#the last remaining power of the Guardian of Light before he sacrificed himself to defeat the Angel of Darkness

[ungodlysaltyinfrastructure]

Ok, time to be a nerd about AR.

Genetic talk under the cut.

How Alux has his powers is purposely vague for the sake of the story, but that won't stop me theorizing how he has them!

Ok, if we are going off of the idea that the magic system in AR is genetic to a degree, since as of currently of what we know, non-magic users seem incapable of learning or performing magic without magic capabilities, then I decided to calculate the likely hood of Alux being a magic user based off of Mendelian Genetics. (Note: This is 9th grade level Biology. This will not be sophisticated.)

I've already ruled out Codominance and Incomplete Dominance, as with the magic phenotype, it wouldn't really matter. Doesn't matter if a person is half magic user, it will just look like they are a magic user no matter what, since with Codominance and Incomplete Dominince, both traits being applied would appear to some degree. (In this case, just the ability of use of magic since the other gene is the lack thereof)

Codominance and Incomplete Dominance could* play a role in *when* a mixed non-magic magic users abilities appear, or how strong their powers are, which Alux could be, but when one discovers their abilities they are then from now on considered a magic user, so the point of extra calculation is kinda moot.

Now, onto the Punnet Squares!

Here is the set of Punnet Squares if, hypothetically, the gene for Magic abilities is a dominant trait. (Meaning it overides the hypothetical recessive trait of non-magic abilities and the offspring of the parents would be more likely to show that dominant trait.)

In this hypothetical, in order for Alux to be a Magic user, he would need at least one dominant Magic user gene from at least one of his parents.

Meaning his genotype would be either:

MM or Mm

Now, in this hypothetical, let's assume Elric is not a Magic user since there's no implication for him to be one, so his genotype would be:

mm

A purebred recessive. Meaning Alux's mother would have to at least have one dominant Magic user trait.

Either:

MM or Mm, same as Alux.

There are two possible Punnet Squares to represent the two possible genetic outcomes of this paring of Elric and Alux's Mother.

mm × MM

or

mm × Mm

mm × MM (MM × mm shown in the drawing) having a 100% chance, or 4:0 ratio of potential offspring being a magic user to non-magic user.

And mm × Mm having a 50% chance, or 2:2/1:1 ratio of potential offspring being a magic user to non-magic user.

To put it simply, in one possibility, Alux's mother would be a purebred Magic user, with Alux having a 100% chance of being a Magic user, no matter what,

While in another possibility, Alux's Mother was a hybrid/mix of Magic and non Magic, and Alux would have had a 50% chance of being a magic user.

Now, for the second set of Punnet Squares.

In the hypothetical of the Magic user gene being recessive (meaning it is overiden by the dominant trait, and requires two recessive genes to appear in the phenotype),

Alux would need two recessive traits to be a Magic user, with his genotype being:

nn

Here, both of his parents would have to be carrying at least one recessive trait, and if we still assume Elric is a non Magic user, then their genotypes would be:

Nn × Nn

Nn × nn

Nn × Nn had a 75% chance, or 3:1 ratio to Non-Magic to Magic users. (Giving Alux a 25% chance of being a magic user).

Nn × nn had a 50% chance, or 2:2/1:1 ratio of Non-Magic users to Magic users. (Giving Alux a 50% chance of being a magic user)

In one possibility, Alux had 25% chance of being a Magic user, while the other, he had a 50% chance of being Magic user.

Now, we already know Alux is a Magic user. Doing these calculations was more to find out what Alux's parent's possible genotypes were.

This depends on the likelihood of whether or not the Magic user gene is dominant or recessive in Cozen.

If it was dominant, then Alux had a 50-100% chance of being a Magic user, while if it were recessive, then Alux would have a 25-50% chance of being a Magic user.

With how Cozen is, it's most likely that Cozens Magic gene trait is recessive.

Now, I could be wrong on some parts, as there are things we don't fully know. We don't fully know if Alux's mother was or is a magic user. And so Alux's Magic gene trait would have to come from Elric if he secretly was and we didn't know that.

Maybe neither Elric nor Alux's mom were magic users or mix with, and instead, Alux had inherited his magical powers through different means. Either it be a curse, divine intervention, the necklace, or something else. We just wouldn't know.

And this is also why I'm really excited for the next few ep of AR, since through a leak, a new character is stated to know how Alux has his powers.

This was just a fun hypothetical since we don't fully know if the Magic system in AR is genetic or not, so take this entire post with a grain of salt for theorizing. :p

[rmg91]

Zoe Week; Day 5-ROTT

So I know we got given a free day considered ROTT was...what it was but I decided to still go with the prompt and it turned into more of a small rewrite than just a ‘Let’s slip Zoe into this scene’. Zoe is everyone’s braincell and we know it.

Also I tried writing a fight scene....I donno how well it turned out lol

AO3

~*~*~*~*~*~

“He WHAT?!”

Zoe stared at the assembled guardians, the kids, that had gone up against the demigods bent on restarting the world with that crazy plan to strip them of their powers, only for it to fail. Yes, they were alive. Yes, they had Nari, in spirit, but the Arcane Order had her body, had Douxie, and that was not okay for her! That stupid, self-sacrificing idiot! Of course he'd do something like that! But all it would do would buy them time and just what was going to happen when those power hungry beings found out?! It wasn't going to be good, that was for sure and now Zoe had to hatch a plan to try and save her idiot before something bad happened.

Ignoring the overlapping explanations and assurances they'd come up with a plan, Zoe marched her way out of the ex-throne room and down to what was becoming her studio. Shuffling around the various tomes and grimoires, she searched for the one she was certain had the spell she needed to find him, growling to herself when she couldn't. This is what she got for not sorting through all these yet. Finally, just when she'd been about to say 'fuck it' and do it without the book, she dug up the dusty purple codex of scrying and grinned in victory. Oh, she was finding that idiot of hers and then she was going to give him a piece of her mind once he was safe.

Coming back upstairs, the pinked haired witch flipped through the book, looking for the magic circle that would allow her to find Douxie. Ignoring everyone's voices, she quickly read through the directions, reminding herself how it worked and set to etching runes in the air with her wand. The symbols of power fell to the floor in sparking pink power, forming the necessary element for her spell. “Nari.” She called, “I'm gonna need Archie for a moment.”

The little nature spirit, inhabiting her partners body, let his familiar go from her hold as she finished the magic circle, sending the tomb to rest on the floor outside it. Sitting in the center, Archie crawled into her lap in dragon form, already having a feeling on what she was going to try to do. Normally she could sense Douxie's power, they'd known each other for so after all it was easy, but between distance and most likely being blocked, she couldn't without help. It would be easier if their magic was bonded, tied together for the rest of eternity and the ultimate sign of trust and love between magic users but...they weren't. Not for lack of wanting to but their lives had been pretty hectic and dangerous and bonding their magic came with lots of consequences as well as benefits. If one of them died...it would be the worse kind of hell on the other. And as much as they loved each other they hadn't wanted to have the other suffer so. But maybe, after all this, they'd change that.

“Uh..what are you gonna do?” Toby asked, standing near as he watched the pulsing pink runes.

“I'm going to track Douxie using the bond between him and Archie.” She explained, holding the dragon-cat gently, one hand scratching between his ears, “It should, in theory, help me find where the Order is holding him.” Then they would retrieve him and she was going to kick his ass for putting himself in danger, again.

Everyone took that as the queue to be quiet, to let her work, and Zoe breathed in deeply, letting her magic seep out and take shape. The circle glowed as she let herself fall into a trance, focusing on Archie, who was relaxed in her lap, his own magic open to letting hers in. She found the bond, a shining string of magic that was warm, comforting, powerful, reaching out beyond their little space in search of their missing wizard. She followed it as it swirled, twisting and turning through the space between, searching, searching, searching until-There! It sung brightly, tightening like a perfectly tuned guitar string and humming with life and she knew in that moment just where to find him.

Opening her eyes, a pink glow encompassing them, she grinned sharply. The Order didn't know what was coming to them.

~*~*~*~

The group entered the abandoned train tunnel, sans one Trollhunter, looking for any sign of the Order or Douxie. Zoe knew she had been harsh when she told Jim he needed to stay behind but she was not going to take back what she said. He was injured and therefore a liability and she wasn't going to let him kill himself or any of his friends if things were to go pear shaped. But hopefully they wouldn't and they'd be able to rescue Douxie with minimal trouble.

Her blue eyes roamed over the various crates and scaffolding, sensing him near but unable to see him. But she just knew he was here. Even as the group spread out and looked around old, crumbling crates and rusty metal drums, confused as to why they couldn't find anyone, Zoe was reaching out with her magic, searching for her wayward husband. Frowning down at the tracks, something just wasn't sitting right with her, she tried her best to see and think like Douxie would. There had to be something here she was missing...

She blinked, a thought coming suddenly and could it really be that easy?

Trotting up a staircase to get higher ground, she looked down at the tracks, shaking her head lightly because for some eon's old beings, Skrael and Bellroc really couldn't be original? “Their hiding in plain sight!” She shouted to assembled guardians, flicking her wand out and rearranging the train tracks, “They've made a giant sigil with the tracks!” The tracks moved, soon lighting up and dispelling the room around them, revealing a much darker room and three beings in the center.

She wasn't sure if they were aware they weren't alone anymore but it looked as if the demigods of ice and fire were taunting who they thought were Nari. She, or rather Douxie, was hovering in the air, held aloft by his hands in glowing magic and maybe, possibly keeping quiet as to continuing fooling the gods. But then, as they were staring confusedly as the Genius Seals, wondering why they weren't opening, he opened his big fat mouth.

“Abracadabra, Buttsnacks.”

Zoe groaned, because why had he said that?! But before the Order could do more than threaten him, she raised her wand high and cried, “Hey! Hands off!” She then sent a bolt of pink lighting down, just barely hitting Skreal, and then it was on!

Everyone jumped into action, firing and fighting the two remaining members of the Order. Zoe jumped down, joining the fray, firing spells and shields as she made way to Nari's body. She was put to a stop though as the icy wizard floated in front of her, brandishing his staff. Oh, if he wanted a fight, he was getting a fight. Ignoring Douxie's strained call of her name, the hedge-witch ducked a swing of the staff, dodging to the right and not giving in to Skreal's taunting. Hedge-witch or not, didn't mean she wasn't powerful and she wasn't about to let these bastards win.

Zoe fired spell after spell, wildly missing the floating god as he chuckled darkly at her. But that was okay, all part of the plan because when he least expect it she smirked and performed a round-house kick, planting her foot below his belt with a cry of “Rule Number Three!!”

As Skrael crumpled, she turned back to Douxie in Nari's body, running closer and hoping she could break the spell keeping him in the air. Fire had started to burn everywhere, the old wood catching easily to the spells Bellroc fired off but she ignored all that as she examined the magic around Douxie's wrists. She shushed him as he tried to talk to her, needing to concentrate on what she was doing, hopefully she wouldn't need Claire's help. Then a dark chuckle came from behind her.

“You won't break him free.” She turned to glare at Bellroc, their ever fluctuating voice grating on her nerves, “That magic is too powerful for even a full fledged wizard, let alone a little hedge-witch.” She growled as they laughed at her. And maybe she wouldn't be able to break it herself but if she could break this beings concentration... A wicked grin came to her face, feral as she remembered the chaos she'd wrecked at Killahead, and she began drawing runes behind her back.

“You're right...Guess I'll just have to make you break it.”

And with a flash of pink, twenty more Zoe's surrounded the demigod.

Crying out, Bellroc began to blast away her clones, easily poofing them from existence, which was fine as it was only meant as a distraction. The real Zoe dodged behind him, thankful for the rest of the crew keeping Skrael busy as she charged her magic. She'd only have one shot at this and she hoped it worked. It had been a while since she last did this. Bringing her now brightly flashing hands together, she drew them apart, a glowing, sparking, pink arrow held between them.

“Foolish girl! This won't defeat me!!” Bellroc cried with rage, dispelling the last of her clones.

“It's not meant to!” She yelled back before firing the arrow, sending a million volts through the wizard and causing them to spasm. And it was enough, for the spell holding Douxie up sputtered and died, dropping him to the floor. Zoe dived for his staggering form as Bellroc cried out again, pushing him out of the way of a blast of fire. Of course now she needed a plan to get them out of there...

Just as the fire god was approaching, already up from her attack and ready to end her life, a black portal formed beneath her and Douxie and they dropped away.

~*~*~*~

Zoe groaned as she was dropped onto the floor of Camelot, rolling onto her back. That had been...something. She really needed to practice that attack again, it took far too much out of her but at least now Douxie was safe. And Nari. She heard the rest of the guardians tumble in, shouts from their assembled allies rising and still she laid there, catching her breath.

“Zoe! Zoe, are you alright?!” She looked up at Douxie's voice, finding Nari's face above her looking at her with concern and they were needed to change back because this was just getting too weird. She watched him sag with relief, most likely due to her opening her eyes and he sighed, “You were nuclear, Love.”

“You better switch back before you kiss me, Casperan.” Was her only response.

Chuckling breathlessly, he nodded and she watched him hold out his hand for Nari to take, the goddess now crouching on her other side. A flash of magic and she was then being pulled into Douxie's lap, the wizard now back in his body. She let him nuzzle his face into her neck, still recovering from the adrenaline and almost overuse of her magic as they sat there, friends and allies all around.

“Thank you, Zoe.” Nari said softly, sitting primly in front of her, “You risked so much.”

“It's fine, Nari,” Zoe said, smiling at the forest child, “There was no way I was letting them keep your body and Douxie's mind.” Let alone risk the possibility of them forcing the two back into their proper bodies. Then they really would have been in trouble.

“So what do you do now?” She heard Claire ask because now they were back at square one. Keep Nari out of the grasp.

“I donno,” Zoe sighed, “But the important thing is the Order doesn't have Nari anymore.”

“That's not all they don't have..” The nature goddess smirked shyly before holding up the Genius Seals.

Zoe's eyes widen as cries went up around her, Douxie laughing in surprise, before she grinned wide and shark like. Oh, things were about to get interesting.

~*~*~*~*~*~

How the rest of the movie would play out from here I have no idea but there’s some choice Zouxie protecting each other/Nari/Archie so...there’s that. I hope you all enjoyed!

[sepublic]

Dark Hunter Statuses

In the chaos of the search for the Mask of Life’s fragments, the Brotherhood of Makuta’s assault on the Odina Fortress, as well as the Battle of the Codrex, many Dark Hunters have been involved. As events unfolded, some have died; While others continue to live, and some keep fighting even now. As the organization sees new management underneath Lariska, the question raises- What are the current whereabouts and circumstances of certain Dark Hunters?

The Shadowed One: Deceased; After being betrayed by Darkness for showing weakness, he was eventually slain by his lieutenant Lariska, thereby ending the Battle of the Codrex. Afterwards, his dead body was puppeted by Matoro’s Mask of the Undead, used as a means of escorting the Okotans back to the City of the Mask Makers- Lariska has since bought it from the Okotans for a hefty sum, and now displays the crystallized corpse in her newly-rebuilt throne room.

Lariska: Alive; Is now the new leader of the Dark Hunters, and is restructuring the organization to be more lenient towards its members, while still practical when handling its affairs.

Ancient: Alive; Is serving as second-in-command of the organization as always beneath Lariska.

Airwatcher: Deceased; Killed in the Brotherhood siege on the Odina Fortress.

Amphibax: Alive; Has since rejoined Ehlek’s army and is fighting on behalf of the Barraki.

Charger: Deceased; Electrocuted to death in the Battle of the Codrex.

Conjurer: Alive; Defeated in the Battle of the Codrex, and has since regrouped with the remaining Dark Hunters underneath Lariska.

Darkness: Deceased; Destroyed by the Mask of Life’s destruction.

Devastator: Alive; Is currently imprisoned in the City of the Mask Makers, with his powers disabled by the Mask of Control.

Dweller: Deceased; Eaten alive by Jumala.

Eliminator: Alive; Has regrouped with the Dark Hunters and continues her duties beneath Lariska’s command, although is less active as a punisher and moreso as a general assassin.

Dracax: Deceased; Destroyed by the Elemental Deities during the Invasion of Okoto.

Gatherer: Alive; Is currently undergoing an identity crisis somewhere in Xia.

Gladiator: Alive; Is currently serving as usual beneath Lariska.

Guardian: Alive; Has regrouped with the Dark Hunters and now continues her previous role, but her duties have changed to assassination. She is no longer charged with hunting down defectors, at least not nearly as much, and is now questioning her purpose in life.

Lurker: Deceased; Slain by Pohatu after he used Poison to indiscriminately kill several Xians.

Mimic: Alive; Has defected from the Dark Hunters alongside her lover, Ferri. The two are now living in the City of the Mask Makers, granted special protection by the Okotan Alliance for their contributions towards The Shadowed One’s defeat.

Minion: Deceased; Killed in the Brotherhood siege on the Odina Fortress by Makuta himself.

Phantom: Deceased; Devoured alive by multiple Energy Leeches.

Poison: Alive; Currently operating as usual underneath Lariska’s command.

Primal: Deceased; Sacrificed herself to hold off the Brotherhood siege on the Odina Fortress.

Prototype: Deceased; Accidentally killed by Eliminator. His armor-remains are kept as a keepsake in the rebuilt Odina Fortress.

Ravager: Unknown; Was last seen buried beneath the wreckage of multiple engines from the flying island of Xia.

Savage: Alive; Defeated during the Battle of the Codrex, and is now back with the Dark Hunters and performing missions on Lariska’s orders.

Seeker: Unknown; Was severely damaged during the Battle for the Codrex, but has since disappeared.

Sentrakh: Deceased; Was incinerated into ashes in a Tametru furnace, before those were destroyed as well.

Silence: Alive; Defeated during the Battle of the Codrex, and has since regrouped with the other Dark Hunters underneath Lariska’s command.

Spinner: Alive; Is operating as usual beneath Lariska.

Subterranean: Alive; Has defected from the Dark Hunters and reunited with his family. Him and his family are trying to avoid the vast brunt of the Core War, but Subterranean is already considering siding with the Xian Rebellion at this point.

Tracker: Alive; Is operating as usual beneath Lariska.

Triglax: Alive; Defeated during the Battle of the Codrex, but later regrouped with the other Dark Hunters and now serves Lariska.

Tyrant: Unknown; Was last seen falling off a cliff into the depths of the ocean, swearing vengeance upon Kualus and her Okotan allies.

Vanisher: Unknown; Disappeared during the Brotherhood siege on the Odina Fortress. Honestly, who can keep track of him at this point?

Vengeance: Alive; Defeated during the Battle of the Codrex, and has since defected from the Dark Hunters. He now aids the Xian Rebellion against the Barraki, hoping to take down Mantax in particular for betraying the Lumada Clan.

In addition, the Dark Hunters Zaktan, Hakann, Avak, Vezok, Reidak, and Thok have all defected from the organization. The six have banded together in the hopes of finding the fabled Mask of Light, for whatever purpose.

The Hordika Dragons have survived, although a few are still in recovery after brutal injures from their battles with the Okotans. The Recorder is also still alive. He was disappointed upon hearing of The Shadowed One’s demise; But after being offered new meals by Lariska, he happily attends to her call as the Dark Hunter’s personal scribe.

[maddmuses]

Post-BBS Zack Fair

(Art Credit: s0bk)

Radiant Garden was once a world that was well-connected to the others, particularly through the experimentation with hearts and heartless. The Garden’s three guardians, powerful angelic beings who had a strong connection to both the Light and The Dark were able to keep Radiant Garden protected for generations.

While The Guardians would dwindle in numbers over the years, until only three remained, regarded as the greatest of The Guardians, Angeal, Genesis, and Sephiroth. These winged warriors were the epitome of what was thought to be a hero in that world, and children such as Zack Fair and Cloud Strife grew up idolizing them.

As he stood to the side, watching Phil train Herc, feeling passed over and passed by by those that he’d met over the last days, Zack wondered to himself what his next step should be.

Hearing wingbeats overhead, Zack disappeared, drawn from Olympus Coliseum and returned to Radiant Garden, before the three he’d grown up looking up to. Angeal, Genesis, and Sephiroth felt that the time was necessary for them to pass on portions of their power to others so that they could develop the powers of a Guardian like them, even if they were not truly Guardians themselves.

Over the following time Zack would train with Angeal, who he treasured as a father, Genesis, who he related to in his dream to become a hero, and Sephiroth, who he idolized as the greatest of heroes. He was set to inherit Angeal’s essence, which would give him white wings like his mentor, while Genesis, and Sephiroth would take more proteges under their respective wings, as it were.

Zack would bond with a young man, Cloud, who was learning under Sephiroth, though the man’s method was more hands-off than Angeal by comparison, so he would teach Cloud personally, while himself still learning and training with Angeal, even learning to use his master’s Buster Sword.

Unbeknownst to Zack and Cloud, though, the three Guardians were approached by Xehanort, who meant to conduct a procedure that would allow them to remain Guardians forever. While all three naturally did this, it resulted in varying degrees/types of darkness taking hold of their hearts.

Angeal was slowly changing, producing mysterious white creatures from his body as he mutated, eventually losing his last remnants of humanity. Genesis, who was experiencing symptoms of degradation that prompted the three to have concerns about needing to find their successors to begin with, was corrupted by the experiments, and when things seemed bleak sought out Even to lengthen his live, who created a precursor to his replicas by using Genesis’s essence and heart to turn others into copies of the original.

And finally, Sephiroth, who felt resentment and anger when Ansem’s research had dove into the true origin of The Guardians, and found them to be creatures who originated from the realm of darkness, and had, in the early days, been re-purposed and manipulated by keyblade wielders to be gatekeepers for that darkness.

Through this, Sephiroth read Even’s notes on his experiments with Genesis, and took to the notion of replicating those experiments, but instead of using his duplicates to act as mindless soldiers to become precision instruments of his will. Taking his own protege, Cloud, as well as a number of others, he allowed Xehanort, one of the only people who had expressed some form of empathy for Sephiroth’s feelings and didn’t dismiss it as a simple ‘be what you have become, not what your ancestors were’, imbuing fragments of Sephiroth’s heart and essence into those others.

As Genesis eventually turned on the Garden, and Angeal disappeared, Zack lead a charge to fight back against the tide of darkness, continuing to act as a mentor to Cloud as Sephiroth chose to not engage in the battles, unable to fight his friends.

In the end, Zack was forced to kill Angeal, who was so corrupted by the darkness, despite his heart remaining light, that he was little more than a monster. In its last moments, though, the creature that was once Angeal was able to imbue within Zack the last of his power as a Guardian. 

Several years after this, though, Xehanort would enlist Sephiroth in his aid in overrunning Radiant Garden, changing it to Hollow Bastion as the Sephiroth clones, except for Cloud who for whatever reason was able to resist the corruption, and heartless overwhelmed the world. With all of his might, Zack ensured that the others from that world could escape with Cid, the few that did, even sacrificing himself in a hail of darkness and Sephiroth’s blades, plummeting him and the true body of Sephiroth into The Realm of Darkness, with no ability to return. And in his final moments in the realm of light, Zack left his Buster Blade behind with Cid, for Cloud to take, not wishing his mentor’s most precious treasure to be lost to a cloud of darkness.

In the following years Zack would wander the Realm of Darkness, a lone light, Angeal’s powers and his will to become a hero keeping him from succumbing, as he finds a way to defeat the Sephiroth who slowly grows stronger within that realm, as the duplicates continue to menace Cloud in the Realm of Light.

[ofkoroksandgreatfairies]

She Sleeps Pt. 1

In which the princess with goddess blood takes a well deserved nap, and the champion with a hero's destiny needs to touch her just to feel okay.

—-

Link never considered himself to be needy. Never considered himself to be anything really; besides hopelessly attached to the girl before him, of course. But as he found himself tracing the lines of her upturned palm, reveling in the sound of her deep breathing, and trying to restrain from joining her on the bed, he found very soon that he was indeed needy.

He felt guilty for even thinking of himself, but he needed to see her awake. He needed to see her move to assure himself she was alive. He needed to feel her corporeal touch on his skin; if only just to convince himself she wasn't turning sea-glass colored and fading away from him like the champions. 

His eyes were burning, tired beyond belief, and fighting against a brain that refused to rest. Link didn't remember much; but watching over Zelda as she slept was instinct. He'd found himself doing it because if felt natural; regardless of how tired he was.

He retracted his fingers from where they were tracing figures into her palm, tucking his hands back in his lap. He didn't want his own need of physical sensation to disturb her slumber. Link didn't know if he could forgive himself if he awoke her from her well-deserved rest. After all, she spent the last century in constant battle with the greatest evil they'd ever known; all he did was wake up in a shrine six months ago, and travel until he could help her finish the job.

He finished the job only six hours ago, but the last six hours had felt like lifetimes. The strangest part about it all, was that he really didn't remember all that much about Gannon's end. All he could remember was when she appeared to him again, and anything not in Link's peripheral vision when looking at her was lost to him. She was a visual magnet. He felt physically incapable of letting her out of his sight. It felt wrong; like betrayal almost. Maybe it was the guilt of dying on her in the first place, or of wasting 100 years, but he needed to keep her safe now.

His chest ached, his arm burned, and his ankle screamed when he put any weight on it. The adrenaline had kept it relatively painless for him when surrounded by Hyrule Castle's countless dangers, but he was resting in a quiet stable right now. The only distraction from the pain was Zelda's -thankfully- rhythmic breathing, and even though it was a great comfort, it wasn't a painkiller.

Link supposed he should grab the sheika slate currently strapped to his hip and scroll through it for an item with healing effects. He also supposed maybe he should change from his guardian-singed armour into something less charred. But that would require his attention be elsewhere other than the currently sleeping princess, and he couldn't have that. After everything she sacrificed, Link figured he could deal with a bit of discomfort.

Lost in his thoughts, he found himself grabbing her hand again. It was cold to the touch and covered in a light layer of ash. He wanted to clean the offending dust off her hands, wanted to scrub every last bit of Gannon's presence off of her. The deplorable beast didn't deserve to stain someone as frankly...divine as her, Link thought, but then again neither did he.

Zelda gave a sleepy sigh, and rolled from her back onto her side towards him. She was facing him in full now, and he could finally commit an expression of her's other than sorrow into his memory. Her face was serene, eyebrows relieved of tension, mouth curled very faintly upward into the tiniest of smiles as she breathed in and out.

Link felt a fond smile forming, and alone in this stable's back room, he let himself break composure. He was her ever-so-stoic appointed knight when Gannon was still wrecking havoc, but Gannon was gone now; here in this quiet room Link was just a boy. A wildly grinning boy, absolutely giddy with how much he couldn't believe his own luck.

That morning, as Link set off to finally vanquish Calamity Gannon, he had no doubt in his mind the princess would be saved. He pledged his life, his soul, his very being to her as a boy, and as an amnesiac that potent feeling persisted. He knew nothing but his unbridled devotion to her, and he let that resolute truth carry him in his journey. He would save her; but he had no expectations of living to see the aftermath. Link figured he would be killed in his fight against Calamity Gannon, but hoped with everything he had that his death would be enough of a distraction for Gannon. Maybe then she'd be able to take the opening and end his reign of terror.

Link left that morning already resigned to the idea that his life would end in Hyrule Castle that day. He decided that saving her was worth it; she was the only thing that made sense to him.

Link felt the soft skin of her hand beneath his, and thanked every god, goddess, and unrelated deity he knew of that they let him survive long enough to experience this.

Zelda collapsed immediately after finally defeating the great evil; her body hitting the ground before Link could catch her, the very sound a catalyst for a new bout of anxiety for him. He vaguely remembered sprinting over to her body, praying that it wasn't lifeless. When he reached her, he tucked two of his own calloused fingers under her chin, finding a pulse. and breathing a boundless sigh of relief. With shaking, adrenaline fueled arms, Link scooped her up and assessed his surroundings. The ruins of castle town stood tall around him; just as cold, dull, and desolate as they were before Calamity's defeat. He heard metallic clicking, and the whirring of a guardian behind him. His heart lept in his chest.

He laid Zelda down gently, and stood over her like the protector he knew he should've been over 100 years ago. Link knew in the back of his mind that this encounter might be it for him. The crest on the guardian's head signified it as a high-level scout, and the three arms holding glowing blades signified it as Link's grave. He could feel the exhaustion settling in his bones. He was teetering on the very brink of a black out. Link instead took a breath, determined and resolute in his quest to defeat the scout before him; no matter the cost. His life was unimportant, Zelda had to be saved. All of Hyrule would thank him.

Link grabbed the master sword from his back, brandishing it gravely. He charged forward with the last of his strength, driving the sword straight into it's metallic, glowing blue eye. The machine stuttered, jumping back, as electricity visibly flowed through the now opened hull of the machine. Link braced himself on the ground, on hand on his knee. His breath was short and labored, he could feel the beginning of his own end. He tried with everything he had to get up, but found getting to his feet impossible. The guardian had recovered and was now approaching fast, it's legs becoming arachnid-like appendages sealing the distance between Link and his death. It reached him in seconds, looming tall and mechanical over Link, aiming a bright red laser into his temple. Before he knew it, Link heard the signature ding of an incoming laser barrage and huddled behind his shield. He looked over at the princess, mentally apologizing to her unconscious form for this second death.

Only, the laser never came.

Link peered over the edge of his ancient shield cautiously, seeing the guardian still very much standing dangerously close. The blue of it's torn eye was fading, and the Calamity's red hue encircling it was falling away. The electrical whirring started again, but this time sending electric sparks into every direction. The guardian shook like it was possessed for a brief moment, before giving a final shutter. With that, it was done. With that, Link was allowed to live.

Link, not one to waste a good opportunity, saw his chance clearly. The guardians were lifeless, having been released of Gannon's influence. But the bokoblins, lizalfoes, and moblins waiting in the fields just beyond Castle town were still very much alive. He had to move, and find a way to move Zelda. Quick.

Trying to stand and failing, Link popped a stamina potion from the bag strapped to his back. It gave him an immediate energy boost, but he knew it wouldn't last long. Thinking quickly, Link grabbed the claymore tucked behind the master sword currently slung across his back. He limped over to Zelda's collapsed body a few feet away, and slid the claymore beneath her like a makeshift stretcher. The limp way her body responded to his pushing and prodding made him sick, but Link pushed the frightening thoughts down. They certainly weren't helping the situation.

Link took a few tired steps back, before taking the sheika slate back up and selecting the magnesis rune. The claymore under Zelda's body glowed yellow within the slate's interface as he sent a magnetic beam towards it. He wanted to scream with joy as he saw his plan come to fruition; the sword was lifted with the rune's power, and Zelda by default because of her position on top of it. Thus began the slow walk back to Link's horse waiting just beyond the remains of Castle Town. Link found he couldn't remember putting Zelda on his horse, or riding to the Riverside Stable. But he supposed it didn't matter much, as they had arrived in one piece.

There was a large of part of him that wished she'd wake up soon; she was sleeping so deeply it almost seemed to him that she'd be out for another hundred years. The thought alone made his blood freeze. But the other part of him dreaded when she'd finally awaken. What if she was mad at him? Or even worse, disappointed? It took him over 100 years to come back and help her. Anyone would be angry to have to wait that long.

His anxiety got the better of him, and he took solace in the blonde locks currently splayed around her head like a halo. Her hair was soft, and felt almost velvety to the touch. Link twirled a strand between his fingers, trying to calm himself down.

Zelda was here, he tried to reassure himself. She wasn't going to fade away. She was alive. They had made it.

The upturned palm he had been tracing patterns into before was closed up now into a fist. Zelda must've been having a dream, because it was clenched now; going white from the pressure. Before he knew it, Link found himself grabbing her fist, and gently pulling her fingers away from each other. She resisted a bit at first, before instead clasping his hand in hers.

She still wasn't awake, and he still wished to hear her voice more than anything, but the pressure of her hand in his was enough. In her sleep, she'd squeeze every now and again, eliciting a rare, soft smile from her knight.

Try as he might to resist it, Link found his eyes drooping. His head fell forward onto the mattress he was sitting in front of, his hand still locked in Zelda's. He told himself 'just a few minutes' but even in the very back of his mind knew that was a lie.

—-

The hylian pair slept for two straight days. Many people came and went from the stable but they all seemed to notice the two passed out on the back bed.

Link had drifted to the floor somehow, covered with a blanket, and laying on a pillow the stable's owners had slid under his head while he slept. Zelda had drifted to the very edge of the bed, one arm dangling over it. Her outstretched arm met one of his own, and they kept their hands connected for the entire duration of their sleep. Their general postures looked very similar with the way they both seemed to curl up around where their hands met.

To most travelers passing through, it was idly cute. But the stable's owner's knew of Link's real identity, along with the princesses's own. That's why they would shoo people out who made too much noise, or tried to disturb the pair of them.

The stable was a good place for them to take their much needed rest. Aside from the odd traveller here and there, all was quiet and calm. The atmosphere was warm; everything baked in the soft yellow of the shining sun during the day.

When Zelda first woke up, she had what felt like a major heart attack. She sat up, throwing her head around wildly. Zelda awoke completely disoriented. She was desperately trying to decipher where exactly she was. Her anxiety only increased as the worst thought came to mind: Did she finally lose her battle? Was this heaven?

She couldn't remember defeating Calamity Gannon. What other explanation could there be?

A slight pressure on her left hand drew her attention to the person still sound asleep on the floor. Her breath caught. Link looked just the same as she remembered him; serious, even in sleep, but boyish and kind if you really looked.

With shaking legs, Zelda slid off the bed and stood up. It was a little awkward seeing as Link refused to release his grip on her hand, but she managed just the same. She walked around his sleeping form on the floor, until she reached his head.

His bangs had fallen into his eyes, being disturbed slightly by his soft breathing as he slept. It was a familiar sight to Zelda, but one she'd never thought she'd see again. She sat down, falling gracefully to her knees; just a few inches away from where he slept.

—-

Link could feel an entire planet's worth of gravity in his bones that morning; it was especially apparent the second he began to wake up. Even opening his eyes seemed like an astronomical task, so he mentally excused the irritated groan he accidentally emitted when he did so. He blinked blearily, sitting up much to the dismay of his sore muscles. The bright rays of early morning sunlight flooded his vision and he groaned again. Link felt that even the sun was fighting him, and as a result the battle-weary champion threw his head back into the pillow with a tired sigh.

As Link's head hit the pillow, he heard a soft giggle just behind his head.

She appeared like an angel when he finally opened his eyes; all silhouetted yellow light, soft smiles, and slowly falling tears.  Zelda leaned over him, backdropped by the rising sun, dripping in gold and fresh air.

"Princess...." Link uttered the word like a prayer, bringing a hand up to catch the tears falling from her eyes.

She broke into a watery smile. All white teeth and tears, and bittersweet sadness lurking in her expression. "It's Zelda, to you. Or have you forgotten, hero?" She phrased the question like a gentle reprimand, but he could see the anxiety and doubt behind it.

"I-I remember." His voice was rough; quiet from months without use, but laced with sincerity. "Not.. all. But enough."

A shuddering breath passed through her. It looked like a shiver, but the way a strangled sob seemed to escape showed it was something more. Zelda dropped her forehead to his as she cried. Bringing both her hands to the sides of his head, she laced her fingers into his hair. He could feel her tears, thick and unrelenting against his skin.

His heart broke. Link could understand the tears, but somewhere in the back of his mind he hoped for happiness. In his best dream of this reunion, they escaped all the angst and the 100 years and their forever intertwined fates. It was just them, together again; with the Calamity in rearview, and nothing but relief and rest on the horizon. In his worst dreams- which more often then not are his reality- this reunion was nothing but a reminder of all that was lost. It looked much the like the scene now; all heartache, mourning, and cacophonous cries.

Link cradled Zelda as he slowly sat up. His hands around her sides, guiding her head to rest on his shoulder. She clutched at him like he was her only truth, fingers digging into the charred fabric of his blue tunic. Her open-mouthed sobs had subsided in favor of silent tears, and Link couldn’t figure out which was worse.

“I was stuck..” Her voice caught again; failing to crest over the mountain of tears cascading. “For so long. I-I didn’t know if you’d wake up.”

Guilt shot through him, knocking the air out of his body. Link felt helpless; it was his worst nightmare that their reunion would be marred by her anger. He knew his absence had been extended. Link didn’t mean for it to be that long, but he only had one life and one shot at Gannon. He had to become strong enough to save her. Nothing else mattered.

[littleshebear]

Top ten ships

I was tagged by @dngrs-untld-hrshps-unnmbrd and @seigephoenix to name my top ten ships. Not in the mood for tagging but please do this if you feel like it. I like reading about ships.

1. Garrus/Shepard

This doesn’t really need any explanation does it? There’s no Shepard without Vakarian.

2. Roslin/Adama

Adversaries to enemies, to allies, to friends, to lovers, to pretty much married by the end, god they’re so sweet I love them so much, my heart. <333

3.  Manwë/Varda

[Art source]

“Manwë and Varda are seldom parted, and they remain in Valinor. Their halls are above the everlasting snow, upon Oiolossë, the uttermost tower of Taniquetil, tallest of all the mountains upon Earth. When Manwë there ascends his throne and looks forth, if Varda is beside him, he sees further than all other eyes, through mist, and through darkness, and over the leagues of the sea. And if Manwë is with her, Varda hears more clearly than all other ears the sound of voices that cry from east to west, from the hills and the valleys, and from the dark places that Melkor has made upon Earth.”

GOALS.

4. Saladin/Jolder

[Gorgeous painting by the lovely @crazy-bone-lady go forth and reblog!]

Time to break out the ship manifesto. Everything about the story of Rise of Iron is told through Saladin’s eyes and we keep coming back to Jolder. He’s always near her statue, he uses the gun that’s named for her, it’s her helm we recover and present to him. Honestly, I was a puddle of emotion during the opening cinematic, this entire DLC and the accompanying lore destroyed me. And let’s not forget the saddest line break in the history of line breaks: “Jolder’s smile.” *sobs*

5. Dottie Underwood/Peggy Carter

YOU CAN CUT THE SEXUAL TENSION WITH A KNIFE.

6. Zavala/Hawthorne

I’m sailing this ship all by myself but I’m nothing if not persistent. Time for the ship manifesto again. I just love that these two start out on opposite sides of an ideological divide but by the end of the main campaign, they’ve met somewhere in the middle. Hawthorne realises that the City has value and Guardians aren’t all terrible, arrogant nitwits. Zavala accepts that they need to look beyond the walls and that sticking with a siege mentality is self-defeating. I just love the effect Hawthorne has on Zavala’s arc. When we meet him on Titan, he poses the question that “without the Light, are we even guardians anymore?” But when he meets Hawthorne, he has his answer. The Light isn’t what makes you a Guardian, it’s willingness to fight, to take a stand for those weaker than yourself and that’s what Hawthorne embodies to him. And don’t get me started on the bit in “Unsafe at Any Speed” where she grudgingly admits he’s right and he laughs. I mean.

Lore: Zavala never smiles.  Hawthorne exists:  Zavala laughs indulgently. 

7.  Ar-Pharazôn/ Tar-Míriel

[Art source]

This one is a complicated one. There are two different versions in the Tolkien legendarium. In both versions, Pharazôn and  Míriel were first cousins. Míriel’s father, Tar-Palantir was king and favoured the old ways of their ancestor Elros (brother of Elrond). His brother,  Gimilkhâd led an opposing political faction who resented the fact that they were mortal and envied the elves their immortality.  Míriel was next in line to the throne of Númenor.

In the version published in the Silmarillion,  Pharazôn forced Míriel  to marry him (which was illegal, being considered incest) and took her title by force. 

There’s another version which I find way more interesting and was probably written after the published version. In this version, Pharazôn was best friends with, Amandil, a leading member of Tar-Palantir’s party, which suggests Pharazon’s relationship with his father wasn’t the best. Meanwhile, Míriel was engaged to be married to Amandil’s brother, Elentir. Míriel and Pharazôn had never met during their childhood owing to their family estrangement. Pharazon was visiting with Amandil while Miriel happened to be there and that as they say was was that. Míriel dumped Elentir and pined after Pharazôn, while Pharazôn started plotting. After Tar-Palantir died, Míriel took the ruling queen title of Tar- Míriel but willingly married Pharazôn , who became the ruling king Ar Pharazôn alongside her (still an illegal marriage but who’s going to tell them no?). 

After that, things got super bad. Pharazôn invaded Middle Earth to wage war on Sauron (good!) and captured him (good!) then took him back to Numenor (bad), where Sauron used his wiles to corrupt Pharazôn (bad!). Eventually things got so bad, he built a temple to Morgoth and sacrificed Númenoreans who were still loyal to the Valar and the Elves. Sauron eventually persuaded him to invade Valinor and overthrow the Valar so he could sieze immortality for himself (very bad!). Manwe was so dismayed, he handed power back over to Eru (God, essentially), who destroyed Numenor by sinking it beneath the sea. Miriel was the last to die in the onslaught, she climbed the highest mountain, the Meneltarma, which is now the only part of Numenor visible from the sea. 

Pharazon reached valinor but he and his men were imprisoned in caves, awaiting the Last Battle in a really on the nose case of Be Careful What You Wish For. 

Anyway, I find the second version far more compelling because I love the, very tragic, idea of an essentially good man being slowly corrupted by evil. He was *this* close to defeating Sauron for good but he failed because of pride, and Sauron exploited that. And just imagine Míriel watching the man she loved, the man she went against her family and broke the law for, falling into darkeness and being unable to do anything about it. *sobs*

8. Elrond/Celebrían

[Art Source]

Another sad one but at least this one can have a happy ending. Celebrían and Elrond took forever and a day to get together, partly because of Elrond running around doing Herald of the King stuff and waging war on Sauron but I also like to think it’s because Elrond is a massive nerd and was too shy to ask the pretty girl out. 

The reason this is a sad one is because she was captured by Orcs and tortured to within an inch of her life. Elrond was by this time the most skilled healer in Middle Earth but he realised he couldn’t save her so he sent her away to the Undying Lands. He knew he couldn’t go with her until Sauron had been defeated, so she waited patiently and she’s the reason Elrond was straight on that boat after the One Ring was destroyed.  

9.Duke Leto/Jessica Atreides

More goals. This relationship didn’t exactly start out romantically (she was essentially sold to his royal house breeding stock) but these two fell for eachother hard. She disobeyed orders from the bene gesserits because she loved him so much, he refused to marry someone “more suitable” for a man of his station because he always wanted Jessica to be his no.1. One his last thoughts before he died was that he should have said to hell with convention and married her. Moar sobbing. 

10. Amanda Ripley/Christopher Samuels.

[Art Source]

SAMUELS WANTED RIPLEY TO HAVE CLOSURE AND RIPLEY TREATED SAMUELS LIKE HE WAS REAL AND NOT “JUST AN ANDROID” AND HE THANKED HER FOR IT BEFORE HE DIED AND EVERYTHING HURTS, I JUST WANTED THEM TO BE HAPPY AND TAKE CARE OF EACHOTHER FOREVER MORE, AGGGGGGHHHHHH. 

[bookloveravenue]

Zodiac Academy (book 7): Heartless Sky by Caroline Peckham & Susanne Valenti

The winds of fate are shifting, and it finally seems like they’ve been twisted in our favour.

On the run and cast out from society, we’ve been forced to hide from the mad man who stole our throne. But as more secrets come to light and my sister and I work harder than ever before to reach our potential and claim our birth right, the end is finally drawing closer.

There is no turning from this path now. The curse chases on our heels as time rushes by and the blood drenched destiny of the man I love looms ever closer just like the monster who stole our throne.

We must prepare for the final battle, but three things are clear now.

The cards have already been dealt.

Blood will spill for a new future to rise.

And the stars themselves can’t help us.

The fight for the throne is upon us. All hail the heartless sky.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56474282-heartless-sky

********

March 15, 2022

My Review: 5/5 Stars

I've read book endings where everything blows up and everyone is in pretty bad places. But I don't think any of them have truly hit this kind of level of "oh crap." Everything blew up in all the most terrible ways and it is going to be hell to wait until the end of the year to get the last book of this series. So to rewind a bit from the ending that broke me. And beware some spoilers if you aren't caught up to the series! The story picks up almost right where the last one left off. Everyone has escaped the battle from the arena and are now fully rebels and in hiding from Lionel and the crazy Shadow Princess. Their goals now are to regroup and get plans in order to take down their enemy for good. But sacrifices were made to get to this point. The biggest one being Darius sacrificing himself to save Tory and Darcy from their fate in the arena. The star bonds placed on Darius and Tory are erased and they get a clean slate. No more Starcrossed curse and no more Guardian bonds. They are free. But Darius's life has a time limit and he plans to spend every moment with his Roxy and defeat his father so he knows he left her with a better future. But telling her and his loved ones is a whole other thing. Darcy and Orion are together again but with him being Power Shamed, it makes everything a bit harder when everyone around them is constantly turning their backs. Orion fears tarnishing Darcy's name and status and the rebels turning their backs on her if she stands with him. And if that isn't enough Darcy is still cursed but what that means remains a bit of a mystery. The rest of the Heirs are fighting alongside them and stay hopeful that their parents survive Lionel and can fend for themselves until the time comes for them to run. And of course a little bit of romance drama for them as well. Max is still trying to win Geraldine over and is happy to prove his feelings for her despite her arranged marriage. And Caleb and Seth... well those boys need to learn to talk to one another. Specifically Seth not wanting to listen to real advice and listen and jumping to the wrong conclusions. And I better see some improvement between them or I'm gonna lose it!

So much goes down in this story. I laughed and cried. So many things are revealed and we get to learn so much more about all of these characters. The character development from them all from book one to now is astonishing. You can't help but love them, flaws and all. They fought so hard in this story and the stakes are higher than ever. And that ending. Like I said it was intense and despite the losses and heartache, I can't help but feel like everything will eventually end well. They all deserve their happy endings and I'm looking forward to seeing how that plays out. December is too far away, but I'll just have to check out the other books that take place in that world to find out! (Which I learned about way too late!!) Great, great book despite ripping my heart out a bit, but I'm optimistic that these characters will get what they deserve in the end and I can't wait to see how it all comes together.

[koryuoftheriverflow]

Infinity War Opinion Time

So... I watched the movie yesterday.  I don’t really know what to think of it. I’ll write down my impressions to try and sort through my contrasting feelings. I had tried to lower my expectations, because I didn’t want to be disappointed. I certainly didn’t want a repeat of AOU, thank you very much. On the other hand, I love the Russos, and I love the writing team, seeing as they’re the ones behind all 3 Cap movies.  Still, I knew the risks were high, partly because of the huge amount of charaters involved and the possible lack of screentime for them all, and partly due to the scale of the fight and the power of this particular villain. I liked the movie per se. It’s not like I didn’t enjoy watching it in the theatre. However, based on my personal tastes, I would rather have had more dialogue, more interactions between characters (and yes, a specific set of them), and less action.  I feel like I can’t really state my opinion, though, because this really is only Part 1 of a very looong movie, whose second half we’ll only watch in a year. It lacks any sort of closure, basically. It does end, in what looks like a pretty permanent way, except the cliffhanger is there, because obviously, it cannot be curtain call on the whole story. But it is pars destruens, in a very literal sense, I’d say. Avengers 4 will be the pars construens, but I find it difficult to envision how that could pan out. We’ll just have to wait and see. Under the cut I’ll write a couple of things I liked/didn’t like, so if you haven’t seen the movie yet, tread very carefully, because there’s gonna be MAJOR SPOILERS.

Alright, so... I’ll start with: THE BAD - Like I said, I feel a lack of screentime on a few characters’ part has affected my appreciation. While I liked the parts with Thor and the Guardians, and even Tony and Peter had enough scenes, I felt kind of robbed of moments with the team stranded on Earth. I would have loved to see more #TeamCap, basically. Especially in light of Steve’s possible permanent death next year and the shield handover either to Bucky or Falcon.  *Little aside as a slightly bitter Stucky shipper: yes, I did get the hug before the pat of the back, but, in the words of one David Posner, “it was too fucking brief.”* - While I laughed for most of the movie, I felt like the tone should have been  more somber, or rather, that the juxtaposition of serious moments and cheerful ones was at times a little inappropriate: it downplayed important characters/plot development that should have been given more focused attention.  In general, I would say that this movie lacked a bit of heart, especially with regards to the scenes and characters on Earth. Thor, the Guardians, Tony and Peter, on the other hand, had deeper, more meaningful interactions. THE GOOD - I’ve been pleasantly surprised by moments glimpsed at in the trailers that I did not expect to happen in the way they ultimately did. I sure as hell didn’t think Thanos would obtain all 6 Infinity Stones by the end of this first movie. Other things too took me by surprise. See, for instance, the scene of Loki handing over the Tesseract, which I was for some reason convinced would be at the end of the movie, and was at the very beginning instead. And speaking of Loki, he was one of the people I thought was going to die. The question now is: did he really? Thor himself gives voice to what we all know: his brother’s come back before. There have been not so subtle hints at his Jotun heritage in the last couple of films, at his acceptance of it and the power he can draw from it. Will it play a role in his possible resurrection? Will we finally see Jotun!Loki? 

- The longed for kiss between Peter and Gamora, if not for the fact that their happiness (and mine) lasts literally 5 minutes. She then tries to kill Thanos, there is an agonizing scene where Peter uselessly keeps his promise to her, and she is captured by her father, only to find Nebula being horribly tortured for the location of the Soul Stone, and be sacrificed for it on Vormir. I think my favourite thing about the scenes between Gamora and Thanos were her tears after she supposedly kills him.  - The killings made in the name of the loved ones. Peter and Gamora were clearly the broken mirror of Vision and Wanda. And then again, Thanos himself succeds in killing the one he allegedly loves, where Peter could not. - Tony. Tony left standing alone on Titan, with the ashes of his teammates all around him and no hope at all, knowing he’s the only survivor. Wanda’s vision in AOU turned to ugly reality. He’s not desperate because everyone’s dead, but because he didn’t die with them. Tony’s desire for fatherhood, voiced to Pepper at the beginning of the movie, quite literally crumbles to dust when Peter dies in his arms, showing all the vulnerability of a boy faced with his inevitable death. Is it a scene meant to create pathos, longer than it should have been for the sole purpuse of making us tear up? Yes. Did I cry anyway? You bet your ass I did. I’m here for the pain.  - Other deaths were impactul, thanks to other characters reactions. Vision’s, of course. T’Challa’s. *Little aside as a slightly emotionally compromised Stucky shipper: Bucky calling Steve’s name, before vanishing in front of his eyes, and Steve kneeling on the ground where Bucky’s ashes remain, staring at nothing (just like he did in ca:tws after the “Who the hell is Bucky?” scene), kind of broke me.*  Still good but on a lighter note: -  Thor mourning all he has lost and still finding the force within himself to fight. The absolute epicness of his arrival on Earth with Stormbreaker. The theatre started clapping like mad for him. ICONIC.

- Okoye/Natasha/Wanda fight scene. YES pls.

- Shuri and M’baku. No more words needed here.

- The Bucky/Rocket team up. My two favourite raccoons.  - The Captain Marvel logo in the post-credit scene. THE WTF

The bloody dementor on Vormir who turns out to be Red Skull. TL;DR: there were things that I wish were done differently, mostly I would have liked more character development and less action sequences. On the other hand, I can’t say that I disliked the movie, despite my confusion as to the one way in which they can defeat Thanos in Avengers 4. To conclude, did I like the movie? Honestly...? [x]

[carlscomics]

Green Lantern Corps Film Trilogy Pitch (long post)

Not gonna go super into detail with it, but if I were to be the runner of the new Green Lantern Corps movie coming out, I’d run the 3 movie arc something like this.

-Green Lantern Corps

Story follows the 4 main lanterns, Kyle, Guy, Hal, and John. Hal and John stick on earth, Kyle and Guy on OA. They’re all buds, and established in the world, similar to Batfleck. Hal and John are called to OA by the guardians, where they meet with Kyle and Guy. The guardians tell the corps that great fear has consumed large parts of the galaxy, and there are rumors that Sinestro, the ex lantern, was beginning to create his own corps. At this point, there is no emotional spectrum, only the green rings of will, no other corps. Main chunk of the film is the 4, and potentially some friends such as Killowog or Soranik, hunting down Sinestro and confronting his newly created Sinestro Corps, and their yellow rings of fear. The end of the film is the 4 plus a handful of lanterns taking on Sinestro and his corp in some distance alien city, and the green lanterns losing the battle. Being there has never been a power that rivaled their own, it’s an uphill battle. The 4 concentrate on Sinestro while other corps members defend the city and fight off the other yellow lanterns, and it’s the big action set piece. Each of the 4 demonstrates their lantern abilities differently as described in the comics. Kyle’s being an artists work, precise and beautiful, John’s being built to support, down to the last nut and bolt, strong and sturdy. Guy’s ring being like a leaky faucet, always spouting energy and violent rays, and Hal being Hal, the strongest will of them all. even with these abilities being demonstrated, the 4 still can’t beat Sinestro, and in a last ditch attempt, Kyle flies right into him, seemingly sacrificing himself. This is the big fake out, where we think Kyle sacrificed himself to finish Sinestro, but out of the ashes Sinestro rises up, Kyle, dead. Guy, enraged by the fact that his best friend is dead, charges Sinestro giving him all he’s got, attacking him relentlessly, pouring it all out. All of a sudden you hear “Guy Gardner of Earth, you have a great rage in your heart. Welcome to the red lantern corps.” Guy is now a Red Lantern, to everyones surprise. This is the first time anyone has seen a ring other than green or yellow, and John and Hal are in awe. Guy then attacks Sinestro with a great fury of rage and fire, nearly killing him, only being stopped by Hal and John when they see that he’s gotten too out of control. Guy breaks their constraints, and flies off into space. Kyle although, was not actually killed, but brought to the brink of it. The other lanterns get him medical attention, returning to OA. They bring news of the new Red Lantern ring, and the film ends with John, Kyle, and Hal setting off to find these Red Lantern Corps, and Guy Gardner. 

-Green Lantern Corps: Rise of the Red Lanterns

The second movie in the trilogy features John, Kyle, Hal, Soranik, and Arisia, traveling through space in search for Guy. They hear word from the many planets they visit that new colors of rings are present in the universe, and that the greens are no longer the most powerful force. The green lanterns visit many planets, in search for information and clues. This plot of their exploration is intertwined with Guy Gardner, the new Red Lantern, being brought to Ysmault, the RLC home planet. Here, we meet the small corps made up of Bleez, Dex-Star, Atrocistus, that one guy that is a testicle with teeth, and the deer horse skull guy. Atrocitus gladly takes Guy in, cleansing him so he no longer is a violent mindless fool, but just a violent fool. Guy, who still broken by Kyle’s aparent death, blames the guardians for not putting Sinestro down when they could have, and he reluctantly agrees to side with the RLC in their war on the guardians. While this is happening, the Green lanterns discover Saint Walker, the sole ring bearer of the Blue Lantern Corps, as he is on the search for more to join him. They discover that their rings are increased in power by the precense of a blue lantern, and he joins their group in the search for Guy, in hopes that he is the solution to curing him. The Red Lanterns plan on invading OA, killing the guardians, and using their technology to harnass the different levels of the emotional spectrum, something Atrocitus has been aware of since he gained his Red power ring. The green lanterns and Saint Walker stop their search when they get an urgent call from OA, saying that the Red Lanterns have invaded, and are attacking the guardians. The group rushes back to defend against them, and to their dismay find that Guy is leading the Red Lantern charge. Guy is so stricken with anger and loss, he truly believes that the Red Lanterns are right in that the guardians are failures, that they deserve to die. Atrocustus even convinces Guy that the Kyle he sees is another trick of the guardians, and that his Kyle still is dead from Sinestro. Kyle rallies the troops of the GLC, and Saint Walkers ring duplicates itself, landing on Kyle’s finger. Kyle now wields the blue and green light, and the battle is won when Kyle and Saint Walker combine their blue energy to max out Hal’s ring, enough so he can finish the Red Lanterns in one big swoop. The Red Lanterns are thrown into OA prison, including Guy, who still believes that the guardians are wrong, and that Kyle is still dead. Kyle, being unable to handle two rings at once begins to hallucinate, and has a vision of the future. He sees the entire emotional spectrum, combining into the white light of life, he sees a being of pure light and energy, claiming that he is the “First Lantern” and he sees the destruction of OA. The movie ends with the blue ring being removed from Kyle’s hand, John helping in the recosntruction of OA, and a little after credit scene of a hooded figure walking up to a prison cell, asking for the inmates help. The inmate, being Sinestro. 

-Green Lantern Corps: The First Lantern

John wakes up to an urgent message that Sinestro had escaped from OA prison, and was no where to be found. The prison guard, that one lantern that kinda looks like a bear, says he only heard one thing, “The first lantern” John, Hal, and Kyle, go to the still rebuilding guardians, demanding answers on the emotional spectrum, and the first lantern. They explain how  at the beginning, a man fell from the sky to OA, and was used to test the first ever power ring, one that instead of harnassing just one emotion, was created using them all. He went mad, and seemingly evaporated, along with the ring. This is why the guardians decided to use only one emotion in their rings, so the wearer would not be burdened with so much power. Wielding more than one emotion was too much for a mortal, as seen with Kyle in the previous film. The guardians, now aware that the First Lantern is back, inform the 3 that they need to find one lantern from each spectrum, that only then will they be able to defeat the first lantern. Hal and John go to Saint Walker, who gladly accepts the mission, while Kyle goes down to the prison where the Red Lanterns are still being held, months after they were placed there. Kyle has spent every day attempting to convince Guy that he is the real Kyle, that this isn’t some trick. Guy, still not believing Kyle, accepts the invitation to fight the first lantern, only as part of his plan to free the other red lanterns and take revenge on the guardians. He understands the threat of the first lantern, and vows to kill Kyle AFTER the first lantern is defeated, so he pretends that he trust the green lanterns once more. Saint Walker, Hal, Guy, John, and Kyle set out to find a yellow, indigo, orange, and sapphire corps member, yellow being the only one any of them had ever seen before. We discover that the first Lantern, really named Valthoom, is aware that every member of the emotional spectrum is needed to defeat him, and plans on using Sinestro to make that impossible. He promises Sinestro great power if he gets his Sinestro Corps to allign with Valthoom, so that none of them were to side with the GLC, in an attempt to defeat him. The team visits the Sinestro Corps home base, only to find that Sinestro is there, rallying his troops. The team fight the SC to a standstill, when the fighting is stopped by Hal, requesting that they talk for a moment. He explains who Valthoom is and that he wishes to destroy the universe, and they create an uneasy alliance, for Sinestro and his corps to join in their crusade to find the rest of the spectrum. Valthoom becomes aware that Sinestro is no longer on his side, and also goes to hunt for the remaining members of the spectrum. Hal reveals that when he discovered their was more to the spectrum than just the green will, he did his own searching around before all this. This allows Carol Ferris of the Star Sapphires to join the team, being the two have history. The last two, Indigo and orange, are harder for them to find. While the team of Saint Walker, Sinestro, Carol Ferris, Guy Gardner, Hal Jordan, Kyle Rayner, and John Stewart rest, Valthoom inflltrates their dreams, showing them what their lives could have been without the rings, this makes the team restless, but reverts Guy back into a mindless Red Lantern, and he attacks the team. With little time left, the team is unable to bring Guy to Ysmault to purge his madness, and Saint Walker heals Guy, taking away his need for the red ring. The team is now without a red lantern, and Guy is reverted back to a member of the Green Lantern Corps. He still retains his anger and distrust for the corps, and is against the fact that he is once again green. Valthoom appears to them, holding with him the dead body of Agent Orange, the sole avarice lantern, and the dead body of the leader of the Indigo tribe. The team go at him anyways, in hopes that they can destroy him with what they have. Once again, the blue lantern ring of Saint Walker is duplicated and flies to Kyle, to his dismay. Unable to handle two rings affects last time, he begins to lose himself to the power. As he begins to fade, the indigo and orange rings fly off the hands of the two dead corps members, onto the hand of Kyle. Guy’s dormant red lantern ring then flies onto Kyle’s hand as well. A star sapphire ring, and a yellow lantern ring, both appear and land on kyles remaining fingers, he now wields every single color of the emotional spectrum. the power is too much, and a great explosion of energy expands from Kyle’s body, engulfing the screen into darkness. The only light, being that of Kyle’s, and Valthooms. The two interlock into combat, Valthoom amazed that one man can hold all rings of power other than himself. This second plane of existence they fight on is just between the two of them, the rest of the lanterns are no longer present. Kyle, finally controlling all rings, throws everything he has at valthoom, and when the emotions all merge together into one light, Kyle is given one final ring. Kyle Rayner becomes the white lantern of life, and destroys valthoom instantly. Kyle returns to the rest of his team, where they stand in awe of the white lantern. Guy, in seeing that Kyle had such great power as a white lantern, realizes that it IS his best friend, and embraces him. The team parts ways, and as they leave, Guy slips the red lantern ring into his pocket. John, Hal, Guy, and Kyle return to OA victorious, and everything seems well. A few days later, it is seen that the red lanterns are broken out of prison, and that guy is once again gone. Guy leaves a message for Kyle and OA, apologizing for leaving once again, and stating that the red lanterns will no longer be about the destruction of the guardians, but about using their anger for the good of the universe. Guy realized in their battle with Valthoom that all emotions are needed to keep the universe safe, and that the red lanterns were needed to keep that true. The end of the movie has Kyle flying off to be the protector of the universe, and finishes with shots of the green lanterns led by John and Hal, Guy gardner being cleansed of his mindlessness in the blood lake of Ysmault with the Red Lanterns, Saint Walker helping a family, etc. Showing off the members. Lil after credit scene has Nekron and the black lanterns or something.

That’s it! That is my pitch! Sorry it was so long! I really wanted to emphasize Kyle and Guy and the emotional spectrum/space, rather than do what 2011 did and focus on hal and earth. Clearly, these ideas are based off stories from the Geoff Johns run on the GL stuff, but I tried to put my own spin on it. 

[aion-rsa]

Dynamic Duos: The Most Titanic Twosomes in Comics

Comic book duos are a staple of the comic book industry. Of course, part of what makes comics so much fun is getting to see different characters interacting with each other, often as a cohesive team of partners. Sometimes these duos are permanent partners whose stories become inextricably tied together. At others, the characters only occasionally work together, but they team up so well that their stories always stand out. Oftentimes, these friendships start off antagonistically, because when two comic book characters meet for the first time, they almost always end up fighting each other. That’s just comics.

RELATED: The 20 Best Comic Book Couples

Of course, it’s increasingly becoming a standard outside of comics, as Hollywood continues to expand its comic book properties and shared universes. “Thor: Ragnarok,” for example, is being billed as a buddy movie with Thor and Hulk, while Captain America and Falcon have shown great camaraderie onscreen. Then there was last year’s “Batman V Superman,” which ultimately saw the two heroes team up. If Hollywood wants to keep expanding on this concept, here are 16 comic book duos they could look to for inspiration.

NOVA AND STAR-LORD

During the events of 2006’s “Annihilation,” by Keith Giffen and Andrea Di Vito, the hero known as Nova had to pull together a ragtag group of heroes to fend off the forces of Annihilus from consuming the universe. Among his ranks was Star-Lord, a mostly forgotten Marvel character. The two successfully led the charge against Annihilus and saved the universe. After the war, they remained friends and helped save reality several times. After defeating Ultron and the Phalanx together, Nova helped Star-Lord form the Guardians of the Galaxy and set up their base of operations on Knowhere.

The two spent some time apart, but they eventually reunited when Thanos returned from the grave and the Cancerverse threatened to destroy reality. Using a cosmic cube, they sacrificed their lives to trap Thanos in the Cancerverse, which was set to collapse in on itself. It was later revealed that Nova was able to send Star-Lord back to his home at the cost of his own life, a sacrifice that has weighed heavily on Star-Lord’s conscience. Fortunately, Nova was recently resurrected, so hopefully these two will hook up again soon.

CLOAK AND DAGGER

Two runaway teenagers living on the streets of New York City, Tyrone Johnson and Tandy Bowen accepted an offer of shelter from the wrong people. They ended up getting kidnapped by a madman, who was testing out a new type of heroin. When it was injected into the two teens, it surprisingly gave them superpowers. Ty found himself turned into a void of darkness while Tandy was able to create light daggers. They dubbed themselves Cloak and Dagger and have basically been inseparable since.

Based on their experiences beginning in “Peter Parker, The Spectacular Spider-Man” #64 by Bill Mantlo and Ed Hannigan, they began taking down drug dealers and manufacturers. The two went on to encounter several Marvel heroes, most notably Spider-Man. They played a big part in “Maximum Carnage,” where Dagger was seemingly killed off. In reality, she had been seriously injured and retreated into Cloak’s mysterious material to heal. She returned just in time to help defeat Carnage and save the city. Recently, it was announced that the duo is set to join the Marvel Cinematic Universe as the stars of their own TV show.

RICK AND CARL GRIMES

Not all comic book duos have to be heroes; sometimes, they can just be family members trying to survive in a world full of monsters. Rick and his young son Carl are all that’s left of the Grimes family. They were separated at the start of the apocalypse, but were reunited in “The Walking Dead” #2 (2003) by Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore. Carl went from being his father’s son to his partner pretty early on, when Rick’s old partner Shane tried to kill Rick. In one of the series’ many shocking turns, Carl shot Shane, saving his dad but losing his innocence.

Throughout “The Walking Dead,” Carl is the person who gives Rick his purpose and his drive. He can’t just give up the fight, but he also can’t give up his humanity, or else Carl will lose it too. Carl, meanwhile, has actually taken a darker path than Rick. He’s usually willing to make difficult decisions, or attack an enemy like Negan head on. The two provide a balance for each other that goes far beyond the typical father/son relationship, making them one of the medium’s most compelling duos.

POWER MAN AND IRON FIST

During the late ’70s, Marvel decided to take two struggling titles and combine them, hoping to boost sales. This move would create a partnership that would ultimately become a major aspect of Marvel Studios’ upcoming Netflix series, “The Defenders.” While serving a bogus prison sentence, Luke Cage gained powers in an experiment gone wrong. He would go on to become Power Man, Hero for Hire. Danny Rand, on the other hand, had spent his life training in the mystical city of K’un L’un, and after defeating a dragon, gained the magical martial arts powers of Iron Fist.

Starting in “Power Man” #48 (1977) by Chris Claremont and John Byrne, the two began working together. After helping Cage clear his name, Iron Fist decided to join up with him and become the “Heroes for Hire.” Their partnership was both personally and financially fruitful. Throughout the years, they’ve had their ups and downs, but they always end up teaming again. After stints on the Avengers, they recently got back together for “Power Man and Iron Fist” #1 (2016) by David F. Walker and Sanford Greene.

ROCKET AND GROOT

Although Rocket Raccoon may look cute, he’s anything but. Originally from a planet where animals were genetically engineered and given enhanced intelligence, Rocket typically has a surly attitude and an itchy trigger finger. The two were first seen together in 2008’s “Annihilation: Conquest” by Dan Abnett, Andy Lanning, Tom Raney and Wellington Alves. Groot, an alien from a species of talking trees (and originally portrayed as a confused monster), can only say the phrase “I am Groot.” Luckily, Rocket is one of the few creatures that seems to be able to understand him… or is just good at making things up.

After Groot was heavily injured and all that was left of him was a few twigs, Rocket helped plant him so he could regrow his body. They then both joined the new Guardians of the Galaxy together. Luckily, when the team disbanded after several members disappeared, Rocket and Groot decided to stay together. While it sometimes seems like Rocket simply just uses Groot as his muscle, he is fiercely loyal to his friend. When the Guardians were reformed, Rocket and Groot rejoined and have continued to cause mischief around the galaxy.

WOLVERINE AND JUBILEE

Wolverine has taken on a fatherly/older brother role to several of the younger X-Men throughout his career, but the most famous would arguably be his relationship with Jubilee. This is because of their friendship being a big part of the ’90s “X-Men” cartoon. On the show, Jubilee was the youngest member of the team, and Wolverine (the oldest) often took her under his wing. It was an odd pairing, considering that she was a mall rat and he was a gruff former special ops warrior, but because of that, its Odd Couple sweetness worked.

Their connection in the comics was actually much darker. Jubilee was a runaway, and ended up hiding out in the X-Men’s base while they were stationed in the Australian Outback. In “Uncanny X-Men” #251 (1989) by Chris Claremont and Marc Silvestri, she rescues Wolverine, who had been beaten and crucified by the Reavers. She helps protect him while he heals, and then the two escape. They would travel together for awhile, having adventures across the globe before she would eventually join the X-Men. Even as an official X-Man, though, Wolverine remained very protective of her.

GREEN ARROW AND GREEN LANTERN

Back in 1970, DC Comics hoped to revive sinking “Green Lantern” sales by adding Green Arrow as the book’s costar. The book thus became “Green Lantern co-starring Green Arrow” starting with issue #76 by Dennis O’Neil and Neal Adams. Hal Jordan, a member of the intergalactic Green Lantern Corps, was at the time a strict believer in the system and rules. Oliver Queen, on the other hand, was a more radical thinker and opposed authoritarianism. This dynamic was used to tell stories that focused on social issues in America at the time, as opposed to typical superhero adventures.

One of the most notable stories was “Green Lantern” #85, still by O’Neil and Adams, which dealt with Arrow’s sidekick, Speedy, getting addicted to heroin. After the series ended, both characters eventually died, were resurrected, had their histories retconned, and survived multiple reality-altering crises. Throughout it all, though, they always remained friends. Even when Hal Jordan was dead and roaming the Earth as the Spectre, he and Queen would still meet up for the occasional chat.

WONDER MAN AND BEAST

For a long time, there wasn’t that much crossover between the rosters of the X-Men and the Avengers. Aside from Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, most mutants tended to stick with each other. One of the most notable exceptions to this was Hank McCoy, also known as the Beast. He joined the Avengers in 1975’s “Avengers” #137 by Steve Englehart and George Tuska, and he’s bounced back and forth between teams ever since. One thing that keeps Beast coming back to the Avengers is the fact that he’s best friends with Wonder Man.

Simon Williams was a failed businessman who gained ionic powers after being experimented on by Baron Zemo. They both first appeared together in “Avengers” #151 (1976) by Gerry Conway, Steve Engelhard, and John Buscema. Simon helped show Beast a different side of being a hero. Where the X-Men were feared for being different, the Avengers were celebrities of the Marvel Universe. The two became so close that when Simon seemingly died, and then returned to life, Beast leapt into Avengers mansion and tackled Simon, planting a kiss right on his mouth! Now that’s friendship!

HAWK AND DOVE

During the late ’60s, the country was divided by those who seemingly favored war and avowed pacifists. The two sides were labeled war hawks and doves, which provided the inspiration for Hawk and Dove, who first appeared in “Showcase” #75 (1968) by Steve Skeates and Steve Ditko. The original Hawk and Dove were teenage brothers, Hank and Don, who received their powers from a mysterious source, cosmic beings known as Lord Chaos and Lord Order. Hank was more militant and aggressive, while Don was more thoughtful and consumed with bringing peace, but perhaps less confident. Don, who took on the Dove persona, was killed during “Crisis on Infinite Earths,” written by Marv Wolfman and George Perez, seemingly ending the team.

Fortunately, Chaos and Order continued to need avatars, and appointed a new Dove, Dawn Granger, first appearing in “Hawk and Dove” #1 (1988) by Barbara and Karl Kessel and Rob Liefeld. While still less militant than Hank, Dawn was more confident than Don. The duo’s popularity comes from their obvious political undertones and dissimilarities — yet another “Odd Couple.” It often provided a balanced look at both sides of the argument between conservatives and liberals; something that might be useful today.

HARLEY AND POISON IVY

The friendship between these two Batman villains has a pretty complicated history. While Poison Ivy has been a mainstay in Batman comics, Harley first appeared in “Batman: The Animated Series,” but didn’t appear in the comics until several years later. So, Harley and Poison Ivy were first paired up in the animated series 1993 episode “Harley and Ivy,” where the two meet while robbing the same place. They team up and realize that they have a pretty good thing going. The rest, as they say, is history!

While Ivy is a villain, she was actually one of the best influences for Harley, who was in an abusive relationship with the Joker at the time. Ivy tried to boost Harley’s confidence, because she actually cared for her. When Harley was finally introduced in the comics in “Batman: Harley Quinn” (1999) by Paul Dini, Yvel Guichet and Aaron Sowd, her friendship with Ivy was quickly introduced as well. They appeared with Catwoman in “Gotham City Sirens” (2009) by Paul Dini and Guillem March, and Harley and Ivy would later become intimate with each other. They weren’t in a traditional relationship, but they both clearly care for each other very much, which is the most you could ever ask in an effective duo.

SPIDER-MAN AND THE HUMAN TORCH

Most of the entries on the list are examples of opposites attracting, but that’s not the case with these two. When they first met, back in “Amazing Spider-Man” #1 (1963), by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko, Spider-Man and the Human Torch developed an antagonistic relationship. Over the years, however, the two would form a strong friendship, although they never stopped teasing each other — in the end, they are just too much alike.

One of the most memorable moments from their history was when Spider-Man realized that his new black costume was actually an alien symbiote feeding off his life energy. He went to the Fantastic Four to get it removed, which they did. Unfortunately, this left Spider-man without a costume. Knowing that Spider-man was desperate, Johnny Storm gave him an old Fantastic Four costume and paper bag with eye holes cut out. Ever the picture of maturity, he then stuck a “kick me” sign on Spidey’s back. They’ve had plenty of adventures together, but this one prank sums up their friendship pretty perfectly.

CABLE AND DEADPOOL

One is a mutant soldier from the future who traveled to the past in order to build a better tomorrow. The other is an insane mercenary with a healing factor who believes himself (quite rightly) to be a comic book character. Cable and Deadpool shouldn’t get along, but they ended up becoming Marvel’s modern day “Odd Couple.” While the two had met several times, usually as enemies, their… friendship seems like a strong word, but we’ll go with that… their friendship didn’t really begin until they both got involved with the “The One World Church” in “Cable and Deadpool” #1 (2004) by Fabian Nicieza and Mark Brooks.

Both Cable and Deadpool ended up getting infected with a genetic virus, and in order to cure them, Cable briefly absorbs Deadpool (utilizing his healing factor to ward off the virus). This causes Cable’s teleporting device to malfunction, so that whenever he “bodyslides,” Deadpool comes with him. At first, Cable manipulated Deadpool into performing tasks for him, often without Deadpool realizing what was going on. After a while, however, Cable’s message of peace began to have an effect on Deadpool, who started trying to be a better person, albeit with sometimes less than successful results. 

BOOSTER GOLD AND BLUE BEETLE

The friendship between Blue Beetle and Booster Gold is one of the most entertaining superhero duos in the history of comics. Ted Kord replaced the original Blue Beetle, Dan Garrett, but was unable to unlock any superpowers from the Blue Beetle Scarab, so he instead turned to martial arts and technology to fight crime. Michael Jon Carter was a disgraced athlete from the 25th century who traveled back in time to fight crime, but also mostly to build fame and fortune for himself.

The two characters met when Booster joined the Justice League in “Justice League” #3 (1987) by Keith Giffen and J.M. Dematteis. They have been bickering best friends ever since. Due to the nature of both characters, they’re usually used for light-hearted, even downright comedic stories — in fact, they’re very well known for it. Because of that, they may not be seen as A-list heroes, even though Booster desperately wants to be. They might not be the most effective heroes, and they may not strike fear into the hearts of criminals, but it’s always fun to see what happens when these two knucleheads team up. Good times almost always ensue.

FLASH AND KID FLASH

Like Batman and Robin, there have been several different versions of the Flash and Kid Flash. However, the combination of Barry Allen as the Flash and Wally West as Kid Flash is by far the most iconic and the most popular. West was the nephew of Allen’s girlfriend, Iris and a huge fan of Flash. Coincidentally, the same accident that gave Allen his Flash powers repeated itself, giving Wally speed powers of his own, as depicted in “The Flash” #110 (1960) by John Broome and Carmine Infantino. Not one to miss out on a good opportunity, Wally West became the Kid Flash and started helping Barry fight crime.

This lasted until 1985’s “Crisis on Infinite Earths” #8 by Marv Wolfman and George Perez, where Barry was killed off. Wally took up the mantle of the Flash until Barry returned from the dead in Grant Morrison and JG Jones’ “Final Crisis” #2 (2008). Then Wally disappeared when the “New 52” reboot occurred in 2011, much to fans’ dismay. As it turns out, however, Wally was just stuck in the speed force, and was ultimately pulled to safety by his friend, Barry in “DC Rebirth” #1 (2016) by Geoff Johns, Ethan Van Sciver, and Gary Frank.

CAP AND BUCKY

James Barnes was an orphan living on the same army base where Steve Rogers was stationed. One day, Barnes discovered that Rogers was really Captain America, whose identity was a secret at the time. Having essentially spent his life training, he joined Rogers as his sidekick in “Captain America Comics” #1 (1941) by Joe Simon and Jack Kirby, choosing to go by the name Bucky in his adventures in crime-fighting fisticuffs. The two fought side by side during World War II, until tragedy struck. As revealed in “Avengers” #4 (1963) by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby, Bucky was seemingly killed in a fight with Baron Zemo that also left Cap frozen in the ocean. It was later revealed in Ed Brubaker’s run on “Captain America” Vol 5 (2005) that his body was actually recovered by a Russian submarine, and he was transformed into the Winter Soldier. Both Rogers and Bucky would survive into the 21st century, due to varying bouts of suspended animation and super soldier serums. Rogers would eventually free Bucky of his brainwashing with the use of a cosmic cube, reuniting one of Marvel’s best friendships.

BATMAN AND ROBIN

When it comes to comic book duos, Batman and Robin are the first names anyone thinks of; they are called “The Dynamic Duo,” after all, and the team has been around since 1940. It was then that Robin first appeared as the Dark Knight’s sidekick, in “Detective Comics” #38 by Bill Finger and Bob Kane. While Batman is still clearly in charge, Robin has grown into so much more than a simple sidekick. The original Dynamic Duo is such an important part to the Batman mythos that over the decades, several different people have come and gone as Robin (and Batman, for that matter).

The first and most famous Robin was Dick Grayson, who would eventually move on as Nightwing. Bruce replaced him with Jason Todd, a street kid who Batman caught trying to steal the tires off the Bat-mobile. Todd was eventually murdered by the Joker, so up next was Tim Drake, a natural detective who impressed Batman by figuring out his identity. Then came Drake’s girlfriend, Stephanie Brown and then Bruce’s son, Damian, who has served both under his father and in the short period where Dick became Batman. Regardless of its members, this timeless duo will continue to fight crime long after we’re all gone. Who are your favorite two-person partnerships in comics? Let us know in the comments!

The post Dynamic Duos: The Most Titanic Twosomes in Comics appeared first on CBR.com.

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[therearemonstersinthedark]

Book 2: Luciferous

Chapter 14: Frozen Pines

A Guardians of the Galaxy Fanwork

Pairings: Peter Quill / Gamora (one-sided), Peter Quill & Nebula (freindship)

Genre: Adventure, general

Word Count: 5k

Rating: T to be safe, mild gore and cussing in some chapters

Links: Fanfiction.net || Ao3

Summary: Peter Meets Eternity and learns some important information, and finally trades words with Rocket.

Author’s Notes: Title is from ‘Frozen Pines’ by Lord Huron

Chapter 14: Frozen Pines

Eternity, wearing Nebula's body like a poor imitation -the smile was too bright, the mannerisms too lose- stepped away from the tree he'd been leaning on and it vanished behind him.

"A talk sounds good," Peter said, standing up to face him. "I have some questions."

"I'm sure you do," Eternity said smoothly. "Ask. And with the time we have, I will do my best to answer."

"Your sister, the one helping Thanos-"

"-using Thanos," Eternity corrected him with an easy grin.

"Right. It's Death, right?"

"Yes, that is her mortal designation."

"Okay," Peter breathed. "I'm sure that's good to know, somehow... Next, can you send me back? To my timeline I mean-Can you send me home?"

"No, time is not my designation."

"Worth a shot," Peter let out in a huff. He'd suspected it wouldn't be that easy anyways. "So why do you need me? And, I mean, why now? If this fight of yours has been going on since, well, forever, why wait until Thanos is so powerful?"

Eternity crossed his arms and shrugged them helplessly, the expression looking all kinds of wrong on the assassin. "It wasn't my intention to wait so long. Ego was so caught up in his quest to consume the galaxies that it took far longer than I had hoped to steer him to Earth."

"Why Earth?" Peter couldn't help but ask. He knew he was drawing Eternity away from his own questions, but Eternity had mentioned his impatience to get Ego to Earth twice now. Peter had always assumed it was a fluke that he was able to do what he could, but now he was beginning to suspect otherwise.

"It had to be Earth," Ego confirmed Peter's suspicions. "No other planet carries the Light within its veins like your home world. Did you think it was a coincidence that you alone, of all his children, could carry the Light? And that Cosmo, a mere beast, not only survived consuming from a Celestial, but now thrives under a power that should have consumed him instead? Two brothers from Earth are the only beings in the universe to wield the Light, and you never made the connection?" Ego's brow's raised in a mocking expression that was almost fitting on Nebula's face. "Perhaps, you are not so clever yourself."

Peter scrunched up his face. "There's no Light on Earth, what are you talking about?"

Eternity let out a sigh. "Before Ego, I had an idea that I could fashion a champion myself. I had my remaining Celestials create a body, a perfect being, containing limitless potential to adapt and change, and infused with more Light than had ever before been gifted to a mortal. He was to be my final creation, and in time, my avatar, but he was a failed champion. Too volatile, to wild, and the body simply would not hold up against time and power as I had hoped. Before I could see to its destruction, my sister caught word of what I was planning. She did not know that I had already dismissed the idea, and sent her agents to steal the body from me. I will not waste our time here with all of the details, but the body was lost in the ensuing chaos.

"It wasn't until nearly a millennia later, when the last of the Celestials had been dismissed from existence, that I tracked it down again. It had somehow found its way into one of the least developed patches of the universe. I suspect someone had taken it there for hiding, and their plans had failed, for the vessel it was being transported on was destroyed. It plummeted through the atmosphere and collided with a planet already filled with life. There, it saturated the planet, the bits of his body burned up in the atmosphere and the blood spilled upon his impact were imbued with Light that leaked into the rivers, the land, the very core of the planet Earth. The body did not die upon impact, however. It took time, a great deal of it, but the bits that remained were able to regenerate. I had designed it to be nearly indestructible by mortal means. Time and the impact had done it's damage, though. My first, failed, champion held no memories of his original purpose, and sought to make himself a new life among these feral creatures. He proved to viscous even for them, and was subdued, but his influence had already spread into the populace.

"Humans, Terrans began to appear with unique attributes. The Light that burned within their veins, -barely a drop of water compared to the ocean of power that resides within you even now, but wild and raw- was enough to warp them. My original champion bore DNA from all things that ever were, and bits of this would burst to life at random within his progenies. No other species had ever boasted the sheer variation of powers that cropped up within them. Most developed traits that were simple enough- strange limbs, odd quirks of larger powers belonging to distant alien civilizations, while others might be granted powers that should have been withheld from only the most elite of mortal beings. In others, still, the power lay dormant, but could be drawn forth through moments of extreme distress. Your mother was one of these, possessed of no obvious gift, but blessed with potential. Earth has always been a place of cataclysmic change. Powerful forces from across the galaxies flock to it despite its humble appearance. The Light draws them in- often without their knowledge- something instinctual and beyond their understanding.

So you see, Peter, it had to be Earth. It had to be a human. No other creature could interact with the Light the way they could. All of his other children failed when the Light found no purchase within them and fizzled out long before they were born. Even the ones who came from lines once blessed by the Light were too specialized, and could not handle the sheer power needed for his purpose, and when he tried to force the connection the power consumed them. Burned them up from within."

"And they died..." Peter breathed, his head reeling from all he had learned. His mother had possessed the Light?

"All but you, Peter," Eternity was continuing as Peter's head span. "You were born to the Light. You were born for this. For me."

Peter's head snapped up.

"What do you even think I can do here?" he demanded, unsettled as ever by the hunger that seemed to be always present in Eternities eyes. "I'm not strong enough to take on Thanos right now. I couldn't even take on Ronan. He thrashed me, in case you forgot about the whole me almost dying thing, because I haven't." He held up his still healing hands for proof.

"That's why you need me," Eternity soothed, stepping closer again. "To help you. To offer guidance and lend you power. You are capable of so much more than you ever dreamed. You're right, you're not strong enough to defeat him on your own right now, but with my help, you can be. My sister wants to shift the balance of power in the universe by removing uncountable souls from existence, I merely want to prevent that tragedy. Would you truly refuse to help me for fear of losing your own life? You have my word that I will do everything within my considerable abilities to preserve it. I have no intention of sacrificing you to my cause, Peter." Eternity was standing right in front of Peter now, staring up at him with dizzying stars swirling in his eyes. Peter felt like he could fall into them and be lost in their terrifying depths forever.

"What about my friends? Would you sacrifice them?"

Eternity hesitated for a moment. "I would prefer no one die beyond the natural order, and with the powers I lend you, wouldn't you be all the more able to protect them? Isn't that why you're here on Ego's planet to begin with? I would only help you further that goal."

"I-I don't know-"

"You do not have to answer this moment," Eternity cut off Peter's stuttering reply. "We have some time, but only some, so I will give you that time to think. Now, you are growing weak. Is there anything else you would ask before you return?"

An idea struck him suddenly. "Gamora's parents! You know all the souls in the Universe right? So you must know where they are."

Eternity pursed his lips and tilted his head. "Not necessarily. I do not keep tabs on every living soul any more than you know each individual cell which makes up your body. I would not know where in the cosmos they are."

"Could you find them, though? At this rate-"

"I will look into the matter if you wish, but you may find them long before I do. It is time to sever the connection so you may return to your world before you exhaust yourself too far. You may call on me again when you are rested and ready. Until then, think on what I've said." Eternity raised his hand and placed one slender blue finger against Peter's forehead, much as Ego had that morning, and he was swept away.

-x-

Peter awoke with a gasp, his lungs burning for air as if he'd been holding his breath the whole time he was gone.

"Peter?" Nebula's voice, tinged with worry, reached his ears between his heaves.

"Ah'm-" he choked out. "Ah'm okay... I'm alright... Just gotta catch my breath." A few more gasps and he was feeling better. With a cough to clear his throat he straightened back up and found Nebula hovering over him, one hand held out like she had been reaching towards him.

"Your eyes," she said, straightening up, but remaining unusually close.

Peter reached up to pat at his face, suddenly worried he was weeping blood or something equally horrifying, but he felt nothing. "What's wrong with my eyes?" he asked.

"You should... look at your reflection," she said slowly, indicating the nearby pool.

While Peter had been out, the world had grown considerably darker. The sun must be setting up above. Curious, Peter stumbled to the edge of the pool and summoned a ball of energy to his palms to use as a source of light. It came, but it was sluggish and surprisingly difficult to summon, and he was hit with a wave of unprecedented exhaustion.

It took a moment for him to realize that the shadows weren't playing tricks on him, and in his reflection his eyes were flooded with a deep purple, cut through with sparkling stars and colorful blobs of galaxies. He looked like Eternity. The edges of his eyes were traced with the deep black and purple, dark cracks running through his skin like he'd been poisoned. As he probed at the discolored flesh, the effect began to fade, his eyes returning to their normal bright color and the spiderwebs retreating.

"Whoah," Peter couldn't help but say. "Were they like that the whole time?"

Nebula appeared beside him at the pool. "Nearly. They were glowing white at first, similar to how Cosmo's appear at times, but then they started turning into... this." She waved one hand to gesture at his face where the last traces of the darkness were fading away. "Did you find him, then?"

Peter let the ball of Light in his hand flicker out, too tired to keep it going right now. "Yeah. I found him. And I think we should go back to the others to talk."

Nebula glanced up at the rapidly darkening sky. "I know a shortcut back."

The assassin lead him through the forest, cutting a path through the trees that took them to the canyon's edge much faster than it had taken Peter to come out. Peter let out a long sigh as they approached the bottom of the sheer drop.

"Can you get up?" Nebula asked him.

"Yeah, my boots'll get me up." It wouldn't be graceful, but he knew he could make that distance. "Do you want a lift?"

Nebula made a face and inched away as if she thought he might reach out and try to grab her. "No," she said. "I'll meet you up there."

-x-

The others were waiting for them back in the greenhouse dining room. With the sun sunk below the horizon, Peter had expected to have to eat his dinner in the darkness, but apparently Mantis had mentioned the lack of lighting when she'd seen Ego before breakfast that morning and Ego had fashioned some small light sources into the greenhouse. The others had already eaten, but there were a couple of plates left out for Peter and Nebula. While Peter ate, he shared the details of his latest encounter with Eternity.

"Your eyes were filled with galaxies?" Mantis asked with a gasp as his story came to an end, leaning over the table and craning her head as though she was checking to see if there were any stars left inside of them.

"Yeah, it was crazy! I looked like Eternity. It faded pretty quick, though."

"Did you feel strange?" she asked, eyes shining bright with excitement and curiosity.

"Just tired," Peter admitted. "I guess there's some sort of time limit for how long I can talk with him. Or something. It's not that bad, though. I'm already feeling better."

"How long do you think you managed?" Drax asked.

Peter chewed his lip in thought. "I dunno, a few minutes, maybe more, but not that long. I asked him about your parents, too," Peter said, pausing with his food half-way to his mouth to address Gamora. "He didn't know anything. I'm sorry."

Across the table, Gamora gave a dismissive gesture with her hands, but said nothing, and the table fell into a sullen silence for a while after that.

"Has there been any word from Ego?" Nebula asked Mantis once she had finished eating and was gathering her dishes. "Will he be returning to tutoring Peter tomorrow?"

"I do not know," Mantis answered quietly. "He has not been back since the call from the Nova Corps."

Nebula rolled her eyes in obvious disapproval before leaving to clean her dishes.

Again, Peter was caught between relief and a sense of duty. "With or without him, I'll keep working on it tomorrow," he promised the Guardians. "I think I almost have fire down, and it's not like Ego was being all that helpful anyways."

Mantis's dark eyes flickered up at him as though he'd just said something scandalous.

"Speaking of tomorrow, I believe it is time to turn in." Gamora rose from her chair. She was speaking loud enough that she was probably including everyone in her statement, but she was looking pointedly at Mantis. "Get some rest, and make sure you stretch before you sleep or you will be unable to continue tomorrow."

"I will," Mantis promised as she stood as well, folding her hands and giving Gamora soft bow. "Have a good night, everyone."

The remaining Guardian's murmured their goodnights and everyone filtered away as Peter gathered his own dishes and brought them to the small room leading off from the dining room where the dishes were stored. A sink sat in one corner, and Peter set his dished into it. He briefly considered just leaving them to deal with the mess in the morning until Nebula, who had been putting her dishes back where they belonged cleared her throat.

"If you leave them there, Mantis will be stuck with them in the morning."

"Yeah," Peter sighed, grabbing the scrubber and turning on the water. "If Ego can just make this stuff at will, why doesn't he have a system where he just makes new ones every day?"

"Don't be a spoiled brat." Nebula closed the last cupboard with a soft click and Peter felt a heat rise on his cheeks at her admonishment.

"Sorry," he mumbled. She said nothing, which was probably as good as forgiveness right now. Over the sound of running water he could hear her footsteps leading towards the door. "Are you going back out?"

The footsteps stopped. "You're too exhausted to come with me, and I'm not dragging you back if you collapse."

Peter stifled a laugh at the thought. "That's not what I was after, but thanks for you're concern. It's been a few days and I don't think Rocket has been back yet..."

"Out with it."

"I was wondering if you could bring him something?"

"No."

"But-"

"I am not your delivery service. He is perfectly capable of surviving without our help. If you ask Mantis, I'm sure some food has mysteriously gone missing by now."

"I know," Peter huffed, turning off the water and grabbing a towel to dry with. "We've been here for a while now, though, and might need to leave soon. How am I supposed to explain everything and talk some sense into him if I never actually talk to him?"

"If you're that worried about it, stay here tonight, and maybe he'll come through. If he doesn't, I will show you a way through the canyon tomorrow."

-x-

Peter did end up waiting for Rocket. He spent most of the time laying on the table and tossing a cup up to catch to keep himself awake, and wishing he had thought to ask Nebula to get his Walkman and maybe a pillow. She probably would have said no, but he could have at least asked, sometimes she surprised him. When his eyelids grew too heavy and his game of catch wasn't enough to keep them open anymore – leading him to miss a catch and the cup to land smack across the bridge of his nose- he moved to sit on the steps outside instead where the cool night air breathed a new life into his veins, bringing a plate of food with him just in case.

Nothing was happening, and he was considering turning in and getting at least some sleep before the sun rose on a new day when Rocket suddenly made an appearance.

"You're in the way, jackass."

Peter nearly leaped out of his skin. He hadn't even seen Rocket approach. One moment the court was empty, the next Rocket was standing on the steps off to Peter's side, his eyes glowing red against the silver moonlight and deep blue shadows. His team was comprised of three assassins, now that this universe's Rocket could fall into that category, that was nearly half. It was like trying to keep track of a bunch of feral cats in the dark; some times he couldn't find them to save his life, other times he couldn't seem to take a step without tripping over one.

"Rocket?" Peter straightened. "I was waiting for you."

"Yeah, I got that impression. Now move. Your fat ass is blockin' the door."

Peter glanced back at the open doorway behind himself. It was a good few yards back, and there was plenty of room for Rocket to walk past him, but apparently this was too close. "I was actually hoping to talk to you." He grabbed the plate at his side and held it up. "I brought food?"

Rocket's muzzle wrinkled in the beginnings of a sneer. "I'll get my own, Stalker-lord. This is the last time I'll ask so nicely; move, or else."

"Fine," Peter pouted, scooting a few feet to the side and taking a bite of the food himself, out of spite more than anything else.

This didn't seem to impress Rocket very much, who stalked silently past him and vanished into the doorway with a look of warning that made it fairly clear just what level of pain Peter could expect if he was stupid enough to try to follow. There was only one exit, so Peter waited, snacking on his plate of rejected food, until Rocket returned.

"We can't stay here forever you know," Peter said as his yet-unwilling friend stepped back through the doorway. His eyes had reverted to their normal brown when he had entered the room, still bright from the new lighting system Ego had added in. "I need to go after Gamora's parents, and the Nova Corps is going to want us back eventually. It would be a lot easier for everyone if we could maybe... talk, and make plans before that happens?"

"I don't give half a flying Orlani's ass what promises you were dumb enough to make Gams, and I'm not working for you or for the Nova Corps."

"I'm not asking you to do anything except not get yourself and the rest of us killed, Okay?" Peter tried.

Rocket paused at the top of the steps to narrow his eyes and tilt his head. "And what if I tell you where you can shove your hero act, and take my first opportunity of freedom anyways? What are you going to do to stop me."

The food nearly slid off of the plate in his hands as Peter deflated miserably. "Nothing," he murmured, staring at the tips of his boots. "I couldn't stop you if I wanted to, and I won't force you to stay. I'll ask, though, or beg, or bribe. We need you, Rocket, and I just want to help you, what can I possibly do to convince you of that?"

"Well as luck would have it, I do believe you."

Peter's head whipped up, hope blooming in his chest so hard it physically hurt, but the humor in Rocket's eyes was dark and cruel.

"I believe you couldn't stop me even if you wanted to," he said with a wicked curve of his lips.

Peter opened his mouth, but nothing came out. What was he supposed to do here? Rocket stared back at him for a long and terrible silence, like he was waiting for something, probably for Peter to change his mind or lose his temper after all, to tip his hand and prove this was all some sort of act. Peter did nothing, and, eventually, Rocket blinked. When he opened his eyes again they were red, and he was heading down the stairs, away from Peter.

On the last step he paused.

"You're looking in the wrong place, by the way."

It took Peter a moment to process the words. "What?"

"For Gams's parents," Rocket glanced back over his shoulder, his ears pinned back against his skull. "You're looking in the wrong spot, you'll never find them on some outdated prison that's probably been disbanded by now, you need somewhere more recent."

"Do you know where they-?"

"No. Ain't never seen 'em myself. But every time they send her away for her 'visits,' she comes back all loopy like she just had a fresh lobotomy, babbling on about how great her parents are and much she loves them." Rocket made a disgusted face at this. "Last time they sent her somewhere new, somewhere closer to the front lines, and she came back reeking of manure. The smell hung around our whole Flarkin mission. I'm surprised it didn't give us away."

Peter's brows drew together. "How do you know where the Nova Corps is looking?"

"The video is routed through the ship, numbnuts. Guess Ego never thought to change that. I can see everything they send."

"Oh," Peter breathed. "Well, thanks Rocket, but why the sudden-?"

Rocket turned to face Peter fully. "How did you know about the Hadron Enforcer?" he asked, his eyes narrowed accusingly. "That's my weapon, I invented it. I only ever told one person what I named it and I know she ain't never told nobody. Never had the d'asted chance to- so how does someone like you know?"

"You told me. You tried to save me and Gamora with it, and later, you and Drax used it to destroy Ronan's hammer so I could grab the Stone. It was a bit different there. You had to have Drax fire it because it had such a big kickback."

There was a spark of something in his eyes, like a recognition or surprise, but before Peter could place it, Rocket turned away and was leaving. Peter sat back down on the steps and let him go without protest. He was pretty sure this had been some sort of test, and he had somehow managed to pass it.

End

[cfstoriies-ar]

          A long time ago in a land very, very, far away there was a battle between the forces of good and evil that took place…

        As many stories do, this tale take place in a royal palace with a Prince standing at the center with his comrades the Princess, the Wizard, and the Knight. The Prince himself was the youngest of the four, but blessed with a courageous, and noble soul. His earnest feelings for his home and loved ones drove him forth on his path. At his side stood the Knight, loyal and unwavering in his love for his prince and country. The Princess was gifted with a kindness beyond comparison, and compassion that brought her closer to the people of the country. The Wizard was common born and raised, but gifted with great magic power, and wisdom beyond his few years of life.

        Together these four represented the light of their Kingdom, and carried with them hope for the next generation that would come into power. However as they and their light grew, so did the shadow behind them.

       It was nothing they would realize at first, the darkness worked slowly, carefully. Taking the hopes and dreams of the people in the kingdom and slowly poisoning them, twisting them, changing them until monsters started to appear. The monsters caused panic in the Kingdom as no one could figure out how to defeat them.  

       Not until the Prince stepped in. He and the Knight together managed to defeat the first monster, a miraculous power born from within each of them allowing the two to defeat the monster and return the twisted dreams to normal. Both were celebrated by the kingdom as heroes. That was only the first monster though, and it’s defeat did not stop or weaken the shadow behind them much. The next monster that appeared was not phased by the power of the Prince and the Knight, but rather needed the power born from the Princess to cause it’s fall.

       The Prince did not want the Princess to fight even though her power was undeniably strong. Young and headstrong as he was the next battle he would nearly lose his life trying to keep her uninvolved, if not for the Wizard. A miracle changed his power into something that too would allow him to fight, and join the other three as guardians of the Kingdom’s dreams.

      Still the shadow to their light persisted and though the four would fight together there was friction between them. Not every battle was won, and not only their team but the country itself started to become torn between those who supported the four and those who did not. It was only a matter of time before the shadow took advantage of that as well, using the internal friction to drive the Prince away from his companions.

       The three would have none of it though, as the Prince was their light, their friend and brother. Even when manipulated by the shadow the Knight, the Princess, and the Wizard spared no effort to bring him back. However by being able to get even the Prince to turn his back on them, the four realized just how powerful the darkness had become.

        Even together there would be no way for them to defeat it, however maybe… Just maybe… It was be the Wizard who would suggest looking for a way not to destroy the shadow chasing them, but seal it, bind it, keep it from harming anyone else.

        It would take a little time to find a way between trying to keep what they were doing a secret, and fighting still against the monsters with twisted dreams. Still they found something, and in the sanctuary below the palace they drew the shadow into a trap so that they could bind it forever.

      None of them expected to survive this, the spell would cost their lives, but their people would be safe. Before taking their positions on the markings the Knight, and the Wizard turned to the royals and bowed, “It has been an honor to walk alongside you.” They both said.

      In return the Prince bowed as well, the Princess curtsied, “We are most grateful for your service.” The two replied before they all rose.

       The Knight reached out, placing a hand on the shoulder of his Prince, “His Highness has always been like a brother, and Her Highness a sister to me, for that I am grateful. As long as this spirit of mine goes on, it will never forget. My strength is yours forever.” Giving a half smile to the Wizard he added, “The Lord Mage as well, I am honored. May we meet again, and should you need it may my strength also be yours.”

       “Your Highnesses, and Sir Knight have accepted myself who is low born without care, I could not have asked for better people to fight alongside.” The Wizard smiled at the three before looking to the Princess, “Though I am disappointed I can not see where we would go in the future, so long as this spirit of mine remains I will never forget. Should any of you need my power again, it will be yours.”

      The Princess threw her arms around the Prince’s neck in a hug, nearly knocking him over, “We’ve been together since the day we were born, and I’ve never been unhappy about that.” She let go to place a kiss on the Knight’s cheek, “I was so happy to meet everyone, and that you let me fight with you.” And with a smile she offered a hand to the wizard, who took it and bowed as he placed a kiss against her fingers, “As long as this spirit remains, I will never forget. I hope we can meet and be together again.”

       The Prince looked down at his feet, his hand curling into a fist, “I… Have caused you all a lot of trouble.” He said slowly. “That we only have this left is… Probably my fault as well.” Looking up at his companions, his eyes were filled with both tears and determination, “But as long as this spirit remains, I will never forget! In the next life, or the life after, as many as it takes, I promise I’ll find you guys again! I’ll protect you for real! Then we can, we can be together forever!”

     Even at the last moment the Prince never suspected a thing, not until he awoke alone in the sanctuary. Faced with his friends having turned into statues before him, he didn’t understand, how was he not like them? The Prince tried to get up, only to find that something was different. He may not be a statue, but he had changed, his body now much, much smaller than before, lighter, and covered in black fur. Struggling to his feet the weakened Prince slowly made his way to the sacred fountain and looked in, to see a black cat with his own bright green eyes staring back at him.

        Alive as he was, this could only be the doing of his friends. Though not even with their protection could he fully escape the effects of their spell. However after this no one knows what happened to the young Prince, and as old as the tale may be no one can say if it is true or fantasy.

      Though some do say that if you are lucky you might find a hidden passage in the palace of that kingdom that will take you down. In the center an old far faded set of markings much like a magic circle, and three statues of two young men, and a young woman just as old and worn as the markings on the floor.

     Should you be luckier still you may even see the green eyed black cat, who is said to guard the room. Though some believe that cat is the missing Prince who stays to guard the friends who sacrificed their lives to create the barrier holding back the darkness.