#the last unicorn: the lost journey

[moondustbooks]

February JOMP Day 6 - Red Books ❤️

[harlotistic]

journey to salvation

cw. fem pov, dad!Leon, nsfw, dead dove, physical abuse, non con, mild piss, incest, blasphemous themes, cult, forced intoxication, violence, mild choking, misogyny, alcoholism, depression, suicidal ideation, major daddy issues, breeding threats, not proofread, bad writing towards the end, tba

the alcoholism to finding god pipeline was not exactly uncommon. it's happened a million times before and it happened to him. Leon S Kennedy. the same Leon who has open tabs in every alcohol serving place across the globe. in a way, it makes him feel whole. a semblance of a calm and picket fence like life that he'd dream up back before the whole thing in raccoon. and whatever he got dragged into after.

shit, he tried everything really. sleeping around with anyone who looks for a good face value fuck (he wasn't really the most silver tongued...at least when it came to words). getting hitched to some girl who sorta resembled a trauma bonded situationship he never fully got over.

hell he even had a kid! a whole daughter for fucks' sake. but nothing fucking worked. nothing at all. until he lost himself in the bottle. god that worked like a charm. the routine of sharp burns down his throat, the haze that took all the edge off, and the part where he forgets. brain and liver going through simultaneous cirrhosis.

but much like the shit that was his life, it's gotta flush out somehow. blocking out these...thoughts and memories made the anger stretch and taut the way a rubber band would. stretching and stretching each time his wife picked a fight about him missing appointments, missing milestones in his daughter's life, and just being missing most of the goddamn time. and then in a particularly escalated screaming match, he had slapped her.

the sharp sting in his palm feeling like a pail of ice had been poured down the back of his dso assigned t-shirt, fresh after a mission. the guilt made his own hazy unfocused eyes water and the sight of his young daughter by the door just standing there, watching with fat droplets of tears running down her cheeks, increased it tenfold.

so he stopped. went cold turkey and stopped even looking at those bottles. hell, he even threw away his favourite hip flask. and then he enrolled in a religious alcohol group therapy. not by choice. some pal of his told him that the group helped. he wasn't the biggest fan of god and his works. he's seen em all, really and they were anything but fluffy pink unicorns shitting rainbows out of their asses. it was...hell. not that he believed in that either.

but something about being around people again. the feeling of togetherness without anybody knowing the weight of the blood and lives he dredged around with him in every step. no judgement, no pity, nothing. he remembered his first day, stepping into church after last having stared into the cold pale stone eyes of christ just hanging in front of everyone and getting a nightmare when he was 10. he had thought to himself, has it really been 20 years?

he took a seat on one of the chairs in the circle. it was the cushioned kind. the ones that made the aches from one too many falls lighten just a little. he flicked his hair out of his eyes. a habit from making sure dust and whatever weird gunk didn't blind him on missions. he was too early. he felt a prickle of self consciousness. he looked too eager and damn it if it's not the most sissy thing to do.

and then the people started streaming in, all bright smiles with light in their eyes — he had to be in the wrong fucking meeting. he was supposed to attend alcoholics' recovery not some supposedly enlightening bible study group. but against the discomfort that began to settle in the lower pits of his stomach, he stayed.

fast forward to now and it has been 10 years. who knew Leon S Kennedy had it in him to attend church alcoholics' recovery and Sunday masses and even prayed on a regular basis now? it sure as hell wasn't him. sure nightmares still kept him up and the urge to just down a whole bottle and complete the process of cirrhosis to give a merciful death to his liver never weakened, but he was a better man now. the church says good men have to be righteous. avoid sin. ask god to forgive and have mercy on their souls. in due time, things would ease up. now Leon knew these words were just words of empty hope. none of it was true. he used to repeat that with conviction in his heart.

until he didn't.

maybe it was the way the leader spoke with unwavering conviction or the way it was more of a sermon instead of an anonymous confession or the words that all seemed to blur into a comforting haze of light after a while. he felt lighter. life had meaning again he'd begin to say, a smile on his lips as he chugged the rest of the cooler water that everyone was given a cup off. each time he goes to the church, all of his desires began to melt away. he was at peace. so much so that he began going to church as soon as he was off missions, sharing cups of cooler water with his peers and the leader who seemed to know just what to say to soothe the troubles in his mind. he never wanted to leave. and sometimes, be didn't.

except, his stupid ex-wife started calling again. saying how he was starting to be late on child support. that she couldn't manage to fund you all on her own with her current earnings. that college was becoming too expensive and that the least he could do was house you for abit to make up for lost time and so that you wouldn't be too lonely at home. at least until she sorted things out with her company and the 6 month long overseas exchange that would guarantee her salary increment.

god gives his most arduous trials to his best of men. Leon just mumbled out a quick sure and ended it. her babbling was going to make him late for church. he had to hand the suitcase full of cash to the leader as a sincere donation so that he can stay for all of their sermons and eventual programme to become one of the higher ranking members.

truth be told, for a second there, he damn near forgot he even had a daughter. church had become his entire life. his purpose. his...people. blood ties weren't enough to keep him going. only church was enough. he ignored the multiple other texts from work asking him where he was. they could find someone else to deal with humanity's work. he was a man of god now, blessed with the opportunity to spread the word of truth. to be back as they were in the olden days. where everything was perfect. where everybody had roles and purposes.

so he gritted his teeth and bared a grimace like smile when you came.

"hey kid. long time no see, huh?"

he says, hands in the pocket of his worn denim jeans. you were practically a stranger. more height than he remembered. when you met his gaze with those really really blank ones, he felt himself a little unnerved. it brought up an image of you crying when he first slapped his ex-wife. how long has it really been? well doesn't really matter. you were no longer a little girl anyway.

it was a long pause. a very awkward one. he shifted a little from one foot to the other as your eyes studied him. it has been a long time. his hair was a little longer, face a little scruffier, but that was your old man alright. the very same eyes you sometimes have nightmares about. the gunmetal blue, cold and filled with a bottomless rage. and you were...taller. softer in places and your hair's...different. he found himself feeling like he was looking at a stranger, unaware that both of you were frowning just like the other.

you were one of many regrets he had. but after church and his enlightenment, his only regret was not being able to put you in church school. maybe then you wouldn't be standing around as soon as you arrive and actually get to doing something around his house. women's roles were in the house. caretakers. while he went out to spread god's word. he stepped aside to let you walk inside, not missing the way your reaction to a dusty seemingly long unused house was a mere flicker of disdain that flitted as soon as it appeared.

"you can take the guest room. settle everything down and get ready. we're going to church."

he says, adjusting the cuffs of his button up as he sat on the couch. he tapped his loafered foot impatienly against the tiles, eyes constantly glancing at the time. 20 minutes passed and he was growing restless. his hair was beginning to fall all wrong from the amount of times he's ran his fingers through them. what was taking you so fucking long anyway? did you not understand the importance of church? how dare you a pathetic girl make god wait? make the leader wait on his important sincere donation? you were gonna regret it when he finally stands up and — the door of the guest room creaked open.

"i'm not going to church, dad. i'm still tired from the trip."

he found his jaw twitching at your brazen nature. walking around as if making the leader wait wasn't going to backfire in his face. but god says patience is virtue so he won't give you shit for it. he was a merciful man after all.

"you better not be saying that just to skip out on church, young lady."

he says with restrained annoyance, jaw tightening as he grabbed his briefcase and headed out. you don't remember dad being religious. but then again, you barely knew the man. most of your childhood was buried under lock and key in the back of your mind. but being around him made you uneasy. even more so now. but this was a temporary arrangement. maybe you should see to doing something more relaxing like giving yourself a breather since it was the summer holidays. maybe just rot away in this room until it was time to leave again.

he came home from church late into the night. gunmetal blue eyes hardening as he watched you eat late night cereal at the kitchen table. you looked up mid chew, meeting his gaze. he tched and walk away. you swore he mumbled something like lazy under his breath. your appetite began to fizzle. what was this man's deal anyway?

he was barely home and honestly the only complaint you had was the lack of any food around. so you decided to take matters into your own hand and headed out to get some. like a good responsible grown adult would. and when you got home he was sitting at the table, eyes narrowed as he scanned you up and down.

"where were you?"

it sounded so accusatory. as if he already had a preconceived notion of where you went. maybe it really didn't help that you went to the store in your usual ripped jeans and tanktop.

"i went to the store, dad. helping you restock the-"

he scoffed, leaning back in his chair and flicking his hair out of his eyes as he crossed his arms.

"dressed like that? like a slut? is this how your mom raised you?"

your grip on the grocery paperbag nearly loosened entirely. you found yourself staring at him with parted lips. a slut? seriously?

"i really should have taken custody of you and put you in church school. that way you wouldn't have grown up to be such a whore."

his words were dripping with venom as his eyes hardened even more.

"from now on until the day you leave, you're not allowed to leave this house. and you will pull your weight by performing your role as a grown woman."

you felt your skin prickle at his words. the way he said it. it all sounded so brazenly prejudiced...like he was reciting it straight off a conservative cultish script embedded in his mind. now you knew he was no saint. an ex alcoholic, an absent father, and the occasional wife beating on special occasions. but a misogynistic bastard? now that...that was something too new.

"you can't just lock me up like- like some hostage! i'm gonna be here for half a year!"

the speed at which he stood up with his hands raised just shy of your cheek made you sputter to a stop, flinching instantly. your eyes held a fear he recognised from that very night he had backhanded your mom. in hindsight, that woman deserved it. she forgot her place when talking to her husband. him. the breadwinner who worked tirelessly day after day to play his role as man of the house. the least she could have done after that was offer him a drink for being such a stupid useless bitch.

"stop backtalking me you ungrateful-"

you swore you heard his teeth crack from how hard he was clenching his teeth. his eyes were hollow and filled with such an intense rage that it made you cower away. oh he knew what a sheltered girl you were how your mom was a doting parent who cared about your wellbeing. so much so that she made you stay with him instead of living in a house all by yourself. no wonder you turned out this way. spoiled, ungrateful, and unreligious. a woman with no piety is no woman at all. that's what the leader had said.

and that was one week ago. you had been holed up in the house, the dim lighting and his constant disappearances to either work or the church was beginning to eat at your brain. him being at home wasn't much better. you had to cook for him, clean for him, iron his church clothes, and shine his shoes. in return all he did was criticise you. the food too salty, the shoes not shiny enough, the house still dusty, everything was never right.

you were beginning to see yourself from outside your body, throwing yourself into one task after another. his constant bullying was eroding your mind. and the fact that you weren't allowed to open the curtains, or watch tv in the living room, or had anybody to talk to really didn't help. and then you landed upon a gold mine. the lower left cupboard in his toilet that stored untouched bottles of liquour. just sitting and waiting. a trap of temptation he had been keeping in his house for god knew what.

as you sat on the toilet just holding the cold bottle, staring at it. you found yourself feeling an eerie sense of connection with your distant almost estranged father. you wondered how many nights he spent all by himself seated in the exact same way you were. just looking at the cold bottle of liquid sin in his hands.

you did what he stopped. broke that last barrier of restraint and spiralled down the way he just climbed up from. you uncorked the bottle and tipped it back, letting the liquid slosh down your throat and dribble down your chin. it burned. it burned so bad. you coughed and sputtered, eyes growing teary. it tasted like an internal chemical burn. a bitter tang that stung the insides of your throat. but the haze that settled over your mind after. the lightness that seemed to anchor your soul back into your body even for just a minute. you were instantly hooked.

like father, like daughter.

it was no wonder that old sod was hooked to this thing. it was liquid gold! i mean for the small price of a bad headache and the worst case of dry mouth the next day, you could just...melt into nothing. the world spins and you're in the middle just watching as everything blurs together into one meaningless nothing.

before you knew it, a week had passed with you passing out evrryday to make time go by quicker. the whiskey bottle was down to it's last dredges and you were laying on the cool tiled floors of the toilet again. shivering from the contrast of it against your liquor warmed skin. your eyes fluttered close and open and close and —

the loud sound of the front door slamming shut had you jolted to a sitting position. you'd recognise the dull thuds of his footsteps anywhere. except they were louder and way angrier than you had ever heard it. and then you stood on swaying legs, taking a look at yourself in the mirror. glassy red eyes, jaw slack with a little bit of drool and hair flat on the side where you had laid on the ground. your heart was beating so fast you could almost feel it on your tongue as panic washed over you. shit. shit.

you splashed cold water onto your face, rubbing it firmly to bring back a sense of sobriety. you swished the water aggressively in your mouth, narrowly avoiding choking on it. your drunken mind too panicked to realise that the smell of it was too deeply marinated in every crevice of your teeth and tongue.

your hands trembled as you plopped to the ground unceremoniously, grasping at the bottle to cap it and hide it back in the cupboard. your shaky fingers loosened and the cap was sent flying near the tub. fuck. he was going to hit you. you just knew it. just like he did mom. and like he does in your nightmares that leave you in cold sweat. please god, if you're real. please please please let him go to bed and never find out — clang

the clatter of the rhick glass bottle tipping over onto the ceramic tiles sent shockwaves of deafening echoes that made your ears ring in your tunnel visioned panic. you heard his footsteps freeze before they stormed towards where you were. you felt your breath hitch as you hurriedly pressed the bottle against your back and leaned against the side of the tub. as if it would just dissolve into your skin and never be found. the doorknob rattled as he pounded on the door.

"what the hell are you doing in there, kid?"

then as you stayed quiet like a rabbit frozen in fear, it became more insistent. more agitated.

"answer me or i'll break this damned door!"

you finally found your voice in a small squeak that escaped your throat.

"j-just a stomach ache dad! i-i'll be out in a bit i promise!"

the banging stopped and it was so silent you could hear your heartbeat reverberate against the smooth white of the tub behind you. it was bullshit and if drunk you could smell it, so could your retired military agent dad.

"you lying bitch. do you think i'm stupid?"

you could practically hear the snarl in his voice and after a beat, hr said something. something that you should have listened to. something that to this day you wondered if it would have changed anything has you heeded his words.

"open this fucking door now or you're gonna regret it."

he yelled. and then it was quiet. so quiet. and then he kicked the door so loud you heard the hinges creak.

"oh you're going to be fucking sorry, kid."

he said in an eerily calm voice and then his footsteps faded as he yelled a loud 'fuck'. followed by the clatter of something being kicked to the ground. you pinched yourself. so hard you felt the sting shoot down your spine. this had to be a nightmare. you had to wake up. you had to get out.

before your panic and alcohol scrambled brain could figure out the next course of action the footsteps returned and in a blink of an eye the door was sent splintering to the floor, revealing a man with crazed bloodshot eyes and a heaving chest beneath his sweat stained button up. his sharp features that brought you praise for winning genetically was now shadowed by his overgrown hair. he held a bag of clinking bottles in one hand. bottles of...liquor.

one look at you and he knew. he could recognise that dazed look anywhere even beneath the thickest layers of fear. and that smell. the sharp sweet and sour of an impending drymouth after drinking alot. for a moment the humid silence in the bathroom was filled with nothing but heavy breaths. father and daughter looking at each other. two mirrors reflecting the very demons they feared.

"you disgust me."

his low raspy voice was pointed as he stepped closer, larger hands yanking your hair just shy of smacking the back against the edge of the tub. sounding like he was talking to the him that was trapped like a wet dog. one that was clinging onto the bottle like a solace teddy a child would have in their bed.

"you think you can lie to me? and commit this disgusting sin without me ever finding out, huh?!"

he grabbed one of the bottles from the plastic bag, unscrewing the lid with the same hand.

"now drink. drink as much. as. you. fucking. want."

he says through gritted teeth, squeezing your jaw open as he poured the liquid down your throat. your yelp turned into spluttering gasps as the liquid went everywhere. some even up your nose and stinging at your eyes. your fingers desperately push at him. wherever you could land on but he stood firm. years of training and muscle despite the recent years of slack and armed with a rage so deep held him rock steady.

one whole entire bottle. your vision began to fuzz as you choked and cough. your head was spinning, barely registering anything at all besides the blue of his eyes that seemed to float before you.

"da...ddy...cough...m'sorry...m'so sorry..."

you sputtered pathetically between coughs as your throat tried to scramble back to normalcy. and for a moment he saw the same you. the reason behind his journey to seek god. his heart clenched as you blinked up at him with red teary eyes and snot dribbling down to your upper lip.

and then he sees you. the current you. the one that had costed him his place in church. next to the leader. next to god's best man.

his mind replayed the events from earlier today. how the sermon moved him as always. talks of how women were made for men and how everyone has their place in front of god. how addiction was sin. how god forgives. and then again on how women are nurturing creatures with big hearts and that they should realise their place is at home. especially not with a bottle because it was way worse to be an alcoholic mother than to be a deadbeat alcoholic father.

the old Leon would have thought this to be crazy. that the words were nothing more than prejudiced nonsense lumped together and stamped with a label of 'from god.' but the Leon now? the one who craves the cooler water gatherings and a feeling of belonging and to do nothing more than pour his entire wages as means of baring his soul and sincerity before the leader, he was nodding almost feverishly. because if god said so. if the leader, said so. it has to be true. truer than anything and everything that has ever been true.

if it weren't, his ex-wife wouldn't have left. his life wouldn't have been so dark and awful and devoid of the enlightening he had now. his legs bounced almost impatiently as he thought about the cooler water and standing next to the leader. how the leader always knew what to say to make everything better. how cool and refreshing the water was. the slight bitter tang to it that seemed to haunt his every waking moment.

he had rushed to the leader's side as soon as everything was over, holding his briefcase full of donation cash with a smile equivalent of a dog with its tongue our. waiting to be petted for a job well done.

"ah, brother kennedy. this must be this month's donation to the cause."

the leader spoke. his beady eyes turning into slits as he grinned with his perfect white teeth. he was a broad man with thinning hair and a shorter stature than Leon. but his presence, it made it so clear why god had chosen him to lead. Leon's fingers tightened on the handle of the suitcase. waiting for the leader's blessing words and for the briefcase to be taken. freeing him from worldly sin and cleansing his soul with the money given. but his hopes were kept afloat in the oddly tense air.

"i heard from the churchgoers that your daughter is back in town. is that true?"

his words sent a chill down his spine. well, not really the words but rather how...it was said. as if he had done something wrong and the leader was baiting him into a confession. Leon swallowed his nerves.

"yes, leader. she's staying over for a while. is there something wrong?"

please say no. please say no. please —

"why have we not seen our new sister here?"

the leader asks in a way that sounded annoyed. impatient. Leon blinked.

"she's been taking care of the house."

she's not religious. she wouldn't get what we have here. too stupid and corrupted by modern day ideations to grasp true enlightenment. the leader smiles. a smile that felt hollow.

"our brothers and sisters here have seen her in clothing that was...inappropriate for brethren of the church."

Leon missed the way the leader's eyes glinted as he spoke. as if he knew more than he let on. and wanted more than he let on. the leader shifted where he stood, adjusting the crotch of his slacks.

"bring her here, will you? i'm sure spreading god's grace is in your best interest unless...of course...you don't think so. and that you want to return to the dark life you lead and turn that disgusting glass bottle into your place of belief?"

Leon felt his heart sink to his bowels. maybe even fall straight out of his ass onto the cold church floor from the way he froze. one of the other churchgoers was about to hand Leon a cup of the cooler water when the leader stopped him by simply holding up his stubby hand.

"no need, brother. brother Kennedy here will not be joining us for our social gathering."

the churchgoer bowed and scurried off like a rat caught in the daytime. Leon felt his heart pound in his chest. a sense of hurt and isolation that ate and prickled at his skin. he had fucked up. big time. and the leader was angry. god help him.

"i'll bring her over as soon as i can, leader. please...you don't have to do this-"

the leader's smile vanished and he stepped closer.

"you will bring her tomorrow."

he declared with a finality in his voice. Leon nodded fervently, desperate for his approval. for his forgiveness. the leader turned away and began to walk off. he paused and turned to face Leon with a barely stifled smirk.

"oh and kennedy? don't bother coming if she's not with you."

don't bother coming...fuck. fuck. what was that supposed to mean? after everything he's done for the church? all the money he's given? all the times he helped stand in front of the leader's door to guard it and make sure the incident of a church sister running out crying wold for help and rejecting the leader's blessing ever happened again. all of it was for nothing. his blood ran cold. even colder at the thought of never socialising with the others again. never tasting that bitter tang of the cooler water that always seemed to make his nightmares go away when he slept.

he was distraught.

he came home slamming the front door behind him. he ran his fingers through his hair, flicking it out of his eyes as he panted. cold swsat began to soak through the front and back of his shirt as the reality of it began to sink in. no more god. no more church. no more leader. no more cooler water. oh no. no no no. this cannot be happening. not when he had been doing so good.

he marched straight to his room without another word, shoes and coat flung haphazardly for you to clean up after. his throat felt dry and for the first time in a while, the urge to drink was no longer a lingering temptation at the back of his mind. his whole brain was set off like an alarm bell telling him to just give in. get a bottle and drink himself stupid. and then he heard it. the familiar clang of a glass bottle against the toilet floor. one he had heard years back when he was drinking himself to death in the very same place after a mission went sideways. and then he remembered you. and everything fell into place.

you bitch. you were drinking, weren't you?

and now he stared into the face of his key to the church. the key to his redemption and acceptance back by the leader. a face so pathetic and sticky with tears and drying cheap alcohol. god he was so made he wanted to just bash your fucking head into the side of the tub. stupid fucking bitch. stupid like your mother. how dare you sit here like a bum, drinking and sinning while he was out there fighting to be enlightened? to be a man of god? he found his fingers curling around the column of your throat, hissing as your nails dug into the skin of his scarred hands as you tried to breathe. the stench of liquour and your existence covered everything in a red haze.

you are out of control. a wild thing that needs to be disciplined before you could join as brethren of the church. and who else better to discipline you than your own enlightened churchgoing father?

"you shouldn't be apologising to me. you should be apologising to god. start praying or i'll make you regret each drop of that damned thing you so stupidly poured down your fucking throat."

he spat, hauling you up and bending you over the side of the tub. the cold hard edge dug into the flesh of your stomach, making the nausea worse. and prayed you did, hands clasped together with your voice trembling and barely coherent. slurring out prayers for for forgiveness. your tears and drool dripped and splattered in unsynchronised rhythms into the inner surface of the tub, your auditory field tunneled so much to the point of missing the metal clink of a buckle being undone.

"i'm sorry god. please i'm so sorry. i swear i'll never drink again. i- ack-!"

your voice splintered into a choked gasp as a sharp sting hit the curve of your ass. you unclasped your hands instinctively trying to defend your sore skin when your hair was yanked back firmly.

"did i say you could stop?"

he whispered, breath hot against your ears. you hurriedly scrambled to keep praying, jolting each time the leather hit. you could barely breathe. breaths coming in short gasps as the pain and dizziness and crying began to overwhelm you. your vision began to darken around the edges.

and then it stopped. not your prayers but the beatings. your heart was pounding so hard you thought you were going to die. hiccupping and gasping for breath as you tried to pray through it all. your desperate and hoarse voice mixed with his panting were the only sounds in that bathroom. the silence made you tremble even more, clasping your hands tighter as you prayed feverishly like a woman possessed.

Leon stared at you. his drunk beat up daughter who's skin was beginning to welt. he was panting, calloused fingers raised to trace the ones visible and gliding over the ones beneath your clothes. the power of beating you into submission. cleansing you of sin. it was...a high. one comparable to drinking or feeling that cooler water slide down his throat and left his brain at peace. as if he was walking on clouds. your curves wiggled and swayed as you prayed desperately. begging for salvation. begging for god to save you from the monster he had become.

but god had enlightened him. and that gave him every right to fix you. make you ready for the leader to bless. his jaw ticked and his finger trembled. a withdrawal of some kind. this was what being away from church did to him. he needed to be called brother kennedy again. needed the approval from the leader. he needed whatever was in that cooler water.

he needed...you.

so he finds himself lifting you, bending you in half as your body clipped the side of the tub's edge. he bunched up the hem of your dress. an old one your mom had given you. one that she had worn before. your marred skin was soft beneath his touch, you whimpered and squirmed. you really did take after your mother. maybe you could be a fillial daughter and play the role of wife too. it's the least you could do to atone for everything you've done.

the rough fabric of his slacks against your bare ass, stung. you could feel the stiffness of his cock as he rubbed it awkwardly against your panties. your legs were split like a foal learning to walk for the first time.

"do you feel that, kid? feel what sin does to an enlightened man like your dad?"

you were too tired to care. too focused on taking your next breath without feeling like a million nerves were combusting beneath your skin. he held you down, edge of the tub digging much deeper, you could've sworn it made your ribcage creak.

"promise...i won't tell anyone...please dad...just stop..."

you slurred weakly (or at least you thought you did because all Leon heard was a bunch of groans and the word dad) eyelashes fluttering as your face smushed into the cold tub floor. bent in half as you were trying to breathe was the worst experience you ever had. you tried to push yourself up. to push against him and stumble free. but even as your knuckles whitened with effort, he was too strong. his palms pressed your head into the ceramic as his other tugged at his slacks. all you did was keep pressing the tub's edge harder against

"don't worry. i'll make sure you're ready for church, hm? perfect vessel to receive the leader's blessings. you'll learn to thank me."

he muttered under his breath as he struggled to shimmy down his boxers.

"huh would you look at that? you pissed yourself, kid."

the tub's edge had been pressing against your womb from the way he was holding you down with his sweat soaked front on your back, squishing it so firmly you were sure it would go concave. the numbing cold and firmness made your pussy drip. it was pressing on everything tender. your liquour filled bladder had surrendered to fear in your fevered repenting, a pool of warm acrid smelling liquid seeping into the soles of your feet. he laughed humourlessly at his deadpan, pressing his fingers into your sopping wet hole.

he tugged your soaked panties down, stroking the soft of your bruised cheeks before kneading them. fingers squeezing and pushing at the welts. the painful numbness made you groan. he began spreading it, spitting on his fingers before he harshly prodded at your slick hole.

"well makes this easier for the both of us, hm?"

he gave his cock a few strokes, eyebrows knitted as he rubbed the underside against the ridge of your ass. the warmth and slickness of your piss was making his head spin, soft schlick schlick sounds filling the humid bathroom. your head was beginning to hurt from being pushed down into the tub, hair pricking at your eyes. you let out more groans and whimpers. sounding even more urgent despite battling your consciousness.

"you lost the fight against the devil's evil temptations. but dad'll fix this. if he can fix his life, he can fix this. make you pure again so god will love you- mmf-"

he groaned as his leaky tip began to push into you. you barely put up a fight, just crying against the pool of your own tears that had gathered beneath your cheeks. he was going to fix you. fix this. fix everything like he had fixed his life up to this point. he gritted his teeth as he sank in deeper, the cool of your sweat glistened back against the buttoned front of his shirt. the plastic buttons dug into your skin, tugging it as he pushed in deeper. you had never felt so full and numbed at the same time.

he yanked your head up, licking the tears from your cheeks as he plowed into your piss slick hole. the wet thwapping noises seemed to make everything in your brain go blank. your body was sore, broken, and sensitive.

he grunted against your ear, stubble reddening your skin. he was breathing shakily as he buried himself deep. his dirty little girl needed his guidance. his help. his...blessing. it made his cock twitch at the thought of purifying the source of lust within you. your bare womb. filling it up to keep you from sinning again. fulfilling your purpose as a woman placed on earth by god. making you a sweet docile mommy wwith nurturing tendencies. just like god intended.

"you feel that, kid? your womb is begging to be filled. beging to fulfill god's written purpose for you."

he says as he yanked your head up with one hand while the other splsyed across your lower tummy. pushing you back onto his twitching dick in a relentless rhythm. you let out a pained grunt, hands scrambling to hold onto something for balance as he began to thrust faster.

his balls slapped against your sore ass with each thrust and all you could remember was slipping into a deep dark haze. your ears rung and everything around you faded. Leon tried tapping your face as your head hung limply from the hair clenched in his fingers but to no avail. he licked a stripe down the side of your neck and buried his teeth between your neck and shoulder as he came with a loud groan. his warm cum shot deep into you, swirling with your piss as he held you against his cock. he let go once he was done, watching as you fell to the ground and splashing up the piss from the puddle as you landed.

well...repenting was a messy business but now you were perfect. his perfect, church ready daughter. he ran his fingers through his hair to push back the strands stuck to his forehead from his sweat as a grin tugged at his lips. the front of his shirt was soaked in both your sweat and his heart was racing in his chest. you were ready.

—

"and leader, meet my daughter. she looks forward to receivinh your blessing. i made sure to prepare her myself."

his arm around your waist a tinge too tight, eyes eager for approval of a job well done. he searched the leader's beady eyes, watching as he studied you like fresh meat. the leader shifted his pants a little and licked his lips before acknowledging Leon again. barely.

"welcome back, brother kennedy."

the leader says, eyes glinting. Leon felt a wave of relief hit him full force, fingers trembling as he took the cup of cooler water from one of the brothers and chugged it down like a man parched in the desert seeing an oasis for the first time.

in his car, his phone dinged with a notification. one from the ame friend who recommended the alcoholic group therapy from all those years ago. a frantic jumble of words followed by a clipping of a document with the leader's face on it.

"Under investigation for bioterrorism involvement using slow acting newwater activated virus strain. Suspected intent of cult-forming and virus spreading."

[starleska]

12 months. 46 crushes. 0 moments of sanity.

welcome to Starleska's F/O Round-Up 2024!! 🥳🥳

what you see above is a chart of every single fictional character crush i had in 2024: whether they lasted a single day, or are still plaguing my thoughts now 🙈💖 gosh, it's been a busy year!! if you look closely, you can see the exact moments i lost my mind in-between fixations 😳 the full list of characters is below!! feel free to ask about any of them, because they're all very dear to my heart 🥰

Maxime Le Mal (Despicable Me 4)

King Magnifico (Wish)

Alan Partridge (Various)

Adam (Hazbin Hotel)

Kinito (KinitoPET)

The Sixth Doctor (Doctor Who)

Lord Royal Highness (Spongebob Squarepants)

Velvette (Hazbin Hotel)

Dr Reflex (Baldi's Basics in Education and Learning)

Maestro (Doctor Who)

Boycie (Only Fools and Horses)

Max Jägerman (Nerdy Prudes Must Die)

Wiggog Y'Rath (Hatchetverse)

Siegfried von Schroeder (Yu-Gi-Oh!)

Elliott (Stardew Valley)

Nordic Bunny (Shred Force)

Mr Puzzles (SMG4)

The Love Glove (Doom Patrol)

Pegasus (Yu-Gi-Oh!)

Master Shake (Aqua Teen Hunger Force)

Frylock (Aqua Teen Hunger Force)

Piers (Pokémon)

Archie the Inventor (Balamory)

Periwinkle 'Peri' Fairywinkle-Cosma (Fairly Oddparents: A New Wish)

Ramón Salazar (Resident Evil 4)

Zapp Brannigan (Futurama)

Deadpool (Marvel)

Badman (Super Richie)

Captain James T. Kirk (Star Trek)

Han Solo (Star Wars)

Zanzo (Hi-Fi Rush)

Dionysus (Hades)

Gambit (Marvel)

Emberlynn Pinkle (Helluva Boss)

Victor Quartermaine (Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit)

Adrian Monk (Monk)

Beetlejuice (Beetlejuice)

Castor/Zuse (Tron: Legacy)

Sensei La Dew (ItsLorlo Sketches)

'Real' Frankie (Finding Frankie)

Rolando (Helluva Boss)

Vic Diamond (Thelma the Unicorn)

Jack Frost (The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause)

Gustafson (Jingle Jangle: A Christmas Journey)

Inspekta (Great God Grove)

Superman/Clark Kent/Kal-El (DC Comics)

[acronym-chaos]

The Last Unicorn ID Pack

[PT: The Last Unicorn ID Pack].

[ID: A purple thin line divider shaded at the bottom. End ID].

Names

[PT: Names].

Aelara, Alba, Altair, Andre, Arwen, Astra, Bianca, Celestina, Clover, Corinne, Cygnus, Eirlys, Elara, Eluned, Elysia, Endellion, Estelle, Fable, Fauna, Faye, Fernaco, Galen, Hesper, Irene, Isa, Jericho, Lirael, Lyra, Lys, Lúthien, Maia, Marian, Melanie, Moondust, Nimue, Nymph, Ophelia, Perseis, Radiance, Rhiannon, Selene, Seraphina, Silvara, Solara, Sylph, Thalion, Una, Vega, Xenia

Pronouns

[PT: Pronouns].

Fae / Faem / Faes, Glo / Glow / Glows, Grei / Grace / Greir, Hor / Horn / Horns, Imm / Mor / Tals [Immortal], Jou / Journ / Journeys, Light / Lighten / Lights, Lo / Lone / Lys [Lonely], Mag / Magic / Magics, Mi / Myth / Myths, Que / Ques / Quests, Se / Sil / Silvers, Spe / Spell / Spells, Ti / Time / Tis, Uni / Corn / Unis

Titles

[PT: Titles].

[Noun] From Forgotten Woods, [Noun] Lost To Time, [Pronoun] Who Forgot [Pronounself], [Pronoun] Who Searched for Others, A Being of Grace, A Creature of Timeless Beauty, A Myth Made Real, A Unicorn in Human Form, An Immortal Being, The Last of [Pronouns] Kind, The Lonely Unicorn, The Mythical Wanderer, The One Who Was Turned Human, The Purest of Heart, The Silver-Horned Wonder, The Wanderer of the Woods

[ID: A purple thin line divider shaded at the bottom, End ID].

Requested by @k9collective

Also tagging: @id-pack-archive

[mad-raptorzzz]

[ID: Headshot drawings of the characters from The Dragon Prince drawn as ponies for an AU set in the My Little Pony Friendship is Magic universe. Calum is a light tan earth pony with a lighter muzzle. He has green eyes and wears a red scarf. A second drawing of him has his eyes narrowed in anger as he lowers his head. From his forehead, there is a light blue glowing horn, nearly translucent, radiating blue magic. Ezran is next, he is a small dark brown earth pony with freckles and large poofy hair. He has bright blue eyes and a kind smile on his almost dragon-esque face. The second row starts with Rayla as a light purple unicorn with a dark grey-purple curved horn. She wears a grimace, narrowing her eyes. Next to hear is a shot of Calum, Ezran, and Rayla all nuzzling together smiling. Last row has Soren as a buff earth pony with his signature side shave mane. He looks solemn. Claudia as a light peach earth pony with a dark purple-black mane tipped in mauve is next to him. She has a slight purple discoloration on her forehead. There is a second shot of her with a straight dark purple horn emerging from her forehead, her eyes black as she uses dark magic. /End]

As promised, my MLP + TDP AU. So earth ponies were booted out of Xadia a long time ago for stealing magic from other creatures and twisting it into evil. They have long since lost the luster of their coats and manes, now bearing dull browns, tans, yellows, greys, and, very occasionally, diluted greens/blues/reds. There are a few among them who still do practice dark magic as mages.

Calum and Ezran are the sons of the current king of one of the five earth pony kingdoms, King Harrow. They meet an unlikely friend in a young unicorn assassin named Rayla on the eve of their father's, and unbeknownst to them Ezran's, planned murders. While King Harrow falls to the assassins, the young ponies discover something long thought destroyed: the egg of the dragon prince. The three of them...er four of them including Bait the glow toad... embark on a long journey to bring the egg home. On the way, they have to avoid Lord Viren's, the current earth pony high mage, children Soren and Claudia. Soren is a tough crown guard who will stop at nothing to protect the kingdom...he just needs to figure out who he is actually fighting for. Claudia, a dark mage herself with the power to transform into a dark unicorn, will stop at nothing to fulfill her father's plans.

And bam. That's the just of it. Just imagine The Dragon Prince but ponies. The unicorns magic is limited to their elf magic. SO Rayla can only do illusions and moonshadow form, Iris can only do weather/wind magic, Terry can only grow plants, ect. Dark magic users and alicorns have access to all types of magic.

I think Calum has a similar thing to Sunny from the newer MLP stuff, where he can kind of turn into an alicorn when the time is right. Claudia and Viren could never do this with dark magic. They are both dark unicorns, similar to Sombra. Except I think that curved horns are the more 'pure' form of the unicorn, so they get spooky evil straight horns that burst from their foreheads and leave a nasty stain if you use it too much. These are their first season designs. I will keep working on other characters too!

Calum's cutie mark: quill and book

Ezran is a blank flank until the middle of season 3 then: crown like his mom's shape with a dragon silhouette behind it

Rayla's cutie mark: curved swords with a full moon behind them

Soren's cutie mark: shield like the crown guard symbol

Claudia's cutie mark: a dark purple snake winding around a rose

[quitealotofsodapop]

I imagine the Jade Emperor is feeling very, Very Stupid for thinking Wukong's claims of needing those layers of immortality was just an excuse after he gets the report that Wukong gave birth to a healthy baby boy, literally named 'Little Heaven,' only to very nearly die in the process, something no immortal thought was even possible when they consider how many layers of stolen immortality Wukong had. Like, Wukong had the most outrageous claim that was proven true within his own throne room and by his own wife, and now he's in his personal infirmary (Queen Mother insisted after helping Wukong give birth, she gets very attached because of course she does, its MK) just barely hanging onto life. Needless to say, the trial is postponed. Macaque refuses to be separated from Wukong or their cub until Wukong wakes up, which means no mobilizing the army until Wukong is awake, especially since they've confirmed that the same restrained used to keep Wukong down all those centuries ago simply will not work with Macaque.

By all rights, that cub should have been an orphan, and it was only by the sheer audacity, stubborness, and thousands of years of work put through by his parents that he has both Wukong and Macaque to watch over him. Wukong had been right, something nobody outside of his family and friends can really comprehend.

referencing Wukong having the Century Stone Egg in the middle of Heavenly Court + Wukong getting KO'd by it.

The Jade Emperor is feeling Stupid with a capitial S.

The Queen Mother is furious with her husband for not believing Wukong's claim about his reasons for immortality, but also angry with herself for not recognising that the monkey had gone into labor in her own palace. Had she'd known centuries ago that Wukong had wanted to safely have a child, she may have been able to help him with his goal, and would have forgiven the theft of her divine Peaches far earlier.

Plus, the "Little Heaven" is the cutest little furball anyone in the palace has seen in centuries. And if the Queen Mother has been caught cooing over the little cub no bigger than her thumb, then thats her business.

Lao Tzu is monitoring and documenting *everything*; weights, movements, heart rates, blood samples, anything that could give him knowledge of Wukong and the baby's conditon, but also give insight to what he and Gold Star know about Stone Monkeys. It's like having a unicorn at a vets, he can't not be excited!

The Peach Maidens visit Wukong and the baby with prayers of health and of luck. They were the very few in Heaven that suspected their attendant brother had stolen the Peaches for reasons other than gluttony. They're all super bummed out to see him in his deep sleep, and help to change his bedding and apply medicines to give his mate and found family a break.

Macaque is a bit of a gloomy mess at this point. Jumping between a silent vigil over Wukong's sleeping body, or performing a whole shadow play for their newborn cub as a bedtime story. Xiaotian truly is a little piece of Heaven for him, and he understands fully why Wukong risked and sacrificed so much for the chance to meet them.

The reincarnation/noodle shop gang are extremely supportive during this time, finally having a chance to get to know Macaque outside of their less-than-ideal meeting. Tang keeps the shadow monkey busy by telling him stories (fact-checked by Wukong himself) of the Monkey King's journeys after the couple's last meeting. Sandy teaches him ways to relax during these rough times. And Pigsy hasn't let Mac go without a meal since he got there (how the pig got into the royal kitchen, they'll never know).

The Ao Longs are very solemn during this time too. They nearly lost Mei when her egg came early, and they're super protective of Wukong and his baby while the monkey is unconcious. Little Mei met Xiaotian for the first time a few days after he was born, and hasn't lost the enchanted look in her eyes since.

Redson acts out by head-butting any stranger that comes near Wukongs' room, including celestial guards, noblemen, servants, and even his own (unknowning) divine grandparents. He declares The Monkey King and the baby under his protection! Secretly though, he curls up to Wukong at times and whispers not to "go back to long-sleep again" since it would make his Mama and Uncle Mac sad. :(

Wukong finally wakes up after a couple of days, and is overjoyed to awaken to see him and his baby both alive and well. His "Little Heaven" truly is worth all those centuries of planning <3

[thehangerson]

doctor who nuwho masterlist

ive been meaning to post this on tumblr for a while and keep forgetting but a few years ago i made a nuwho / whoniverse watchlist including the spinoff shows in release order and now seems like the time to share it! i know ive seen theres a lot of new fans watching from 2005 on (from what im seeing mostly gomens fans. hi gomens fans) and a lot of ppl coming back to the show or rewatching in lieu of the new eps with david and catherine! so heres the list!

the full list masterdoc typed out for your copy-pasting pleasure is below the text break, but heres some links for those of you who are spreadsheet/doc fans.

google sheet checklist version

(the spreadsheet includes some tws and cws, which i update as i rewatch some things. if you have any i'm missing that you think should be included, please send me an ask or leave a comment and i'll add it!)

masterlist:

blue- Doctor Who, red- Doctor Who specials, green- Torchwood, purple- Sarah Jane Adventures, orange- Class

2005

01x01- Rose (03/26/2005)

01x02- The End of the World (4/02)

01x03- The Unquiet Dead (04/09)

01x04- Aliens of London (04/16)

01x05- World War Three (04/23)

01x06- Dalek (04/30)

01x07- The Long Game (05/07)

01x08- Father’s Day (05/14)

01x09- The Empty Child (05/21)

01x10- The Doctor Dances (05/28)

01x11- Boom Town (06/04)

01x12- Bad Wolf (06/11)

01x13- The Parting of the Ways (06/18)

The Christmas Invasion (12/25)

2006

02x01- New Earth (04/15/2006)

02x02- Tooth and Claw (04/22)

02x03- School Reunion (04/29)

02x04- The Girl in the Fireplace (05/06)

02x05- Rise of the Cybermen (05/13)

02x06- Age of Steel (05/20)

02x07- The Idiot’s Lantern (05/27)

02x08- Impossible Planet (06/03)

02x09- Satan Pit (06/10)

02x10- Love & Monsters (06/17)

02x11- Fear Her (06/24)

02x12- Army of Ghosts (07/01)

02x13-Doomsday (07/08)

01x01- Everything Changes (10/22)

01x02- Day One (10/22)

01x03- Ghost Machine (10/29)

01x04- Cyberwoman (11/05)

01x05- Small Worlds (11/12)

01x06- Countrycide (11/19)

01x07- Greeks Bearing Gifts (11/26)

01x08-They Keep Killing Suzie (12/03)

01x09-Random Shoes (12/10)

01x10- Out of Time (12/17)

01x11- Combat (12/24)

The Runaway Bride (12/25)

2007

01x12- Captain Jack Harkness (01/01/2007)

01x13- End of Days (01/01)

01x01- Invasion of the Bane (01/01)

03x01-Smith and Jones (03/31)

03x02- The Shakespeare Code (04/07)

03x03- Gridlock (04/14)

03x04- Daleks in Manhattan (04/21)

03x05- Evolution of the Daleks (04/28)

03x06- The Lazarus Experiment (05/05) 

03x07- 42 (05/19)

03x08- Human Nature (05/26)

03x09- The Family of Blood (06/02)

03x10- Blink (06/09)

03x11- Utopia (06/16)

03x12- The Sound of Drums (06/23)

03x13- Last of the Time Lords (06/30)

01x02- Revenge of the Slitheen Part 1 (09/24)

01x03- Revenge of the Slitheen Part 2 (10/01)

01x04- Eye of the Gorgon Part 1 (10/08)

01x05- Eye of the Gorgon Part 2 (10/15)

01x06- Warriors of Kudlak Part 1 (10/22)

01x07- Warriors of Kudlak Part 2 (10/29)

01x08- Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane? Part 1 (11/05)

01x09- Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane? Part 2 (11/12)

01x10- The Lost Boy Part 1 (11/12)

01x11- The Lost Boy Part 2 (11/19)

Voyage of the Damned (12/25)

2008

02x01- Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang (01/16/2008)

02x02- Sleeper (01/23)

02x03- To the Last Man (01/30)

02x04- Meat (02/06)

02x05- Adam (02/13)

02x06- Reset (02/13)

02x07- Dead Man Walking (02/20)

02x08- A Day in the Death (02/27)

02x09- Something Borrowed (03/05)

02x10- From Out of the Rain (03/12)

02x11- Adrift (03/19)

02x12- Fragments (03/21)

02x13- Exit Wounds (04/04)

04x01- Partners in Crime (04/05)

04x02- The Fires of Pompeii (04/12)

04x03- Planet of the Ood (04/19)

04x04- The Sontaran Stratagem (04/26)

04x05- The Poison Sky (05/03)

04x06- The Doctor’s Daughter (05/10)

04x07- The Unicorn and the Wasp (05/17)

04x08- Silence in the Library (05/31)

04x09- Forest of the Dead (06/07)

04x10- Midnight (06/14)

04x11- Turn Left (06/21)

04x12- The Stolen Earth (06/28)

04x13- Journey’s End (07/05)

02x01- The Last Sontaran Part 1 (09/29)

02x02- The Last Sontaran Part 2 (09/29)

02x03- The Day of the Clown Part 1 (10/06)

02x04- The Day of the Clown Part 2 (10/13)

02x05- Secrets of the Stars Part 1 (10/20)

02x06- Secrets of the Stars Part 2 (10/27)

02x07- The Mark of the Berserker Part 1 (11/03)

02x08- The Mark of the Berserker Part 2 (11/10)

02x09- The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith Part 1 (11/170

02x10- The Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith Part 2 (11/24)

02x11- Enemy of the Bane Part 1 (12/01)

02x12- Enemy of the Bane Part 2 (12/08)

The Next Doctor (12/25)

2009

Planet of the Dead (04/11/2009)

03x01- Day One (07/06)

03x02- Day Two (07/07)

03x03- Day Three (07/08)

03x04- Day Four (07/09)

03x05- Day Five (07/10)

03x01- Prisoner of the Judoon Part 1 (10/15)

03x02- Prisoner of the Judoon Part 2 (10/16)

03x03- The Mad Woman in the Attic Part 1 (10/22)

03x04- The Mad Woman in the Attic Part 2 (10/23)

03x05- The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith Part 1 (10/29)

03x06-The Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith Part 2 (10/30)

03x07- The Eternity Trap Part 1 (11/05)

03x08- The Eternity Trap Part 2 (11/06)

03x09- Mona Lisa’s Revenge Part 1 (11/12)

03x10- Mona Lisa’s Revenge Part 2 (11/13)

04x16- The Waters of Mars (11/15)

03x11- The Gift Part 1 (11/19)

03x12- The Gift Part 2 (11/20)

The End of Time Part 1 (12/25)

2010

The End of Time Part 2 (01/01/2010)

05x01- The Eleventh Hour (04/03)

05x02- The Beast Below (04/10)

05x03- Victory of the Daleks (04/17)

05x04- The Time of Angels (04/24)

05x05- Flesh and Stone (05/01)

05x06- The Vampires of Venice (05/08)

05x07- Amy’s Choice (05/15)

05x08- The Hungry Earth (05/22)

05x09- Cold Blood (05/29)

05x10- Vincent and the Doctor (06/05)

05x11- The Lodger (06/12)

05x12- The Pandorica Opens (06/19)

05x13-The Big Bang (06/26)

04x01- The Nightmare Man Part 1 (10/11)

04x02- The Nightmare Man Part 2 (10/12)

04x03- The Vault of Secrets Part 1 (10/18)

04x04- The Vault of Secrets Part 2 (10/19)

04x05- Death of the Doctor Part 1 (10/25)

04x06- Death of the Doctor Part 2 (10/26)

04x07- The Empty Planet Part 1 (11/01)

04x08- The Empty Planet Part 2 (11/02)

04x09- Lost in Time Part 1 (11/08)

04x10- Lost in Time Part 2 (11/09)

04x11- Goodbye, Sarah Jane Smith Part 1 (11/15)

04x12- Goodbye, Sarah Jane Smith Part 2 (11/16)

A Christmas Carol (12/25)

2011

06x01- The Impossible Astronaut (04/23/2011)

06x02- Day of the Moon (04/30)

06x03- The Curse of the Black Spot (05/07)

06x04- The Doctor’s Wife (05/14)

06x05- The Rebel Flesh (05/21)

06x06- The Almost People (05/28)

06x07- A Good Man Goes to War (06/04)

04x01- The New World (07/08)

04x02- Rendition (07/15)

04x03- Dead of Night (07/22)

04x04- Escape to L.A. (07/29)

04x05- The Categories of Life (08/05)

04x06- The Middle Men (08/12)

04x07- Immortal Sins (08/19)

04x08- End of the Road (08/26)

06x08- Let’s Kill Hitler (08/27)

04x09- The Gathering (09/02)

06x09- Night Terrors (09/03)

04x10- The Blood Line (09/09)

06x10- The Girl Who Waited (09/10)

06x11- The God Complex (09/17)

06x12- Closing Time (09/24)

06x13- The Wedding of River Song (10/01)

05x01- Sky Part 1 (10/03)

05x02- Sky Part 2 (10/04)

05x03- The Curse of Clyde Langer Part 1 (10/10)

05x04- The Curse of Clyde Langer Part 2 (10/11)

05x05- The Man Who Never Was Part 1 (10/17)

05x06- The Man Who Never Was Part 2 (10/18)

The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe (12/25)

2012

07x01- Asylum of the Daleks (09/01/2012)

07x02- Dinosaurs of a Spaceship (09/08)

07x03- A Town Called Mercy (09/15)

07x04- The Power of Three (09/22)

07x05- The Angels Take Manhattan (09/29)

The Snowmen (12/25)

2013

07x06- The Bells of Saint John (03/30/2013)

07x07- The Rings of Akhaten (04/06)

07x08- Cold War (04/13)

07x09- Hide (04/20)

07x10- Journey to the Center of the TARDIS (04/27)

07x11- The Crimson Horror (05/04)

07x12- Nightmare in Silver (05/11)

07x13- The Name of the Doctor (05/18)

The Day of the Doctor (11/23)

The Time of the Doctor (12/25)

2014

08x01- Deep Breath (08/23/2014)

08x02- Into the Dalek (08/30)

08x03- Robot of Sherwood (09/06)

08x04- Listen (09/13)

08x05- Time Heist (09/20)

08x06- The Caretaker (09/27)

08x07- Kill the Moon (10/04)

08x08- Mummy on the Orient Express (10/11)

08x09- Flatline (10/18)

08x10- In the Forest of the Night (10/25)

08x11- Dark Water (11/01)

08x12- Death in Heaven (11/08)

Last Christmas (12/25)

2015

09x01- The Magician’s Apprentice (09/19/2015)

09x02- The Witch’s Familiar (09/26)

09x03- Under the Lake (10/03)

09x04- Before the Flood (10/10)

09x05- The Girl Who Died (10/17)

09x06- The Woman Who Lived (10/24)

09x07- The Zygon Invasion (10/31)

09x08- The Zygon Inversion (11/07)

09x09- Sleep No More (11/14)

09x10- Face the Raven (11/21)

09x11- Heaven Sent (11/28)

09x12- Hell Bent (12/05)

The Husbands of River Song (12/25)

2016

01x01- For Tonight We Might Die (10/22/2016)

01x02- The Coach with the Dragon Tattoo (10/22)

01x03- Nightvisiting (10/29)

01x04- Co-Owner of a Lonely Heart (11/05)

01x05- Brave-ish Heart (11/12)

01x06- Detained (11/19)

01x07- The Metaphysical Engine, or What Quill Did (11/26)

01x08- The Lost (12/03)

The Return of Doctor Mysterio (12/25)

2017

10x01- The Pilot (04/15/2017)

10x02- Smile (04/22)

10x03- Thin Ice (04/29)

10x04- Knock Knock (05/06)

10x05- Oxygen (05/13)

10x06- Extremis (05/20)

10x07- The Pyramid at the End of the World (05/27)

10x08- The Lie of the Land (06/03)

10x09- Empress of Mars (06/10)

10x10- The Eaters of Light (06/17)

10x11- World Enough and Time (06/24)

10x12- The Doctor Falls (07/01)

Twice Upon a Time (12/25)

2018

11x01- The Woman Who Fell to Earth (10/07/2018)

11x02- The Ghost Monument (10/14)

11x03- Rosa (10/21)

11x04- Arachnids in the UK (10/28)

11x05- The Tsuranga Conundrum (11/04)

11x06- Demons of the Punjab (11/11)

11x07- Kerblam! (11/18)

11x08- The Witchfinders (11/25)

11x09- It Takes You Away (12/02)

11x10- The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos (12/09)

2019

Resolution (01/01/2019)

2020

12x01- Spyfall, Part 1 (01/01/2020)

12x02- Spyfall, Part 2 (01/05)

12x03- Orphan 55 (01/12)

12x04- Nikola Tesla’s Night of Terror (01/19)

12x05- Fugitive of the Judoon (01/26)

12x06- Praxeus (02/02)

12x07- Can You Hear Me? (02/09)

12x08- The Haunting of Villa Diodati (02/16)

12x09- Ascension of the Cybermen (02/23)

12x10- The Timeless Children (03/01)

2021

Revolution of the Daleks (01/01/2021)

13x01- The Halloween Apocalypse (10/31)

13x02- War of the Sontarans (11/7)

13x03- Once, Upon Time (11/14)

13x04- Village of the Angels (11/21)

13x05- Survivors of the Flux (11/28)

13x06- The Vanquishers (12/5)

2022

Eve of the Daleks(01/01/2022)

Legend of the Seal Devils(4/17)

The Power of the Doctor(10/23)

2023

The Star Beast(11/25/2023)

Wild Blue Yonder(12/2/2023)

The Giggle(12/9/2023)

The Church on Ruby Road(12/25/2023)

2024

1x01- Space Babies(5/11/2024)

1x02- The Devil’s Chord(5/11)

1x03- Boom(5/18)

1x04- 73 Yards(5/25)

1x05- Dot and Bubble(6/1)

1x06- Rogue(6/8)

1x07- The Legend of Ruby Sunday(6/15)

1x08- Empire of Death(6/22)

Joy to the World(12/15)

2025

2x01- The Robot Revolution(4/12/2025)

2x02- Lux(4/19)

2x03- The Well(4/26)

2x04- Lucky Day(5/3)

2x05- The Story & the Engine(5/10)

2x06- The Interstellar Song Contest(5/17)

2x07- Wish World(5/24)

2x08- The Reality War(5/31)

[starwriterulia]

Perversity and Loathing - Chapter 2

CONTAINS HEAVY SUBJECT MATERIAL THAT MAY TRIGGER READERS WITH ANXIETY, DEPRESSION AND PTSD. SOME CHAPTERS CONTAIN 18+ CONTENT.

This is a reboot of Tomb of the Goshenite Stargazer Dragon. (Masterlist)

Fandoms: DC Comics, Batfamily, Thalassic Space (OC)

Characters (In order of appearance): Bruce Wayne (Batman), Barbara Gordon (Batgirl), Dick Grayson (Nightwing), Urania (the Boeotian muse) Faith Lawson (self-insert)

Word Count: 7243

TW: None, I think? Please correct me if I'm wrong. Thank you!

A/N: This only took over nine hours over the course of today to write, hooray! Also, if you read the previous chapter, you should read it again, as its ending has been changed, and other details have been added. Tag list in the replies of people who liked/reblogged any part of the previous version of this story, or the previous chapter(s). You’re not obliged to read or leave a comment. Thank you for reading! ^w^

Dividers by @cafekitsune

Chapter 1 - Chapter 2 - Chapter 3

The Batplane touched down, and when the elevator lowered to the metal platform, Batman carried Faith, Nightwing and Batgirl behind him. They walked to a stair that dipped into the shallows of the stream. Nightwing and Batgirl stayed on the platform. Nightwing's left arm wrapped around Batgirl's back, and Batgirl leaned into him.

As Batman's knees settled into the water, Faith's feet dipped into the stream. He took a few steps and was hip-deep, while Faith's lower body and back were in the water. He lowered his arms, submerging the young woman's upper body, keeping her head above the surface. A white-blue orb shone through the scallop seashell, casting a celestial globe onto the ceiling. Two seconds later, a beam of light cast into the water, just in front of Batman. A black, curly haired, dark eyed and fair skinned woman in a toga and sandals, appeared.

Urania spoke Greek, of course. "Thank you for not leaving her there."

Batman replied in Greek. "It would have been cruel."

"Do you know who I am?"

"You came through the light of a celestial globe. You are Urania." The muse of astronomy and astrology nodded, a small smile on her lips. "Faith is important to you?"

"I have watched her journey as a writer. She chose me as her patron. I was her teacher in her third life, at least in her book."

"This is her first life, out of her book?"

"Yes. On Earth, there is only Faith. In Thalassic Space, there was Myth Claus, then Eafla Volen. Last, she was Ønske Ulia Lost."

"Were her lives long?"

Urania shook her head. "In her first two lives, she was murdered at two days old. The two eldest children of the high vampires of Thalassic Space were especially awful. The galaxy she made is great. She is good at combining ideas that she likes." Urania chuckled once. "She loves to talk for hours about her stories."

"So she will be happy to tell us what we need to know to help her."

Urania bobbed her head. "It should not be hard. The Domain will be pleased to make things right again." Batman nodded. "My sisters did not want me to come here. They told me it was acceptable for her to be dead."

"But I do not want my student's passion to die. She is also very kind. Yes, she will be unable to work with you the way most of your wards do. But I know you will think of something for her to do, without magic." Batman nodded again.

Batgirl said, in Greek, "There was a time I couldn't use my legs, either." Urania looked at her and gave a gentle smile. Batgirl mimicked the muse.

Batman asked, "Will she be a mermaid now?"

"She will be able to become one, if her knees are submerged. She could not swim. This, along with the return of her life, is my gift to her. It is her most basic wish. It was her first wish, as a child, not including the wish to ride the back of her first imaginary friend, the unicorn named Bella."

Batman said, "This is why she brought out the seashell necklace."

"Yes. If you warm her body and pat her legs with a towel like a fish on a plate, her legs will return." Batman nodded more.

Nightwing asked, in Greek, "Does she have a magical voice, now?"

Urania giggled. "Yes." Nightwing nodded with a little smile. "Have I answered your most urgent questions?"

Batman replied, "Yes, thank you." Urania nodded. She placed her right hand over Faith's left breast, and her left on Faith's pelvis.

"This song is written in English, and so I must sing it in that language." Batman gave a small nod.

"I ascend under the autumn sun while you cry for me.

Thinking of the smile I had as a child.

You will have me in your heart, even when I have left you.

And so winter comes, but the sun is still warm and kind.

Oh please, let the Double Eight rise!

Connect my life to yours, again!"

Faith gasped, her eyes blinking open, and in her first pant for air, she saw Batman, and her eyes moved a little to see Urania. She sighed, and her cheeks turned a little red and rose in a smile. "Hi! Wow, you actually came! Thank you!"

Urania replied in English. "Of course I came, Faith. And, you're welcome." Urania kissed Faith's forehead. "I hope you are able to find happiness, here."

"Thank you." Said Batman, in Greek. Urania nodded once.

Urania said, in English, "I must return to Pierian Spring, now. Be good, and be safe, Faith."

"I will." Urania nodded again. She looked upwards, and returned to the celestial globe, which faded away. Batman turned and walked to the stairs and onto the platform, letting Faith down.

"Br!" Faith hugged her arms, clutching the damp towel.

Nightwing said, "Yeah, that stream is cold."

Batgirl said, "And your towel is wet! Come on. Let's go upstairs and get you dry." Faith nodded and followed Batgirl, Nightwing and Batman casually trailing behind. "I brought you some clothes."

"Aw! Yeah, I saw 'em in your arms! Thank you!"

"You're welcome."

"You still have the Clicker, right?" Faith asked, as they began climbing the stairs.

"Yep. It's in my pocket."

"OK, we're gonna need that. I can take away what Ra's stole easily, with it."

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah! I just have to change the spell associated with its usage."

"So, if I had accidentally used it again, would I have sent you and Ra's back to the dream world?"

"No, because an artificial Clicker, like the one you have, turns off after one spell, or one rotation. You can destroy it by crushing it or burning it, by the way."

"Oh, OK." They entered and exited the study, ascended the closest stair, on the right side, and went into the first guest bedroom. Batgirl led Faith into the bathroom, Batgirl flicking on the light and closing the door. Nightwing and Batman loitering on the far side of the bed. Faith shivered as she unwrapped the towel and stood on the balls of her feet to hang it on the towel radiator above the toilet. "Oh, nice! She healed you right up, too."

"Yeah!" Faith replied, accepting a dry towel Batgirl obtained from under the sink. She began using it on herself. "Only thing is, now I can't use Ra's' sperm as a bargaining chip."

"For the Hallway?" Said Nightwing.

"Yeah. I could have offered it to the entity as payment for taking my magic from Ra's."

Batman asked, "Are you going to use it, when you get it back?"

"Nope! It's gonna go back to the altar, in my dungeon." Faith went on the balls of her feet again.

"No no, wait," Said Batgirl. Faith relaxed her feet. "Let me dry your hair."

"Oh! Thanks." Faith gave the towel to Batgirl.

"You're welcome, hon."

Nightwing said, "You have a dungeon?"

"Yeah, it's where my Animus, Argophael, and I were buried, when my third incarnation and Argophael were murdered by his father, who tracked Argophael down because, in Thalassic Space, Bartholomew Roberts is a transphobic blizzard warlock pirate."

Batgirl laughed, "So Blackbeard is a wizard, now?"

"Warlock."

"Warlock, sorry."

"Wizards and witches are chaotic neutral or chaotic good, sorcerers are chaotic good or lawful good or lawful neutral, and warlocks and viragos are chaotic evil or lawful evil."

"Ah, OK."

"Anyway, um, y'all are probably wondering about the Navidson Hallway."

"Yeah. All done. You can get dressed, now." Batgirl said, hanging the towel on the radiator. Faith swiftly dressed in the clothes Batgirl provided her.

"OK, I need to explain the three Magical Occupancies of Thalassic Space, first."

"Ooh, that sounds cool."

"I'm pretty good at naming things. Anyway, there are Domains, Realms and Plains." Faith, now dressed, opened the door. Batgirl followed her out, turning off the light. Faith sat at the centre the bed, and Batgirl sat on its right side. "A Plain is a magic island that has shores in multiple planets and is inhabited by magical peoples who govern themselves. For example, the 28 Mansions of the Four Symbols of Chinese astrology. The Mansions are the constellations that make up each beast, but were classified as magic islands when first explored by the Oracles, the most powerful and only immortal Dreamer mages of Thalassic Space. The Mansions are lived in by the deceased atheists of Thalassic Space, allowing them a good variety of different places to live in whenever they want. The Mansions are also a key part of how the Dream World on Paper takes form, using the Mansions and their assets as inspiration for many of the possible common events in the Dream World on Paper."

"Oh, so you weren't just in the dream world, you were in your own dream world."

"Yeah! As a child, I drew a desert with a sinkhole and mountains, a snowy mountain overlooking an ocean, and a city surrounded by a forest on three pieces of paper that I glued to different coloured construction paper. I saw those papers in a dream in the past six months. Hence the name."

"Wow, that's kind of amazing." Said Nightwing.

"Do you remember most of your dreams?" Asked Batgirl.

Faith shook her head. "Nah. Only some of them. Lots of times, I'll be sitting at my computer, and go, 'What was that dream, again?', 'cause some of the ideas are directly taken from media I've seen and liked, or have been scared by."

"Oh yeah."

"Uh, a Realm is a moon planet inhabited by magical people and governed by an entity that can be accessed by portals. The two most infamous examples are the Lightless Realm and the Lightful Realm, the original homes of the Astral Elves and Snow Elves. Krampus was the mayor of the Astral Elves, and Santa was, and still is, the mayor of the Snow Elves. They and Bartholomew are the sons of Nerobzal, the great evil Fallen Angel of Thalassic Space. Bartholomew is eldest, then Krampus, and Santa is the youngest, and the only one of the brothers who isn't evil."

"Right, OK."

"Nerobzal used to be Erophael."

"E-ro." Batman mimicked.

"Yeah, if you look up 'ero meaning' and read the Wikitonary article, and all of the different etymologies, I happened to pick a perfect name for this character! 'Cause it was originally Argophael, but I realised I liked it better for my Animus, so I typed out the first closest sounding three letters I thought of, and boom! Magic."

"Magic." Batgirl imitated. She, Nightwing and Faith giggled.

Batman said, "So, under Creek, it refers to how people in Oklahoma say squirrel."

"Oh yeah, 'cause of their southern accent."

"In Esperanto, it is the back-formation of element. Its accusative singular is eron, plural eroj, and accusative plural erojn." Batman said. Batgirl hummed. "Oh, there's plenty more. In Finnish, it belongs to erä, meaning apart, plus o to make eräo. It means difference, distinction, is an Ellipsis of avioero, 'divorce', and means resignation, discharge or dismissal, and separation or parting. Ido has also era, and Ingrian has difference. There is also the Rōmaji transcription of エロ, while the Jarawa definition is angry. In Kari'na, ero means 'this', in Ladino it belongs to hero, in Latin, as a verb, it is sum, and as a noun it is erus," He made eye contact with Faith. "Meaning 'master of the house' or 'merchandise'." Faith nodded. Batman returned his gaze to Batgirl. "Old High German, in which it means earth, and, lastly, Teanu, in which it means water, fresh water, stream, or river."

"Wow!" Said Nightwing.

"Yeah, I got lucky!" Faith replied. "Erophael was made from the first white ebony tree by Uriel, and brought into Paradiso, where Uriel taught Erophael arts and science. Erophael favoured literature and theatre, and so he wrote poems, songs and plays about the early times of Man to Yahweh, and he was loved for this. Then, Emperor Nero died of suicide, and Erophael laughed at this. For two seconds, all life on Earth had violent thoughts, but only Yahweh sensed this."

"Yahweh removed Erophael's holiness and renamed him as Nerobzal, telling him that he would understand 'bzal' soon. Yahweh gripped Nerobzal's wings and tore them off as he threw Nerobzal down to the Ninth Circle of Inferno, which froze his wings upright. Lucifer had been expecting him. A white door had appeared on Lucifer's pelvis, and Lucifer knew that Nerobzal was fated to open it. The only catch was that Nerobzal would have to kill 16, 777, 216 humans within its halls, which Lucifer would use to free himself and the 200 Fallen Angels from Dudael, and they would go to Earth from the Most Hidden Realm and begin Armaggedon."

"So Hell is considered a Realm, in Thalassic Space." Said Batman.

"Yes. Its portal is the selva obscura, of course, which can extend to any dense forest or savannah where a leopard, lion or wolf can be naturally found." Faith raised her hands in front of her chest. "I know what you're thinking: can this happen, and is Earth in danger? The answer is, yes, but it wouldn't be dangerous. Ra's might think it's dangerous, if he were to find out about it. It's actually a Special Event using the assets of the 28 Mansions. It's a divine spectacle controlled by the Four Symbols. After forty-eight hours, all of the living or dead Fallen Angels, plus Lucifer, participate in a Curtain Call, and return the lives and bodies of any person or animal taken, and rebuild any buildings and all of nature that were likely damaged."

"A divine spectacle."

"If you were to ask Zeus, Odin, Ra, Vishnu or the Four Symbols, they would say this is fair and isn't breaking the rules of Thalassic Space. You can't ask Yahweh because he's not a Bay God. He was sent home by the voice of Qinglong because he wanted to destroy the O-type star of Thalassic Space, believing it was unnatural for humans to live under such a hot sun, much less a magic sun. He was the only god who thought this way." Batman hummed.

"So, Lucifer pulled Nerobzal out of the ice, and Nerobzal skated on his bare feet towards the door. Eight greater humanoid demons chased him, but Nerobzal made it to the door. Upon touching it, Nerobzal knew how to open it. He knocked upon it five times. As the demons closed in, the door knocked back twice. The demons were gripping Nerobzal's arms, legs and torso as Nerobzal opened the door and fell on the floor of the stone hallway. The demons turned into pale grey jumpscare people with neon orange eyes, the first Nero Spirits, called Ghouls, and just laid there. Nerobzal pulled himself from beneath them. When he stood, an angel of the lowest caste, so, uh, just an angel, looked at him from the doorway. Nerobzal pivoted and ran into the hallway. The angel roared and leapt into the hallway, the wing of his wings closing the door. As the angel soared over the Ghouls, he lost his voice and transformed into the Umbrella Man, and stopped where his feet landed as Nerobzal found the dead end and came back, the way ahead having opened, and a window showing them the planets, O-type star and Sagittarius A* of Thalassic Space, confirming to Nerobzal that he had escaped. Nerobzal led the Ghouls and Umbrella Man further until they found the Grandest Room, and there they made a series of stairs and platforms to live in. They spied upon its people, chose the most cruel among them to form the cult of Kaleido, for you cannot understand or hear the word of Yahweh from the outside of a chapel, but you can comprehend and obey the whispers of Nero Spirits in the darkness of high noon, or the light of the midnight." Faith snapped her fingers, actually using the nail of her thumbs and the underside of her middle finger, making a muffled sound. Batgirl and Nightwing softly laughed, and snapped their fingers for her, Batman snapping his fingers too. "Thank you. I-It's all just supposed to be art, y-you get that by now, right?"

"Yeah, we get it." Said Nightwing.

"Um, and Nerobzal waited for the O-type star to be incarnated for the first time in response to the people of Thalassic Space being in peril from the actions of Kaleido. Human trafficking, enslavement, the usual things, but all done under the influence of the Nero Spirits whisperings in the dreams of manipulatable people who were already a little cruel."

Batman said, "You mentioned the angel become the Umbrella Man. Anything special about him?"

"Oh, I stole him from the Team Fortress 2 ARG "Project Skybox"." Faith cackled. Batman discreetly interacted with his gauntlet. "But I gave him new lore!" She compressed her voice to sound like Toad from the Mario franchise. She raised her arms and altered her voice again when hollering, "Woo!" Batgirl and Nightwing chuckled.

"This guy?" Batman said, showing Faith an image projected from his glove.

"Yeah!"

"Ooh, he's kinda creepy." Said Nightwing.

"So what does he do?" Batgirl asked.

"In the ARG, he crashes the game of players who use the Interlope console command, in certain maps. It's a sentient AI. But in Thalassic Space, he was an angel who was unlucky enough to follow Nerobzal into the Domain of Platonia."

"Ah, OK."

"The Domain of Platonia?" Batman repeated with a tone of intrigue. "Now, where did that come from?"

"Oh, shit, right." Faith laughed. "That's why I was telling you the story of Nerobzal!"

"The Navidson Hallway is the Domain of Platonia."

"Yes." Faith shook her hands happily. "So, originally, I was looking for a word that was like 'Platonic', and the first letter I tried subtituting c was a. I clicked on Wikipedia's 'Platonia (disambiguation)', and the second bulletin read: Platonia (philosophy), a hypothetical timeless realm by Julian Barbour containing every possible momentary configuration of the universe. And I was like," Faith raised her right index finger. "Oh." Batgirl chuckled. "Oh yeah, I can work with that! So I combined "Project Skybox" with Julian Barbour's Platonia, and adjusted Nerobzal's story so that he would find it."

"Ooh. Well, it works really well!"

"Yeah, it all flows together nicely." Said Nightwing.

"Thank you! OK, um, a Domain is a fortress, sailing ship or space ship created by an entity to etiher imprison, torture or observe whoever or whatever is inside. The Domain of Platonia is, of course, a hostile liminal space stone fortress entity. There was also Palette, a man o'war owned by the wealthy humans and high elves who were members of Kaleido on planet Bafsina, meaning basin. They forced merfolk, harpies and poor humans, elves and other anthropomorph people into labour on ship and land, raping many men, women and children. This happened during the actual eighty years of the Golden Age of Piracy, and at its end, the protagonists of the story I've been mulling over for Bafsina have their victory, and the ship is sunk, and the members of Kaleido associated with it are executed."

Faith chuckled thrice with a grin, resting her chin in her hands, fingers spread across her little cheeks, fidgeting her small feet. "So, uh, you three are all really smart. What do you think is the spaceship Domain?" Faith looked at Batgirl, saw her brows furrowed, and heard Nightwing hum in thought, saw his lips puckered to the side. Faith looked at Batman, who had a little smile.

Nightwing guessed, "Platonia? Spaceships have windows and bays, and maybe the Greatest Room is a cargo bay, of sorts?"

"Nope!"

Batgirl guessed, "The 28 Mansions?"

"Nope, those are Plains."

"Oh, right."

"Can we have a hint?" Nightwing asked.

Batgirl said, "Yeah, give us a hint, please."

"It is the biggest spoiler for my book that Ashanti, my cat anthro Wish Child, ends up finding out while trying to figure out if I'm really going to birth the Anti-Christ or not after I return to Thalassic Space without her parents or I knowing who summoned me, or why."

"Wow, you like to make bold choices in your writing, huh?" Said Batman.

Faith shrugged. "What can I say? A fantasy-horror author has to be bold, sometimes."

"OK, now I'm lost." Said Nightwing.

"Yeah, now I'm confused." Batgirl added.

Faith said, "Batman, if you would like to reveal?"

"Gladly."

Nightwing said, "Not surprised you already know, Bruce."

"Not at all." Batgirl replied.

"It's Thalassic Space." Batman said. Nightwing and Batgirl looked even more perplexed. "Platonia is an immeasurably large Domain. The 28 Mansions are constellation Plains. And Realms are moon planets. If they all exist in the same galaxy, we need the biggest possible Magical Occupancy to contain all of this, plus the planets. How many planets are there, by the way, Faith?"

"It's our solar system, but behind Mercury is a .75 times bigger twin planet, and that planet is Bafsina, in front of Venus is planet Grace, which is the size of Uranus, Earth is replaced by Yotutrnaeyl, meaing 'journey, and is 1.75 times bigger, and planet Judge, Little Path and Sia are non-visible, share the same orbits and sizes as the visible planets in the listed order, but are only accessible via spaceships and portals, such as Doors to Platonia or traditional chalk door portals."

"Wow, that's cool." Said Nightwing.

"Thank you!"

Batman said, "The existence of Platonia suggests that there can be an even bigger Domain."

"Ohhh, and that bigger Domain is Thalassic Space!" Said Batgirl.

"Yes. Isn't that right, Faith?"

"Yep!" Faith giggled and cheerfully shook her arms. "And now I need to draw the Double Eight to finish explaining all of this, and why we don't have to worry about Ra's or any other villain taking advantage of Thalassic Space after I use the Clicker to return my dark magic to the altar!"

"I'll come back with paper and a pencil." Batman said. "Or do you prefer a pen?"

"A pencil, since I probably won't draw the loops and inner leaves big enough on the first try because I drew it digitally, and also pencil crayons!"

"OK." Batman exited the bedroom.

"You certainly look alive, Faith." Said Nightwing. "You feeling OK?" Faith nodded, cheeks smiling. "Good."

"I'm glad that my basic wish worked. If it didn't, you guys would have no idea how to properly stop Ra's from proceeding."

"I was going to ask:" Batgirl said. "What are you going to offer Platonia, now that you can't offer Ra's' sperm?"

"Yeah, and what would it have done with it?" Nightwing added.

"It would have just eaten it." Faith shrugged. "And now, I will have to give it a cup of blood and a quarter of a cup of hair."

"That's it?"

"Yep! It's only hostile if you enter without being prepared and willing to give offerings like that."

"Should we maybe go down to the kitchen and get you those measuring cups?"

"Sure, if you'd like to. A Ghoul can measure it, too."

"Let's maybe do it ourselves." Batgirl said, rising from the bed.

"Yeah." Said Nightwing. "You're gonna get it, Babs?"

"Yep." Batgirl paused in the doorway. "You just stand there and make sure nothing pops out and grabs her, yeah?"

"Yeah, OK." Nightwing replied. Batgirl continued. A few seconds passed. "Do you mind if I ask a personal question? Sorry, I actually have two questions. Been wondering since you've been handling this, uh, differently than most people would."

"Sure, I don't mind."

"What's your orientation? And, um, have you been raped before?"

"Oh, aceflux pansexual demiromantic. And no, I've never been raped before. I was a virgin, actually."

"Oh! So it's, uh,"

"Complicated." Faith glanced to the left, and her voice warbled. "And it hurt a lot."

Nightwing sighed. "Yeah. I'm sorry you had to go through that, too."

Faith nodded. "Thanks. I know you've been there." Nightwing nodded. "It's like, most of the time, my brain squints at sex, and I'm like, 'OK, are these people doing it for leisure, or procreation, and why are they doing it this way?', and other times it's blowing an airhorn at itself, and I'm down bad."

Nightwing chuckled. "OK then!" Batman entered the room, a notepad, pencil and pencilcase in hand. He put the items on the bed, at Faith's left.

"Thanks."

"You're welcome."

"I love genders. They're just so interesting and authentic, and I get so happy whenever I meet someone or talk to my Homestuck friends who are gender-queer."

"Aw, that's nice."

"And then, since I spent so long trying to understand friendship, and then all of the sudden I had puberty, I got really confused about how monogamy works, since everyone writes different stories about all the different ways it can go, both good and bad, and I've tried," Faith sighed. "I've tried, and I just... I dunno if I really get it like everyone who's happy with monogamy does."

"What do you mean?"

"It feels so restrictive. Like, what do you mean, I belong to you and you belong to me, and nobody else, and if there's any side-stepping, it's a huge problem? Why is it so easy for people to be sneaky instead of just be honest and tell the person they established a bond with that they prefer to be free, sexually? Wouldn't it be easier if everyone just, like, was unbound by, eugh, marriage? I don't even know how it actually works, I just heard that some things are shared, and I don't know if I want to share everything!" Batgirl cautiously entered the room, two measuring cups and a bottle of water in hand.

"I want to own me, I want my partner to own themselves, and I want to be open to helping people I trust with their needs, and not hide it from my partner. And, if I'm lucky, I'll have more than one partner, and we all just are honest in our actions, and we tell each other if we think the person one of us is interested in is dangerous or parasitic, and we protect each other from those people, and our community from them! 'Cause everyone who's smart and has a good heart knows that gay people like me aren't dangerous, and we're not corrupting anyone. We've been around since God made us, or since we evolved from mammals into humans. The only thing that's changed is language, and it needs to keep changing so that we can continue to understand each other, and accept and nurture each other."

"No one should be left behind or raped or killed just because they don't want A-B-C, and want X-Y-Z instead! They're all logical, and they're helpful, and they're part of the same alphabet, the same order. You just have to remember the rest of the letters, and it will all make sense and feel natural, and then hopefully you will confirm not just to society but to yourself and whatever deity or demon you worship, if that applies to you, that you are worthy of people's time, love and the planet's resources." Faith panted. She swallowed. "Ugh, I'm parched from all of this talking." Batgirl appraoched the bed and gave Faith the bottle of water. "Oh, thank you."

"You're welcome." Batgirl responded, while Faith twisted the cap off and drank.

Nightwing said, "Wow. Um. I don't even know what to say. No offense."

Batman said, "You want to be in love, but you don't want to be tied down to marriage, and you want to be honest with who you've been with or are interested in so your partner can help you see if they can be trusted or not." Faith nodded. "You want to return to someone or a small group of people and be welcomed, not shunned or abandoned for your views on how you want to love and be loved." Faith nodded more. "You want your partner or partners to share this idea, but you know that most of society doesn't think this way and blames this on homosexuals, but you know it's a matter of poor communication and coupling, hence why you were garrulous while describing this feeling to us."

"Yes." Faith sighed.

"You feel more comfortable having friends and having sexual and romantic freedom." Faith nodded. "You're afraid of love because it hurt you."

"I just... haven't had good experiences, especially with men. And my foster parents sucked, and my adoptive parents tried to help but couldn't do much."

"Oh, you're adopted!" Said Batgirl.

"Yeah. My brother is biological, we were just put in different foster homes 'cause my dwarfism meant I was considered special needs."

"You still are." Said Batman. Faith bobbed her head.

Batgirl asked, "Have you ever dated a woman?"

"No." Faith sighed heavily. "They only ever want to be my friend."

Batgirl sat on the bed side facing the door and softly said, "I'm sorry."

"I'm missing something that I've felt since I saw Ariel," Faith's voice became stifled. "And how free and happy she was, curious about the world, collecting things she likes, lucky enough to find someone who truly loved her, and I loved her too, and I just..." She sniffled and shook her head, wiping moisture from her left eye. "All of my life, I've wanted to be normal, but I can't be because of my dwarfism and how I think." Batgirl gently placed her left hand on Faith's thigh.

"I've been autistic this entire time, but I'm only diagnosed as having Reactive Attachment Disorder,"

"Ah."

"And that makes sense, but everyone who knows me knows there's more. And I just," Faith swallowed. "I just have had to help myself, had to teach myself why incest is wrong when my mom wouldn't explain why after I almost did it with my little brother." Batgirl batted her lashes, and looked at Nightwing, who also looked stunned, and at Batman, who was unreadable. "She heard us and stopped us, and I told her where I got the idea from, it was character shipping in the Vocaloid fandom,"

"Rin and Len?"

"Yeah! And someone said it was taboo, and I looked the word up, but I didn't trust my mom enough to ask her because I knew I'd get yelled at just for trying to understand why it was bad, and my dreams won't leave it alone. I see my teenage brother in his bedroom at the trailer house, I come in with my adult brain, then he suggests it, and I force myself to sit up and end the dream. I had to do all of my thinking myself 'cause I was 'impossible to teach'." Faith quoted with her fingers. "I wasn't!"

"I had to use words and words, and pictures and videos, and I understood very well. But I can't talk about what I've learned, 'cause then people will think, 'Wow, she needs to be medicated', which I am, by the way! Regular Quetiapine and Quetiapine XR, a small dosage of both. Have since 2021, and I even got an upgrade last year, the anti-depressant form of it that I mentioned!" Faith panted. She licked her lips and swallowed.

"I'm so angry at myself, and all I'm allowed to do is put on my work-face and work-voice, and I just want to be with friends who know that I've got mood swings, and I'm tired of trying to belong to a man, and I'm sad because no one else wants me." She sobbed. "'Cause, 'cause I know the definition of happiness, but I'm only ever OK. I have very few good days. And I've scarcely known a great day, and I don't think I've ever felt fantastic."

Her breathing was heavy as she stared into Batgirl's eyes. Batgirl looked back with sympathy, and rubbed Faith's right arm with her right hand. Faith calmed her breathing and spread her fingers across her forehead, hiding her eyes. "I just want to be free, like the women and people who died before me. So I made a galaxy, I gave myself a cat family, and, and I have all of my toys in my head so Mom can't take them away."

"And I live by myself and try to be single so I can be free, and I'm genuinely happy and fortunate to have my job, it's, it's great, for retail. I just... what Ra's did to me, not to my body, even though, yes, that was a literal nightmare, it's what he's done to my toys. He's taken what isn't his, and it needs to go home." Faith sobbed, wiped her eyes. "Sorry, all of this is supposed to stay in my head for a reason."

Batgirl said, "Thank you for sharing all of that with us. That was very brave and honest of you, Faith."

"Thank you for not interrupting me."

"You're welcome."

Batman said, "You shouldn't give Platonia your blood. You likely don't have enough to spare, right now."

"Yeah. It will accept other people's blood, if the ritual leader can't offer their own. No strings attached, just a different option."

"I'll give it mine, then. Should we get this over with, then?" Batman asked. Faith nodded, and climbed out of bed. "Let's go down to the kitchen." Faith, followed by Batgirl and Nightwing, followed Batman down the stairs. "I bet you're hungry, too."

"Yeah." After descending they passed the stair down to the Great Hall, at the corner entered and exited the servery, then entered the first room in the next corridor. They stopped at the pantry door. Batman stepped aside.

"Would you like to do the honours?" Batman asked. Faith nodded. She knocked five times. The door knocked back twice. Faith opened the door, and the Hallway returned.

"Hello-o? Platonia? I've come to make an offering." Faith stepped towards Batgirl, who spread her hand to offer the measuring cups, which Faith took, pocketing the smaller cup in her borrowed pants. Faith hovered the full cup under Batman's left hand. He made a cut on his forearm, and the cup steadily filled with blood. Once it was full, Batman produced a small pouch from his belt, and Faith carefully walked into the Hallway with her left hand under the cup to catch the little splashes, although droplets fell onto the stone floor. A path opened on the left, and pair of neon orange eyes on a pale grey head poked from the nearest, lower edge of the doorway. Faith proceeded and slowly knelt on both knees, left knee down first, and put the cup in the opening, inches away from the hand of the Ghoul. Faith brought out the other measuring cup. "Uh, I need something to cut my hair with. You can just slide it on the floor, or toss it over." Batman tossed a Batarang that lodged itself into the wall. "Thank you." Faith positioned her hand to pry it loose. "Oh, wait."

"She'll cut herself." Said Nightwing.

"Yep." Batman found a grey hand cloth from his belt. He entered the mouth of the Hallway. "Catch." He threw the cloth, and Faith sort of caught it, fumbling as it collided with her neck and upper chest. Faith used the cloth to free the Batarang with her left hand, transferred it to her right hand, collected an inch of her hair in her left hand over her left shoulder, and cut her hair into the measuring cup.

The Ghoul grumbled like a lizard in warning. "Wzhzazt doz yabozuz wzisrhz phzozr, Srtazrwzriter?"

"I know what he's saying." Batman quietly said to his wards.

"You know the language?" Replied Nightwing.

"No, but it's a letter-swap. It said, 'What do you wish for, Starwriter?'."

"The man who stabbed me and raped me took the dark magic I'm guaranteed to have when forcibly summoned. Take it back without killing him so that he may never use Thalassic Space, and return the magic the altar in the Dungeon of the Goshenite Stargazer Dragon and the Obsidian Moondancer Dragon. Do you see him?"

"It isr diphz'icuzlabt toz sree hzimam. Yabozuzr vazginanaz dozesr nanozt srmamelab' labike hzimam, aznanyabmamozre."

"It is difficult to see him. Your vagina does not smell like him, anymore." Translated Batman.

"Eugh." Said Batgirl.

"I know. Urania removed his sperm, when she resurrected me."

"Wze azre azwzare ozphz thzazt."

"We are aware of that."

"You know what a Lazarus Pit smells like, though."

"Yabesr."

"Yes."

"The oldest man from Earth Prime who smells like that is who you are looking for. The younger man is not your target."

The Ghoul scoffed and growled. "Thzisr ozphz'erinang isr nanozt enanozuzghz."

"This is not enough."

"Oh, of course it's not." Batgirl scoffed.

"But it is protocol." The Ghoul growled deeper. "I am not your master, and I know that my status as your Author means little to you. But the order of Thalassic Space, and of Earth Prime, will not be correct until you do this." Faith sighed, her eyes darting on the floor before finding the Ghoul's face. "Your... your master, the Greatest of Sagittarius... he may visit my dreams tonight."

"Hze isr azlabwzazyabsr thzere." The Ghoul laughed for a few seconds, first low and demented, then shrieking and rigid.

"He is always there."

"What does your master wish of me, then?"

The Ghoul said nothing for four long seconds. "Yabozuz azlabreazdyab knanozwz, phzoz'labisrhz girlab." Faith looked at the floor as the Ghoul laughed for several seconds.

"You already know, foolish girl."

"Hze wzilab' azccept thzisr mamozrtazlab mamaznan'sr bzlaboz'd azsr az labighzt bzeverazge, oznane ozphz phzazr labesr' richznanesr' aznand renanozwznan azsr yabozuzrsr,"

"He will accept this mortal man's blood as a light beverage, one of far less richness and renown as yours,"

"Aznand hze wzilab' azccept yabozuzr hzazir, aznand chzerisrhz it azsr oznane ozphz hzisr giphztsr phzrozmam yabozuz."

"And he will accept your hair, and cherish it as one of his gifts from you."

"Bzuzt nanozwz thzazt yabozuzr wzozmamb isr clabeaznaned," The Ghoul said. Faith gasped and shook her head with a shocked expression.

"But now that your womb is cleaned,"

"No!" Said Batgirl.

"We need to get her out of there, Batman." Nightwing rapidly said.

"Wait." Batman answered.

"Thze mamazsrter wzozuzlabd labike toz ozph'er yabozuz hzisr chzilabd."

"The master would like to offer you his child."

"Batman!" Batgirl shouted, drawing Faith's attention to her.

"We have to trust her." Batman answered. "If any of us enter, this negotiation will be nullified, and then Faith will be in peril, and we may be unable to save her."

Faith turned her eyes back to the Ghoul. "And if I refuse?"

"Tzhzenan yabozuz srtazyab hzere inan thze dazrk wzithz yabozuzr phzeazr ozphz it, aznand ozphz his penis,"

"Then you stay here in the dark with your fear of it, and of his penis,"

"UGH!" Nightwing's upper body trembled in anger, and he clenched his bangs, wrists pressed against his temple.

"Aznand thze srmamelab' ozphz it wzilab' tazuznant yabozuz uznantilab thze dazrk mamazgic thzazt wzazsr srtozlabenan hzazsr bzeenan retuzrnaned, regazrdlabesr' iphz yabozuz sruzbzmamit toz yabozuzr labuzsrt."

"And the smell of it will taunt you until the dark magic that was stolen has been returned, regardless you submit to your lust." Batman translated. Batgirl scoffed, changed her posture, couldn't stand still and tried approaching the doorway. Batman caught her wrist and pulled her back.

"Stop." Said Batgirl, freeing her hand.

"How long will that take?" Faith asked. Batgirl entered the Hallway, and took three strides to stand behind Faith.

"Enough of this! Time to go, Faith. He won't let you go, if you stay any longer."

"Doz yabozuz nabozt uznandersrtaznand, mamozrtazlab wzozmamaznan?"

"Do you not understand, mortal woman?"

"I understand just fine." Batgirl said, taking hold of Faith's left arm and making her stand behind Batgirl. "Do as you were asked with the gifts you were presented. Your master considers Faith sacred, right?"

"Ozhz, srhze isr mamozre thzaznan srazcred toz Hzimambz'azlab."

"Oh, she is more than sacred to Himbzal."

"What about me? What if he used me, instead?" The Ghoul sat on its haunches, tilting its head over its left shoulder.

"Babs." Nightwing said with urgency.

"Barbara." Faith said with awe, meetin the taller woman's eyes.

"Am I valued less to your master because I'm not magic? Because I'm not your Author? Am I just food to him, to this Hallway, like all the other mortals? Do you know why she dyed her hair red?"

"Toz mamirrozr yabozuz."

"To mirror you."

"Yes, to mirror me. She has the most beautiful hazel green eyes, you know that?" Warmth came to Faith's cheeks, and Batgirl glanced at her. Faith bat her lashes as their eyes met. "Wouldn't you know, from the mind of your Author, that she is worth more than her body? And that I am the same? That all people are the same?"

The Ghoul sighed. "Thze mamazsrter isr tired ozphz hzeazrinang yabozuz."

"The master is tired of hearing you."

"I will not be ignored."

"You are not being ignored. You are being honoured. Leave. Both of you. It will be done."

"Yabozuz azre nanozt bzeinang ignanozred. Yabozuz azre bzeinang hzoznanozuzred. Labeazve. Bzozthz ozphz yabozuz. It wzilab' bze doznane."

"You better leave us alone."

"Wze wzilab'. Azt laneazsrt, toz thze extenant it wzazsr bzephzozre thzazt mamaznan bzrozuzghzt thzisr plabazce toz yabozuzr exisrtenance."

"We will. At least, to the extent it was before that man brought this place to your existence."

"Fine."

"Enter again, Faith, and you will answer for your trickery."

"Enter again, Faith, and you will answer for your trickery."

"This isn't trickery! This is fair. What your master wants is cruel, and Faith has had enough of that. Not just today, but in her life. If you really won't leave her be, the next time she comes in here, asking for your master's help, she'll be with me, or one of her new friends. And there's plenty of us to go around and kick your master's ass."

The Ghoul growled like a lizard and backed away. "Bze czazrephzuzlab wzhzazt yabozuz wzisrhz phzozr, Bzazrbzazraz Gozrdoznan."

"Be careful what you wish for, Barbara Gordon."

"We need to go." Faith said, rapidly.

"Yep!" Batgirl picked Faith up princess style,

Causing Faith to say, "Whoop!" And ran out of the Hallway, stopping in front of Nightwing and letting Faith down while Batman stepped forward and slammed the door, leaning on it and knocking five times, the door hammering back ceaselessly.

"Faith!" Batman shouted.

"The Clicker!" Faith answered.

"Time to use it?" Batgirl replied, quickly taking it out of her pocket and holding it in her left hand.

Faith rapidly said, "Don't look out the window, be still, breathe quietly, imagine any hallucination caused by neon coloured eyes, scary faces with lots of teeth or impossible figures as the face of a loved one, or their voice, whatever reminds you of life, and wait until the lights come back on and it's quiet for eight seconds! Batman, you'll have to move away from the door as soon you hear the click. You probably know this, but it's best to stand with your hands relaxed at your sides and your head looking forward with a relaxed neck and face." Faith did this herself, and Batgirl and Nightwing quickly nodded and stood as suggested. "NOW!"

Click.

A/N: Sorry for the cliffhanger lasdkjflasdfjsladkf

Proceed to Chapter 3

[lobstermobster-95]

Down in the Wicked Depths Below

Woe to the man

The dark-eyed sailor

Ship’s adrift

And the sea’s his jailor

Drag him down

Down, down, down

Down in the wicked depths below

Woe to the man

The dark-eyed sailor

Ship’s adrift

And the sea’s his jailor

Drag him down

Down, down, down

Down in the wicked depths below

Lost at sea, the sailor cried

I will not die

The sea shall bow to me

“That was quite a display,” Finnegrin said as he rummaged through the piles of assorted junk on his desk. His gruff voice drowning out the singing voices of the crew on deck. “All that talk about how love makes you stronger, but the second you see that elf girl in pain, you completely lost yourself.”

Callum looked away.

The tidebound captain wasn’t wrong. Seeing Rayla like that – writhing and screaming in pain, skin turning blue as if she were already dead – it did something to him. Just like it always did something to him when he thought he’d lost her.

That spell had simultaneously caused a pain in Callum that was so deep that he couldn’t think or see straight. He’d forgotten any spells or tricks that could have helped him and instead did the only thing he could think of.

It had at least been a solid hit – something his younger self would be in awe of for several reasons. A lot of good it had done him though.

At that moment, Callum caught sight of Bait’s empty cage and for a terrible, brief second, thought perhaps the little guy had already been cast into the depths. However, Finnegrin stepped aside and revealed the glow toad had been crammed into another smaller cage.

“What are you doing?” Callum asked, feeling confident he already knew the answer.

“Oh, don’t worry. The cage is for his protection,” the captain replied with a smug smile. “This way, he lures us a leviathan but doesn’t get eaten.”

He crossed the room and stood before Callum, looking down at him with the black-hearted confidence of a man who had spilled more than his fair share of blood. “The one getting thrown into the sea serpent’s hungry mouth is your elf girl.”

He may as well have been strapped to an anchor and dropped into the sea for how quickly Callum became submerged in the crushing weight of dread and panic. He struggled against the chains that bound him to the post, but there was no give.

He couldn’t lose Rayla. Not again. Not ever again.

“No, no wait!” The words leapt from his tongue without his consent. “A dying breath, blood filled with hatred, and a unicorn horn. That’s the dark magic you want. Just…just let her go.”

They could deal with the ramifications. They would find a way to protect Domina Profundis, but Callum had to protect Rayla first.

A beat passed as Finnegrin paused in the doorway before he began to click his tongue in disappointment like a parent about to scold their child. “Oh, my poor lad,” he said. “That deal was no longer on the table.” He chuckled, pulling the door open and quickly disappearing through it, leaving Callum alone as he sunk even deeper into despair.

“No!” He called out to no avail. “No!”

Again he struggled and again the chains around his wrists did not budge.

Hot tears began cutting their way down his cheeks. This was really it. Rayla would die and a piece of him would die right alongside her. They had only just begun to truly mend their relationship. The last few weeks began replaying in Callum’s mind

Staying in his and Ez’s old, adjoining rooms had been his idea. After Umber Tor, he’d shed the last piece of the already-cracked and crumbling armor he’d built around his heart over the last two years. He’d opened himself back up to her, and it was wonderful. They’d often stayed up late during those nights, fretting over Ezran and the others or just talking like they used to.

Then they’d traveled to Lux Aurea, retracing the steps they’d taken together on that first world-changing journey. The route had been easier this time. There was no dragon egg to hide and protect, no duplicitous aid from Soren and Claudia, and no race to outrun an impending battle with Viren’s corrupted army.

And with the border open, the route itself had become more traveled, leading to amenities like the inn they’d stayed at. Seeing Rayla happy and at peace that night had filled Callum’s heart in a way it hadn’t been in two years. He’d wanted to kiss her again, to hold her and tell her he loved her.

Now he desperately wished he had.

He could hear shouts and thuds from above him and his heart began to pound. He didn’t have much time.

Looking around for something, anything he could use to free himself, Callum spotted it. The slug Finnegrin had offered as a dark magic conduit.

No. No he couldn’t. He wouldn’t.

He’d sworn to himself that he would never do dark magic again. It wasn’t him. It wasn’t who he wanted to be. He’d vowed to write his own destiny.

…But what would that destiny look like without Rayla?

The question seared his heart like a brand because he knew the answer immediately. Without Rayla, he had no destiny. If he allowed her to die when there was something, anything , he could have done to save her, the anguish would fester in his body like a blight and consume him from the inside out.

He would do anything for her.

Anything.

Pulling against the chains one last time, Callum reached out and grabbed the slug.

~

The sunrise was beautiful, almost mockingly so after all that had happened the night before.

Callum sat at the base of the mast, feeling no modicum of triumph or elation at their victory. He felt like a liar, a sham. He was the first human mage to do primal magic and still he’d resorted to dark magic.

He thought he was better than this. But was he? Was he any better than Viren or Claudia if he would dirty his hands with the lives of innocent creatures if pushed far enough?

“So…” Came a voice through the fog. “Two primal sources? Now you’re just getting greedy, mister mage.”

Callum saw Rayla as she sat down next to him, felt the warmth of her living, breathing body, but he didn’t feel any less ashamed. If she knew what he’d done to save her, she’d be disgusted and furious, as she should be.

“Callum, are you okay?”

Was he? He let the question sink deep before nodding his head and letting his eyes finally unfocus from the abyss he’d been staring into.

“Yeah,” he said, pulling a smile up along with him. “Yeah, I’m okay. I am.”

He looked at Rayla as she smiled back at him, his heart feeling full and complete as she brought a hand up to his cheek.

“I’m glad,” she said softly.

She pulled him into a hug and Callum felt guilt wrap itself around him along with her arms. Below them, somewhere in the guts of the hull, two dark magic snakes now slithered and slunk because he’d brought them to life.

He’d broken his oath, and as Rayla sighed contentedly, holding Callum like she had when they’d first fallen in love, he knew that he would do it again in a heartbeat to save her.

And that’s what scared him more than anything.

[mtjester]

What is Fantasy? - Poll Analysis

(The Last Unicorn was not one of the polls lol)

A while back, I posted a series of polls titled "What is Fantasy?" that each presented a work of fiction for Tumblr to judge. This activity is one that I used to do with my Fantasy literature class when I was a high school teacher. Unfortunately, I lost the results of the Google Form I used to poll students, so Tumblr has become my new source of data for examining the mainstream perspective of the Fantasy genre. Overall, based on conversations my former students had and responses from these Tumblr polls, we can see a few patterns in the approach people seem to take when identifying a work of fiction as a Fantasy text.

I'll be doing a two-part series about this topic on my Substack (jerseka.substack.com) when I get it up and running (there's nothing there yet). This post is going to be an informal thinking space/rough draft, and I welcome any commentary, criticisms, or additions!

Poll results and analysis below the cut:

For these Tumblr polls, I used fifteen works that can all be labelled as speculative fiction. Speculative fiction as a category is inconveniently broad, especially for more precise discussions about genre conventions, quality, impact, etc. Fantasy, for instance, is distinct from sci-fi, horror, and dystopian literature, although to what extent is up for debate--which is what we're doing, essentially. At the heart of it, most people know--or think they know--which works would be housed in the fantasy section versus the horror or sci-fi sections of a library, streaming service, etc., but they don't always know why, and they don't always agree, and they often don't agree with what scholars have to say on the matter. We can, however, identify some common patterns of thinking. After taking polls and hearing thoughts, here are the most common factors that I've noticed for determining whether a work is fantasy:

The presence of anything unreal

Structure

Setting

Common stereotypes/characters/features

Style/mood

Not surprisingly, the work with the highest number of "Yes: Quintessential Fantasy" votes was The Lord of the Rings. Surprisingly, some people did not vote it as quintessentially fantasy.

The Lord of the Rings tends to represent what most people expect from a fantasy story based on all the criteria above: there is magic, the structure can be said to follow the hero's journey, the setting is a fictional world with ample dedicated worldbuilding, the tone is epic with a uplifting core, and it has all the fantasy elements that people expect--elves, wizards, rustic inns, castles, and whatnot.

Following LotR, Avatar: The Last Airbender and Harry Potter were also generally categorized as "Quintessentially fantasy." Both of these works have fantastical elements, hero journey style structures (or at least quest structures), the epic and comic (happy ending, not funny) style of fantasy, and some things we commonly expect in fantasy, such as strange creatures and magical places. Interestingly, my former students had multiple heated discussions about Harry Potter. For some of the high school students, it represents their generation's most visible fantasy work, and they would rank it as the top tier fantasy above LotR. For others, the setting made it less fantasy, even to the extent that some of them argued it wasn't fantasy at all. Since Harry Potter takes place in modern Britain--not a fictional world, not the far-off past--it is less fantasy than other fantasy in some people's eyes. Tumblr seems to have a similar thought process; the worldbuilding and setting do not qualify Harry Potter as being "pure fantasy," it seems:

Likewise, A:tLA does not fit many fantasy stereotypes--its setting may be considered fantastic, but many of my former students argued that it lacked the medieval-style feeling they expect with fantasy. The magic elements are also generally not called "magic"; bending is fantastic, but some people seem to consider it as distinct from the kind of magic found in LotR and HP.

The setting and stereotypes argument also came up heavily when debating Star Wars. My students tended to fall either into the "sci-fi" or "fantasy" camp and usually passionately so, with little desire for compromise. The results from the Tumblr poll showed that many people consider it 50/50, which suggests a little more openness to seeing the ways it blends genres. The votes are spread across the options, with the fewest at "No," but it seems Tumblr leans towards fantasy for Star Wars--an interesting development.

It's easy to see why the debate exists. On one hand, Star Wars was actively constructed to follow the hero's journey, which is a structure commonly associated with fantasy, and the presence of Jedi and the force puts it squarely into the "magic" category in the eyes of many. Some students even called it "Harry Potter in space" and pointed out how similar "Long ago in a galaxy far, far away" sounds to "Once upon a time." On the other hand, space as a setting is not commonly associated with fantasy works, and many material elements of the story are often associated with sci-fi, like laser guns and spaceships.

So which element should we focus on when deciding whether Star Wars is a fantasy or a sci-fi work? What should we prioritize? The question many not matter on its own, but it we were asked to shelf the DVDs in a library (lol), label them for a streaming service, or sell the movies to an audience, the question becomes a little more substantial. If we were advertising the movies, would we call them a fantasy? Space fantasy, perhaps. Science-fantasy, maybe. At least streaming services may allow us to label them "sci-fi/fantasy," whereas physical spaces like libraries may force us to pick between a "fantasy" and "sci-fi" shelf (this example is obviously more applicable to books).

The other side of the coin, at least in my opinion, is the MCU. I'll admit that I muddied this choice by choosing to represent the entire MCU as a whole rather than a single movie. My students were angry with me about this. "Iron Man is sci-fi and Doctor Strange is fantasy," they'd say (paraphrased). I did do this on purpose, and not just because I found it funny (but not not because I found it funny).

The MCU as a whole pushed my students (and Tumblr) to consider the line between fantasy and sci-fi. Unlike with Star Wars, despite the clearly fantastical elements of MCU such as the Infinity Stones and the presence of literal gods (who are aliens actually?), most people leaned towards sci-fi with the MCU. Not as many people commented on this post as Star Wars, suggesting less passion for their stance, but here's some rationales:

I like the comment, "Magic alone does not equal fantasy" (thank you @yourimjustusingthisforstuffposts). Let's return to the list we started with:

The presence of anything unreal

Structure

Setting

Common stereotypes/characters/features

Style/mood

Unlike Star Wars, there's less of a fantasy mood to the MCU, one could argue. Perhaps one of the most convincing reasons for this, I'd say, is that the MCU itself seems to distance itself from fantasy--it often tries to explain away the fantastic with science-y type explanations, even if they are often pretty bullshit. It leans more heavily into the sci-fi elements it has. I would argue that American-originated mainstream media targeting adults tends to try to explain away magic, and Ursula Le Guin also argues something similar in "Why Are Americans Afraid of Dragons?" But that's for a different post.

Also of interest in terms of the sci-fi/fantasy debate, here are the results for Homestuck and Gundam:

These works follow the same pattern as Star Wars and the MCU in many regards. Gundam has few of the elements most people would consider fantasy, and Homestuck has many fantasy elements but presents them in a "the is a video game" sort of sci-fi shell.

A number of the other works I included in the polls were meant to be distractors; the Matrix and Ready Player One have fantasy elements, but those elements are largely a result of technologies that are supposedly (or presented as) plausible. Richard Mathews in the book Fantasy: The Liberation of Imagination cites author of fantasy and sci-fi Orson Scott Card to define the difference between sci-fi and fantasy: "If the story is set in a universe that follows the same rules as ours, it's science fiction. If it's set in a universe that doesn't follow our rules, it's fantasy" (4). By that definition, neither of these works are strongly fantasy, and generally, most people agreed as much (72.9% of Tumblr said RP1 is not really or not at all fantasy, and 76.7% said the same for The Matrix). It was also a distractor, as it fits squarely in the horror genre, and 72.2% of Tumblr users agreed. My students did have a small debate about It and Stranger Things (more fantasy than It but arguably still horror-adjacent), which brings us to the most liberal stance on fantasy: anything fake is fantasy.

The stance that anything remotely unreal belongs in the fantasy genre is not common and doesn't represent the majority, but the faction is large enough to deserve notice. I had several students who argued this point. Looking through the polls, every single work had somebody who voted "Yes: Quintessential Fantasy," with the lowest percentage belonging to Ready Player One at .8% of 118 votes. Some of these votes may come from trolls, but discussions I've heard make me believe that there are people who voted honestly this way. Yes, on Cars, Stephen King's It, Pokemon--my students had Spongebob as a choice in their polls, and for some, it was quintessentially fantasy. To be clear, I'm not stating that this position is factually incorrect, as there is distinct subjectivity to this debate. It's just somewhat impractical as a categorization criteria. For that reason, I find it pretty funny.

Cars, Pokemon, and Looney Tunes (and Spongebob) were chosen for these polls precisely because they are unlike stereotypical fantasy but do include decidedly fantastical elements. For instance, cars cannot actually talk. The line between "is it fantasy because it's not real" and "is it fantasy because it follows fantasy conventions" comes out clearly with these works.

It's not surprising that Pokemon skewed towards fantasy, as it has the uplifting tone of fantasy, the journey element, and stereotypical fantasy stuff like gods and fairies (in a very Pokemon way). It's also not surprising that Looney Tunes skewed towards not fantasy, as the fantastical elements are generally used for slapstick comedy, and there doesn't tend to be a single overarching story to connect all of the episodes--it's more skit comedy than traditional fantasy.

But the results for Cars is singularly hilarious. No other work had "No: It's not at all fantasy in any way" as the top result. Even It and The Matrix are more fantasy than Cars according to Tumblr. That's objectively funny.

Cars is, arguably, more suitably described as action/adventure than fantasy, and if we replaced the cars with people, it would likely not be considered fantasy whatsoever. But it does contain the fantastic in that the cars are cars. Note that 4.4% of people did vote for it being quintessentially fantasy. My students got stuck in a raging debate on Cars for a shockingly long time, and feedback suggests that this is fan favorite work to discuss in terms of defining fantasy genre. I did not expect this when I chose it for the polls, but I'm glad I did.

Scholars have their own definition of fantasy, of course. Scholars also note many of the same criteria people used when making their own choices about what is and is not fantasy. My students did not all agree with the scholarly definition of fantasy, nor did they all agree that fantasy should be so neatly boxed into the genre. There's a lot to be said about that. I'm not going to say it here, though. I'm tired of writing, and I'm going to save the next part for Substack unless I get enough feedback to post here about it.

Let me know if you'd like the follow up (or just check out the Substack if that's your cup of tea--except there's nothing on it yet).

[silverolivia-upsidedown]

I HAVE BEEN DYING TO SHARE THESE!!!

So I hatched this idea for a new character that is HEAVILY inspired by the Last Unicorn movie, and the incredible art work by @/aka_gaallo (on twitter, I don't remember off the top of my head who they are on Tumblr) with their INCREDIBLE hooves that are perfect and amazing in every way and I am HUGELY inspired by them (sorry for the gushing), AND the dnd setting of a tiefling race.

Okay, so.... Here's the character, now come with me on a journey if you would so I can tell you this deliciously tragic story.

Context bullet points:

Wild Mages can accidently summon a unicorn if their magic surges...

In the movie The Last Unicorn the mythos is that they are fey beings of purity. they don't know hate, or sorrow. they don't know regret or love either. To know one, you have to know the other, and they are incapable of that Amalthea is the first unicorn to learn what love and regret are. It is the wizard who turned her into a human and gave her a mortal's regret, that is his own greatest personal regret. that he gave such a pure being something so burdensome.

So... What if there's a group of adventures, and they go to Hell on a quest for (insert whatever nonsense here). One of them is a wild mage and as they are trying to escape form hell- the archfiend on their ass- and the mage surges and accidently summons a unicorn to fight by their side for a few rounds....

Only, they leave.... and the unicorn is still there and still fighting for it's life. Like, I just imagine this unicorn, out in a field in the fey wild, living it's best life, and then some mage pulls it to FUCKING HELL and then peace's out leaving it there.

My DM for this game was awesome and helped, envisioning a rakshasa with a chip on his shoulder. The fiend upon loosing his prey (the adventurers) is furious, but this delicate morsel they left in their wake, might at least take the sting off. It is a paltry task to cut the thin threads of the spell, leaving this unicorn permanently stranded here for the rakshasa to take it's time and really enjoy ruining something so pure.

The small bit of dialog we have in that moment where the unicorn has been fighting and running and trying to escape, but now is cornered and run down as the fiend descends upon it.

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

"Little unicorn, lost and alone, would you like me to free you from this place? All I need from you, is a lesson, and I will set you free from here."

She would rear up and shy away, baying in panic. She is cornered, she knows she will die soon, she can feel the multitude of beings drawn to her, wanting her flesh, wanting her blood, the only thing keeping them back is this one archfiend of this area who now entreats her with such honeyed words. But she can sense the wickedness behind them.

Does she take the deal? She is a powerful being and once returned to her home, surely this Devil's hold over her will be weakened by her natural strength and pureness.

She is flighty, dancing back and forth on delicate cleft hooves. But she bows her head to his deal having no alternative... "I will accept your bargain, Devil...."

Adorned in fine silks, the tiger headed fiend reaches out with clawed hand and lays it upon the pure creatures head. "Your lesson is this. Learn what it means to be impure." When he hand is lifted away, a sickening wave of lethargy washes over the beautiful creature as they feel their form begin to change.

"Starting first with your body. You must look as fowl as any devil before you can truly learn anything."

And with that, she feels the cold of mortality creep into her form, the caress of entropy upon her body and her mind. She is heavy, and her body now awkward and wretched

Her essence is pulled from her form in beautiful silvery, iridescent mist, coalescing into the Rakshasa's hands as her new hooves touch the ground and she crumples

She feels the magics pull and bend around her new body as reality ripples and she is sitting in the Prime Material Plane...

In a small field, the sun feels cold on her new skin, and she hugs herself and weeps, having lost something precious that even now the edges of those memories are being lost to this new form.

She weeps, but does not know why

She shivers and doesn't understand what has happened. She has never cried before, never felt cold. She feels... so small.. so weak... so alone...

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

And here is a splash sheet of that moment along with some other doodles of her

Also, side note, I actually don't know what I want to name her. Stellaluna was pretty, but I'm super not married to it, and I might change it before I actually play her.

[orphanlavinia]

I’m heavily medicated

It feels as if I’ve been defeated.

I was so happy with five pills a day.

Feels like such a step backwards or several

My psych finally broke down and gave me benzodiazepines, I pick em up today

I can’t sleep my body is exhausted and my eyes are closing but this feeling in my legs is killing me at night.

It feels like hell

I have to kinda journal somewhere so I guess here it is almost nobody knows this account is mine.

Thank you internet.

Anyways I’ve spend these past few days locked in the bathroom binge smoking weed.

It all started really when I got diagnosed with did. I was in very serious denial and what my brain did out of boredom or god knows what is flood me with memories that I would have rather not remember.

Is it my brain or miss Steiner? We don’t know

The portrayal of this illness in TikTok and shit tends to be too cartoony and I didn’t relate with it at all until I found other lesser known people that talked about it.

And then there it was, symptoms that I have that are DID.

The blackouts, the feeling of not having control in my body.

The amnesia

All of them.

And then everything inside me got worse as I watch my life outside of me getting better and I cannot join in cuz the past pulls. Hard and cruel.

And I am so tired

I have so much work to do and I will

I am just so tired all the time

My neuropathic pain medication got switched and it has caused me a great deal of physical pain.

Also just fyi I am in clinical rest.

I do have to do some stuff do.

Everything is very hard I just want to be alone and not think and not be here maybe?

I’m leaving angel alone tho

He very much understands

But it’s still not cool

I am very frustrated, I feel like I am not going anywhere and the more I dig in my history even tho it answers why I get rabid, furious.

I was the kid, I was too young, I was modeled to be the perfect victim, I was too naive, too autistic, too mentally ill.

It is not fair that I have to carry the pain and the hurt that was given to me until this point. It isn’t fair that I’ve lost a decade or decades of my life because of everything that has been done to me.

And for them it was a fucking Tuesday man.

How’s that?

It’s not fair that I met angel and I felt like Molly in the last unicorn.

Why do you come to me now that I am all broken and used? Why did t you come earlier?

I feel broken, defective.

I keep making plans for a healthy sane woman or whatever I am

But no, I am sick and broken and don’t function like someone whole.

So I gave up, I’m trying to follow my clinical rest, sleep and rest, I haven’t dared doodle or go get some sun but I’m working on it, I am taking half a pharmacy, forcing myself to eat even if all food looks like fucking poison,

I am in extreme burnout, I am audhd, have a very serious depression, I have bpd, I have did….

I have more stuff cuz I’m just god’s favorite

But I guess this is a journey or acceptance and exploration.

I am having coffee cuz it makes me happy tho i shouldn’t.

I think I should stop writing here, see you next time, void.

[thatoldstandby]

Games of the Year 2024 because why not

So, this is unusual for this place, but uh.

I spent a lot of time on video games this year, and I feel like I have to write something to make up for it because otherwise. Eesh. Plus I want to write a thing more often this year, and this will be the first/second, depending on when I finish it up. Below the cut, I'll start with some games I'd still like to play or play more of; honorable mentions because I played a lot of things I loved and they don't fit in the top, and a top 5, because who has time for 10 games (please ignore the above numbers).

THINGS YET TO BE FINISHED

Here's a list of games I haven't touched, haven't completed, or haven't done enough of a Think to figure out where it stands. I'd love to get to any of these, and probably will. Unless I forget.

Nine Sols, Lorelai and the Laser Eyes, Arco, Cryptmaster, Metaphor ReFantazio, Indiana Jones and the Great Circle, Unicorn Overlord, Indika, Slitterhead, Fate/Stay Remaster, Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess, Metal Slug Tactics, Caves of Qud, Arctic Eggs, Sorry We're Closed, probably some other stuff I'm forgetting.

HONORABLE MENTIONS in no particular order

Trails in the Sky FC and SC: This was the year I started my Trails journey. Luckily, it kicks off pretty nicely. Trails in the Sky FC is a fun, fairly generic JRPG with an entirely too lovable cast. Estelle is real and my friend. And then the last hour happens, and my interest is piqued immediately. And then SC is great, telling a compelling story with the cast of goobers you now care for and expanding the world expertly. And then the last hour happens again, and I'm super excited to keep delving into the world of Liberl. What an excellent throwback that fully explains why it's existed for twenty years.

Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth: Ichiban is real and my friend. I've been playing the Yakuza games since Yakuza 0 was first released, and then I needed a depression/mindless work game series to plow through while working my way through law school, and let me tell you. There's nothing more perfect than a series where there's always something new and the city barely changes between instances. The Ichiban games are similarly excellent, and wonderful JRPGs in their own right, but this one took the cake by also acting as a conclusion (for now) to Kiryu's story that completely nailed everything it needed to. I think it got a little out there in the final hours, but I was still along for the ride to the end. What a game. Dondoko Island is basically another game inside of it.

Balatro: Jimbo is real and my friend. It's Balatro. It's probably the single best designed game loop of anything released this year. It doesn't do a lot for me, personally, in that I like it and appreciate the artistry behind it, but I haven't lost my life to it at any point this year. Good game, highly suggested, not fully my cup of tea. That soundtrack is excellent though.

Conscript: So I played three Resident Evil (PSX) style survival horror games this year. I felt that one of them was pretty bad, and so won't talk about it here. But Conscript? Conscript hit just right. Set in the trenches of Verdun during WWI, it's an excellent survival horror game that eschews the stereotypical supernatural elements attached to the genre in a way that makes it work. It's got just enough of a narrative pull to get you through the game as well. Absolutely worth looking at if you're a fan of classic survival horror.

Rise of the Golden Idol: The Case of the Golden Idol was one of the best written mystery games I've ever played; one I'd put right up there with Return of the Obra Dinn. The DLC was still good, but less than the main game; not only was it weirdly difficult, but something just felt... off? about it. Luckily, Rise was just as good as the original game, and an excellent second entry. If you haven't played the Golden Idol series but love mysteries, then by all means, you should play it. It's really good. I don't think I like Rise quite as much as Case, but that's mostly quibbling about hairsbreadth differences at this point.

Final Fantasy XIV: Dawntrail: I dunno, it's FFXIV. It's kind of a lodestone in my life at this point. And while Dawntrail was certainly not the best expac of the game, that's less to do with the quality of Dawntrail itself (which is mostly fine, with some shockingly clunky pacing issues, some off-sounding writing, and some poor VA direction for some of the scenes) and more to do with the one-two punch that is Shadowbringers and Endwalker. There's still a bunch to love about this game, and Tuliyolal and the surrounding environs are just so cool to me for a lot of reasons. Plus my static is cool and I love hanging out with them twice a week.

Threshold: I just played this last week? And I'm still thinking about it? What a weird, weird little thing.

BEST GAME OF SIGNALIS (2022)

Signalis (2022)

A highly prestigious award that Signalis has won every year since release. Excellent work Signalis. Keep up the good work.

TOP FIVE GAMES OF 2024 (AS OF ROUGHLY RIGHT NOW

5. Crow Country

The other Resident Evil (PSX) style survival horror I played this year! It's excellent, a tightly designed and paced adventure set in a creepy environment with a unique art style. The game controls really interestingly as well; adding a fun modern layer onto such an obvious retro love letter. It might have ranked higher on my list; but some of the puzzles (notably the mushroom puzzle) were actively bad and I haven't forgiven it.

4. Tactical Breach Wizards

I've been a fan of the Defenestration Trilogy since I first played the original Gunpoint back in 2013. Then, it was a neat, well written comedy stealth action game. I even liked the follow-up Heat Signature, though that had less writing and more of a focus on the gameplay loop, which was OK, but not mindblowing. So when the developer Tom Francis announced he was working on the third of the unrelated trilogy, and that it was called Tactical Breach Wizards, I was instantly excited and willing to wait for as long as it took. And it took a while. But when it came out? It was excellent. It is a strong tactical combat game centered around pushing enemies around a map, ideally out of windows. On top of that, it might be one of the best written games of the year. It had the unenviable narrative task of balancing around a SWAT-esque team of characters without falling too far into copaganda or falling for tacticool problems. Luckily, it not only does that, but is genuinely one of the funniest games I've played in a while. Utterly strong comedy writing, which is something that you don't come across in games often. Also, fuck Steve, no one likes Steve.

3. UFO 50

Most games have trouble getting down one or two gameplay loops. So the guy behind Spelunky, one of the best action rogue-likes, was like, I'm going to make that problem fifty times harder by releasing fifty different games as one. And then the madman did it; and he didn't just do it, he did it well. The concept behind UFO 50 is that it's a collection of 50 games that was a lost developer's entire back catalog originally released in the 1980s. So, UFO 50 is literally just 50 NES style games for you to peruse and play. It is an amazingly impressive feat of both game design and historical understanding. By hour count, it's the game that I've spent the most time in by such a large margin it's astounding. I don't even love all the games; but I love enough that there's always something more. It's such an amazing little package.

2. 1000xRESIST

A latecomer to this list, 1000xRESIST is... a lot. At a basic level, it's a narrative exploration game where you explore a world, chat to people, and "enjoy" a story being told. And what a story. It's about so much. Isolation, resistance, memory, familial trauma (and the continuation thereof), expectations, being a teenager, the things you carry forward.... Fuck, there's a lot, and it hit me in a very particular place that was difficult to continue at parts, but that's a sign of quality in a story. It ends astoundingly, and I love it very much. If there's one negative thing I can say about it, it's that it's a pretty ugly game. I try not to focus on that too much; but my god the models. It's really a shame, because there's some striking art design at play, and the use of colors is among the best I've seen this year. But those models are bad. Hekki Allmother; red to blue.

Mouthwashing

Fuckin'. Mouthwashing. Another narrative game, but where 1000xRESIST is a narrative sword, full of heft and weight, Mouthwashing is a scalpel. It is a tightly edited, highly focused that gets in to do what it wants, cuts through you with the cold horror and understanding of what it's going for, and then gets out. I played it myself after watching one (1) TikTok; I streamed it for a friend like two weeks later; I watched numerous streamers playthrough it; and then I played through it again with another friend. What an astounding piece of media, with some of the best cinematography I've seen in an embarrassingly long time. Just. Astounding.

[adventure-showdown]

What is the greatest Doctor Who story ever told?

Everything has been split into groups of 32 that I think are of similar levels of notoritiy, but likely not popularity. Seeding within the groups decides the matches. At the end of the round groups are paired up and mashed together to do it all again.

What that means right now is the order the matches below are listed in has no baring on what they'll be against in the next round

There will be 16 matches a day with Fridays off

Lastly, you can still submit propaganda for posts here

ROUND 1

ROUND 2

Day 16

The Metaphysical Engine or What Quill Did vs Alien Avatar

The Last Oak Tree vs Dead Man Walking

Black Hunger vs Dream-Eaters

From Out of the Rain vs Detained

A Day in the Death vs Nightvisiting

Fragments vs Taphony of the Time Loop

Lost Library of Ukko vs The Custodians

Sirens of Ceres vs Children of Earth

K9 and Company vs Regeneration/Liberation/The Korven

Mutant Copper vs Reset

For Tonight We Might Die vs The Lost

Miracle Day vs The Cambridge Spy

Mind Snap/Angel of the North/Last Precinct/Hound of the Korven/Eclipse of the Korven vs Fear Itself

Exit Wounds vs Something Borrowed

Co-Owner of a Lonely Heart/Brave-ish Heart vs Oroborus

The Fall of the House of Gryffen vs The Curse of Anubis

previous and future days under the cut - unfortunately i've had to get rid of the links because there were too many and the post broke, however they are all tagged #round 2

Day 1

The Mind Robber vs Galaxy 4

The Moonbase vs The Daleks' Master Plan

The Evil of the Daleks vs The Space Museum

The Gunfighters vs The Macra Terror

The Dalek Invasion of Earth vs The Celestial Toymaker

The Reign of Terror vs The Daleks

The Rescue vs The Ice Warriors TIE

The Ark vs the Romans

The Tenth Planet vs The Web Planet

An Unearthly Child vs The War Machines

The Invsion vs The Keys of Marinus

The Underwater Menace vs The Aztecs

The Edge of Destruction vs The Massacre

The Sensorites vs The Seeds of Death

The Chase vs Marco Polo

Planet of Giants vs The Time Meddler

Day 2

The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances vs Love and Monsters

Human Nature/The Family of Blood vs The End of the World

The Waters of Mars vs The End of Time

The Impossible Planet/The Satan Pit vs Fires of Pompeii

Blink vs The Unquiet Dead

Boom Town vs Utopia

Army of Ghosts/Doomsday vs Father's Day

Daleks in Manhattan/Evolution of the Daleks vs Bad Wolf/The Parting of the Ways

Dalek vs New Earth

Rose vs Planet of the Ood

The Runaway Bride vs The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky

The Girl in the Fireplace vs Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead

Partners in Crime vs The Christmas Invasion

School Reunion vs The Stolen Earth/Journey's End

The Unicorn and the Wasp vs The Sound of Drums/Last of Time Lords

Tooth and Claw vs Midnight

Day 3

A Death in the Family vs The Eleven

Ship in a Bottle vs Blood of the Daleks

Albie's Angels vs Phobos

No More Lies vs UNIT Dating

Horror of Glam Rock vs Companion Piece

The Grey Man in the Mountain vs The Love Vampires

Human Resources vs The Widow's Assassin

The Company of Friends: Izzy's Story vs The Side of the Angels

Day of the Master vs The Crucible of Souls

1963: The Assassination Games vs The Red Lady

Stranded vs The Sonomancer TIE

The Doomsday Chronometer vs The Silver Turk

Absent Friends vs The Eighth Piece

Paradox of the Daleks vs Better Watch Out/Fairytale in Salzburg

Inside Every Warrior vs Robophobia

Stop the Clock vs To the Death

Day 4

The War Games vs The Abominable Snowmen

The Sea Devils vs The Time Warrior

The Time Monster vs Fury from the Deep

The Tomb of the Cybermen vs Terror of the Autons

The Three Doctors vs The Ambassadors of Death

The Highlanders vs The Power of the Daleks

Doctor Who and the Silurians vs Carnival of Monsters

The Faceless Ones vs The Daemons

The Enemy of the World vs The Monster of Peladon

The Mind of Evil vs Frontier in Space TIE

The Claws of Axos vs Inferno

Spearhead from Space vs The Ark in Space TIE

The Horns of Nimon vs The Seeds of Doom

Planet of the Spiders vs The Web of Fear

Colony in Space vs The Green Death

Invasion of the Dinosaurs vs The Curse of Peladon

Day 5

Vincent and the Doctor vs Closing Time

The Snowmen vs The Beast Below

The Doctor's Daughter vs The Rings of Akhaten

Vampires of Venice vs The Doctor's Wife

Gridlock vs A Town Called Mercy

The Wedding of River Song vs Amy's Choice

The Girl Who Waited vs Time of the Doctor

Hide vs Smith and Jones

The Eleventh Hour vs Curse of the Black Spot

A Christmas Carol vs The Time of Angels/Flesh and Stone

A Good Man Goes to War vs Name of the Doctor

Dinosaurs on a Spaceship vs The God Complex

Day of the Doctor vs Asylum of the Daleks

The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood vs The Impossible Astronaut/Day of the Moon

Rise of the Cybermen/The Age of Steel vs 42

Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS vs Turn Left

Day 6

The Lumiat vs A Spoonful of Masters

Nightshade vs Rhys and Ianto's Excellent Barbecue

Solitaire vs Paradise 5

Serenity vs The Last Post

No Place vs The Hollow King

Warfare vs Square One

The Cars that Ate London! vs Out of Time

Iterations of I vs A Full Life

I am the Master vs Forever Fallen

The Creeping Death vs Expiry Dating

Peshka vs The Forgotten Village

First Days of Phaidon vs The Scorchies

Gallifrey IV vs The Queen of Time

Wink vs Death and the Queen

Too Many Masters vs Peri and the Piscon Paradox

The Concrete Cage vs The Fifth Citadel

Day 7

City of Death vs The Creature From the Pit

The Key to Time vs The Ribos Operation

The Keeper of Traken vs The Masque of Mandragora

Image of the Fendahl vs The Brain of Morbius

The Horror of Fang Rock vs The Armageddon Factor

Terror of the Zygons vs Mawdryn Undead

The Sunmakers vs The Androids of Tara

The Sontaran Experiment vs The Pirate Planet

Genesis of the Daleks vs Destiny of the Daleks

Warriors' Gate vs The Invasion of Time

The Stones of Blood vs The Hand of Fear

The Leisure Hive vs State of Decay

Logopolis vs Robot

Full Circle vs The Face of Evil

The Deadly Assassin vs Pyramids of Mars

Meglos vs The Robots of Death

Day 8

Heaven Sent vs Cold War

Under the Lake/Before the Flood vs The Zygon Invasion/The Zygon Inversion

Flatline vs The Return of Doctor Mysterio

The Angels Take Manhattan vs Dark Water/Death in Heaven

The Magician's Apprentice/The Witch's Familiar vs Empress of Mars

Smile vs Extremis

Hell Bent vs Knock Knock

The Rebel Flesh/The Almost People vs The Husbands of River Song

Mummy on the Orient Express vs The Power of Three

Twice Upon a Time vs Listen

Face the Raven vs The Eaters of Light

Robot of Sherwood vs The Pilot

The Pandorica Opens/The Big Bang vs The Girl Who Died

The Pyramid at the End of the World vs Oxygen

Time Heist vs Deep Breath

The Lodger vs World Enough and Time/The Doctor Falls

Day 9

The Bekdel Test vs The Blood Cell

Human Nature vs Doctor Who and Shada (fan novelisation)

The Book of the War vs The City of the Dead

The Adventuress of Henrietta Street vs The Stranger

Mad Dogs and Englishmen vs The Crooked World

Anachrophobia vs Alien Bodies

Harvest of Time vs Interference

The Blue Angel vs Vampire Science

Lungbarrow vs The Turing Test

Oh No It Isn't vs The Eleven Day Empire/The Shadow Play

Living Legend vs The Gallifrey Chronicles

Engines of War vs The Year of Intelligent Tigers

Scratchman vs The Scarlet Empress

Psychodrome vs Camera Obscura

This Town Will Never Let Us Go vs Unnatural History

The Martian Invasion of Planetoid 50 vs A Photograph to Remember

Day 10

The Caves of Androzani vs Warriors of the Deep

Revelation of the Daleks vs Paradise Towers

Snakedance vs The Mysterious Planet

The Visitation vs Ghost Light

Survival vs The King's Demons

Black Orchid vs Battlefield

Planet of Fire vs Frontios

Attack of the Cybermen vs Enlightenment

The Curse of Fenric vs Mindwarp

Terror of the Vervoids vs The Mark of the Rani

Kinda vs Trial of a Time Lord

The Two Doctors vs Earthshock

The Five Doctors vs The Ultimate Foe

Terminus vs Vengeance on Varos

Castrovalva vs Ressurection of the Daleks

Delta and the Bannermen vs Remembrance of the Daleks

Day 11

Whatever Happened to Sarah-Jane? vs Kerblam!

Flux vs The Caretaker

Eve of the Daleks vs Revolution of the Daleks

Praxeus vs Last Christmas

Village of the Angels vs Revenge of the Slitheen

The Ghost Monument vs War of the Sontarans

Nikola Tesla's Night of Terror vs Resolution

The Tsuranga Conundrum vs The Haunting of Villa Diodati

Demons of the Punjab vs Eye of the Gorgon

The Halloween Apocalypse vs Rosa

The Woman Who Fell to Earth vs Once, Upon TIme

Ascension of the Cybermen/The Timeless Children vs Spyfall

The Power of the Doctor vs Can You Hear Me?

Invasion of the Bane vs Fugitive of the Judoon

It Takes You Away vs The Witchfinders

Arachnids in the UK vs Thin Ice

Day 12

Downtime vs Sil and the Devil Seeds of Arodor

Dalek Weetabix advert vs The Fallen

Divided Loyalties vs The Land of Happy Endings

Summoned by Shadows vs Space in Dimension Relative and Time

More than a Messiah vs Step Into the 80s/On Through the 80s

Famine Appeal vs The Devil of Winerborne

Unnatural Selection vs Lepidometry for Beginners

Ground Zero vs Merry Christmas Doctor Who

The Zero Imperative vs When to Die

Fear Itself vs 12 Doctors, 12 Stories

Zygon: When Being You Just Isn't Enough vs The Room With All the Doors

The Terror Game vs Eye of the Beholder

Old Friends vs In Memory Alone

Wall's Sky Ray lollies advert vs Nothing at the End of the Lane

Something Borrowed vs The Flood

The World Shapers vs The Star Beast

Day 13

The Chimes of Midnight vs Minuet in Hell

The Holy Terror vs Spare Parts

The Happiness Patrol vs The Company of Friends: Benny's Story

Dragonfire vs The Company of Friends: Fitz's Story

Doctor Who and the Pirates vs Singularity

The Condemned vs The Greatest Show in the Galaxy

The Girl Who Never Was vs Neverland

Other Lives vs Caerdroia

Scherzo vs The Company of Friends: Mary's Story

Jubilee vs The TV Movie

The Harvest vs Seasons of Fear

Terror Firma vs Storm Warning

Zagreus vs Arrangements of War

Master vs The Natural History of Fear

The Marian Conspiracy vs The Apocalyse Element

Loups-Garoux vs The Kingmaker

Day 14

Death of the Doctor vs The Gift

Lost in Time vs The Mark of the Berserker

Small Worlds vs Secrets of the Stars

Sleeper vs Everything Changes

Countrycide vs To the Last Man

They Keep Killing Suzie vs Out of Time

Cyberwoman vs The Nightmare Man

Combat vs The Temptation of Sarah-Jane Smith

The Wedding of Sarah-Jane Smith vs The Empty Planet

Random Shoes vs Adam

Goodbye, Sarah-Jane Smith vs The Mad Woman in the Attic

Prisoner of the Judoon vs Ghost Machine

The Curse of Clyde Langer vs The Lost Boy

The Last Sontaran vs Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang

Sky vs The Day of the Clown

Mona Lisa's Revenge vs Captain Jack Harkness

Day 15

Time Crash vs Tardisodes

Dreamland vs Dr Who and the Daleks

Shada (webcast with 8) vs The Battle of Demons Run: Two Days Later

Ronald Rat Continuity Announcement vs Pond Life

P.S. vs The Shrink

The Daleks' Invasion of Earth 2150AD vs Doctorin' the TARDIS

Farewell, Sarah-Jane vs The Infinite Quest

Shada (1992 version with linking narration) vs An Adventure in Space and Time

Night of the Doctor vs The Doctor's Meditiation

Real Time vs Dimensions in Time

Clara and the TARDIS vs The Great Detective

Rain Gods vs Scream of the Shalka

Doctor in Distress vs Space Time

Night and the Doctor vs The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot

Shada (2017 animated reconstruction) vs Born Again

Search Out Space vs The Curse of Fatal Death

[mymiraclebox]

Miracle Boxes - The Mage Generation

These are the first iteration of the Miracle Boxes, created by the Mage himself thousands of years ago. These consisted of twelve Miracle Boxes, each with ten kwamis, which the Mage entrusted to people during his travels around the world. Thanks to the use of the Panda Miraculous, the Mage lived much longer than most humans, making his travels across the world last several hundred years.

The Mage Box - Wandering Panda Crow Unicorn Rabbit Beaver Dove Horse Owl Parrot Scorpion

The Mage Box was the Miracle Box that the Mage personally looked after. He kept the Miraculouses of great power with him, along with ones that helped him in his travels around the world. The Mage would stay in different lands for decades at a time, and choose a close companion from these areas to become a Guardian of one of the boxes he carried. These Guardians were assigned to care for these kwamis, and to watch over a vast region.

The Successor Box - South Asia and West Asia Ladybug Black Cat Qilin Frog Bee Butterfly Fox Peacock Swan Turtle

This Miracle Box was the first the Mage trusted in the hands of another, which was his apprentice. He and apprentice left their home land (in what is now modern Tibet). They both headed south, with the apprentice heading west when they parted ways, while the Mage went east as he began his travels around the world.

The Island Box - Oceania and Southeast Asia Wolf Platypus Pterosaur Tuatara Binturong Blackbuck Coral Kangaroo Komodo Dragon Thylacine

This Miracle Box's Guardian was originally from what is now modern India, who was a traveling companion with the Mage as they went east together. When they parted ways the Mage went north, while she promised to take the Miracle Box south. This Guardian spent much of her time in Southeast Asia, and eventually headed down towards Australia and into the Pacific Islands.

The Coastal Box - East Asia and North Asia Dragon Cobra Dog Goat Monkey Mouse Ox Pig Rooster Tiger

The Mage entrusted this Box to a family who lived along the coast. The range this Guardian and Miracle Box looked after was along the coast of eastern Asia, but did stretch inland as well. The Mage spent a long time with this Guardian and their family, before deciding to pursue stories about a land that laid across the ocean.

The Northern Box - North America Thunderbird Bear Cougar Deer Goose Otter Rattlesnake Raven Salmon Woodpecker

The Mage didn't know what he'd find across the ocean, but he stumbled into a land much bigger than he imagined. His journeys started up in what is now Alaska, down through what would become Canada and the United State. Like many Miracle Boxes before the new Guardian had a vast region with many different cultures for them and their kwamis to look after.

The Central Box - Central America Firefly Raccoon Feathered Serpent Spider Axolotl Bison Coyote Eagle Falcon Shark

Of all of the Mage's travels, it was in Central America where he stayed the longest. This was because ended up adopting a daughter, who he went on many adventures with. The Mage entrusted the last Miracle Box with an Alpha Duo to her, who he stayed with to watch over, along with his grandchildren in time. He continued south shortly after his great-grandson became Guardian, knowing that he couldn't stay there forever.

The Southern Box - South America Grim Snail Anglerfish Crocodile Dolphin Jaguar Jellyfish Llama Locust Moth

The Mage struggled to bond with others as he headed into South America, pained with his extended life and the lost of love ones that comes from it. In time he befriended a lone traveler who lived a similar lifestyle than him, who he entrusted to become a Guardian. They parted ways when the Mage headed south across the ocean, where he encountered the frozen wasteland of Antarctica.

The Jungle Box - Southern Africa Dinosaur Penguin Elephant Gorilla Jackal Okapi Ray Rhinoceros Squirrel Zebra

The Mage did not remain within Antarctica for long, with the inhospitable environment and lack of human life. He headed north up into Madagascar, where he spent a considerable amount of time before he traveled to the mainland of Africa, which turned out to be much bigger than he had excepted when first traveling to the continent.

The Desert Box - Northern Africa Griffin Dragonfly Camel Chameleon Cheetah Giraffe Hippopotamus Hyena Ostrich Secretarybird

He did not select a guardian for this box for a long time, not until his arrival in ancient Egypt. This was the first place the Mage had truly settled in for many years, but he did eventually head east across the Sahara. The Mage's travels in Africa ended in what is now in Morocco, where he then headed up into the Iberian Peninsula.

The Peninsula Box - Europe Kelpie Aurochs Ant Crab Gecko Hedgehog Ibex Lion Mouflon Seahorse

Europe was yet another region that took the Mage a long time to select a Guardian for, and often retraced his paths in locations he had been in before during this search. In the end he trained up several potential Guardians, but only entrusted the box to one, leading to conflict for the box after he left.

The Arctic Box - Northern Europe and Northern Asia Phoenix Lynx Moose Narwhal Octopus Polar Bear Seal Sheep Weasel Wolverine

The Mage settled a lot more often as he journeyed northward, still very nomadic in where he would travel, but would often stay in settlements for long periods of time, especially during harsh winter months. The Mage loved the world and his travels, but he was tired, especially after living for so long. He entrusted this Miracle Box to a woman the kwamis loved to become their Guardian.

The Mountain Box - Central Asia and the Tibetan Plateau Yeti Red Panda Bat Elk Pangolin Quail Scarab Snow Leopard Tortoise Vulture

At the end of his centuries long journey, the Mage found himself rapidly approaching his homeland. When heading across the mountains he found a Guardian for the last Miracle Box with him. He did not spend long here as he did in other regions of the world, being so close to home. And after such a long journey the Mage for ready to rest.

---

The Mage's apprentice was long dead by the time he returned to his homeland, but he was able to meet those who were protecting the Successor Box in his apprentice's place. Satisfied with the system he had in place and the kwamis that lived across the world, the Mage decided that he was ready to rest after living for so many years.

Still he knew the greed of humanity, and decided that the two Soul Gems along with the Miraculouses of the Panda, Crow, and Unicorn should be hidden away. They were to be hidden away in the Mage Box, so the other seven kwamis he had once looked after he decided to spread across the world, to unite with other Miracle Boxes out there.

After this he hid away the powerful Miraculouses and the Soul Gems, before officially retiring to his homeland under the care of the Guardians of the Successor Box. While he never told a soul where his Miracle Box was hidden, he did entrust the current Guardians with the knowledge of the location of one Soul Gem, before he passed away of old age.

---

The True Generation of Miracle Boxes

The Order Generation of Miracle Boxes

[namelessmoons-corner]

☆.｡.:° Session I - Part 2 | Wild Beyond the Witchlight °:.｡.☆

Click here to see part 1 of the session note

Where Orion is frustrated, Trinkets wants to try drugs and Antigone begins to hate children.

[TW: drugs]

Diane then gives Antigone paint and brushes, explaining to the adventurers that they need to find half the unicorn's names if they want any answers.

There are eight unicorns, and they are paired off. The adventurers have to solve a riddle to find their names, but Trinket and Antigone start to hit a wall. Orion's player, hearing all of their theory, is becoming more and more frustrated. Looking at them, it's clear they have the answer to at least part of the riddle. But Orion can't help, as he's outside of the merry-go-round. Yielding to the temptation to help his friends, he finally decides to use one of his eight punchable dot to get into the attraction.

With his help, the trio manage to find the name of the four unicorns, and mount them to begin the carousel. Questions are asked, poems are given and locations known.

Their curiosity satisfied, our three heroes (are they heroes yet or only adventurers on a quest?) thank Diana, promising to free her from her curse before they leave the carnival.

As they leave the merry-go-round, they see a sylvanian and a cute squirrel handing out seeds and dandelions ready to be blown away. As they blow upon their dandelion, they hope their greatest wish will come true during this journey.

The three friends study the map for a bit before deciding to go to the Snail Race. On their way, they go past the Lost and Found stand, seeing Dirla and the two children she watches over. You know how I said that the adventurers didn't seems interested in the boys in the last session notes? well they will now be taken with the children for at least 45 minutes real-time.

As they approach the stand, the oldest has a disco ball in his hand and doesn't want to give it back, which angers Dirla, and the feline begins to growl at him. Frightened, he drops the ball and flees, leaving Dirla worried about his safety, as she can't leave the younger one alone and she has to mind the stand.

But the adventurers seem more interested in the young halfling child, Allowin. They ask after his parents and learn that his mother is the one that left him here, while his dad is enjoying snacks somewhere. "Snacks?" is the question. "Yeah, mom says he enjoys coca?" The three share a glance, knowing that this kind of drink doesn't exist in their world. Have they heard something wrong?

Not at all. It would seem the dad is a cocaine addict and the mom is at the Swan boats with a man she calls 'Darling'. Who is apparently not the dad. And the parents are still married. Well… Maybe they could find the mom if Allowin gives them her name and some kind of description. Of course, he calls her 'mom' and doesn't have a name to give them. They know she has green hair and green eyes, but in the colourful carnival, it's not the most helpful of description. Maybe they could try to find the dad later though. If he's conscious.

(Picture of Dirla)

Seeing the adventurers become invested in the child's story, she asks for their help to find Viro, the one who fled earlier. Thinking about how Dirla told them children are seen as lost things and the disappearance of said lost things when the carnival closes for the night, the three accept. After a few minutes searching for the miscreant, they find him in front of a snack stand, pocketing some kind of white, flour-like sweets.

On the small slate with the prices and menu is written "Sweet coke, the best sweet to stay awake!". Antigone is suspicious. They just learnt drugs are being sold in the carnival, and a child is pocketing three sweets supposed to keep him awake and excited all night? No way she's letting him keep them.

On the other hand, Trinket is quite enthusiastic about these sweets. But when he tries to buy some without paying thanks to his role as a Carnival Hand, the seller refuses. He doesn't want to sell to the people working here, which seems even more suspicious than selling drugs in broad daylight.

Antigone manages to exchange the three sweets in the hand of the child for a lollipop, negociating with all the persuasion she has in her small body. With this done, they go back to Dirla with Viro, sternly telling him not to stray again.

And the questions come back. "Where are your parents, kid?". The answer comes quick: "I don't have a dad and my mom's a bitch." Nice kid, this one. Staying calm is a trial for Antigone, while Orion and Trinket are both laughing their ass off on the ground behind her. They can't breathe, this might be dangerous.

"Still, we need to find her before the Carnival ends, don't you think?" - "Well she left me here, I hate her, and you're a slut." Antigone is trying to understand why anyone would have children. She can't come up with an answer, and she'll receive no help from her two friends, too busy laughing as they are.

Antigone asks a few more questions and understands that Viro's mum is an artist and left him here with only a small suitcase containing a change of clothes and a toothbrush. She promises Dirla and the boys to try and find their parents, and the group leaves in direction of the Snail Race.

They all decide to race against each other. At first, it seems like Orion is going to win, but Antigone manages to push through and get first place. Thanks to this, she receives an Advantage potion.

The session finishes on this happy note, everyone a bit tired.

Next time, we'll be able to see Antigone trying to speak with a manager about this drug-selling stand and Trinket hoping to find someone called Canfoo, so don't hesitate to follow the blog not to miss anything!

☽ Moon ☾