#retribution spoilers

[witchofthewild]

This is apparently my fifth? Outfit line-up for Lewis, which is a little embarrassing considering he wears the same worn-out jeans and baggy hoodie every day 💀 but I haven't posted abt him in a while so here's an intro for any new folks 🤭

[mindfights]

me in 2019: i’m going to do a full character sheet for ainsley. me in 2023: [half-dead, nerves in hand fucked up from a surgery] me in 2023: what if i finished this ancient wip?

[starrypawz]

Ok but in Retri I do actually live for the chaotic black comedy of the scene just before the crash where it's like

Step: OH SHIT ORTEGA KNOWS ORTEGA KNOWS I CAN'T HANDLE IT ANYMORE IM GOING TO COME CLEAN

Step: YES YES IM THE VILLIAN

Ortega:.... what i found out you're related to hollow ground?

Step:... Ortega:...

[amlovelies]

an interlude

fandom: fhr pairing: julia ortega/f!sidestep (cynthia basri) warnings: retri spoilers, but no real warnings, canon typical stuff words: 483 read on ao3

this has been sitting in my drafts forever as part of a large thing (and me trying to write smut) which is never going to happen, but I like this part so might as well share it here. this isn't cyn's canon but still.

Fate certainly has a sense of humor. After so many years of pining, so many years not allowing yourself to cross that line with her

You keep waiting for the disgust to show on her face, for the shock to wear off for the knowledge to settle in. You aren’t human, you never have been.

It hasn’t happened, if anything her attentions have grown more heated, her kiss lingering in a way which leaves little doubts about what she is thinking. What you are thinking too.

It’s hard not to remember that night. Hard not to replay it while you try to hold sleep and the nightmares at bay.

No more secrets inscribed on your skin to keep you apart, just the casts on your legs.

You should have known Ortega would find a way to get creative.

Her kiss starts out gentle, holding her weight off you making sure not to put undue pressure on your abused limbs,

Her lips soft and plush against yours, pulling back to look into your eyes as she brushes your hair back from your forehead.

The smile on her face is fragile, and you have to close your eyes. A pair of feather-light kisses to your eyelids and her fingers trace familiar paths on your face. A pattern you would remember anywhere, you would feel it sometimes back at the farm, the phantom touch of her thumb on your cheek, and for the briefest of moments the oppressive static of the dampeners morphed into something comforting. The illusion never lasted, fading away in the face of the stark solitude of your cell, of your existence.

You’re afraid to open your eyes now. Afraid that this will all shatter and this will all have been a dream that her love will be nothing but a foolish dream. You close them tighter, trying to keep the tears which threaten at bay.

“Did I hurt you?” Concern evident in her voice as her weight shifts to move away from you.

That’s enough to get you to open your eyes, to reach out and pull her back, not ready for her to leave your side again, not with the memories so close on the horizon.

“You didn’t hurt me.”

“Are you sure?” she hesitates before she retakes her position on the edge of the bed, hands hovering over you instead of touching, like you might break at any moment, she isn’t totally wrong.

“I never thought . . . you shouldn’t . . . “ the words escape you. “I never thought I could have this.” You finally admit. Honesty. More than you usually give but you’re already at her mercy so what does a little more vulnerability cost?

“Neither did I.” She leans forward, her forehead pressed against yours, your breaths mingling, as her fingers lace between your own. You’re not sure how long you stay like that, letting her breathe pull you back to the present. It feels like only a moment, it feels like seven years

[anduefex]

Ortega's time loop for the WIP ask game

The concept here is that Ortega is looping the Hollow Ground incident, but told through Sidestep's eyes. I'm not sure what form it will eventually take (multiple loops? One really tired Ortega? second or third person?) but I am having fun, which is the important part. Spoilers for Retribution, obviously.

--

"It's you," he says, and he looks so tired and sounds so surprised. Like he was sure it wouldn't be. "What are you— no. No, I think we need to talk about this."

This being what he saw: you, leaving Hollow Ground's stronghold. But he can't know what happened inside, how you shook Hollow Ground's hand and agreed to share the city. It's safer this way. Your goals don't contradict each other, your revenge doesn't threaten his stability — Ortega doesn't get it, but why would he? All he knows is that one man died. He doesn't know about the things worse than death.

"I should have said something before," Ortega is saying.

[silvery-bluish]

ooh, how do you get ortega to cry on you?

Play a Sidestep who's trans, have High Clue with Ortega (ie they have a *pretty good idea* that you're the villain and start side-eying you), be Literally Any Variant Of Romancin Ortega, go to their homecooked meal in their apartment date thing towards the end of the game, and progress towards the couch make-outs portion of the scene. There's a conversation about your Sidestep being trans, and the way Sidestep starts the conversation initially makes Ortega think they're about to confess to being the villain right there on the couch, and then they feel *really bad* about misjudging Sidestep. (Except that they were right. Whoops.)

Sidestep asks no followup questions about the crying and has no idea *why* Ortega cried about it, so the whole it's-because-they-thought-Sidestep-was-the-villain portion of the interaction is via inference and from the fact that it drops their suspicion value down to 30 in the code. I find their ability to be on entirely different pages even when trying to be honest with each other incredibly funny and also really sad.

[ohlawsons]

01. stare | flystep, 1241 words set a few days after the dinner date, ft. some self-indulgent tattoo headcanons

“You’re staring.”

Dani doesn’t have to look to know that Daniel’s gaze lingers on where one of his hands is linked with theirs, his thumb tracing featherlight patterns over their skin; they don’t need to look, either, to know that there’s a little flush to his cheeks, but it’s an endearing enough look on him that they tilt their head up to watch him anyway. They’re still wearing the tight, fitted black athletic top that’s a staple beneath all of their outfits, but with the sleeves pushed up to just below their elbow, none of the bright orange Re-Gene tattoos are visible.

Instead, thick black geometric patterns wind and build across their forearm and the back of their left hand, the harsh lines seeming softer in the little bit of morning light that the tinted windows let in. The tattoo on their right arm is simpler, more ink and less of a design — they hadn’t been able to trust anyone other than themself, and turns out that even all that rage and grief and years of feeling wrong in their own skin hadn’t made it any easier to mark themself in a way of their own choosing.

“Should I not?” The question is a simple one, something teasing disguised as innocence, but there’s an undercurrent of careful concern that bleeds into his thoughts; he knows they’re still not quite comfortable like this, sharing a hazy, quiet morning together in his bed, still not quite comfortable with the open, warm way he watches them. Adores them.

Not bothering to answer right away, Dani lifts up their joined hands, splaying their own fingers out for a moment just to take a better look at the familiar ink. They let out a low, contemplative hum. “This one’s alright. I’m pretty proud of how it came out, actually. My right arm is…” A low whoosh of breath as they sigh, somewhere between regret and wistfulness. “Messy.”

“And the, uh—“ His words break off into a little burst of warmth and a hint of embarrassment; something like anticipation lies coiled tight beneath the thoughts. “Your neck.”

They don’t bother holding back a small smile; the sharp, jagged design runs along their throat, outlining the severity of their jawline and dipping down to splay across their collarbone. Safe enough to trust to someone else’s hands, if only just. They’re also fairly certain it’s Daniel’s favorite; memories slip unbidden into Dani’s mind, of his hand at their throat — palm soft against their skin, fingers ghosting across the marks that wind along their neck as he draws a shiver from them. And—

Ah.

Fingers now replaced by lips and tongue and the slow, gentle drag of teeth. He shifts beside them, pressing closer, trailing kisses along their jawline; his breath is warm against their skin, and they find themselves shuddering despite their attempts to maintain their quickly-slipping composure.

“That one’s professional.”

“What—? Oh.” It takes a moment for Daniel to remember his own question, and another moment for a slowly dawning realization to make it’s way from his mind to his lips. “You did the others yourself?”

“One of the first things I taught myself how to do.” The after my second escape goes unsaid, but Dani isn’t interested in bringing the mood of the morning down quite that much, not just yet. They hesitate a moment, wondering how much more they should reveal; they know, logically, that they wouldn’t be showing anything that Daniel hasn’t already seen, but it feels so much more intimate here in a quiet shared morning, compared to their rage-induced impromptu stripping a few days before. They can sense the low buzz of curiosity in his mind, deliberately stifled and tucked away — though whether for his sake or theirs, they can’t tell — and they come to a conclusion.

Forcing a shaky, hollow smile and pushing away the familiar spike of anxiety, Dani tugs their hand free from Daniel’s and rolls up their sleeve as far as they can get it, just a bit above the elbow but enough that the bright orange Re-Gene tattoos are now visible. They bite back a grimace and trace one finger slowly along their skin, following where the original tattoos bleed, rich and textured, through the ink they’d tried to cover it with. “I thought I could hide them. That… obviously didn’t work.”

They don’t mention any of the other things they’d done to try and hide the Re-Gene markings. In the end, at least, with this, they’d marked their body in a way that made it theirs, a way to reclaim the skin that they’ve spent so long hating.

“I’m sorry.” The apology is as quiet and reflexive as ever; Dani can hear their own words echo softly in Daniel’s mind — it’s not your fault; you don’t need to apologize for everything — just as they can sense the way he steels his mind against their inevitable chastisement.

He’s not going to take it back. Maybe there’s nothing he can do about it, but he’s still sorry it didn’t work.

“It’s fine.” They’re not sure if they mean the tattoos, or his apology. Either way, they’re beginning to feel restless and exposed in the quiet of the morning; they pull themself up to sit on the bed, letting the sheets pool at their waist — everything’s covered, always is, and they tug down the sleeve of their shirt so that the edges of the tattoos are concealed once again. There’s no hesitance or concern from Daniel as they put distance between themself and him, not anymore, because he’s a quick study and he’s learning their limits and when they just need some space and not to take it personally. “Don’t you have a meeting this morning?” they ask, stifling a yawn as they reach up to tie their hair up into a loose bun.

“No.” The word comes out in a little huff, and he rolls to lay on his back, letting his hands rest on his stomach as he stares up at the ceiling, frowning. “It’s an interview with the local news.”

Biting back a grin, Dani cocks an eyebrow and dares to prod, ever so gently, at Daniel’s thoughts; they know he likes the fluff interviews like this — they’re more genuine and less stressful — but there’s something else about the morning that’s brought down his mood, and if they can just… there it is. “You’ve been avoiding Steel.” Sharp. Amused. They’ve been avoiding him, too.

“Not… necessarily.” It tastes like the truth — a fortunate coincidence that Steel hasn’t crossed paths with Daniel — but something about the schedule for the day has him certain that he’ll have no choice but to subject himself to Chen’s particular brand of not-quite-prying; he’s not shy about how things have progressed with Dani, not by any means, but they both know that Chen has his reservations.

“Tell you what,” Dani offers, letting their gaze sweep across Daniel’s prone form beside them — not staring, but deliberately appreciative, “I’ll stop by this afternoon to see Spoon. That should keep Chen occupied for a couple hours, at least.”

Daniel’s brow raises in an expression that lands somewhere between surprised and amused. “You’ll talk to him?”

“Never said that.” They laugh, and it comes out short and sharp. “But I’m enough of an asshole to tell him to keep his nose out of our goddamn business.”

[nikiferous]

I like whatever the fuck those two might have going on

[lucabyte]

A belief in Nominative Determinsim

[witchofthewild]

You don’t know me, but I know you.

[mindfights]

Tell me, are you Lucifer? Masks are off and bridges burned.

[ourocorvus]

I’d love to hear more about your sidestep if there’s anything you’re up for sharing!

Heck yeah!!! Sorry this is coming late, I saw this ask after you sent it and then immediately lost it like a fool.

Connor is my "main" Sidestep though he's not the first or only and I haven't solidified a canonical play-through for Retribution for him yet, but he's the Sidestep I feel most interested in. He typically leans anti-villain with high chaos. I'm also still working on his general character and armor design (and whenever I first start drawing characters they look really weird for a while, I don't know why that is) but I'll get there...some...day..........

Apotheosis (Connor Szarvas) is a mysterious villain and known telepath known mostly for causing property damage and beating the snot out of heroes that get in his way but is also obnoxiously affable and is big on giving theatrical villain monologues and taking selfies with his hardcore fanbase. He let Dr. Mortum talk him into having a cool cape but well…things happened, and it is in the possession of Lady Argent on a somewhat permanent basis. Apotheosis tends to be a non-lethal villain…for now (there are at least two characters in the story Apotheosis would turn his back on his principles to get the opportunity to kill, even if he doesn’t know it yet).

Apotheosis has a speed and telepathy boost, but he tends to excel in hand-to-hand combat. Speaking of stats.

Apotheosis/Connor is: -Medium Arrogance

-High Empathy

-High Daring

in his most canonical runs. Connor is (typically) a streetwise tactician. His vice is sugar. He is healing from the Heartbreak trauma (the Outsider scar). Despite his dead-eyed look he is more of a Sad Clown trope than is entirely possible in the in-game text (minor headcanons huzzah) and overly depends on humor to bolster his sense of feeling liked and accepted. Connor’s is friendly with all the Rangers, despite everything, but his romantic interests are in a polyamorous triad with Ricardo Ortega and Lady Argent.

His puppet is Jonah. Jonah is close friends with Dr. Mortum and Ricardo. Both Connor and Jonah are friendly with Rosie. Thank you for asking about him. I like to talk about my OCs (is he an OC? idk) but I'm not very good at it. It's fun anyway.

[jamin007]

It's Stormlight 10

Kaladin has been learning to read, but just barely. He reads something about Retribution, but misreads it as Redemption and the massive cognitive force that is Kaladin's desire to save people instantly realigns the shard and Kaladin is able to steal it from Taravangian

The End

[lamaery]

SPOILER for the end of WIND AND TRUTH 

Time for some additions to the rink 🛼🪩⚡️✨ (yes there will be more!) ✨ 🪩 ✨

Someone hit his next evolution… what a glam up!

More Shard Roller Disco AU: Roshar Cultivations, Honor and Odium Nalthis Endowment Sel and Scadrial Devotion, Dominion, Preservation and Ruin Scadrial 2 Preservation and Harmony First of the Sun and Taldain Autonomy Threnody Ambition Roshar 2 (row spoilers) Odium Roshar 3 Bonus Dawnshard (spoilers) Roshar 4 (wat spoilers) Retribution Roshar 5 (WaT spoilers) Honor Dawnshard Bonus 2 (WaT and Sunlit spoilers)

[blood-starved-beast]

shout out to the Japanese translation of the game confirming the order of Nyx's children as

the Fates

Charon

Moros

Nemesis

the Twins (Than and Hypnos)

Eris

Honestly doing the heavy lifting the other versions of the games can't really explain without it being out of place

[bastardnoodle]

so i finished retribution....eve is now pansexual! everybody say congratulations eve! erm suggestive warning for that last pic

eve (sidestep) uses they/them