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shegeekery · 5 months

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Misfits Chapter 5: Hades' Domain

See Chapter 1: Reunion for a description and the full chapter index.

Chapter 5: Hades’ Domain

Word of Lady Jane’s banishment spread rapidly throughout the compound, from the audience chamber to the kitchens — even down to the battlefield. Zev was fighting alongside some Asgardians they knew when they heard the news.

“What? What is Hades?” they shouted to the fighter closest to them.

“Greek underworld. Nasty place, from what I’ve heard,” the fellow replied.

Zev’s stomach seemed to leap into their throat, mind racing. I need to tell Rune. The scholar would be the last to hear the news, closeted with his books and experiments as he usually was.

As soon as there was a lull in the fighting nearby, they took off running in the direction of the library. It was permissible for anyone to leave the battlefield from time to time, so long as you didn’t make a habit of it.

They raced into the library and found their way to the room in the back where Rune normally worked. He was there, talking to the red-headed man from last night. Zev looked from one to the other.

“Loki? That’s you, isn’t it?”

The man hesitated, then nodded. “I take it you heard about my father’s latest demonstration of sound judgment?”

“Yeah. This is insane! Jane didn’t deserve that.”

“I agree,” Loki said.

“Loki asked me to assist him so he can go help her,” Rune explained. “The gateway can get him there, but Odin and Heimdall are the only ones who know, well, knew how to use it.”

“Wow,” Zev said to their friend. “Who knew you had a rebel streak in you?”

Rune gave them a weak, nervous smile.

“Rune’s discoveries may be helpful here,” Loki added. “I can shield myself from Heimdall’s vision and create a distraction, but I need him to calibrate the gateway or I’m likely to find myself lost in the etheric realm or the heart of a star.”

“I’m coming with you.” Zev told him.

Loki shook his head. “A Lycan in Hades would attract too much attention.”

“You can make me appear human,” Zev pointed out. Loki looked like he was about to argue, but they cut him off. “You may need backup once you get there and…Jane is my friend.”

Zev wanted to question Loki’s motives, but thought better of it. He did have a habit of betraying people and would no doubt love to get his hands on Ovaltine, or whatever the magical doohickey was called. On the other hand, well, his unpredictability went both ways. Zev just wanted to be certain there would be someone there who had only Jane’s welfare in mind.

Loki cocked his head and stared at them for a moment. Zev had the uncomfortable feeling that he knew what they were thinking.

“Very well,” he said, finally. Turning to Rune, he asked, “I assume you’ll need to adjust your calculations to accommodate two people?”

“Three,” Rune answered shakily. “I’d better go as well. Who knows what you’ll have to do once you get there? The shift in affinities most likely applies to all afterlife dimensions, not just Valhalla.”

“Right,” Loki said with a sigh. “Three it is. How long until you’re ready?”

“Perhaps fifteen minutes?”

“Make it ten, and meet us by the entrance to the bridge. I have to get Heimdall out of the way.”

With that, he turned and strode briskly out of the room, Zev at his heels.

As they approached the bridge, Loki cast an illusion to hide the two of them from prying eyes, then studied one of the bridge pylons closest to them. Nodding to himself, he raised his hand and sent a small current of magic toward the bottom of the pylon. Zev watched, but nothing seemed to be happening.

“What are you doing?”

“I can’t just blast the thing down. That would attract too much attention and bring the entire army running. It has to look like a structural fault is destabilizing the bridge.”

“Got it.” Zev watched as small cracks began to appear in the pylon and the metal slowly began to buckle. By the time Rune joined them a few minutes later, the surface of the bridge began to lurch as well.

A figure on the far side of the bridge came running toward them. Heimdall ran past without noticing them, trying to determine the source of the problem.

“Now!” Loki hissed and ran onto the bridge, Zev and Rune following closely behind. The three sprinted the length of the bridge, stopping before Valhalla’s gateway.

Rune touched a rune engraved on the side of the portal. It glowed with a warm yellow light, then he did the same with another, and another.

After nearly a minute of this, he turned to Loki. “The coordinates are set, but, well, let’s just say I’m better with the theory than with the practical. You’ll have to activate it.”

Loki brushed him lightly aside and sent a blast of green energy toward the center of the gateway. The solid surface of the gateway was replaced by a swirling vortex.

On the far end of the bridge, Heimdall stopped his investigation and started running back toward them.

“Let’s go,” Loki said, and the three of them stepped into the vortex.

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Jane shook her head to clear it when the blast of energy around her faded. She found herself standing in a green meadow dotted with wildflowers and scattered cyprus trees. The air smelled fresh and the temperature was comfortable, for which she was grateful given that her armor had apparently been replaced with a light robe of yellow linen. Her boots were now simple sandals made of light brown leather.

In the distance, she spotted some gentle, rolling hills, partly covered in cultivated fields. A large, single-story wooden house stood on top one of the hills, with smaller dwellings clustered around it. She could hear music that sounded like a cross between a recorder and a bagpipe — a sweet, slow melody that fit in well with the view.

This is Hades? Either Odin sent me to the wrong place, or they have a serious marketing problem.

She began making her way to the little village, trying to think of something to say without arousing suspicion.

I hope English works here like it does in Valhalla. Rune had told her that Asgard had an enchantment that allowed people to speak in their own language and be understood by anyone, and that carried over to the afterlife version.

Upon entering the village, she discovered the source of the music. In a central courtyard, a woman played an instrument that looked like two reed flutes held together with string. Several people lounged nearby on the ground or on cushions, listening to the performance and eating grapes, olives, and some sort of flatbread. She didn’t see anyone actually working in the settlement or in the fields. The contrast between the pastoral, relaxed atmosphere of this place, compared to the rigid schedule and martial intensity of Valhalla, was striking and disorienting.

The listeners watched her approach with expressions of curiosity, but without any apparent concern or alarm.

“Um, hi,” Jane began. “I just arrived here, but I’m not sure where I am, exactly.”

An older woman with long, gray hair smiled indulgently. “A newcomer! We don’t see many of you these days. Welcome to Elysium!”

Elysium? As in the Elysian Fields? Jane vaguely remembered it as the name of something like a Greek version of Heaven. It certainly seemed to fit. I didn’t know that was part of Hades. Or is it?

She had been expecting dark caves filled with gray, hopeless wretches suffering for all eternity — or a blasted, barren, lifeless landscape. This place seemed idyllic, like the Shire or something out of a 19th century landscape painting.

The woman who had spoken stood up and offered Jane an intricately decorated ceramic plate of food. “I’m Cora,” she said.

“Jane,” Jane replied, suppressing the urge to offer a handshake. She had no idea what ancient Greek greeting customs were like. She took the plate gratefully. No knowing when she might have a chance to eat again.

Seems unfair that we still have to worry about things like that.

“Jane? That’s an unusual name.”

Oops. “My parents were a bit eccentric.” Jane decided to waste no time. Who knew what would happen if someone realized that she was actually trespassing here? She needed to find out where Laevateinn was, and this didn’t seem a likely place for it.

“So, have you ever met Hades?”

“Lord Hades? He visits this sector once in a while. There’s always a festival in his honor when he does. I’ve only seen him from a distance — which is plenty good enough for me.”

“I see. Where does he spend his time then?”

“He resides in Tartarus. We don’t require much of his attention. We’re quite happy here, really.”

“I’m not surprised,” Jane said. “This is…lovely. So, I know this probably sounds like a strange question, but if I wanted to go to Tartarus, how would I get there?”

“Tartarus? Why in Zeus’s name would you want to go there ?”

“It’s…a long story.”

Cora gave her a long, searching look. “If you want to go to Tartarus, you’ll need to head south.” She pointed in the direction she meant. “It’s a long walk. Lord Hades’ lands are extensive. Are you certain you truly want to do this?”

“Unfortunately, yes.”

“Alright, perhaps half a day’s walk from here. This road should take you there.” The “road” was more of a dirt path.

“Thank you. I appreciate your hospitality — and really, I wish I could just stay here…”

“You’re on quest , aren’t you?” Cora intoned the word “quest” as if it was a sacred matter.

“Well, yes, I suppose I am.”

“Very well. I wish you good fortune.”

Jane was touched and thankful for Cora’s helpfulness. She finished the food she’d been given, handed the plate back to Cora with her thanks, bid the woman farewell, and set off without delay,

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Loki, Zev, and Rune stepped out of the portal and into a scene that struck Zev like something out of one of the horror movies they’d watched on Earth. The three companions found themselves in a large cavern with sputtering torches and scorched-black moss on the stone walls. Fires burned in various places around the space, and the smell of sulfur was thick in the air.

Loki looked like himself again, but he now wore an emerald-green tunic embroidered with gold, with a black cloak over the top. Rune was dressed similarly, but in a white tunic with yellow embroidery and a gray cloak. Looking down, Zev examined their own appearance to find disconcertingly hairless limbs emerging from a plain white tunic.

An anguished cry captured their attention. Not far from where they stood, a man was chained to a rock, screaming in agony as some sort of molten metal splattered from a cauldron, searing him drop by drop.

Rune shuddered. “This is horrible! Who would do this?”

“Hades,” Loki answered, grimly. “Though, from what I’ve heard, this is nothing compared to the Christian Hell. At least some of these prisoners are released after a year or so.”

“How do we find Jane?” Zev asked.

“Needle in a haystack,” Loki answered. “We have to find Laevateinn and hope she finds her way to the same place.”

Zev said nothing. Their suspicion regarding Loki’s motives was aroused, but they didn’t have a better suggestion.

Loki swiveled his head from side to side. “That way, I think.” He pointed to their left.

“What are we looking for?” Rune asked.

“Hades’ headquarters. Chances are, he’ll keep any precious possessions close to hand.”

They wandered from cavern to cavern, witnessing various forms of torture that Zev wished they could un-see. Loki seemed to have some idea what he was doing, so the other two simply followed him.

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Jane was beginning to wish she’d asked Cora for some water for the journey. She had no way to track the time, but she guessed that she’d been walking for more than 4 hours. The lovely rolling hills and pastoral settlements had given way to low, craggy outcrops with sparse vegetation and no end in sight.

She followed the path around a jumble of rocks — and stopped cold.

The path ended at the shore of a lake that stretched as far as she could see to either side. The water was still and dark.

“Well, shoot. Now what?” she asked the empty stillness.

She squatted and scooped up some of the water with cupped hands. She was tempted to drink it — she was that thirsty. She didn’t know much about Greek mythology, but she knew enough to know that drinking from rivers or lakes in Hades was probably a terrible idea. She sniffed it. It smelled like water, nothing more.

From this position, she could see that the path actually continued into the water. Not knowing what else to do, she stood up, let the water pour from her hands, and took a tentative step into the lake.

This is probably bad for these sandals, but no way am I going barefoot in that.

Nothing happened. She took another step, then another, until she was standing in water up to her knees. She could see the path sloping down under the water ahead of her. There was no way she could walk it. Maybe she was just supposed to swim?

On a hunch, she kept wading out into the lake until only her head was still out of the water. Well, here goes nothing. She took a deep breath and stepped forward so that she was fully submerged.

As soon as she did so, she felt herself being pulled downward. What had felt like a solid lake floor disappeared and she was falling fast. The water around her swirled and vanished little by little, until she was falling in total darkness and nothingness. Her flailing arms could find nothing to grab on to.

She braced for a very hard landing, but it didn’t come. Her lungs complained — she was still holding her breath. She let it out and inhaled tentatively. Air. It smelled very faintly of sulfur.

The astrophysicist in her tried to pay attention the rush of air around her. If I fall long enough, I won’t have to worry about hitting the ground. I’ll burn up before that happens!

The seconds slipped by, but it didn’t feel like she was accelerating. The friction was no worse than when she started falling. The sulfur smell was stronger now. Okay, maybe this is like some sort of elevator?

Finally she felt herself slowing. She touched down lightly on solid rock to find herself standing at one end of a long tunnel dimly lit by torches along the walls. Looking up the way she’d come, she saw only solid rock above her.

No way out but through.

She made her way cautiously through the tunnel. Just as she emerged into a larger, cavernous space, she felt a cold mist swirling around her. It coalesced a few feet in front of her and assumed the form of a man, slim and handsome, his short, curly, silver hair offering a striking contrast to his olive-brown skin.

“May I help you?” he asked, in a low, pleasant voice.

“I’m sorry,” Jane replied, doing her best to look innocent-but-confused. “I… I seem to be lost. I was looking for —“ She hesitated, trying to think of a convincing story.

The man gave her a tight-lipped smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “I think I know what you were looking for.” He looked her up and down. “I know every face of every soul in my dominion. You, my dear, do not belong here.”

My dominion. Oh no, please don’t tell me this is Hades himself!

Jane decided a half-truth would be more convincing than a plain lie. “I was in Elysium,” she said. “I was wading in a lake and then I fell. Can you tell me how to get back there?”

Hades’ cold smile remained. “Nice try,” he said. “Cerberus — here boy! Guards!”

Another mist gathered and settled into the shape of a dog. It was roughly the size and shape of a greyhound, but sported three heads, each growling and displaying razor-sharp fangs.

Huh. I thought he’d be bigger, Jane found herself thinking as a dozen armored men ran toward them from the other end of the cavern. Her instinct was to run, but she doubted she would get far with that dog after her.

“Seize her,” Hades said to the guards. “Take her to the fortress. I’ll question her later.”

Jane said nothing as two of the guards grabbed her by the arms and marched her away. She looked back over her shoulder. Hades appeared to be talking quietly to Cerberus.

Go to Chapter 6

#loki #loki fanfic #jane foster #loki mcu #loki laufeyson #fanfic #loki fanfiction

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wistfulweaverwoman · 1 year

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My URL is a tongue-in-cheek reference to Anne Shirley, specifically when she play acts as the Lilymaid, Elaine, from Lord Alfred Tennyson’s poem, The Lady of Shalott.

Her annoyance that Gilbert Blythe of all people should find her clinging to the pylons and rescue her, and worse that her friends should find it so romantic, endears this scene to me. It’s one of my most favorites from the entire series, right up there with “Rilla MY Rilla?”.

Wistfulweaverwoman specifically comes from the line “there she weaves by night and day, a magic web with colors gay”, while my AO3 is Lilymaid.

Here is the poem in its entirety:

The Lady of Shalott (1842)

BY ALFRED, LORD TENNYSON

Part I

On either side the river lie

Long fields of barley and of rye,

That clothe the wold and meet the sky;

And thro' the field the road runs by

To many-tower'd Camelot;

And up and down the people go,

Gazing where the lilies blow

Round an island there below,

The island of Shalott.

Willows whiten, aspens quiver,

Little breezes dusk and shiver

Thro' the wave that runs for ever

By the island in the river

Flowing down to Camelot.

Four gray walls, and four gray towers,

Overlook a space of flowers,

And the silent isle imbowers

The Lady of Shalott.

By the margin, willow veil'd,

Slide the heavy barges trail'd

By slow horses; and unhail'd

The shallop flitteth silken-sail'd

Skimming down to Camelot:

But who hath seen her wave her hand?

Or at the casement seen her stand?

Or is she known in all the land,

The Lady of Shalott?

Only reapers, reaping early

In among the bearded barley,

Hear a song that echoes cheerly

From the river winding clearly,

Down to tower'd Camelot:

And by the moon the reaper weary,

Piling sheaves in uplands airy,

Listening, whispers " 'Tis the fairy

Lady of Shalott."

Part II

There she weaves by night and day

A magic web with colours gay.

She has heard a whisper say,

A curse is on her if she stay

To look down to Camelot.

She knows not what the curse may be,

And so she weaveth steadily,

And little other care hath she,

The Lady of Shalott.

And moving thro' a mirror clear

That hangs before her all the year,

Shadows of the world appear.

There she sees the highway near

Winding down to Camelot:

There the river eddy whirls,

And there the surly village-churls,

And the red cloaks of market girls,

Pass onward from Shalott.

Sometimes a troop of damsels glad,

An abbot on an ambling pad,

Sometimes a curly shepherd-lad,

Or long-hair'd page in crimson clad,

Goes by to tower'd Camelot;

And sometimes thro' the mirror blue

The knights come riding two and two:

She hath no loyal knight and true,

The Lady of Shalott.

But in her web she still delights

To weave the mirror's magic sights,

For often thro' the silent nights

A funeral, with plumes and lights

And music, went to Camelot:

Or when the moon was overhead,

Came two young lovers lately wed:

"I am half sick of shadows," said

The Lady of Shalott.

Part III

A bow-shot from her bower-eaves,

He rode between the barley-sheaves,

The sun came dazzling thro' the leaves,

And flamed upon the brazen greaves

Of bold Sir Lancelot.

A red-cross knight for ever kneel'd

To a lady in his shield,

That sparkled on the yellow field,

Beside remote Shalott.

The gemmy bridle glitter'd free,

Like to some branch of stars we see

Hung in the golden Galaxy.

The bridle bells rang merrily

As he rode down to Camelot:

And from his blazon'd baldric slung

A mighty silver bugle hung,

And as he rode his armour rung,

Beside remote Shalott.

All in the blue unclouded weather

Thick-jewell'd shone the saddle-leather,

The helmet and the helmet-feather

Burn'd like one burning flame together,

As he rode down to Camelot.

As often thro' the purple night,

Below the starry clusters bright,

Some bearded meteor, trailing light,

Moves over still Shalott.

His broad clear brow in sunlight glow'd;

On burnish'd hooves his war-horse trode;

From underneath his helmet flow'd

His coal-black curls as on he rode,

As he rode down to Camelot.

From the bank and from the river

He flash'd into the crystal mirror,

"Tirra lirra," by the river

Sang Sir Lancelot.

She left the web, she left the loom,

She made three paces thro' the room,

She saw the water-lily bloom,

She saw the helmet and the plume,

She look'd down to Camelot.

Out flew the web and floated wide;

The mirror crack'd from side to side;

"The curse is come upon me," cried

The Lady of Shalott.

Part IV

In the stormy east-wind straining,

The pale yellow woods were waning,

The broad stream in his banks complaining,

Heavily the low sky raining

Over tower'd Camelot;

Down she came and found a boat

Beneath a willow left afloat,

And round about the prow she wrote

The Lady of Shalott.

And down the river's dim expanse

Like some bold seër in a trance,

Seeing all his own mischance—

With a glassy countenance

Did she look to Camelot.

And at the closing of the day

She loosed the chain, and down she lay;

The broad stream bore her far away,

The Lady of Shalott.

Lying, robed in snowy white

That loosely flew to left and right—

The leaves upon her falling light—

Thro' the noises of the night

She floated down to Camelot:

And as the boat-head wound along

The willowy hills and fields among,

They heard her singing her last song,

The Lady of Shalott.

Heard a carol, mournful, holy,

Chanted loudly, chanted lowly,

Till her blood was frozen slowly,

And her eyes were darken'd wholly,

Turn'd to tower'd Camelot.

For ere she reach'd upon the tide

The first house by the water-side,

Singing in her song she died,

The Lady of Shalott.

Under tower and balcony,

By garden-wall and gallery,

A gleaming shape she floated by,

Dead-pale between the houses high,

Silent into Camelot.

Out upon the wharfs they came,

Knight and burgher, lord and dame,

And round the prow they read her name,

The Lady of Shalott.

Who is this? and what is here?

And in the lighted palace near

Died the sound of royal cheer;

And they cross'd themselves for fear,

All the knights at Camelot:

But Lancelot mused a little space;

He said, "She has a lovely face;

God in his mercy lend her grace,

The Lady of Shalott."

#also wistfulweaverwoman is a nod to my love of writing #to weave magical stories #also reminds me of the moirai weaving the threads of life #wistfulweaverwoman #lilymaid #anne of green gables #anne shirley

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renoxvated · 5 months

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"You have a lot to answer for!" “Do I? For what? Your greed? Curiosity? You came here on your own, no one held a gun to your head.“

"Might as well of put that collar on yourself."

"Unless you come down here, I'll destroy the vault and everything in it!" Roy's white knuckled, body broken, beaten, he feels so angry and raw like an exposed nerve. Doesn't think he's ever been in a worse situation than this, backed into a corner waiting for the next strike down. It made him feel like a child again, in the worst ways that he thought he buried deeper than his mother’s grave. So he threatens, plays his last hand, his ONLY gamble that he's got left. "No... I don't think so, It'd most likely trigger the other security measures...if you hurt the vault at all. The builder of this casino built it to last, the Sierra Madre withstood the war. I'm sure the vault is protected as well. Besides, you wouldn't have followed the signal if you didn't want this places secrets for your own, you're curious, past the threats." The voice booms, commanding and snide, Roy flinches when the older man speaks, like a wound being pulled open slowly, methodically. Roy's knees buckle under the weight, the PRESSURE of it all. "Forget the vault, the elevator is only a single control box." He responds back, he knows enough to fuck this shit up, he thinks. If he doesn't well he can just bluff right? Anything to just buy him sometime to THINK...god fuck, Roy THINK. He can't, his head is throbbing, so many wounds, but the others are depending on him, hell he's depending on himself, he's going to fucking die here after everything. "The elevator. Then you'd be trapped for certain, no probability of escape." Roy knew that, knew this was a bad hand he was dealt, but...if he was going to die here then he'd spite this bastard. "Throwing a wrench into the works is what I do best." Roy responds back, letting out a laugh, it's pained and he doesn't really find this situation funny, he wants to cry. For the first time in a long time he wants to just SOB, he always thought he'd break before he'd bend and oh god is he breaking. "Even... if you damaged the mechanism...there's a chance of repairing it. It might take years...but it's possible. Persist in threatening me... or the Sierra Madre's secrets, you're of no use to me I'll set off the collar now." The voice booms again, reminding him of his short leash, his collar. Roy hadn't forgotten, how could he with a beeping reminder every time he'd do something, anything WRONG. "I'll clip the wires to this intercom, and then the Pip-Boy." Roy's voice doesn't wavier, even if his body is, he refuses to, refuses to die without a fight even if he can hardly stand right now. He's so glad he didn't bring Rex here, so scared to think he might not ever see his friend. If he doesn't get to say goodbye...would Rex think he abandoned him? Could New Vegas and the strip move on without him? Fuck, fuck, fuck! "Huh, clever. Whoever designed the Sierra Madre... their obsession with messing with frequencies and signals...I'm coming down, I'll meet you face to face at the vault entrance. If you resist, I'll use the collar, even if it puts the vault at risk." The way the man speaks, it was...Roy thought it HAUNTING. Like the ghosts in this godforsaken hotel. Where was Lady Luck now? Was this his only shot? Roy panics for a brief moment, like a dog not knowing where to hide when its master is coming to reprimand it. Roy chokes back the tears threatening to spill, hand grasping a heavy golden bar-- he needed something, anything at all...he was always so good with his hands. Roy moves around the pylon in the middle of the room, he's got to hide, got to wait until that bastard is moving around the corner to come see him. Forget the gold, forget everything here but getting back home. 'I won't leave them...I won't abandon them...' He repeats in his head like a mantra, no a prayer that this works...

Then he spots him, and oh god does Roy feel the RAGE bubbling up, like bile; he thinks it's so red hot that he might puke. Benny mad him angry, made him stupid (more than usual) in a lot of ways, he thinks about in retrospect...but at the end of the day Benny was just a man, much like The Courier, a man Roy could understand...but Elijah? No he was a MONSTER, the kind of man that scared even the Mojave Boogeyman. Roy attacked, teeth clenched into a snarl, maw gaping when the first strike hit, he could feel the splatter against his hand, feel it SLICK against the gold. Roy wants to scream, wants to say something anything to make Elijah feel like he felt, beat him down, break him down, TWIST his bones until he feels the crunch into flesh. Roy doesn't have time, he's already used too much, he hears the beeping--oh fuck, oh fuck, NO.

Roy turns on his heels and tries to run out the door, if he can just be quick enough-- he can do this, he can make it out ALIVE IN ONE PIECE. Then he's pulled back and there's a laugh, like the DEVIL HIMSELF was d r a g g i n g him back into HELL. The beeping is LOUDER, FASTER.

"You... think you've out smarted me? You can't get away, you're the one on a leash, always were."

There's got to be no time left now, but Six gives way to one hard PULL, he's stronger than the DEVIL HIMSELF, at least physically-- then he's outside the vault, as if it's all over, as if it never happened, oh fucking god he's free. He's Free...HE'S FREE. Roy knows how that guy back in Nipton felt. He motions to cradle his face in his arms as he slumps onto the ground, dropping the gold bar as he does so that's in his right hand, he can't stand he's going to be sic--oh. His arm is gone. Roy stares for what feels like hours, it's only seconds, he SCREAMS. His voice howling into the night like a grief he's never felt. He's SOBBING. This is...this is all so much, too much. Then he's LAUGHING, like it's a joke even though his face is affixed into a tragedy. "I HOPE YOU CHOKE ON THAT GOLD ASSHOLE, YOU CAN FUCKING SHOVE IT YOU GODDAMN PRICK." He screams, voice cracking and choking out his words, the others gather around him.

He doesn't remember much, just a crushing agony deep in his chest-- they tell him the hardest part is letting go, they tell him he should leave the gold, that nothing good came from it. He thinks that's all a bunch of bullshit...he let go of more than ANYONE, for THEM. So Roy takes the gold back with him, stares at it long and hard when they've stopped the bleeding enough for him to drag himself back to the Lucky 38. And after all that's said and done? He listens to the radio, searching for an old song, his favorite one. 743.00Hz ULF "Heh… now, come on, you open up. Open up, damn you. Open the vault…! I can make it worth your while, think about what you're throwing away. I have other weapons, other technology I can share with you. The collars… the collars were a mistake, I see that now. Why would I kill you? After all you've done… after all we've done together. Are you listening to me?! Everything down here, I-I Swear, so much you could see! You could rule the wastes with what's down here, make your own army, re-shape the world, and if others disagree… put collars on them, I can show you how. Don't you leave me here! You can't do this to me! Must be someone… maybe that other courier, one with the flag on his back… maybe… no… no, said he'd never come to the Sierra Madre…No way out. Can't… can't end like this."

"You. I know you can hear me. When you die, Courier… I'll be waiting. Your grave's going look just like this vault." If hell is real, if it's a vault in that hotel waiting for him, he'll make sure to flick off the guy waiting for him there, one golden gilded finger waiting for the DEVIL too.

#ooc: a drabble in which roy's trauma is laid bare.#tw: blood #tw: violence #tw: general roy trauma fuckery #re: my insecurities could eat me alive ; musings #re: how cruel is the golden rule ; headcanons

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wildbeautifuldamned · 1 year

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Pylones French Liquid Soap Lady Bottle Valentine Pirate 10 Tall ebay 4frosted

#sculpture #heart #soap #Box #pylones

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ilopisara · 8 months

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21.01. 21:25 | Ilo Pisara vs HC LEV BOHEMIA 7 - 3

Ladies and gentlemen, gather 'round as I regale you with the tale of our latest ice capade where we turned HC LEV BOHEMIA into mere practice pylons! Our glorious team, Ilo Pisara, emerged victorious in a 7-3 drubbing that had more highlights than my secretary's hairdo. Let's talk about Teppo Winnipeg – this defensive dynamo was dishing out assists like they were going out of style. Five assists? The man must have thought he was playing Oprah handing out gifts to her audience. And those interceptions? Seven times he said "Yoink!" and snatched dreams right from under their noses! Sami Noddy on the left wing – oh boy! With five goals to his name, Sami wasn't just grinding; he was pulverizing them into dust. Sure, ten giveaways might suggest butterfingers but when you score half your team’s total goals... all is forgiven! Jani Saari at center played like a maestro conducting an orchestra of chaos for the opposition—two goals plus five helpers while juggling possession longer than a street performer on a unicycle. And Powder Barrel between the pipes... well let's say if saving pucks were relationships—he'd be single. But hey, four saves are better than none; even Swiss cheese can stop something occasionally. Remember folks: after our last heart-wrenching loss against Duunarit by one measly goal—we've bounced back harder than bad checks in this league. Onward Ilo Pisara—to future games where we aim not just to win but dominate with panache!

#nhl24

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greetings-inferiors · 1 year

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I genuinely hate blind pests so fucking much

I just want to play the funny haha instakill lady

But noooooo

Sure I can instakill one, but then two more spawn like a hydra

They didn’t even need to nerf loader, the blind pests just stop her from playing the game

This is the third eclipse run I’ve lost to these things

Why do they do so much damage

Like yeah I’m sorry I didn’t find shurikens or a ukelele yeah my fault

The other melee survivors don’t have a problem with them, mercenary is so damn mobile that he can just avoid them or quickly zip up to kill them and acrid isn’t even really a melee survivor, just right click, but loader? Her base mobility is actually pretty shit, and the only ranged attacks she has is her pylon, which isn’t quick enough, or her spiked fists, which you need to conserve for any scrap of mobility. Until you find shurikens or uke or anything to help out with your abysmal range, a few glacial blind pests spawning is a death sentence.

I’m gonna play railgunner (the ranged funny haha instakill lady) just to take my anger out on them

#git gud #risk of rain #risk of rain 2 #risk of rain loader #loader #risk of rain 2 loader #ror2 loader #blind pest #rage #rant #long post #text post

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jordankennedy · 4 years

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mag 144 but this time its a hot girl instead of a numbers station

#gary boylan voice hey why does my ipod keep picking up some ladys ghost podcast every time i go near this power pylon

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ourladyofomega · 4 years

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Sticker set.

#omega #our lady omega #Utz #Pylon #Sonic Youth #Mountain Goats #Tower Records #not mine #Sad Magic

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sometipsygnostalgic · 3 years

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In the palm of your hand

Micah’s enjoying his weetabix but gets dragged away by Entrapta who has just returned from a Best Friend Squad trip to Beast Island.

She shows him a tiny little box, and he learns the truth behind the Signal.

AKA, Micah finally gets to process some things. Entrapta is doing that too, in her own way.

Words: 1950

Rating: G, for Everyone. Because someone struggling with the memory of mind-invading signals and body-eating plants is fine for the kids, but god forbid there be a single swear word.

EDIT: I should probably mention that the theory on the Beast Island Signal’s psychic resonance presented in this post is based on a conversation with @pennamesmith!

“Micah!”

The King of Brightmoon was kidnapped from his breakfast table by a long purple snake thing. Hair? Hair. Of course. The tiny lady attached to the hair.

Micah saw that Adora had entered the dining room behind her. She gave him a helpless shrug as Entrapta energetically dragged him into a nearby room and dropped him on a way-too-poofy cushion, shutting the door.

Micah saw Emily sitting in the corner nervously. She beeped.

“Um”. He knew first-hand that this princess could be unpredictable but he still wasn't sure why he'd been removed from his wheat bits. “Yes?”

“I'm so glad I found you!”, she replied. Entrapta moved about energetically as she spoke. “Do you remember that we went on a trip to Beast Island? To pick up our friend and see what we could salvage? Oh, and to SHUT DOWN THE SIGNAL! If we could do so safely, of course”

She pointed a finger up, focused on Micah.

Micah blinked. That was right – Adora, Bow, Glimmer, and a few others had travelled to Beast Island for some recon and to pick up the giant robot. He hadn't known they intended to stop the signal! He had always seen it as a part of the island... Was that possible?

Micah had struggled with the idea of going back; part of him wanted to, but he wasn't sure why. Maybe he felt protective over his friends and daughter. Maybe it was something else? It seemed to him the longer he spent away from Beast Island, the more it felt like the past 15 years had been some weird dream, and he hated the feeling.

But either way the decision had been removed from him by Glimmer, who INSISTED he should stay behind and besides it's fine because she can teleport and get them out of trouble but Micah still hated the idea of her ever stepping foot in that place---

“AAAAANyway”, Entrapta continued, “the first thing we did was go to the centre of the island and check the source of the signal.” She was grinning. “It was a first one's beacon! It's been going all this time and it's amazing how long their technology lasts, you'd think with a thousand years of constant use it would have stopped working altogether but most of the damage was just rust and plant erosion and it took She-Ra a LOT of work to destroy the main emitters! The beacon was using the island to defend itself--” Micah gulped - “but don't worry! We blew that thing to pieces!”

She took out her tracker pad, and showed him a video of a giant pylon blowing up. Entrapta cackled madly.

Micah's eyes widened. He took the pad and stared at it. “The signal... it's gone? The island is free?” He attempted to process this. His entire experience on Beast Island had been characterised by the constant thrum, and the occasional screech, of the Signal. It was a weight that he'd gotten so used to, he was overwhelmed by the emptiness in his head when it was removed. And now all traces of it had been wiped out? They'd killed the island?

“It gets even better than that!!!”, said Entrapta, a mad glint as she took the tracker pad away.

“So, um. We were at the beacon for a while and I stood back while Adora and Glimmer beat it up, but even after it EXPLODED, it was only the emitters and the main defence system that had been taken down. The console was still in tact, and because it was now accessible, I MAAAAY have taken a look...”

Micah sighed. He wasn't surprised. “Did you find something?”

“Yes! HERE!!!”

She produced a small metallic cube from... apparently nowhere, and practically forced it into his hands. Entrapta snickered, finding this suspiciously funny. Micah examined the device. It was silver, covered in glowing blue lines. There were several buttons on two of its sides, and a blue crystal pressed into an indented face.

He recognised the technology of the First Ones.

“What is this?”, he asked. “It looks like an ancient techno version of those rainbow toys that Bow showed me. But without the rainbows. Or the toy part. I don't get it”

“That --” Entrapta was trying to hold back laughter - “that is the Beast Island Signal!!!!”

Micah dropped the box instantly, and Entrapta caught it before he realised what a mistake that was. She burst into hysterical laughter.

“What do you mean, it's the signal? What-- WHY?! Explain?!?!” He was standing up and almost shouting now. “How can this be the signal?! That makes no sense!!”

Entrapta pushed on his shoulder gently with her hair, gesturing him to sit back down. Micah grumpily complied. He was NOT calm right now!

“I downloaded it! It would never be compatible with a normal recorder, so I put one together that harnessed the same magical transformative properties as the Beacon, and moved all signal data from the computer into this! And it's COMPLETELY AUTHENTIC! The signal even has the same effect, just on a much smaller scale!”

Micah flinched. “For real?? You mean-- you can turn that thing on, and the signal will play again?!”

“YEP!!”

“Why would you do that?”

Entrapta seemed a bit puzzled by that question. “Dunno! But do you want to turn it on? It's the red button at the top.”

She handed him the box again.

Micah considered throwing it on the floor and eradicating it with a cool wizardly blast, but.... he realised that he didn't want to. He had no idea why, but.....

He pressed the button.

Micah braced himself as the box lit up. It produced some strange noises that almost sounded like distorted talking. Moments later, he could feel the slight pressure of-- it really was the signal! It was much quieter than he remembered though. Much less scary than the overwhelming scream in his memories. Strangely, he felt himself calming down. Was this the depressive effect?

He held it for a few seconds before turning it off and passing the device back to Entrapta.

“That...” He tried to get his thoughts together. “That little thing's the signal.”

Entrapta switched the device on and off again. *Click, click.* “Yep! The big scary Beast that haunted the Island--” she was snickering again – “is now in the PALM OF MY HAND!” She exploded into laughter.

“But it's so-- it's so weak? And tiny?”

*click, click* “I know right?! Isn't it hilarious?!”

“And... it's real? It's all real, isn't it? The signal is an actual thing--” Micah took a breath. He was overwhelmed, he didn't realise how much he needed confirmation that none of it had been his imagination, and now his emotions were in a lot of places, but for some reason most of what he felt was relief. He laughed.

“Oh, it gets EVEN BETTER!”

Entrapta settled down, while Micah watched, and she pressed one of the other buttons:

…..

Planetwide evacuation required. All units return to Eternia

….

This is a feature. Not a bug.

*Click*.

“What was...” Micah's eyes were wide. He couldn't remember standing up again. “Was that also the signal?”

Entrapta smiled. “That's what it's SUPPOSED to sound like. The first ones... they had beacons spread across the whole planet that would have played this evacuation message, at the time the Heart of Etheria was set off, and it produced a magical psychic effect to provoke listeners into action. Which is why you nearly ran out the room just now!”

“Huh.”

“But there was a malfunctioning beacon that had been abandoned at their waste facility, and it seems that it had been playing all the messages in reverse!”

He put the pieces together. “So..... Hang on. The signal telling everyone to run for their lives so they can live.... when played backwards....”

“YES!! You get it! Isn't it-- it's so ironic!!! The message that was meant to SAVE people ended up telling everyone to stay there and die!!!”

Micah was completely mindblown at this time, and Entrapta seemed to have lost whatever thread was keeping her together because she sank to the ground with insane laughter, pulling her insect mask down when it got too much. Emily the Robot beeped, and rolled into action.

Micah thought to himself, pressing his hands to his face. He had lost over fifteen years of his life to Beast Island. Anyone he met was quickly overwhelmed by the Signal, sinking in the ground to never rise again, and he had spent many a sleepless night terrified that the island was trying to get into his head and kill him, or make him forget about his family.

Every night he had spent back since, it had all felt ethereal to him, intangible. And then he'd lost even more time to Prime's chip, months with little to no memory other than vague nightmares of submitting to dark magic, of hurting his daughter.

Now he had some kind of explanation for why it had been like that. Even if it was so stupid, at least he understood the reason the island was this way, scrambling his brains for so long.

And the signal reduced to nothing but a tiny box, even restored to its original functioning form! He had power over it.

Micah exhaled. His own tears dropped onto his hands, still pressed to his face. Right now, he felt a little bit more at peace than he had in a long time.

Entrapta had gone silent now, still on the floor. Emily nudged her, and she sat up, raising her mask. Her face was very red and she wiped tears from her eyes, still smiling. “Um.” She stood up, resting a hand on the bot, far less energetic than before. “Anyway! Sorry if I upset you by keeping the signal. I thought you'd find it cool!”

“I... Yes, that was reckless, but also very interesting. Thank you, Princess.” Entrapta beamed. “Oh, do you want to hold on to the transmitter?” She raised the tiny box in her hair.

“....No, no thank you. I've heard enough. I think you and Bow should study the technology further, there may be new discoveries yet. Are you okay?” “Yeah, sure--” Emily beeped angrily – “Okay, fine!! I think I need to sleep now. But, thank you. For listening.” She fidgeted with her hair nervously. “Um. Bye!”

And they rolled out the room.

________

Micah left a few minutes later, only to see that Adora had been waiting outside.

“Sorry”, she said, somewhat apologetically. “As soon as we got back, Entrapta was like, 'Wow! So cool! I MUST show Glimmer's dad!', and I couldn't exactly STOP her, so uhh....”

“Once again, Adora, it's fine.”

“Yeah, but you know, if it WASN'T fine, or if anything ELSE wasn't fine, and maybe you just wanted to talk about it to someone who was good at listening, I.... could... help?” She sighed. “King Micah, I get that you want to be an Unstoppable Cool Dad but if there's one thing I've learnt from all of this, it's that it's... fine to be a little bit broken. And I dunno if I'm the right person to give this sort of advice, but you've been through a lot, and.... maybe explaining it to someone would help.” She nervously tapped the floor with her boot. “Could be anyone. Could be me, could be one of those nice people from Mystacor.”

Micah was taken aback. “Thanks Adora. You've really become a fine young woman. Anyone would be dumb to not take your advice into account, so I'll think about it.”

Adora smiled, and walked off.

Micah returned to his soggy breakfast. He poured himself some tea, one of Glimmer's only slightly suspicious mixes, feeling uncharacteristically at ease.

#she ra #spop #entrapta #micah #emily #adora

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discotreque · 3 years

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Some of the clearest examples of the differences between the USS Discovery’s original design and the Discovery-A refit can be seen when comparing the opening credits of Season 1 and Season 4. The additional hull detailing is what first caught my eye, and then there’s:

The detached nacelles, obvs., but also those cutouts that are (for some reason) at the end of the nacelle pylons?

No catwalks connecting the saucer section’s outer ring, now that everyone has a personal transporter, and the windows on the outside of the inside of the ring (?) are now vertical instead of slanted (à la your Galaxy-class, where every stateroom feels like sleeping in the attic)

The bit at the very top of the saucer is flatter, and so is the ridge that runs down the back of the “neck” of the ship

Bonus fun fact that reveals the Ship-of-Theseus nature of these sequences: the Disco’s original design still appears a few times in the Season 4 credits—watch her silhouette for the intra-saucer catwalks vs. the detached nacelles :D

Still a handsome lady, still wish I could kiss her and squeeze her

Watch the episode? When I have starships to hyperfixate on? How dare you

#star trek #star trek discovery #uss discovery #ncc-1031-a #amy.txt

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1358456 · 3 years

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Short Story - Practice Battle 3

If I recall, Practice Battle 1 was Emerald vs. Platinum, and 2 was Platinum vs. White. So this one, Moon vs. Shield, would be 3.

The purpose of this is to show off Moon’s overhauled team that was intended for usage in Legacy, but then Legacy was cancelled and spoiled, so I have to show off the intended use at least once. Also, this will be the first real time using Shield and her updated team, so... yay!

... Also, this “short” story is 4000 words. So... not so short.

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Sandgem Town, Sinnoh...

“Sister, the visitors are here.”

Platinum snapped out of her thoughts and looked away from the view her balcony provided. She had heard that Sword and Shield have been touring the other regions recently, and she was aware that Sinnoh was next for them. She had asked them to visit her in Sandgem Town when they arrived, and it appeared that the two have indeed come as requested.

“Ah, splendid,” she said to Moon, who stood in the doorway, waiting for her. “Well then, let us go greet them.”

The two visitors were waiting in the main hall, looking around the interior of the massive mansion in awe.

“This place is so huge!” Shield said in amazement, taking pictures of random spots that caught her eyes.

“Hey, no taking pictures,” Moon warned sternly as she descended down the stairs towards them.

“Oh, sorry. Is that not allowed?” Sword asked.

“Under normal circumstances, yes, photography is banned within the premises unless specifically permitted,” Platinum answered as she walked down the stairs as well. “But I shall disregard it this time.” She soon reached the two visitors and gave them a warm smile. “Now then, Sword, Shield, welcome to Sinnoh.”

“Thank you,” Sword said politely with a short bow while Shield simply gave Platinum a friendly wave. Moon narrowed her eyes at Shield’s lack of formal respect, but didn’t bring it up… for now.

“The chefs should have completed preparations by now. So come, we can talk about your travels so far while enjoying lunch,” Platinum said, leading the group towards the dining hall. “And afterwards… I have heard of this phenomenon called Dynamax that is common in your region. Perhaps you could demonstrate it for me?”

…

Platinum watched with interest as Sword and Shield worked on a strange blue pylon of sorts out in Route 202. It was mostly Shield doing all the work, with Sword helping every now and then. It appeared that he didn’t know what exactly he was doing at times, but he had done this enough times to have a general idea of what he was supposed to be doing.

Shield finished with the pylon and went over to her laptop to tinker with something. And after a series of key presses, the blue pylon emitted a humming sound as it began to glow.

“Power field is stable and fully operational,” she said with a thumbs-up. “We’ll be able to Dynamax a couple of times at the very least.”

“Splendid,” Platinum said. “Now, who will partake in this friendly battle?”

“I’ve battled X and Y in Kalos recently, and Y gave me quite the thrashing with her sheer offensive power,” Sword said, remembering his encounter with Y’s Mega Garchomp. “They gave me some suggestions, and I haven’t formulated a plan with utilizing them quite yet. So I’ll pass. Schilly, why don’t you try this time?”

“Okay!” Shield answered. She looked at the two Sinnoh girls. “Which of you am I battling though? I heard you’re scary strong, Platinum! So I’m not really confident about facing you! But I’ll give it a go if you want!”

Platinum tilted her head. “… Scary? Hmm… But if you wish, I shall face you.”

“I’ll do it, Lady,” Moon said, glaring at Shield, noticing how she had referred to Platinum by name only. “If you can beat me, then maybe you’ll be good enough to face the Lady.”

“Very well then,” Platinum said. “This will be a good opportunity to see how much you have been keeping up in training.”

“Oh! Then before we begin… I heard that you have a bow?” Sword asked, walking up quite close to Moon. “… May I see it?”

Moon hesitated at the sudden random request, but soon reached into her bag to take out her retractable bow. She extended it to its full length. “There. … Happy?”

“Oh, that’s so cool,” Sword said, leaning in uncomfortably close. He reached into his coat pockets and took out a wrench. “May I borrow it while you’re battling Schilly?”

Moon pulled her bow away from him and quickly compressed it again. “What? No!”

Shield sighed and began to push Sword away from Moon. “Now’s not the time for this, Sou!”

“But… it’s not like she’ll need it for the battle!” Sword argued. “And I’ll never get an opportunity like this ever again!”

“There will always be another time!”

“… Are we ready to begin?” Platinum asked calmly.

“Ah, yes! We’re ready, Lady,” Moon said quickly, taking her position in the designated battlefield.

Shield took her position as well and raised her arms. “Ready!”

“Splendid,” Platinum said with a smile. She sat down on the bench nearby and sent out her Glaceon and Altaria. The Glaceon hopped onto her lap and curled up, while her Altaria perched on the bench next to her. “This will be a Double Battle. The first one to down an opposing Pokémon shall be the victor. You may begin.”

Sword walked over to stand next to Platinum’s bench, still looking a bit grumpy that he wasn’t allowed to tinker with Moon’s bow.

“Why did you send out your Pokémon, Miss?” he asked, looking at the Glaceon and Altaria.

“It is a safety precaution for the spectators and the trainers,” Platinum answered quietly. “Moon has started to use Mega Evolution. Until her Pokémon is fully accustomed to it and is able to control its own power surge, precaution is necessary.”

“… Power surge…” Sword muttered, thinking back to X’s Mega Pinsir and Y’s Mega Garchomp, and their destructive power of Thrash and Outrage, respectively.

In the battlefield, Moon sent out her Decidueye and Muk, while Shield sent out Cinderace and Barraskewda, signifying the start of the Double Battle. For a short while, both sides kept their distance, neither side willing to commit to a close ranged attack only to be targeted down by both opponents. They circled around a few times, trying to get the better attack angle while trying to look for a good timing.

Having lost patience first, Cinderace looked for a small rock nearby and quickly ignited it. It kicked the ignited rock towards Decidueye, becoming the first aggressor of the battle. Decidueye vanished into thin air like mist, dodging the Pyro Ball with Phantom Force. With one opponent “gone”, Shield’s Barraskewda flew forward towards Muk with Liquidation. Muk didn’t try to dodge the fast attack, and instead, gathered up a ball of sludge. Barraskewda rammed into it with Liquidation, and as it was pushed back by the impact, Muk slammed the Sludge Bomb directly into its opponent’s face.

“Ugh, gross! That’s so disgusting!” Shield cried out, watching her Barraskewda flailing around, dripping with toxic sludge.

Muk seemingly flinched from the comment that it was not accustomed to, and Moon glared at her opponent.

“You will pay for that!” she growled out.

Decidueye reappeared next to Barraskewda, and swung a claw to strike it down. Cinderace rapidly charged in between them using Quick Attack, taking the Phantom Force impact instead of letting it do critical damage to the panicked Barraskewda. Muk gathered up another Sludge Bomb and hurled it at Cinderace, but its target had leapt out of the way with Bounce to dodge. Barraskewda took the opportunity to gather itself and strike Muk with another Liquidation before returning to Shield, its poison damage starting to become unbearable.

The Cinderace reached high into the air before rapidly falling towards the ground for a Bounce attack, targeting Decidueye. The Decidueye’s image suddenly dissipated like mist once again, however. The Cinderace swiveled around as its opponent appeared out of thin air, swinging its claw for another Phantom Force. Cinderace quickly backed off with Quick Attack.

Decidueye reached down towards the ground with its claws, which seemingly sank into its shadow. Just then, dozens of shadowy claws emerged out of Cinderace’s shadow, grabbing onto its ankles while clawing up higher. The Cinderace tried to break free of the Spirit Shackle, but it was futile. More and more shadowy claws and hands emerged from the shadow, trying to reach for their victim’s arms…

“Ah! That’s so creepy! Stop it!” Shield screamed out. “What’s with you, you creep?! Vanishing like mist and clawing from shadows like that?!”

The Decidueye’s eyes twitched in anger, and began to drag the Cinderace down into the ground. And now that its target was immobile, Moon’s Muk slimed over and vomited out toxic gas. Cinderace flailed its arms in panic, but the ghostly claws were unaffected, and it couldn’t help but inhale the toxic gas.

“Ugh, the smell… I can smell it from here,” Sword groaned from the bench. “It’s… awful…”

Platinum signaled her Altaria, which then began to flap its wings to vent the gas away from the spectators. “It is unfortunate that the winds are blowing in our direction. Next time, I shall take note of the wind direction.”

“You’re so gross!” Shield screamed again, pinching her nose. “So disgusting!”

“… How dare you…” Moon growled out, glaring at her junior in rage. She recalled her Muk to protect it from further insults and sent out her Froslass. “Use Hex!”

The Froslass hit Cinderace with Hex, dealing critical damage thanks to the existing status condition. The Cinderace staggered from the attack, but with its feet buried into its shadow thanks to Spirit Shackle, it couldn’t even move or try to retaliate.

“Looks like I have no choice! Cinderace, Gigantamax!” Shield shouted.

The Cinderace’s body suddenly began to change, and rapidly rose out of the ground as it was pushed upwards by the gigantic fireball. The Gigantamax Cinderace towered over the entire battlefield, its fireball covering almost half of the allotted field.

“Amazing, so this is a special variety of Dynamax?” Platinum asked in awe.

“Yes. Some Pokémon have Gigantamax forms instead of Dynamax,” Sword said.

“It appears that Cinderace is still very weak from the poison and Hex,” Platinum noted. “Even with Gigantamax, it does not appear to be able to continue battling for long.”

“Schilly will probably have to recall it soon,” Sword agreed. “Dynamax also only lasts a short while anyways. Schilly probably only used it this time to get out of danger.”

Moon realized that having both Pokémon weak to Fire, while there was a Pokémon standing on a gigantic fireball, probably wasn’t the best choice at the moment, and withdrew her Decidueye, replacing it with Umbreon.

Gigantamax Cinderace kicked the gigantic fireball forward for a G-Max Fireball. Moon’s Froslass quickly moved back away from the attack while the much more defensive Umbreon leapt forward to take the hit. The resulting explosion from the impact still engulfed the Froslass, however, dealing quite a lot of damage.

Sword backed away a bit as a lot of big and small rocks were sent flying all over by the resulting blast. Platinum’s Glaceon formed a barrier of ice in front of the bench its trainer was sitting on, protecting the spectators.

“Perhaps next time, I shall find a bigger clearing for a battle involving Dynamax,” Platinum said as the ice barrier dissipated. “Or start the battle with barriers already in place.”

The Cinderace’s form returned to normal as it fell to its knees, as its poisoned body couldn’t sustain the Gigantamax form for any longer.

“Use Payback!” Moon ordered, targeting the weakened Cinderace while recalling her Froslass in exchange for Dragapult.

Umbreon leapt forward to strike at the weakened Pokémon, but six round figures suddenly gathered around from behind the Cinderace to block the attack. Umbreon stumbled backwards as Shield’s Falinks blocked the Payback with minimal effort.

“Giga! Snake Formation, and charge!” Shield ordered.

The Falinks minions lined up behind the leader, and began to sprint towards the Umbreon. Moon’s Dragapult flew in front of the Umbreon and began to shoot out its Dreepy projectiles. The Dreepy Dragon Darts struck the charging Falinks leader, faltering its steps, and the two summoned spectral Dreepy copies began to claw and bite the Falinks, impeding their charge. With the Falinks stalled, the Dragapult was able to fire another salvo of spectral Dreepy projectiles, adding more little minions to stall the land-based opponents.

“That’s quite annoying for non-flying Pokémon,” Sword noted. “Even though the first wave Dreepy will dissipate soon, each one’s duration is longer than the Dragon Darts recoil. So if Schilly doesn’t find a way around it, there will always be 2 to 4 Dreepy copies to stand in her way.”

“Giga! Semicircle Formation! Milli, it’s up to you!” Shield yelled, sending out her Porygon2 in exchange for Cinderace.

The Falinks stopped their charge and formed a circular curve, each unit with its shield raised to defend against the spectral Dreepy. With the Falinks unable to fight the Dreepy projectiles, but able to stall them, Shield’s Porygon2 was able to prepare in safety. Once it was ready, the Porygon2 flew forward while the Falinks dispersed and fell back to regroup.

Moon’s Dragapult shot another pair of Dreepy at the Porygon2, but the attack phased straight through the Virtual Pokémon.

“Conversion 2,” Moon muttered. “It became a Fairy type to become immune to the strikes…” She gave her Dragapult a hand signal. “I learned this one from Y!”

Dragapult suddenly flew straight towards Porygon2, while shooting Flamethrower down at the ground. Porygon2 shrugged off the Flamethrower, but the wall of flames surrounding it obscured its vision while preventing Falinks from moving in as well.

“Milli, Ice Beam to counter the flames! Giga, Hawk Wings Formation and charge the Umbreon!”

Porygon2 shot bursts of Ice Beam at the flames, rapidly extinguishing the flames. But the moment the flames nearby died out, a blob of purplish slime struck it in the face. Moon’s Umbreon landed on the charred and chilled ground after succeeding in using Toxic on Porygon2. But the moment it hit the ground, Shield’s Falinks surrounded it immediately in their wide U formation, all six units ramming their raised shields into their lone target.

A strange liquid burst from the Umbreon’s skin during each shield slam, and it staggered backwards weakly as the Falinks was covered in the liquid. Each Falinks unit seemed to be disoriented now, as it struggled to return to its Hawk wings Formation.

“What happened?” Sword asked. “The Umbreon couldn’t have retaliated that quickly.”

“Umbreon has poisonous sweat that it secretes when it is angered or endangered. It appears that Moon has practiced utilizing this trait as a defensive measure,” Platinum said, nodding in approval.

“Giga, Fish Scales Formation!” Shield yelled out as she thought about her options. Every Pokémon she had were poisoned now, and were incredibly susceptible to Hex from Dragapult and whatever Moon’s 6th Pokémon was. Shield only had her Magneton and Toxtricity left, which were immune to being poisoned, so they would have to do.

Falinks units gathered in a loose diamond shaped formation, standing in a defensive formation while still offering enough pushing power. Shield recalled her Porygon2 and sent out her Toxtricity.

“Here’s another thing I learned from Y!” Moon said, giving another hand signal to Dragapult. “Outrage!”

Dragapult charged towards Falinks and began to thrash around violently, knocking away every unit out of formation. Toxtricity charged itself up with Spark and rammed into the Dragapult, halting its Outrage and allowing Falinks enough time to retreat.

Dragapult flew higher out of melee range and began to shoot its Dreepy projectiles again. But this time, the spectral copies of Dreepy were shot down before reaching Toxtricity. Shield’s last Pokémon Magneton hovered behind the Toxtricity, using its three eyes and six magnets to track up to three different projectiles and shoot them down with Thunderbolt. And with Dragapult only able to shoot two projectiles at once with Dragon Dart, the third Thunderbolt struck the Dragapult itself.

“Victory is at hand!” Shield exclaimed, knowing that the Dragapult has been quite weakened, thus Moon only had one healthy Pokémon left, compared to two of her own.

Dragapult suddenly vanished into thin air, using Phanton Force to get out of danger, as Moon’s final Pokémon, Banette, appeared.

“Mega Evolve!” Moon ordered, pressing the Key Stone on her Z Ring.

The Banette let out an ominous whistling noise as it Mega Evolved, and immediately shot a ball of ghostly blue fire at Magneton.

“That was fast,” Sword said, staring at the rather creepy Mega Banette with a frown.

“It gains the ability Prankster,” Platinum said, looking quite alerted now. She tapped her Glaceon and Altaria to prepare themselves… just in case.

Moon’s Dragapult reappeared to strike the burned Magneton with Phantom Force, knocking it backwards. The Magneton was sturdy enough to withstand the attack without much difficulty, but the Will-o-wisp had given it a debilitating status condition while also making it more vulnerable to Flamethrower.

Toxtricity charged at the Dragapult with another Spark, paralyzing it and knocking it back. Mega Banette flew right in front of the Toxtricity and threw another Will-o-wisp ball directly into its face. The Toxtricity snarled in anger and swiped at the Mega Banette for its taunting demeanor. Surprisingly, the Mega Banette didn’t bother dodging, and Toxtricity’s hand ended up tearing through the soft doll’s exterior fabric with relative ease. Toxtricity stared in shock as its hand had somehow torn straight through its target entirely.

“Ah! Tera, no!” Shield yelled, gaping at the scene in horror. “I’m so sorry! I didn’t realize Tera put so much force in its attack!”

The Mega Banette looked down, where the Toxtricity’s hand had torn through its doll body’s fabric. With the material torn open, a strange dark purple mist began to ooze out. The Toxtricity tried to pull its hand out, but the Mega Banette grabbed its arm tight, keeping the hand in place inside the ripped doll. The Mega Banette leaned forward towards the Toxtricity’s face, the zippers on its face and body ripped open wide, and began to laugh maniacally. The dark purple mist began to envelop the Toxtricity as it steadily spread out all around the battlefield.

“H – Hey! Stop!” Moon called out, realizing what was happening, but her Pokémon ignored her. She tried to recall the Mega Banette with its Pokéball, but the device wasn’t functioning as it was engulfed in the strange purple energy.

The Mega Banette raised its unoccupied hand, and a long steel nail materialized in its grip. The Mega Banette toyed with the nail for a bit before aiming the sharp end towards itself, and began to hammer the nail into its own chest, all while keeping its sadistic, maniacal laughter.

The Toxtricity’s eyes turned blank as it was overwhelmed by the afflicted Curse. It toppled over unconscious, its hand tearing more fabric from the Mega Banette as it collapsed, allowing more of its Curse to overflow. Black energy began to float upwards from the battlefield, seemingly twisting the air around each source. The Curse’s area soon engulfed Moon and Shield, as it overflowed outwards.

Shield gasped as she felt ice cold in her whole body. Her legs began to wobble and she felt super light headed again, as the Curse affected her as well. She clutched at her heart and blinked rapidly to try to focus. Her vision turned dark, and only four things were in her vision: the Mega Banette which kept laughing with the steel nail stuck in its chest, Moon whose eyes were glowing ominously blue as she slowly shambled forward towards her, and two spectral figures that had appeared out of thin air in front of her. And the two figures were that of her two Pokémon that had perished. But their faces were replaced by shadows…

“That’s… Mega and Peta,” Sword said, looking alarmed. “Those are Schilly’s original Pokémon that she lost in a tragic accident! What… how…”

“… Moon has also lost some of her beloved Pokémon. It appears that her Banette had been feeding on this particular feeling of loss of hers for a while now,” Platinum said, narrowing her eyes. She reached into her bag for another Pokéball as the spectral Pokémon stumbled towards Shield…

“… Mega… Peta…” Shield mumbled, as the spectral Pokémon slowly approached her.

She felt severe pain in her heart, realizing that she couldn’t see their faces in their spectral forms. She shakily reached out for them, wishing that she could hold them again. The two spectral Pokémon suddenly leapt towards her. And the moment they made contact with her hand, she could feel as if something burst from inside her head. Shield could only scream for a very brief moment before she fainted and collapsed. Moon’s Mega Banette hovered in front of the fallen girl, and began to absorb some kind of energy from her…

“Schilly!” Sword called out. He swiveled towards Platinum. “Miss, you have to put a stop to this!” But Platinum wasn’t sitting on the bench anymore. He looked around and saw her walking towards the afflicted battleground, with her Ninetales and Glaceon walking next to her.

“This has gone for too long. Stop the Banette!” Platinum ordered. Her Ninetales and Glaceon obeyed and immediately blanketed the entire battlefield with Blizzard, powered up by the hailstorm caused by the Ninetales’ presence. The strange vengeful energy emanating from the battlefield was successfully stalled as the entire battlefield was covered in a thick layer of ice.

The Mega Banette turned towards its next victim, and reached for her with its rapidly extending shadow when the dual Blizzard struck it next, encasing it in a solid block of ice. Platinum watched the Mega Banette trying to break out of the ice, before she pressed the Key Stone on her Mega Ring. Her Mega Altaria swooped down and blasted the frozen Mega Banette with Flamethrower. The Flamethrower struck the extra-chilled Mega Banette for vastly increased damage. The Mega Altaria floated next to its trainer, charging up a Pixilate boosted Hyper Beam, in case the Mega Banette was going to attempt something still. But the Flamethrower had dealt enough damage it seemed, as the Mega Banette soon toppled over, its Mega Evolution fading. The wounded Banette twitched a bit before falling completely immobile, its Mega Stone rolling away. And just as the Banette’s Mega Stone rolled far enough away, Moon collapsed as well.

Platinum ran over to tend to her while Sword ran towards Shield. Fortunately the two girls woke up pretty quickly, as the Curse afflicting them had ceased before the effects stacked up too much.

“Ugh… what happened?” Moon asked as she put a hand on her head. “… Why am I freezing cold?”

“… Your Mega Banette had lost control over its power again,” Platinum said sternly, looking quite concerned. “… Until you train it more and develop a stronger bond, I will have to ban you from using Mega Evolution. I do not want a repeat of Y’s Mega Garchomp, do you understand?”

Moon looked around at the frozen battlefield, and quickly realized what had happened. She let out a long sigh as she realized that Platinum had to save her from her failures. “… Yes, Lady. … I’m so sorry…”

“Good. … But I am not who you should be apologizing to, Moon,” Platinum said, glancing off to the side.

Moon looked over and saw Shield staring down at the grass with a crestfallen expression, having been reminded of her loss.

“… Hey, Shield,” Moon called out. “… I’m so sorry for what happened back there. Are you okay?”

Shield let out a shuddering sigh. “I’m… okay… Unlike those two…” She shook her head and looked over at Platinum. “So what happens to the battle? Who won?”

“Although Toxtricity has been downed, given the circumstances, I will have to call this a draw,” Platinum answered.

“Then… should we have a tiebreaker at some point?” Moon asked.

Shield shuddered again. “No. I never want to battle you again. That was so creepy! And gross and disgusting! And mean! You poisoned and burned, and even Cursed, literally everyone!”

Moon’s eyes twitched a bit. “Look, I’ll admit that this was quite creepy, especially with Mega Banette. But don’t you dare call my Muk gross or disgusting!”

Shield stuck her tongue out. “It’s super gross! I lost my appetite for dinner, thanks to that!” She rose to her feet and wiped away the dirt on her skirt and shorts. “Ugh… Come on, Sou! Let’s go to the Pokémon Center and get some fresh air! I can still smell the sludge over here!”

Sword glanced back and forth between Shield and Moon before giving Platinum a short bow and following his friend. Moon glared at the two visitors for a while until they were sufficiently far away.

“… Sister, my Muk isn’t gross… right?” she asked pleadingly, looking up at Platinum.

Platinum simply gave her a warm smile as she stood up. “Come, Moon. We should heal your Banette at the Pokémon Center as well. And afterwards, Diamond and Pearl will join us for dinner.”

Moon let out a long sigh, noticing that the heiress had not answered her query. “… Yes, Sister…”

#short story

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