#the tech similarities and shit would make more sense then too

[pretzel-box]

Idea for a reverse au fic?

Reader gets flashed by a passing Expendable. How would Sebastian (and reader) take it?

REVERSE AU MASTERLIST HERE

PART 6: RIGHT IN SIGHT

Tags: Light jokes, some action, reader and seb encountering a possible enemy

Words: 1,6k

The sterile, metallic halls of the Hadal Blackside stretched out before you and Sebastian as the two of you moved quietly, scavenging for any useful supplies. Despite the ominous setting, the atmosphere between the two of you was light and carefree as always. You tossed jokes back and forth between each other, your banter echoing softly in the cold, dimly lit corridor. It was rare to get moments like this, where the tension of your reality seemed to melt away and you could focus on the cute human right by your side.

“Look, if we don’t find any decent scrap soon, I’m just gonna start decorating our hideout with broken tech. Really give it that ‘desperate survivor’ vibe,” Sebastian quipped, a grin on his face as he glanced over at you. He liked to impress you with his crappy jokes, taking in the way your expression shifts every single time into one of laugher and joy.

You chuckled, your claws lightly tapping against the floor as you sifted through some debris. “Well, at least if we don’t find anything, we can hang up your terrible sense of humor for decoration.”

He shot you a mock-offended look, not expecting such a good comeback. “Wow. Harsh. And here I thought I was your favorite human.”

You smirked, glancing over at him, your sharp, artificial eyes glowing faintly in the low light. “Well, you are my only human, Seb. That makes you both the best and the worst.”

Sebastian laughed, his voice warm, and for a moment, the cold, underwater world around you felt a little less hostile. It was moments like this that reminded you why you stuck together, why despite all the dangers, you and Sebastian had found a strange, unbreakable bond in this twisted place. Human and experiment—survivors, somehow managing to hold onto something normal in the midst of the chaos.

As you continued searching, something caught your attention—a small device partially buried beneath a pile of broken tech. You crouched down, pulling it free and inspecting it. “Hey, think this could be useful?” you asked, holding it up for Sebastian to see.

He moved closer, studying it for a moment. “Maybe. Could be some old keycard or part of another similar thing. We can figure it out back at the shop.” He grinned again, leaning in just a little too close. “Or, you know, it could just be more junk for your decorating project.” His words hitting your ears, giving you a small shiver down your back, one of the good kind.

Before you could retort, a sudden flash of light exploded in the hallway, blinding you instantly. The sharp, searing brightness hit your sensors like a sledgehammer, causing you to stagger back with a sharp cry. You instinctively raised your arms to shield your face, but it was too late—the damage was done.

“Shit!” Sebastian cursed, his voice suddenly serious, filled with panic. He grabbed your arm, trying to steady you. “Hold on, I’ve got you—”

The flash beacon. You knew the feeling all too well. It was a device designed to disable experiments like you, to overload your optical systems and incapacitate you. Your vision flickered wildly, and the surge of light made your entire body feel disoriented, unstable. Whoever it was—they knew exactly how to neutralize you.

“Seb…” you rasped, struggling to regain control of your vision, but it was hard to focus, hard to even stand with your lack of balance. Your body felt like it was shutting down, forced into a state of emergency reboot.

Sebastian tightened his grip on your arm, his eyes darting around the hallway as he scanned for whoever had used the beacon. “Stay with me, okay? Don’t worry. We’re getting out of here,” he said, his voice full of determination. He quickly crouched, grabbing a piece of scrap metal as a makeshift weapon.

Footsteps echoed down the hall, and you both knew that whoever was behind the attack was getting closer. You could feel the weight of the situation pressing down, but you couldn’t help but curse internally—this was supposed to be a routine scavenging trip. A fun, light-hearted break from the usual dangers.

But now, everything had turned dangerous.

“Can you move?” Sebastian asked urgently, his arm slipping around your waist to help you stand.

You groaned, trying to focus through the buzzing in your head. “Yeah... I think so. Just... need a second.”

“We don’t have a second,” he muttered, glancing down the corridor again, his expression grim.

With Sebastian’s support, you managed to take a shaky step, but your body still felt off, uncooperative. It was taking longer than usual to recover, and the frustration gnawed at you. You were supposed to protect him, not the other way around.

“I’m fine,” you insisted, though your voice was shaky, the lie obvious. “Let’s just... get out of here.”

But before either of you could move, another blinding light filled the hallway. You felt Sebastian’s body tense beside you, and through your still-fragmented vision, you could see the silhouette of a figure approaching—whoever they were, they were armed, and they weren’t here to help.

“Stay behind me,” Sebastian whispered, his voice low and tense.

Even in your weakened state, you couldn’t stand the idea of Sebastian putting himself in harm’s way for you. You were the experiment, the one designed to handle danger, not him. But as the figure drew closer, you realized that this time, it wasn’t going to be so easy.

“Seb...” you started, but before you could say anything more, a sound filled the hallway and three red dots pointed at you—a turret, aimed directly at the two of you.

The moment the turret whirred to life, its mechanical sound sent a jolt of adrenaline through your systems. The barrel locked onto you and Sebastian, a low hum signaling that it was ready to fire.

"Seb, get behind me!" you shouted, your voice cutting through the chaos.

Sebastian didn’t hesitate, ducking behind a pile of debris as you moved toward the turret. You felt your senses returning bit by bit, the effects of the flash beacon still present but waning. The danger of the turret, however, forced your mind into sharp focus.

The mysterious figure, cloaked in shadows, smirked before glancing up at the vent near the floor. They were quick, nimble, and clearly had the upper hand in this situation. You knew they were planning to escape, but you couldn’t focus on them right now—not with the turret locked onto you both.

The turret's motor clicked, and you heard it ready to fire. You dove behind a nearby crate as it began unleashing a barrage of bullets, pinging off the walls and scattering bits of metal everywhere.

“Damn it,” you muttered under your breath. You peeked out from behind the crate, your eyes locking onto the base of the turret. You could see it—a control panel just beneath the rotating barrel. If you could just reach it, you might be able to disable the turret before it turned Sebastian or you into scrap metal.

“I’ll cover you!” Sebastian shouted, grabbing a nearby chunk of debris and tossing it toward the turret. It clanged off the barrel, momentarily redirecting its attention.

Now’s your chance.

You launched yourself out from behind the crate, hurrying toward the turret as it recalibrated its aim. The whir of the barrel grew louder, and you could feel the heat of the bullets whizzing past you, narrowly missing as you zigzagged toward the base. Your claws dug into the ground as you slid to the control panel, your fingers immediately working to pry it open.

Out of the corner of your eye, you saw the figure climbing into the vent, the grating pulled aside. They paused for a split second, glancing back at you and Sebastian, a look of triumph in their eyes. Then, with one swift movement, they disappeared into the vent, the cover sliding back into place.

“No time to worry about them now,” you growled, focusing on the control panel in front of you. The wires were a mess of colors, tangled and confusing, but you didn’t have the luxury of being careful. The turret’s barrel shifted again, locking back onto you, and you knew you had seconds before it would fire.

With a sharp inhale, you jammed your claw into the circuitry, pulling a handful of wires free. Sparks flew, and for a moment, the turret seemed to stall. Its motor whirred in confusion, the barrel twitching as if trying to re-engage its targeting system. You ripped another cluster of wires loose, praying you hit the right ones.

Suddenly, the turret powered down with a groan, the barrel slumping to the side as its lights blinked out. The hallway fell into a heavy silence, the echo of the gunfire still lingering in your ears.

You exhaled in relief, leaning back against the wall as your systems tried to calm down from the sudden burst of activity.

Sebastian emerged from behind the debris, wide-eyed and impressed. “Holy crap, you did it.”

“Yeah,” you breathed, wiping the back of your hand across your forehead. “But they got away.”

Sebastian glanced up at the vent, frowning. “Figures. Whoever they were, they knew this place too well. But I’m not worried about them right now.”

He crouched down next to you, his expression softening. “You alright? That was a close one.”

You managed a tired grin. “Takes more than a turret to take me down. But I must admit, I was almost as pierced as a slice of cheese.”

He chuckled, giving you a pat on the shoulder. “Good to know. Let’s just hope there aren’t more surprises like that waiting for us. Also…a cute slice of cheese.”

The compliment made you break into a smile despite the thoughts in your head.

As you both stood and began to gather yourselves, you couldn’t shake the lingering thought of the figure who had escaped. They were fast, resourceful, and clearly knew how to navigate the facility. But right now, your priority was survival.

[bubbleddisasters]

So I just had this Idea

Malleus, Idia and Che’nya fighting all out.

Ok, before anyone starts glazing on Malleus and saying he’d win: Put who their twisted from into perspective:

Maleficent was the most powerful fae.

Hades is a god. One of the big 3, to be precise.

The Cheshire Cat is canonically the second most powerful being in wonderland, second to only the literal human form of time.

They are all God Tier in their respective lore.

Most people know the other two’s abilities, but incase you may not know :

Cheshire Cats Abilities, include:

Shapeshifting and Vocal/Visual/Physical Manipulation, Invisibility, Long Range Image Projection, Long Distance Teleportation, Flight, Gravity Manipulation on self, Minor Reality Manipulation, Portal creation, Walking through walls, Body and Limb controlled detachment, etc.

Hades abilities include:

General God Abilities, Raising the Dead, Smoke control, access to cursed objects, high heat tolerance, physical size manipulation, pretty much alot of shit, more then I can name since, y’know, god.

Maleficents abilities include:

Plant, Flame, Weather and Lightning manipulation, secondary form (Dragon), fatal long term curses, long distance teleportation, animal communication, long distance location monitoring, flight, eternally serving cunt, etc.

Now, obviously, their twisted versions are different, so what are the twisted versions KNOWN capabilities?

Mal’s strong suit seems to be mostly nature based abilities, Lightning, Fire, Briars, etc and Sleepy time shenanigans. However, he is also capable of turning into a Dragon, which gives him a huge physical buff, but makes him much easier to hit. All fae share the same fatal weakness of Anti-Magic, as Magic is canonically their life source. Thats Idias forte. Che’nya also has a mindset and skillset similar to Lilias, minus the experience and training. He also has rapid fire teleportation and invisibility, plus cat senses, making him extremely hard to strike with lightning.

Out of these 3 however, he definitely has the most durability and Defense.

Idias strong suit is tech, which Mal is most definitely unfamiliar with, but also has access to extremely high tier ANTI MAGIC. Che’nya stands at an advantage of being able to go invisible, teleport, and likely having more creative and efficient methods of blocking vital sensors or heat signatures, but I unfortunately doubt Mal would think of that. Briar Valley is EXTREMELY low tech. Mal does have the intimidation factor on Idia, but if this situation somehow involves Ortho’s safety, that goes straight out the window, as seen in Book 7. We also nearly never see Idia use magic, so we don’t exactly have a good handle of what he’s capable of in that regard.

Unfortunately, Idia is a glass cannon due to his low physical abilities and stamina, leaving him likely needed a heavy defense system to not get tossed.

Che’nya is truly the wild card in this scenario, since unlike the other two, unless they bothered Trey or Riddle for information, the other two don’t know much about his abilities. Like Malleus, considering what we know (I wrote it somewhere on tumblr), he has extreme magical stamina and produces jack shit in blot (no magestone can be seen on his design too) while doing crazy ass shit, and as shown in the manga, since he was a kid too. Comparing that to Roros brother, and the bullshit Che’nya was pulling as a kid while still being alive, he’s most definitely some flavor of overpowered.

Given what we’ve seen and heard about him across the manga and game, this is a portion of what we can assume is in his skillset:

Rapid fire (and long distance) teleportation, Long term Invisibility, flexibility, flight, Gravity Manipulation (making himself near weightless without floating off into oblivion) Cat like senses, Limb and Body part controlled detachment, the ability to slip past NRC’s barrier like its an average Tuesday. The barrier that took several high powered shots from STYX to break. With little to no repercussions from what we’ve seen.

He’s also (likely) a creative and unpredictable fighter. I think mentioned/said somewhere by Riddle or someone else that they doesn’t believe invisibility is Chens UM.

Riddle, I love you babes, you were my first fully spell maxed card, but NO FUCKING SHIT DUDE.

Idias advantage is deadass: Cat knowledge. Is using partially genetic traits a low blow? Yea, but again, this is an All out 1v1 fight. Obviously not laser pointers or basic shit, but things like Sound Pitches. Theres also Heat Sensors and things like that to combat invisibility, but those can also be thwarted.

Mals advantage is experience with Lilia in terms of matching high speeds, and combating against tricks and sneak attacks, Dragon senses + his Defensive capabilities. However, as a more straight forward person, Mal may not think of the more creative strategies Chen (or Idia) may come up with. Even if he traps Chens leg or something in Briar, he could just pop his leg off and keep moving.

Che’nya is more of a high speed self sufficient DPS but with the right weakness targeting he could be taken down.

I didn’t put Leona or Lilia on here because Lilia… Lets be real : Lilia would most definitely whoop all of their asses unless he gets hit with Anti Magic too many times.

The other is I’m sorry Leona, you’re a total badass and an amazing fighter, but you might be a tad out of league on alot of mostly circumstantial situations.

Starting off : Che’nya : He’s also a Cat, and nobody knows your genetic weaknesses like your own kind, plus Sand Blinding is great until bro disappears too.

Considering Leona is a pretty kickass fighter and strategist, plus can actually somewhat hold his own against Malleus, it’s going to be a decently tough fight, but in the end, I think Che’nya might secure the win sheerly due to being able to overcome Leonas UM in a few ways, even from a point blank standpoint.

A limb being turned to sand? Detach that shit, can’t spread further if it’s not attached anymore. He could also fly upwards out of the sandstorm but that ain’t as fun.

I’m just imagining Leona whipping up a sandstorm and going in to ambush Che’nya only for that mf to be GONE. (He’s right behind him bout to FNAF jumpscare this)

Theres a slim chance he may also lose to Idia sheerly because if its an all out scenario (i’m being nice and giving them all whatever requirements if they need it for atleast one use of their UM so its fair) , Idia can quite literally open the gates to hell and unlike the other two, Leona cannot fly without a broom, so uh, enjoy the drop?

Without that though, I do actually fully believe Leona might win, but with an Anti Magic nerf possibility on the field, its not exactly set in stone.

I don’t think I need to explain Malleus. So therefore I won’t.

Again, this is mostly just my thoughts, nothing is canon here, just me wondering about the possibilities! If theres any information that I missed let me know :D

(Leona fans please don’t hurt me I don’t hate him I promise I’m just going of logic from what I know.)

[niphredil-14]

hey so how do you think the rottmnt leo, raph and don would deal with having a s/o with a ticklish, sensitive neck. They always wear a cute scarf in winter and in summer it is a cute choker. S/o loves physical touch, but they kept it a secret that they’re neck is sensitive (kind of like Donnie’s shell being hard but it’s sensitive against touch and textures so he keeps it covered to be comfortable). But like the boys don’t figure that out until one day they cuddled, normal cuddle session as usual and the boys nuzzle s/o neck that is not covered up for a change and s/o just starts giggling and falls out of bed reflexively to get away from what touched their neck or wrap an arm around their shoulder and their hand touches s/o’s not covered neck and s/o just giggle fits, yelps, freaks out and jumps away? (If Leo blows a raspberry, he’s gonna get punched by accident ).

oof this hit close to home, people truly don't understand how absolutely torturous it is to be so ticklish. shit hurts

Donnie:

Donnie would undoubtably be the most understanding of your sensitivity, seeing it as a similarity to his soft shell. There's a part of you that is more sensitive, and so you guard it, it makes perfect logical sense, again, he does the same thing for his softshell. He would respect your boundaries, and not touch your neck, he may even make you some kind of tech-y choker necklace, which would probably include features such as a tracker (it is Donnie, after all), and maybe even some kind of shock that would only affect the person trying to invade your space, it would never shock you.

Leo:

Takes full advantage of this. You have a weak spot, and he will be utilizing it. There's no real malice in his intentions, and he probably thinks that he's being funny. He knows that he's gonna get hit when he tickles you, but he does it anyway, it's all part of his plan. 1. He (tickle) attacks 2. You slap the ever loving shit out of him 3. He plays up his reaction, and pretends that he's in more pain than he actually is in order to get your pity, and have you dote on him. Rinse and Repeat. Though I feel like if he realized that he did, in fact, take it too far, he would be really sorry about it, and would try to make it up to you.

Raph:

Raph is another one who I feel wouldn't push your boundaries. He is such a softie, and he's overly aware of his size, and how threatening he can come across as. The absolute last thing he would ever want is to make you uncomfortable. And he would go so far as to act as your bodyguard, not letting anyone touch your neck! If he accidently brushes your neck, and you react strongly, he will be so sorry, even if you giggle. He knows that you don't like for your neck to be touched, and he will probably cry and spend the next week trying to make it up to you.

[dysfunctional-doodle]

YPI PROJECT BEAT MY ASS AND I’M SUPER TIRED BUT THE TOO MANY TURTLES COMMENTARY GRIND NEVER STOPS ‼️‼️💯💯💯

betrayal…. (playing uno is 100% more worth your time than patrol, can confirm, best game ever, played a game with 20 people in a german exchange (but it was kinda quick since we only had one pack of cards and. well. 20 people))

HELL YEAH, WE’RE MAKING PROGRESS!!!!! (i have a feeling this might get a bit angsty…)

😭😭😭😭 (speech to text is really annoying i get the struggle)

y’know, of all the turtles to slander clothes, i didn’t think it’d be him

god noooo the feels 😭😭 (i never quite experienced the bad-teacher side of the neurodivergent experience (my physics teacher was crazy supportive despite the fact i never scored higher than a 40% in his class) but i would get a loooottttt of shit from classmates,,,,,,, sucks ass i feel for mm mikey)

gotta keep expanding your horizons!

ok but. of all the turtles………

love it when this happens

taking action! (also hold on 2012 mikey is an adult in his timeline???)

sighhhh i hope tech stays with the mikeys forever because their dynamiccccc 😭😭😭

not sure if i’m ready for the angst that is most likely coming our way. BUT i’m excited for it

Happy you liked my insane rambles again!

Referring to what you said about teachers, I have personally had some struggle throughout school with the way they teach things which I kind of use to write the issue mm mikey is having, very loosely. Though I don’t have a neurodivergency diagnosed (though a lot of people have kind of told me that I most definitely probably have big ADD or something similar rattling in the old noggin so idk) I learn much differently to what schools want. I am a very hands on learner, and really struggle with visual/auditory classes. It’s like being told how to write a good story but not actually doing it - I just tune out, or it is difficult to get it to “click” unless I explain it to myself in a weird way that actually makes much more sense to me. Once this “click” happens it’s great, I have no issues, but I have a lot of questions and thoughts that others don’t get prior to this point that I’ve unfortunately been disregarded for, as my teacher just didn’t want to explain and deemed me as stupid and needing extra classes because I didn’t learn in the same way. Not to brag but I’m pretty intelligent without even studying so this was a slap in the face for me.

So yeah, I kinda based at least some elements on this experience, though obviously a lot is also made up/fictionalised.

Wow that was a ramble

Anyway, you also mentioned Mikey’s age? I don’t think I’ve ever properly written down the ages outside of a discord I am in that talks about this fic, oops. In short, the timelines are not linear, but rather dotted around the place. A breakdown:

1987 are the ones where I’m not 100% sure on what to age them as, but I imagine around 17 - 19, all the same age

Rise boys are about 6 months - a year after the events of the movie

2012 are about 20 - 22, a few years after their final series (with Mikey being an extra 2 years ahead due to Dimension X)

2007 are what I believe are their cannon ages at 21? Takes place a few months after their 2007 movie (I also consider the 90s movies to be from the same universe due to the details present in 2007)

2003 are a few years after the crossover movie, making them the oldest at around 25 (Mikey being 24 due to him being a few months or so younger when they were sold)

Mutant mayhem boys are literally a couple of weeks after their movie

Bayverse boys are a year after their second movie

Hopefully that clears things up a little :)

[luna-rainbow]

Thanks again for answering my ask and sorry to bombard you with these.

I absolutely agree with you about Bucky and Zemo on TFatWS. This might be long as I have so many thoughts about this. The series seems to fail to understand T'Calla wasn't just someone who helped Bucky although he was of course. He was his friend. The movies don't get everything right with Bucky but I think Bucky and T'Calla's relationship is one of the high points. We don't see them much but when you do you can tell Bucky respected T'Calla immensely and not just because he's a King. He seems to be really genuinely fond of Shuri as well, asking her to call him Bucky instead of the formal Sargeant Barnes.

I know I said it before, but the Wakandans are his friends/his protectors/his adoptive family. He is not just some white guy with colonialist arrogance who expects favours from the African State. If anything its the other way around- he fought because he felt he owed T'Calla and his family a debt.

As such- I do not think he would ever have helped the person who killed T'Callas father. Yes he didn't know T'Chaka, but that is his friend's father. Its like if he found out someone killed Steve's mother and worked with them. Like slapping his friend in the face, and I can't see him doing that.

Also, finally can we talk about how the show robbed us of the emotional impact of T'Challa's death on Bucky? He's sad about Steve leaving but I firmly believe would have grieved for T'Calla too. He's lost not one but two of his best friends within a very short space of time, so he's got grief alongside all his other problems to deal with. Don't know how that man managed to stay sane. Well relatively sane and didn't have a complete breakdown.

Thanks for all the asks!

I love the idea that T'Challa and Bucky had a strong bond. I agree I think Ryan Coogler intended in that short post-credit scene to show that Wakandans have accepted Bucky as part of the family.

The kids are peering down curiously at him as he sleeps, and he doesn't startle, nor does he startle them when he wakes. There's a high degree of mutual trust there. He lives in their community, not in a boxed off high tech room like the one where he was put to sleep. They dressed him in their ethnic clothing and colour-coded it to match Steve. Someone tied (and probably combed) his hair for him when he didn't have a prosthesis. Someone has folded a blue shawl and tied it into a pretty sling to protect the stump of his arm. This is the image of a guy that was being well looked after -- not just in an impersonal, we gotta keep him alive kind of way, but in a what can we do to make his life better kind of way, and if that isn't some sort of family I don't know what is.

I mean...compare with this costume...that looks like some random sweatshirt from some sports brand worn backwards with the extra fabric pinned and pulled over tautly over his right shoulder, complete with the soft elastic cuffs and the weird neckline. Coogler put more effort into a 30 second cameo than TFATWS did for one of Bucky's most emotionally poignant scenes in a series where he's the main character. Sorry I'm never going to pass on an opportunity to shit on the series.

And like yeah, while I don't ship T'Challa and Bucky (I really like T'Challa with Nakia in the MCU), I think they're an underrated dynamic. They strike me as somewhat similar in temperament? Both peace-loving, respectful and compassionate guys, who have a strong sense of loyalty and a fierce streak when someone they love is hurt. And both Bucky and T'Challa are older brothers to younger sisters, and they both have that oldest kid sense of weary responsibility. And for someone who was broken out of 70 years of brainwashing by being reminded of a promise he made, Bucky clearly has a strong sense of loyalty and responsibility.

So yeah, it makes no sense to me that Bucky would actively do something so personally hurtful, so disloyal and irresponsible to T'Challa, without adequate justification.

As for the mourning, yeah. At the time they didn't know how Coogler was planning to write T'Challa out of the story, so that might be why the mourning wasn't in there. To be honest, Bucky's feelings about Steve was handled poorly too. As I've mentioned before, the series avoids actually addressing how Steve's departure played out. Sam and Bucky are sad about Steve's absence, but never talk about the hurtful way Endgame!Steve abandoned both of them, which is far more emotionally relevant. They talk about him as though he had died in a noble sacrifice, not dumped the world on them and went to mess up someone else's timeline.

[bcolfanfic]

spare...spare more details about young vets curt and ken becoming parents?

yesss. have been meaning to!

they both know somewhere in their heads that they want kids, but curt esp kinda talks himself in circles about it.

grew up in a very chaotic home with an abusive father and similar to gale he just has a lot of "what if i turn into my dad" anxiety

they go the surrogacy path and i don't think i ever actually pinned down *why* but. i think it would make sense if they had an almost-adoption fall through and were just...a little too rattled by all that to potentially put themselves through it again.

re: parentage they do the thing talked about in this article where they both ~donate~ and it'll work out however it works out. neither of them have super strong feelings about it either way so whatever happens happens (:

and it happens that (a) the embryo that ends up getting transferred is curt's bby and (b) it splits (: surprise twins (:

lmfao both boys about hit the floor when they get that news. curt goes full pale as a piece of paper mode and almost passes out and ken is just kinda. standing there in shock.

it's silly but i loveee the idea of them pulling something like in those viral videos from over the years ie not telling anyone outside of maybe curt's mom that its twins until the babies are born.

gale and bucky facetiming to see them and going gaga over curt w/ one lil baby but then oh hi ken- wait why do you have a baby too????

bucky lossesss his mind lmfao. in a very affectionate way but. can't belieb it. remembers all the shit him and curt got up to in tech school and when they were both enlisted and god now both of em have kids??? crazy stuff!

the girls are named meadow and bry/bryony. meadow after the sopranos (curt's choice) and bry to stay in line with the naturey theme (ken's choice)

by this point ken's kids soccer coaching thing manifested itself into a full time elementary/middle school athletics department job. so he does that, and curt still does the personal trainer thing but he works for himself so he can schedule around staying home with the girls when they're itty bitty.

was so scared shitless of being a dad after his own childhood, and hell after all his shit from the war too. which seeing john with josie and micah helped him push past in a lot of ways <3. because if john can overcome and be *such* a good dad, hey maybe i wouldn't be terrible at it.

but he loves those girls so so much. has a lot of moments just lookin at their lil faces and hearing them following him around the apartment and getting all (,: because he can't believe they're his.

meadow ends up verrry much like him and bry like ken. they try to put *both* girls in soccer when they're little which bry takes to like a fish to water. but meadow just kinda plops down in the grass and cries lmao. bless her heart.

they're both *such* good kids too which makes em laugh sometimes because curt was...a handful and a half to the extent that he was worried he might get some karma thrown his way for that.

his mama kinda ribs him about it and says the lord gave him a pass on that because he's been through enough.

well at least until meadow and croz's oldest boy jj get involved which causes soooo much drama but. that needs to be its own separate post. (tldr: she's a senior in college and he's 29 pushing 30 lmao it's only like an 8 year age gap and rationally perfectly fine, but curt as you can imagine is um. not of that mind at first lmfao jj run!!!)

ken is such a good dad too. never in a billion years imagined back when him and curt first got involved that *this* would be their life but he's so happy. is such a jabberbox when he first goes back to work tellin' everyone everything and showing them pictures.

[soleminisanction]

I kinda joked about this a few weeks ago, but the more I think about it, the more convinced I become that the Bad Kids are Pathfinder 2e characters trapped in a Dungeons & Dragons 5e world.

Gonna start with Riz here because he's the one who put the idea in my head in the first place. Riz Gukgak and his parents are clearly closer in concept and design to the green, sneaky, tech-and-fire loving Pathfinder Goblins than they are the yellow, burly mobs of the official D&D goblins. (This is probably because most of the art you find when you google "Dungeons & Dragons goblins" is actually of Pathfinder goblins.) Riz also uses guns, weapons which are uncommon but well-established in Pathfinder, but barely exist at all in D&D.

Most importantly, Riz is fundamentally an Investigator, which exists as its own class in Pathfinder but not in D&D. You know what other classes D&D doesn't have? Oracle and Swashbuckler. The former of which is mechanically way closer to the way Brennan already plays Adaine's oracle powers narratively (and has its own built-in narrative hook to play with, a curse), while the latter has entire fighting styles built around dance and makes you a more effective fighter the more you show off.

For Gorgug you have to dig a little into the gritty details, because Barbarian is a class shared by both systems, but the big one is that unlike D&D, Pathfinder has actual technology rules. Non-magical technology rules, so taking on the Artificer equivalent, the Inventor, as an archetype wouldn't have had that particular synergy problem. There's also a feat, Adopted Ancestry, that would give him mechanical access to culture-based gnome feats to reflect his upbringing with his adopted parents.

Similarly, with Fig, Bards exist in both games (Warlocks don't, but multiclassing into Hexblade is mechanically similar to taking the Magus archetype) but you know what doesn't, RAW? Tieflings that are also elves, because of how D&D's races work. In Pathfinder, however, the tiefling equivalent (nephilim, specifically hellspawn) are a versatile heritage, a secondary template that can be applied to any ancestry, so "elf hellspawn nephilim" is legal RAW. And it's something where you can choose how much of that heritage is expressed in your character's appearance so, again, the mechanics line up better with the narrative re: it only being something she learned about later in life.

Finally, you've got Kristen, who is, on paper, the one who fits comfortably in either game -- a human cleric. But I will attest that, given what she's capable of, she's not just a human cleric. Given the shit Kristen has pulled off over the last three seasons, I maintain that she would be best represented by, at bare minimum, taking the archetype for the upcoming Exemplar class (playtested last year and releasing officially in War of the Immortals, Oct 2024), the only rare class in Pathfinder 2e because they're meant to be literal, actual demi-gods, legendary heroes on the same level as Hercules, Gilgamesh, Cú Chulainn and Maui. It's a class designed to essentially break the game in select ways to make the players feel awesome (hence why it's rare, so GMs can restrict access if they choose), and well. Tell me that doesn't sound like Kristen Applebees.

So yeah, there's the rational behind my crack theory that makes way too much sense: the Bad Kids are Pathfinder characters. Or growing up to be Pathfinder characters. Something like that.

[rubra-wav]

I know your read are closed, so you can delete this if you want or save for later but what about Vox x reader who is INCREDIBLY similar to him

-🦋anon

(Yes it is and official now. You also got me into Vox and I love him and his toxicity<3)

[ Entry #11 ] Vox with a reader who's incredibly similar to him

A/N Split into 2 parts because I have different thoughts on this one 🙏

Also some of these go into different posts I've made with headcanons and posts I'm gonna make atsp so yeah.

I strongly believe that option 2 is the best type of partner for someone like Vox.

CW: SFW, gn!reader, this is written with romantic relationships with him in mind but platonic in section 2 would also really work ngl

Someone exactly like him

- Exactly like him?

- He would actually hate you straight up.

- That's not in a self depreciating Vox actually hates himself way either-

- He wants constant power and control over everything and everyone.

- So someone trying to do the same? That would piss him off and honestly just make him try fight you into submission.

- Because if you're exactly like him, you would be trying to do the same to everyone, including him.

- I also get the sense that he wouldn't like someone like himself because dude needs to feel individual and special or his ego shatters to a million pieces lmao.

- So someone who's got the exact same personality, mask, motivations, even issues as him is an instant fuck no.

- He's very likely got a pathological fear of being replaced due to being an older tech demon (constantly trying to change his parts to be new and the best there is), so someone who's exactly like him, as maladaptive and parasitic to everything and everyone is instantly going to have him feeling threatened.

- May even try to pull a 'there can only be one' and possibly try to take you out over that. Especially if you're gaining notoriety at all.

- If you're just some random, he will probably just scoff and hypnotise you to stay tf away from him. May also try to shackle you into a contract under him because it gets his sadistic ass off to exercise power over those he deems a potential threat.

- The thing about being fake is also that fake usually knows fake. Shitty people see other shitty people. Especially when that shittiness is similar, let alone the same.

- He would be able to see through your shit, and you would likely be able to see through his too which would terrify him.

- He has his mask of perfection over his mask of being a total asshole to stave off anyone who scratches below the surface, and that sits over the actually vulnerable person he is under everything.

- So you being able to see that he's fake is instantly going to have him gunning to take you out or silence you in some way.

- Not to mention, he doesn't want to see his own flaws as being flaws. He needs to be seen as perfect (both by others but also himself) and deludes himself into thinking he's a God amongst men just waiting to become even more powerful then he already is.

- So having someone who is an exact mirror of not only his false presentation he puts out but also every single terrible, shameful thing about him?

- That would be absolutely chilling for him.

- I also say this because someone who's the exact same as him wouldn't want to change or better themselves at all either. I'll elaborate on why I mention this in the next section.

Someone who is like him but not an exact copy of him / or who was exactly like him but is recovered

- I think that a lot of the above would still apply, however, it would be less to the point that you would actually be an extremely desirable partner for him.

- In the beginning he'd absolutely still see you as a threat and try to avoid you/bring you down to a lesser position of power then him.

- But if you manage to get him over that with you?

- Yeah he's gonna be into a relationship with you.

- Vox needs a partner who can push him to change, to actually love him properly, but also satisfy his need to fight/ feel like he needs to win in the relationship and actually fight back against him on an equal playing field.

- A partner who's gunning for control and power but like. To a less extreme point, then what he goes at with devaluing the other person completely in that process would be something he's into.

- It's extremely entertaining to him to have rivalry in a partner, so if you are also publicly at odds with one another on the outside?

- Yeah, he's gonna be going crazy about it.

- Even better if he's losing the public rivalry.

- He will complain like an absolute bitch but the more you take his power - perceived or not - over you and your actions away from him, the more you're going to ease him into trying to mend his bs.

- Again, equal playing field is what's important. If he doesn't see his partner as an inherent equal then that's gonna be bad for obvious reasons, you being alike to him in several ways would level that more/make it easier to level.

- Also its good because if you've already managed your own similar/ former same behaviours, then you already have an idea of what direction and buttons to push with him to get him doing better.

- You would have a better chance at easing him into recovery to actually change rather then the chance that he'll pretend to change to manipulate you, or that he'll just push back out of spite because it feels like you're trying to control him.

- It's not all the same dealing with more complicated bad behaviour, of course, but it does certainly give you more of an idea of what will work as to what won't that other partners who are unlike him wouldn't have.

I kinda went more analysis here then overall warmth/drabble - sorry if that's what you more wanted 😭 I was just very excited to analyse this idea.

Masterlist

[jumpscaregoose]

leans casually on the wall. hi. if possibly could i know about the theories you have rn for the rtl groups trap reactions….👁️👁️

I can give you like.... 75% of one??? I guess???

I've been staring at kenta's character page for the past 40+ minutes trying to figure out what his deal is and I thinkkkkkkk I might be on to something? I've got nothing for anyone else this little shit is my area of expertise

mostly I've been staring at these bad boys

the meanings of the first and last ones is pretty easy to figure out, "a dangerous mind" is probably referring to his programming skills/being a little bitch and "what kind of a joke is trust" obviously means his cynical attitude towards interpersonal relationships

such as this line from the opening show look at me point proof explanationing

"hands that pulled away" is interesting though

I'll include that the google-translated version of the official website lists these for the tags in english

and while the dog pun in "unleashed hands" does not escape me, I feel like "hands that pulled away" is probably more accurate (and is more interesting)

to me, the easiest way to interpret these tags together is as a chain of causality, with "a dangerous brain" causing "hands that pulled away" causing "what kind of a joke is trust"

translating that out of nonsense talk, I'm imagining that kenta's trust and interpersonal issues were caused by someone, either a caregiver or circle of peers, "pulling away" from him in response to his "dangerous brain"

we can actually verify this, or a similar event, through the timeline:

specifically, this entry:

it's clear that this event was what led him to take up programming, and that his opinions on other people were mostly solidified by age 8 (although the exact nature of the virus he created is vague, it's easy to assume it wasn't one you'd make while worrying about other people. we've all recently seen what massive international tech issues can do)

this is the most concrete theory I can think of based on the information available but while I have your captive attention I'd like to pose a similar question-

-when the HELL did he get his phantometal?

this was where my train of thought went after staring at that webpage for so long

certainly, there's no way he received it before entering the prison system. it does make sense that phantometal would be circling within prisons, especially considering how... weird the one we see is.

again this is where MORE DETAILS would be appreciated, GCREST/AVEX

mostly, I propose a chicken-and-egg problem: do you obtain phantometal from succeeding in prison rap, or do you succeed in prison rap because you have phantometal?

also, the exact timeline of prison rap rankings is. nonexistent. HOWEVER, we can again use the timeline to make inferences. it's mentioned that he begins posting tracks online at age 13. given how the prison operates (and the tidbits I know about real life) it's highly unlikely he would have access to a computer for long enough periods to produce and upload music without the preferential treatment given to those at the top of prison rap. therefore, I posit that this prison rap success occurred around age 13.

we also know that possessing phantometal was a qualifying requirement for participation in rtl, so this narrows down our timeline ever so slightly

in my mind, the most likely circumstances for kenta to acquire his phantometal are the chicken-and-egg solutions from above, which places the final date near the one we established for prison rap, around age 13

I have a few ideas as to how he got it, but I'm gonna keep those under wraps for future evil purposes

but that's just a theory

a-

no I'm not doing it it's too easy

and cut

[uwubeggar]

Idk how to do the "under the cut" thing, so I'll just say, Bad Batch Season 3 latest episodes spoilers below, peeps. You've been warned.

Ok I gotta say it, I think mystery clone that everyone thinks is Tech is a clone of Crosshair. It's a little weird to think of a clone of a clone, but I mean... it makes way more sense based on the way these two latest episodes have been structured.

Clearly they are putting a lot of emphasis on the mystery clone because he is important, meaning, he has to be someone we would recognize. The mind immediately goes to Tech, but, I mean, it really doesn't make any sense. If Tech is alive and being used by the empire, then why would he be a commando clone? Wouldn't he be used as a think-tank kind of thing like what happened to Echo? I don't want them to use that same set up again, but it makes a lot more sense than tech suddenly becoming the ultimate super soldier sniper. Not saying Tech isn't good at that stuff, but it very much isn't his forte.

This leads me into my main point, he's a sniper. They put him in situations that he solves by being a really good shot, AND they create a cinematic parallel between him and Crosshair by giving them multiple one-on-one fights.

He carries a rifle, shoots down ships, he hit the captured clone in the heart from across the room in one shot. He also has the same kind of scope as crosshair does, which doesn't necessarily mean anything because other clones (Rex being one) have the scope too, however, cutting to the scope pov to show the shot and (literal) crosshair has been Crosshair's thing. In fact the show shows both Crosshair and the Mystery clone in that pov in these two episodes.

The mystery clone also seems to know who Crosshair is, which could just be from Crosshair's time in the program. But then why does the mystery clone make it sound so personal? And yet Crosshair doesn't seem to recognize him back? The mystery clone is also extremely impulsive and does not follow orders very well, yet he very much thinks he is superior to everyone. Then he justifies it by going for the mission objective at all costs. One could gather this from the way he defies/ignores Wolffe, attempts to take on the entire batch by himself, and kills other clones without mercy, almost as if he has something to prove.

Not only are his battle tactics similar to Crosshair, but his mannerisms overall mirror him as well. He barely talks, he does stare downs, and he has a low gravely voice. Something tells me that even after re-education Tech wouldn't change every single one of his mannerisms. At least I would hope he wouldn't, because that would suck.

Anyway, I might be wrong. I might be coping because Tech winter soldier sounds stupid to me. I do think Tech isn't out of the picture whether he is alive, or dead but relevant to the plot, I think he'll be back. I hope it isn't this guy tho cuz that shit doesn't make sense.

I mean, no offence but Tech is not exactly the character I would point to when I think about who was most emotionally damaged by Crosshair. I'd say that was Hunter or maybe Wrecker and we've already been shown those conflicts in season 3.

Edit:

Gotta add that I just realized the captured clone from the beginning of the episode recognized Crosshair... whether that only means Crosshair has more to do with this than we thought, or...maybe, just maybe, emphasis on maybe, there is a literal Crosshair double walking around.

[sarandipitywrites]

Happy WBW, Saran!

Please pretend it's Wednesday, because I just found a single spoon on the floor and am gonna use it before it's gone: So your DRDW is based on a video game I know absolutely nothing about. How much of the game did you keep? Is it the same setting, same world, or something new?

Happy WBW, Elli!

"I found a single spoon on the floor" is such a mood though (I'll get to your other asks at some point, I promise - this just looked like one I actually had the brainpower to answer lol)

The quick answer to this is that the essentials (characters, setting, magic system, some plot beats) are there, but very heavily changed and expanded upon, to the point that I don't actually think you'd need to know anything about the games to understand what's going on in DRDW. The long answer is... a lot longer lol

(Putting the rest of this under a read more for spoilers for a 20-year-old game and because infodump mode was activated)

The Jak & Daxter game series is - and i say this with all the love in my heart - completely fucking bonkers. In summary: in the first game, Daxter (a human) falls into a pool of Evil Magic (dark eco) and turns into an orange otter-weasel-thing, which sends Jak on a quest to change him back. While they don't succeed at changing Daxter back, they do find a time machine (?!) which they take into the future, where Jak is promptly arrested and subjected to magical mad science experiments and injected with dark eco (this is the start of the second game). This does not, notably, turn him into an orange otter-weasel-thing, but does give him the ability to turn into a demon (and anger issues. It also gives him anger issues). He then uses these powers to overthrow the dystopian future government and save a kid who's destined to save the world because the kid is also Jak (because Jak's originally from the future, of course). He then sends the kid back to the past to repeat the cycle.

I won't get too into the third game (except for how you find out that the otter-weasel-things are actually a race of spacefaring gods, and Daxter has technically been a god all this time because Reasons?!) because DRDW doesn't cover that, but i can assure you that it is also a trip.

DRDW was originally meant to follow the canon a lot closer than it actually does. As it stands, though, I've scrapped pretty much all the events of the first game (Daxter in DRDW does not turn into a weasel god, although he did get to keep a bit of magic-ability-worldbuilding i gave him as an explanation for why dark eco would turn him into a rodent instead of a rage monster), including the time travel.

For the setting, this means that I smashed together the settings from two different time periods into one map, as well as moving things around and adding new locations where it made sense. As far as time period goes, I went for the Jak 2 time period (a little bit of 'recovered ancient tech,' but mostly modern-futuristic tech).

Without the time travel, the kid being young Jak doesn't make sense, so his story got completely changed. A couple characters didn't have anything to do, anymore, so they've been excluded (although I'm considering bringing them in for other roles in another story). This also affected how the main characters (Jak, Daxter, and Keira) grew up a lot more significantly than I expected, so while the core of their characters is similar, there are significant differences from the canon (plus i wrote them as being more explicitly neurodivergent than they are in the games [although in the games they're already pretty heavily ND-coded, in my opinion]).

In this version, Daxter also takes a bit longer to find and rescue Jak (because. Look. You give me an excuse for prison/experiment/post-whump, I am going to run that shit as far as I can, ok) - because of this, Jak is pretty much stuck in magic demon mode. So plot-wise, there are a lot of parallels to the plot line of the first game as they try to find a way to change Jak back (but it's complicated, because of course it is).

The magic system got a total overhaul - in the game, magic (eco) is very... well, video-gamey. Green heals you, blue makes you go fast, dark turns you into a monster/orange rat, etc. I put a frankly unnecessary amount of work into figuring out what eco *is* - where it comes from, how it forms in different environments, how it interacts with people, how it's used in connection with technology, etc. Tbh I spent so much time on this part that it made me consider spinning this whole story into original fiction. But when I tried, it just Felt Wrong so I put it back 😂 Really though, I think the magic system rewrite is one of the bigger factors in making this fic actually kind of comprehensible without knowledge of the games - I'm really proud of it 😊

Thank you so much for the ask (and the chance to infodump about my favorite games and favorite project 💜)

[lostrealities0]

OC time babyyy

Quick summary:

A digital entity but not ai. No programing or files. No one knows how he came to exist.

The Purple Dragons snuck a virus into Donnie's tech. When Donnie finally cleaned it out, he noticed there was still something there. Enter, a confused as hell Net.

At first he could only be in screens, then he could form a hologram. Eventually, with Mikey and Draxum's mystic powers, his holographic form can become physical to his will.

Lots of random details. A lot of them:

Once he got his physical form, he could not change it.

He can mentally "shift" between digital, hologram, and physical. Their physical body continues to live, even if they aren't in it.

You can tell when he is in his physical body because his markings will glow slightly.

In screens and holograms, he can transform himself into whatever he wants.

They decided to have a softshell because it seemed more convenient. (He also chose to be a turtle because the others were)

The physical form is flesh and blood, they aren't a robot.

Once he gained a physical form, he became fascinated with the senses. Always wearing clothes, listening to music, etc

He does get overwhelmed tho. Like, he's either easily overwhelmed by everything or can't get enough. No in-between.

Donnie disliked him for a while because Net came from the virus.

They become close though. Net is close to everyone.

They're a little shit.

Doesn't understand physical needs. For a while, everyone had to constantly remind him to eat/sleep/etc because he would go days without it otherwise.

Identity crisis? Haha what's that?? Net definitely doesn't have that (he does)

He has a lot of similarities to Donnie, both personality wise and physical. The two think it's because he "woke up" in Donnie's tech

Which is main root to his identity problem.

He quickly picks up traits from everyone else too. The first week or so after being introduced to everyone, he mimicked them a lot.

He gave Splinter peanut butter when they first met because he read on the Internet that rats love it.

He can float/fly as a hologram.

He can access the Internet in his mind at all times.

Forgets they can't when physical. Leo laughs everytime they land on the ground (he make sure they're okay tho)

Sometimes has glitch episodes. Very painful.

He technically can be injured when digital, it's just more of a spirit thing.

If they shift while hurt, the injuries can still get worse since the body is still alive.

If the body dies, he does too.

Mentally, he's around the same age as the turtles

Pain scares the fuck out of them. Whenever Leo has to give him a shot or something, he literally has to be pinned down and restrained by mystic powers so he doesn't go digital.

He regularly steals. From the boys, the store, the bank, anyone and everyone is a potential target.

[1hellofacookie]

I may have said this on here before but

so many issues of Totk would have been fixed had they just sent Link to the past.

It would have given us the chance to experience a Hyrule that is still the same but also very different in certain spots and it would've made sense. It would've been so interesting to explore the old buildings and structures, and see how the land evolved and changed, how the flow of time affected it.

The lack of Sheikah tech would've made sense as well as the abundance of new monsters.

We also could have gotten a story that finally unfolds alongside the player, where your progression actually has an effect on the world.

We could have gotten a variety of new armor/clothing and weapons.

I think instead of the focus on the depths it would have been so much more fun had the world changed more. The depths are too huge, empty and dark to be interesting and to feel rewarding instead of like a chore. Like, keep some caves here and there, put some cool rewards in them, or a side quest/puzzle (and not a fucking shrine, for the love of Hylia, please) to make them worth exploring and maybe keep the "depths" or part of them exclusively for dungeons and similar shit.

For example, the water temple lead up?? That massive cave had so much potential! it would have been so great if something in there had been the water temple.

Also put that shit from the 2019 announcement trailer under Hyrule castle (or whatever would be there), that woulda been sick.

Doing this would help making the depths and caves or any underground location feel special and not overwhelming.

The issue lies heavily in the emptiness of every vast space in Totk. Rewards were scarce in Botw, but in tears they're practically non-existent. In Botw you'd find a chest in the weirdest places and they'd have a weapon or another useful thing in them, but in Tears, if you do find a chest, theres rarely ever something of value in them. It robs you of any patience to explore since it makes you feel like it's pointless, because you either don't find anything at all, or nothing useful.

The sky islands are honestly super pretty, I absolutely love the aesthetics, and I wish we had gotten more of the ones like the Great Sky Island and not just copy pasted shit.

Nevertheless, the story would still need a lot of fixing (I don't particularly like the Zonai as they are in Tears) and also please ffs get rid of the hot glue, I think its an awful game mechanic, giving the player too much freedom for their own good and its honestly just kinda ugly.

anyways, I had a point when I started this post, I may have kinda lost it due to too many tangents, but please take what it is so far and any other additional reblogs

[drewtanakagf]

A Red Queen Social-Political-Economic Meta devolves into prison reform (bear w/ me) 

links at the very end smile. ask me to elaborate a point or don’t idc. I will be talking more regardless.

How This All Started: 

Me, writing: do you think that rq story aus (canon-divergence specifically) can work w/out the existence of silver/reds or at the very least power/no power dynamics, or rather, how well would the plot work without that? 

Me, opening new doc: bc like, the rq story is built off the usurpation of the silver/red dichotomy and calling into question the validity of oppression with the existence of a third group which shares qualities of the two (if you wanna get sociopolitical with it). 

TL;DR: Cameron Cole’s role in the narrative works as a connection between the oppressive systems irl and in the rqverse by her simply being a Black girl from New Town and a Newblood silent. 

Norta’s Social, Political, and Economic System 

Thinking about it more, I think that RQ can be seen as a racial-adjacent (blood, in canon) oppression story and class oppression story, but combining those lenses to more closely mirror what we experience in real life is, iffy at best. Since race as we understand it in our world is purely social while in rqverse there is a biological difference (which uhm. I don't end up talking about eugenics but let's keep that in mind yeah?) in which the system of oppression is made from. That system of oppression then allows for the discrimination of Reds in society, which can be seen at its worst in New Town and tech towns in general. Reds are at the bottom of the social ladder with no hope of climbing above their station. 

Now as a class story, this is where economics would come in.  And since there is no economic mobility for Reds, RQ as a story rooted in class falls apart. Basically (without thinking myself in circles) it cannot be only a class story and it cannot be a story in which both social factors and economic factors combine, since there is no sense of "class" in the Red's lives, all of them suffer. But this is true only in the Mare's point of view, the Silvers in universe are separated by high houses, low houses, and "common." Yet, this is only where we begin to see politics come in as the Houses are separated by respect and power as well as wealth. The connection to monarchy is viable for those in the Houses and is all draped in political pomp and shit. idk man it's one am and i'm thinking too hard.  SO the sociopolitical works in tandem w the social-economical whilst for Reds politics is unfathomable bc they're second class citizens. 

Prisons in The USA 

WHICH BRINGS ME TO (the worse segue in history) TO CAMERON COLE *cheers whoops etc*  I cannot for the life of me get over how Cameron is pretty much the only Black Red "main" character and she came from New Town, which is a place where everyone works to create for the rest of the country. This is a little too similar to the reality of prisons and like, the generational Blackness of it all is a lot for me to NOT look over. 

Note: Prisons are long-term holding facilities where convicted people go to carry out their sentences, Jails are short-term holding facilities and most are awaiting charges or trial (Prison Fellowship). 

One thing to understand is that prisons are rife with modern-day slavery, especially in the US (which rq was written in the context in). Last I checked, the US held about 25% of the world's prisoners, about a million people incarcerated, not to count those still in the penal system (like in jail, probation, or juvenile detention). Not only that, prisons are often private, not public, so there is an active economical interest in having as many prisoners as possible. You need bodies to make money in that industry. Not only that, prisoners work for little to no money and aren't even guaranteed to be able to re-enter society. In fact, many prisoners do not, the prison recidivism rate is still over a third in the US, meaning that over one-third of prisoners commit a crime again and become re-incarcerated (Wisevoter). There are a fuck ton of reasons why this is, mostly, in my opinion, the lack of effective reform programs. But you cannot deny that there is a corporate interest in having prisoners in prisons to make money and make profits for the low cost of labor. According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), prisoners make $2 Billion in goods only to be paid an average of  $0.13 to $0.52  an hour, of which "the government takes up to 80 percent of these wages for “room and board,” court costs, restitution, and other fees like building and sustaining prisons. These wage deductions generally leave incarcerated workers with less than half of their gross pay" (ACLU). One more thing, who's populating these prisons? 

Statistically, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons, White people make up 57.3% of prisoners nationwide while the next biggest racial group, Black people make up 38.6% (Note: This is by race, and the government's definition of race. Hispanic is considered as an ethnic group, which is why the data about Latine people is not on the federal website. Hispanic group makes up 29.7% of prisoners, to satiate your curiosity)(BOP). However, you have to take into account the rates compared to population. Let's take a look at New York State, which in the Rqverse includes The Stilts and Archeon. White people make up about 55% of the population and account for 23% of people in prison. Black people on the other hand, make up about 14% of the population and account for 49% of prisoners (PPI).  Like WOW! What a jump am I right? 

This disparity is again, attributed to many many things and long history of racial injustice and racist policing (looking at you stop and frisk, which is also a whole different problem i would LOVE to talk about), but as stated, has its roots in racial injustice and how the US never bothered to recover from slavery, Jim Crow, and treating minorities (most notably Black people) as second class citizens. 

Cameron Cole 

Okay, so now you have the IRL quick breakdown, let’s talk about Cameron Cole. Cameron Cole is a young Black girl who is from New Town and is a newblood with the power of Silence. That sentence is the core of her character as she stands in the plot (nothing about personality, we may get into this later idk yet. I have now officially passed 1k words on this. So. we will see fr.) Cameron’s identity as a young Black girl is not explored as, again, in the rqverse race isn’t a thing, it’s all about blood, baby! (that's what a vampire would say fr). So, in blood: she’s a newblood, one of those in-betweens that usurps the dichotomy yaddi-yadda, and is really just a socio-political thing, because Newbloods haven’t been around/ known for long enough in Norta to have bearing economically (class) and Maven decided to be Maven about newbloods in general, not just Mare’s standing as a Newblood ( he legitimized Newbloods as a blood group in Norta, essentially). But to get into the whole young Black girl, we need to draw the connection between prisons and New Town. 

Okay, no more jokes (though that is true), Black people are seen as second-class citizens in the eyes of the systems in place today, and that is reflected in Red Queen as a Black character is a victim of modern-day slavery within that universe. Her existence calls for comparison between the oppressive systems in the rqverse and the world as we know it. 

New Town is one of many  tech towns, dedicated to industry, building all of Norta’s mechanical goods and basically the cornerstone of Nortan economy. Everyone in there is forced to work despite the horrible conditions and have no chance of entering society and for little to no pay (sound familiar?). While the prison system in the US is a continuation of modern-day slavery, New Town just cut out the middleman of the police system and put them straight into modern day-slavery. Making the notable characters from New Town Black draws all these lines together and provide commentary on our world today: Black people still can’t win!

Now, as a Black girl, even in the RQverse, Cameron is still saddled with the same generational struggles Black women face due to the intersection of their Black and Woman identities. (source: am Black, am a woman). Because not only is the woman expected to look after household affairs and family matters, but now we’re dealing with racial inequalities. It’s a lot on a girl’s plate right? Cameron and Morrey remind me of all the Black women who have lost the Black men in their life due to violence and my own fears for my brother each time he leaves the house. 

Violence to us is like gun violence and police brutality and shit like that but to them is the war, where similar to the police system. Aw fuck new section time 

The Lakelander War as Control 

So my basic theory here is that the Lakelander war is used as the police system, not necessarily as like, actual policing but as a power move. It��s like Atlanta’s Cop City to me, a way to be like “heyyyyy don’t forget who has the power to kill you. Okie!” 

Back to Regular Programming 

Where violence is perpetuated by over policing and the war on drugs and such polices affecting minority populations irl, the war (and the duel things i forgot what they're called, and bowl of bones) exacerbate the uhm. Power dynamics. Reds are powerless Silvers powerful . “Look at what we can do” and shit. 

Edit: Lynching is also in this category. It’s about power, yeah.

 So Cameron has to save Morrey from this violence. I have to fear about my brother and dad and cousins. Like there is a connection there please tell me you get it I will cry its three am now im almost 2k deep like. 

Cameron, though, is not just a regular red, she is a Newblood and a  silencer at that. 

So how does she fight against her oppressors? She silences them, quite literally takes away their power. And isn’t that an apt metaphor for this all? 

Okay i'm going the fuck to sleep. Thanks for making it this far. Here’s a freshly baked cookie (imagine a cookie here) 

Links ( I gave up on the MLA LOL!) 

ACLU: https://www.aclu.org/news/human-rights/captive-labor-exploitation-of-incarcerated-workers 

Wisevoter: https://wisevoter.com/state-rankings/recidivism-rates-by-state/ 

Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) https://www.bop.gov/about/statistics/statistics_inmate_race.jsp 

PPI: https://www.prisonpolicy.org/profiles/NY.html 

Prison Fellowship: https://www.prisonfellowship.org/resources/training-resources/in-prison/faq-jail-prison/

[thewickedbohemian]

Thoughts on a Tracker that showed the show's seeming influences of both Leverage and Scooby-Doo

and why are we airing at 8 again, is this going to be the show's new timeslot or are we just gonna keep bouncing around

can't anyone ever disappear in the light

oh hello again Billie (her this episode, Russell last episode, guess we're really trying to establish who's kinda-part-of-the-ensemble-beyond-just-Colter's-team)

in a weird way it makes senses someone that chaotic would be from this kind of small town (I've listened to enough emo music)

again with the thematic connections between Colter and the people he's searching for

okay parents, whose dream is this

hello mystery oxy, now I'm seeing a bunch of ways this could go

so it wasn't his but that just adds more wrinkles

is the girlfriend really trouble

but Billie's sure trouble for diner guy getting a little too fresh (just what was he implying about her with the transactional shit)

hometown knowledge comes in handy and holy shit that's a mess

thank god she's alive but what's with the blood bag

and we've got LEOs stonewalling our hero again (and now I'm afraid the show's doing an accidental-racism with the Authority Minority trope with how many times that character's a PoC)

I like the acknowledgment that the tech-ing takes time that you don't really get on most other procedurals

selling blood? a different kind of shadiness than I expected

especially because it's not to a hospital but thank god that building's lit blue so we're not in the goddamn dark again

so keeping with the halloween-week trend I've noticed with what episodes are coming of the shows I watch we've got metaphorical-vampire biohackers and "I vant to buy your blood"

not the body we were expecting

so SNU booster guy's a douche, Billie might have been getting strung along and I swear I've seen an equivalent of this twist on Leverage before

and now I'm getting reminded of Elliot from Colter and Billie's interactions, not from either but kinda both and Billie really needs an "Elliot moment"

holyshitweknowshesnotgonnadiebutwhotheheckdidthat!

well...she found the pitcher (and thank god they don't want to "suck her blood" too like his)

potentially-suspicious nutrient supplements?...

Bobby did his digging and turns out booster guy wasn't just a douche but playing both sides of this

and Colter still thinks Billie ghosted him

cue a bunch of technically-the-truths and Colter trying to be subtle with the noticing and the questioning

I think this is the closest fight so far that he's ended up winning

I was just saying Colter, shoot his ass in a way that won't hit her

but Billie sees things a little differently

all sorts of father-son and sport thematic exploration and (other than the literal baseball gloves they're using) why is "To Break In A Glove" metaphorically playing in my head

Colter's reached a high enough friendship level to unlock Billie's tragic backstory

and it sounds thematically similar to his own which she doesn't know as much of as I thought she might

both the songs in the bar (at the beginning and end) sound cool but I don't know what they are but god is this show ever good at the country banger needle drops

[skips-is-asleep]

What Your Favorite Sollux Ship Says About You

I swear ive been working so hard on Space Solkat, but ive had this idea in my head for well over a year and just decided i might as well make a post about it

This is all in good fun and jokes, but if you dont want your fav ship being critisized pls dont read this, just click off lmao

AraSol: You’ve been in the fandom for a very long time and/or you love relationships that just seamlessly work together, ships that Make Sense and are right there with no subtext and you love both of these characters and want them to be happy. This is a very classic ship and they are literally perfect for each other whether you read it pale or flushed

SolTav: You love nerdy boys, you love ships with characters that have similar interests but near opposite personalities, and you also love crack shipping

Solkat: This is no hate to arasol truthers, but if you prefer mlm ships, this is the sollux ship that makes the most sense/is the best. it has the most feel good potential. You understand/love both the characters very well, but you also love the spice that their dynamic brings

SolNep: You like opposites attract and you also like ships that have a gimmick. She lays on his keyboard and chews his wires, and also brightens his day and cracks at his grumpy boy exterior. Maybe you like Nepkat but don’t like the canon baggage where he’s mean to her

SolKan: There’s a very high likelihood that you ship them pale (correct) and like ships that have really good banter potential. You also want Sollux to dress up fancy but need an logical excuse for it. If you don’t ship them pale, youre a lesbophobe

SolRezi: Very similar to solkan, you likely ship them pale and you likely love their chemistry with each other, the wit they both have bounces off each other seamlessly and they are excellent at creating bits with each other that go too far. The big difference here is that you like when shit goes CRAZY

SolVris: You’re either a contrarian/crack shipper just for the sake of, you like fixer-upper relationships with angst, or youre a lesbophobe

Solquius: You’ve been in this fandom for a long time, you really really like pitch ships. or youre an equius apologist, or all three. Either way, you love looking into things that are supposed to not be taken seriously and reading too deeply

SolGam: You like opposites attract, and you prefer mlm ships, you could not get more opposite than with this two, and you think it would be really funny if they loved each other actually

Erisol: You’re a veteran homestuck, you used to/still like yaoi or youre an eridan apologist (I say this as all three)

SolFef: You love the ships that the canon gives you, you love sunshine girl and grumpy boy pairings, and im willing to bet that either youre straight, or you think one of them is straight (wrong)

JuneSol: You love crack shipping, but also you love over-analzying canon text

DaveSol: You really really like dave and want him to date a version of himself from the mirror dimension, and im also willing to bet that you only really ship this to make an OT3 with karkat work

RoseSol: I’m willing to bet this is pale again, and im gonna be real, this is davesol but better, yall are sleeping on this ship

JadeSol: You love ships with potential, and also really really want the hc that Sollux likes girls with long hair to be true/believe wholeheartedly that it is true

SolRox: You love ships with gimmicks, they are tech buddies! (I do not know the first thing about roxy ill be honest)

DIrkSol: You like dirk, and don’t really like the other ships he’s in, Sollux skates by because, of the people to ship dirk with, Sollux is probably the meanest and wittiest in that roster. No one would fight with Dirk the way Sollux would, wake up

If you ship JaneSol or JakeSol, you like crackshipping, or you read really really deep into the dialogue jake has with erisolsprite