasts to grow stronger. K.E.M. pushes himself harder, hoping it might have something to do with the awakening. These continuously growing attacks cause him to be the first to finally gain an opening out of the three and use it to launch himself at Geten.

The Nomu doesn't move as K.E.M. charges at him while the Kamen Rider watches the fortress as he gets closer, expecting it to do something. Sure enough, something happens. Pieces of the ice fortress break off and take a new shape before charging at K.E.M. The chunks now appear to be legless knights with large, jagged ice shields and halberds. When the knights close in on K.E.M., the Kamen Rider throws an explosive palm, expecting it to be easy. 

However, these ice knights seem far more resilient than the dragons. When the explosion lands on one, it pushes through the attack and slams its shield into K.E.M.'s body, launching him into the ground.

"That's not going to work. I can enhance the density of those knights. They're my ultimate defense while my dragons crush you." Geten mockingly explains as he stares down at K.E.M. while the ice knights charge at him.

K.E.M. growls but realizes these knights will be easier to dodge than the dragons. There are less than a dozen of them, and their smaller bodies make it easier to avoid them. When they close in on him, he blasts the ground with enough force to instantly send him far above them before launching himself at Geten.

"A shield is useless when it's not close to you, bastard!" K.E.M. shouts.

"That's what the rest of this ice is for." Geten immediately explains as more knights are created from the fortress and get in K.E.M.'s way.

Deku manages to see this from his position on the back of one of the dragons and can hear Geten's words. He can't help but be amazed by the different properties of Geten's Quirk and is trying to figure out the weaknesses.

"Even if his Quirk is enhanced as a Nomu and gone through this awakening, there still has to be a limit." Deku thinks as he tries to figure out what to do.

He soon has to dodge another dragon but notices something strange. It feels like the dragons have become more sluggish. That's not saying much, given most of the dragons are focusing on him while only a few focus on Chamber, but it gives him more room to think. It also lets Deku come up with a strategy.

Deku quickly jumps toward Chamber and grabs the other Kamen Rider before needing to jump out of the way of a dragon.

"Thanks." He tells Deku in a slightly relieved tone, causing Deku to nod.

"We need to make him create more knights and break up his focus," Deku explains to Chamber.

When Chamber hears this, he's surprised but doesn't say anything, letting Deku continue while he fires at the dragons trying to get close.

"If I'm right, his control over these ice constructs gets weaker with each construct he makes. We have to force him into doing that until he's too overwhelmed to do anything." Deku explains.

Understanding what Deku means, Chamber nods and pulls out the Dragonfly Power Coin.

"Alright, set me down and distract the dragons for a second." Chamber orders, causing Deku to nod.

He quickly places Chamber atop one of the nearby buildings before launching himself at the dragons. Finally having room to maneuver, Chamber looks at Geten while the Nomu stares down at the explosive Kamen Riders. He inserts the Dragonfly Power Coin directly into his Hero Driver, and dark blue energy surrounds his body before it converges into his wrist guns. The targeting system in Chamber's helmet locks onto Geten, and Chamber fires a barrage of dozens of bullets from each wrist.

As the bullets fly, they break formation and go in a variety of different directions until they start surrounding Geten's body in a circle-like formation. Geten barely manages to notice these bullets heading toward him. When he does, he immediately creates several more knights and has them surround him. The knights spin their halberds to try and add extra protection for Geten, but that isn't enough to block the oncoming and continuous barrage of trajectory-changing bullets. Some go under or over the knights to hit Geten through the cracks in his defense.

Geten continues getting hit with some of these energy bullets until the dark blue energy around Chamber's wrist guns ends. By the time Chamber's barrage ends, Geten has taken at least a dozen hits and is angry with the long-range Kamen Rider. But he doesn't have the chance to do anything since K.E.M. uses that opening to launch himself past the knights and at Geten.

"Die!" K.E.M. screams as he launches a palm down on Geten while the knights close by try to protect the Nomu but can't stop him in time.

That said, they do manage to smother some of the damage. However, Geten's Nomu form cannot tank large amounts of damage like Mammoth Nomu. So, he's still feeling the pain from those attacks. Unfortunately for the Kamen Riders, it's still not enough for him to be close to losing. It only makes him finally stop wanting to mess around with the Kamen Riders.

The ice dragons Deku distracts all suddenly retreat. However, instead of attacking the other Kamen Riders or covering Geten, they mold into the ice fortress, confusing everyone in the area. However, that doesn't mean Chamber will let him do whatever he's planning. The gun-themed Kamen Rider aims his guns at Geten and quickly fires on him. However, the ice knights easily block these attacks and let Geten continue his plan.

That plan is to break off large chunks of ice from the newly reinforced castle to create ice weaponry like cannons and turrets across the fortress. It seems like Geten is determined to show off his artisan skills with his Quirk. If under different circumstances, this fortress would look very beautiful. However, it's only a source of dread for the Kamen Riders as the various pieces of weaponry train on them.

"As King Explosion Murder would say, die." Geten declares while chopping a hand down, causing the different pieces of ice weaponry to almost fire upon them.

However, that doesn't happen. The ice fortress is suddenly destroyed in the blink of an eye, causing Geten to fall. The Kamen Riders don't move. Nobody does. All they can do is stay frozen while trying to figure out what happened. It takes a few seconds for Geten to recover from his shock and create an ice platform to fly him far away from the ground and out of anyone but Chamber's attack range. No one stops him, though. Instead, their focus is on the person standing atop the rubble.

"Hahahaha, fear not, for I am here!" All Might announces as he heroically stands over the rubble and stares at Geten.

Relief seems to wash over Deku and Chamber's forms as they realize their teacher is here to pull them out of the fire again. Neither is sure whether they could have handled fighting against Geten. He feels too far out of their league. While those two feel this, K.E.M. feels both a sense of dread and anger. He's dreading being around All Might again after the previous two times had him facing the number one hero down. But he's angry that the same man is stepping into his fight because it means his idol doesn't believe he can defeat Geten.

"Just wait. I'll go through whatever this awakening is. Then I'll be on your damn level and show everyone that I'm your second coming." K.E.M. promises in his mind, while Geten has similar thoughts.

He's staring down at All Might in anticipation. He wants to fight All Might and test where he currently stands badly. Right now, this may decide the future of the Meta Liberation Army. It depends on how well he can do. However, there is an undertone of fear and uncertainty in his heart. He's the same man who single-handedly keeps crime low with only his presence, the one who can only be called the strongest in the world. That title isn't just for show, either. After all, he destroyed one of Geten's best attacks as if it were nothing before Geten had time to react. That doesn't mean he'll give up and doesn't have other tricks up his sleeve, though.

"Now, are you going to surrender peacefully, villain? You have no way of defeating me!" All Might boastfully warns Geten, causing the Nomu to scoff.

"I'll never surrender to a government dog who refuses to acknowledge the future. I meant what I said about being capable of defeating you now with my powers." Geten tells All Might as he raises a hand in the air.

The streets of the city around the park are suddenly filled with spikes of ice made from the sewage water under them. The ice then flies in the air around Geten before he forms another ice construct that overshadows even the fortress. This new construct is a more western dragon with multiple heads that run along the body of it, even replacing the limbs.

The new dragon flaps its wings, the force sending cars, trees, and other items and people flying. This demonstration of strength makes the Kamen Riders worried. It seems impossible to get to Geten with the gigantic ice dragon flying between him and them. However, All Might continues to act with complete confidence.

"That's quite the useful power you have there! I can see why you're so proud of it! However, I'm afraid you're still not quite at my level!" All Might mightily announces with a proud grin that doesn't show a hint of fear or panic.

Geten narrows his eyes at All Might's proclamation but has trouble believing it. This dragon is far different from the fortress. The air pressure from its flapping wings should be enough to slow All Might down and let Geten counter any attack the hero might throw. With that in mind, Geten has another head grow from the dragon's gut and launches it at All Might.

"All Might, watch out!" Deku shouts as he sees the dragon head launching at All Might with the speed of a bullet.

However, the hero punches the incoming dragon's head with enough force to stop the wind from the dragon's wings. It even surpasses it and hits straight into the main body's gut, leaving a hole in the body that shocks Geten.

"How can he be so powerful?" Geten asks in shock as he stares down at All Might with a newfound shock, the worry in his heart growing.

"That's because I refuse to fall to people like you, who abuse their powers to attack the weak. That is my duty as the number one hero!" All Might shouts before launching at Geten at high speed.

The force from the dragon's wings barely seems to be doing anything. All Might still flies through the air and the dragon's midsection. After coming out the other side of the dragon's body, he moves to hit Geten while the Nomu does his best to gain some distance from him. Sadly for him, All Might is far faster than him. All Might has no trouble closing the distance and goes for another punch. Geten is lucky his platform pulled him down in time to avoid a headshot. However, the force from the punch blows him back and toward the ground. Geten crashes into the earth and looks up at All Might with fear and awe.

"What would have happened if that had hit me?" He questions before ordering his ice dragon to stop All Might.

He realizes Re-Destro was right. He was a fool to fight All Might without a way to escape. He wants his ice dragon to at least buy him a few seconds to escape. If it does, he thinks he can lose All Might with how fast he can make his ice platforms travel. So, he has the heads of his dragon do their best to surround All Might while he makes another platform and shoots off on it.

Unfortunately for him, the dragons don't do much to stop All Might. He destroys them in an explosion of force that rivals or even surpasses what the wings of the gigantic dragon can produce. By the time All Might finishes with the oversized sculpture, its upper half is missing. The only reason it's still in the air is because Geten can float his ice constructs. However, it is starting to fall as Geten gives up his focus on it to increase his escape freeze and provide a distraction to buy him more time.

It works. All Might can't ignore something that size falling toward the ground and quickly launches himself at it, destroying it with another incredible punch.

"Now, for the mastermind." He thinks, hoping he can still find Geten despite the setbacks.

He bolts in the direction Geten went but can't seem to find the Nomu anywhere. He seems to have hidden somewhere after using the dragon as a distraction.

"I'm running low on time but can't find him. If he escapes, it'll be a major problem. The damage he caused is extensive, and there will only be more if I don't stop him now." He thinks as he feels his body starting to hurt as he runs low on time.

Sadly, there's nothing he can do now. Geten is gone and will likely attack again at some point. All he and the Kamen Riders can do is prepare for the future.

-------------------

Giran, watching the entire fight from the shadows, is lying against a wall with a slightly tired expression while placing a palm to his face.

"Man. They really need to complete the process soon." He says after a few breaths.

With that, a portal opens ahead of him to his hotel room. He plans to wait until Dr. Garaki tells him the process is ready. When he gets to his room, he lies on his bed with a tired sigh, not knowing others are with him. Tiger Man's Meta Ability is an incredible asset for Skeptic's team. Giran isn't aware there are multiple people in the same room as him.

"I have to say, though. It's impressive how powerful that last one was. The guy even managed to escape All Might. Must be the ace up their sleeve." Giran thinks.

"I doubt I could handle fighting that guy. He's in a whole other league. The guy might even be able to fight All Might at a standstill at some point. I'm sure the doctor agrees with me. He'll probably want to get his hands on him." Giran suddenly speaks, feeling somewhat bad for Geten.

The doctor won't let Geten and his strength, especially when the ice-wielding Nomu explains how his Quirk awakened. That kind of research data will be invaluable to the doctor. He's always studying Quirks and how they grow. If he can capture Geten and learn how to awaken Quirks, it'll create a new breed of Nomu.

He's placed out of his thoughts when he hears his phone ding with a message. He quickly checks it to see that the doctor is messaging him that the procedure is ready and it's time for him to return. Sighing in relief, Giran gets up as a portal is opening. He doesn't hear what Tiger Man shouts, though.

"Move!" Tiger Man shouts to the members of the Skeptic Assault Squad.

All the members rush for the portal and enter before Giran does. Upon exiting the portal, they find themselves in a dimly lit lab.

"What is this?" Bat Man questions as he looks around in worry.

This situation is far creepier than he expected. The little light they do have is from above or with the machinery. It's a good thing everyone has to be touching each other to be affected by Tiger Man's Meta Ability because this creepy scene causes them to huddle closer by instinct.

"I guess we found the lab." A beige-haired woman in a leather jacket with matching black pants says while looking around.

"Thank you, Captain Obvious." A minotaur-like man in a green hoodie with blue jeans mutters in annoyance, his animal instincts telling him to run as far as possible from here.

"Enough. We need to get as much information as possible. We either have to stay here and grab what we can while Skeptic learns our location or get out of here and figure out the general location." Tiger Man orders the team, causing the other members to nod.

-------------------

However, a problem quickly arises with one of those plans. On Skeptic's end, the signal from the different tracking devices ends. He's lost all of them. The lab must have more protection than he expected because even the signals from the body cameras have ended.

Skeptic knew this might happen and quickly springs into action. He quickly starts tapping away at his laptop, doing his best to retrieve the signal while hoping he'll do it in time to get something or that the assault group will escape.

One thing's for sure. Whether it's success or failure, something will come out of this operation.

Power Coins Deku Rabbit, Draco-Breath, Charge, Marsh, Solidification, Unicorn, Overdrive, Wheels, Division, Bull, Barrier, Creation, Razor Edge, Mantis, Stegosaurus, Pterodactyl

Chamber Rifle, Fierce Wings, Shadow Stalk, Gatling, Chameleon, Dragonfly, Sonar, Burrowing Drill, Sprouting, Terra-Wave, Deflection

King Explosion Murder Explosion

[snowviolettwhite]

20 questions for fic writers

Tagged by lovelies @aroeddiediaz and @im-overstimulated-and-im-sad

How many works do you have on ao3?

5

What's your total ao3 word count?

45,372

What fandoms do you write for?

I am currently writting for 9-1-1, 9-1-1: Lone Star, Suits and Stranger Things. I want to write some Captain America aka Steve Rogers and Wednesdays fan-fictions.

Top 5 fics by kudos:

I only have five fics up so all just order them from most to least

manic pixie dream prince

little boy don't you cry, cause the child in you is still alive

Let Me Be Me

he is a liability so hard to please but, he’s a forest fire

don’t have to be sorry for leaving and growing up

Do you respond to comments?

Yes, I always response.

What is the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

I haven't written an ending in a while and I write mostly multi-chapter fan-fictions. But so far the most angst fan-fiction am writing are little boy don't you cry, cause the child in you is still alive and manic pixie dream prince.

What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

I like to write hurt comfort with lots of agnst and fluffy. My thing is if I am going to traumatize my comfort characters they better live happliy ever after at the end of them

Do you get hate on fics?

Not, really. There was this one rude comment some made on here tumblr about my suits omegaverse fan-fiction but I deleted their comment and blocked them

Do you write smut?

I have written sex scenes but I do not think they would be classified as smut, reading smut and then trying to actually write it are two very different experiences.

Craziest crossover?

I don't really write cross overs, maybe one day I will write a 9-1-1 and 9-1-1: Lone Star Fan-Fiction

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I know of.

Have you ever had a fic translated?

No I have not.

Have you co-written a fic before?

No

All time favorite ship?

Byler, Buddie, Lumax, Tarlos, Stucky (If you know me you know how much I love the best friends to lovers troupe.)

What's a wip you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

Probably manic pixie dream prince, I was in a very different place when I started writing it and my mental health was not very good. I feel like I would just like to re-write and re-work it.

What are your writing strengths?

I am really do are writing beautiful description of the setting and people. All the little details. I will write so much description I sometimes won't get to the dialogue.

What are your writing weaknesses?

Probably outlining, I just keep everything up in my head and just grammar and structure.

Thoughts on dialogue in another language?

I am like to include Spanish in my 9-1-1 fan-fiction but I don't if I trust myself.

First fandom you wrote in?

I think I might have been Camp Rock. I think one of the character got amnesia.

Favorite fic you've written?

My favorite is probably "little boy don't you cry, cause the child in you is still alive."

Tagging But Not Pressure @anewkindofme @lochnesswriter @kingofdarkness00 @missmagooglie @lemonzestywrites