#really?? even though it's just the natural progression from the last game he did work on?

[ladyjmontilyet]

yeah david, we know

[from his bluesky thread]

[riacte]

I think one of Aqua29's (H, Dave, False, Cub) best qualities is that they were an extremely forgiving and consistent team

(I know the MCC just happened, but my brain is going crazy right now and all the details are flying past my head but I hope you'll get the general idea.)

MCC's nature is that it is unpredictable. That's what makes it fun! The chickens, the weird lag (sometimes 💀), luck, sudden clutches, etc etc. But this unpredictability can sometimes mess up teams on a really good trajectory. One "bad" or "unwanted" game would kill a team's morale- I've seen that before.

In the midst of the MCC chaos, Aqua29 is very solid. They were steadily climbing up the ranks and kept their morale high. Even when they won one round of Dodgebolt, they convinced themselves to act like they "were losing". I forgot the English word for it but their mental states / attitudes were very consistent throughout the entire MCC. This helps them power through the unpredictability. Especially for MCC29, which is a well-balanced MCC and pretty difficult to predict (and the stats don't do False and Cub justice in this particular situation).

As I said before, Aqua29 is very forgiving. This allows them space to make mistakes and to bounce back. Dave felt pretty guilty over dying to speedbridging in Sky Battle and said he really usually doesn't do that, and while the loss of the team's best PvPer might be fatal in some other situations, Aqua honestly did fine. Their morale wasn't affected.

In Rocket Spleef Rush, sometimes a teammate would die "early", leaving two teammates behind, and it felt like they took turns dying early, which showed how balanced they were. Same with TGTTOS. Sometimes an individual teammate might get unlucky in a round of TGTTOS, but overall they all worked hard, and they could pull it back.

Battle Box would be another good example, in which they lost the first two rounds, adjusted their strategy, and then did better. Dave also apologised for missing the comms during the round against Purple, but like SkB, they progressed normally.

In Grid Runners, sometimes they placed bottom half in some rooms, but they steadily improved and cleared them faster- ending up in the last room in which H bossed everyone around and they got through it the quickest. There is a narrative: they learned from earlier "mistakes", had the room to afford making mistakes, and improved. Therefore, they rose up.

And Dodgebolt. Dodgebolt! All four of them are good at it. Of course, we have HBomb, king of Dodgebolt. Then Dave, confident PvPer. The two hermits, both great shots, have grown more confident in their skills. They all trusted themselves to the point they didn't need H to nudge the arrow in their direction- they just picked up the arrow if they felt like it. Cub did that, and he got his kills. Even if half of the team was taken out, or heck, even if it was a 1v3, they had enough skill to power through. All four of them were in good shape, felt great, and meshed well together.

In a way, Aqua29 are each other's safety nets. No one got top 10. Their placements were: 12th, 13th, 20th, 21st. Which honestly wasn't too far from each other. You won't really expect a team with those individual rankings to get second in coins, but they did. Even if False ended up losing the 1v3, her valiant efforts would motivate the team even more and I'm sure they would've won (even though a Cyan reverse sweep would be cool).

And it's this kind of stability and mutual support that powered them through MCC. They didn't get the finale they wanted (Survival Games), that was out of their control, but they squeezed themselves into Dodgebolt anyway. I won't deny that they were lucky- MCC is unpredictable, so luck is often a factor, but I feel they could weather a storm.

Aqua29 is a nice team to watch live. They always bring it back, and I'm not just talking about placements or coins, it's also their morale. This team is going up with Blue9 and Purple15 as one of the competitive hermit teams with best overall team synergy. They were very stable and encouraging of each other <3

[gear-project]

Has A.B.A been training or practicing with Flament Nagal? Because in Strive, it looks like she knows what she is doing compared how she was in the old games.

In the old games, Nagal seemed to be doing all the work but now it looks like a reverse unless Flament Nagal is becoming more reluctant to fight these days.

At first (if you'd been following the Drama CD script) it was revealed that at the very outset A.B.A. didn't even know Flament Nagel* was a weapon!

She just thought he was a giant Key she happened to like and find attractive!

He dropped several hints after that during her duel with Slayer, and agreed to work as her partner afterwards.

Time has passed and Slayer DID state he would check in on them in about 10 to 20 years, so hopefully that will happen soon~

Some minor differences as well is:

In her original Isuka version: Evidence Concealment was a giant golden Key poke, but it later became an Alchemic chain reaction... this later became the "Keeper of the Key" where the Gate of Truth opens up and the Darkness attacks.

The Union command Grab: instead of being shocked at his transformation, she asked the question "What's your Blood Type?"

(Ketsueki nani ka ta?), this was directed at the opponent, since she was taking their blood from them (this is also an indirect reference to Fanny's old command grab from Guilty Gear Petit).

She'd also feed Flament blood generously with her Blood packs.

The change in focus to Jealousy (and Love) makes sense, since their relationship has progressed a great deal since they started out, but it also reveals more about the nature of Flament Nagel as a Foci (Magic Focus Beast).

Originally he "possessed" vessels he deemed worthy of wielding him, but this also meant he dominated them until they died.

During Strive's Story, he reveals to A.B.A. that he doesn't think this is the correct way to do things and is willing to accept her as his partner even if they don't always connect with one another.

So during the command grab, he might try to "possess" a body, but A.B.A. pulls him out at the last minute, leaving him somewhat disformed and ambiguous (like the creatures that exist beyond the Gate he can summon).

He can still feel pain, especially if she bites him and scratches his face, but in that state he is extremely euphoric and can't really think straight... A.B.A. is also mutually affected by the possession as well, though it merely compounds her jealousy to twice the amount of what it was before the Union took place.

It also appears that being in that state greatly elevates A.B.A.'s physical strength, as previously she could barely lift Flament Nagel, but when under his influence, she can crack the very ground she stands on with sheer force of weight by how she wields him! This is evident in her victory animation in Strive.

I'll just stop here to say that we don't know Flament Nagel's full history during the Crusades, but he does remind me of another "weapon" that has a similar effect and namesake.

One of the Sacred Treasures: Jinki Ekitoku (Increasing Fervor), codenamed "Dominator" by the Conclave!

By that name alone, "Increasing Fervor" or even "Dominator" the effect appears very similar to the powers that Flament Nagel can wield...

I can't put my finger on it just yet, but I dare say there might be a connection with him and the Sacred Treasures (whether or not Sol Badguy created him is another mystery though).

[catofadifferentcolor]

Assassin's Creed

We see the world as it really is, and hope that one day all mankind might see the same.

As I've been reading a lot about the Crusades recently, it seemed a natural progression to try playing Assassin's Creed for the first time since the franchise began a decade and a half ago.

This is a ridiculous decision, as anyone who knows me could say. I gave up on the game after an hour of play back in 2007 because of how nauseated I became just trying to get from place to place - to say nothing of the fact that, for a game that came out in the same year as the original Mass Effect, the graphics, controls, and world-building feel incredibly shallow considering how many games have followed.

Don't get me wrong, Assassin's Creed has excellent bones. The concept of genetic memory is something which you don't see often in mainstream sci-fi (the goa'uld of Stargate: SG-1 is the only other example I can think of off the top my head, though the Nietzschens of Andromeda with their genetic reincarnation are a close second), but the game made it just plausible enough sounding to work for the game, as are secret sects of Assassins and Templars.

And yet I find the game itself incredibly difficult to play - or did, for the first third of the game, before I broke down an found a good guide that explained to me everything I was missing. The running and jumping and climbing is fun, but finding anything - especially those memory flags - is nigh impossible without a ping/search mechanism, as is developing any mental map of an area without a physical map with everything useful marked to refer to. The pickpocketing mechanism took me a good half-hour to figure out successfully, and just entering the map for Acre got me noticed by the guards to such an extent it took me ten minutes to shake them. Twice. It took me until the end of memory block 5 to manage a single clean main target assassination, and that was more by luck than anything else.

To say nothing of the terrible horse ridding mechanics.

Or the shallowness of our nominal protagonist. (Though I'm willing to to contribute that to victim of kidnapping not giving his kidnappers anything to work with.)

Or the lack of captioning.

Or the game controls in general.

But the bones are there. It would have been very, very easy to turn a game about the Crusades into the standard pop culture offering of good versus evil, but by making it an issue of free will versus control the traditional Crusade narrative is turned on its head. I love how the dying declarations make it clear these men think they're doing good, and that Altair starts to question Al Mualim because of this - and that he gets to grow because of this, and eventually realize what Al Mualim has done to the Brotherhood. It's not your bog standard betrayal arc, but a become the very thing you sought to destroy, which is much harder to pull off well. And it does. The last two memory blocks make everything else worth it, and Altair's character development over the course of the game is real and believable and visceral in a way that's rare enough I can't think of the last time I've seen it.

And yet, I can't quite love the game. I'm not sure I'll ever replay this one, if only for the sheer frustration I've felt playing it this time. Even with the official guide leading me to each of the memory flags in later memory blocks, I'm still missing one or two for each place, and there are only so many times you can run through a city looking for something that blends into the the background before you give up. Additionally, the modern sections lack any clear objectives to the extent that it took me finding a guide to realize there were any, and each conversation with Lucy seems less potential ally and more if she spoon-feeds me one more piece of information, I'm going to gag. If she doesn't turn out to be a Templar mole, I'll buy a hat just to eat it.

In short, I can see why this game spawned such a successful franchise, but it needed about another 3 months in development to work out the kinks, give it some captioning, and redo the entire tutorial/first memory block. Maybe Ubisoft will one day do a remake, like Aspyr has promised for KOTOR, that Assassin's Creed will live up to its full potential... but until then, 3.5 stars and onto AC2.

[saturnine-saturneight]

Get to Know Your Moots Writeblr Interview

@davycoquette published the template for this [here] and it looks fun, so here I go!

I'm leaving this as an open tag, also.

On the Tumblr Writing Community

How long have you had your writing Tumblr/Writeblr?

I made this Tumblr last year with the intention of joining writeblr, then just kind of didn't. I've been using this blog actively for just two months now.

What led you to create it?

I had my story and no earthly idea how to get it out there. I was also missing a community and people to talk to about writing. Two problems that this has rectified :)

What’s your favorite thing about the Writeblr community?

Hands down how friendly a lot of people are and how much we engage with each other's writing. A close second is to hear people talk about their process and watch their stories grow.

Is there anything you’d like to see more of on your dash?

Meta! Tell me your thoughts! Show me your process! Give me before and afters when you edit!

What tips/advice do you have for someone who made a Writeblr today?

Idk, do what I did? Follow a bunch of people, do open tag games, start commenting on other people's posts and tagging them in things. Engage with others, and when you find something you like, tell that to the person who made it.

WIP it Good

Which Works-in-Progress (WIPs) or writing projects are you noodling about, lately?

It's really only Reburial (FKA Twin Suns) for me. I'm focusing all my energy on that. I have an idea or two for books after that in the same universe... But one thing after the other.

How long have you been working on them?

Depends heavily on how you count. I made the characters maybe 7 years ago, give or take? (Edit: Never mind, Ron was created 9 years ago. Christ.) The drabbles that kickstarted the story are from 2018. Since then I've picked it back up and put it back in a corner multiple times.

Do you remember what inspired them/what got you started?

These are roleplay characters that were originally part of a wider social net of characters that I was playing with friends. We all had our own plots going that the characters could then talk to each other about or even get involved in.

The events of Reburial/Twin Suns started when Nat had a very ill advised situationship with a friend's character who infected them with mushrooms. It was very different and almost none of it has stayed.

How much time, in your best estimation, do you spend thinking about them?

At least an hour a day.

When someone asks the dreaded, “What do you write about,” question, what do you usually say?

I usually keep it simple and just say horror. I don't talk about my writing very much to people IRL, and 'horror' has been offputting to basically everyone I've said that to, lmao.

Let’s Rotate Blorbos

Name any characters you created.

I've been rotating Ron in my mind, with Matcha being a close second. Ron doesn't get a lot of airtime in Act 1, simply because Nat sucks all the air out of a room with their thoughts and feelings and pays almost no attention to Ron's. Although he's the deuteragonist, we only really get to know him in Act 2.

Who’s the most unhinged?

Rabbit. Her and the hinges are only vague acquaintances. I like her because she's practical to a fault about deeply strange goals, like a single silver thread connecting her to the most fucked up version of herself that she can be.

Who comes the most naturally for you to write?

I don't really struggle with any of them. I've spent months to years roleplaying almost every character in the roster. The least natural is Louis, though.

Do you ever cringe at them?

Especially in their self centeredness, Nat can be pretty out of touch. They fancy themself a lot of things that they aren't, and inflate their own ego to a point where it cannot survive contact with reality.

How much control do you feel you have over your characters?

I feel very in control, actually! I have moments of They Would Not Fucking Say That sometimes when I'm trying to get from A to B, and things do go off the rails if I'm not careful, but usually, if I bend the circumstances correctly, my characters do what I need them to do.

On Writeblr Engagement

What makes you want to follow another Writeblr account?

I'm very careful about following new people and scope blogs out thoroughly. If a blog is mostly original writing, either by the blog owner or by other people, through tag games, excerpts etc, I like the writing style, and the WIPs sound cool, then I'm likely to follow. Bonus points if someone leaves a lot of nice tags or comments.

What makes you decide against following?

In no particular order: when a blog has a lot of writing un-related reblogs aka when it's mixed use and not exclusively a writeblr, when it's mostly memes about Not writing, and when the WIPs don't sound like something I'd like to read.

I really don't care for the majority of fantasy, y'all, sorry :( I follow one or two blogs who write it, and write it really well, but if it's sprawling epic fantasy, good against evil, chosen one, holy war type of stuff, it's just not my jam. I have sat through way too much Game of Thrones against my will.

[tiredassmage]

It's that time again - update rambles time kdfnalsdfnsd. The short version is, overall, I'm really pleased with this update, but there's... at least one thing missing that did sort of derail me in the end and I'll still need to go back and play it pubside on my Trooper, which I think I might enjoy slightly more for... cohesion of a story's sake, but that's. a) getting a bit into the actual ramble and b) getting my personal blorbo feelings involved which is absolutely what I do here but, let me do it in the right place, lmao.

Mechanically, this was. a really sweet update to me. There's lots of doing in progressing through the story part. The fights are engaging, the action is selling. It doesn't play like a bunch of run to checkpoint x, do y, hand in z, which is very nice. There's. actually a few things to consider. Comparing to 7.2 in Showdown, the action isn't just in the cutscenes this time - it's definitely there, too, I have plenty of nice action shots to add to the blasters out collection, lol - but it's also in the gameplay, at least from my take, so! I've really no complaints from a gameplay perspective thus far.

I haven't worked on any of the dailies or done the little follow up with Lane or whatnot yet because I sort of had my fill with the story for the day and I wanted to check out some of the lighting changes in other parts of the game, hehe! So, might run into other things later, but we'll see.

I also love seeing locations from earlier in the game making a comeback. The little hints here and there are enough to be exciting for me - though I see some people saying missed opportunity to do things with Jorgan and Corso and I will more than likely agree with that. I'd always be a sucker for more references.

Petra's really cool. I love her. Loved meeting her and working with her. As a local Imperial Agent enjoyer, I think it's only natural to say I do love the sneak and spy elements of this update, lol.

I got a lot of what I could've ever hoped to ask for out of this update. I'm just... missing the saboteur options? Which... really threw me at the end. There's at least a place or two that it felt exactly where those sort of options should've come up, but there's at least no directly labeled sight of them around, which is... jarring given Tyr's extensive history as a double agent for the Republic.

It's... a really tricky situation to deal with on Ord though, so that's. how I'm choosing to sort of interpret that one. There are some areas that felt a little too tight on strictly Imperial loyalty for how I typically play him, so it's. It's jarring, in short. One of my disappointment areas, I have to admit. I haven't done any of the dailies, but it looks like it'll end up being interpreted as Imperial support either way - which, fair, I'm playing an impside character, I know, but the lines were very clear on Ossus for where that saboteur option was involved and they even appeared on Manaan. I'm still hoping to see that storyline go somewhere even though there feels like there's a lot of moving parts on the board at the moment.

SO. With that said, onto my giggles and other miscellaneous references because it seems the last several story updates have thematically been reflective and reference-pockmarked for me, lol.

I cannot tell you the way I squealed with excitement to see these two in frame and actually doing something like cooperating.

And also the way I am, once again, haunted by being an Imperial Agent girlie. Because all I can think of in this is Double agent. Triple agent. Do you even know whose lies you're telling anymore?

Primarily, of course, my own feelings about blorbo who's been in the spy business for literally about half his lifetime and a double agent for maybe half of that - now he's going to balance being a double for the Republic with working with Sa'har? Ough. Tyr, babe. I hope you know what you're doing.

He wants to help her. He's wanted to from the start. Sa'har's I'm not sure I -want- to leave, speaking to that I'm not sure I can leave a job unfinished that Tyr is so, so painfully familiar with experiencing. Maybe he's got fleece over his eyes because of his own complicated feelings about working in unseen ways, but he does believe her.

ALSO THIS GIRL. NEARLY GIVIN ME A HEART ATTACK. GIRL I LIKED YOU DON'T SCARE ME LIKE THAT. Anyway. I love her. I love. Again, one of the most hilarious dialogue wheels you could give this man is I'm no traitor (lie, you've been once since you were in your late twenties, and you're like, what 46ish? It's been a long time since Hutta, agent) / I don't work with traitors (another lie, you're still kissing Theron Shan [Tyr. argues that doesn't count which is the only reason this is the option I went with] / and [Attack]

And then I won't be normal about him taking option 2 and dropping "I'd like to believe I've always been fighting for something greater."

I'm fine. I'm sure I'm fine. [Girl who is constantly plagued by the emotional agonies of maining a double agent.]

ANYWAY. Or perhaps also on that note. Krovos getting a little sharp about his misplaced priorities. Nothing comes of it. Yet. But it's enough to keep my brain stew going and bubbling about the weight of it all.

And it's just. so very Tyr to throw himself in the line of fire trying to keep people he meant to keep out of overcomplicating situations safe.

And I am, overall, just a sucker for the way this update brings it back to... I guess grass roots, you could say. Grounding the story in what's actually happening to places like Ord Mantell, brushing with some of the consequences on people in general - the Hidden Chain stealing supplies, possibly moving people, even, or at least their allies might be - sells the big story in the end, I think. Otherwise, the big, vague prophetic 'the fate of the galaxy sets on your shoulder' doesn't really settle as much. This might be what you're fighting for, or it might be what you're costing along the way. And I just like having that connective tissue that is 'they're here for supplies;' they're rebuilding and moving forward with plans after Ruhnuk, and Malgus's threat that all things will still unfold according to a plan is still lingering around.

[Also, Rass people. The flirts. wtf I love it. They're adorable.]

And I really am just. Such a hopeless sucker for scenes like this. A little slice of just being people in between all the galactic turmoil and heroics.

So, I've still got a fair amount of things to be chewing on! Once I'm through this last week of finals stuff, I'll expect I'll hop on TrooperTyr and go. redamage my emotions further and play it pubside and have a whole other whirlwind of emotions about how he handles it too dlfknsadlkf;sld. For now, time to pop some screenshots into the queue! ^.^

OH. ALSO. Kessing's Landing is fucking beautiful.

[katyspersonal]

Ogay now your turn, who was your blorbo(s) before???

Damn... This is a harder question than it seems, because it is... hard to remember? My brain got SO rotted with Soulsborne world that I legit am forgetting how things used to be before that? It doesn't help that my feelings about the character and how much I talk about them / do for them do not always match! As a result, I have three types of blorbos:

1) The 'real' blorbo: The one that evokes the most feelings and I actively fantasize about being with, one that sparks yearning and attraction and consumes the most of my thoughts, but I won't do enough with

2) The 'productive' blorbo: The one which I practically breathe life in and create entire story and world for when canon didn't provide much and/or this character is unpopular. They often become crucial part of my online identity, or JUST my identity o_o'

3) The 'fanmade' blorbo: It is either an AU version of the character, an interpretation so unfitting and far from canon vibe that it almost works as an OC, or JUST an OC. I actually love/hate this one, because this is the asshole that will always make me stray from working on canon!! They will make me focus so much on them that depending on the nature of the character, I will forget the canon vibe in my love for this version or will forsaken general source material to join an AU/RP where this character is. Let me focus on canon-palatable creativity and stop wasting my time, dipshits!!

So, to give you the idea, in Bloodborne, type one would be, of course, Micolash, Edgar and Maria (but mostly Micolash)! Type two would be Rom and Izzy. And since recently my Laurence is between 1 and 2 because he is really S E X Y but also I have to create everything for him xD. Type three would be... uh...

My previous "fandom" was UTDR, but that stay was a little short-lasting, since Deltarune is work in progress and Undertale did not have the same grip on me. In there, my type one blorbo were Rouxls Kaard and Mettaton! You can tell I love the flamboyant sexy man with fake depth, fair level of depravity but not evilness, and intelligence of a brick dshhfdsdds My art never felt good enough to capture Mettaton's confident energy, however, I'd like to show this fanart of Rouxls:

Type two blorbo were Mad MewMew, Catti, and Diamond King! The latter two were sort of underdeveloped in canon at the time, and for MewMew I actually had a bunch of things, and even RPed as her for some time! Developing Diamond King was quite fun, though he was dangerously close to type 3 because of AU stuff where HE was the bad guy and not Spade King (and Catti was the 'monster' of the prophesy). Besides, we did give him a wife who is not getting used in canon but exists in the cards deck that WAS used for the 'cards'.

(EDIT: I made these sprites and I forgot that I made them and not Val o_o" Because it's been a few years ago + I am scatter-brained. Oh jeez)

And type three happened when I delved into helping to work on an AU for Deltarune, a project a passionate person started in hunger for completion of Deltarune, following after Chapter 1 and ignoring everything. Basically, attempt to finish the game that had AMAZING story and characters! I lended many designs, ideas and characters for it, improving it very significantly. I no longer work on that project and gave all rights to my designs and creative solutions to the developer, but it was FUN. And like I said, distracted me from the canon-palatable creativity. And helped me to finally come to terms with the fact that I am way better at nurturing, supporting, editing and improving someone else's projects than creating my own. It was a long time coming realisation considering how half of my drawings for any fandom used to be fanart of other people's ideas and OCs or fanart for our RP plots. Not something that can happen in this fandom because... you know. But yeah, I've always been the guy that would draw a pile of everyone's OCs/interpretations in the community, or help someone with no coherent design idea to GET that design down!

...ak-hem, where was I? Right, blorbos. So, the 'fanmade' blorbos were, of course, our version of Diamond Queen and... this BITCH:

This is Ace of Hearts! And Insight joke is actually something I just made up, since I made this guy before I knew anything about Bloodborne! It aged like fucking milk, hahahahaha!! To give you the idea of what I had to do to design the Aces, here are the cards by Kanotynes that Toby was using:

These are the face cards ( x )! If you saw Deltarune's chapter one, you can see how and which designs were used, and which changed.

And this is the only image of all cards I can reliably find ( x ). You can see that number cards were de-personalised and are just various things. So what I did was combining the face card look and find a way to "fuck it up", since Aces learned A LOT of 'Chaos' and not only part of it like Jevil (and now Spamton)! Here are the rest of them:

You can tell, even in healthy forms, they'd still be a bit... 'strange' compared with face cards. Ace of Clubs in healthy form would have only one head and one horn, and his 99 Insight Chaos version has 11 heads each with one peace of their body or face... And Ace of Diamonds would be a snake with 'umbrella' skin, which is nothing like other Diamond suits!

I was the one to insist that we have Aces in the project, conceptualised them, designed them, wrote them lore etc. And Ace of Hearts was my favourite, and also the scariest one. (of course I like the most creepy one -_-) It was also the first situation where I got obsessed with my OWN non-canon stuff... although, technically, they are no longer mine, since I passed the designs and right to write and use to the owner completely. Maybe it is to the better, as I moved closer towards enjoying my own content more!

(Idle sprites I've made back then!)

___________

Thank you for listening and giving me nostalgia, lol xD

[itlivesproject]

Big long message coming from someone who binged the whole game in two days:

1. Whoever wrote the Abel route deserves to get all the good things in life. His bright and warm personality and natural quirkiness tugged at my heartstrings and I just knew I wanted my MC to stick by him. It's no wonder so many peeps loved his route-- he was super fleshed out and he takes a new spin on the nerd LI archetype. Not to mention, his past with his family is bittersweet, yet it was never used for shock value. It was evident how these experiences affected his character and how he interacts with others, and it never fails to radiate how genuine he is and how much reality was inspired in his making.

(Also that last sex with him was so detailed, raw, passionate, and personal. Everything is scorched on my front lobe and I will nevrr forget it.mE.A. James could never.)

I can feel the good writing for all routes and the whole narrative in general even if I didn't pick them as LIs. The talent of the writing team always oozes, and I can never stop reading. I might retry other routes and I will do that after recovering from the psychic damage I acquired crying and laughing with this story.

2. From what I've read on the net so far, the Mixed Ending was the most well-liked ending, but I beg to digress because I am selfish and delusional and I just want my MC to rest, ok? 😔 I personally favored the successful non-betrayal blood ending.

The consequences of the ending are much more direct than that of the mixed ending and at least it was easier to cope with it because MC still has their support group, but I just really love the closure it provided that my gen!MC (ironic, I know) stayed true to what she wanted, which was to continue the life that was frozen over since the incident. Shadow Ending is honestly the most selfless and poetic ending that gave me crippling depression and I loved its angst. The Mixed Ending was my least favorite because it was the most open-ended one, and I felt unsettled by it because I felt the least secure for my MC's future, esp with their LI. I still have to play through Matthias' route but it's really promising.

3. I can't help but have my curiosity piqued by how everything played out with a similar pattern to how colonisers always end up messing up and undoing the progress of indigenous people's learnings and practices, and their utter disrespect for nature which ultimately blows up in their face but unfortunately, it's those that try to save it that suffer the most. The subtle incorporation of this theme was the perfect piece that really tied together the past of all It Lives book. Loha and Matthias were the perfect characters to resemble this struggle.

What lingers in my mind, however, is that Loha and Matthias, as individuals, are the two sides of the same coin. Both characters have personal strong connections to the Power, have personal gains and goals for it, used, manipulated and forced people to assist them in their cause, and ultimately birthed a person that was meant to be the key to finish their mission.

Though it was true that what Loha did was for the common good vs. Matthias' hedonistic and self-centered purposes, I think Loha is no better than Matthias, (Sorry, guys. I know some of you might fight me.) and I think it is equally hypocritical of Loha to ask MC to lay down her life to heal the breach and feel disappointed when MC doesn't do as she says.

She shared herself how a wisp was so curious of life on Earth that this innocent venture eventually bloomed into all this, so she knew that to an extent, even if the Shadow Ending occurs, it might happen again so long as the Power has free will to choose and explore. Maybe that's why I like the Blood Ending so much, I don't see a point to all the MC's (esp. ILW) suffering so much when they are mortals constantly being tested by a higher power. I think it was best to share the labor for everyone to maintain than just place the burden on one person. (My MC worked her ass off to charm Abel's pants off I simply can't let her down 😔)

4. The team is so resourceful with reusing, mixing, and adding visual assets to the game. Seeing the familiar layout and mechanics such as reusing minor characters really established the familiar Choices foundation of the game, but the impressively added illustrations, wide array of sprite personalization, the unique and diverse character designs, and even the title screens was truly the marks that made this an excellent fanwork. It manages to really immerse the reader and I can never, ever get enough of it.

5. In relation to 4, the programming of the game is superb. There is sensible weight and effects to choices, LIs are equally balanced and don't overpower the narrative, the godsent SAVES, the carefully considered rewards and consequences of all decisions and just everything about the system has made me question all that Choices has done since forever. How can a nonprofit fan team make such a complex system with such delicacy and thought that a multimillion dollar company simply cannot? You raised the bar higher for what interactive stories should look like. THIS is how interactive stories should be, and thanks to the user-friendly programming, the replay value is very high.

These are all I can say off the top of my head and I will always be grateful for this work you've shared to us. This is the most passionate passion project I've had the honor of experiencing, and I wish you all the best in your future endeavors. Should your endeavors include another interactive story (Painted Devils can't come soon enough, please just take my money!), I will be most eager to take part in it.

Sorry if this was long!

(P.S.: Abel mentioned about having people over with his shirt on. *What's his body count?* 🤭☺️)

Thank you for sending this in and sharing your thoughts!! I'm so glad that the game was so meaningful for you <3

[axl-ul]

Writer Q&A Tag Game

Thank so much for the tag @mthollowell-writes (the og post here) and @dyrewrites (the og post here)!This was so sweet of you^^

And if you have time, please, read their posts, they're so beautiful and motivational.

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

What motivates you to write?

Pretty much that I get to share a piece of myself. I'm not sure how to put it...but when I write I can sometimes feel my body relaxing and that I get to create something, anything from all the chaos that's sometimes in my head.

2. A line/short snippet of your writing that you are most proud/happy of. If not maybe share a line of someone else's work you love (just please credit them)

It's a snippet from The Lakebed, an episode from Ulfrika's youth while she was still under the care of Master Kogar.

“Yes, Majstre. Hm…Majstre? Did you truly want to shoot me down?“ He paused, “Never, my disciple.“ He patted the young head before diving into a quick lesson about proper fishing methods and life in lakes. In the meanwhile, the sun started to come out. Unable to resist the sunlight for long without the proper clothing and skin treatment the master and his disciple decided to come back. For the last time, the Man with No Eyes looked behind where the ice was cut out. He found the right successor. Even though she’s not the typical demon nor that it’ll be an easy path. But he sensed the potential. And she deserved to get the second chance. With unusual happiness settling down and unaware of the doom he brought upon himself on that fateful day he returned home with Ulfrika.

3. Which OC makes you smile every time you think/talk about them and what are they like?

This might be a pretty easy answer - Princess Mei from The Flight of the Western Crane. She starts out as a shy young woman who's prone to fear and crying and she gets overwhelmed pretty easily. The more the story progresses, though, she gets more self-confident and comes out of her shell to reveal what she really is like - joyous, a slight jokester with heart of gold and even a bit of a fighter (until then she was like this only around her advisor and best/only friend Lady Wolf Witch a.k.a. Márgerdra). Mei's like... such a breath of a fresh air because I don't remember writing a character like her before. Oh, did I mention she likes hugs, too? Well, if not, then be prepared for her to hug your soul out of you. Then she'll pull you away to the nearest shop because t r i n k e t s.

4. What process of writing do you enjoy the most?

Hopefully, you won't get mad at me but the outline and coming up with the plot ideas and characters. The very begining when it's up to you how the heart and soul of your story shall look like.

5. What part of writing do you think you are the best at? (Yes stroke your own ego it's okay)

I dare to say I'm pretty good at descriptions of the nature. As in the rich vocabularly and how I play around the words. I like coming up with metaphors and poetic prose sort of grew on me over the years.

6. What is something in the writeblr community is most enjoyable?

People around are truly trying to help each other. I'm still lacking quite a lot of contact but it's mostly due to me not being good with starting a conversation. But whenever I talk to is truly nice, sweet and polite which is admirable.

7. A writing tool/device you use that helps you with writing? (It could be speech to text, a writing program etc)

I'm going to be the basic bitch and say Google Docs and partialy Microsoft Word which I'll probably use sooner or later since Google Docs have problems with big files and there's also been the debate about the AI. Apart from these I also use Thessaurus a.k.a. Word Hippo and an unnamed internet dictionary. This is due to the fact that English is my 3rd language and I write my current projects in it. In other words, I sometimes can't exactly remember the word I actually want to use. So I either go and translate it for myself or I use the word hippo to find a synonym I know but I just couldn't think of in that moment.

8. A piece of worldbuilding that you like in your own story? (It could be the magic system, a particular place in the story, a law etc)

I came t like the Blackworld itself. In short, it's a non-physical place filled with eldritch horros that can manifest in the real world and from time to time some cultures came to worship these beings as their saints, gods or patrons mostly because of the slow corruption of their minds and souls. It's not only the concept of a place that's not real but also there's so many mysteries about the Blackworld - is it just a place that's a sphere for all those entities to linger? Or is it actually an organism of its own that's capable of giving birth without being exactly alive (at least in our way of understanding)? Why does it shape according to the subconscience of those who enter it? How does it know when somebody alive enters it? Just so many questions and so little answers and those answer then spark another ten new questions.

9. What piece of advice would you say to encourage others to write if they are having a rough patch?

I know this might go against the general rules but it's worked for me many times. Whenever I struggle to write I find myself a playlist, listen to it and while listening I'm re-reading my past chapters and re-editing some little details. When I can read a chapter after a chapter it's easier for me pick up on the more consistent vibe and feel of the story. And if this doesn't help either, I just take out another wip and focus on that other story.

10. Tag some people whose works you love/have been your biggest supporters

I've already mentioned the duo who tagged me so here's the follow-up: @arijensineink @minutiaewriter @rbbess110 @rubywrite @jgmartin @faelanvance @angie-j-kay (I know you can't respond right now but I wanted to mention you since you've been such a great support, thank you^^) @anthros-vanitas-archive @your-absent-father @sam-glade

[bloodsbane]

Hello, Happy (late? Its 1 am so I think technically late) birthday :) I just saw in yer tags that you decided to play Slay the Princess on your birthday, and I wanted to ask what you thought of the game :)

thank you~ ^^ i'm more than happy to talk about it!

short answer is that yes, i did play, and i had a really good time! I did one "full run" of it. for those curious, i got these in order: the Fury, the Razor, the Damsel, the Prisoner, and the Adversary.

it's a game i'd definitely recommend to anyone who's at least slightly interested in it! and that it's absolutely one that's the most fun going into as blind as possible, BUT by its nature, you'd still have a lot to discover on your own even if you watched someone play part of most of a run ;)

(more concrete commentary and vague spoilers below)

(and of the routes i got, I think Fury and Adversary are my favorites, though I did the Godkiller branch of Fury so I'm really curious to get that again and try going with the Broken's suggestions heh)

I ended up getting what I think could be called a 'middling/Neutral' ending, which was fine, I was playing to explore and pick what felt right in each moment rather than get something more definitive. I think I got a lot of insights by the end of my route so I'm eager to get back into it and play the game at least like 2 more times.

I REALLY enjoy the game, I think the ideas behind it are so cool and I love how it has so much replay-ability. like, I watched Joseph Anderson's playthrough of it (which was super funny, though I didn't finish watching the end of it bc he got a different Ending than I did and I didn't wanna see every detail of that), and it was really interesting to see not only what other routes he discovered, but how when he encountered routes that I'd also run into (Razor, Damsel), he managed to get slightly-to-moderately different versions of them! Like, his version of the Princess at the end of his Damsel route was totally different from mine!

The presentation is perfect, too. I'm already quite familiar with Jonathan Sims' voice talents of course, since I've been a huge fan of The Magnus Archives for the last ~5 years, and he wrote/voiced in that podcast. He does a phenomenal job acting out all the Voices in STP, and it was really nice to hear him performing again (even as I'm keeping up with the TMA sequel podcast, where he also voices, just not as predominantly!)

The voice acting for the Princess was amazing too, I LOVED hearing all the different variations of her vocal presentation. I thought it was such an immediately cool detail... especially since I chose to take the knife down with me on my very first go at it, so my first impression of her was the much more dangerous and stern delivery, which I wasn't expecting - I anticipated the writing to have her play innocent at first, but of course I know now why that wasn't the case, hehehe.

and of course the artwork is amazing. i LOVE how it's kept to a more sketchy, work-in-progress feeling style, i think it conveys the fragility and impermanence and transformative nature of the game and where it takes place. and of course all the ways the princess is stylized, both more subtly and obviously, in each route, is one of the most fun elements of discovering new versions of her. a lot of the compositions are great and i love her expressions a ton!! uhg just really great artwork all around

and speaking of art, the ost is fantastic, really perfect ambiance as well as tracks that convey the feel of each route, like, i'd call them each uniquely textured in a way perfectly suited to each. i'll probably throw the ost on by itself at some point to try appreciating the music on its own a bit more

overall great game!! im excited to play it again and im curious just how many variations of paths and endings there are!

[bobzora]

more reload thoughts, this time on the characters, heavy spoilers under cut (for p3 content, and also spoilers on some of the new stuff!!)

akihiko and mitsuru got arena era characterization blasted it's actually really sad he is not protein. she is not a helicopter mom. they are equals and friends who respect each other. please get the memo. most of the others' characterization seemed fine but man they got the worst of it

it's really funny that akihiko has gone from best to worst party member. i'm thankful to be free from the shackles that forced me to use him. i beat nyx with junpei aigis yukari. ken and yukari i swapped between for other fights.

yukari is one of my favorites. and she still is. i'm kind of bummed they made her nicer though

this is my first time actually saving chidori. ok time to mention junpei's new english va did a banger job. most of the cast in general killed it. shoutout to yuko (strength sl) ? for an unexpected banger of a natural sounding voice? anyway junpei's second theurgy. goes hard.

i still dont care about koromaru nothing could make me care about koromaru he's cute. i guess. lol. i like that you can pet him.

i love you aigis! there's nothing notably new for me to say about her but i lvoe her i love her i love her. she matters so much if you even care. crazy how i actually used orgia mode in reload

KEN AMADAAAA. ken. ken. ken. ok FIRST of all he's usable now! yay! i love having non-instakill light and dark skills. SECOND of all oh my god the first couple ranks of his not-SL drove me crazy. i went Uh. Uh. Um. it's like awww he likes featherman :) oh. yeah. this ten year old is actively planning a murder-suicide. he wants you to look after his hamster named hamburger if (when) something happens to him. i have such a big soft spot for ken he is my favorite child soldier. jesus christ. slightly sad that they removed some relevant dorm dialogue. i dont have the fes screenshots on me those are on my old laptop. but trust that they are missed.

i'm not a true shinji-er, frankly i mostly care about him (and akihiko) just through his relationship with local justice kid ken. it was nice hanging out with him though...jumpscared by his smile. his last hangout event (the post-mortem one) was good. oh yeah he's such a strong battler i wish i could keep him around. his theurgy is over the top with the bloody tear but i love that lol.

ryoji mochizuki voice "I know I said I wanted us to be friends, but... I actually want to be something more."

not being able to say "same":

they actually fucking did it. dude. they actually fucking did it. throughout the hangout i was like okay which 5 royal writer was working on this because this is some pretty good bait. and as it progressed i was like there's no way they're actually going for it, right? man they went for it. ryoji makes good on his word that he would love mc whether girl or boy. love wins. or loses i guess. good fucking content. movie ryomina is still on top but well that is the movies and this is video game. and this is the first time minato and ryoji can actually hang out in a video game. i love you bisexuality

i prefer "that was my name for a time. i didn't mind it." over the version in reload but man that's just me being attached to lines lol. also nyx (avatar) gets he/him-ed. shoutout detransitioned ryoji ( :( )

i wish i could put aigis in a butler outfit.

i miss femc.

[lothedon]

Hiatus Thoughts Part 1

1. Go see a doctor. Preferably a black female doctor but go see a doctor. I recommend Dr. Sabrina Williams.

2. I’m finally getting help with my ADD. 🥂 Here’s to better focus.

3. “Anniversary Reaction” is a real thing. Mentally you may think you’re past it but your body has its own memory.

4. At this big old age, I still hate needles. POKE-ahontas got my blood work done as SOON as I sat down. Barely a connection or nothing, Jeezus. She was smooth with it too. Quick & no pain. Great work POKE-ianna. Just sweet talk me a little before you put it in, aight!? 🤝

5. Ear worm: Thotianna Cardi B & YG remix

6. I LOVE BEING AN AUNTIE!!!!!

7. I want Indy to stop going viral for the WRONG reasons. WE make the wrong shit go viral.

8. The Last of Us is FINALLY a movie! 🙌🏽

9. I want to lose 14 pounds before Pardi Gras Ball.

10. My favorites songs from Drake’s “Honestly Never mind” are ‘Jimmy Crooks’ & ‘Calling My Name’. There were other good ones but those are my “go-tos”.

11. Sweet Nothing - Calvin Harris (Diplo + Grand Theft Auto Remix)

12. I need workout gloves.

13. Back work outs are my favorite! I want a sexy back 😜

14. Making sure my nieces & great nieces hear Destiny’s Child’s “Writing On The Wall” is imperative. My nephew needs to hear it cause he’s a natural musician.

15. I need to attend some theater plays.

16. Venus in Pisces requires us to spend more time recognizing our emotions, enforcing boundaries, & receiving love. 🥰

17. One thing I loved about myself in my early 20’s is that I marched to the beat of my own drum music wise. On a regular, I didn’t listen to what’s popular with those around me. You’re guaranteed to hear something new.

18. My goal is decorate my room & bathroom to be like an expensive hotel & spa.

19. I need a full time job that I love.

20. This book about boundaries is bomb. The beginning of chapter 5 lets me know a conservative white man is writing it though 😒.

21. Focalin got my hunger suppressed like a mug! No more random snacking.

22. 👉🏽Results are always in the work we avoid.

23. Twerking over Squats. I’m working these thighs at all the parties/events I attend. I need to be twerking for at least a good HOUR!

24. 👉🏽Success is going from failure to failure without losing enthusiasm.

25. IM SO HAPPY TO BE BACK ON MY THYROID MEDS!!!

26. This tetanus shot is IRRITATING! 😣

27. I’m contemplating going back short & blonde 😩

28. Ain’t nobody engaged with me or reach out since I deleted the app. Ain’t no point in me having the app anymore. I put too much effort into engaging with folks for them to not want to engage with me. Time to become more exclusive.

29. Eargasm: Broken Clocks - Sza

30. Marc Jacobs need to come out with mini backpacks 😒

31. Progress. My legs are not shaking while skating.

32. Adding skating to my workout regime.

33. Feminine & Flirty.

34. Playing video games until 3am is a lot 😫

35. WHY IS MINECRAFT SO BORING???

36. Everybody needs to get back on Tumblr

37. Hopped on FB for a zip, did a quick scroll, & remembered why I need to keep the app deleted. Smh Too Much.

38. I’m about to just get a regular degular job somewhere. I’m tired of the emotional roller coaster with these jobs.

39. Sit ups/Crunches in variations REALLY makes a difference in one week with your normal work out. 🤯

40. I’m not even vegan but Tabitha is about to get all my coins.

41. I really miss the EDM & Hip Hop days.

42. I can’t date a man that doesn’t prioritize his sleep. You don’t care about your health at all.

43. Before I get back active on FB I need to unfollow a BUNCH of folks for various reason. The only way I’ll be happy online is if I see stuff that makes me happy.

44. 👉🏽Anger lets us know our boundaries have been violated.

45. The Lat Pulldowns gonna slim this waist. 😜

46. I want y’all to stop walking up on peoples cars unless you asking for help because it’s an emergency.

47. Stop paying non-existent debts with folks & do what’s best for you!

48. So y’all going to Target in robes and house shoes????

49. 👉🏽 Sometimes the answer is in the process. - Megan Brooks

50. 👉🏽 Proof of desire is in the pursuit. - Megan Brooks

51. I know Vasa is all the rave but what I do love about Planet fitness is that when I go, it ain’t packed.

52. NOT EMILY IN PARIS CALLED INDIANAPOLIS BORING????😫😂

53. Emily In Paris makes me want to move to another city SO BAD! Or at least travel & stay for a week 😭

54. Got my STD/STI/HIV test results back & they were all negative/non-reactive. 🎉🙌🏽🤩

55. Emily in Paris IS the “Sex In The City” -ish show I needed.

56. If I can get my vitamin D levels elevated in normal range I can lose weight, get rid of my asthma, calm my allergies, & have better focus. 🙌🏽🤩

57. I’m really gonna lose this weight & get the breast reduction. I want to go down to a C cup.

58. Before I die, I have to see Paris, France.

59. Who is this fine caramel man in Emily In Paris???😍

60. 2023 = Overdressed, Mix Match Print, Polished, Out The Box, Head Turning, Main Character, Neutrals & Pop Of Color/Colorful

61. For every sandal/heel purchase I must buy a tennis shoe. Build your sneaker collection.

62. Black, Brown, Purple, Cobalt Blue, Green, Orange, Dusty Pink, White, Navy, Yellow, Red (order in that order). For every black version order the color version. For every color version order black.

63. The Husband & Wife of Mielle Organics are still the CEO & COO of the company. They have NOT stepped away from the brand.

64. Can someone bring Fabulous back to Indy? He’s my favorite toxic.

65. This year I’m twerking to Back That Thang Up Juve every time I hear it.

66. Emily In Paris gives me “Sex In The City” + “Devil Wears Prada”.

67. I’ll never forget how “Go DJ” by Cash Money Records had y’all in a chokehold in middle school.

68. If Erykah Badu had “punk” or “goth” baby it would be Rico Nasty.

69. I wonder if the offspring of Vietnam veterans that were effect by Agent Orange are the ones who also have ADHD & Autism as well. (Of course not all people with ADHD & Autism)

70. Done is good. Good is extra. Completion over Perfection! For people with ADHD it’s better to half ass it & get it done versus never starting due to procrastination/fear of not doing it perfect!

71. If you want to see some black father & son content, watch 2Chainz & his some on YouTube as well as another black father & son duo called Daddy Seed. I’m here for the black father & son content.

72. I also love the black man luxury self care content too.

73. I’m learning to not be afraid to ask the “stupid” questions. And to ask people to be patient with me.

74. Yagi World is giving me Baby Phat track suit popularity trend in the early 2000s.

75. Not being apart of anything going on with the NBA ALL STAR 2024 makes me feel like I’m not enough or haven’t done enough. Personally, I’ve been feeling both simultaneously for years & I think I’ve had enough. Im ready to let it all go & pivot to the nothing related to marketing, PR, communications, ……nothing. Im 31 going on 32. I’ve been working in this since I was in college around the age of 21. Altogether 10 years. I have nothing to show for & no more doors are opening. It’s just not in me or for me anymore. I quit.

76. I hope to be out of town All Star Weekend. I don’t even want to be in the city. Hell I hope to have moved out the city.

77. I think I’ve been fighting depression and it’s caught me.

78. Mental Healness on Tik Tok is a great guy. It’s refreshing to see a black male open up about his mental illness to help others. He is a diagnosed narcissist & has so many men & women in his comments who has narcissism that are getting help because of him.

79. Values over goals. Ex:. Instead of “I will work out 3-5x a week.” You will say “I value movement. I value being pain free in basic tasks such as walking. I value energy. I value an able body.”

80. I want to go on a cruise for NYE 2024.

81. Prostate cancer is on the rise due to low testing. Fellas start getting tested as early as 40.

82. Beyoncé - “Church Girl” should be played more often.

83. It takes one day to get married but a lifetime to stay married.

84. I got all y’all looking at my story to see this light chick with the big butt. With the amount of attention y’all ran to my story with, I don’t want to hear y’all say anything about chicks who get BBLS, wear make up, &/or brighten their skin. YALL LIKE THAT VISUAL! 🤷🏽‍♀️

85. I’m unfriending a lot of men when I get back on Facebook. If we not family, genuine friends, you’re not inspiring me, we not hunching, or making money together….then I don’t see the point of remaining Facebook friends.

86. I may be single but I ain’t out here physically fighting a significant other. 🙌🏽

87. Everyone should watch “Bao” & “Red panda” 🥹

88. I LOVE BEING AN AUNTIE!🥰

89. Stop having relationship conversations with people you’d never consider dating or that are not on the same wave length as you. You’re wasting your energy.

90. I feel some type of way about the “hot Cheetos girl” trend in Tik Tok.

91. RIP Grandma Holla 🙏🏾

92. Teaching kids to set boundaries, how to respect other people’s boundaries, & supporting them while they are practicing is important. It is also important for them to watch YOU set boundaries, respect other people’s boundaries, & see you receive support from your tribe.

93. “It’s clear that I’m not feeling you & you not feeling me. On the G, what comes after A? Just let that let that Nigga B.” - Freaky T

94. Sunday is not a rest day from the gym or from moving the body.

95. Go watch “Shadow In The Cloud” on Hulu.

96. I got new bras! 🎉

97. If they make you anxious when they’re around then they don’t need to be around. Id have to say that is one time I realize my anxiety was actually the way my body is telling me something is wrong.

98. 🔑 “Sometimes your point is in your silence.” - Megan Brooks

99. “High value but no core values.” 🚫👎🏽

100. “Drake wants a Ayesha Curry but is Drake a Steph Curry!?” - KnoForSure Podcasts

[mushroom-for-art]

Part 3 of Shadow au, Syns making progress! I think! He thinks! We don't know! Also added some extra stuff to this one because I was inspired by the height chart art using Darkness' extra sharp design so woo! Enjoy your boy @seasidemew! This part was actually meant to be bit heavier but lmao I've changed the order of my canon it's fine lmao so you get another relaxing one

Conversations and Progress

The dark hued two delicately landed in the middle of the makeshift camp, the grass was soft and cool under her feet as she glanced wearily to the side, her pink toned brother snuffled in his sleep stretching wiggling made a mrrp and rolling over with an exhale returning to lightly snoring as she let out a faint sigh of relief. He didn't actually know her yet, they'd never met and frankly after what happened she intended to keep it that way.

The orange hued two lifted her head from where she sat leaning against a tree looking at her sister with dark bags forming under her eyes. She stood slowly motioning with her head and stepped out of the campsite walking a small distance before stopping and waiting for her taller sister.

"What has he asked then?" May hugged herself as she asked the question, thumbs rubbing her arms softly in self soothing motions as she turned her head to glance at her sibling.

"This and that, he still wonders how and why we know each other and he's suggested his own theories he thinks we have a truce or blackmail on each other. And he's been asking what we've been saying about him naturally."

The orange one hummed uncomfortably squeezing her own arms, "and are you still being safe? He's not threatened you or followed you back to your nest?"

"No, not yet, he's moved as if to join me on the flight home but I told him I needed my beauty sleep and my privacy and I didn't like a man that disrespected either of those." She shrugged casually, "it seemed to work."

"Citrine… you really must be more careful..if he, I don't know he might turn if he thinks you're just screwing with him or get real nasty if he gets bored of the games."

"I know.." Her tail swayed, "I know. I'm being careful don't worry so much May, you should be thinking of yourself more I mean look at those bags. Are they designer? You could steal a purse with them when did you last get a proper nights' sleep?"

May looked away squeezing herself, "not since I thought I saw him that night… not properly since finding out I was right.." She shook her head looking back at her sister, "But it's my JOB to worry about you and to worry about Matt. I'm the oldest, you're my baby sister and he's my baby brother. I can't just sleep peacefully knowing he might lurk into camp and slaughter either of you."

Darkness grimaced to herself "May.." She felt Mays hands grab her face reaching up with some difficulty for the height difference.

"No, don't you May me, you're family okay? And I care about you a lot so I'm gonna worry."

She sighed, moving to take her sisters' wrists, planning to move her hands off her face, "you're too forgiving all things considering with me you know."

"You've grown and you've changed, I know you feel bad over what happened because you push away any kindness thinking you don't deserve it, but you do. I mean you keep checking in on us and watching that, that guy for us even though he could be a threat to you. AND hush hush ehp not finished close your mouth, and you're trying to change your identity claiming a new name moving on from being Darkness, and I'm really proud of you for it. Maybe I am too forgiving but I think you've earned the forgiveness."

Darkness hummed awkwardly looking away with her eyes, "I mean the whole experimental new names thing is personal because the name was dumb not some, spiritual metaphor." She moved Mays hands to emphasis the denial of self flinching and pulling her hands away when May winced.

"Ah-!" May looked at the bloody little marks on her wrist and frowned before grabbing one of her sisters hands who tried to retract them pulling it close to examine, she squeezed one of her fingers hearing her hiss in discomfort as a jagged crystal protruded from her paw like a claw.

"What did you do…" her voice was soft and deeply concerned as she examined Darkness' hand noticing the spikes protruding from her wrist also, "Citrine…"

"Dont…that names too nice for me.." She sighed softly, "I saw him. During the day fighting a Mega evolved Aggron. It didnt stand a chance… I got, scared, and panicked so I added more to myself to be stronger so if he turns nasty, if I have to fight him it'll give me the edge and extra strength."

"That must hurt.."

"It's not so bad, rather ache now and win then avoid needed pain and lose."

"I don't agree with you doing this to yourself, but it's done now.. If it comes to it you know I'd fight by your side against him."

"You're such a mother sometimes." Darkness chuckled softly, "I suppose I like the sound of those odds." May gently released her hand.

"Just please don't do anything else like this to yourself okay? Cause I don't want it turning into a self punishment thing. I know you because you're like me, you're from me, I am your mother." Though her tone was stern it did end in a playful way as she offered her sister a comforting smile.

"Hm, fine sure whatever mom," Darkness laughed softly, "I should go entertain him then for a bit, don't want him getting too bored or jealous." Moving to step away.

"Please stay." She paused at Mays request, "I, want Matt to meet you and I just, I have a bad feeling tonight. I don't know I feel bad letting you leave to go to him. I worry you won't come back. So, stay? You can have my bed." Darkness swished her tail smiling softly to her sister, usually she'd argue about having to go but to some degree she'd been wanting to meet her little brother too even if she was anxious with his initial negative experience with shadow mewtwo. "and I might actually sleep better tonight with you both nearby and safe!"

"aah fine I guess you've convinced me," smiling casually she watched Mays shoulders drop in relief as they moved to walk back to the camp.

"I think Matt will love you once he gets to know you realize who you are...and I think you're wrong Citrine is a nice name for you you deserve a good name and I think you should get a name that's pretty. Like Crystal or Jewel or uh Diamond or Moonstone." Darkness snorted softly.

"I'm noticing a theme here," smirking as May floundered.

"Well you said Citrine was a gem so like eehh was trying to think of other gem things I thought you liked it for that?"

"Well, it's like a yellow gem and it's kinda pretty..though it was his suggestion before he swapped to Citrus cause I got the two confused."

"Ah yes orange scented," May lightly bumped into her sister playful as they walked into camp, "I mean you're a pretty gem, it's up to you what you choose."

Darkness hesitated for a moment, "I, was thinking of maybe looking at M starting names…since like you and Matt..but that's probably intruding.."

May smiled at her comfortingly, "Hey that'd be nice, or if you pick an A starting name we could become M A M." Darkness lightly hit her face shoving her away as she laughed.

"Never mind I'm never taking suggestions from you ever," but she laughed fondly as May chuckled in mischievous motioning for Darkness to take her bed, a few leaves carefully arranged on the ground for padding against the dirt just as cushioning the best they could do considering they were out in the wilds with no equipment.

Darkness moved to sit but pointed at her in play threat, "you better sleep." With May putting her hands up in surrender before moving to find a spot to sit to sleep as Darkness awkwardly tried to get comfortable. She missed her cot back at her nest but she appreciated the gesture and that her sister wanted her there. She stretched out and then curled up using the middle of her tail as a cushion. May found a tree trunk to lean against, she looked up past the treeline scanning the sky for a moment before taking off her glasses carefully placing them down on the grass besides her before as she brought her knees to her chin crossing her arms over her knees and nuzzling her cheek into her arm crook to sleep.

From far away higher up, Syns tail swayed and thumped aggressively into the tree trunk of the branch he was sitting on. He scanned over the area where the pair had made camp watching the other shadow pokemon join them as his brows furrowed in frustration and confusion, why was she staying there?? What about their chats? His tail thumped the tree trunk in frustration again.

He moved to stand and stepped casually from the branch he was stood on to fly over, if she wasn't going to come see him he'd go see her. He felt the air shifting as he grew closer, a subtle but tangible building of energy as he approached causing him to slow but not stop. The air shimmered and he stopped before he flew right into the shining white dome that materialized feeling the sharp gust caused by its sudden creation. He watched it glisten a shine of white before fading and wondered what that was, he reached a hand out with practiced caution feeling his fingers collide with something solid the white shimmer reappearing where his fingers made impact.

"A protect huh…" He pulled his hand back and the glow faded but as he observed where the dome had originally formed there was a slight haze to indicate it's existence that it wasn't gone just simply blending into its surroundings. He started to wonder how a protect this large and powerful could form as his eyes glanced to the campsite, Mays whited over eyes stared forward without seeing glowing with psychic energy. He should've guessed.

Judging by the size and strength of the protect, he theoretically COULD smash his way through it if he really went for it but watching her eyes roll back and her body slump to the ground gave him the impression it was a subconscious move and breaking it might actually wake her. Besides, there's no way it'd last forever. He'd wager by morning it would've weakened or faded. Sighing just a little annoyed he moved to go find a new perch to watch them more closely he supposed.

——————————————————————

Syn grumbled as rays of light beamed offendingly right into his face, he squinted at the sun with a faint growl lazily moving his hand to shove a cloud over it for five more minutes as he wiggled his shoulders to readjust himself against his tree trunk. As he tried to return to his sleep his brain became aware of the lack of psychic tension that had been present the night before practically dragging his thoughts around to force him into an awake state to which he groaned softly squinting to the side of camp, he blinked his tired eye momentarily mistaking glistening droplets of water as the haze around the protect before realizing it was in fact gone.

Slightly unhappily he sat up to properly peer at the campsite, it was early first light and they were all still asleep. He could've easily approached but also he didn't want to trigger another protect, he'd wait till May was at least conscious deducing she'd be less likely to do anything spontaneously powerful with an awake brain.

The Pinky one, Matt or something had managed to roll off of his makeshift leaf bed in the night and had contorted himself into an obscure position with his head touching his lower back nearly, legs stretched backwards and tail wrapping around the tip resting near his chest. Citrine meanwhile had curled herself up quite small into a ball much like other feline creatures. And May was still flopped out on the floor, chin in the grass body twisted so her legs were still up as she was sat which would probably put an ache on her spine.

The sun won its battle against Syns block cloud and the sunlight gently warmed the leaves and grace dancing over the sleeping lot in the campsite with only May grumbling her legs finally falling in a flop as she rolled over to hide her face from the sun before clumsily sitting up and promptly bashing the side of her head into the tree trunk she'd originally been leant again with clearly no spacial awareness. Syn did a mock flinch to himself quietly chuckling as she quietly groaned rubbing the side of her head with a soft "ow" as she slowly got to her feet grabbing her glasses and waddling off to the side.

Syn contemplated walking into the camp with her gone, maybe he could grab her brother as a bargaining chip or drag Citrus away to find out why she abandoned their usual talks but he knew that wouldn't really help him get closer to his goal. He couldn't force May or Citrus to reveal their secrets, couldn't intimidate or threaten them into wanting to join him because they could attack him and would likely reject him. He had to play it calm and he had to be approachable, he was a charming guy he just had to let May see that like how Citrus did.

He sighed softly collecting himself with an inhale and exhale running a hand past his eye to clear away any sleep and smoothly feeling up his horn, he was quite the specimen after all he's sure they could both see that. He moved casually to glide along to see where May went, he didn't want Citrus mad that he ruined her beauty sleep after all.

He was glad by the lack of energy in the air it meant his theory was correct and it was subconscious otherwise another barrier would have appeared as he passed her siblings. He found her knelt by a small stream, her glasses carefully placed down beside her, her head was currently under the water and making bubbles with her head slightly shaking before she sat up and breathed and shook her head again to shake the water off. She squinted past the water on her eyelashes making opening her eyes and seeing kind of difficult. In her side vision she could make out a darker colored shape before she brought her hands up to rub her eyes to clean the sleep away and to clean her face from the grass and mud stuck under her chin.

"G'morning sis," She yawned past her hands cleaning her face, "sleep well?"

"Oh," the male voice that reached her ears caused her to stiffen in terror, "so she's your sister?" Mays head whipped around as she shoved herself quickly against the floor to half stumble and half throw herself backwards scrambling away from Syn as he drank water collected in his hand from the stream. He turned to look at her as she fell into a sit at a distance from him, he could see her eyes were wide and breathing rapidly.

He couldn't deny feeling a bit disappointed at the reaction, the fight had been a while ago surely she would've gotten over it by now and besides he knows Citrus and her have been talking so he didn't get what the reaction was for. He moved his hand to pick up her forgotten glasses holding them out to her.

"I think you need these, right?" Her eyes were trained on him watching his every move down to the flick of his tail. "Look I don't want to fight, I'm not here to hurt you I just wanna talk." He offered one of his dashing smiles and the sight of his sharp teeth sent a feeling of dread through her.

He could see she was thinking locked in place unable to decide what to do, he in this moment kind of held the glasses over her because she needed them so she couldn't flee safely without them but he could see she didn't feel comfortable staying either. It was frustrating he was hoping for a warmer reception but he kept his face steady letting his brows fall in a sad kind of way rather than displaying frustration, acting sad instead of showing his real emotions.

"I'm sorry, I must have really hurt you huh?" He copied the tone of someone genuinely apologetic quite well, he didn't necessarily feel bad about the fight or aftermath. She was a rival, a meal at the time. How was he to know she was interesting? He lifted the glasses with his purple psychic energy and moved them over to her as a peace offering.

She hesitated before slowly taking them and he watched her at least pause to put them on as she looked at him again rather than immediately bolting. He kept the sad look on his face lowering his head as if ducking in apology or embarrassment as she watched him uncertainly.

She didn't move for a moment watching him as he moved to look at the water as if he was unable to bear looking at her, internally impressed with his acting skills. He heard her quietly shifting but it didn't sound like she was standing, she adjusted from her terrified position into a slightly more comfortable sit making sure it was a position she could easily move from. She watched him blinking a bit in confusion as she observed him.

Darkness had said he was much more civilized when she spoke with him, flirty even but not looking for a fight and not aggressive. She'd assumed he only acted that way because Darkness had a crystal too, but he was acting kind of normal now.

"Uhm," May uncertainly coughed into her hand to clear her throat, "I'm, gonna, go…" She moved to awkwardly stand saying, "enjoy the, water?" then cringing to herself as she turned to return to camp awkwardly. He turned his head to look at her watching her go, part of him having wanted her to stay to be fascinated by his good behavior to want to know all she could and he was a bit annoyed she didn't seem to care. He did also know it was to some degree a win, had she attacked him it meant she still saw him as a threat so clearly she must be somewhat intrigued by him.

"May?" She froze a bit at him knowing her name it felt so strange coming from his mouth uncertainly turning her head to look at him, "I am genuinely sorry for what I did, I'm trying to do better with this," he touched his shoulder around the crystal feigning pain and sorrow, "so I hope I can make it up to you and your brother someday." He gave her a smile that seemed genuine and she almost found herself fully believing him. With a shy smile she nodded unsure how to answer that at all and walked away to camp.

When her back turned Syns smile fell into a disappointed scowl, he put his head in his hand and he wrinkled his nose in frustration knowing no more than he did for trying this. He only hoped that he'd planted the seeds and he'd be able to reap the harvest later, if she did believe him then he could start to worm his way in. If her and Citrus were sisters and had a rocky past he's sure he could work it out with her too.

May walked back to camp feeling confused and anxious, her heart was still thumping despite nothing having happened but she knows it could've. And yet he seemed quite sad… She couldn't deny she did in fact feel a bit bad just abandoning him there on his own lonesome but what could she even say to him? And how could she justify just sitting being friendly with the Pokemon who tried to murder her brother? She sighed a bit to herself and stopped, she should've maybe at least asked his name. Should she go back? Would it be weird to? If he was sorry and did want to fix it wouldn't it be polite to be able to address him by name? Mutually extend the opportunity of healing? If he's just 'that Mewtwo who tried to kill Matt' in her mind isn't that a bit cruel?

She groaned to herself debating and awkwardly walking back, he was still sat by the water and he seemed to be lost in his own thoughts, after some more mental debating she cleared her throat making him quickly look towards her, seeming a bit startled which in turn startled her.

"I, uh, sorry, I… never got your name?" She felt awkward just saying it she should've just kept walking. He looked at her and she could only imagine how much he was judging her, meanwhile Syn had to hide the want to break into a victorious smirk, she wanted to know his name and there's no way she'd want to know that if she wasn't thinking about him.

"Syn, you can call me Syn." He smiled at her giving another dashing smile and it weirdly didn't fill her with dread this time, she smiled a bit nodding at him in understanding.

"Syn..well, um nice to officially meet you, you already know my name but uh I'm May." She felt awkward as he looked at her smiling, but it felt a bit weird not introducing herself back. She thought about what to say next until she heard Matt yelling in the distance.

"WHO THE HELL ARE YOU WHERE'S MAY?!"

She flinched a bit at the volume with an oof, "I gotta go do uh damage control, bye!" She moved to run back to camp, stopping to lean back into view, "Syn." giving a wave before sprinting back to explain everything.

Syns' tail swayed up and down, content with the turn of events. He grinned satisfied to himself as he stood up thinking that May was indeed very interested in him. He'd be back later though it seemed like the pair was becoming a trio and the change in chemistry may cause difficulties. But, he counted this as a win overall. Maybe Citrus had put in a good word for him.

[catofadifferentcolor]

Assassin’s Creed: Brotherhood

"All we need is a cause to fight for. And for me, that cause is you."

As I’ve been reading a lot about the Crusades recently, it seemed a natural progression to try playing Assassin’s Creed for the first time since the franchise began a decade and a half ago.

It was quite the effort for me to force myself to take a break before starting Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood after finishing AC2. I wanted to know what happens next so very badly - and my first thought on starting ACB was: this doesn't disappoint.

While the mechanics remain largely the same, the graphics have once again gotten an upgrade - all of sequence 1 had me going holy shit, this is cinematic as well as wow, they're really pulling out all the hero stops. And if that somehow fails to impress, the first present day sequence had me thinking these characters have personalities for the first time since the series began. Desmond was a blank, passive slate in AC1 and only just starting to show signs of being otherwise in AC2, but here Desmond is - finally - an independent actor with just the right level of snark to make me go yeah, I actually like this guy. Lucy too seems something like other than an obvious Templar plant - a like she's actually struggling with her inevitable betrayal - and Rebecca and Shawn are more than just snark.

There's much I love about ACB: the main plot is interesting but oddly short. There are about a thousand side quests, so it's not exactly a short game, but I can't help but think incorporating at least some of them into the main storyline would have made a bit more sense. The Borgia Towers offer an interesting set of challenges, and recruiting the brotherhood is a concept I'd like to have seen more of in more detail (training missions with the Mentor? Ezio spreading his influence more slowly across Europe instead of suddenly being able to send his trainees across the world? the recruits themselves having personalities and backgrounds and motivations?) Even renovating Rome doesn't start to feel gimmicky until you're buying the Coliseum.

And yet I don't love it quite as much as AC2 - and I think it largely comes down to the fact that all of Ezio's personal grown happened in the former, with little room left in ACB for any positive, meaningful growth. We don't see Ezio struggle with the fact that his choice to leave Rodrigo alive in the Vatican lead to the destruction of his home for a second time. We don't see him struggle to be a leader to his burgeoning brotherhood, he already is one. We have peak narrative symmetry starting with a siege and ending with a siege, and yet only the first stirs the emotions - Cesare has lasted this long because he's always conveniently in the wrong place, not because he's a satisfying or interesting boss.

In short, I love older Ezio (who somehow manages to be at peak attractiveness throughout the game, going so far as to complain when someone says he should slow down because he's older; that will never not be hilarious). I just wish he had a bit more meat to work with in ACB.

It's not all unicorns and rainbows though. The number of times I accidentally called a horse instead of flicking on eagle vision or speaking to a merchant is in the thousands. The number of debilitating gut wounds Ezio has recovered from is starting to verge on comically unrealistic. The number of plot points that are touched on - why was La Volpe so willing to assume Machiavelli was the traitor with comparatively scant evidence? How does one build a brotherhood of assassins? How did Claudia learn to wield a knife in the first place? - but quickly glossed over is frustrating. I could have done with a smaller Rome and more fleshed out plot. And the bits where you have to use the apple at the end simply failed to satisfy.

Yet I love it. Not in the way I think I'll always love AC2, but it's a solid game. Short, but solid. I enjoyed playing it and would loved to have seen more, but I'm not disappointed with what we got.

(Though I was shocked by Lucy's death. Yes, she was an obvious Templar plant, but I'd like to have seen her explain herself before we reached Redemption Equals Death. I'm eager to see the fallout in ACR... but not eager enough to continue forgoing errands and chores that I've been putting off for AC2 and ACB before beginning.)

4.5 of 5 stars - definite replay value, but not the head-exploding awesome of AC2.

[crystalelemental]

“books-are-my-life-stuff: I feel like the pacing is more "inconsistent" than slow. The Dragon arc felt very rushed, and Euphie's character arc also felt rushed as a result. Euphie's progression of feelings to Anis also didn't feel natural since there seemed to be lots of details that's skipped. But after that, the middle arc felt very slow, but at the same time also had some details left from the novel. I think starting from the climax of Algard's arc the series picked its pace back up for me.

Algard's arc was pretty great, and frankly speaking, after seeing his arc, I kinda like him, but his punishment was well-deserved. He's done a lot of horrible things, so he deserved the slap from Euphie very much. The siblings' relationship is just beyond repair. And after that the series become consistently great again until the end, delivering a satisfying conclusion. I'm thinking of reading the manga or the novel too so I can see how it's originally intended.”

That’s a fair point.  It’s just a very weird mix of sometimes too fast, sometimes too slow, never quite a reasonable pace except the very beginning and very end.  Even Algard’s arc I feel like is missing some fairly crucial stuff.  Like...almost any real understanding of what he’s trying to do?  Like okay, he wants things to change too.  What specifically?  What’s his goal?  Apparently he needs raw power to do it and is willing to nearly kill Lainie for it, but like...for what?  Control?  Bro, you’re set to inherit the kingdom, just give it a bit.  It’s possible I missed something in there, but I couldn’t really parse his game plan.  Just a lot of sweeping statements with very little direct course, it felt.  The episodes after him were really good, though, because they did well when they focused on the main relationship.  The first three episodes and the last couple were strictly dedicated to developing Euphie and Anis’ relationship, and they work really well.  Everything else feels like I need to read source material to have a better picture.

[alphamalereviewsfanfics]

A FOX, A WOLF, AND A SHEEP ALL WALK INTO THE FORT by Adira_Tyree

SUMMARY: “Soul-mates. Arcade has long since given up on the concept that his is out there, if only because every day he’s noticed his timer slow or even stall as the war progresses – as if even Fate isn’t sure anymore if it’s going to work out for him. But his day has finally come, and it’s not exactly what he’d hoped it to be. No fireworks, no fanfare. Just a mess of shouts and confusion. Emotions run hot, and cold, as he struggles to decide for himself what his fate really is, and whether or not he wants to follow it.”

PREGAME: I originally read this fic during Christmastime. I was visiting family, and as a bored alpha male does, I became briefly obsessed with Arcade Gannon and found this fic to read about him and Vulpes. I never really liked soulmate aus nor did I like the pairing of Arcade and Vulpes, but fic kinda changed my perspective on both. So now I reread it and prepped it up for a nice and epic review from yours truly.

REVIEW: This one doesn’t feel like I’m reading a fanfiction, it feels like a weird novella that you find at a library. It’s more of a semi-analysis of the characters and how they interact in the world than a romance, with the two characters barely being explicitly romantic with eachother, but the chemistry is still there, and you just see through Arcade’s eyes pretty well. The use of the soulmate au felt natural in the setting somehow, making me forget about it and it just blended in with the story. Arcade’s attachment to the clock was also just very in character. The characterization of Vulpes took me off guard for a bit, but Arcade was great, (probably because it was from his point of view). You could hear his whole internal monologue and be like yeah that’s something I’d see him say in the game, that self deprecating asshole. It was also very enthralling, many fanfics that focus on the action and story more than the relationship tend to lose the reader a couple chapters in, but this one had a good balance because it was so driven by Arcade and his whole internal debate with himself about Vulpes as well as just his whole identity and how he fit in the Mojave in a way that made me very interested. As well as like the whole thing with Vulpes justifying the work of the Legion, and how Arcade processed all that was sublime. I love the Legion because the lengths they go through to justify their actions, whether that be direct bigotry or pseudo-intellectual rationalizations, so seeing how this author tackled them was pretty fun. Honestly I wish Arcade and Vulpes would’ve had more debates, because I loved how the author wrote their exchanges. I’ll have to read the sequel when I find the motivation to. Overall, I enjoyed this one. It’s 25 chapters of well written shit that made me feel invested, though it took me a while to get through the last few, but that was because I didn’t want to finish it.

BEST LINE: Arcade huffed out a tiny laugh. “I don’t know that I’m much of a Follower anymore,” he said, his voice weak. “I’m sorry. I don’t have good people skills. Like to argue too much,” he muttered. “I guess I never got out of the habit of arguing about pre-war political structures and carried it over to post-war ones.”

RATING: 6/8 conversations in Latin (beta male ranking)