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anim-ttrpgs · 3 months ago

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Songs for Eureka Sessions: Deadly/Firearm Combat

Masterpost of Eureka song lists & how to choose good music for any TTRPG session.

Destroy All Humans - Deadly Avenger

Diabolos Ex Machina - Perturbator

Barghest - Revengeday

Sandevistan - Revengeday

Hegemeny of the Food Chain - Hunter X Hunter

Paris – Hotline Miami

Miami Disco – Perturbator

Archetype – Castle Crashers

Knock Knock – Hotline Miami

Byzantine Power Game – Max Payne

Whack Him – Max Payne

Killer Suits - Max Payne

Ecto Perfecto – West of Loathing: Reckonin’ at Gun Manor

The Flesh of the Fallen Angels – Max Payne

Le Perv – Hotline Miami 2

Vengeance – The Guest

Black Tiger – Resident Evil 1 Remake

Final Battle – Resident Evil 1 Remake

Panic – Resident Evil 2 Remake

Last Judgement – Resident Evil 2 Remake

The March to Survive – Resident Evil 2 Remake

Spybreak – The Matrix

Shots Fired – John Wick

Death Wish – A Hat in Time

Elegantly designed and thoroughly playtested, Eureka represents the culmination of three years of near-daily work from our team, as well as a lot of our own money. If you’re just now reading this and learning about Eureka for the first time, you missed the crowdfunding window unfortunately, but you can still check out the public beta on itch.io to learn more about what Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy actually is, as that is where we have all the fancy art assets, the animated trailer, links to video reviews by podcasts and youtubers, etc.!

You can also follow updates on our Kickstarter page where we post regular updates on the status of our progress finishing the game and getting it ready for final release.

Beta Copies through the Patreon

If you want more, you can download regularly updated playable beta versions of Eureka: Investigative Urban Fantasy earlier, plus extra content such as adventure modules by subscribing to our Patreon at the $5 tier or higher. Subscribing to our patreon also grants you access to our patreon discord server where you can talk to us directly and offer valuable feedback on our progress and projects.

The A.N.I.M. TTRPG Book Club

If you would like to meet the A.N.I.M. team and even have a chance to play Eureka with us, you can join the A.N.I.M. TTRPG Book Club discord server. It’s also just a great place to talk and discuss TTRPGs, so there is no schedule obligation, but the main purpose of it is to nominate, vote on, then read, discuss, and play different indie TTRPGs. We put playgroups together based on scheduling compatibility, so it’s all extremely flexible. This is a free discord server, separate from our patreon exclusive one. https://discord.gg/7jdP8FBPes

Other Stuff

We also have a ko-fi and merchandise if you just wanna give us more money for any reason.

We hope to see you there, and that you will help our dreams come true and launch our careers as indie TTRPG developers with a bang by getting us to our base goal and blowing those stretch goals out of the water, and fight back against WotC's monopoly on the entire hobby. Wish us luck.

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dc-marvel-crossovers · 8 months ago

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The DC/Marvel Crossover server is proud to present our summer Pool Noodle Party! Celebrating the rarest crossover pairs, both platonic and romantic. Courtesy of this post about ships that are too small to count as ships:

For our purposes, a “pool noodle” is a relationship tag that comes up with less than 30 hits on Ao3. Platonic (&) relationships count! Any and all crossover pairings with under 30 existing fics are welcome.

We have six themes. Each theme will have a week for posting creations and a week for celebrating — giving feedback and leaving comments. We’ll share everything that was created the previous week and try to spread the love, but also post rec lists of our favorite older fics that fit the theme.

For anybody who's interested in creating fanworks for existing fic, we'll be posting a list (soon) of fics whose authors have given permission for podfic, moodboards, art, and playlists inspired by their work!

Themes are relatively loose, so your ship might fit multiple themes — that’s fine! Entirely up to you when you post.

Check out the prompt lists! Keep in mind that fics do not have to fit a particular prompt, only the general theme for the week they're posted. These are just for inspiration.

Hackers, Paleolithic weapons, interplanetary romance, etc.

Robin Hood AU

Mia Dearden & Kate Bishop

Eddie and Venom work at the Daily Planet

Tony and Roy in rehab

Venom finds a new host

Kree identity shenanigans

“I’m a doctor, not a _”

Oracle & Jarvis

Clint and Dick knew each other in the circus

Starfire meets the Marvels

Not necessarily femslash, but woman-centric!

Natasha Romanoff/Talia Al Ghul

Birds of Prey crossover

Genderswap

Amanda Waller puts together an all-female team

Captain Britain Peggy Carter

Powerpuff Girls AU

Diana Prince in SHIELD

Selina Kyle as a Widow

Coulson recruits Cassandra Cain

Blorbos who have been resurrected, who live in Daredevil territory, who deal with demonic shit, etc.

Lazarus Pit side effects

Priest!Jason

"I think they came back wrong."

Dumpster bros

Buffy crossover

Nelson & Murdock in Gotham

Orpheus and Eurydice retelling

Angels and demons AU

Clint Barton/John Constantine

-powers, -heroes, -villains, -boys, -girls, and/or -soldiers!

Conner Kent gets adopted

Powers/serum are sexually transmitted

Loki joins the Legion of Doom

“Wait, I have powers in this universe?”

Power swap

Kryptonian biology quirks

Marvel character gets a Lantern ring

Supernatural crossover

Murder as a love language, or at least as a career.

John Wick AU

Ronin!Clint / RedHood!Jason

Outlaws team-up

Gun/knife play

Wade & Slade Wilson are related

Marvel character trains Jason during Lost Days

Someone kills the Joker

The other Winter Soldier

Frank adopts Jason

Alternately, found family! Anything to do with relationships involving more than one person.

Band AU

Team as family (or team as relationship)

Midnighter/Apollo/someone

Werewolf AU

Biker gang AU

“God help us if they ever join forces.”

Teen Titans meet the Young Avengers

Accidental alien planet multi-marriage

"Everybody lives in Clint's apartment building" civilian AU

#dc #marvel #dc marvel crossover #crossover #dcu #mcu #event #pool noodle party #dc fandom events #marvel fandom events #writing prompt

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slay00ryu · 7 days ago

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Hello, hello! I hope you’re having a great day/night! Angst-loving anon here, new to the KC fandom, and I was wondering if we could get a fic, drabble, or headcanon (or whatever format you prefer) about the LIs’ (separate) reactions to MC getting killed and/or how they’d cope? Bonus points if there were warning signs, like MC going, “Hey, gang, there’s this guy who keeps stalking me 🧍.”

Idk I’m not very creative haha, feel free to take any creative liberties, and feel free to ignore if this isn’t something you’re comfortable or interested in writing. <3

'Til death do us part.

These are hcs because I have a whole writing cooking up and I want to write hcs :3

Ronin - The Devil's Incarnate.

When Ronin found out that you were murdered he felt the world break, you, his fallen angel, was found dead. Fucking dead. And he could do nothing about it.

If you left hints about someone following you, sending threats, anything that seemed dangerous, but Ronin ignored it or didn't notice until it was too late, he will feel rage, at himself and that fucker who dared to kill you.

He will made his own witch hunt, find the person responsible for your death and make them suffer.

Ronin will definitely be impacted by your death, be less active in the server, drive himself more into murder, more gruesome, anything to keep his mind off of your death.

Your grave will be a place he will avoid for a while, deep down he's scared of the realisation that you're truly dead, that another person who he cared for - in his sick way of course, was found dead.

But if he visits your place of eternal rest, he will spend hours there, sitting behind your grave, his back on the cold stone, talking as if you could listen to him.

He will see you in his dreams, hear your voice, it would be different if you were a victim, if he was the one to kill you, but since you slipped away from him the haunting will be unbearable.

Angel - The Sweetly Sick Lover.

For her the news of your death were like a nightmare, a nightmare she desperately wanted to wake up from. She couldn't accept it, not now, not ever. That grief was strong.

If there were signs of someone endangering your safety and Angel didn't notice them in time she will hate herself, beat herself down about it, feel so agitated at herself just for letting you die.

She will avenge you, find and kill that bastard. That frustration, sorrow and anger will be a fuel that will make that kill truly gruesome.

She won't be able to live normally after your death, maybe work could work as an escapism but for how long? She knows you're dead, she can see or feel signs of you being in her life before.

Your grave will be a place bringing pain and comfort. She knows that she has a place that you'll always be in, even if bones will be your only remains.

She will spend as much time as possible at your grave, so much that Ronin will have to carry her away so she will go back home to sleep and eat something.

She will feel your presence even after your death, she'll wear your clothes, use your perfume, anything that smells like you. On one hand she wants you to stay in her memories, on the other she's hurting herself by keeping your things and reminding herself of you and your death.

Misaki - Forever a Child by Heart.

Misaki will deny it, hold onto their thoughts of you being alive, even if they'll see your corpse, they will never believe that you're dead. Once they'll accept it, their grief will be painful, take over their life.

A signs of you being stalked and they ignored them? Oh they will blame themselves for everything, no one from the server will get through to them.

Of course that bastard will be dead, they will be the one to shot them. They won't even feel guilty or anxious, it's not their regular kill, it's payback.

Their life will be turned upside down after your death, their parents, Angel, anyone else who will try to help them, will fail. Misaki will be in too deep in their grief.

If they're able to visit your grave they will go there every day with flowers. They just need to see the place of your rest, know that you're in peace.

They will talk to your grave, cry at it, say how much they miss you, as if it was supposed to bring you back or save them the pain.

Misaki will see you in their sleep, or in the corner of their eye, but with time your face will slowly fade and they will try to hold onto it like it's their lifeline.

V - The Justice Seeker.

For V the news were unbearable, his love dead? It can't be. Who dared to murder you? These beasts... He had a hard time accepting your death, especially with him promising to keep you save.

If there were obvious signs that V didn't pay attention to in the past he will treat your death as if he was the one to kill you, like he is the beast responsible for your suffering. What boyfriend was he if he couldn't even see the danger?

He will leave every other serial killer behind, your murderer is his priority, he needs to avenge you, to bring justice after your death, to let you rest in peace with your murderer burning in hell.

His life will be... empty. There's no one to tease him, no one to fill in the void that was left behind by you, there's just... nothing. Even his animals will feel the pain, be it them noticing your absence or them reflecting their caretaker's grief.

Your grave will be a place he will visit frequently. Taking care of it, you deserve a well kept resting place.

V won't show tears or talk to your grave, he will stare at it for a while, sadness in his eyes as he wishes that he could see your smile, hear your voice, hold your hand. Gods, even the teasing was something he missed now.

He won't be haunted by your ghost, nor would he hear your voice, but he will feel the lack of your presence, and it will break him every time.

#killer chat #killer chat ronin #angel killer chat #v killer chat #misaki killer chat #asks #angst #headcanons

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klausinamarink · 9 months ago

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Prompt: “new beginnings” (discord drabble from STWG) | ao3 link

a day late since I’ve been working on other stuff but also a gift to the amazing @pearynice! hope your birthday was awesome

Despite being a Tuesday, the tavern’s gotten busier as the hours inches towards the evening. Eddie feels the headache coming as more patrons demand beers their way. The strong stuff, they always request, even though Eddie’s been serving in this place for nearly five years and he still has no fucking clue what that’s supposed to mean.

There’s some prep shuffling onstage but Eddie doesn’t turn around to check. Very few so-called musicians in this place make him peek over his shoulder. The ones that do turn out to be disappointing.

Turns out that playing Master of Puppets to distract a horde of interdimensional demobats that would later chew out half of your body can set up high standards in music.

“Hey, Quinn,” Jessie, one of the other servers, calls him, “clean up the tables, would ya?”

Eddie nods, grabs an empty container, and goes over to collect the abandoned drinks. When he rounds to the third table, Eddir hears the mic being tapped before the mediocre singer of the night speaks.

“Hello, folks, my name’s Joey and I’m happy to share some of my original songs with you.”

Eddie pauses. His brain is rattling with recognition. But for some reason, he cannot place where or why that voice sounds so familiar.

“Hopefully, someone I’m searching for is here today.”

They clear their throat. Starts playing on the keyboard. It’s slow and melancholic like a lullaby. Then-

“I can’t stand the storms when it flashes red. It just shows how much they hate the sun.”

Eddie slowly turns around, hands gripping the container’s edges so tight that it probably cuts his fingers.

But none of it matters more than the sight of Steve Harrington onstage.

It doesn’t look like him. But it sure as hell sounds like him. But Eddie can’t be sure of that either because he had heard Steve talk, not sing like an angel.

“I grab my bat and run to your side. Like an avenging angel, but all I earned was the loss of my wings. And maybe my tears too because I sure can’t cry anymore.”

For once, the tavern has fallen silent. Everyone is captivated by the long-haired stranger exposing his broken heart so casually. All the while, Eddie is stunned.

The longer he listens to Steve’s song, the more difficult it becomes to hold back the tears in his eyes. It brings him back to the day when the government suits told Eddie and the entire Upside Down crew that not only Hawkins will be scrubbed off the Indiana map, but they would be given new identities and homes somewhere in the country. On any other day, Eddie would’ve been avid. But instead, he stared at nothing and nobody as everyone’s cries of protest and outrage faded into static in his brain.

Eddie had looked up once. His gaze had landed on Steve, who looked like he was either seconds away from snapping the closest suit’s neck or seconds away from bursting into tears. Eddie had wanted to follow the internal plea to walk over to Steve and hug him. Maybe whisper some comfort in his ear that the Party would still find contact. But he hadn’t - he was still too shocked and tired from his healing injuries to even get up.

That was the last time anyone had seen or spoken to each other.

“The storm continues. I keep walking, the bat in my hands. Hoping to-” Steve brings his gaze up, eyes flickering through the crowd.

And, like a magnet, they land directly on Eddie.

Eddie is half a room away from the stage but he sees the exact second of Steve’s expression changing from painful reminiscence to disbelieved shock. Eddie himself feels his heart stopping mid-beat, unable to move or even try a silly wave back.

The crowd applauds, mistaking Steve’s silence as the end of his song. It’s by then that Eddie hurries outside.

Eddie’s on his second cigarette when the side doors swing open. He expects the manager Ripley to give him shit again, but it’s only Steve with his keyboard slung over his back.

Steve stares at him again. When the door closes with a click, he says hoarsely, ��Hi.”

“Hi,” Eddie greets back.

They both stare at each other, taking in the sights. Eddie had long cut his hair short and kept his curls trimmed behind the ears. Steve’s hair had grown (as if it wasn’t already long when Eddie last saw him) and appears to be sun-bleached. Even their clothes got reversed; with Eddie wearing polos (as per tavern guidelines) while Steve’s clearly taking denim vests and a darker palette.

Eddie expects the change. But it still hurts him somewhere that yeah, it’s been six years.

“Sorry, it’s weird to see you without long hair.” Steve breaks the silence, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.

Eddie laughs, “Well, when you got a name like Joseph Quinn, you gotta try and look like the guy.”

Steve raises his eyebrows, “That’s what they renamed you?”

“Yep,” Eddie nods solemnly, “But I’m still Eddie Munson at heart. What’s yours?”

Steve looks away, a blush rising on his cheeks. “It’s terrible.”

“Dude, you literally introduced yourself as Joey just now.”

“That’s how terrible my government-mandated name is!”

“Tell meeee!” Eddie starts poking at Steve’s ribs, making the other man burst into laughter. Steve grabs onto Eddie’s wrists, stopping him just inches from his face. Eddie catches his breath, unable to stop himself from briefly glancing down at Steve’s lips. He sees Steve doing the same, even licking his lips.

“I got a trailer parked in one of the lots nearby.” Steve says softly. “If you want-”

“Yeah.” Eddie’s voice catches in his throat. He swallows and says again, “Yeah. Of course.”

They walk together, forcing themselves to keep their hands at their respective sides. Eddie’s heart pounds in his chest as they arrive at Steve’s trailer, a Winnebago that’s smaller than the one Eddie had hotwired for him years ago. The moment they step inside, Eddie lurches forward and pulls Steve into a sheering kiss. Steve moans and grips his hands on Eddie’s hips while Eddie tangles his fingers into Steve’s hair.

Eddie lets Steve take him apart first, squeezing his hand tight as Steve whispers sweet nothings to his skin. Then Eddie flips them over and does the same to Steve, telling himself to go slow even though Steve is urging him the opposite. After they’re both spent, they stay in each other’s arms, gulping down air and tears.

“I never thought I would see you again.” Eddie confesses quietly, tracing nonsense patterns between the tiny moles and rough scars on Steve’s arms.

“I couldn’t just live this new staleass life without seeing everyone again. Even if it would take me decades to find them again.” Steve’s eyes are soft and sad as he stares into Eddie. He has a finger circling around the puckered scar on Eddie’s cheek.

“So you go around the fifty states singing on the keys hoping to see one of them at a bar?” Eddie asks.

Steve huffs, “This is my side gig. But yeah, I guess you can call that wishful thinking.”

“Where did they send you?”

“Oregon. Too wet there.”

“That’s what he said.” Eddie can’t resist saying, earning a playful flick on the cheek. He hears himself turn somber when he asks, “Did you find anyone from the Party?”

“Robin in ‘88. She was in New York.” Steve smiles, undoubtedly proud to reunite with his platonic soulmate. “She refused to let me leave for a whole year.”

“Good for her. Who else?”

Steve falls silent and shifts his gaze up to the ceiling. “I haven’t found anyone since. Probably because I’m too dumb-”

“Don’t even say that.” Eddie cradles a hand on Steve’s cheek, tilting him to face him again. “You’re not an idiot, Steve. You should give yourself credit for actually finding Robin and me, even if it was dumb luck with me.” He wipes a thumb underneath Steve’s eye as a tear trails out. “Besides, it’s the government’s fault for thinking they can separate us all forever.”

Steve gives a wet laugh. “So much for new beginnings, right?”

Eddie presses another kiss on him. One on his lips, then two more where the twin moles lay on Steve’s cheek. “Not if we keep searching together.”

Steve stares at him. His eyes go wide before they soften. “Together?”

“And ever.” Eddie confirms. Steve makes a small disbelieving voice before leaning in to kiss Eddie, holding them together as long as they can.

It tastes like a vow.

#klaus writes #steddie #stranger things

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johncarrera · 1 year ago

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Thinking about how any egg death would be devasting in so many ways. Like yeah, it would be very sad for both the audience and the islanders but also like... It could very much start a goddamn war?

If Leonarda dies, you just angered two incredibly powerful demigods, one of which is literally feared by the rest of the island for terrorizing em with mines. Imagine what Vegetta would do if his daughter died? Not only that, Foolish can genuinely be a threat if he wants to. We're seeing how far he's willing to go for the "funsies'' and to rescue a capybara. What if it was a quest to avenge his family.

Then you consider all of the eggs with single parents. Philza, Fit and BadBoyHalo. The Angel of Death, a Veteran Mercenary who survived a wasteland with no rules and the Grim Reaper himself. We've seen how far they go when their eggs are threatened.

We've seen how BBH, one of the best PVPers and richest players, reacted to Dapper losing a life to a code attack. We've seen how Philza reacted to the codes mimicking his children. Fit has gotten so attached to Ramon that he deviated and got distracted from his original plan, his original mission on the island.

Not only are these people super dangerous, they're also extremely attached to their eggs thanks to carrying the burden of parenthood by themselves. They'd go insane if something happened to them.

And then, you get to the polycules.

Etoiles, the crazy pvp monster who more than anything wishes for a good fight. The man who 2v1d the codes. The one who wasn't sure he'd get into the whole egg thing but now cares so much for Pomme.

Baghera, Pomme's mother. The one who got attached to her the fastest. Genuinely super underestimated, she's hella smart and observant and had a whole ass wall with notes about the island.

Aypierre, who I don't know that much off but I wouldn't want to fight the man who made a Gegg factory and completely invaded and destroyed the federation's base because he wanted a picture.

And do I really need to talk about the brazillians? These people break the Federation's rules every single day. They are rich, smart, powerful and so fucking determined. Mad scientists, escaped convicts, the leader of Ordo Theoritas and his right-hand man, the creator of project NINHO. These people would go to hell and back for their friends. And boy, do they care about the eggs. Cellbit and Forever were almost crying when Bobby died. Mike still feels guilt from letting Richarlyson lose his first life.

If Richas dies for real? The server will explode the very next day.

And that goes for every egg.

If ElQuackity ends up killing one of the eggs as retaliation? His ass is dead the second anyone spots him.

But not only that. Thanks to his affiliation with the Federation? That could mean all-out war.

#qsmp #qsmp eggs

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alexkaneinq · 29 days ago

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Cultist's Gamble: Round 8

Kasper doesn't think that he can say that any time he's spent back in the city has been particularly relaxing, but he absolutely isn't about to say that now. The louder voices calling for a hunt have softened as the Were moved on from the city's edge as a hunting ground, but they haven't died out completely. Kasper wonders if his cult is at all responsible for this.

Their magic works in the shadows, pilfering the graves of gods that the current pantheon killed to take their places. That cycle of violence in the heavens has gone on for millennia, but this pantheon has only been in power for eight mortal centuries. Through those centuries, they influenced their world away from magic not sanctioned by themselves. They want people to have to beg them to do the feats that the educated, the devoted, and the naturally talented can perform. His cult sinks their hands into the decay and uses what they find crawling along the putrefied flesh and make their own spells. They do so out of the gods' sight, but there are other ways for them to notice the disturbance. It's entirely possible that the faithful are starting to feel this itch to hunt down any possible heretics because the gods themselves are starting to feel that there is something wrong as well.

Still, when he had been worried about being observed or approached by someone when he only wanted to stay under the radar, he had been expecting it to be Grady who interrupted him.

"Excuse me?" The man's voice is soft and deep, rumbling in from the doorway as Kasper finishes clearing tables.

"I'm sorry, sir," he says before he's fully turned to look at him. "Last call was-- oh!" He isn't startled by the wound stitched shut across his face. He's not that shallow, he's more surprised that the man who was attacked by the werewolf is already well enough to be up and walking around. "Oh, well, I'd say 'welcome back' but I doubt you remember anything from your first visit."

"You were here?" His tone stays soft as he steps just inside of the threshold so the door can shut behind him.

"I was. It was lucky that Dr. Fernward was here. He and Miss Bursk did everything they could to save your life."

"...Lucky." The man says without much inflection. Kasper wasn't paying much attention to his appearance when he was bleeding out on a table, but he looks now. Pale skin, he remembers, though now it's not streaked with blood, clean shaven now, though he wonders how he managed it around the pink line that is carved across his features. That looks far more healed than he would have expected after only a week and a few days, and it's with a sinking in Kasper's gut that makes him realize that must mean that the curse took. It's trying to get his body healthy enough for the next full moon that is only--he usually is more focused on the new moon for his own magic and it takes him a moment to recall-- three days away? Four? He hopes that the damage to his chest is so severe that he doesn't shift. He doesn't want to have a Were running around in the city causing him problems. His brown hair is short and shaggy, fringe across his forehead and curling around his ears, deep brown eyes peeking out from behind long, thick lashes. His features land somewhere between rugged and handsome, the scar only emphasizing that more, leaving him looking like a painting of an avenging angel.

"I'm sorry," He refocuses, turning his attention back to his work. "But we are closed for the night. If you want to come back tomorrow--"

"I'm looking for a server," He says, his tone still neutral. "A man named Kasper Kosk?"

Of fucking course he is. "What business?" He asks, without looking up, like he's inquiring for someone else.

"I've been discharged, but my... initial destination is still weeks of travel away from here. Inns are too expensive. But Dr. Fernward told me that the server here lived in an apartment on the edge of town that was cheaper. I was hoping I could trouble him to make an introduction between myself and his landlord."

"You'd be better off at an inn. There's no hot water and every time a cold wind blows, you'll know it." If Eric sent him his way, it must have been for a reason. He'll have to inquire after it the next time he sees the other man.

Or maybe doing so would just be his way of confirming to himself that the only reason the vampire would want him on the edge of town, near him, is because he knows the curse took too. Maybe he's hoping that the freshly turned Were attacks him-- but given their association thus far, Kasper thinks it's far more likely that Eric sent this man to him because... he knows that Kasper will kill him before he lets him turn and go on a rampage in the city. Eric doesn't know exactly the kind of magic he practices when so many different forms are illegal, but clearly he thinks whatever he's doing is dangerous enough to trust him to protect them both in a way he wouldn't have been able to if he'd kept the Were at the laboratory.

"I would rather the apartment, Mr. Kosk."

"Alright. " He agrees without making any more fuss. "I've got to finish wiping down the tables, but once I'm done, we can leave, if you don't mind waiting half an hour or so."

The other man goes and sits at a booth near the door, looking out the window silently as he does so. Kasper finishes what he's been doing, Lonnie having already taken care of the bar and gone back into the kitchen to close things down for the night.

The werewolf hasn't moved from that spot by the time he's done, but when Kasper comes up to the edge of the table, he stands up silently and follows him out.

It's very late, and he's not entirely certain if his landlady will be up, but the little apartment only has four units. His and the empty one upstairs, and hers and another neighbor downstairs that he thankfully hasn't ever seen hide or hair of, even if he does have to suffer smelling their cooking which relies far too heavily on boiled sprouts and fish. If her light is on, then the Were can knock.

The walk to his home is eerily silent, but Kasper has so little to go off of when it comes to this man that he doesn't even know where to start with conversation, nor is he aware if said conversation would be well-received when the man hasn't said a single word. All he is traveling with is a rucksack, and that has been stitched together very neatly since he saw it last. He doesn't know what to even say to him when he's already trying to figure out how to kill him without getting discovered. But for now he settles on,

"I didn't catch your name."

"...Vellum Pew. Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you without your guts falling out." He replies.

Vellum Pew travels light and prefers cheap abodes. Hopefully that means he doesn't invest much in other connections either. Maybe he'll get lucky and no one will come looking for him when he's gone.

Result: Success!

Bad Ending Counter: -6

Start Here | First Round | Previous Round | Next Round | Last Round

#cultist's gamble playthrough #solo rpg #writing game

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darkaviarymc · 1 year ago

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Life Series Curses: Where they stand after Secret Life

Jimmy

Canary Curse: The first perma-death

Status: Broken. Lizzie was the first perma-death.

Grian

Black Widow Curse: The last of his alliance left alive, at least one ally having died as a direct result of him

Status: Broken(ish) Though he was the last perma-death of the Roomies, Etho and Cleo's deaths were in no way Grian’s fault.

Skizz

Angel of Death Curse: The first perma-death of his alliance, usually in a self-sacrificial manner

Status: Broken. Tango was the first perma-death of the Heart Foundation, and Skizz's death was not in any other allies' name.

Mumbo

Miner Curse: The second perma-death, immediately following that of the Canary

Status: Upheld(ish) Though Jimmy had already broken the Canary Curse, the Miner Curse can still be considered upheld because Mumbo still died immediately following Jimmy.

Tango

Forgotten One Curse: To perma-die alone and in a silly, easily preventable way with no lasting impact on the server.

Status: Upheld. Tango was spleefed off of the globe by Scar, and Skizz and BigB were left with no time to mourn or avenge him due to running for their own lives.

Joel

Vengeance Curse: After the death of an ally or the destruction of a base, he is blinded by revenge, going on a rampage that leads to his death.

Status: Broken. Though he did swear revenge for Lizzie, Joel's perma-death cannot be attributed to seeking said revenge.

Let me know if I forgot any.

#slsmp #trafficblr

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obscuremarvelmuses · 2 years ago

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My new work duties/schedule has put a dent in my Darkstar reread but I’m back with commentary on Champions #16-17! There’s not a lot new for Laynia’s characterization here, but I learned her powers are way more potent than I thought, there’s hints that her backstory was probably originally intended as something very different than what we eventually got, and it turns out she’s met a fair few “evil” mutants that I didn’t realize she ever had!

Champions #16 OMG the cover indicates we’re going to have Magneto and Dr. Doom?! Why don’t I remember this?! The first page is Magneto fighting the Champions. Beast is also there. Dialogue indicates that Magneto made a deal with Dr. Doom that he (Magneto) could have one ally from among the mind-controlled Avengers (I guess Doom is mind-controlling the Avengers in some other issue) if Magneto could free that one from said mind-control. He apparently did so successfully with Beast, who was at this time an Avenger, in hopes Beast would lead him to Xavier and the X-Men. And according to Beast “I did, but they weren’t home! So I did the next best thing! Welcome to LA, Maggie!” Magneto laments his choice, asking “why, by all the powers, did I choose you?!” while the pair of them fight the Champions, Laynia included. I thought she’d never encountered Mags, but I was wrong! Also, Hercules is accusing Beast of treachery, but my bet is he brought Magneto to the Champions specifically so they would kick his ass. Like, Beast sounds like he’s on Magneto’s side while they fight, but this is my bet.

Magneto knocks a metal beam into Angel and Laynia cries out “Warren!” in horror which is more concern than she has ever shown for BOBBY nearly DYING. Besides that, she’s just utterly absent from the fight for ages. I think maybe the writers realized she’d win way too easy with her powers—like she could just teleport Magneto through the Darkforce or something—so they just…sorta wrote her out for a bit for story’s sake. But then at the very end of the brawl, when Magneto flies off with Beast to go fuck up Doom for reasons, Darkstar suddenly reappears, encases herself and the Champions in a sphere of Darkforce, and uses that to follow Magneto through the sky! Blah blah blah, Doom is doing stuff with politicians at DC, the Hulk shows up, then Magneto, and then Darkstar touches down with the Champions a sec later. Warren is ASTONISHED that “Darkstar got us from LA to Washington DC in a matter of minutes!” which yeah is IMPRESSIVE. I’d forgotten she had speed like that, holy shit. I’ve always apped her on the much more conservative side power-wise at servers and boards. Natasha responds that “We still don’t know the limits of her powers” and Laynia says “One day soon, Widow–I promise!” So Laynia is kinda the mysterious mystical one of the team in this era, I think. Not magical, but like, the kinda freaky “we just don’t really understand her abilities and how far they can go” kinda way, is the vibe I get. She comes off as intended as very. . .Wanda-y, tbh, and it makes me wonder if there were bigger plans for her at one point. Also this is the first time she’s called Nat “Widow” instead of “Madame Natasha” perhaps because they’re in front of a bunch of civilians. Anyway. Big fight. Doom mind-controls Laynia, Warren, and Nat and commands them to kill Magneto. Meanwhile Beast tussels with Ghost Rider, Hulk is punching Hercules, the White House Guard is going after Beast and appear to also be under Doom’s control. . .lot of super-chaos but nothing worthwhile for Laynia notes, except that at one point Magneto wraps an iron gate around her and she can’t use her powers due to it squeezing so tight she feels she’s about to pass out. So jotting that down for my own reference, she can’t concentrate enough to use the Darkforce if she’s in that sort of situation—strangulation, suffocation, etc. Fight ends without Laynia doing or saying anything else, no further notes. Good issue for some powers-related stuff in terms of both capabilities and limits, but nothing in terms of characterization. Champions #17 has them fighting a bunch of Sentinels on the cover. A narrative box on the first page informs me that they fought MODOK in a non-Champions issue, Super Villain Team Up #15 and Iron Man Annual #4, so I’ll check those out next. But first I definitly want to read this issue because it begins with the Brotherhood of Mutants (currently Blob, Unus, and my lovely Lorelei!) charging into the Champions HQ begging for help! Got MY attention! Got the Champion’s too, especially because bursting through the wall after them is the Sentinels! Which ignore Hercules and Natasha, as they’re the only Champions there, and not mutants. As for where everyone else is, Warren is flying around LA, and down below Laynia and Bobby are in line to see a movie in which Johnny Blaze did the bike stunts. I bet Bobby thinks its a date and Laynia thinks it’s building team bonds. Warren’s gotten the alert from the others and comes to get Laynia and Bobby, Bobby transforms into his ice form and someone asks if he’s “a frozen streaker?!” which is pretty funny, at least til he’s recognized as “that mutant freak, the Iceman!” and the crowd attacks him. They swiftly realize they can’t hurt him, so decide to turn on his “lady friend” in retaliation, which goes about as well for them as you’d expect. But this only incites the crowd further as they realize “they ain’t human, none of them!” (so they were totally ready to assault Laynia thinking she was human, just for associating with a mutant I guess) and Johnny gets involved as he’s there in the flesh—er, flaming bones—too. Weirdly, Bobby suggests maybe Johnny planned this, which is an accusation I don’t really understand? Maybe Johnny had a falling out with the team I missed because I don’t read if Laynia isn’t on the panel? Whatever. Anyway, Angel carries Bobby to the Champions HQ, Laynia offers to carry Johnny, he’s really hostile back and tells them to all stop pitying him and drives his motorcycle up the side of the building. Yeah something is going on, I just don’t give a shit. Laynia discards the coat she was wearing, showing that she had her costume under it all the time. So she just went to the movies like that. I’m actually not sure we’ve SEEN her in any normal clothing at this point and I now headcanon she doesn’t have any and hasn’t thought to ask for some because an individual wardrobe would be far too decadent. What’s even more interesting is her thought balloon as she does it: “Pity? At last I understand his coldness towards me! He thinks I see him as a monster! But if he knew of my birth, he would know Darkstar is the true unhuman!” I definitely think something different was intended for Laynia’s origin at this point than what we got. I’m not sure she was even originally intended as a mutant. Not that “raised in a USSR facility from birth as a weapon for the State” is exactly normal, but I really get the vibe something freakier than that was the original plan, given lines like this. Interesting. Would really like to know what the idea was, if I’m right. Meanwhile, a dude in green on the roof is watching all this, thinking “Excellent! The lambs march to the slaughter!” and how he cannot fail now. This same dude was also watching the Sentinels attack earlier from the shadows. Pretty sure it’s Vanisher. Laynia and the others join the fight against the Sentinels while the Brotherhood cowers (REAL HELPFUL, YOU GUYS) and when Laynia hits one with the Darkforce, it goes on the fritz, declaring “alien force disrupting systems” suggesting her Darkforce can disrupt machinery, rather like Shadowcat’s phasing. Also interesting to note! The Champions take out the Sentinels, but, gasp! It was a SETUP! The Vanisher was the brains behind it the whole time, and the rest of the Brotherhood was just acting! Which is disappointing, I like these three (Blob, Unus, and Lorelei) and thought them running to the Champions for help was cute. Oh well. Vanisher blasts them all with a knock-out ray, but Laynia, as her thought balloons reveal, is “Barely. . .conscious! But. . .I must act! I cannot let him. . .kill….those who have befriended me!” AW BABY ;-; SHE DEF DIDN’T HAVE FRIENDS EVER BEFORE THIS I mean later it’s established she was raised with Vanguard and Ursa Major but that’s not really the same thing as people choosing to befriend you, is it? Anyway, what happens next is ABSOLUTELY WILD—Laynia uses the Darkforce to animate the remains of the ruined Sentinel! Holy shit! It attacks the Brotherhood, and Vanisher, realizing it’s Darkstar’s doing, is about to kill her, but Bobby, now conscious again too, stops him. Vanisher is about to flee, claiming that no one can stop him from doing so with his power of teleportation, and Darkstar declares that “No human, perhaps! But Darkstar is more than human! Much more!” and uses the Darkforce to actually FREEZE HIM HALF TELEPORTED HALF OF HIM IS STILL THERE THE OTHER IS NOT It’s not gory and hes not dead, the “open” part of his body is covered in Darkforce, but dear GOD that is disturbing, and Darkstar thinks so too. As Bobby gawks and wonders how Vanisher can be alive, Laynia turns away from the sight into Bobby’s arms, saying “I-I don’t know! Oh Bobby, hold me!” The issue ends with Warren saying “Did you hear what she said? About not being human?” which, yeah, technically Warren isn’t human, but like. . .Darkstar definitely seems to mean something bigger than just being a mutant (which, actually, ARE human, humans with mutations are humans) Hercules concurs that “Aye lad! In truth, there is a mystery here!” and Ghost Rider thinks “And maybe I’ve been wrong all along!” The issue ends here. Yeah, whatever Darkstar’s original origin story was meant to be, I think it was probably something a lot more eldritch in nature than just “mutant with connection to the Darkforce” for sure. Alas, I’ll probably never know what it is!

#darkstar reread

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kentopedia · 1 year ago

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rylie hiii!!!! hope you're doing well, pretty <3

anyway, this is random but what was your weirdest dream?? only asking cause i had SUCH a weird dream today..like i was dazai's pet hedgehog??? i dont remember it very clearly but i think he fed me like corn or some shit 😭like..i wanted to have a bsd related dream someday but NOT LIKE THIS 😭 ig afternoon naps are always kinda trippy???

HELLO MY ANGEL <3 i'm doing pretty good today! I hope you are too MWAH

HELPPPP IM CACKLING 😭😭😭 why is this canon though he would hide you in kunikida's desk drawers 💀 my weirdest dream... chiyo i have the most obscure and elaborate dreams ever. but one of the most recent ones was i got trapped in a cult that was pretending to be an animal rescue charity (??) & i don't exactly remember what happened besides i went to dinner with the cult leader (not geto unfortunately) and some guy i used to work with was the server & he was like you should run away... but ofc he didn't tell me why ! so the next time i was at one of the "charity" meetings, my fbi agent friend (rylie is american reveal) who was actually nanami (LMAO) came with me and said he needed to investigate. but then the cult found out he was undercover and killed him and all of my friends !!! but luckily i escaped with some other random guy from the cult who looked suspiciously like michael b jordan after we teamed up to kill the cult leader !!! and then ... i met up with nick fury from the avengers to destroy the cult, but turns out... my friend that survived (michael b jordan) wasn't really my friend. he was the cult leader who had shapeshifted into him !!!! and bc my dreams are like movies we got this third person pov of the cult leader on this throne of all my dead friends skeletons and his foot was on the head of michael b jordan bc he was actually dead and the cult leader just took his place DSHHFDSHSDFHH

#this dream was actually so scarier than ed sheeran !#i woke up like three times during it... and it continued #i told you chiyo people are always after me in my dreams #໒꒱ rylie's angels #xoxo . . . chiyo

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jasmineway · 5 months ago

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Vespertine // 7-20-2024

This is the story of Vespertine, a polarizing, mesmerizing, and fantastic meal of intrigue hidden in the heart of a lesser known corner of Los Angeles.

This is also the story of one of my most treasured evenings in no small part due to my fantastic company, the kind and beautiful Nicki.

Architecture

The setting was as much as a character as the meal itself, and we began our adventure in awe as we pulled up to our destination.

Set in the Waffle Building in Culver City, the entire space is devoted to Vespertine, and our evening's ups and downs where just as much metaphorical as they were physical as we changed floors and settings throughout our meal.

Despite the urban, office-park coordinates, the obligatory Fine Dining Garden still had a presence, though one well in line with its industrial surroundings. Florals later debuted in our meal were inlaid in concrete; bamboo curtains darted across brutalist structures; babbling creeks subbed with puddles jutting through white limestone. This is herb sanctuary a la Rian Johnson's The Last Jedi.

Reception, Seating and Welcome

The team had accommodated our demanding work schedules, and they had even sat us a few moments early when we arrived in advance of our 8pm seating. The waiting area is on the ground floor, and there seemed to be exactly enough seats for the parties currently queued. We would have three different seats throughout this evening, none of which were uncomfortable, but all of which were distinctively 'weird' or unexpected in some way.

We were shortly recruited into the a paradoxically claustrophobic yet large elevator (given the unfriendliness of the otherwise metal stairs to heels often worn to fine dining, our hostess commented on her surprise that so many people decline this option...), after which we exited to the top public floor, the kitchen.

Catching no sight of his signature hairstyle in the open floorplan, I'd later confirm ours was only the second dinner since reopening without Chef Jordan present. This means I'll have tentative descriptions of the three courses in which Nicki's pescatarian menu diverged from mine, until my (soon to be signed) menu finds its way back to me.

This building has the privilege of being uniquely tall vs. its surroundings, and the panoramic views of the city were breathtaking at the cusp of sunset. After a brief kitchen tour (and photo), we descended aforementioned metal stairs to the Mezzanine, where our first seating took place.

I can't say I've ever been seated at a gliding acrylic plane before, but Nicki and I shared the first of many laughs when they tucked us in for the ride ahead. While every seat had a light-filled view, I cannot feign envy for any of those seated in the middle.

As the sun set, ambient lighting created shadow puppets on the ceiling, which added an extra visual enhancement to the impassioned course announcements.

Service and Experience

Our main server was Brian, who was by all means, an entertaining and attentive host. Our speakers painted visual storytelling on our plates with spoken histories that imbued upon lived memories; at a certain point, I felt I was paging through a scrapbook filled with treats and fondness experienced throughout the chef's life. It is a testament to the clear admiration and commitment to vision by the entire team that no part of this or the intense atmospheric tones (that were not overpowering - looking at you, Avengers Campus) came across corny, or condescending, as could be easy to occur. All this is to say that the servers were excellent, when it comes to food, inquiries, and helpfulness. We felt welcomed, respected, and enjoyed our interactions.

That being said, for a $400/plate meal, I do think it should not have been necessary for my friend to have to ask for a (filtered) water refill, much less the subsequent two times. What the team is trying to accomplish is very deserving of its Michelin accolades--the creativity in the meal was evident--but I could see some small misses in hospitality* causing disproportionate challenges in their pursuit of a third star; food notwithstanding.

(*not offering by default the elevator to ladies wearing heels and dresses vs. the see-through glass / metal staircase, not scoping for empty glasses proactively and filling them without being asked, the bathroom soap situation... more on that one later)

Beverages

Nicki opted for the Dynamic pairing, which included a mix of unique spirits, wines, and zero-proof pairings throughout the meal. These were all fantastic selections, and the most interesting and thoughtful beverage pairing I have ever had the joy to taste throughout a meal. As a non-drinker I was a bit disappointed that no soft drinks were available for purchase (I'm not a big juice person outside of brunch, and learned my lesson from overdoing liquid calories at Melisse), and opted out of a ceremonial tasting bubbly (they do not provide a beverage list to choose from, but the verbal report marked the cheapest by-the-glass beverage starting at ~$70, which is more than I am willing to invest in something I would not have opted for). That being said, having tried tastes of all 10 of Nicki's curated pairings (2 of which were served to us both and integrated in the base meal), I have a great deal of deference and encourage entrusting the team via a pairing (though I still think all juice will be Too Sweet for a 12 course meal).

As a side note: I can understand not providing a written menu at the start of a meal to keep the surprises ahead--but if you are going to preface the meal with written supplements, this becomes a tacky practice. Diners (at least me) will feel much better reviewing the long list of everything they are getting, rather than immediately being confronted with what they will not, lest they opt to heavily enrich their entry fee.

The Meal

While the above may be the longest preamble to the dining experience itself yet in this blog, it serves to show just how much of the Vepsertine experiences transcends the food alone to a whole body experiential album. You are visualizing; smelling; hiking; seeing; thinking; being asked to go on a journey and soon, initiating one. We are in the Waffle House; and the storm is just beginning.

Be warned the menu descriptions are minimalist ("they didn’t list out all the ingredients or anything. It’s more vibes" - N), and thus many descriptions are things I either tasted or vaguely remember being rattled.

Course 1: WILD SCALLOP

“passionfruit, aji amarillo”

This is the first of many plates that opened with us being presented a bowl of flowers. Still traumatized from the Alinea vase, I was pleasantly surprised to learn all flowers were edible and the meal began with one of the greatest fruity concoctions I could not begin to tell you the ingredients for. The flowers were soft and supple; the horseradish below. The cold stoneware was perched in what felt like wet, white kinetic sand perched on top of another plate, and the concoction paired perfectly with the light champagne presented to Nicki.

Pairing: CHAMPAGNE AUBRY 'a jouy-les-reims’ brut, premier cru, champagne, French nv

Course 2: SUMMER

"peas, wildflowers"

These hipsters, I'm telling you. Nicknamed 'Chef Jordan's Flower Pot,' he forages all of the florals himself, which have been painted on the walls of the stoneware with almond paste. The center base holds kiwi, crunchy 'puffs, 'or texture,' and green jelly made of reduced pea pod exterior to help everything stick together on the spoon. This one was just fun, and I enjoyed every bite of it.

Pairing: KIWI WITH OXALIS AND VERBENA [NA; that's it, no description]

Course 3: DEEP OCEAN

“sweet prawn, quince”

Yes, this was served in a hand-relieved ice block with a wreath that would make even a Christmas door jealous. The shrimp in these are apparently from a very very deep trench, so deep that you don't need a permit to fish there, and just one father-and-son boat even dare to try. The visual was beautiful. The flavors, tart, sweet and tangy. The fish was cold and raw. This was the first plate that perhaps wasn't quite there in its harmony, but I enjoyed it nontheless.

Pairing: KUHEIJI ‘kyou den’ junta daiginjo, okayama, japan 2022

Course 4: OBSIDIAN MIRROR

“smoked mussel, plum”

They said when the Mayans discovered obsidian, it was the first time they had seen their own reflection, and believed they were looking into the eyes of the gods (or perhaps their ancestors). I am willing to overlook the existence of fresh water for this storytelling, and chose to look unto myself in the void.

This dish was made sparkling by crushed iridescent kelp, and the oil slick broke like wet volcanic sand as we were invited to breach the surface with the provided polished muscle shells.

There is something very carnal about eating an animal with its skeleton made pretty, an oxymoron glamorizing the violent nature of our place in the food chain. As I broke into the surface of mussel whipped into panna cotta to eat, I carved, breaking into my image of my self.

Pairing: WENZEL ‘alte Reben’ furmint, Burgenland, austria 2021

Course 5: DEEP SEVEN

"red papaya, indian mallow"

The shell was a transition to even stranger utensils; our hands. The story of this fish is that it is a rare fish, a very fatty fish, fatty to the point that it inevitably catches fire in the process of cooking and rare in the sense that they definitely definitely weren't trying to catch this fish intentionally and just one or two get caught in the traps when fishing other fish and we just happened to get to eat some as it's almost never for sale. Sure.

The akamatsu was indeed the closest thing to what I can call the wagyu of fish so while I hope my conscience can survive, 10/10, would eat again.

Pairing: RHUBARB KOMBUCHA WITH RED CURRANT

Course 6: COTURNIX QUAIL (for N: CABBAGE*)

"heather, sacred pepper"

This was a breast of quail, served on a bed of herbs, cooked excellently and meant to be eaten as tiny cutlets dipped in an emulsion featuring the quail egg. It was soon to be followed by a quail dolmeh, with leaves revealing a mixture inclusive of the rest of the quails less supple meat. Sustainably, even the au jus produced in cooking would be used to flavor the following course. This was delicious.

Pairing: COMTE ABBATUCCI ‘ministre imperial’ corsica, France 2020

Course 7: PORRIDGE BREAD (for N: OAT PORRIDGE BREAD*)

"heirloom peel corn oats" (for me: quail fat-fried crust*)

What can't I say about how much I love bread? This was delicious. Classically, made with ancient grains, but they did not tell us which. A bit rich and I wish I had had the option of butter and no meat fat as a palette cleaner, but this was more a fritter than a bread course. A crispy, meaty donut if you will. Delicious, spongy and crisp, I still missed a true-neutral bread course but wouldn't trade this one.

Pairing: BRASSERIE CANTILLON gueze 100% lambic anderlecht, france 2020

Course 8: PINE FED LAMB (for N: MOREL MUSHROOM*)

“yeast fudge, magnolia” (for me: lamb, cherry, emulsion*)

This was an exceptionally sweet cut of lamb, but one of my three bites was so tough no amount of chewing would rescue me from my suffering and it finished its evening gently tucked into my napkin. It was tasty, but the chewiness took me out of the meal and I think was the only 4/10 dish as a result. Nicki's mushrooms looked excellent.

Pairing: HEIWA SHUZOU ‘Aka kid’ wakayama, japan

Transition

At this point we were whisked to settle in one floor deeper, and descended from the mezzanine to the ground floor once again, this time enshrouded in velvety benches and spinning coupe chairs. From this point on, we would experience the sweet back-end of our tasting menu, warm in a setting evocative of 'dark and sexy gala,' and 'night at the Natural History museum' with sweeping ceiling elements that sang an ode to paleontology. All pairings from here forth were shared with all diners. (be proud, I resisted a dino-rs pun)

Course 8: RED EARTH

“heirloom corn, strawberry, temescal”

This was earthy, smoky, spicy, flowers, berries? I gazed into the void once again, to meet my own eyes.

Pairing: DOUGLAS FIR TEA INFUSION [NA, no description, served throughout dessert] Mine: fantastic natural non-caffeinated tea refined as Christmas Tree in a Cup. Authentic in the way of Persian preparations of mint tea, with fresh mint. No springs in site. We drank many, many cups of these]

Course 10: CARAMELIZED PANCAKE

“scotch, woodruff”

Sourdough pancake cooked in lamb fat (for Nicki: browned butter) served with fresh whipped cream, a pool of unfiltered maple syrup, and pink raspberries, which had all been painstakingly separated without managing to get crushed.

I loved eating this, but I'm not sure I loved eating this right here. It's everything I could want at brunch, but it was a bit heavy and incongruous with the rest of the meal, which had otherwise so thoughtfully dialed the intensity in proportion to the weight of the courses. I liked this one the most of all the deserts, but I do think no individual desert was a home run on its own. Without the tea it could be obtrusive and heavy.

Course 11: ICY BIRCH

“parsnip, reduced milk”

Despite its appearance, this time the bowl was not ice, though the hat topping the bites were. Frozen aloe vera invited you in to crack the glass ceiling and drop into a rich, gelatinous jam with nutty flavor. The texture of this cream, panna-cotta, what-have-you was distinct in American dining in its nod to bastani, and Nicki and I both had a laugh upon discovering the name the next day and now insist on calling it "Chef Jordan's Ex."

I hope you are happier now, Chef.

Pairing: SPARKLING REDWOOD [NA, cold, 'redwood shoots?' - another delicious juice drink]

Course 12: LAYERS

“black currant, sheep’s milk”

You didn't think you would get out of this meal without yet another reflection into the void, did you? The final course was yet another spectacular display of culinary engineering albeit at the slight expense of mouthfeel and taste. Despite the descriptor, many flavors adorned the wall of this stoneware, from almond butter to Tonka bean (think vanilla, cinnamon, and caramel in flavor), all of which generally worked together but could be overwhelming. One ring had the texture of fresh coconut but was frozen to a degree that both our teeth hurt with a small bite; going from frozen ice to 'peanut and jelly swimming pool' with the recommended all-layer eating style was a bit jarring and this may have worked better had I waited a bit longer.

The purple coloration was butterfly pea tea reduced and powdered along each layer as it was built. It was stunning, but I can't say I enjoyed eating it (even if it was not a negative experience!).

Closing and Quirks

They served the above before asking if we needed anything else and dropping the check, after which there was no further standard interactions. I did pop to the ladies room to discover some extreme nonsense in terms of hand hygiene (there was a powdered mix next to the sink, which I thought may have been dehydrated soap, but upon closer inspection seemed to be salt...), and thankfully the staff were happy to oblige when I requested their health-code-compliant kitchen soap instead (there was no natural place to comment on this, but I think there's a boundary between provocative and weird, which should firmly err conservative when it comes to a bathroom much less a restaurant that encourages eating with your hands).

I also reached out asking if I could come back later to get my menu signed, which the team could accommodate but only by mailing me my menu some time later. I hope it finds its way to me.

Final Impressions

This was, all said and done, a spectacular meal. It was one of the most memorable dining experiences I've had in my life, and showed solid potential to grow into an even tighter experience with even greater acclaim.

Would this be a meal I would suggest to an entry-level patron looking for a superb food experience? No. The interesting concept and structural creativity asks for a lot of audience participation, and that can be a lot for first-time diners. Would I encourage any fine dining enthusiast who has done standard fare and wants cutting edge and evocative in the vein of Chef Achatz but a younger, modern twist? Yes, without hesitation. This is not the crowdpleaser meal I could find at JR or TFL that strays safe but impeccable with their menu. Vespertine asks you to stray from that comfort with avant-garde, bold, and innovative decision making, at the start of what I hope will be a standout run in the SoCal dining scene.

At $400 per person, I'm not even sure it yet offers comparable value in terms of dining experience relative to more established peers, though it makes a solid case as a total package.

With some refinement of the savory / dessert cohesion, and some strides in the good-but-not-exceptional service, I can see myself smiling fondly as I spot Vespertine on future Michelin lists.

Overall 8/10, would return in a few years as they continue to grow but still enjoyed the amazing experience we had last night.

#finedining #losangeles #michelinstar #twostar #foodblog #jasmineway #Vespertine #JordanKahn

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xprojectrpg · 9 months ago

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This Day in X-Project - March 20

Kyle Gibney's birthday; Jean-Phillipe Colbert and Angelo Espinosa's Anniversary

PHASE 2

2015: X-Men Mission: Attica! Attica! Jean talks to Scott about Clarice’s actions during the mission. Lorna complains about solar flares. Angel and Rogue decide on a vacation in Vegas for the X-Men involved in the Ryker’s Island mission; Angel emails those concerned with the invitation. Matt is less than impressed with the sudden cold snap on the first day of spring. Garrison returns to the mansion, having been suspended by the FBI for his role at Ryker’s, and he and Adrienne decide to go wander Europe for a while; Garrison and Adrienne arrive in Milan, where Vic Chalker, testing his mutant detection device, finds them and leaves a tracker in Adrienne’s purse; a purse snatcher steals the purse and leads Vic Chalker to an untimely end at the hands of the local mafia.

2016: Laurie texts Kyle telling him he needs to see Zootopia. Bobbi meets Maya while running and they have actually have a friendly talk.

2017: Angelo visits Angel with food and a suggestion for her paper. Hope A. emails Sue with a write up she did of her dad’s company. Sooraya asks for help with a college assignment. Clarice posts about certain colors not looking well. Logan texts Kyle to congratulate him with his birthday. Molly gives Kyle a gift. Kyle texts Molly to thank her. Angelo takes care of Jean-Phillipe, who's still recovering from the Avengers fight, and the conversation takes a surprising, but pleasant, turn.

2018: Maya texts Quentin about her new job at X-Factor. Amanda informs Molly she's not cursed. Tandy asks Julian to talk to her. Darcy celebrates Mr. Rogers.

2019: Jubilee posts her appreciation for the mansion's shared music server. Clea texts Stephen accusing him of setting up color bombs around the mansion. Darcy has a brief crisis about going to school blue. Amanda helps Angelo get ready for his wedding; Marie-Ange helps Jean-Phillipe and the cousins come up with a creative way to incorporate the colour bombs; Alani falls victim to one of the bombs, and Marie-Ange offers to help people coordinate with their new look, if they wish; Topaz 'fesses up to being responsible for the color bombs, wishes everyone a happy Holi, and apologizes to Jean-Phillipe and Angelo for adding extra decoration to their wedding.

2020:

2021:

2022:

2023: In District X, Match meets with Angelo to get legal advice. Reality 03: Chimera Contagion: Alani gets eXcalibur up to date before their mission; in the other universe, Meggan shares her field report of the situation, along with the realization that people are gaining powers; Clint updates the team and plans their infiltration to the lab that is causing the anomaly; Forge announces that the Chapel is on lockdown for unauthorized personnel; Illyana chimes in with her observations of the mission and shares that these Chimeras do not mind harming children; Clint calls Forge to get outside help in stalling pursuers on the mission; Namor contacts Forge to inform him that Meggan has been injured and they’d be coming in hot; Alani texts Amanda and Kurt to update them on Meggan’s situation.

#wildchild #birthday #skin #bevatron #wedding anniversary #this day in xproject #plots #plot #xprpg #xproject #x-project #rpg #rp #phase 2

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breitweisergallery · 11 months ago

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For the fanfiction writing asks: 2, 4, 6, 11, 14, 17, 29, 34, 38, 50, 59, 68, 75, 79

🥰 hi sass <3

2. Where do you get your fic ideas?

Oh god. Everywhere? Sometimes a particular line in a scene will stick out to me, or a small detail. Sometimes it's just "I wonder what would happen if I stuck these two in a room together and didn't let them leave until (arbitrary goal)". Sometimes a song inspires it.

4. How do you choose which fics to write?

I... write all of them. 😅😅

6. What’s the last line you wrote?

“Draw attention to the labor assignments. Hurt a few of them, I don’t care.” Her eyes glittered and a smile tugged at the corner of her lips, a cold cruel smile that was far too fetching on her face.

“And what will you do?”

Bren smiled at her. “Research. It is, after all, what I do best.”

11. Do you write scenes in order, or do you jump around?

Mostly in order - but I also don't write chronologically a lot of the time, so that makes it a little more fun. If a scene is eating at me, I'll write it.

14. What is your favorite location and position to write in?

Between 3-6pm at the Starbucks down the street, between 9-11am camped out at a table at the campus library or dining hall, or between 8-11pm with the lights off in my room.

17. Do you have a writing routine?

I do! I have a candle I only burn when I'm writing. I put on the playlist for whatever project I'm working on. I reread the last bit I wrote, edit a page or two back. Then I delete a sentence and start from the sentence I just deleted.

29. What’s something about your writing that you’re proud of?

That I still do it. That I write for myself, with tropes I like, with characters I like. That I get compliments on dialogue and character.

34. How much of your personal life/experience do you include in your fics?

I have at least two fics published where I made the protagonist into a writer... Jokes aside, a decent amount. I can point to something I was working through in each fic I've published since 2015.

38. What is your most self-indulgent posted story?

exposed

50. How would you describe your writing style?

Dynamic. If I'm not actively trying, I don't think my writing stays terribly consistent across projects.

59. Have you participated in any fic events/writing challenges? If yes, what were they and did you enjoy them?

My discord server made the "Fanfic Fests Anonymous" section just for me. There was a period where I was signed up for 37 at once. All of them were RPF events on Twitter, and I used to love them. I'm not sure I'd like them as much anymore, but I used to love working with prompts.

68. Are there any fics that influenced you to write the way you do?

Oh boy, yes. Again and Again, We Killed a Dragon Last Night, A History of Heaven and Its Angels, as Understood by the Archangel Gabriel, once upon a damn-you-all, Mistakes Were Made, Bullet with Butterfly Wings, Sir?, Internecine, Avengers: A Deal with the Devil, and a long deleted Arrow fic that was pre-relationship Oliver/Malcolm and was so so good.

75. Is there a particular fic that readers gravitated towards that you didn’t expect?

stillness - the whole eldritch Gaon thing really hit something people wanted. Genuinely surprised me, for a fic I'm pretty sure I wrote in a couple of hours.

79. Do you have any writing advice you want to share?

Write for yourself. Write the things you want to read. It's okay to share an idea and have it not go anywhere. It's okay to have WIPs in your back pocket forever. It never hurts to re-read things. Always read.

Fanfiction Writing Asks | Send Me Asks

#took answers #moot tag #send me asks!#sass tag #fic stuffs

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infinitethree · 1 year ago

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Hooo boy. Daz has a LOT of songs. His full playlist is currently 772 songs. Obviously, I trimmed that down considerably when I ported it! The Youtube version is at 274.

I might be insane and detail-obsessed, but not to THAT extent.

Explanations and major songs behind the cut!

Reasons for yeeting songs include but are not limited to:

Not in English

Only kinda fits

Other version already on the list

Can't fuckin' find it again

Kinda weird/romantic overtones (it's not MY fault all the 'fuck you' songs are about romantic relationships that went sour!! The angry energy works perfectly otherwise and AHHH)

Okay, and now the actual songs. There are a few artists that pop up a fair bit. Adam Jensen is by far the biggest one; even on this version of the playlist, he has TWENTY ONE songs. He is the primary Daz artist. References to drugs and sex are, in this context, metaphors for his unhealthy habits & coping mechanisms.

The Crane Wives, UPSAHL, and Seether are some of the others.

Trouble- Adam Jensen

It was hard to narrow down which one of Adam Jensen's songs is the MOST fitting. I think this one wins because pretty much every line suits him perfectly. Like-- it's pitch-perfect. "Is it living or dying that makes me afraid?/Or is it that I know my soul can't be saved?"; "There's trouble in my daydreams/It's all I've ever known/The day that I was born, trouble won't leave me alone/It's flowing in my bloodstream/And running through my veins/And when I lose my mind, it's the trouble that remains" Honestly, just pick any line. It works perfectly for Daz no matter which one it is.

Enchante- Dirt Poor Robins

First of all; I found this song via this Mandela Catalogue animatic. Spoilers up through Volume 4, but if that/themes of the series in general don't bother you then you GOTTA watch it. I remain obsessed with this MONTHS later. (Catch me in the comments frothing at the mouth over it, lmao) Back to Daz, tho. Surprise! It's an extended metaphor for Blood & Gold! "For grounded men were jealous of/the angel's flight, the angel's flight" is New L'manburg's snubs against Dream & Tommy, and then of course their attempt to take the server from them by force; "Alas, the virtues through their glasses/drifting away as only madness/drowning in the sin/of our animal skins"; Dream's ideals and morals gradually eroded and then vanished. By the end, he was halfway out of his mind of from loud his admin instincts were. Those same instincts had been what damned him to the same miserable fate that he had been so desperate to avoid. and ofc the chorus; "Enchanté, enchanté, enchanté, enchanté/Greet your beast and let 'em streak/Into the fray/It's okay, it's okay, it's okay/If we can't raise the dead/We're gonna raise, we're gonna raise/We're gonna raise hell instead" Especially the end of the chorus. If we can't raise the dead, we're gonna raise hell instead. At first, it's Dream and Tommy about Eret and Connor. Then it's Dream and Tommy about the death of their (Dream's) ideal server. Then it's Tommy and Innit about Tubbo-- and that refrain has become mocking. You won't be able to bring us back, they're saying. Just like we can't bring Tubbo back. And through our death, we will avenge him.

Flu Game- Fall Out Boy

Aaay a one from both Dream and Daz! Dream is the one with the first part of the chorus-- "Last night I dreamt I still knew you/You/I carved out a place in this world for two/But it's empty without you" He tried to build a paradise for the two of them. He failed. In some ways, he still doesn't understand what went wrong. (He can't. Not when he's still clinging to the past-- when he's still being warped by something be could never have realized was a problem.) Daz is the second part-- "I've got all this love I've got to keep to myself/All this effort to make it look effortless/All this love I've got to keep to myself/All this effort to make it look effortless" See, one of the secrets about Daz is that he's NOT a sociopath. He DOES care. He just believes that he's cursed and broken; anyone who gets too close to him is damned to suffer. If he shows too much open affection, then his loved ones will be targeted and used against him. To love him is to suffer, but to be loved by him is a death sentence. So, even when he's with the Council, he's just donning a different mask. He's not capable of love, and maybe he never was. Thus, he can't love his friends. Because if he can't love them, then his love can't become a noose around their throat. It can't become a knife in their heart. It can't become something precious wielded as a weapon. (And, maybe, if he's lucky, they'll believe it enough that they wouldn't let him kill them.)

Daffodil- Florence + The Machine

Part of this one is the vibes. The slightly dark/ominous tone, and phrasing of someone who has reached the end of their patience, suits him so well. But, also...it's about Dream again. "I couldn't help it, yes, I let it get in/The helpless optimism of spring/Worn out and tired and my heart never tired/And the world bent double from weeping/And yet, the birds begin to sing" (The world very literally wept over him. Dream's distress summons rain, after all, and every mob in the server inherently understands what their admins want. They want to help. Some of those efforts work better than others.) "English sun, she has come/To kiss my face and tell me I'm that chosen one" Like...Dream pretty much directly called him the chosen one. Daz was special because he's capable of being an admin. Dream, to his knowledge, had never met another person like him. Daz could be like a god, Dream tells him early on. He could hold so much power in the palm of his hand-- and more than that, to be viewed as an equal to Dream himself. The two of them, side by side, co-admins. The gilded cage he was trapped in was to be transformed into a paradise.

Dramaturgy- Jubyphonic (cover)

It's literally about lying/pretending to be someone you're not. That's Daz's whole MO. The most painful part is easily; "The world that I locked out is nowhere to find/The people who mocked me are gone from my sight/Emotions and feelings are useless to keep/The tears that had fallen were not mine to weep" A part of him won't LET him fully grieve for Tubbo; he doesn't deserve that luxury. He's the reason Tubbo is dead, after all.

My Ordinary Life- The Living Tombstone

and in a VERY different change of pace; a song about success and also arrogance and suffering so maybe not THAT big of a change lmao "Can you heal me? Have I gained too much?/When you become untouchable you're unable to touch/Is there a real me? Pop the champagne/It hurts me just to think and I don't do pain" Is there a real Daz, under the gold leaf? Maybe he doesn't want there to be. It would be so much easier if he COULD let himself stop thinking.

How To Be Me- Ren

God, all of Daz's songs are so fucking depressing. The meaning of this one is pretty obvious; between him hiding parts of himself from Dream, his public life in Sanctuary, and all his secrets...he's lost who he really is, behind all those masks. I think the opening and closing verses are especially fitting. "I don′t feel safe in this bed/There are voices in my head/I've been talking to the dead/And the fear baptized me"; "When he gave up the fight/A quick decision late in the night/That stayed with me for all of my life/I miss you so" Innit and Tubbo references! :)

Night Is Faint- Trickle (cover)

It's Dream again. The chorus especially, with "wishing on a star for saving/under the sky, a boy who's heart is aching". "A secret that I've had for centuries…/There's a darkness that I hide when smiling/On my life, I swear, I didn't want to meet this side of me/… Didn't want this And I wish my bleeding, beating heart from back before was warm/enough to/Melt away the frozen veins that pulse with pain and eating me away" He wants to go back to when he believed he'd been granted a miracle. He wants to go back to when he was offered the world, and he believed he could have it without a steep cost.

People I Don't Like- UPSAHL

A core song, and yes I DID find it from that one c!Schlatt animatic lmao. One of my first "ohhh my god I need this song, actually" moments! This one is pretty simple. He's pretty jaded/critical of others, and he's just pretending to be a good person-- "Everybody in this party's fucking fake/I really wish that I could say it to your face/But I won't"

Chimera- Will Stetson (cover)

It's about a performance, pretending to be something you're not. Again...that's just what Daz does, 24/7. And he's pretending not to still be carrying a lot of pain and suffering from his past. He's notoriously tight lipped about a lot of what happened to him; the Council knows the broad strokes, yes, but a lot of the particulars are at best an educated guess. Daz is desperate to not dwell on what happened. If he starts unraveling that thread, he might not be able to let things slip that he can't let slip. Like Innit. None of the Council would understand that he made the only choice he could. By the end of Fool's Gold, there are only two options; side fully with Innit (and thus accept that Lee would be directly killed), or go all-in on Lee (and thus keep Innit trapped). There's no wiggle room. There still isn't-- he made his choice, and he knows that Innit will never forgive him for it. That's why he's currently so scared.

Core/important songs:

As a reminder, core songs are songs that are really important to the foundation for a character. Sometimes they don't fit as well now, but they still REALLY had an impact on their development. Innit and Mystery are both new enough that there hasn't been a ton of shift from their initial conception to now.

Not so for Daz! He's gotten a lot of development over the year and a half or so he's been around. <3

A bunch of these won't have suuuper deep detail, because some are more about the VIBES and what they inspired than actual lyric analysis.

wanting, getting wanting- DEMONDICE

This one, in my mind, is either Daz and Innit somehow talking to past Tommy...or various Daz branches doing the same. "What is a man to a king/And a king to a god?/What is a god to a devil putting up a facade?" I'm not kidding when I say this line is SO fitting. There's two main ways of reading it; there's man= player, king= Eret/Wilbur, god= Dream, devil= Tommy then there's man= player, king=mod, god= admin, and devil= mainline/"canon" Daz. Which, yes-- in...pretty much every other timeline, he becomes an admin. There's really only one exception. Maybe. I haven't decided for sure either way.

Additional Memory- JubyPhonic (cover)

This is a song about suicide! :D It's also one of the songs that I really, REALLY heavily associate with Blood & Gold. Once I decided that Tommy would try to kill himself in retaliation for being forced to kill Tubbo, this song pretty naturally slotted into that. It's said to Tubbo, to Dream, to the hopes and plans he had made of a paradise that was never meant to be. I have a very vivid mental image of what an animatic would look like for this one. Or even just an abstract of relevant scenes.

Honey Honey- Larkin Poe

I don't know what to call the vibes of this song. Almost villain-esque, with the bass(?) and what I think of as a snake-like rhythm. Something creeping up, something waiting to strike. Something dangerous. The "American as apple pie" line was part of why Daz was turned into someone so beneficial to the rest of the server. He's wholesome and warm! He wants to help everyone! And he's always there to greet new people, and lend a hand or his ear, and help however he can. Everyone knows Daz. Everyone trusts Daz. Without Daz, the server would grind to a screeching halt. He's secured himself a guarenteed checkmate. If he's ever exposed to the rest of the server, then not only would he be stripped of his power (and possibly ability to remain in the server), but nobody could ever trust anyone again. If Daz, of all people, is actually a mastermind genius-- and able to conceal his true self from Lucid, San, Day, Vio, etc...who knows what anyone else might be hiding?

DICTATOR- Rei Ami

Another animatic song that had a huge impact on Daz's development. It's not in the playlist, because, I mean...like. Listen to the lyrics. Super sus/weird, y'know? But the idea of him having an "I wasn't asking you, I was telling you" mentality went on to be a pretty big part of Blood & Gold. Even now, he might pretend to be nice or offer an option...but a lot of the time? That's a lie. There is Daz's way, or there is a lot of pain in some form He ain't a benevolent ruler; he's an iron-fisted dictator, and by god will you learn to bow your head to him.

Lady Jesus- UPSAHL

UPSAHL again! You'd think, with the order they were added in the full playlist, that it'd be "People I Don't Like" here and "Lady Jesus" in the main 10. Nope! This one fits less, actually, despite being a pretty important song for Daz's meta growth. The idea of a rebirth after suicide & how he's become a quiet powerhouse of influence within the server is a pretty obvious through-line. He killed the person he used to be, in several ways. Now he's come back stronger than ever, with assurances that mean he CAN'T be ousted from power easily.

Aaaand that's it! Now I can move onto a less insane playlist. Alternately, I can move on to Day, who is the only character to beat out Daz's song count! He has 778 songs, a whole SIX more!

God. you can tell they're my two favorites. The next highest is Aver at 720...but mostly because he's got a lot of c!Tommy-esque background and I have SO MANY depressing songs.

Then the rest of the top 5 are Lucid at 569, Aster at 520. After that (and excluding Blood & Gold/AU specific variants) it drops below 500.

I have so many fuckin' songs, y'all.

#cocochaos #MusicalMayhem #long post #VERY VERY long post #my internet cut out for like 5 minutes on the last few songs of this #god Daz has so many depressing shit in his playlist #he needs to get help. like he won't #but he still needs it!!#it is now 2 am & time isn't real #so I'm gonna save giving more clarity on Mystery's songs for a later time #but some of them are much more literal than you'd think!!#fae wording remains in effect for them btw #make of that what you will :3c #full library count is currently 4.366 songs btw. period instead of comma because Tumblr is a webbed site running on pasta

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