#the portal gun is a pain to draw

[tortellinibeanieweenie]

chell doodle

[cemeteryspider]

Family Fragments Part 1

Stanford Pines x Child! Reader

*No use of Y/n* *Fem Reader*

Summary: Flashback~ Ford must protect you, his innocent daughter, from becoming an unwilling pawn in the sinister schemes of an Interdimensional demon.

Trigger Warnings: Possession, Child Endangerment (thanks Bill), Psychological Manipulation, Mild Violence

Word Count: 1.1k

You shifted in your father's arms as he pushed through doors and walked through hallways from the basement of his shack in the woods into your room in the attic. You barely registered him tucking you into your bed and him kissing you on the forehead with his heavily chapped lips.

"Good night, Sweet pea," He whispered and the door clicked behind him. 

A loud tired sigh echoed in the short stairwell down to the foyer. The descent down the staircase was heavy and creaky and when he came to the door in the basement he widened his eyes and allowed the retinal scanner to scan his eye confirming he was not possessed by Bill. He couldn’t help the yawn that escaped his lips as he entered the basement, cluttered with half-finished devices- scattered wires and gears glinting under the dim flickering light bulb hanging overhead.The unfinished portal stood tall in front of him humming a just so a he felt a soft vibration through the soles of his shoes. 

He sat down at the workbench and resumed writing in the third journal. Drawing the new suit he was designing to keep Bill out of his mind for good, however there was the small problem of the brain he needed to complete the thing. However, his mind drifted to the mind erasing gun in the hand of the suit which reminded him of his old friend, who left him alone to work with his muse months ago. 

Then he heard a not so subtle knocking coming from upstairs. At first he thought it was some random drunk knocking at the door and letting the person get bored of the odd old cabin in the woods, but after a succinct series of thuds and a hushed laughter he decided to investigate.

He breathed a sigh of relief—at least Bill couldn't sneak his way down there, not without triggering the failsafes. But as he looked up, his heart stopped. There you were, standing in the foyer, eyes glowing an unnatural yellow and a smile far too wide for your little face. It was a sight so wrong, so unsettling, that Ford could barely bring himself to speak.

Your limbs jerked awkwardly, like a marionette pulled by unseen strings, controlled by a puppeteer who lacked all finesse, "Hey, sixer!"

He stood frozen for a moment. Bill's voice coming from your mouth where your sweet little voice should have been, he swallowed a lump in his throat and forced himself to speak, "What are you doing here Bill?" 

Bill grinned, twisting your lips into a mockery of a smile, "I just came by to see you and it seems as though you've taken certain... precautions to make sure I don't interrupt your research."

A chill went down Stanfords spine, his research into the Anti-Cipher Society, and the plans for the suit I had designed, "Let's talk face to face, Cipher. No need to bring my daughter into this."

"I suppose I could end our contract a bit earlier than I intended," And with that your eyes rolled into the back of your skull, and your scaleras the correct color once more. Quickly Ford ran toward you and stopped your descent before hitting the ground.

Bill floated around looking at the different furniture with great fascination, "What is wrong with you, she's just a child."

He cradled your head while you continued your sleep, "Yeah, quite a while since I made a deal with something so small, very difficult to control such small limbs. Painful falling down the stairs don't you think?"

His eyebrows rose and looked over your head moving your hair around, checking for any blood or bruising that could indicate a head wound or concussion.

Stop being such a stick in the mud, Sixer,' Bill sneered, his voice dripping with mockery. 'She’s perfectly fine…for now.' His tone darkened, and Ford’s blood ran cold as he watched Bill shift, his form flickering like a faulty lightbulb.

Ford clutched you tightly to his chest, his heart pounded erratically in his ribcage, "I think it's time for you to leave."

"Nothing more for me to do here, but just you wait I think I will see you again, real soon," With that the cabin seemed to gain its color back and you rubbed the sleep out of your eyes.

"Dad?" You whispered after a rather large yawn. He couldn’t help but breathe a sigh of relief at hearing your darling voice. His fingers trembled as they wrapped themselves around your small frame, almost as if you would slip right through his grasp into the nightmarish darkness Bill brought in. For a moment, he pressed his nose to the top of your head and breathed in your familiar scent, desperate to remind himself that you were here with him- still his little girl. A surge of guilt tightened his chest. 

"Everything's going to be okay, Sweet Pea just go back to sleep." And you did. For so long he had stayed awake for as long as possible trying to avoid Bill gaining control of his body he forgot about you. A child with little contact with the outside world, and how easily children can be persuaded by older wiser beings. Bill is a master manipulator and Ford practically opened the door to your mind by inviting him into his. 

Despite the distance he forced Bill to keep from you, he had been in his mind. Combed through his memories his happiest being with Stan in his earlier years, and with you in the present. You never were far from his thoughts and Bill knew his weak spot.

He could pull his own hair from his scalp at his own negligence, scream at the top of his lungs for the danger that he put you in, or cry at the worry he felt after learning of your tumble down the stairs caused by someone he once called his friend. However, he did none of those things.

Once he had tucked you in for a second time, Ford sank into the old chair beside your bed. The springs groan under his weight, the leather cracked and worn from years of use. He stared at you for a long moment, watching your chest rise and fall as you slept peacefully. It made his heart ache. How innocent you looked, under a heap of soft blankets, completely unaware of the danger that lurked just beyond your dreams. A dim lamp casting a light golden glow across the room that seemed like a fragile barrier against the dark shadow Bill Cipher cast on this night. 

Ford’s hand shook as he plucked a pen from your desk and opened the journal he had tucked in his coat pocket, the ink bleed slightly as he pressed it to the parchment. He wrote furiously, his mind racing with all sorts of plans, but one thought rang through: I can’t let him take her. Not my daughter.

[kirfluffbon]

if you were to give Ribbon By Herself a full moveset in star allies what would it be like

B : Crystal Gun

Ribbon fires off a crystal shard projectile.

Mash B : Crystal Volley

Ribbon fires off a bunch of projectiles in rapid succession. (i.e. The Above Thing But Faster)

↑+ B : Crystal Clutter

The Crystal transmutes into a pointy set of bejeweled gadgets, writing utensils, prickly pear cacti and other sharp knickknacks, evoking Needle Squared. Damages enemies above and at either side. cow tools. fairy tools.

Dash : Gem Glide

Ribbon gains increased speed, hovering over water and magma without taking damage.

B during Gem Glide : Fey Pirouette

Similar to Ice-Cutter’s base attack, Ribbon performs a flashy spin jump.

Dash + B : Gem Assault

Ribbon hops on the crystal and glides forward.

↓↑+ B : Shuttle Loop

it’s shuttle loop

Hold↓, then↑+ B : Gem Needle

A row of crystal spikes erupt from the ground, piercing enemies caught in the crossfire.

↑+ B in midair: Fairy Dance

Ribbon twirls in flight, damaging nearby enemies.

↓+ B in midair: Shard Hail

The crystal shatters, raining a storm of glittery projectiles on anyone unfortunate enough to be caught below.

Hold B + Release: Light Beam

A purifying ray emanates from the Crystal, striking a line of enemies ahead. they beat jesus (queen ripple) with that

A : Lustrous Flight

↑+ hold B in midair: Sparkling Rift

A star-shaped portal opens up into the distant galaxy, rimmed with crystalline borders like a cracked geode. Doesn’t send enemies to the Pain Dimension as much as just displaces them in the middle of nowhere - cameo glimpses of distant planets can be seen.

Hold↑in front of friend: Picnic Toss

Ribbon picks up a friend and flings them across the screen, following a trail of health items (Tomato, Sparerib, Sandwich, Strawberry Shortcake), Star Points, and Info Cards (these also give SP; their appearance is just for flavour). Similar to Quick Throw and Friend Throw in execution, but requires a recharge.

L/R : Guard

Ribbon hides behind a ringed sketchbook a little bigger than she is, akin to Kirby 64’s level select. Potential displays include the aforementioned crayon-drawn stage thumbnails, from Pop Star through Dark Star. There’s also a decently rare chance (5%) of instead producing one of the following: the rough sketch of 02 from 64’s Bad End credits, her drawing of Kirby from Wave 2’s Guest Star illustration, or a rather unflattering depiction of Zan Partizanne.

[cheemscakecat]

Can’t find it, but I saw someone draw Fiddleford erasing Ford’s memory into goo and it gave me pain. Here’s my reasoning for why that didn’t happen/wouldn’t happen.

Fiddleford isn’t nearly as athletic as Ford. Now, there are probably Blind Eye members more capable of chasing after Stanford if they were trying to forcefully erase his memories, but that doesn’t mean they’d be successful. The man may be depriving himself of sleep, but he’s built up enough brute strength and endurance to escape. He made it home after collapsing in a truck stop parking lot, and managed to fight Stanley in the portal room.

The Blind Eye members wouldn’t know the layout of the forest and mountains as well as Ford. He spend years out by himself in nature, trying to drink in every detail. Even the members who know the forest because they grew up there haven’t looked at the forest the same way as him. These are people scared of the supernatural who willingly joined Fiddleford’s memory erasing cult. They aren’t going to be experts in Gravity Falls guerrilla warfare.

The memory gun eventually made the Blind Eye members forget who their founder was, and the forced use on the townsfolk made everyone stupider. The young people like Soos and Wendy haven’t had their minds erased as often, so they aren’t affected like the adult population. While pre-portal journey Ford would be up against the first generation of cultists before they forgot Fiddleford, I still feel like the effects of the memory gun would hamper their efforts to hunt him down. Especially if he goes into the mountains and woods full of creatures these cultists have been trying to forget.

Bill would be annoyed like a bratty toddler if Stanford lost his memories, so he’d oppose it too. Not out of care for the man [shipping them is extremely gross], but because he’s impatient to get that portal running, and takes too much delight in tormenting Ford. Knowing this group of people is afraid of the supernatural, should Ford be captured by the cult somehow, Bill would intimidate them into letting him go. Or beat them up using his body.

5. Ford was becoming aware of Fiddleford’s use of the memory gun before he left the project. He was already getting [rightfully] paranoid about Fidds before the reveal that Bill was evil, but that paranoia only got worse after the fact. He’s no coward about it; the man still went into town and was chasing Blind Eye members to try and find out who they were. But yes, Ford is smart and anxious enough to watch his back in town, in case the Blind Eye tried to get him.

6. Fiddleford wasn’t just the founder of the memory erasing cult, he was also the most addicted to using the machine on himself. Which explains why he lost his mind and became homeless so quickly, while the other members like Ivan are still sane enough to run the cult. Pre-portal journey would also be the time when memories about Bill were the freshest, so it’s safe to assume Fidds was using that ray on himself plenty. Even though both men were in a deteriorating metal state, Stanford was not as unwell or near the point of insanity.

7. Ford was always better at dealing with the stress of dangerous anomaly attacks and horror, which served him well in those thirty years beyond the portal. He also survived for 30 years while an outlaw, homeless, lost, and still at risk of possession [until he met the Oracle]. If it got bad enough in Gravity Falls and the cult was looking for him, Ford could survive in the wilderness just fine. Or escape to another town in Oregon or the surrounding states. But he’s probably return as soon as he thought they had given up to make sure the portal was secure.

8. For Ford to be turned into a shell of himself like in the drawing, he’d have to have something integral to his identity erased. Something like “the supernatural” or “weirdness” itself. But A. That would probably break the memory gun or require an hour’s worth of memory canisters. And B. That would so obviously send the poor guy back to when he was a toddler that Fidds would immediately realize he messed up. Why a toddler? Because he hadn’t met the bullies at school yet, and extended family would find him more cute than weird.

But yeah, if Ford started talking like a 3-4 year old who thought he’d been kidnapped, there’d be no way to argue that he’s okay. They’d have to try to sort through his dense paranormal memories in that pile of canisters, trying to undo the damage.

9. If they did mess up Ford’s mind that badly, Fidds would feel terrible about it and try to fix it. I imagine Stanley would be contacted using Ford’s old mail, and knock some sense into the cultists on his way to revive Stanford’s mind. And the erasure wouldn’t stop Bill from being terrible to Ford, so it would once again prove that Fidds was wrong to erase his mind in no uncertain terms.

10. Even at the height of his cult arc, I doubt Fiddleford would be so full of it/stupid that he erased “the paranormal” from Ford’s mind. They knew each other for years, he should know that it’s something Stanford cherishes, and has ever since he was a child. Which ultimately means there’s a nil chance of Ford getting lobotomies via memory gun, even with Blind Eye Fiddleford on the prowl.

So yeah, TDLR I must not be over that ancient AU where Dipper gets his entire mind wiped and the cult just keeps him like a servant. Kidnapped a 12 year old boy. [Ivan wasn’t that evil bro].

[chaotickasugaicrows]

Felt like talking about the Charm Warriors AU again. This time it's about some of the powers the gang has. Now we haven't finalized everyone's abilities but we got a couple for each, some more than others. Tanjirō has the most at the moment courtesy of Smol. If you need a refresher on their weapons and power bases, check this post

Inosuke

Inolocation: Inosuke yells and feels the sound waves that bounce off objects on his skin

Overgrowth: He throws bits of sand and dirt at the opponent, secretly mixing in seeds from the flowers in his magical flower crown. The seeds plant themselves in the opponent's body at the points they land. Then, at Inosuke’s command, they bloom and grow rapidly on and along the body. Takes a certain amount of control and precision to make sure the flowers don’t grow too wildly and potentially endanger teammates

Genya

Bullet Hell: Genya can create up to a thousand small portals at the very end of his gun to turn 1 shot into several. Takes a lot of concentration to create and position each portal. Can lead to severe mental exhaustion if used too many times within a short period

Iron Will: Genya can hold iron for up to 1 minute while transformed. Any longer and he has the same reaction as other Fae (the other boys just can’t handle iron at all while transformed)

Muichiro

Blinding mist: Mist can take away regular sight, can take away magical sight, can take away thermal vision, can take away sense of direction, or just be super thick mist that’s hard to see through

Storm Summon: using his silly string weapon Mui can draw the kanji for rain, waves, tsunami, storm, hail, ice, etc and then summon that

Puppet Master: Using silly string like puppet strings. If they remain unnoticed for 30 seconds then the strings will gradually become very fine. The string will then sink into the target’s skin where they were once bound. Once that’s done, Muichiro is free to use the strings to manipulate the target’s body as he pleases. If this move cannot be fully executed, it can transition into Binding String.

Binding String: Silly string surrounds the target and hardens like concrete. Solidifies at Mui’s command and requires concentration to keep solid. Mui’s tutors taught him a technique that uses his magic to increase the maximum amount of time his brain is able to concentrate. Since it relies on him having a lot of magic stored up, Muichiro trains to expand the magical reserve in his body and to absorb a bit of magic from his surroundings. Magic absorbed into the body (specifically, a body made to contain magic like Fae or the half Fae things the boys have become) must be guided into the reserve while avoiding any of the body’s major organs. Mistakes can be extremely painful and too much foreign magic hitting an organ can cause genuine damage. This ability can be used to stick two things together if Mui wants or can be used to make casts for broken bones.

Zenitsu

Sight of Sound: With a lot of concentration, Zen is able to visualize sound waves for a short amount of time. If he uses more mental effort he’s able to focus in on a specific one. It has a very wide range.

Lightning Speed: Zen is able to travel along sound waves at the speed of lightning. Traveling with this method for too long will result in disorientation for up to 2 minutes (Zen learned that the hard way).

Song of the Stars: Zen plays a variety of hypnotic songs using the feathers of his wing ears (and sometimes his own low hums) and imbues the sound with magic. Every time he plays one, the star charms on his body glow faintly. Different songs come with different effects, but each song needs to be played out in full for the effects to work as intended. The songs are Fae songs that he has learned and mastered. He is strictly advised not to play songs he hasn’t mastered or else it will backfire and place a curse on him. Though, in a moment of desperation, he tried to play a song he was in the midst of learning. Since he had yet to fully master the song, he played it wrong, and was instead marked. A spade on his left cheek, the symbol of power, of freezing winters, and of bloody wars. The more he feeds into his wrath, the stronger the mark becomes. As it grows in strength it will increase in opacity until it’s an inky abyssal mass that mars his face. With every increase in strength Zen will feel more power coursing through his veins, he will gain urges for violence that will only grow in intensity, and he will step closer to death’s door. (Blame Lilith for the curse aspect.)

Tanjirō

Cleansing Fire: Attacks something that doesn't belong in the body. It's good for infections, diseases, poisons, and cancer but useless for broken bones, internal bleeding, etc. Also removes curses or, if the curse is too strong, reduces its effects or temporarily relieves the affected from the curse. (You think, I, Smol, would let Zenitsu be cursed without having someone else be able to help him? Also Tanjurō is sick so Tanjirō can help his dad too. Win win.)

Prism: A state that affects Tanji’s entire body. He appears very crystal/diamond like in this state. Magical abilities that hit him get absorbed and reflected back. He can either automatically reflect it back or hold it for 30 seconds so that he can redirect it to wherever. Mainly uses frying pan to redirect but can also use hands or feet. No matter what magic hits him, it’s always reflected back as a high powered beam of energy (the beam is always a fraction more powerful than the original magic).

Kaleidoscope Shield: Extremely defensive, whatever hits it (be it magical or physical attacks) gets reflected many times within the structure and therefore the magical or physical energy is dispersed. Shields have the pretty colorful blooming symmetrical pattern, they look crystal-like. In the beginning uses his frying pan as the shield, later can create multiple copies and larger ones (still in the shape of a frying pan).

Mirror: After a significant amount of time analyzing someone’s fighting style or a general skill (they have to be doing the same general thing the entire time), Tanji can activate his ability which will use magic to fill in the rest of the details and allow him to mirror that fighting style or skill exactly (he does not gain the knowledge of how).

Kamado Charm (joke by others): Includes uncanny ability to incite self reflection by pinpointing the issue that's bothering someone else, the uncanny ability to always say the right thing to comfort other people, inability for anyone decent to hate him for long. Also includes (according to Zen) the ability to be unreasonably good looking and to have the prettiest melody he has ever heard in his life.

[aealzx]

Better Genes part 29.1

Part 1 of 3 extra, illustrated writing additions to the Better Genes comic.

Takes place between page 29 and 30.

Contains: Use of sedatives, character injury, blood, TV Medicine, TV Science, panic attack, mutation body horror, injured eye, severely sprained ankle, overall body pain

Comic: Start     pg 26-29  

Writing:  Part 2    Part 3

____________

I got a couple comments about being excited for monster Donnie content (despite mentioning that there wasn’t going to be much) and felt kind of bad for not having much. ;v; There was no way I was going to add another 30 pages or more to the comic though, especially since I’ve never even tried to do fight scenes in comic form before. X’D

So instead I wrote 8 pages and drew 3 more flat colored pics as a sort of middle ground.

Talking with my platonic waifu, since the comic is on tumblr I’m also going to put the writing on tumblr instead of AO3 despite it being long because cross platform content can be annoying. Everything will be split into 3 posts, underneath a read more break to hopefully not stretch the screen a horrendous amount.

____________

(Story and drawing under the cut)

With a quick swish of his temporarily manifested blade, Leo opened a portal to the part of the sewers that was a short distance from where he’d sent Donnie. He didn’t want to pop in right next to him and startle him into attacking them after all. It would be better if they could sneak up on him and pop a few rounds of sedatives into him first. Unfortunately, when Leo stepped through the portal he was greeted with Casey’s back coming in hot directly at his face, having gotten bodily launched across the sewer tunnel by Donnie’s clawed hand. With a startled, halfway muffled yelp, Leo dodged to the side slightly and flung an arm up quick enough to catch Casey and help him regain his footing instead of crashing into the others filtering through the portal as well.

“Alright there Case?” Leo asked with a forced grin, trying to remain optimistic despite the scene before him being the unwanted route. So much for sneaking up on their brother.

“Sorry Master-! Ah… Sorry Leo. He noticed we were following him and got angry,” Casey babbled hurriedly. His upbringing made him quick to give an update on the situation, which also ended up answering Leo’s unasked question about what had ticked Donnie off.

“Yeah, that sounds like Donnie,” Leo chuckled, removing his hand from supporting Casey now that he had his balance back. “He always was quick to lash out when we got in his space when he didn't want us there. Too bad it’s time for his medicine, so we can’t give into his cranky wishes for alone time,” he added dramatically, gesturing to the injection pens Mikey had now that he and April had joined them as well. “We got the antibodies, so we’re ready to take him down and bring him back home. Thanks for sticking it out until now.”

Casey’s expression turned into a sheepish yet grateful smile, but before he could respond Raph’s bellowing voice echoed through the tunnel from close by.

“LEO! You didn’t mention he’d grown another meter!” Raph complained emphatically as he was grappling Donnie’s mutated mouth with ninpo covered hands. He didn’t fancy getting bitten by Donnie’s new set of fangs, considering his original set of teeth already did enough damage when he was legitimately angry. And if Raph knew anything about Donnie’s levels of anger, then he would guess Donnie was beyond pissed at the moment. That combined with his new size made grappling him a losing battle, Raph’s heels dragging paths in the dirt as he was shoved backwards.

“I figured that was rather self explanatory considering what he got infected from,” Leo sassed back, loading one of the sedative darts into the gun and taking aim. He was hesitant to fire with Raph directly in the path, but luckily for both of them a quick snap from Splinter’s tail saved Raph from being Donnie’s new chew toy. The forward momentum was broken, and Raph quickly opened his hands as Donnie’s head was knocked to the side.

As April rushed forward, her name belted from her lips, Leo figured he should pass a word of caution to them all just so it would be explicitly known. “Try not to piss him off too much please. We need him rather still for Mikey to administer the antibodies,” he warned, pulling the trigger on the tranquilizer gun when he felt he wasn't going to hit anyone but the intended target. He ended up wincing in apology the dart smacked Donnie in the side of the nose, causing him to recoil slightly from the sting before shaking the dart dart off and turning to snarl at Leo.

“...Maybe you shouldn’t shoot him in the face then,” Casey commented lightly with a weak chuckle, a slight tease, and an analytical pause for an opening before he ran forward to join the fray once more.

“Okay, so aiming in real life is a lot different from video games,” Leo defended with a sheepish shrug. Donnie apparently thought that was enough of an offense to warrant revenge, for he started to charge towards Leo, causing him to start backing up. “Mikey, I need a weight estimate.”

“Got it!” Mikey chirped, securing the injection pens into his belts and darting forward to dash towards Donnie before feinting to the side. Considering Donnie was way too tall for him to grapple anything but his arms or legs now, Mikey had coiling chains wrap around Donnie’s middle as additional ones helped fling him overhead. Twisting in the air, Mikey latched onto the handholds he’d created and used them and his momentum to heave Donnie into a rather gentle toss a few meters away. “Uhhhh….He’s kinda like one of those tiny smart car things?” Mikey called back to Leo after landing on his feet again in a crouch. “When do I start poking him?”

A smart car? That was a weird comparison. But it actually made sense when Leo remembered Mikey’s usual choice of throwing arsenal. But that definitely wasn’t something he knew the weight of by memory. Which meant he was digging his phone out of his shell for a quick internet look up. “As soon as you’re confident you can hold it in place for 8 seconds,” Leo answered, half distracted by the phone. About 700 kilograms? Well, it was better than a complete guess. He’d just have to play on the safe side and maybe do one or two doses less than calculated for that weight. Loading another sedative dart as he calculated the maximum quantity he was allowed to use in his head, he tried to push away the usual second guessing his brain did. Based on the tests he’d done in Donnie’s lab with the left over blood sample, the mutated physique caused him to have a slightly accelerated metabolism rate with the sedatives, and therefore he should be able to safely use 8 darts before he risked an overdose. Now that he had a set number Leo raised the gun and fired another dart, stabbing Donnie in the crook of his shoulder. 

That made two.

This felt too slow. Half of his team was already worn down somewhat, and he was taking too long to aim and wait for an opening with all of them swarming around Donnie like flies on old cheese. Every time they tried to break away from him though he was immediately lashing out at one of them, causing the others to rush back in to support. Sliding another dart into the gun’s slot, Leo started walking towards his brother, hoping that closing the distance would make it easier and faster to hit him with more sedatives. It would also be great if he didn’t have to reload the gun after every single shot. But Donnie apparently hadn’t made the gun for rapid fire. Unusual for him honestly. Taking aim, Leo’s focus was split as he pulled the trigger when Raph gave an unusually pain filled yelp. Donnie’s new tail had caught him in the side of the head, close enough to the tunnel wall to bounce him off the surface slightly. It was enough to cause Leo to suck in a tense breath, knowing that Raph’s scar was fragile, and look towards him before the trigger was fully pulled. Consequently, the third shot ended up missing, crashing into the opposite wall and probably snapping the needle. That was fine. That’s why they filled an excessive amount of darts. There were more important issues at the moment.

“Raph?” Leo called in a nervous question, seeing his older brother pushing a palm against his right eye.

“I’m okay!” Raph assured, keeping his palm in place until the sting subsided, then pulled his hand away. While he checked to see if there was any blood on his fingers, Donnie’s back foot knocked him over and ended up using him as a pedestal to stand on while he avoided April’s swinging bat. Raph’s breath left him in a huff, and he wrapped his arms around Donnie’s toes to try and relieve the pressure on his chest.

Figuring he should help Raph out, Leo dashed forward as Mikey lept into a split arc over the top of Donnie, apparently having the same goal. Splinter was focused on keeping Donnie from hurting the others, knocking his clawed hand away when he swiped at April. “Boy! You better watch where you're swinging those!” April hollered, having ducked and shielded her head before realizing Splinter had protected her.

“Try not to hurt him too much, it’s still Donnie!” Leo hollered in return, rushing to dive underneath Donnie in a slide while also pointing the tranquilizer gun at him half blindly and pulling the trigger while barely missing getting swatted instead. Being this close to him it would be hard to miss. Or at least he hoped as such. But he also needed to check and make sure Raph was okay. Skidding to a stop next to Raph, Leo allowed Raph to use his ninpo to shove Donnie’s foot off himself before he took a glancing look at his squinting eye.

[msweebyness]

Mirrorverse Crossover- What Happened Before…

Here’s a special from ya girl, Weeby! I figured we could use a little expansion on Sparky’s intro to the AU, and thanks so much to him for helping with this! Enjoy! @artzychic27 @imsparky2002

The heroes all stood, gathered around IsmaGenie as he prepared to grant Max’s wish, to see alternative versions of themselves from another world, like had happened to a hero of one of his comics. Whatever happened, it would surely be…interesting!

“Alright, is everyone ready?”, the blue-skinned genie asked, and at the nods from his companions, clapped his hands together, igniting a bright flash.

A portal suddenly opened up over the ceiling, and a certain wicked group of teens were dropped through it onto the floor, shouting and cursing at their painful landing.

“What the devil?!”, Mari DeVil shrieked, fretting as attempted to sort out her now ruffled fur coat.

“Again! AGAIN!”, MimRore squealed, clapping her hands and giggling maniacally as her friends gave her looks of annoyance.

“Where in the Sam Hill are we?”, Ivan Oogie groused, rubbing his head, which he had smacked on the floor as Mylensula fussed over him.

“Um, better question: Who in blazes are they?”, YzAlya piped up, pointing and drawing the other villains’ attention to the heroes, both groups just staring at each other.

“Why does that one dude have so much hair?”, Honest Nino whispered to IsmaScar, his eyes focused on Adripunzel, who was nervously messing with his long braid.

“Jeez, that one has to be like ten feet tall!”, Mireides muttered to her girlfriend, gawking at Demolition Denise.

“I feel the inexplicably strong urge to put a curse on that redhead.”, Juleficent said to QRC, her eyes narrowing as she looked at a nervous Sleeping Nath. The dark fae witch then yelped as her scepter was suddenly coated in ice beneath her fingers.

“Unless you want to have the worst case of frostbite you could even imagine experiencing, I’d suggest you leave Nathaniel alone.”, MarcElsa said darkly, summoning a barrage of icicles to his hand. A few of the villains nervously backed away.

“Looks like some of ‘em got a little magic of their own…”, Doctor Cabello mused.

“Marc, hold on.”, said Snow Mylene, gently placing a hand on her friend’s shoulder, “Let’s not jump to violence. What she said was out of line, yes, but they weren’t expecting to be brought here. Maybe they’re just a bit confused.”

This earned her a sneer of disgust from the sea witch, before IsmaGenie stepped up and explained the whole situation to the villains, the whole ‘Alternate-Universe-Counterparts’ thing. The villains looked the heroes over with varying degrees of disbelief and disgust. They were do-gooders in this world? How revolting!

“WAIT, WHAT IN THE HELL IS THAT THING?!”, Kimton suddenly shouted, pointing at Julebeast, and looking at her fur, horns and claws with utter revulsion.

“A person, asshole.”, the beastly princess snarled, showing off her sharp teeth as she glared at the hunter, who tried to appear as if he wasn’t intimidated. QuasiIvan stepped up and put a bracing hand on his best friend’s shoulder.

“Ignore him, Jules. He's obviously an idiot who doesn't think before he speaks.”, the bulky teen placated, pointedly ignoring the looks of disgust he was getting from King Marc and some of the other more vain villains.

“Who needs brains when you have guns like these?”, Kimton said smugly, flexing his arms with an arrogant grin. LeOnDine swooned, while the heroes could only watch in disbelief. This was the Kim of the other world?

“Gods, ego much?”, Kimules scoffed as he crossed his arms over his chest (without meaning to, showing off that they were respectively buffer and broader than his counterpart’s) with annoyance. But at that moment his attention was caught by his girlfriend, who seemed to be having some trouble breathing as she stared at a certain villain who was bringing back unpleasant memories from the recent past.

As the young demigod tried to help the mermaid calm down, it was then that her condition was noticed by the villains, who saw the opportunity to strike. Mylensula noticed it seemed to be her the princess was afraid of, and gained a particularly wicked grin.

“Oh, whatever’s the matter, little mermaid? You’ve hardly said a word. Speak up! I'm sure you have a lovely voice.”, the sea witch said in a taunting cadence, fingering the shell necklace draped over her collar, which was starting to glow…only to yelp when there was suddenly an arrow pointing at her face.

“Leave her be, witch.”, Kagamerida said darkly, her eyes like flint as she glared at Mylensula, until Ivan Oogie stepped protectively in front of her and glared, which failed to intimidate the diminutive-statured princess in the slightest.

“Alright.”, BluRore piped up, “Let’s try to keep some semblance of civility here. We’re young adults, there’s no need for this nonsense.”, earning nods from the heroes and scoffs from the villains.

Madame Sabrina sneered in disgust as she looked over the group of heroes, her eyes finally coming to rest on the heroic Ismael, who met her glare head on with a quirked eyebrow.

“Why does one of your friends look like an oversized smurf?”, the purple-clad redhead demanded, pointing a manicured nail at the young genie.

“Why does one of your friends look like the lovechild of a burlap sack and the Pilsbury Doughboy?”, Aladdix sniped right back, leaving the villains agape, one in particular.

“WHY YOU LITTLE-”, Ivan Oogie started to shout, only for Mylensula to jump in and comfort him.

“Don’t listen to her, Spookyboo. You’re the most terrifyingly attractive man in the world in my eyes, and you always will be.”, she cooed, and much to the heroes’ discomfort and the villains’ resigned annoyance, the two began making out.

“Okay…can we PLEASE just try to have a normal, non-confrontational conversation here?”, BluRore said in exasperation, placing her head in her hands.

“And just what makes you think you can tell us what to do, Pixie Prick?”, Alix Khan snarled, stalking towards the fairy. Only to be stopped in her tracks by Miremba stepping in front of her girlfriend.

“Back off, runt.”, the royal lioness growled, and the two bared their teeth at each other.

“Alright, that’s just about enough!”, TiAlya called out, “Now, I’ll tell y’all what’s gonna happen. There ain’t gonna be any more insults, or any more fightin’. We’ll take it slow, one at a time, and we’ll sit down and get to know each other! Now, doesn’t that sound nice?”, she spoke in her “Mom Tone” which left no room for argument.

“And what if we refuse?”, Nath of Hearts snarled, reaching for his dagger, only to yelp when an arrow pierced the wall just to the side of his head, “Understood.”

“Alright…let’s get started! Who wants to go first?”, Fairy GodBro said with a nervous smile.

And there you have it! Leave your thoughts in the comments and reblogs!

[anonymousewrites]

Portal to My Heart (Book 1.5) Chapter Sixteen

Loki x Reader

Chapter Sixteen: Out of Fire

Summary: The final battle against Hela begins.

            Bruce kept control of The Commodore as it came to hover over the Bifrost. Behind him, (Y/N) set up the gun, and Valkyrie emerged in her traditional uniform. She was back in Asgard and ready to defend her people in true Valkyrie-fashion. She refused to cower any longer. (Y/N) nodded at her in understanding, and Valkyrie responded in kind. She pushed the gun forward with her hips as Thor banged Odin’s staff, and the sound resonated across Asgard. As soon as Hela entered the palace, the battle would begin. They needed to be ready.

            Bang.

            Bang.

            Bang.

            Silence.

            Hela had arrived.

            “Guys, the Bifrost,” warned (Y/N).

            As the people and Heimdall hesitantly stepped onto the bridge, they were met with Fenris, Hela’s gigantic wolf, standing over the building with the portal that could get them off Asgard and to safety.

            “Let’s put down that dog,” said (Y/N).

            Valkyrie smirked. “Yes, your Majesty.”

            (Y/N) pretended not to hear the disguised jab at her and Loki’s supposed “relationship.” “Just shoot the thing.”

            Valkyrie grinned and let loose on the wolf as it ran at the evacuees who were scrambling back. At the other end of the bridge, however, Hela’s undead soldiers were arriving to create a barrier. The Asgardians were pinned in place. The creatures snarled and attacked, and the battle truly began on all fronts.

            Fenris growled and shook its head, unimpeded by the barrage of fire, merely annoyed.

            “That stupid dog won’t die!” said Valkyrie.

            Bruce solemnly got up from his seat and walked over to the open doors. He watched Fenris run at Heimdall as he guarded the Asgardians.

            “Everything’s gonna be alright now. I got this,” said Bruce to (Y/N) and Valkyrie bravely. Valkyrie looked at him in confusion. “You want to know who I am?”

            “What the hell are you talking about?” said Valkyrie over the wind.

            “You’ll see!” Bruce leapt from The Commodore.

            And he promptly smacked onto the Bifrost.

            Everyone stared, and even Fenris came up short. (Y/N) winced at the sound of impact. Fenris sniffed Bruce curiously before snarling and padding over him toward the Asgardians again. Right before he snapped up anyone, Fenris was sharply pulled back.

            The Hulk pulled Fenris back and slammed him down on the Bifrost by the tail. Fenris snarled, and Hulk roared.

            “…What the hell,” said Valkyrie, staring at surprise.

            “It’s a long story of science gone wrong,” said (Y/N), waving a hand. A portal appeared beside her. “I’m going down to help the Asgardians. See ya.” She jumped through and landed beside Heimdall.

            “Lady (Y/N),” said Heimdall, inclining his head.

            “Heimdall.” (Y/N) nodded in return. “Sorry about the whole ‘getting fired’ thing.”

            “You ruled well,” acknowledged Heimdall. “And Ragnarok would have come at some point either way.”

            “I guess we should work on fighting it, then,” said (Y/N), drawing a dagger.

            Heimdall and (Y/N) charged through the crowd and began taking down undead warriors as they attacked Asgardians. Behind them, Hulk fought Fenris, and Valkyrie against undead warriors that leapt onto The Commodore. The ship spiraled and crashed to the Bifrost.

            Heimdall and (Y/N) were swarmed with undead warriors, and Heimdall was knocked to his back as he took down several in a single swing. He rolled back and defended himself from the onslaught. (Y/N) leapt through portals and sent enemies through them into the oceans of Asgard, but a cut to her arm had her hiss in pain and pivoting awkwardly, falling to avoid another stab. The undead warrior raised his blade.

            Blam!

            He toppled to the side, and a man made of rocks carrying a phaser stood over her. He grinned in a friendly manner.

            “Hey, man. I’m Korg.” He gestured to the insect-like creature with swords for hands. “This is Miek. We’re gonna jump on that spaceship and get out of here. Wanna come?”

            (Y/N) stood and stared to the side where a ship was emerging through the mist. The Asgardians and Heimdall turned as well. (Y/N)’s heart leapt to life, and a grin spread across her face.

            “Your savior is here!” announced Loki as he stood upon the ship. Behind him were all the revolutionaries of Sakaar. (Y/N)’s eyes remained firmly on Loki. He wore a circlet with his horns instead of an entire helmet. He looked strong and powerful, but more importantly, he looked like he had a purpose.

            He came to help, thought (Y/N) happily.

            The ship pulled up beside the Bifrost, and the gangplank extended. Loki confidently walked down and through the crowd while they started getting onboard their rescue ship.

            “Welcome back. I saw you coming,” said Heimdall in greeting as Korg and Miek handled the undead for the moment.

            “Of course you did,” sighed Loki. He entrance was ruin.

            “Loki!” said (Y/N), hands on her hips.

            “(Y/N),” said Loki. “I have arrived to assist you. You were rig—”

            (Y/N) slapped him before hugging him. Loki blinked in surprise but, deciding he did deserve it, jut hugged her back.

            (Y/N) pulled back and slapped Loki’s chest. “You idiot! What took you so long?”

            “If you recall, you did leave me in quite the debacle,” remarked Loki.

            “Well, welcome to the real fight,” said (Y/N), grinning. “Ready to really join?”

            “Of course,” said Loki.

            They spun and leapt into the fight. Loki flipped his daggers and sliced through enemies, watching (Y/N)’s back as she did the same for him, dodging through portals whenever needed. Miek tore through undead warriors, and Korg blasted them back to death. Several Sakaarian warriors fell as well, but no one was willing to stop while the Asgardian civilians escaped onto the ship. However, while they didn’t have reinforcements, the undead warriors did. They kept coming in waves, unstopping and unflinching in the face of wounds.

            Boom!

            Lightning and thunder pierced the sky, and the battle froze. Electricity crackled through the air and struck the palace with the force to shake Asgard. A body in black was thrown from the balcony as the lightning raged though the air.

            Loki smirked, and (Y/N) grinned. Thor had found his power again.

            Thor leapt off the balcony and arced through the air to the Bifrost. Electricity trailed after him, and he smashed through the undead warriors piling up to face him. They shattered against the God of Thunder’s lightning. With one eye missing and the other glowing with electricity, he was truly a divine sight now.

            Thor tore through the undead warriors that ran at him. (Y/N) and Loki jumped through portals and danced around warriors with ease and grace, cutting them down before they could react. Fireworks erupted from The Commodore, and Valkyrie emerged, unharmed and confident. She easily took on the undead attacking her. In the waters of Asgard, Hulk fought furiously against Fenris. The fight continued, but the allies were together.

            Loki flipped his helmet off and used it to attack several undead warriors, and (Y/N) pivoted and spun beneath a blade, stabbing her enemy. Thor manipulated his lightning with ease and broke down enemy lines. The undead warriors fell one-by-one, leaving the allies together.

            “You’re late,” said Thor.

            “You’re missing an eye,” said Loki.

            “Focus, boys,” said (Y/N).

            “This isn’t over,” said Valkyrie.

            There was only one more person to handle: Hela herself. She approached from the Bifrost, horns sharp, body unharmed even from the lightning strike.

            (Y/N), Loki, Valkyrie, and Thor stood side-by-side as Hela walked closer. Their capes or skirts waved in the wind, and they gripped their weapons tightly.

            “I think we should disband the Revengers,” said Thor.

            “Hit her with a lightning blast,” said Loki.

            “I just hit her with the biggest lightning blast in the history of lightning,” said Thor. “It did nothing. Have (Y/N) try to blast her to pieces.”

            “And get stabbed before I can get close? No thanks,” said (Y/N).

            “We need to keep her away until everyone gets on board,” said Valkyrie.

            Thor shook his head. “It won’t end there. The longer Hela’s on Asgard, the more powerful she grows. She’ll hunt us down. We need to stop her here and now.”

            “So what should we do?” asked Valkyrie.

            “I’m not doing ‘Get Help,’ ” said Loki. (Y/N) snorted.

            Thor looked between Hela and the Asgardians fleeing onto the ship. “Asgard’s not a place; it’s a people.” (Y/N)’s eyes widened as she realized what he meant. “This was never about stopping Ragnarok. This was about causing Ragnarok. Surtur’s crown, the Vault. It’s the only way.”

            “Bold move, Brother,” said Loki. “Even for me.”

            “Go and get it, Loki,” said (Y/N). “We’ll get the people onto the ship.”

            Loki reached out and brushed a hand over (Y/N)’s cheek. “Be safe, my dear Advisor.”

            “Only if my prince comes back,” said (Y/N) with a smile.

            Loki grinned, and then he was off. Valkyrie, Thor, and (Y/N) faced Hela as she walked closer.

            “Shall we?” said Thor.

            “After you,” said Valkyrie.

            “Princes first,” said (Y/N).

            Thor jumped into the air, and lightning collected around him. Hela threw two swords at him, and he caught them, swinging at Hela. She blocked with her horns and flipped back as Thor lunged. She sprung back to her feet and received a kick to the face from Valkyrie. She caught Valkyrie’s next attack and threw her to the side, but then (Y/N) was on her. Hela launched swords at (Y/N), but she summoned portals, and the swords sailed through. They reappeared behind Hela, and the Asgardian had to quickly dodge her own weapons as (Y/N) sliced at her and Thor jumped back into the battle with lightning. Above them, Loki used The Commodore to get to the palace to execute their completely insane plan.

            Valkyrie, Thor, and (Y/N) worked together to keep Hela occupied as the Asgardians fled. Valkyrie had her sword, Thor his lightning, and (Y/N) her portals. Unfortunately, Hela refused to go down.

            “Go, go now!” called Thor back to Heimdall as the last Asgardians packed onto the ship.

            As Heimdall got onto the ship, Hela extended a spear towards Thor, and it nearly skewered him, but (Y/N) redirected it with a portal. Hela threw up her arms, and several spears of rock rose from the ocean to pin the ship in place. (Y/N) threw out her arms and redirected as much as possible with her portals, but Hela’s abilities outpaced the humans��, and she knocked her to the side just as she did Valkyrie and Thor. Undead warriors clambered up the sides of the rocks to attack the Asgardian civilians.

            Rapid gunfire disrupted their attack. Skurge stood at the top of the makeshift bridge and fired down at the undead warriors as they ran up at the people attempting to escape. He jumped from the ship in an act of bravery instead of cowardice and shot down the warriors he passed as he landed on the Bifrost. He simultaneously destroyed the spear skewering the ship, and it began to pull away to safety.

            “Hela!” shouted Skurge.

            He blasted through the undead warriors charging him. He was down to the last one, and he clobbered it with a gun.

            A sword skewered him.

            Hela’s sword stabbed through him, and Skurge fell to his knees. He collapsed to his back and watched as the ship of evacuees flew farther from Asgard. His final act had been one of bravery. He died with satisfaction on his mind.

            “Hela, enough!” called Thor, pulling himself to his feet. “You want Asgard, it’s yours.”

            “Whatever game you’re playing, it won’t work,” drawled Hela. “You can’t defeat me.”

            “Duh,” said (Y/N), standing shakily. “But he can.” She gestured to the palace as it exploded into rubble.

            Surtur, hundreds of feet tall, loomed over Asgard in the debris of the golden palace. He roared, a being of pure magma and flame.

            “No…” gasped Hela, taking a step back.

            Valkyrie rushed her, knocking her to the ground, and Thor sent lightning crashing into her. Hela pushed against it, and (Y/N) ran and stomped down on her back. It wasn’t enough contact to destroy it, but (Y/N) packed a hell of a kick. Blue light exploded from the impact, and as the force launched (Y/N) back, it sent Hela and the Bifrost tumbling into the ocean.

            “Tremble before me, Asgard!” roared Surtur. “I am your reckoning!” He swept his sword across the city and razed the buildings into smoldering piles of fire.

            “The people are safe,” panted Valkyrie. “That’s all the matters.” Still, all three watchers gazed at the destruction of Asgard with solemn hearts.

            “We’re fulfilling the prophecy,” said Thor.

            “I hate this prophecy,” sighed (Y/N) in exhaustion.

            “So do I, but we have no choice,” said Thor. “Surtur destroys Asgard, he destroys Hela, so that our people may live. But we need to let him finish the job, otherwise—”

            A hulking green figure jumped through the air and landed a solid punch to Surtur. (Y/N) groaned in frustration.

            “Hulk, stop, you moron!” shouted Thor.

            Hulk punched Surtur’s head, and Surtur grabbed him between two figures and threw him back to the Bifrost carelessly.

            “Hulk, stop!” said Thor before Hulk could do anything else stupid. “Just for once in your life, don’t smash!”

            “Big monster!” exclaimed Hulk in confusion.

            “Let’s go!” said Valkyrie. Loki was circling back to get them onto The Commodore.

            And so, as they flew up to the ship of evacuees, Hela faced Surtur, desperately fought against him, and ultimately found herself staring her own death in the face. Surtur struck down with his sword, and the Goddess of Death was no more.

            Thor, Loki, Valkyrie, and (Y/N) stood at the window of the ship and gazed at the burning remains of Asgard solemnly.

            “The damage is not too bad,” said Korg encouragingly. “As long as the foundations are still strong, we can rebuild this place. It will become a haven for all people and aliens of the universe.”

            Asgard exploded into pieces as Ragnarok ran its course.

            “Oh. Now those foundations are gone. Sorry,” said Korg.

            (Y/N) sighed. She knew it had to be done, but it didn’t help the heartache. The place she’d made a home on was gone. Loki rested a hand on her should and squeezed comfortingly. (Y/N) absently lifted a hand and rested it on his.

            “What have I done?” murmured Thor.

            “You saved us from extinction,” said Heimdall. “Asgard is not a place; it’s a people.”

Taglist:

@alexpangender

@technikerin23

@kikster606

@neenieweenie

@h-l-vlovesvintage

@chronicallybubbly

[sonichaunt]

Don't have a lot of time to do anything more than sketches rn, but I felt like drawing one of the new kids on the block (aka one of the new STH rewrite bosses). Some rewrite spoilers and some of my heroes headcanons, I suppose: Shadow android "gold" is a new boss introduced to 'flesh' out the whole concept of the shadow androids in the game. More lore about its creation below, if you want.

In Sonic Heroes, Eggman has Shadow captured, being Geralt's greatest creation and legacy, as well as a good way to deal with Sonic, Eggman feels Shadow is something he's owned/belongs at his side obeying him (this is based on dialogue from Eggman and the way he treats Shadow in STH05). After Eggman failed to reach Geralt's level of bio-engineering genius despite having shadow in his possession to study, and failed in altering shadow's mind to be loyal to him (yes, eggman was a factor why shadow has amnesia, more on that later) he decided he'd for the time being just create new Shadows from the ground up, it give him a good alternative and maybe it would help him understand his grandfather's design more. But how does one get that amount of chaos energy inside a living creature without it going horribly wrong (see biolizard)? Well you need some special DNA and assistance of this alien immortal "god" thing ofc- but Eggman would not know this. But what he does know is robots fix the need for something silly like supporting life functions and pain, so androids it is. Eggman figures Geralt's chaos drive research might be the key to make it work, that's going to be the power source. Experimenting with it he creates Omega (who in canon is powered by chaos drives, not an animal) a robot able to match shadow's power. While this is just the stepping stone to the shadow android, Omega is a good way to recapture shadow if he'd ever get free, so is tasked with guarding the original. (This is also Omega's canon function)

However what works for Omega doesn't work for the Shadow androids, he needs something extra to make it all work. How did Geralt do it? He goes back to the bio-lizard notes, it was based on Chaos, just like- Artificial chaos! I believe that his study of the Artificial chaos is what helps him come up with the "liquid metal" that Neo metal sonic is coated in to give him the new form. Eggman starts basing this new Shadow android design on metal sonic and this new metal. The first prototypes, which would be mass produced by Metal later, are far from perfect, which is why shadow takes them out no problem in his game later. However, likely after Heroes now that Metal Sonic is temporarily benched for his actions, Eggman creates a new set of Androids (these will all be based on the STH05 multiplayer designs). He starts with 4 variations, metallic looking body and replacing Shadow's signature red with Green, Pink, Blue and orange accents, with the ability to morph one of their arms into a weapon. The final shadow android he creates will not have this metal design, but instead look like shadow if not for the golden accents. How is he able to finally get this done? Because, Sonic battle happens after STH05 on the canon timeline, and Eggman having a direct portal into the Gun's cyberspace network (we know this because exiting this level in STH05 puts Shadow in Eggman's computer room, which is something the rewrite will also explain ofc) gives him access to even more of GUN's data on Geralt, including the Gizoid data. And thus the GOLD prototype is created, this android has a much better control of his chaos abilities while retaining the ability of the special metal to morph. Meaning this one is an actual challenge for Shadow, as well as something that makes him doubt if he might be an android after all, something that the inferior models really shouldn't have accomplished, they were nowhere near his level. Phase 1 of the boss fight will feature the regular appearance with the exception of the arm being able to morph for special attacks. in phase 2, after damaging it in the boss fight, the body will shift to the more metal appearance and make cracks appear on its body where chaos energy starts slipping through as the integrity of the body fails to contain it. What more happens with this Gold android? This post is already long, so I guess more on that later. Feel free to let me know what you think. I also opened asks, though I probably can only respond with text and only respond with doodles when I have more time in November. Bye for now.

[reader-writer-combo]

What if they met my cannon Roland?

I got this idea while drawing Mason by @villiun and Melo by @okkistoops, characters for the Blank Scripts self insert event by @blackkatdraws.

What if Melo and Mason met my cannon Roland and not the Roland found by Narrator [Black]?

Well....

~~~~

Canon Roland = C!Roland

Black Scripts Roland = BS!Roland

~~~~

It had been a long time since the janitors had come into The Parable, each of them now comfortable in each other's company. Joesph had been sent back to his room due to falling sick from overexherting himself. The others tried their best to warn Joseph to be careful, but he didn't listen. Melo leaned back while he listened to Mason talk about the strange growth of different extra bones or muscles he had from time to time.... And how today was one of those days.

Mason sighed, covering the mouth that had grown into his arm. He knew that it'll go away, after a few "resets" as Black refers, but it still hurts whenever it did happened. Still, despite the pain, he was glad that the others were comfortable enough to allow him to sit with them. He didn't like to suffer in his lonesome anyways...

The two janitors on the clock turned their heads when they heard the door swing open and an aggrevated voice floated to their ears. Mason and Melo fell silent. This was not Roland... Not theirs at least.

Roland was always clean shaven and he for sure didn't own a gray pinstripe suit set. The strange man paused before he stepped into the yellowed office space. His brow furrowed and he ended the call. "What is this?" He looked around with cold hazel eyes. "You aren't the people I'm meeting with." He reached behind him.

Melo and Mason put their hands up, knowing that guesture well. "Wait!" Mason exclaimed, wincing as he covered his arm with a blanket nearby. "W-who are you? What are you doing here?"

The mysterious male looked down his nose at the two of them and pulled his hand away from the gun that rested at the small of his back. They aren't any threat... this is an office, after all... He watched the other two relax. "My name is Roland Watchforth. I came here for a meeting with someone."

Mason and Melo flinched when C!Roland spoke. He spoke with authority, unlike BS!Roland, who spoke quietly with a nervous smile. This... Roland... was very strange. He was formal and dressed like a business man...

Melo squinted at C!Roland from behind his hair. He noticed that this man... this version of Roland, looked like he had regret and focus written all over his face. He looked much more exhausted than the Roland they knew... and the world behind him was a city with things he and the other janitors for sure wouldn't recognize.

Mason sighed. Everyone who lived within The Parable knew that sometimes portals would open across the world and across dimensions... but it was still jarring what these portals would bring. "W-well, Mr. Watchforth.. Our world is strange and sometimes it drags random people across... everywhere... into our office..." Mason gulped as he felt the mouth on his arm bite his hand. "You should be able to fix it by shutting the door and opening it again."

C!Roland squinted at Mason then sighed. "Thank you for this information.... I apologize for intruding on your meeting." C!Roland grasped the door and shut it with a light slam. What a strange world....

Melo and Mason looked at each other with a sigh. Could The Parable maybe not try to lure themselves from alternative dimensions here? When they heard the hurried footsteps and a knock on the door, they smiled when BS!Roland stumbled in. "Hi- hi! Sorry I'm late!" BS!Roland wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. "I-I couldn't find my nametag."

Mason winced and pulled his, now bleeding, hand away from the mouth on his arm. "D-don't worry, Roland. You didn't miss too much anyways." Melo nodded and grabbed a paper off the table to begin folding.

BS!Roland exhaled and rubbed his neck. "I-is Joseph sick again?" The other two nodded.

The three of them shook thier heads. "We told him he would get sick." They stated at the same time. The three men looked at each other and laughed. They waited a little bit longer for Mason's pain to subside before they left the office to go and clean and patch up The Parable.

[systemadministratorclu]

🌌- Their alternate universe self

A portal opens in front of Milo and Lyle and out falls canon Rourke. The portal closes behind him, he's in the middle of nowhere with these two.

All three men are, understandably, very confused, each for his own reason.

For Milo, it's because there are now two Rourkes, though it's easy to tell them apart, seeing as only one wears an Atlantean crystal and has a Heart of Atlantis tattoo that covers his entire right shoulder. And only one looks at him with warm, loving eyes. The other has a gaze that chills Milo to his very core. There is nothing but hate in those cold, dark eyes that look at him like a wolf waiting to devour its helpless prey.

For Lyle, it is the instant recognition of who the stranger is. Or at least the recognition that it's some other version of him. This of course leads him to wonder where this version came from and why he's here. Neither he nor Milo asks how the man ended up here, they both have a feeling they know. Lyle feels the hairs on his neck stand up as he looks at the other him. There's a sense of coldness, of ice to him, and Lyle doesn't like the way this creep is looking at Milo like a piece of meat.

Surprisingly, it is the stranger whose confusion is gone first. Of course he wondered where he was and how he got here, and why there was a copy of him here. But those thoughts have been pushed aside for the moment. Because he has acquired a target. His sight seems to laser focus on the one who stands in his way. The one who ruined his plans AND escaped his wrath. Not this time, Mr. Thatch, he thinks, his body coiling up like a cobra preparing to attack.

And then, like lightning, he strikes.

Milo has no time to even blink as the immense weight slams him to the ground, driving the wind from him. He's barely noticed that when the barrage of fists begins and doesn't stop. He manages to regain enough of his breath to cry out in pain, both from the blows and the enormous weight crushing him into the ground. He can't see, and he's not sure if he's lost his glasses or if he's just disoriented from the merciless assault on his face. Ordinarily, Milo is a good fighter, he has even beaten Lyle in some of their training bouts. But this man is nothing like Lyle, despite looking like him. Milo realizes this....this berserker Rourke...isn't looking for a fight. He's hellbent on a kill. And Milo's mind is unable to make his body even begin to try and find an escape or a defense fast enough.

Milo is scared now. He's going to die.

The stranger has a mad, almost giddy look in his eyes, even as he pummels his helpless victim into the ground. He sees blood but it's not his so it only encourages him. He wants to draw more of it. He is so focused on his mission to kill Milo, he has made one grave error. He has forgotten about his other self.

Lyle is just as shocked as Milo. But he quickly becomes as focused as the stranger. Suddenly, he no longer gives a rat's hairy ass who the stranger is or why he's here. Lyle cares only about one thing.

The stranger hurt Milo. Is still hurting him. And Lyle knows Milo's skill enough to realize Milo isn't fighting back....because he can't. Milo's cry of pain is like a starter gun going off for a runner, and Lyle strikes just as fast as his counterpart.

"GET THE FUCK OFF HIM!!" He roars as he throws the stranger back, away from Milo. Lyle then puts himself between the two. He fights everything within him that wants to just run to Milo's side. He can't. Not until the threat to Milo is gone. Not until he ensures that Milo is safe from further harm. He does steal a glance at Milo and sees him just lay there, not moving, and now he wants even more to run to Milo's side. Instead, he uses that desire to fuel his fight as he rounds on the stranger.

He doesn't worry about techniques or strategy or anything else. He just wants this fight over as quickly as possible. And just as the stranger did to Milo, Lyle now does to him. Fists and feet fly in a never-ending torrent of motion. It's all a blur to Lyle, until finally, he somehow knocks the other him unconscious, and it's clear the newcomer won't be getting up for a while.

Lyle then gives in to his desire, running over and dropping to his knees.

"Ohh Milo." He gasps at the injuries as tears spring to his eyes and he sweeps Milo into his arms and just holds him for a moment, telling him he's safe now as he checks the rest of Milo's body to see if he's hurt anywhere besides his face, where he definitely has a broken nose and probably other bones, too. It's too serious for him to just heal it with his crystal, though he does use that on any cuts or scrapes he sees, so they don't get infected. The rest, unfortunately, will require actual medical help. For now, Lyle just gently dries Milo's tears as he heals some more cuts. Milo just whimpers softly in pain.

"It's alright, Mi, you'll be okay. You're gonna be okay." He puts Milo's glasses back in place as best he can, then gently brushes Milo's hair back and gives him a soft kiss on his forehead.

Milo sucks in an enormous breath as the crazed beast is pulled off him. He hears Lyle's voice, then the sounds of the two fighting.....he's barely conscious and everything hurts so much. Then Lyle is there beside him, now he's in Lyle's arms. He winces because everything hurts, even at Lyle's soft touch. He knows Lyle is trying hard not to hurt him more or cause him any more pain. But the backs of his shoulders were scraped up by the ground where he'd been slammed into it (his tank top appears to have spared the rest of his back, but these wounds still look more serious than Lyle feels comfortable trying to heal with the crystal). Lyle sets him down only so he can take off his own tank top, roll it up, and slip it inside the straps of Milo's so it covers the backs of his shoulders. It's not going to help the wounds much, but it might spare Milo even a little pain from having the area touched as Lyle stands up with Milo cradled against his chest. He looks back at the spatters of Milo's blood on the ground and his unconscious other self, but doesn't really care. Sure he probably could've finished him off for good, but Lyle is not a murderer and to him it's more important he gets Milo to safety and gets him help for his injuries. He does utter a curse in Atlantean before he stalks off, holding Milo close, telling him he loves him, among other words of comfort, as he carries Milo away from the scene of the fight.

//this got way longer than I thought it would. Sorry not sorry!!//

[drjoneslabratory]

The Splatoon rant The franchise that won't leave my brain alone: 1 the biggest nitpick/issue I have with this franchise.

(Before you read, this is my opinion and this is just me rambling. Don't take it too seriously, I didn't as there are probably typos and grammar issues but ill fix it later as its lunchtime here and I am hungry.)

Anyways...

Splatoon is one of those franchises where it has something so strong that I can't stop thinking about it/draw ocs/write AU lore for it. I haven't touched it in ages as Its still in a box and I have drift. But I still think about it/listen to music, consume fancontent and still read the lore and think of the gameplay.

For years I had this Splatoon fps game I always wanted to play. I have thought about it, and drawn ocs/enemies/bosses/factions/guns for over seven years. (I am soon to show this wacky fandom one day)

Ever since playing Splatoon 2, the squid-to-kid ink mechanic has fascinated me. It's on the same level as the gravity gun/portal gun and the grappling hook/titans from Titanfall in terms of creative innovation in the shooter genre. Despite me having issues with the campaign and story etc. There is nothing like it (foam stars don't count) The multiplayer (of all games), is the most fun I had with a multiplayer pvp game since Titanfall 2 and I think one of the few multiplayer PVP shooter games that is casual and non-competitive focused. And more importantly not a gritty tactical mil-sim/cod clone or generic "not overwatch/Fortnite clone number 10000" It's its own thing, and it does it really well.

Everything is unlockable in the game, there are no microtransactions. No season passes and once in a while simple updates keep it fresh. and not make it repetitive for a concept that seems it be a trap for boring repetitive gameplay.

There are DLCS, but they are worth the price for the content you get. Octo Expansion/Side orders are full-on expansion packs.

Splatoon brings me back to a time when shooter games were focused on simple fun and had a gameplay loop that people wanted to spend hours on.

Splatoon Proved to me (personally) that those games are still possible. And maybe the issue with modern AAA gaming is that Gamers have unrealistic expectations and developers and publishers trying to find new ways of laundering money/investment to appease stockholders.

(seriously am I the only one who is concerned with hearing new articles about the alleged "Most expensive game ever produced every once and awhile, there is no way that is sustainable, especially with these live service games that keep popping up like fruit flies and then die, or showing signs of decay)

The thing, I think bothers me most about Splatoon, is that, I really, I mean this, don't like the single-player campaigns, more particularly the Main Octo-trooper enemies you fight in every goddamn game. Because they are just so... boring and not fun (To me at least). It pains me, really fucking does as Splatoon is capable of having fun Enimies (the Octoling soldiers (though I think have issues, but they are a solid starting point I wish they expanded on) and Salmonoids (god they are so fucking awesome) and whatever the robo fish bots are called in side order)

My main issue with the octo-troopers is that

Boring that most Octo troopers just kinda stand there and then move around. acting more like turrets than soldiers

not really threatening/poor readability of what you are fighting, I am not saying their being goofy is bad, in fact, the weirdness of Splatoon enemies (all of them) is what I think makes it unique, and what it is, but I feel like there comes A point where they are just "Too Goofy" and I think it can hinder combat encounters and can confuse the player on what enemy you are fighting. An example of Good/bad execution of this is

The Octosniper and Commander are my examples of "Goofy done right" and "threatening enemy you need to pay attention to" They fire their guns out of their mouth and have "out there" proportions and designs, One has cool sunglasses the other a peeping eye. but I also get the idea, that these are trained soldiers who were trained to shoot to kill and won't hold back. So I have to be careful around them or I am a goner.

For goofy done wrong, I think I can make the argument that I think the Octobomber and rocket Octotrooper enemies are A prime example.

I fucking hate these assholes, I moved them around Poorly to prove a point that, I can't tell which one is which from afar and often mistake one for another. doesn't help one has a more powerful attack and takes up more hitpoints. The only thing that separates them is easily missable and I think lazily done addition to their helicopter helmet.

Now back to the examples.

Most don't really use the main gimmick of the games (squid-to-kid ink mechanic The Octostamps and Squee-Gs don't count) What I mean is how the ink mechanic can affect combat encounters and I think (As far as I remember) only a few really "take advantage" of Splatoon gimmicks, I really like the shielded octo-troopers as they capture gimmick you are using ink as your main projectile type. you can blind them and have them freak out giving you an easy shot. The octopods glitch out and fly back causing an explosion of your own ink if defeated, creating huge ink puddles. Octodivers try to flank you by hiding in their own ink.

Most feel like obstacles then actual enemies The Tentakooks are a good example, mostly just item holders and nothing really else. Same with octo ballers. Most just try to cover large areas of ink with their own, which isn't bad, but feels like most enemies, most don't really do much.

Don't feel like A real army or "Bad guys" (I get its lore point, but from a gameplay view, They feel so incompetent compared to the Octoling soldiers and bosses heck I question why Mr Grizz would choose them over the Salmonoids (I, am glad I am not alone with being disappointed with Splatoon 3 campaign)

(this one is gonna rustle some jimmies, but don't take this the wrong way) The fact is all the Octoling soldiers you fight, use the same model and they all look the same and have no differences. I get it everyone loves the lesbian child soldiers but I think it wouldn't hurt if there was a male model (and there was a male model originally) or at least had different skin tones. (at first, I thought they were all clones, but apparently, they are all different people, I am sorry but I find it hard to believe Marina, agent 8, and Acht were in the same army when they all look the same no matter what rank, including 8 if you make yours a guy and not white) But the fact some have different weapons with different combat styles the elite's only difference is their black hair with seaweed.

I am sorry but when I am shooting trying not to die, I don't know which Octoling is holding which, and the fact it's third person really handicaps my focus. At least the elites have glowing green seaweed but if you removed that, you couldn't tell which one is the elite. I am trying my best to not come across as "There needs to be more boys, girls are icky" but I wish there was more diversity/readability for the Octoling soldiers, I really wish they were the main enemies you fought. If I were to do it. Id make them a mesh between the elites from halo or HECU from black mesa and Zombie Marines from doom the Gunners from fallout 4. There is this mod I have for Black Mesa that adds female/more diverse HECU soldiers. its random every time, but it makes combat/readability so much better. If I am in a combat section with them, I can now easily tell witch ones witch, who is holding witch weapon, witch one is coming to get me and how do I respond.

The elites and Marines from Doom are the perfect example of a "Readability" Zombie marines have a rifle and are slow firing meant to pepper you, the Sargent/shotgun zombies are the upper class meant to keep you aware as one shot at low health and your dead, The chain gunners are the beefy "wake up call" as they have a repeating hit scan attack causing players to be aware of how they move in a area and giving them a target to kill before the other demons. For the new ones "The shock troopers" in the recent expansion "Legacy of Rust" are An upgrade from regular Marines having a plasma rifle attack that they can spam blocking areas and keeping people focused. The gunners from Fallout 4 are not really that special they are just reskinned raiders with a military gimmick, but they provide a good example of the thing Fallout 4 I Like, make every human enemy you fight have a rank/variation, and each gunner though having a template/variation, you feel like you are fighting a skilled solider of that rank and they are unique/different enough, you feel like you're not fighting the same enemy over and over again.

The elites are so barebones and simple, but so effective, in CE, the upper-ranked elites are just a color swap with a weapon change at the top.

This a good video on the topic as it does it better than I can ever do I know these are not the types of games, I assume most splat fans play (I'll provide links and context later on if anyone is interested)

I know that this is a Nintendo game and demographics blah blah blah I'll I'm asking for is little more creativity and I wish that the single-player campaign was given more attention and life as the multiplayer I really think the default campaigns are just not really fun to be honest.

I don't wanna say it's bad or mediocre, as when they have their high points and when you fight the bosses the campaigns start to shine. I say this as a Galaxy fan, but I don't like how they're just islands and feel more like tutorials than actual levels and feel more like cut levels from Mario Galaxy than its own thing.

I am not trying to bring up lore or anything as this is going on long enough and I have a lot to say about the lore.

If you read this far, thank you, know, this is my opinion, and you're not invalid for thinking otherwise, I am just a nerd who likes shooter games and I really like Splatoon, and I feel like it can be even better than it is!

[justawanderingbabbit]

AerIS' (Abstract Experimental Record Information System) latest test subject was the worst. The absolute worst.

If her creators were still alive she'd have had a long talk with them about how to choose their experiments. Independent thinking was all well and good but this one took it to extremes.

He'd started small. Little rebellions here and there. Knocking her cameras off the walls with his gate gun. Forcing her to revive him over and again because he insisted on testing every last fatal possibility. Sitting dead still in the middle of the room after a test, eyes closed, listening intently.

The rebellions got larger. Once he understood that each solved test just led to another. Once he realized that the one thing AerIS would not do was let him go, even through death, he never hesitated. No matter how painful failure was, no matter what she threw at him, he kept getting back up and trying again.

He did give up on her cameras when he realized she could repair them pretty much immediately. Though that meant he was even more annoying, with the side-eyes he'd give her and the little smirks when he thought he'd scored.

He hadn't. He absolutely had not scored. The fact that he'd managed to destroy thousands of her gunners was not infuriating. She had more. She had millions, or could. It was just a matter of time. Once he reached the final test chamber he'd have outlived his usefulness and could be disposed of.

She watched him draw closer. She gloated as he sat himself down in the penultimate chamber and... did whatever it was he did. She waited for him to - inevitably - finish this test and enter the final gate.

Instead he went to the edge of the abyss he was supposed to cross. Leaned over, so far he was sure to fall. Except somehow he managed to cling on and fire his gate gun into nowhere, somewhere down below AerIS' controls, far below her reach.

Then, walking to the other half of the gate, he paused. Looked at her camera. Gave her the finger. Then disappeared through the gate and out of her reach.

It wasn't until months later, when her systems suddenly failed, when everything that made it possible for her to continue locked up and died, did AerIS realize where he'd gone and why.

She was the most powerful computer of her time, with vast resources and abilities. But no computer could operate with power. And Liu Sang - without fear or hesitation - had found his way all the way to the oldest part of her complex.

And literally pulled her plug.

This Portal Pastiche brought to you courtesy of how much Liu Sang's orange jumpsuit resembles Chell's.

[plothooksinc]

“Then we can try again.  But first, I’m done being lenient.” She straightened, eyes gleaming. “There is, after all, one last room I haven’t searched.”

Casey’s breath stuttered to a halt, and she turned to look at him finally.  “You.  You’re the one that closed the portal, aren’t you, boy?  I owe you just as much pain as the blue one.”

“So come inflict it,” he hissed, fingers curling around his grapple gun, desperate to draw her attention away from the med bay. “If it wasn’t for me, they’d never have known how to stop you in the first place.”

“Delightful,” she drawled.  “I don’t think I shall.  In fact… I believe I’ll get him to inflict it for me.”

[bltzgore]

"Pick a god a pray." He sneered.

Praying wouldn't make that gun any less real, wouldn't stop or even slow the flight of a bullet. Wouldn't make his broken ribs ache any less

Nick knew this. He knew this. But it didn't stop him. Quiet mutters started to roll from his lips, eye shutting, chin falling in a bow of reverence drawing a strike of pain from his ribs. Maybe it was the vein hope that something would happen. Maybe it was the comfort brought by the whisps of memories of him praying next to his mother in his early childhood. Maybe it was just that he hoped to distract himself for the instant it would take to shoot him.

He didn't want to die here.

He wasn't picky about who he called out to. He raced through as many names as he could manage. He called out to the storm spirits, the earth father, the lovers, life and death, he tried for the sun goddess, the moon, and even the brother in darkness.

That's when a name slithered into his mind. It was as if someone had knelt down and whispered it to him, as if the heat of their breath still warmed his ear. He didn't waste time thinking about it he just yelled.

"DAMNUS-JICTA!"

He froze as it echoed, drowning out the laughter of his soon to be murderers for just a moment. And he paused to listen as well as think about what had just left his mouth. It wasn't a word he had ever used outside the walls of his own home if he could help it, and for good reason. This word was a cry of the dark ones, a word treated as a swear, an ancient and profane slurry of syllables that demanded vengeance. It was a word, not a name though. Right?

His echo faded away and so did the laughter of the thugs. Everything had gone so quiet, why weren't they speaking? He opened his eyes and let them stay on the ground, looking up might get everything moving again. He started to focus on his ears again, and they still weren't speaking, the wind had stilled, the animals went silent.

What the hell?

It began as sound then movement, but all of it vibration.

It was as if the air around them was rippling, being pressed and bent out until something gave. Then something did. There was a crash that sent the group clamoring to cover their ears and what they saw when they looked back was what looked like reality had turned into a broken window. Their reality had a hole punched through it, like a very messy portal. Through it moved a being that raged like the sea. Aura like rolling waves and crashing like ice. Whoever this was, they were pissed.

They were taller than any human, but that really wasn't what made them so unbelievable. They looked like they were made of fire, smoke, and broken glass of all different colors that caught the light and shone like stars in various directions. The world around them churned until they set what had to be eyes on the thugs.

They raised their hand. The chaos, the rolling smoke and ash like flecks froze. Slowly it collected and rose behind the deity, until it was looming like a great dragon over them all.

They dropped their hand.

The onslaught that rushed forward consumed the thugs. Cutting them to ribbons then the blood and flesh burnt to ash and blew away with the wave. It twisted up into an almost tornado looking structure then dissipated into the sky.

Nick couldn't find the words or the scream or the tears to respond to what he had just witnessed. Instead he looked back at the entity, and swore his heart stopped when they opened their mouth. It had to be their mouth, it had so many teeth. Their voice rushed out booming, it enveloped them.

"You called to me faithful servant. And so I have answered."

Nick threw his forehead to the ground, staying face in the dirt in a revenant bow. Partially because he thought it was most respectful, partially because he didn't think he could handle seeing this thing for much longer without losing it. Slowly he worked the words out of his mouth.

"F-f-faithful servant? I-I don't think we've e-ver met before."

They looked down at him, taking a few steps closer. Their voice changed, as they spoke, going from the rumble that surrounded like a fog down to that whisper he'd heard in his ear minutes before.

"Haven't we? It's I, the one you've spoke for when you stepped between your friend and his tormentor. I, the one you honored when you distracted those thugs from that woman and her daughter. And I you called out to when you lost your sons."

His eyes started to creep up from the ground, peering at them again. It wasn't just a swear, it had once, long ago been a name. A name for-

"I am Damnus, god of justice, and you have done well faithful servant. I would like to reward you."

“Pick a god and pray” they said, and you did, praying to every god you knew. And as you did this a name popped into your mind, one you didn’t recognize, yet you prayed to them all the same. In response the air stood still, like even the world had forgotten their name.

[kallard]

A Bad Plan

As I continued to fall into the dark void, embraced by the vault of the heavens, I sang to the beauty of the stars and made my peace with the darkness.

“Are you sure you want to go through with this?” Kallard’s counterpart asked him, standing next to the spell circle the two of them had spent the last half hour perfecting. Neither of them knew exactly what kind of spell they were about to cast, but they knew of the cost. The spell would require a lot of aether if it were to work properly, and being without aether, the counterpart wasn’t able to help in that regard. So, they kidnapped two random bandits and decided to use them instead.

“Nope,” Kallard said, looking over at his counterpart. “I don’t, but what other options do I have? Not much in this world is going to give a dead man a shot at living a longer life.”

“But you’re not dead.”

“Yet,” Kallard said with a light chuckle, as if the situation wasn’t a matter of life and death. “You just can’t see the clock ticking above my head. I got an end date and it’s not getting any further away.”

“There’s gotta be something on this world that can help your cancer,” the counterpart said, trying to talk some sense into the other Kallard. “Magic, technology. Something better than this.”

“Trust me, I’ve tried. You snuff out one fire and another crops up in two weeks, just as bad as the last one, or sometimes worse. I can’t tell you how many times some hopeful doctor or mage tried to tend to my lungs, only to toss in the towel when the cancer reached a kidney or my fucking brain.”

“Shit, you didn’t tell me it reached your brain,” the counterpart muttered.

“Yeah, and now you know why I want to do this so badly. I got shit I need to do and not enough time to do it. My choices are die or do something incredibly fucked up.”

“Right, let’s do something super fucked up then.”

The two Kallards looked down at the two kneeling men situated in the center of the spell circle. They started to circle around them, inspecting the circle to check for any errors one final time. After staring down at the floor for five minutes, the counterpart backed away from the circle and hid in a dark corner of the room. He dropped down to a squat and lit a cigarette, eager to watch the shit show.

“What the fuck do I do, dance?” Kallard asked himself. “Say a prayer? Fuck man, I don’t know this magic shit. That was all on Cassian.”

“Wait, I have an idea,” the counterpart said as he rose from his squat and strode over to the circle. A pistol was drawn, causing Kallard to draw his own. The two trained their weapons onto the bound and gagged bandits they had stolen away from their camp. “Shoot them in the heart.”

BANG!

The guns fired in unison and the bandits cried out in pain before slumping forward. Fresh blood oozed from the holes in their hearts, ruining the spell circle the two had worked hard to complete. Kallard swore under his breath and the counterpart backed away, sensing something. He ducked down just as a strong gust of wind blew out from the center of the circle, pushing Kallard back a few inches. A hand was brought up to his face, shielding his eyes from the mysterious wind and watched as a portal was ripped open before them.

“Hah! Shit works just like back home, just takes a little blood,” the counterpart said from his corner.

Something or someone strode through the portal, nothing more than a shapeless void with a pair of glowing violet eyes. The creature looked from Kallard to Kallard without making a noise. It then looked down at the two dead bodies and the blood that continued to pour out of them. While the thing didn’t have a face, Kallard could feel it smiling at the violence.

“You have summoned me,” a voice called out from the moving shadow. “Let me guess, you summoned me to make a pact of some sort. Not like you mortals have any other reason to summon one of my kid.”

“Wow, you sure talk a lot of for a being of pure evil,” Kallard told the thing.

“Would you rather I ripped your tongue out and drank your blood? Because I can do that, if that is what you desire. I wouldn’t even charge you anything for it,” the creature said as it finally looked up from the corpses.

While neither of the Kallards could see it, the being was siphoning the aether from the fallen bandits into its body. Its eyes appeared to grow brighter as the aether was drained from the corpses. In just a handful of seconds the bodies were drained husks with no traces of aether left in their bodies.

“What’s your name, voidsent? Surely you have one of those,” Kallard asked the creature as he walked around the spell circle, careful to stay out of grabbing range of the voidsent.

“I have been born more than once, so I have more than one name,” the creature told him. “Time is ticking. One of you better offer me a deal otherwise I’m going to kill the both of you and feast upon your aether.”

“I wish to make a pact with you,” Kallard told the living shadow. “My life for your power. Those two men were but a sample of the carnage I can provide you.”

“You are dying,” the voidsent told Kallard. “Why would I want to give you any power? You’ll squander it away like every other mortal.”

“No,” Kallard said, taking a step closer to the creature. “I aim to misbehave, to reap and to kill as many as I can fucking manage. You want aether? I can give it to you on a regular basis, no questions asked.”

“Hah! Just like that? No games, no tricks?”

“No, no games or tricks. I give you the honest truth. Your power for my life, when I am done with my mission my body is yours to take.”

The creature shot forward, stopping mere inches away from Kallard. He stared up into the abyss and it stared back at him, the malice in its eyes palpable. It looked at Kallard and wanted to rip him in two and to feast upon his entrails. But, it didn’t. Instead the creature took in a deep breath and baked away. Neither of the Kallards could see it, but they both had a hunch this thing would be smiling by now.

“I accept your bargain, Human,” the creature told him, swelling to its full size.

Before anyone could say anything, the voidsent lashed out and took hold of Kallard, gripping him by the neck with one hand. The other hand was raised and went to touch his forehead and instead slipped into his skull and pressing against his sensitive gray matter. He cried out in pain as the creature was sucked into his body through his forehead. Kallard dropped down to his knees and hunched forward, the fingers on his hands twitching and bending at unnatural angles.

Blood began to leak from Kallard’s eyes as he sat there, hunched forward and screaming in pain. He arched his back and stared upward, hands balled into fists. His mouth fell open and stayed there, jaw hanging so wide it looked as if his lower jaw was ready to pop off.

The portal snapped shut and Kallard collapsed forward. His counterpart rushed out of the shadows to grab him before he hit the ground, narrowly avoiding the puddle of blood that had come from the two dead bandits. He gently set the other Kallard down and waited for him to snap out of whatever trance he was currently locked in.

“Fuck,” Kallard said after several minutes of pained silence. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but something felt off deep inside him. It was almost as if a second being had entered his body by force, living deep within him. “That really hurt.”

“Looked like it did. You good?” the counterpart asked.

“Yeah,” Kallard gasped. “I feel fine. I still feel like shit, but I don’t feel any different.”

“You will feel different when I command you to,” a voice said inside Kallard’s skull.

“Oh great. I have a voice in my head,” Kallard said with as much enthusiasm as he could muster.

“What, did you think it would be all fun and games?” Kallard’s counterpart asked him, passing over a lit cigarette.

“No, but I was expecting to at least feel something.”

“Try using my power,” the voice said.

Kallard closed his eyes and focused on the voice and the power behind it. He took in a deep, staggered breath as a chill ran down his spine, feeling as if something was very wrong with his body. Every ounce of his being was screaming out at him, telling him that this was a bad idea. But he didn’t listen, ignoring the raging biology that was his body. He reached out and touched something with his mind and suddenly felt a rush of raw power surge through him, filling every fiber of his body.

A staff formed in the air and Kallard took hold of the weapon, hitting the ground with one end with a dull thunk. He reopened his eyes and watched as a blade formed at one end, a long curving ordeal. The weapon resembled that of a scythe, the voidsent’s preferred weapon.

“Well look at that, you got a scythe now, you edgy cunt,” the counterpart said with a laugh. “Stupid edgy cunt.”

“Fuck off,” Kallard muttered as he looked at the weapon. “I think it’s time we go back home. I know Yuki is absolutely losing her mind with me being gone.”

“Oh, yeah, I’m sure that girl is just fine without any of us around. We’re not exactly good influences.”

“You don’t say?” Kallard asked with a big, shit eating grin.

“Ugh, whatever. Let’s get going. I’m starving.”

------

Kallard cracked the door leading into Yuki’s apartment slightly and peeked inside, making sure she was actually home. He spied her sitting on her floor sofa with a book open on her lap. She looked up when she heard the door open and smiled when both Kallards entered the apartment. Yuki shot up and out of her seat and ran over to the two and threw her arms around her Kallard.

“You’re home!” she said with a wide smile, looking up at her friend. “And you’re still in one piece! I was worried you were going to come home with a missing arm or something.”

“Why would I be missing an arm?” Kallard asked her as he rubbed the top of her head, ruining her hairstyle.

“I’unno! You were gone for so long I just assumed something bad had happened.”

“Nope, I’m still here. I just needed some time away from everything. This fucker found me and the rest is history,” Kallard said with a shrug of his shoulders. “Plus, I spoke to you yesterday over the radio. Wouldn’t I have said something about a missing limb?”

“Maybe? I don’t know! You don’t tell me much, you butt,” Yuki said, headbutting Kallard’s chest with her forehead playfully.

“Yuki, I would have told you if my arm fell off.”

“Well, what did you guys do while you were gone?”

“Oh,” the counterpart said. “We summoned a voidsent.”

“YOU DID WHAT?!”