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theres-an-impulstor-among-us · 3 years

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V, my beloved. Can I please get some nice Tango and Etho buddy moment? My heart needs it.

Why yes, yes you can! :D

Summary: A glitch on the server sends Tango into a death loop. Etho rushes to save him before something even worse happens.

CW: slightly graphic description of death. Nothing too bad but just putting it there in case.

...

Something is very wrong with the server. Tango can feel it as soon as he jumps into the end portal. There’s something deep down in his code that feels genuinely unsettled by being in the End, and what worries him is that there’s no need for this. He’s been to the End thousands of times, and he’s not even here to do anything particularly stressful like fight the ender dragon. There’s no reason for him to be so scared.

As he makes his way towards the end gate, a message comes up on his communicator.

<Xisuma> Server’s a little glitchy right now guys, be careful not to die, just in case.

Tango shivers. It must be the glitches that’s causing him to feel so uneasy. Well, no matter: he’s usually very careful anyway. He shouldn’t have to worry about dying.

Unfortunately, he looks up at exactly the wrong moment and finds himself looking straight at an enderman.

The creature immediately shrieks and charges at him. Tango yelps and scrambles back, dashing to the side. He tries to activate his elytra but server glitches are often unkind to fliers and he can’t get a rocket to fire. When trying again and again yields no results, he decides to take a risk.

He jumps off the end island in a place where he knows there is a platform underneath him. If worst comes to worst, he will take a bit of fall damage.

Sure enough, his elytra fails again and he falls a few blocks down to the small platform underneath the island. Sighing, he gets to his feet and dusts himself off, momentarily forgetting why he was in such a hurry to fly away in the first place.

A shriek sounds from directly behind him.

He spins sharply round, but it’s too late.

The enderman hits him twice in rapid succession, knocking him off the platform.

Tango tries desperately to activate his elytra and rockets, but it still doesn’t work. He drops into the void like a stone.

Tango fell out of the world.

Sighing, Tango lets himself respawn, expecting to wake up in his bed back in his base. Or if not there, the spawn island.

But when he reappears, he finds himself suspended mid-air in the void, nothing as far as his eye could see. He can’t even let out a scream as he falls again, the life getting rapidly sucked out of him just as it had done just seconds before.

Tango fell out of the world.

He reappears in the void again. Before he can react, he’s falling again, taking more and more damage until finally…

Tango fell out of the world.

This time, he manages a few hoarse screams for help as the void takes him for the fourth time.

Tango fell out of the world.

He pulls out his communicator and only just manages to type a very quick message before the end comes for him again.

<Tango> HELP

Tango fell out of the world.

He experiences the same excruciating pain over and over again. The agony of having the oxygen sucked from his lungs, of his throat being torn out, of his limbs being bent and snapped, of the pressure building rapidly in his face until his eyes feel like they’re about to explode. All this happens in less than five seconds but it always inevitably ends the same way.

Tango fell out of the world.

He falls.

Tango fell out of the world.

He hurts.

Tango fell out of the world.

He dies.

Tango fell out of the world.

And there’s nothing he can do about it.

Tango fell out of the world.

“I GOT HIM!”

It takes Tango a few seconds to realise he isn’t falling anymore. He isn’t hurting or dying. Instead, he’s suspended mid-air. Something is gripping his hand, stopping him from falling. He’s dangling over the void but it no longer has the power to hurt him.

“Can you pull him up?!” shouts a familiar voice.

“I’m trying! Get over here and help me!”

After a moment, a second hand closes over his wrist and he feels himself getting pulled upwards. He has no strength left to try and help, so he just lets himself hang limply. The void has not only taken all his items but every ounce of his energy.

Finally, he feels his knee touch something. He’s pulled up onto a solid surface, but the world is still blank in his eyes. Even though he can feel himself kneeling on a proper surface, his eyes cannot see anything except the void.

He blinks a few times. Has he gone blind? Or is his mind playing tricks on him? Has he died in the void so many times that he’s gone genuinely insane?

“-an you hear me?” One of the voices from before becomes audible in his battered ears. “Tango, say something if you can hear me.”

Tango’s mouth opens but he can’t get any sound to come out.

“Buddy, it’s Etho,” the same voice says soothingly. “You’re safe now, I promise. Can you nod for me to show you can hear me?”

This he can do. Tango manages a slow nod.

“Oh, thank god…” Etho breathes. “X, what’s wrong with him? Why are his eyes like that? Why isn’t he moving? Why can’t he talk?”

“His code is severely damaged,” says the other voice worriedly. “That death loop’s really done a number on him. I don’t know if he’s fully aware of everything around him but at least we know he can hear us. That’s a good sign. Ask him yes or no questions while I try to repair his code.”

“O-Okay.” Etho’s voice is shaking audibly. “Tango, can you see me?”

Tango slowly shakes his head.

“Can you see anything?”

Another head shake.

Etho’s next three questions also result in a head shake. Can you talk? Are you in pain? Can you move?

“Argh, the other hermits keep messaging me,” mutters Xisuma irritably. “Etho, send them a quick message, will you? Tell them to back off.”

The hands holding Tango’s disappear. A pause follows this.

“Please don’t actually write that, Etho,” Xisuma sighs. “I know how you think.”

Etho chuckles weakly. “Sorry. I’ll let them know we saved him and we’re working on getting him home.”

“Thanks.”

In the ensuing pause, Tango finds between his continuous blinks that the world is starting to swim into view. He can now make out the fuzzy outline of someone sitting in front of him. It must be Etho.

He opens his mouth again and tries to speak, but his vocal chords are so damaged that all he can manage is a faint gurgling sound.

Etho’s hands immediately grasp his again. “I’m still here, buddy. I’m right here. X, can we get him back to the overworld? He can’t be comfy kneeling on hard endstone.”

Tango blinks as his vision starts to go black. Exhaustion is threatening to overwhelm him and he actually wants to let it. He’s so tired. Too tired to stay awake.

He finds himself sagging against Etho. The last thing he’s aware of before he passes out is the sound of Etho’s heartbeat.

…

Tango’s falling again. Pain explodes from his neck, his stomach, his head, his arms, his chest, everywhere. He tries to scream but his voice is ripped away from him and he can see Etho right in front of him but he can’t reach him and Etho can’t hear him and Etho can’t help him and-

“Tango!” Etho’s voice sounds from somewhere in the distance. “Tango, you gotta wake up!”

Tango sits bolt upright with a strangled cry. Seeing the blank world still in front of his vision, he cries and buries his face in his hands, tears flowing from his eyes.

He feels someone sit down next to him and wrap their arms around him, gently pulling his head close to their chest. Tango takes deep breaths, letting himself relax as he registers the sound of Etho’s heartbeat.

“You’re okay, Tango,” Etho whispers. “You’re safe, I promise. I hope you can hear me.”

Tango slowly opens his eyes.

The blankness is gone.

He can see the bed below him. And the floor below that. And the walls around him. His vision has finally returned.

He slowly pulls away and sits up straight, almost starting to cry again as he gazes into the face of his close friend.

“Etho,” he croaks. His voice hasn’t fully returned yet but at least he can speak again.

“Hey.” Etho smiles widely and places his hands on Tango’s shoulders. “How are you feeling?”

“B-Battered.”

Etho gives a quiet chuckle. “Yeah, a death loop will do that to you. You gave everyone a massive scare, buddy. Impulse and Zedaph especially. Xisuma had to send them to the mining desert to do some grinding to take their mind off it.”

Tango grimaces. “I didn’t mean to. What happened to me? How did you save me?”

“X and I tracked your death signatures to that spot in the End. I can imagine what it looked like for you but to us, you kept respawning a block or two away from the ledge and then falling again. It took me at least four tries to catch you, so… I’m sorry it took me so long.”

“No, don’t apologise. You still saved me. Yeah, to my eyes, it was like I respawned in the void and then just died again and again and again. Even when you got me out, I couldn’t see anything except void.”

“I thought that might be the case,” says Etho, nodding. “Your eyes were all glassy and white. I’ve been in a death loop before and even though it wasn’t a void one, I know how it feels to get your code scrambled up like that. X said he only just managed to salvage everything the void tore up.”

Tango shivers. “I could’ve died permanently today, couldn’t I?”

“...yeah, you could’ve.” Etho gives a reassuring smile. “But you didn’t. And don’t worry, if this ever happens again, I’ll save you.”

Tango gazes at Etho. One of the things that sticks out in his mind about when he was plucked out of the void is the way Etho’s voice cracked when he yelled at Xisuma to help him pull Tango up. Tango has never heard Etho’s voice crack like that before. That’s how he knows Etho was truly terrified back there, perhaps terrified at the thought of losing him forever.

But he doesn’t bring this up. Instead, he smiles.

“Thank you, Etho.”

#hermitcraft #tangotek #ethoslab #etho #xisuma #Vaunna writes

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hellonoblesky · 3 years

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School got me worn out so here's my team dynamic HCs

It's Kaeya, Xingqiu, Diluc, and Ayaka atm hngjfhgdjfg

Kaeya

This man is so tired, Archons please let him rest

Has to pick up his week's paperwork from Jean every Monday when we go to Mondstadt to buy food supplies and stuff before fighting Andrius, gets to work on it while Diluc and the Andrius team go at it

Actually is the person who keeps the whole party safe, has pulled Xingqiu away from ledges while he's reading more times than he can count, makes sure everyone has food at all times, and keeps the schedule in line

Has a flask of Death After Noon that he keeps on him, has to actively keep it away from Xingqiu because the kid's curious

He is so tired he is the reason the party only gets up to leave at like noon because he sleeps in

Thinks he's good enough at hiding his anxiety that no one else has noticed

He is not, they've all noticed him shaking visibly at high speeds in 90-degree weather and the kids will do their best to avoid fraying his nerves on a bad day

Very kind to Xingqiu and Ayaka, kinda like a cool uncle? Buys them things even though they can afford it

Kinda lets the kids do what they want and chat while he keeps them safe and the whole party on their way

Absolute tank, balances his skillset out so he can manage most threats alone, no one has to get hurt, they can just travel, it's fine it's fine

Pretends to casually bring up stuff the kids want to do (after meticulously making sure the party would be in the right place at the right time)

"Xingqiu, we have time to kill, care to show us to the Wanwen Bookhouse? We can see if they have the next issue in that book series you're always reading! :)"

"Ayaka, you wanted to try some Liyuen cuisine, didn't you? We have a dear friend who just so happens to be a chef at Wanmin Restaurant! And since we're in Liyue anyway, we should swing by, shouldn't we?"

He tries his best to find something Diluc wouldn't mind doing too! Usually, Diluc turns him down but Kaeya has scored on occasion!

"C'mon Diluc, you can't have lost all your taste for reading, right? I hear Inazuma has some interesting books nowadays, what with all the isolation..."

Basically, he just tries his best and is so tired please let him rest

Diluc

This man is angry all the time but he doesn't mean to be. He's just unnerved because he's basically back to hunting Fatui in other nations. He just isn't alone this time and the Fatui aren't the focus

He's so annoyed that they don't leave until Kaeya wakes up, actively in denial about the fact that he himself wakes up only an hour earlier and everyone else is waiting for much longer

Runs right into danger all the time please someone tell this man to calm down he is the reason they need so much food

Does and takes a whole lot of damage at the same time and it stresses Kaeya out so much

Was not Pleased to find out he'd be stuck traveling with Kaeya, puts up with it because he can't bring himself to turn down the Traveler's request. Because in his eyes they're just a kid trying to find their family and he really can't turn down their plea for help in

Gets along surprisingly well with Xingqiu, they both enjoy reading, and often recommend books to each other! Diluc has no idea Xingqiu wrote Legend of a Sword, but the only reason for that is that he literally forgot the book name

"Hmm... in Mondstadt we have this book, The Fox and the Dandelion Sea? For a traditional Mondstadt fairytale, it does remind me of Inazuma, funnily enough. There are versions of the book that are watered down for younger children, but if you have the time I'd recommend the full novelization."

"Tales From the Waves? No, I haven't read that. Is it good?" ... "A novelization of an old ship captain's life? That does sound interesting... I'll pick up a copy when I can"

Gets along well with Ayaka as well, they both appreciate the arts and such so they talk about that

"In Mondstadt we don't have nearly as many festivals as they do in Inazuma... but when we do they're quite the occasion, and very dear to people's hearts. There would be rioting in the streets if the Windblume Festival was postponed..."

"Oh Mond has its fair share of dance traditions, but they fell to be a staple of the Lawrence rule, so not many traditional dances remain... although if you wish to learn more about them you could ask Kaeya to introduce you to the Knight's Recconacance Captain. She doesn't like me very much"

Is the one person who actually doesn't realize that Kaeya is anxious All The Time, literally could watch him shake uncontrollably as Venti walks by and think it was his Vision acting up, he has all the pieces to put the puzzle together but has lost interest in it

Xingqiu

Top ten reasons the party gets sidetracked, number one: Xingqiu finding a book and getting so into it that he doesn't notice people

Actually besties with Ayaka he thinks she's really cool!

Top ten reasons why Kaeya actually gets to sleep as long as he does, number one: Xingqiu jumping up and yanking Diluc's hair when he tries to wake him up

"You're 22 you can go get breakfast by yourself, my leige"

Infodumps about his books to the whole party while they're eating dinner regardless of if they're listening or not (they are, they always are)

Pulls out relevant trivia out of nowhere?? Like they'll be stuck in some ruins and Xingqiu just

"Hey, you know this specific style of ruins are known to be built with metal hatches that always lead to escape routes :)"

Or like

"Oh yeah, the coloration in the animals is different here because the plants in Inazuma so often have purple and blue pigmentation, and Inazuma is so naturally isolated, that the animals adapted to get their pigments partially from the foliage!"

And no one knows how or why he knows this much but he Does??

Also, knows everyone's favorite bird for some reason and talks about them, why? Idk I think he'd like birds!!

"A peacock? Oh, I've never even seen one of those! I hear they're lovely, but a little noisy. Sometimes we get feathers imported for design reference at the Feyun Commerce Guild though!"

"Umbertail Falcon, right? Ohh I hear they can be very loyal, right? Ahh, so that's why yours flys down to check in on you? That's lovely! Owls? Oh yeah, those are cool birds, you know their feathers are fanned out just right so they're entirely silent while flying!"

"Herons? Oh yeah, that's what your title is, right? Graceful... I think they're more stealthy, very good at waiting to strike. That's how they hunt, you know? Just being patient and stealthy, then striking. That's also why they're so graceful standing there all the time!"

Bummed that he's the only person in the party without a bird as his constellation tbh, but he's alright with it because he's got books!!

Mentioned Albedo and Kaeya almost choked on his food, Xingqiu thought this was hilarious

Routinely plays pranks on Diluc and occasionally manages to pull a deez joke on Kaeya, leaves Ayaka alone with the pranks though because he knows she's new to all of this

Ayaka

Oh this poor girl, Lumine just dropped her off with Mondstadt's most dysfunctional siblings and a kid who reads at the speed of light and said have fun

Really gets along well with Xingqiu!! Having someone with a somewhat similar background is definitely a relief, especially because Kaeya and Diluc intimidate her, what with them arguing most of the time they interact

She recognizes the anxiety in Kaeya (because she also has it) so she's a little more comfortable approaching him because of that

She's happy to talk about Inazuma's ruins and is fascinated by Kaeya bringing up similar ruins in Mondstadt and Liyue

She really appreciates him remembering what she's interested in and making time in the day for it!

Diluc on the other hand?? She has... some idea how to talk to him? But?? He is either aggressive or glaring off into the distance at all times, and she's been around long enough to know that he doesn't mean to be like that but it's still unnerving to her

However, she Can talk to him! She is still a little confused because he constantly sounds so grumpy, but she's realized that he's actually really good at listening, and is absolutely willing to talk about Mondstadt traditions! Because she does really like to learn about other nations

Plus, she can go to Xingqiu to answer most of her questions!

"Xingqiu, I- I hope this isn't an odd question, but ah... how exactly do you get used to Kaeya and Diluc? I don't think I've quite figured it out yet..?"

"So in Liyue... the Merchant stalls are on the docks? Like Ritou but it's all on the docks? Interesting..."

"You're the second born of the Feyun Commerce Guild? Oh! Forgive me, I thought you were the eldest, my brother handles most international relations..."

It was really hard for her to adjust to the team, just because of how ragtag it is most of the time, but she's got it by now!

She actually kind of likes the scrappy chaos! She hasn't completely gotten used to it all but she finds it like kind of a break from having to uphold her image at all times

Top five Ayaka quotes and who she said them to:

"They fight a wolf ghost every week...?? Are they ok??" (To Kaeya, about the Andrius team)

"So this is Morax's old... dragon friend...??" (To Xingqiu)

"Wait, you do this every week?" (To Diluc, about the domains)

"Oh!! Oh it is spicy!!!" (To Xingqiu, about Xiangling's cooking)

"Ah... OH! Yes um I uh- *gay hand flip* ?? Is that right??" (Xingqiu was talking about Chongyun)

Also the party went to Dragonspine and Ayaka was actually really interested in Durin because she didn't know that other nations also had odd giant dragon skeletons

#genshin impact #genshin kaeya #kaeya albrich #genshin diluc #diluc ragnvindr #genshin xingqiu #genshin ayaka #kamisato ayaka #please disregard any msitakes I am so tired I just wanted to write sometehing #gonna post my school doodles in my sketchbook on the art blog later probably anyway #kaeya has anxiety diluc seems mad xingqiu is stable and ayaka is confused that's it that's the post

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skylanders-after-the-end · 3 years

Text

A new Nightmare begins

Kaos and Glumshanks were face to face with Kaossandra, who had inexplicably escaped her imprisonment from within the mirror.

“Mother!? How is this possible?” Kaos looked over to Glumshanks who could only shrug his shoulders as the slender woman approached the two. “You were supposed to stay in that mirror forever!”

“I’m sorry to disappoint you Kaos.” Kaossandra patted her much shorter son on the head while observing the main hall inside the family castle. “Unfortunately, even I do not know how this could happen. I was inside the mirror, dreading my fate as usual, when suddenly the glass broke and it crashed down. Then you arrived.”

Kaos turned around as his mother kept admiring all the objects and furniture which have been just out of her reach for such a long time. “So, you didn’t free yourself?”

“If I could, I would have done so years ago.” Kaossandra turned to one of the windows, allowing her to get a good view of the castle garden. “But this is something different. I can feel it.”

Glumshanks, who clutched onto Kaos’ shoulders, couldn’t tear his eyes away from the woman. “And what’s that, mistress Kaossandra?”

“My powers are weakened, despite not using them for such a long time.” Kaossandra was brooding. “Perhaps… no it cannot be.”

“What cannot be?” Kaos moved away from Glumshanks to better hear what his mother had to say.

“My powers stem from no other source than the Darkness itself, as do yours.” Hearing that, Kaos looked up to the symbol on his forehead which was briefly taken from him by said Darkness once. He knew what she was talking about. “But it’s more than just a power source, it’s a being. If it so desires, it can take our powers in an instant. The only reason it doesn’t is because it needs accomplices and hosts ever since it’s been banished by the Ancients.”

Kaos thought about that, but something didn’t add up. “That can’t be right! When I set the Darkness free and the Skylanders defeated it, my powers were still there! I mean it took a while to get them back, but still!”

“That’s because you can’t just defeat the Darkness, you fool!” Kaossandra hissed at her spawn. “The Skylanders have no idea what they’re up against. The Darkness is far more powerful than anything this world has to offer! They might have been able to destroy its physical form temporarily, but the true Darkness will always remain.”

“Then where is it now?” Kaos was curious but also nervous about what might happen if that dangerous threat was ever to return.

“I don’t know, I can’t connect with it like I used to. That’s anything but a good sign.” Kaossandra thoughtfully looked out the window, wondering why all of this was happening now. “It looks like the Darkness has other plans for the Skylands. One that doesn’t include us.”

Kaos gulped and Glumshanks began to tremble as they all gazed through the single window in front of Kaossandra.

One week has passed since Hex’ and Malefor’s ambush on the Academy. Even though the witch surrendered and destroyed Malefor before more harm was done, the Skylanders lost a beloved ally during the battle. Not to mention that Kaos managed to escape as well.

Spyro was lying in his bed staring up at the ceiling. He didn’t feel like getting up today. He hasn’t been feeling like getting up on any of the last few days in fact, but he had to. After a long sigh, the dragon pushed himself up, put his feet on the ground and left his room. He walked through the Academy where he was greeted by his many companions. The leader didn’t return more than a dry “Morning” and some nods. In front of the main entrance, Spyro stopped and looked to his left. He saw Cynder’s monument which was built after her unfortunate passing. In the center was a portrait of the Undead Skylander with black and purple flowers adorning it and some lit candles underneath. Even though it was there to honor and remember her, it always made Spyro feel like his heart was being pierced with a dagger.

“Hey.” Stealth Elf walked up to her friend as her sight went towards the shrine. She let out a heavy sigh. “I really wish that didn’t have to be there.”

At first Spyro had the obscure thought that the elf was suggesting that there shouldn’t be anything to honor their fallen friend, but he quickly realized that she actually meant there shouldn’t have to be anything to honor her in the first place. “Yeah, me too.” They looked at the memorial for a few more moments before continuing their path together. “What’s the plan for today?”

Stealth Elf pulled out a piece of paper which she used to write down all the assignments of the day. It was crumpled and the words were messily scribbled, but it was good enough for her to read it. “There have been reports about the Kaos situation. Some activity at his family castle, so it’s safe to assume that he’s returned there.”

Spyro nodded. “That’s good to hear, then we have to send a team.”

Stealth Elf continued. “Besides that, there were a few evil minions sighted that we should take care of. No Golden Queen though, it seems Sprocket really got the job done.”

“I sure hope so.” Even though the technician told them that she buried the queen beneath her palace, none of them knew that she survived. “Anything else?”

“One last thing…” Stealth Elf was hesitant about that point, but she didn’t want to make a big deal out of it. “Someone needs to check on the villains at Cloudcracker Prison. The Trap Masters have taken some time off after making sure they were all locked up again, but an inspection is overdue.”

Spyro remembered how most of the prisoners had to be released and kept inside the cafeteria in order to make room for the possessed Skylanders until that was resolved. “That won’t be a problem, I can go and check on them-”

“All of them.” Stealth Elf put emphasis on all. Spyro went silent and had an empty stare. He wanted to say something but just couldn’t. When he opened his mouth, the Life Skylander stopped him. “Nightfall already said she’d go. I know you can’t see her yet.”

Spyro closed his mouth again and nodded. “Thanks.” He didn’t look the elf in the eyes anymore and just kept walking straight ahead.

Northwest from the Academy only a few islands away was the infamous Cloudcracker Prison standing in its full crystalline glory. It was currently holding more villains than ever before, ranging from the sinister Doom Raiders to the smallest of greebles. Below the many floors and cells was one dark room hidden in the lower part of the building. It was a big, cave-like area with a dome-shaped forcefield in its center. Inside it was the now mortal Hex, leaning against the solid blue wall of energy.

After giving up all her powers and ending Malefor once and for all, the witch was transported to the prison and locked inside that highly secured room. The Skylanders didn’t want to take any risks since she got closer to defeating them than any other villain before.

During the seemingly endless silence, the only door leading inside the room opened and Nightfall entered. Hex tilted her head slightly to see the dreadwalker through her messy black hair before turning her sight to the floor again. Neither of them talked. Nightfall approached the forcefield and stared at Hex for a good while. “Do you need anything?” The Supercharger’s raspy voice echoed through the room.

“As if you care.” Hex responded dryly, not even bothering to give the Dark Skylander another look.

“You’re a mortal again, you have to drink and eat.” Nightfall didn’t say that out of sympathy, she made it clear that she was just following orders.

“I’m well aware of that.” Hex finally moved her head again before staring back at the ground. “And why did they send you? Do they think that I would talk to someone who’s just like me?”

“I’m nothing like you!” Nightfall hissed.

“You aren’t?” Hex asked with a hint of sarcasm. “You aren’t an outsider? You don’t distance yourself from everyone around you?” Hex remembered how Nightfall was one of the few Skylanders she communicated with from time to time, exactly because of their similarities. “I dare to say that you were closer to me than anyone else. Anyone but…”

“Enough of this, witch!” Nightfall interrupted Hex and had to fight the urge to storm off without fulfilling her duty. “What you did was more than enough to show me what kind of person you really are. And I think nothing of that kind!” Despite Nightfall’s aloof and sometimes antisocial behavior, she did have a strong sense of justice and knew right from wrong. “I sympathized with you before because I thought you were like me. Restrained and quiet, but also loyal. Now I know that you’re nothing but a hate-filled and wicked person!” Hex had nothing to say in response, perhaps because it was true. “I’ll send a meal your way, even though you’re not even deserving of that.”

The dreadwalker turned around and left without another word. Hex remained sitting on the floor, her knees bent and her arms on top of them. She didn’t know if she would ever see the blue skies or floating islands again, but what the witch did know is that she did what she considered to be right for her.

Meanwhile at the Academy hospital on top of one of the many beds was an impatient Wild Storm. A week has passed since he was taken out by a mysterious dart out of nowhere and Whirlwind demanded another checkup. The knight was tapping his armored fingers onto the steel bed frame, eager to finally get a result.

After another minute the hybrid entered the room. “So, Wild Storm.” The Air Skylander began whilst holding a wooden board with her paw. “There are still some traces of the venom which was injected into your body and nearly made you unconscious, however you endured it very well and don’t have anything to worry about anymore. I must say I’m impressed by how quickly and easily your body processed it.”

When the head of the hospital says something like that it must mean something. “Thank you, Whirlwind.” The Sensei turned to the ledge of the bed and stared at her with his glowing eyes inside his mask. “Do you know what exactly that was?”

“Well, it was a paralyzing toxin commonly found in nightshades and other nocturnal plants. I can’t tell you where it came from but maybe it would help to inspect whatever hit you.” Whirlwind didn’t find anything unusual on the knight when he was brought in, so she was curious about what happened. “Tidepool was the one to bring you here, maybe you should ask her.”

Wild Storm nodded before Whirlwind excused herself. He really should talk to Tidepool, not only about this but also everything else that’s been going on between the two. They haven’t properly spoken in months and when Wild Storm lost control Tidepool suddenly confessed that she loved him. Even though he was in his beast form and his memory was cloudy, that is the part he remembers most clearly.

Wild Storm soon left the hospital and went to look for Tidepool. He spotted Boom Bloom nearby and approached her to find out that the quickshot should be in her room. The Air Skylander followed the advice and entered the long hallway with several Skylanders’ rooms. Eventually, he reached Tidepool’s. Everyone had their own personal doorplate attached so they would know whose room it was. Tidepool’s was a gorgeous depiction of the ocean with sea creatures like squids and whales just like the ones that aid her in battle. He knocked on the door and after hearing a neutral “come in”, the knight slowly entered.

When Tidepool turned around and saw the familiar figure she froze in place. Wild Storm closed the door behind him before the two stood still and stared at each other. “Wild… what brings you here?” Tidepool already knew the answer, but she didn’t know what else to say.

“I wanted to talk to you.” Wild Storm began.

“I wanted to talk to you too, actually.” Tidepool responded with the same intention, which lead to another moment of tense silence. “It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

“It definitely has.” Wild Storm never wanted to cut his friend off like that, but he saw no other way to keep the beast inside him away from her. “I wanted to ask if you know what happened that day when I… lost control.”

“Oh…” Tidepool expected to hear such a question, but she wasn’t quite prepared. She was nervous. She didn’t know if he remembered anything. If he remembered what she said. “You want to know why you ended up in the hospital I assume?”

The knight nodded and sat onto a wooden chair in the corner of the room.

“That’s actually what I wanted to talk to you about as well.” The Water Skylander turned around to grab something. She held it in her hand and moved it closer to Wild Storm for him to see. “You got hit by this dart and almost became unconscious. I guess because you were in your beast form you took it pretty well, but anyone else would have been down for hours.”

“Whirlwind told me that, but it sounds like you know more about this.” Wild Storm observed Tidepool as her expression was getting more nervous and her eyes focused on the small missile. “Do you know where the dart came from?”

“I have an idea, yes.” Tidepool turned around again and took a deep breath as her back was facing the Air Skylander. “That’s why I have to go away for a while.”

Wild Storm was caught off guard. “What?”

The Water Sensei turned back around holding her two squid guns, only that they were missing the grips, so they were just regular squids. “I know this is sudden and I can’t tell you what it is, but there’s something I must do.” She looked down at her marine pets in her arms as they turned their heads to look back at her. “I also want to ask you for a favor.”

Wild Storm didn’t understand what was going on, but he wanted to help his friend, nonetheless. “What is it?”

Tidpeool took a step forward and moved her squids towards the knight. “Can you look after them while I’m gone? I can’t take them with me, it’s too dangerous. I would ask someone else but… you’re the one I trust the most.”

Wild Storm stared at the two squids and then at Tidepool again. He never really knew those animals as anything other than weapons, but after giving it some thought he took them into his arms, despite the slimy feeling. “Of course, I would love to.” He observed the squids while they were gently moving across his arms before looking back at his friend who had a saddened but also certain look on her face. “But Tidepool, where are you going?”

“I really wish I could tell you, but I can’t.” The Sensei was hoping that this wouldn’t upset the knight, but his willingness to care for the squids gave her confidence. “Any word about this mission could put you and every other Skylander in danger, I can’t do that to you. You have to trust me.”

Wild Storm was looking deep into Tidepool’s eyes, he can’t remember the last time that has happened. He knew her well, despite their recent hardship, and he knew that she could take care of herself. “I trust you.” Tidpeool’s mouth formed a smile and she pet her squids goodbye. “Just promise me that you’ll be careful.”

“Always.” Tidepool responded and her eyes met those of Wild Storm again. “I don’t know when I can come back, it might take months, even a year, but you can’t tell anyone about this. If someone asks just tell them that I’m on a longer journey and I will be back later, hopefully no one will notice.”

Wild Storm nodded and had to twist his hands to prevent the squids from falling down. “And what about these two? Is there anything I have to know?”

“Don’t worry, they can take care of themselves. I just want you to keep an eye on them, so they don’t get into trouble.” The Water Skylander gave her pets a stern look before they nodded to assure her that they’ll behave.

“If they’re as tough as their owner then I have nothing to worry about.” The Senseis smiled before another wave of awkward silence washed over them. Wild Storm thought if there was anything else he had to say. Ultimately, only one thing came to his mind. “I’ll miss you Tide.”

Tidepool looked at Wild Storm and felt her heart beating inside her chest. A part of her just wanted to hug him and confess her feelings all over again. Her love towards him hasn’t changed, even if he still didn’t know it. However, she had to hide it again because she knew that this was more important than that. “I’ll miss you too.”

After those words the friends hugged each other one last time before Tidepool stepped out of the room, threw Wild Storm one more look, and closed the door, not knowing when she would come back. The knight stayed in her room and sat on the bed with the squids clinging onto his arms. “Guess it’s just you and me now.” This was not what Wild Storm expected when he came here, but he could tell that whatever Tidepool had to do was important. He hoped that they could finally spend time together again so he could confess that he loved her too. But he would have to wait, just like Tidepool did.

The next day was an exciting one for the Skylanders. Eon’s niece Aurora was gone for several months on a mission to look for remaining portals connected to Earth, and she has finally returned. An entire crowd of Skylanders was eagerly waiting at the port until her airship arrived. When Aurora opened the door and stepped outside, she was greeted by loud cheering and clapping. With a smile the Sensei got off the ship and rejoined all her friends and allies. Even though she had many things to share, there was one person she wanted to talk to before anyone else.

Master Eon was sitting inside his office, busy with some overdue paperwork. Suddenly someone knocked on the door. “Enter.” The spirit answered bleakly, unaware of who just entered the room.

When Eon lifted his head, he was at a loss for words. Even though he was expecting his niece to come back home any day now, he was still shocked to finally see her again. “Hey uncle.”

“Aurora!” The relatives were about to go in for a hug, but then stopped themselves. “It’s… wonderful to see you again.” They awkwardly stood in front of each other since they were unable to hug due to Eon’s ghostly state.

“It’s good to see you too!” Aurora sighed while looking at the ghost of her uncle. It’s been years since the attack that destroyed his body and she missed hugging him and feeling some kind of physical contact to her last family member, but she was eternally grateful that he was still there in the first place. “There are so many things I have to tell you!”

“Then do tell!” Eon said with glee as he magically pulled out the chair in front of his desk for Aurora to sit on.

After the swashbuckler told Eon all about her journey and the portals she’s discovered, he was impressed to hear that there are in fact still some active portals which could potentially transport the Skylanders back to Earth. Of course, there was no need for that after the Skylanders were freed from their imprisonment on the foreign planet and managed to return to Skylands for good.

“It was amazing uncle, I have never even seen some of the places I went to!” Something not many Skylanders knew was that Aurora has spent many years lost in another realm. She only managed to escape alongside the other Light and Dark Skylanders after the destruction of Cloudcracker Prison which released them from their respective realms. “I only remember all those books and drawings that we used to have years ago, but I never thought I’d see those places for myself! And how much they’ve changed!” The Sensei was as excited as a child.

“I’m glad that you had the opportunity to visit them.” Eon was the happiest he’s been in a long time. He was desperately looking for his niece after her disappearance, many years of hopeless searching. When she then finally returned, he was already a spirit and felt like he could never have the same bond with her again, but they tried making the best of it. However, Eon’s smile faded into a frown as he had some bad news to share. “There’s something you need to know.”

Aurora was curious. “What is it?” Before Eon could answer, the Light Skylander guessed it herself. “Oh, you mean what happened with Hex? The entire Skylands have heard about it! I can’t believe she would do something like that-”

“There was something else.” Eon hated to interrupt his niece and tell her something even worse, but she had to know. “During Hex’ ambush when some Skylanders were corrupted, Kaos managed to escape.”

Aurora went silent. Her family had a long and complicated history with that of Kaos’ and his escape could only mean trouble. “Well, then we’ll just take him down like we always do. Right?”

“It’s not only him this time.” Now came the part Eon feared the most. In the last few days, he has felt unsettled, a familiar feeling. He tried to figure out what it was and used his powers to look for a connection until he finally knew. “Kaossandra is free as well.”

This time Aurora was not only quiet, but visibly shocked, almost afraid. “Ka- Kaossandra?” The Sensei’s mind was rushing as she recalled all the stories she had heard about the dark Portal Mistress. “But she’s been trapped in that mirror for years, how…”

“I don’t know, but I can sense that she broke out of it. Her aura has no equal.” Eon has a past with Kaossandra, but he preferred to not talk about it, even with his niece. “I’m not sure what her and Kaos are up to, but with everything that’s happened recently I have reason to believe that we need to brace ourselves for the worst.”

Aurora slowly nodded, still lost in thoughts. “I understand.” She slowly raised herself up from the chair and made her way to the door, completely absent-minded. “I will get back to training as soon as I can and… I will watch out.”

As she closed the door behind her, Aurora reached into the collar of her armor with Eon’s face engraved on it. She pulled out a necklace with a small golden key attached to it. She looked at it for a few moments and sighed before hiding it inside her armor again and walking along.

Eon remained in his office for the rest of the day and couldn’t help but worry. He thought about the past year and everything that’s happened. The betrayal of the reformed villains and Snap Shot, Malefor’s return, Hex’ curse. It almost made Eon doubt the trust he has in his loyal Skylanders. All those events reminded him so much of the past, where he was betrayed by Kaossandra as well.

The day came to an end and the Academy progressively shut down. After Aurora’s return and all the exciting news everyone was tired and ready for bed. Tuff Luck had just finished her patrol at Cloudcracker Prison and was heading to the Life Realm where she would enjoy the vast and untouched nature.

As the Life Trap Master was strolling through the Academy, she heard something nearby. There was no one else there besides two guards at the main entrance, but she was too far away to be hearing them. There it was again. The feline swiftly summoned her Traptanium warblades and listened carefully. She heard something behind her and turned around whilst swinging her blades, but she didn’t strike anything. Before she could move another inch, a cloaked figure appeared right in front of her. The Trap Master furiously looked into its face and what she saw terrified her. The figure wore a gruesome mask with glowing blue eyes which stared right into the Trap Master’s soul. Before she could attack the intruder, Tuff Luck’s jade green eyes were suddenly filled with a light blue fog. The Life Skylander stood there like a statue, she couldn’t move and her weapons fell to the ground. The figure in front of her calmly walked away and turned into thin air, disappearing from the Academy.

Tuff Luck found herself on a grassy field. The last thing she remembered was seeing that strange figure at the Academy, but now she was on this small, isolated island surrounded by a pitch-black sky. Even though there was no source of light to be found, she could see herself and the grass underneath her as clear as day. When she looked further a forest appeared right in front of her, but instead of the usual joy she experienced seeing a forest, she gasped in horror. The trees and plants were slowly decaying and falling apart, as if a plague was passing right through them. Tuff Luck was terrified as the decaying forest began to spread until she was surrounded by it. This was her biggest fear, for all the nature in Skylands to die off. The feline ran away but there was no end to the forest, she just kept on screaming and running in agony. While she was experiencing all that in her head, Tuff Luck’s body was standing still at the Academy, her foggy blue eyes staring into the distance. It was nothing but a shell, while Tuff Luck’s mind was hopelessly lost.

#skylanders #skylanders after the end #skylanders ate #ate #chapter 3 #kaos #kaossandra #spyro #hex #nightfall #aurora #eon #tuff luck #original story #fanfiction

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dragonrajafanfiction · 3 years

Text

Code: Light

Part of my Series based on the in game dungeons lol. Just for fun.

In fact… there was a boy who lived here… 20 years ago…

The words echoed in Lu Mingfei’s mind as he looked over the rundown landscape in front of him. He was sitting on a dirty pillow on a broken, rotted out porch, rain pouring down on his head through the holes in the overhang. Spiders skittered about and made him pull his feet in. In front of him was a table of rice, vegetables and tea. Outside the porch was a small garden with a pond, green and overgrown with algae. It was pouring down rain as it had been all day. The pond was at capacity and it would soon overflow its banks. From the gloomy surroundings, frogs creeled out a constant serenade.

He was led there by a woman, an elder in that particular village, who had first reported what turned out to be dragon activity in this small town. Lu Mingfei, Chu Zihang, and Caesar Gattuso were called to investigate. According to the report on the dossier, a young child in a red coat, carrying a red balloon could be seen standing at the edge of the village. His face was impossible to make out. Japanese towns could be full of local ghost tales, but this one occurred with disturbing regularity. EVA, the Cassell Supercomputer then detected an elemental anomaly. Plants seemed to be growing at such an incredible rate, that the rain clouds over this small area of Japan never seemed to stop. The rain would fall, the plants would soak it up and transpire the water again. It was as if the Amazon Rainforest took up residence in the far East.

After explaining about the child, the old woman took them out to that ramshackle ruin of a place. “If it’s that boy you’re seeking, why not try making him something to eat?”

Then she left.

“Guys I’m so over this ghost hunt. This is so creepy and the lower the sun gets the more I want to leave.” He said. He was wearing his usual combat suit, that skin tight but extremely durable wear that was close enough to the body to avoid catching on anything, but strong enough to withstand the cut of a knife. But was it ghost proof? Who was to say they wouldn’t get eaten by this ghost and the rice be left cold and moldy with no sign of them?

“Are you excited to be on an actual ghost hunt? It’s a shame that the ghost is a boy though.” Caesar sat smoking his cigar and looking out over the grey sheet of rain in front of him. He was dressed similarly, with his Desert Eagles at his side. Of course, he made a much more handsome figure in the muscle-hugging suit.

Lu Mingfei wanted to pull his hair out. “You’re engaged! Don’t lust after the dead you freak!”

Chu Zihang slid his sword part way out of his sheath to check his equipment. “There’s no such thing as the dead coming back to life, unless it’s a dragon. And dragons don’t really die. They just sleep until they can be reborn. What we’re looking for is not a real ghost… but something that has the properties of a dragon.”

“Ghost… dragon… whatever. Do we even know if it’s attracted to rice?”

“It’s not about the rice, Lu Mingfei, it’s the routine. If the boy had a family or cared for anyone at all, wouldn’t it miss sitting at a table with a family meal?” Caesar bit his cigar,

“And we’re supposed to be its family huh? Who are you? The mom?” Mingfei shot back.

“Well…” Caesar looked down at the food. “I cooked it.”

Lu Mingfei opened his mouth to say something else but Zihang suddenly tensed. His golden eyes stared into another pair of golden eyes. A boy in a red raincoat, stood at the edge of the mossy pond. He was holding a red balloon. Only those glowing eyes were visible under the red hood. It didn’t seem to have a face.

Lu Mingfei’s face went white and then grey with terror. He shook so hard his teeth chattered “G-ghost!”

A small child’s voice echoed clear despite the pounding rain. “Outsiders. I need your help. Come with me.”

The rain suddenly stopped but the sky grew darker, like a great shadow from something large coming over head. The air suddenly cooled. They were still in front of the table but the garden was replaced by sand. The sand was grooved in artistic circles, like an elegant Japanese rock garden. Looking around, they seemed to be in a ruined ancient village. The piece of land they were standing on was floating in mid air, like it had been torn from the earth. There was no sun. The way was lit by ominous paper lanterns that floated in place, painted with a red swirl pattern. In the distance an ancient Japanese castle tower rose out of the misty horizon.

Torii gates were seen floating in the grey, foggy surroundings. Most were shattered. They seemed frozen in the middle of being demolished, their broken pieces spraying at odd angles, their elegant cross bars tilted, but they never collapsed.

What was most noticeable about this place however, was the sudden sense of crushing sorrow. The feeling one got when they received some sort of horrible news. Like a loved one had just died. It hit Mingfei in the chest and took his breath away. “Guys. I don’t want to be here. I don’t want to …�� Mingfei eyes filled with tears. “What’s happening. I’m so scared.” He hugged his own arms and tried to stop the tears from falling. “We’ve got to get out!”

He turned to Chu Zihang who always knew what to do in times like this. But the man was frozen, his jaw tense and locked, staring at the ground in a trance, trying to control his out of control emotions. He was breathing fast and trying to swallow the lump in his throat.

Apparently, sorrow drove Caesar Gattuso to action. He drew Dictator and pointed it up towards some broken stairs framed by a bright red Torii gate. Caesar suddenly roared. “This place sucks! Let’s get out of here as soon as we can. The only way out is up!”

His sudden yell seemed to break whatever emotional spell had been cast on the other two teammates. Lu Mingfei wiped his face. “What was that all about?”

“I’m not sure. Likely the owner of this place had a terrible life.” Chu Zihang said gravely. “I’ve heard of Longwei, the natural fear that dragons give off to other creatures, but I’ve never heard of a Dragon’s sorrow being projected like this.”

The stairs were floating over empty air, made of uneven, ancient grey limestone. There were dozens of stairs leading up into the ominous grey sky with broken Torii gates at intervals every twenty steps. Chu Zihang held up his hand to catch what appeared to be snow flying in the air. He sniffed at it. “Ash. Like something is burning. This must be some sort of Nibelungen. But I’ve never seen anything like it.” Chu Zihang said. “We should watch out. Where there’s a Nibelungen, there’s always…”

A sudden loud screeching interrupted him. A flock of bats the size of geese suddenly dislodged from under the stairs. A whole flock of them swept forward in a single black cloud mass. Lu Mingfei ducked his head as the claws and teeth scraped at him. “I hate this place already!”

Caesar drew his pistols and fired. The bats were flapping and tilting and whirling, but he just needed to aim for just a moment before shooting one out of the air without missing. Likewise, Chu Zihang quickly slashed once and twice, neatly severing their bodies in two without trouble.

“Bats are better than snakes!” Caesar yelled, reloading his Desert Eagles.

“At least Snakes don’t fly!” Lu Mingfei yelled.

As they climbed the stairs, they stayed back to the back, firing and slicing through the endless swarm of screaming bats. The sound of it was like a constant siren. Mingfei held his hands to his ears and allowed himself to be shielded by his two older students. He could hardly see anything between the endless assault of black bodies.

Caesar’s eyes glowed yellow. “There’s something big at the top of the stairs. That’s where they’re coming from!” He had sent out his Scythe Itachi and they returned with a huge heartbeat up ahead. “Chu Zihang, get rid of these things!”

“Get down.” Chu Zihang closed his eyes for just a moment and then an evil snarl emanated from his throat. Black waves of heat drove back the bats and then exploded outward into violent flames. The bats were instantly set alight and hundreds of burning bodies folded their wings and fell into the endless pit below. Lu Mingfei didn’t even want to think of what it meant to fall down into that grey void. Would he just continue to fall forever?

“Eugh…” Caesar pinched his nose to escape the smell of burning flesh and hair. “Good.” He said, reaching down at pulling Mingfei to his feet.

A loud roar shook the stairs and cracked them. Then the stairs started to crumble, starting from the bottom. If they didn’t hurry, they would be the ones falling. “Run! Run!” Caesar yelled.

Ahead of them was a large gap. The stairs were falling apart around them, coming to pieces, like the mortar that held them together suddenly lost all its strength. “We’ll have to jump it!”

It looked to be ten feet across over the nothingness. They’d never make a jump that far. But it was either try to jump or fall to their deaths anyway. Chu Zihang suddenly grabbed Lu Mingfei’s arm and without explanation took a leap and dragged him with him. For a moment, there was nothing but empty air under him. And then a sudden blast of heat and a loud boom! Chu Zihang used Royal Fire to blast himself over the gap, dragging the terrified Lu Mingfei the extra few feet needed. They landed and Lu Mingfei collapsed on shaky legs. “Are you out of your mind? You could have at least told me!” He gasped.

Chu Zihang looked at him with no expression. “You would have hesitated.”

Lu Mingfei froze. “I- n.- No…” Lu Mingfei looked away and then looked around. “Where’s Caesar?”

Caesar pulled himself up onto his arms. He was hanging from the ledge, having barely made the jump himself. He looked at Chu Zihang, annoyed. “Sure. Don’t mind me. I’ll just help myself up.”

His eyes suddenly widened at something behind Chu Zihang and Lu Mingfei. They turned around and saw a looming snake with a thick human-like torso and bulging human arms. It glared at them with yellow eyes shining from the skull of an ancient predator it wore as a mask. It brandished a spear as long as a car with a sharp bone tip.

#Dragon Raja #Chu Zihang #Caesar Gattuso #Lu Mingfei

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crime-bot · 3 years

Text

! Creature Gets Lost in a Bootleg OmegaMart, More at Eleven !

A small, grey weasel of a dragon was in the dim and cool alley of a street. They were rummaging through a garbage can, making a little mess of clatters and clangs, but coming up with nothing edible. They paused to droop and lament over their misfortune. In the middle of the pause, and through the midst of discarded cans and empty bags, they caught a glimpse of yellow, clear as day. It must’ve been a banana! Or cheese! They gasped with some new vigor ignited and reached their scaly arm in to get it, but when they got hold of the thing and pulled it out it was just a plastic lemon. They grumbled and angrily threw it at the ground. It bounced away and stopped, resting near the alley’s wall opposite of them.

Their stomach growled.

“Yeah, yeah, I know!” Greyscale said, “I’m trying to find something! Can’t you have any pa-”

They looked up as they hollered and noticed some smoke in the sky, above the surrounding brick buildings.

“Oh, what now, a fire-?”

They had to admit, they’d be intrigued by the idea of a fire somewhere, and at least that’d take their mind off their stomach. What else could smoke mean, after all? They knew the saying: where there’s smoke, there’s fire.

They lept to a pipe that scaled the side of the alleyway and climbed it to the rooftop only to discover the smoke was coming from a particularly not-up-to-code shipping truck, but what wasn’t what caught their eye.

Behind it was a large building with the words “DELTAMART” displayed proudly over a set of clear doors, standing tall and sure in the light of day. A grocery store! That’s just what they needed!

“Actually, I don’t think we’ll have to wait for much longer,” Greyscale said.

They lept and bounded down from roof to windowsill to dumpster. Right as they hit the ground, they made a dash through the parking lot desert, behind the truck, and right right up to the doors, then abruptly stopped and clung to the wall in an attempt to stay out of the eyes of anyone from inside.

They did a double-take, looking for anyone nearby. No one was around. They poked their head around to peak through one of the glass doors of the building that towered over them, a looming mass of bricks and corporate design.

There were some people walking around inside, carrying overflowing cornucopia baskets and pushing carts full of different treats, tools, and other products, but that wasn’t what got them the most. The aisles they could see were filled to the brim with food, and a couple of visible setups of fruits and vegetables looked so delicious and tantalizing in their array of colors that they sparkled to the dragon like precious gemstones.

Greyscale drooled a little with wide eyes.

They anxiously waited until there were barely any people near the doors, and anyone that was there appeared too thoroughly occupied to notice anything sneaking in.

They whispered, “the coast is clear!”

The creature sprang from their hiding spot and scrambled ins-- wait, no, nevermind, they just bonked headfirst into the glass door.

A first-time customer in a nearby checkout aisle got startled out of her waiting stupor and looked over to the sliding doors. Nothing was there.

“Did you hear that?” she asked.

“I hear everything,” said cashier #23,457, mid-scan of a bag of milk with one of his hands.

Understandably, that monotone answer concerned the customer, but she tried to brush it off. She just needed some milk for a recipe quick, and this was the closest store to her house.

“So-- Um,” she pressed on, “what about that thud from outside?”

“Ohh, haha, yeah I did,” he admitted, “Someone probably just walked into one of those doors again.” He handed the customer a grocery bag with her bagged milk inside and said, “Anyways, have a good day!”

Warily, she took the bag.

“You’re... not going to check on th-”

“H-H-Have a good day!” He said.

Now truly weirded out, she quickly said, “alllright thenIwill!” and walked out as fast-yet-also-not-running as she could.

It’s safe to say she’ll make the effort to not come back.

Seeing their chance, Greyscale scurried in under an exiting woman’s line of sight before the glass doors closed behind her.

At last, they made it into the glory of fluorescent lighting and vibrant food! In the midst of their wave of triumph, they continued to make the effort to stay hidden, taking cover behind some shopping carts.

The store was very nicely kept, they had to note. The white and navy blue checkered floors were spotless, and all the aisles and displays of different sorts were a combination of white, and/or blue, with some yellow, too. From where they were hidden, the whole place smelled cold and vaguely sterile, but they didn’t complain about it. They knew that was just how supermarkets were.

They took a great big breath in preparation and ran from the cover of the shopping carts, still with the effort of being undetected. As they perused in their own only slightly feral way, they dove behind grocery aisles, clambered up shelves, and hid in crates to stay out of workers’ and customers’ perceptions.

During this act of stealth and agility, they noticed an aisle with no people in it full of candy from atop a set of shelves.

“Aw, how sweet of fate!” they mused.

The creature made a B-line for it, jumping across gaps between short distance of aisles, and snagged a small bag of candy that had fallen to the checkered floor. They tore into it and began to eat a mouthful of the tart, brittle sweets inside.

Among the midst of the corporately pleasant music playing throughout the store, its jingle chimed in.

It sang, “De-De-deee de DelllltaMart, you have NO ideea what’s in STORE for YOU-u-u!”

They noticed the jingle and stopped their snacking to chuckle.

“You’re right about that,” they said, “I wonder what other good stuff this place has!”

They focused back on their bag of Candy Spiders (Now With 70% More Spiders!), just in time to notice one of the confections moving amongst its kin with its bone-pick legs.

A shocking moment of registration passed. They yelped at the realization and threw the bag away from themself as far as they could.

They sputtered, “Did-- did that--? No-”

They paused and slunk back up to the bag, warily.

The bag was motionless.

Slowly, cautiously, they batted it with their paw. They reeled it back away from the bag, as if it might jump up and bite them. Still, nothing inside moved.

They blinked a couple times and began to doubt what they thought they saw.

“Huh, h-ha, maybe this candy’s expired..” they said.

Greyscale left the bag behind to wander about some more(and put some distance between them and the Candy Spiders, but they didn’t want to fully admit that), and checked the rest of the products out.

They trotted through the deli area, passing by a stiff employee who was still in the process of regaining energy from his charging deck, fixated on the selection of meats. They even tested grabbing a slice of ham, and he didn’t notice one bit!

Once they were done with that, they visited another place that no one was in at the time. It didn’t have anything meant to be edible, but it sure was beautiful. Countless flowers were displayed in rainbows of colors, and the air was chilly to keep them all preserved for longer. Greyscale stayed there, smelling the roses both figuratively and semi-literally, until they had enough of that. They walked out of the section and past a sign that read, ‘HYBRID FLOWERS’. One of the tulips opened its eye.

After that snack and slice of ham they had, Greyscale was undoubtedly more content with their level of hunger, but they wanted to try to make the most of this place. After all, when they’re amongst a bounty of food, it’s good to get as much as they can before they go. They put their two front paws up on the ledge of a refrigerated bin full of organized fruit and poked their snout in, looking to choose which might be tastiest. Should they have a pear, or maybe an apple? Oh, but the peaches looked good, too!

Out from under the side of a display pyramid of apples behind them, a glitching, writhing tentacle rose to inspect its produce.

Ah, yes, every apple was shiny and in order... It had the pigeon grease to thank for that. It was about to retreat back under the apples, but something caught its attention. What it noticed was grey, and.. It wasn’t shaped like a customer either. It was rummaging around in a nearby refrigerator bin full of fruit strictly for customers.

Greyscale felt a couple of taps on their back and jumped, then turned to face-

“aAh-!!”

Nope! Nope, nope nope! They scrambled into and out of the freezing bin of fruit and away from the shifting, glitching-- thing in front of them. It lunged, and they turned and ran only to skid to a halt before smacking into a glass display case of ears.

Oh nonono, they shook the shock from that off and sprinted left into an aisle, only to see one of the store workers pulling can after can out of his mouth to put on the shelves.

They quickly turned again to climb up a shelf from the opposite side of the aisle as fast as they could. They really, really, really shouldn’t be here-

They tried to escape, find a way out, but the more and more they ran and jumped and turned, shifting from running on the ground to balancing on top of aisles, the more the grocery store grew and stretched into a labyrinth.

“NononononoIcan’tbetrappedthere’sgottabeaneXIT-”

They stopped briefly, shuffling and turning in place and trying to catch their breath, looking for anything that could possibly function as a sign to point them out. They launched themself from where they stood again only to smack into a pair of legs they hadn’t noticed.

The owner of those legs, a tall, nicely dressed woman, looked down at whatever had bumped into her.

Greyscale screamed and ran as soon as they realized they got noticed yet again.

“Huh…” she said, “one of the fish they’re selling must’ve got out again.”

She shrugged and continued to read the label of some canned wood she grabbed from a shelf of assorted canned inedibles.

Still thoroughly spooked, Greyscale bolted through the open door of a storage room to hide, but it only led to an expansive area of ventilation pipe trees and tubes protruding out of the ground and sky and distant walls in a variety of angles, all painted in a mess of glowing neon patterns.

The little dragon darted about the dark and dizzying manufactured forest, too worried about getting caught by any foe to realize the nature of the location surrounding them until they finally looked back. They began to slow down to a trot when they didn’t see anyone.

“There’s…” they huffed, “no one.. there…?”

Upon that realization, they slowed down even more, but that wasn’t enough to keep them from losing their footing on a pipe nestled into the glittering ground.

“HuhuUuAH-!”

Before they had a chance to save themself, they were swallowed into further oblivion and shot down the pipework with a series of clunks and shouts, thumping, denting into each abrupt turn going deeper, deeper, faster, faster until they were finally spat out to the end.

Greyscale was flung from the mouth, still held at the whim of momentum, and tumbled to a stop, toppled over themself. The result of that disorienting ride was a dizzy, discombobulated dragon, complete with stars going around their head as it bobbed about, trying to get their bearings despite their eyes having trouble focusing on anything for the time being.

They knew it was bright, or-- maybe it was dark? They couldn’t tell, they could still only see stars and an ever-shifting background. Their ears picked up on a further dizzying soundscape of moving, shifting, falling, corporate music, but the more they strained to focus on and determine a sound the more and more difficult it felt to tell any sound apart from another. It was a surrounding, pattering swarm of noise, and as their vision cleared and they tried to stumble up, they only fell back down onto the soft, squishy.. mahogany(?) surface they had been spat onto by the pipe.

Wearily, they picked their head back up and finally witnessed the shifting, unending world surrounding them. Cans floated through the air, worlds of their own, great candy spiders spun threads and webs of sugar on even more pipes that ripped out of the ground, checker patterns slid across surfaces, and everything seemed to pulse with an underlying life.

They were then aware, horrified, of the unavoidable fact that they were now utterly, hopelessly lost.

Amidst the cacophony of sights and patterning and a ground they couldn’t get a hold of, Greyscale thought they heard a familiar yet muffled jingle, far away in the distance yet echoed everywhere throughout these caverns.

“De-De-deee de DelllltaMart, you have NO ideea what’s in STORE for YOU-u-u!”

Their heart sank.

“Oh no-”

#I'm gonna polish this more later but I'm throwing it here so I can show someone because it's more convenient than google docs #my writing #omegamart #is #does this count as OmegaMart fanfiction???

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yourdeepestfathoms · 4 years

Text

Beside The Dying Fire (part eleven)

[DnD AU with the tour!verse]

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6 Part 7 Part 8 Part 9 Part 10

Word count: 2113

TW: Blood

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

Katherine let out a sharp yelp as she was suddenly thrown across the dunes. The Sand Snake she had been riding does a sharp U-turn and dashed back over to her. Both it and Catalina looked thoroughly amused.

“You good?” Catalina peered down at her.

Katherine spat out some sand. “Yeah,” She grunted, rising to her feet.

Sand Snake surfing was a lot harder than the Aasimars made it out to be. Way harder. She could barely even balance on the round board they had to stand on, and the harness pulled tightly at her hips as the serpent glided through the sand, but this mode of transportation was much better than walking, so she got back on.

“Will YOU be okay?” Katherine asked, eyeing Catalina’s stomach.

Catalina laughed. “I am a PRO, Kat. I’ll be fine.” She pat the side of her bright red Sand Snake. “Come on, let’s keep going.”

The Snakes took off once again, and Katherine jerked forward with them. She wobbled on the board, grabbing onto the rope bridled to the horn of her serpent for balance. She felt like she was gliding through water.

“What exactly are we looking for out here?” Katherine asked. All she saw in every direction were sand dunes, cacti, shrubs, and more sand dunes. There were a few pillars of old, long-fallen buildings, but nothing more.

“Uhh… I’m not actually sure!” Catalina answered her, riding next to her. “There’s the giant scorpions and serpents, but I don’t think they’re the beasts we’re looking for. There was also the Brazen Bull, but it’s been dead for centuries.” She thought for a moment. “Oh, and there’s Parthenais, Lord of The Skies!”

“Excuse me?”

A roar shook the dunes.

An ear splitting roar that might have rendered Katherine deaf if she were any closer. She instinctively reared back, nearly falling off of the board, and closed her eyes when sand billowed straight into her face. When they open again, they go wide at the sight of the beast lumbering in the distance.

Up ahead was a circular plate of sandstone raised above the ground, bearing thriving palm trees and lush greenery. Atop it sat a giant creature, its brass-colored scales shimmering in the sunlight. It stretched out huge, triangular wings that connected all the way down to the base of its webbed tail, making them look even bigger than they already were. Then, it pumped its giant wings and leapt into the air, blocking out the sun with its massive body.

The serpents came to a halt as the Brass Dragon swooped down in front of them. A tidal wave of sand splashed up into the air, and Katherine had to shield her face away from the spray. When she recovered, she looked up at the towering beast looming over her.

After a moment of staring with glittering orange eyes, the dragon moved again, slowly lowering its head to bump Catalina affectionately. Catalina laughed loudly and threw her arms around its large head.

“Parthenais!” Catalina cried in glee. “It’s so good to see you again!”

The dragon, Parthenais, growled happily. It flicked its small ears towards Katherine and looked at her.

“Oh, this is Katherine,” Catalina introduced her. “She’s my friend.”

Parthenais extended her snout out to Katherine and nudged her gently before churring in a sort of approval and turning back to Catalina.

“I’m sorry I was gone for so long,” Catalina said, stroking the scaly plates curving from the sides of Parthenais’ head. “I just had to get away from my dumb family.”

Parthenais rumbled. Slowly, she got down on her front knees, lowering her huge body to lay like a horse on the ground, tucking both legs underneath herself. Folding her massive wings in close and curling her tail inwards, she now looked like a peaceful and happy giant scaly dragon loaf in the dunes. Katherine had to shield her eyes again when sand exploded up into the air for a second time upon the dragon deciding to lounge in front of her and Catalina.

“You never said you had a pet dragon,” Katherine said to Catalina.

Catalina laughed. “You never asked!” She said back. She looked up at Parthenais. “Par isn’t really my pet. More like a friend.” She scratched under Parthenais’ chin.

Parthenais leaned forward and nudged Catalina’s belly with her nose. Catalina laughed lightly.

“I’m gonna be a mom soon, Par,” Catalina told the dragon. “But first I have to save the world!” She grinned. “So, have you seen anything suspicious around here? Our mission is to slay the beasts in each of the territories, and we’re starting here.”

Parthenais churred, then lowered one wing. Catalina perked up and clambered onto her back, while Katherine just stared at her with wide eyes. Catalina laughed.

“What are you waiting for? Come on!”

Katherine had never thought she would ever ride a dragon, yet here she now was.

“Oh my god!!!” She screamed as Parthenais zipped through the clear blue sky. She gripped tightly onto one of the ridges along the dragon’s back, shrieking. Catalina howled with laughter at her side.

“Isn’t this incredible?!” Catalina shouted over the wind whipping past them.

“This is insane!!” Katherine cried.

“I know!!!”

Parthenais wheeled around in the sky, nearly flinging Katherine off, and landed heavily in the sand. They were now in front of a narrow valley carved into from Highland Cliffs, opening up into the mesas above. The smell of roasting meat whisked out through the gorge.

“Something is in there?” Catalina asked Parthenais, and Parthenais bobbed her head with a growl. “Alright. We’ll look into it. Come on, Kat.”

Katherine and Catalina ventured into the valley. Katherine was surprised to find that it was a lot cooler in there than out in the dunes, most likely because of the rocky overhangs blocking out the sun from above. Shifting sand turned to sturdy sandstone beneath their feet as they walked through the gorge, deeper and deeper until they came to a small clearing. Several stone shelves jutted out from the wall, sprinkling down sand in golden waterfalls. White tents were set up on one of the larger platforms around a fire, which had been burned out and abandoned. Strange sculptures made from dried wet sand formed squatting wolf-pigs on almost every ledge, staring down at them with dulled coal eyes. Strings of bones and feathers were strung up from wall-to-wall, rattling softly in the breeze. A stone entrance lied ahead, beneath an overhang, where the smell of meat was coming from.

Catalina clenched her fists at her side. “This is one of Henry’s strongholds. He’s fucking set up on my land.” She growled. “We have to take it out, Kat. We can’t let them stay here.”

“I know,” Katherine said. “But let’s be smart about this, okay? We should just rush in there; we don’t know how many there are inside.”

Catalina took a deep, calming breath and nodded. “Right. Got it. Let’s make a plan and kill these bastards.”

One of the wolf-pig statues fell from a ledge and shattered into sandy pieces across the red stone floor. It wasn’t very noisy when it broke apart, but it had hit a strand of bones when it fell and alerted one of the guards inside. The human man went to go investigate, and got a chunk of rock put through his throat when Katherine jumped down from the ledge. When the second guard from inside, a Gith man, heard the commotion, Catalina snuck up behind him and slit his throat before he could yell for the others.

“Come on,” Catalina whispered.

They slowly slunk inside the large circular room where a rock pedestal stood at the very center. A boar was roasting on a spit over a fire, turning slowly- the source of the smell. All the soldiers inside whipped their head around, and Katherine reached out to the land, and the wind, and the very heat of the sun cradled in the ground’s memory. She clenched her shaking fists and unleashed them all.

The shabby tents set up against the walls quaked and lost structure, toppling in on themselves while several of the soldiers were impaled by stone spikes that shot out of the ground. The wind buffeted those who tried to escape the chaos and kept the unfortunate souls corralled in the center of the fray.

She spied a high elf shaman, old as time itself, attempting to shout his ritual words over the din, but the wind cut off his words and a vortex surrounded him, choking the air from his lungs.

Eventually the righteous anger of the earth subsided, and what was left were shambles. Many of the soldiers lay unmoving, choked and bludgeoned to death by the Wind Wall spell, while a few crawl about and attempt to rouse their fallen allies or see to their own wounds. Organs and shiny red blood dripped down from stone spikes, pooling across the ground. Catalina wiped her sword’s stained blade against the fur armor of one of the fallen men. Neither of them felt guilty for their actions; Henry’s soldiers brought this fury down upon themselves from the moment they joined his army, and they were merely the vessel.

Beneath the smell of roasting meat, was the smell of blood. Not fresh blood. Old, decaying blood. There was a banner of a wolf-pig up on the wall, and Katherine swept it aside, revealing a small passageway. The smell of death hit her in a thick wave and she wrinkled her nose.

She and Catalina walked down the rocky hallway and into a small room. The smell of death was much stronger in there.

“I don’t know if I want to light a torch, Kat…”

But Catalina did, and her light shone on a stalagmite, the hair of its occupant casting shadows like sharp quills on the blood-spattered wall behind it. Katherine stepped forward, overtaken by morbid curiosity.

The person’s head hung back at an unnatural angle, and his chest was still. Long, sinuous wounds ran in bloody furrows down the victim’s back.

“They tore his wings out.”

Catalina’s light shone down to the Aasimar’s slumped form. The feathers usually on the shoulder blades had been brutally ripped out, leaving gaping crimson holes in the flesh.

Suddenly, Catalina careened over to the side and vomited on the floor. Katherine turned to her with a worried frown and began to rub her back, sweeping her hair out of the way.

“Are you alright?” Katherine asked softly.

“Shit,” Catalina whispered, wiping a hand over her mouth. “This shit is so fucking wrong. My people-- He was my--” She shook her head, spitting out some bile. “Sorry. I lost my shit for a moment.”

“It’s alright, love,” Katherine assured her. “Come on. Let’s get out of here.”

They quickly walked out of the stronghold and through the valley, where Parthenais was waiting. They climbed back onto the dragon’s back, and Catalina asked to go back to Aragon. Her expression was furious.

“How come Parthenais didn’t just go and kill those men?” Katherine asked during the fly back.

“Par doesn’t kill living things,” Catalina answered. “Unless it’s for food, of course. So that’s why we had to do it.” She clenched her fists. “And I’m glad for that, too. Those bastards should be dying by my hand for what they’ve done.”

The moment Parthenais landed in front of Aragon, Catalina was off the dragon’s back and running through the city. Katherine raced after her, and stumbled into the palace to find Catalina already yelling at her parents.

“He’s here! Henry is on our land!”

The King and Queen blinked at her. Katherine came up next to Catalina as she continued to shout.

“Lower your voice, child,” Ferdinand said.

“What are you talking about?” Isabella asked.

“Henry! The evil king who’s killing everyone and started a war! He’s here in Braze!” Catalina said. “Kat and I just went to one of his strongholds and took it out. They KILLED one of our people! TORTURED HIM!”

“Oh, we know,” Isabella said.

“That was Ilam, wasn’t it?” Ferdinand looked to his wife for confirmation, and she nodded.

“Yes. We handed him over a week ago when he kept spying on the stronghold.” Isabella said. “I guess he got what he wanted in the end. Got to go inside their base.”

Catalina was tense at Katherine’s side, and Katherine could practically see the gears turning in her head as she pieced the information together. Her eyes widened.

“Mother, Father,” The princess whispered, “what are you talking about?”

Isabella looked at Catalina calmly and said, “We work for Henry.”

#dnd au #beside the dying fire #six the musical #six the musical au #six the musical fanfic #six the musical fanfiction #six the musical fic #uk tour #tour katherine howard #katherine howard #tour catherine of aragon #catherine of aragon

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howdidyoufindthis · 3 years

Text

Their stomach growled.

“Yeah, yeah, I know!” Greyscale said, “I’m trying to find something! Can’t you have any pa-”

They looked up as they hollered and noticed some smoke in the sky, above the surrounding brick buildings.

“Oh, what now, a fire-?”

Behind it was a large building with the words “DELTAMART” displayed proudly over a set of clear doors, standing tall and sure in the light of day. A grocery store! That’s just what they needed!

“Actually, I don’t think we’ll have to wait for much longer,” Greyscale said.

Greyscale drooled a little with wide eyes.

They anxiously waited until there were barely any people near the doors, and anyone that was there appeared too thoroughly occupied to notice anything sneaking in.

They whispered, “the coast is clear!”

The creature sprang from their hiding spot and scrambled ins-- wait, no, nevermind, they just bonked headfirst into the glass door.

A first-time customer in a nearby checkout aisle got startled out of her waiting stupor and looked over to the sliding doors. Nothing was there.

“Did you hear that?” she asked.

“I hear everything,” said cashier #23,457, mid-scan of a bag of milk with one of his hands.

Understandably, that monotone answer concerned the customer, but she tried to brush it off. She just needed some milk for a recipe quick, and this was the closest store to her house.

“So-- Um,” she pressed on, “what about that thud from outside?”

Warily, she took the bag.

“You’re... not going to check on th-”

“H-H-Have a good day!” He said.

Now truly weirded out, she quickly said, “alllright thenIwill!” and walked out as fast-yet-also-not-running as she could.

It’s safe to say she’ll make the effort to not come back.

Seeing their chance, Greyscale scurried in under an exiting woman’s line of sight before the glass doors closed behind her.

During this act of stealth and agility, they noticed an aisle with no people in it full of candy from atop a set of shelves.

“Aw, how sweet of fate!” they mused.

Among the midst of the corporately pleasant music playing throughout the store, its jingle chimed in.

It sang, “De-De-deee de DelllltaMart, you have NO ideea what’s in STORE for YOU-u-u!”

They noticed the jingle and stopped their snacking to chuckle.

“You’re right about that,” they said, “I wonder what other good stuff this place has!”

They focused back on their bag of Candy Spiders (Now With 70% More Spiders!), just in time to notice one of the confections moving amongst its kin with its bone-pick legs.

A shocking moment of registration passed. They yelped at the realization and threw the bag away from themself as far as they could.

They sputtered, “Did-- did that--? No-”

They paused and slunk back up to the bag, warily.

The bag was motionless.

Slowly, cautiously, they batted it with their paw. They reeled it back away from the bag, as if it might jump up and bite them. Still, nothing inside moved.

They blinked a couple times and began to doubt what they thought they saw.

“Huh, h-ha, maybe this candy’s expired..” they said.

Out from under the side of a display pyramid of apples behind them, a glitching, writhing tentacle rose to inspect its produce.

Greyscale felt a couple of taps on their back and jumped, then turned to face-

“aAh-!!”

Oh nonono, they shook the shock from that off and sprinted left into an aisle, only to see one of the store workers pulling can after can out of his mouth to put on the shelves.

They quickly turned again to climb up a shelf from the opposite side of the aisle as fast as they could. They really, really, really shouldn’t be here-

“NononononoIcan’tbetrappedthere’sgottabeaneXIT-”

The owner of those legs, a tall, nicely dressed woman, looked down at whatever had bumped into her.

Greyscale screamed and ran as soon as they realized they got noticed yet again.

“Huh…” she said, “one of the fish they’re selling must’ve got out again.”

She shrugged and continued to read the label of some canned wood she grabbed from a shelf of assorted canned inedibles.

“There’s…” they huffed, “no one.. there…?”

Upon that realization, they slowed down even more, but that wasn’t enough to keep them from losing their footing on a pipe nestled into the glittering ground.

“HuhuUuAH-!”

They were then aware, horrified, of the unavoidable fact that they were now utterly, hopelessly lost.

“De-De-deee de DelllltaMart, you have NO ideea what’s in STORE for YOU-u-u!”

Their heart sank.

“Oh no-”

#Long post

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writing-the-end · 4 years

Text

WS Chapter 47- Fire and Brimstone

Previous Chapter

Masterpost

So.....i didn’t have the chance to fully edit this. I got some really unwelcome news followed by an argument, and suddenly it was almost 8:30. If there’s any mistakes, feel free to yell at me in the comments or my ask.

Ecto belongs to @cooler-cactus-block

Red belongs to @theguardiansofredland

Avon was on watch, but Ecto slips into the darkness without her friend noticing. Normally, all three wanderers try to sleep close together. To minimize the threat of attack, and to make packing up easier. Plus, cuddles. But since their fight, Ecto had distanced herself. Kept the fire between herself and the others. She ate alone, she curled up to sleep alone. She was used to being alone- that’s how she was for most of her life.

So leaving alone shouldn’t have been so hard. But it was. It took all her strength not to turn around, to return to the warmth and comfort that the fire, that her friends offer. Ecto was not backing down- not now. She’s decided what she’ll do. She can’t sit around and let people decide her fate, sit around and watch things happen. She was going to stand, and fight. Put herself between the danger and those who aren’t as strong willed as her. And get to bash a few enemies in the process was a bonus.

Ecto didn’t know how to make a nether portal- rather, she didn’t know how to make obsidian. She tried to rip it apart from a pond of cooled lava a few days back, but the fragile volcanic glass shattered in her hands. It was while Ecto was watching rain fall, cooling the lava into the black stone that she realized what she can do.

She may not have the tools to mine obsidian, but she does have two buckets and two pools of liquid nearby. It’s a consuming process, dangerous at best. Lava pours from the heated bucket, and she has to be quick to douse the flames before they burn down the forest around her. She singes her fingers and hair a few times, but manages to construct an obsidian rift frame. Ecto takes a step back, counting to make sure she has the right dimensions. The black frame is imposing, volcanic glass absorbing and refracting light away from the structure.

Ecto pulls out the flint and steel, looking over her shoulder. She doesn’t know what she’s looking out for, or searching for. Maybe she’s searching for prying eyes- either the hellspawns or her own friends. Maybe she’s hoping her friends will see her, join her. But the only other creature watching as she ignites the portal is a pig. And even the pig flees. Ecto gets a shiver in her spine, a feeling in the pit of her stomach that this is a stupid, dangerous idea.

Which is why she jumps in before her body can hesitate. Ecto has grown used to the feeling of traveling between worlds and dimensions. She’s used to the feeling of everything and nothing, used to feeling like she’s hungry and full, used to being in unbearable agony and perfect euphoria.

But it still doesn’t mean she’s able to catch herself when she stumbles to the other side. She goes crashing into the red dirt. It’s clumpy, like clay rather than soil, staining her skin and clothes the color of blood. Ecto checks to make sure it isn’t actually blood, breathing out relief when she clears herself.

Ecto stands to her feet, looking around. So this is the Nether, the one thing Avon fears above everything else. It’s hot...really hot, and that’s coming from Ecto. She looks up, trying to find the sun as she walks. It has to be the sun that is making this so-

She catches herself before she drops into lava. One foot already over the ledge, she practically jumps back from the sizzling sea of molten rock. Okay, it’s not the sun. It’s entire lakes and seas of lava. Grey sand catches on Ecto’s feet as she walks the beach, the grain sticking to her shoes and wisping across with her. Dragging her down, making her slower. She swears it feels like hands are on her feet, and with each step she can hear a distant scream. Is that the sand? Or some creature she’s yet to lay her eyes on? She feels like she’s walking in a massive cavern. There is no sky, only more and more of this netherrack and soulsand. Not the endless void of the End, or the midnight sky of the Overworld. The only light comes from the sea of fire below her, or the few deposits of glowing stone above her head. Starbursts of yellow light, across the angry red scene before her.

Sometimes, when Ecto is walking, she passes by slight changes in the nether. The air grows cooler, calmer. Beneath her feet, she notices the netherrack has been disturbed. Blue and red fungus buried in their own soil, crushed and overturned. She can see the roots of trees, long cut and burned away. She crouches down, picking up a broken vine. The cut is clean- cut with a tool.

At first, Ecto can’t see the fortress. The red brick blends in with the red wall and the red ceiling and the red mist that it’s hard to outline. It’s not until she gets closer, noticing the heavy foot traffic in the netherrack that Ecto understands where she is. The fortress rises from the netherrack, grand staircases and fences in the same uniform style and color as the rest of the building. Pylons emerge from the sea of fire, holding up open air bridges high in the cavern. Square, enclosed buildings rise from the bridges, guarded by beasts that seem to be aflame as they move. Blazing, curling and turning like dancing fire as they hover. Definitely not something Ecto wants to deal with.

She ducks into the long halls, the tunnels along the bridges. She can hear murmuring in the distance, and the ringing of metal against metal echoing down the halls. While initially drawn towards the sound of a fight, Ecto backs off. Avon was right about one thing- they’re outmatched. And as long as they have the dragon egg, as long as they have the upper hand, the wanderers will continue to only be runaways. She’s not here to fight a battle- she’s here to win a war. Hit them where it hurts.

It’s been a long time since Ecto’s been alone. How long have the wanderers been travelling? The heat does remind her of her desert, a comfortable warmth that she does her best not to get distracted by. She misses the hot, dry climate of her home biome. And now, she finds that she’s starting to miss the presence of friends. She’s so used to being alone, why now does it bother her? Why does she wish for Red’s bouncing enthusiasm, Avon calm demeanor? She doesn’t need them to do this. She can do this by herself. She didn’t need to wait for them to forget her, to leave her.

She left them. Ecto jumps into a patch of warty fungi, ducking under a staircase as armored footsteps march down the stairs. She covers her mouth and nose with a wrapped mask, tight and secure along her lower face. Muffling her harsh breath, and filtering a little bit of the awful brimstone scent in the air. How does anyone learn to live with this scent, like chicken eggs left in a chest for too long?

Ecto slips down the hall, trying to be as stealthy as her lanky body can let her. She pulls her scarves close, and runs across the hard netherbrick like she’s running across sand. Soft footsteps in bouncing strides that disturb as little as possible. She peeks down the corridors, slips up staircases, edges around lava pits.

Until she stops. At first, the voices sound exactly like Red and Avon. Red’s lighter, higher toned voice against Avon’s pitchy chatter. Except the tone of Red’s voice is sharp, like a knife cutting through their enemy, while Avon’s doesn’t have the husky tone from years of disuse.

That’s not Red and Avon. They haven’t followed Ecto into the end. It’s their antithesis- Blu and Nova. And Endo. “Would you just shut up already, Nova? You don’t need to go telling the whole goddamn barrack about this brilliant master plan.”

“It’s not like you came up with it in the first place.” Blu posits, blade swinging in lazy circles as they come around the corner. Ecto crams herself into a high up corner, dark and hopefully out of view of the hellspawns. She could’ve run, or hidden beneath the stairs- but that’s just not her train of thought.

“But I’m the best one to explain to the rest of the army! What, would you rather Endo bores this entire squadron to death with her long winded essays on perfect battle strategy and undercutting the enemy?” Nova whacks her hand against Blu’s head, embers bursting from the firey hair tied back in a short ponytail. “And I doubt your rattled mind even knows what the plan is.”

“I know that we need to do something with that egg.” Blu hisses. “And I know that this would all be over with already if we could just kill off those three idiots!”

Endo shakes her head, the slick magma of her hair shifting color but hardly moving. “No matter how much we raize the nether, warped forests and fungi keep regrowing. The warped magic is coming from the End, but we can only guess that crimson magic is invading from the overworld.”

“Of course it is. That place is freaky and weird enough, it just had to spill over and start growing shit all over the nether. But what does that have to do with the egg?” The trio pass by, hardly walking in unison. In fact, Ecto couldn’t say any of the three look remotely like friends, or even allies. They’re bodies are tense, especially when on gets too close to another. Ecto isn’t sure if he’s ever heard them not fighting- not just bickering like Ecto and Avon sometimes do, but full on attacking one another. Ecto leans out, trying to listen in as the hellspawns keep walking on.

“You would like to know, wouldn’t you?” Endo stops, letting the others screech to a halt. Endo doesn’t look over her shoulders, but a horrible chill goes down Ecto’s spine all the same. “A little far from home, aren’t you Overlander?”

#sorry for my shitty mood #i just really don't want to deal with stuff anymore #wandering stars #ecto #avon #red #minecraft #mineblr #minesona #mcsona #minecraft persona

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residentanchor · 5 years

Text

Tower of Pine(ning)

Word count: 3.1k

Summary: Logan goes to check on Roman whose in the middle of a daydream in the imaginative part of the mind. Of course, he knew this was going to be bad news. Pining Logince (They’re both obvious and oblivious)

Warnings: Violence, death(minor side character), fighting, impalement, magical silencing, dragon, kidnapping, imprisonment, blood, injury

It didn't take a genius like Logan to predict that this would happen. Not that he was calling himself a genius, of course. Though, that wouldn't necessarily be a wrong assumption, objectively. He knew the second Patton had asked him to check on Roman that he would somehow end up stuck in the Imaginative part of Thomas' mind. He knew the creative side would be fine. There were many times Roman would vanish as he stirred up a brainstorm. Caught in a creative daydream, Roman would be gone all day without a word before appearing as if nothing happened. It usually occurred on days where Thomas was working with Joan or one of the other writers on a script of some sort, but even in the well-deserved downtime they had, Thomas' creativity was hard at work.

Of course, that's not exactly what led him being trapped inside a daydream, but really, it made sense that he would be stuck if you had just stopped and thought about it logically.

Logan sighed as he stood up and dusted himself off, looking out the window of the tower he was just carelessly tossed in. He wasn't sure what type of mythical dragon Roman had created this time that happened to decide Logan was the perfect victim for their devious plot. He knew Roman had created a 'dragon witch' before. He liked merging creatures that didn't make sense alone together into a new one. It was as asinine as the manticore-chimera he had mentioned in a previous video. There was no rhyme or reason to how Roman thought of things... though he did make more sense than his brother, surprisingly.

Though, Logan did have to admit that while he didn't understand the imagination and the creations Roman conjured... he was good at his job. The rolling hills peeked out just behind the treeline that he could see from his vantage point. The trees shifted and swayed with the wind Logan could feel on his cheeks. His hair even moved with it and he felt a sense of calm wash over him. It was peaceful and very beautiful. The ambiance almost made him want to stay and enjoy it all, wondering how the night sky would appear in a place like this. It was a shame that none of it was actually real.

Logan wasted no more time before searching for a door or means of escape. The walls circled around and showed no way out, though there was a patch of the wall where the rocks were aligned differently. It was probably blocking off the old entryway as if to keep someone in. That was probably the sole purpose of this tower. Knowing Roman, it probably wasn’t a coincidence it almost resembled the tower from Tangled a bit from the outside as well. Its existence to hold someone inside and not let them out. Unfortunately, that someone was him. Logan wasn't good at imagining his way out of situations. He preferred the more solid and logical solutions which were unfortunately unhelpful to him currently. If Roman wanted to keep him here, he wasn't getting out. As soon as he solved one problem, another would arise. That’s just how the imagination worked.

Ultimately, he decided to sit on a chair and enjoy the view, happy that the dragon had flown away after dropping him off. Unfortunately for Logan, logic and creativity didn't mix all too well in this sense. It wasn't very long before he heard a noise and turned around as sparkles and smoke appeared in the center of the room. Their appearance was confusing but Logan chalked it up to the ‘story’ that he had been pulled into progressing. The sparkles grew and quickly faded, leaving an old man in long robes standing in the center of the room.

"Ahh, so this is what my beautiful pet has brought me today." Logan chose not to react, taking in as much as he could of the imaginative creation before him. "Yes, yes, excellent. You shall do nicely."

"I suppose you are the owner of this tower?" Logan pushed his glasses back up on his nose a bit. "Excellent. May I request a way out? I have much more important things to do than sit here all day."

The man began to chuckle as he approached the side. "Oh, how fun. A way out is it? Sorry, I'm afraid there isn't one for you."

Logan looked up and down at the old man before his nose scrunched up in distaste. "You're some sort of," he hesitated and held up his hands to make air quotes "what one would call a 'magical wizard' I take it. I'm sure you can create a way out that is suitable for me."

"Of course I can! That wasn't the problem." Logan watched as the old man smirked to himself. "I said there wasn't one for you."

Logan nodded and crossed his arms in front of himself. "So, I am to be kept here? For what purpose?"

"That foolish prince can't help but want to be the hero. Someone trapped in a tower? Perfect bait."

"And what do you wish to do once you have Prince Roman?"

"What?"

The old man blinked and looked at a bit of a loss for words. "Once you have Roman, what is your goal? Could I leave? Are you going to imprison him instead? I don't see the thought behind all of this. It seems rather... frivolous."

The old man stepped back and huffed in anger. "My goal is to capture the prince so the kingdom is mine! Now stay here and be good, silent bait!"

In a flash, the old man disappeared in a puff of smoke. Logan shook his head and waved a hand in his face to keep the smoke away. "What kingdom? None of this is real. Why would Roman create beings with the sole purpose to stop him? I'll never understand."

Luckily, it wasn't much of a wait before loud noises started outside of the window. Logan stood up and approached it, carefully looking down to the grass below.

Roman was on a large white horse with his sword out and ready to strike. Logan sighed as he watched Roman look up at the tower, inspecting it as if trying to find a way up. The Logical side couldn't see if Roman was injured at all from this distance, but his white outfit still looked pristine and perfect along with his hair. He watched as Roman hopped off his mount and sheathed the sword before taking a running start and jumping at the tower. Once he got a good hold of the stone, he began his ascent up the outside.

Logan looked out at the horizon, worried that the dragon that had brought him here would return. "Roman, careful! There was a rather large flying reptilian creature that brought me here!"

The prince paused his climb and looked up the tower, freezing as he saw Logan looking back down at him. "L-logan?! What are you even doing here? And why are you locked away in a tower, waiting to be rescued?"

"This is your daydream, you tell me! I can never make sense of this nonsensical world of yours!"

A flash of realization appeared on Roman's face as he smiled, quickly continuing his climb. "Of course! You're not really Logan, that makes sense! He hates the imagination!"

"Oh goodness gracious, sure, yes, fine! Whatever gets me out of this tower faster. I'll play your games for now." Logan stood by and watched as Roman swiftly, and rather impressively, climbed the rest of the tower without any issue. The creative side grabbed onto the lip of the window and Logan stood back to give him space. By the time Roman climbed in and planted his feet onto the floor, Logan was more than ready to get out. "Great, now that you're here, could you maybe get us both out of here?" Logan motioned to the blocked doorway behind him.

Roman puffed out his chest and pushed his hair back, smiling brightly. "Fear not, handsome prince! I, Roman, have come to free you from this tower!"

"Wonderful. I'm honestly just surprised you got by the dragon."

Roman's smile fell and he started to look a bit panicked. "Uh.... dragon?"

A loud roar shook the tower as both sides braced themselves. The dragon from earlier flew passed the one and only window, startling Roman who quickly took a step back.

Logan pointed at the window and sighed. "Yes, your highness. That dragon."

"Yes, well... fear not! I can slay the beast no problem!" Roman pulled out his sword and approached the window sill, planting one foot up on the ledge. "Please, wait here for me! I shall take care of the foul beast!"

"I don't have anywhere to go--are you jumping out the window?!" Roman dove off out the window, vanishing just as the dragon flew by once more. Logan waited with bated breath as he heard Roman shout and the dragon cry out once more. "Moron, I swear. No sense of self-preservation. I do suppose that is what Virgil is for..."

"Have at thee, foul creature!" Roman shouted from out in the distance. "Hyaaaah!" The dragon cried out and a loud crash was heard, the snapping of tree branches following soon after.

Logan waited patiently, knowing Roman would appear in the window uninjured. "Of course he would be uninjured," Logan began to pep talk himself. "This is all just a part of the imagination. Nothing has power over me if I do not believe it does. I know that Roman knows that, so there's nothing to fear." Despite that, Logan held up a hand to his chest, feeling his heartbeat thud rapidly in his chest. "He's fine." A familiar sound of huffs and grunt could be heard before Roman appeared in the window once more. "Oh, thank goodness."

"F-fear not! I am perfectly fine!" Roman had a leaf stuck in his bangs and looked a bit more disheveled than he had before. "Woooh! That was... quite a workout!" He placed himself back inside the tower safely and began to catch his breath. "Jumping out of a window onto the back of a dragon only to ride it and slay it into the ground can be exhausting!"

"Well, yes, I assume it would be a rather difficult feat." Roman pushed back his hair once more, this time simply to fix it. He pulled out the leaf and smiled, flicking it to the ground and pushing his hair back once more. "One would assume that... that anyone would be... tired." Logan cleared his throat and looked away from the prince. "Of course."

"Ahh, so impressed that I have rendered you speechless?" Roman chuckled to himself. "Or am I so beautiful that you've no words left?"

Logan shook his head and cursed his heart from still panicking in his chest, even after knowing Roman was okay. "No, it's not that. I simply wish to leave before that old man returns."

"Old man?" Roman suddenly jumped and pointed at Logan in panic. "Wizard!"

"I wouldn't say that, though his entrance could be described as 'magical'." Logan used his hands to make air quotes once more. "But for the sake of simplifying things, yes. We shall call him a wizard."

"No, you beautiful oblivious dunce! WIZARD!"

Logan jumped as an arm wrapped around him, pulling him backwards. He stumbled back into someone, the arm firmly holding him in place. Then, Logan felt something in his peripheral vision point directly toward him. While he knew there was nothing to be feared, he kept perfectly still. "Ah... I see..."

The old man began to cackle right into Logan's ear. He flinched as he felt the man's rancid breath tickle his neck uncomfortably. "Prince Roman! I knew you couldn't resist a seemingly simple rescue!"

"You put a beautiful man in a tower with a dragon to guard it. Of course, I had to come to save him!"

"Beautiful?" Logan mumbled to himself. Ah, right, it would make sense. He and Roman did have the same face and Roman thought he himself was beautiful.

The wizard squeezed Logan a bit closer. "I'll let him go if you drop your sword and swear your allegiance to me!"

Roman's eyes flickered to Logan's before turning back to the old man. "He has nothing to do with this. Let him go."

"And yet you came to rescue him, giving me the advantage."

"Put the wand down. We can talk about this peacefully."

"A wand?" Logan shifted to the side, away from the thing he could barely make out that was pointed at him. "Really?"

"Quiet you. Silencio!" A flash of light caused Logan to shut his eyes, bracing himself. After nothing happened, he looked back up and noticed Roman was staring at the wizard. And he looked absolutely livid.

The creative side took a step closer, the wizard brandishing his wand out in front of both of them. "You... you dare besmirch the beautiful world of Harry Potter and attack an innocent man?! That is enough from you!" The wizard pulled back his arm and launched it forward once more. A beautiful green spark shot out at Roman who quickly, and a bit impressively, held up his sword and deflected the magic attack. The wizard tried, again and again, a flash of colors shooting out and being deflected by the sword over and over. The wizard took a step back, taking Logan with him. Roman started to approach, the wizard retreating with every step. Just as they were about to reach the wall, the wizard stopped. He was beginning to panic, his wand shaking in his hand as he held it. Suddenly, the wand was pointed back at Logan. "Let him go."

"No! I'm not letting it end like this!"

Logan barely had time to register the flash of red light before his vision grew white as a hot pain shot across his face and neck. The wizard pushed him to the side and he instantly fell to the ground, Roman shouting out in panic. Logan tried to call out but his voice was still silenced, his screams coming out as nothing. Tears welled up in his eyes as he tried to focus on the burning, stabbing pain.

'It's not real, it's not real, it's not real...' Logan suddenly felt his throat gasp, taking a large gulp of air. He coughed a few times, the pain quickly fading until it was gone, as if it were never there at all.

Logan heard a yell and a voice cry out before he turned from his spot on the floor and looked over his shoulder. His hand was still on his throat, rubbing it as the sore pain began to fade away.

Against the wall was the pinned form of the old wizard, dead. Roman pulled his sword back, causing the corpse to slide and fall over on the ground, leaving a streak of blood behind him. Logan looked up at the princely side and watched as his face was contorted in anger. He snarled and huffed, slashing his sword outward to remove some of the blood with the force. Then, very quickly, his expression changed. He turned and looked at Logan in a moment of panic before dropping the sword and rushing over.

As he kneeled down on the ground, Roman reached up for Logan's throat. "Oh my goodness, it's okay. I'm here. I can heal you, it's fine. Just let me see."

"R-roman-" Logan coughed, his attention had fallen off of his throat as it hadn't completely healed. 'Not real' he told himself once more as all the pain and soreness faded completely. The silencing spell seemed to have worn off. "Roman, I'm alright."

"It's okay, I can make it all go away, you'll be fine, just let me see." Roman reached up and carefully held Logan's hand as he pulled it away. "It's my fault. Of course, you would take the form of-" Roman froze as he saw the injury was completely gone, not a trace of it left. "You're healed?!"

"Of course, the injury wasn't real, Roman. This is the imagination, after all." Roman looked up into Logan's eyes in shock. "I was always perfectly safe."

"Logan?"

"Yes?"

They remained silent for a while before Roman looked down at their hands, still connected to one another. Roman let go, quickly pulling his back in surprise before leaning back. "W-why are you here?"

"You did not make an appearance at breakfast and Patton was concerned. I knew you were alright but offered to check up on you."

"Patton, right." Roman smiled and stood up, slowly walking over to his sword and picking it up. "Good ol' Patton. Always worried and checking up on us. Of course, that's why you're here."

Logan pushed himself up off the ground and brushed the dust off of him before looking at Roman in concern. "Roman, are you alright?"

The creative side waved a hand and the tower interior faded away. They both stood out in an open clearing, no trace of a forest or anything at all nearby. "I'm fine. Here." Another wave of his hand and a wardrobe appeared in the field. "A way back, just have to crawl through. Like Narnia, get it?"

Roman turned and smiled, but Logan couldn't help but notice that something about it was off. "Are you not yet returning?"

"No... I still have some ideas buzzing in my head. Might as well get them out and see what I can come up with in terms of video ideas. Have to slay all the bad ones, you know? Only the best of the best for our fans."

"I see..." Logan approached the wardrobe before turning to face his fellow side. "Well, if that is the case, best of luck to you. I know you'll come up with something adequate."

Roman smirked to himself and nodded. "Naturally."

"Roman?" The creative side stared at Logan with a look he couldn't quite describe. "Your presence lacking in the mind palace will be noticed." Roman raised an eyebrow at that. "If I were more sentimental, I'd even use the term 'missed', I suppose." Roman smiled softly before looking away. "And thank you... for saving me."

"You were never in any real danger, specs. You know that."

"But you didn't." Roman looked back up at Logan in surprise. "You didn't hesitate to rush to my aid as quickly as you could. To slay the one who hurt me and to heal me as quick as you were able. Thank you, for that. It was very valiant of you. You're a hero."

The smile Roman had this time felt more... right. Logan could feel his poor heart panicking once more, though he wasn't sure why. "Thank you, Logan. I needed to hear that, I think."

"Of course."

---

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#sanders sides fic #sanders sides fanfic #my writing #ts roman #ts logan #logince #pining #tw violence #tw blood #tw death #tw injury #tw kidnapping #tw imprisonment #Like the Tangled kind of imprisonment #You know pretty man locked away in a tower and protected by a dragon #Happy ending

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allisondraste · 5 years

Text

Temperance (17/?)

Pairing: Nathaniel Howe/ Female, Non-HoF Cousland

Story Summary: Nathaniel and Elissa were childhood friends, but time and distance tore them apart. In the aftermath of the Fifth Blight, and Ferelden’s Civil War, both Elissa and Nathaniel must attempt reconstruct their tattered lives. As a series of events lead them to be reunited, both are reminded of so many years ago when things were much simpler.

Chapter Summary: A chance encounter in the Coastlands turns Nathaniel’s life upside down.

First Chapter Previous Chapter [AO3 LINK]

The Coastlands, 9:31 Dragon

Black smoke billowed up from Amaranthine City, filling the sky like quiet, brooding storm clouds. Though it had been days since Lucia had given the order to burn the capital of the arling to the ground, the last of the flames were yet to die out, and the hazy sky that resulted was a dark testament to the tragedy that occurred. Difficult and ruthless as it was, she made the right decision. Nathaniel had said as much, though she didn’t believe it.

Just days before the darkspawn attack, Delilah had written to him to say that she and Albert fled the spread of disease in the city to stay with his family in Kirkwall. Even before the Mother’s forces laid siege, Amaranthine was a lost cause. Lucia’s actions prevented more harm than they had caused, though the stubborn woman insisted upon blaming herself. He could scarcely fault her for that either. She was a young mage, not a hardened general and it was difficult to watch a city burn, especially one that did so upon your own command.

There was a flash of lighting, and thunder rang out, causing Nathaniel to jump, his attention shifting from the ruins in the distance to his more immediate surroundings. The Coastlands stretched between Amaranthine and Highever and were known for their temperamental weather. Now, they were better known as the lands where the talking darkspawn stragglers fled. When news of the creatures attacking villages and outposts in the area reached Vigil’s Keep, he offered to investigate and search for entrances to the Deep Roads. Velanna and Sigrun, the newest recruit, had asked to join him. Though he would not say so directly, he was glad. Being a Warden, having comrades who cared for him, it was the first time since he’d spent his last summer with the Couslands that he felt like he truly belonged. Solitude no longer had the same appeal.

“Fenedhis,” Velanna hissed as another clap of thunder rattled the sky, introducing the subsequent downpour. She pulled the hood of her cloak up over her head, grumbling.

“You sure are jumpy for someone who’s lived on the surface your whole life,” Sigrun said, giggling, “Nate too.”

“And you are surprisingly unaffected by the storms,” Velanna remarked dryly.

“I’m used to it,” the dwarf answered with a shrug, “The Stone is loud when it moves.”

Nathaniel laughed and pulled up his own hood, scanning the area around them for anything that could provide shelter from the cold, winter wind and rain. They’d be no use against any darkspawn they encountered if they were soaking wet and freezing. He spotted a cliff several yards in the distance with a sizable overhang that would be suitable protection from the elements.

“We should take cover,” he explained, “Just until the storm lets up.”

Velanna and Sigrun nodded, relieved expressions crossing each of their faces, as they made their way toward their temporary shelter. The space beneath the overhang was actually larger than he expected, and even he was able to stand comfortably beneath it. He sat anyway. He should rest while he had the opportunity. His blood vibrated in his veins as it did when darkspawn were nearby, and it was certain to be a long afternoon of scouting and fighting, not to mention the several hours of walking back to the Keep. It wouldn’t have hurt the Warden-Commander to spare a horse or two.

“You are quiet,” Velanna stated, voice as soft as she could manage, which was not actually that soft. She was so accustomed to having to shout to be heard. It made sense.

“I am always quiet, my lady,” he replied, with no effort to hide the smirk that twitched at the corners of his mouth, “Unlike yourself.”

“I am not -,” she began, stopping as she heard her own voice echo off the stone around them. She crossed her arms and adjusted her voice to just more than a whisper. “I am not loud.”

“I apologize,” he said, a twinge of guilt pricking at him, “I didn’t mean to make you self-conscious.”

“He was just flirting ,” Sigrun interjected without looking up from the dirt where she traced spirals with her finger, “He thinks its fun to tease you.”

Velanna turned to look at him, brows furrowed, blinking in disbelief. Nathaniel just shrugged in response. It wasn’t an inaccurate appraisal, after all.

Velanna opened her mouth as if to speak, closed it, and then opened it again, but before she could do more than huff at him, she was interrupted by men shouting and a horse whinnying in distress. The commotion came from the cliff just above them.

Nathaniel rose to his feet and grabbed his weapon. “I’ll check it out.”

His companions nodded in response, each preparing themselves for battle, should it come to that, and he rushed out from beneath the overhang and up the hill that led to the ledge. A group of four men in worn, rough leathers surrounded a cloaked figure in expensive plate, who sat atop a horse that looked twice as expensive as the armor. Bandits looking for profit, and some noble fool who was stupid enough to travel alone while flaunting his wealth. He shook his head. He’d have to save the idiot.

Nathaniel readied his bow, aimed, and shot in one fluid motion, the arrow piercing the back of one unfortunate man’s knee just as he landed a blow to the fool’s arm, causing him to release the reins and fall from the horse. The thug cried out in pain and collapsed to the ground as well, his comrades turning to face Nathaniel.

One of the men, middle aged, carrying a shield decorated with an all-too-familiar bear, scowled and shouted, “Oh, look. It’s a Warden. Bet his pretty little head is worth a fortune.”

“Them’s the ones that burnt the city,” added another, younger man—no, a boy— knuckles white against the hilt of his sword. He couldn’t have been more than fifteen, trembling with tears filling his eyes. “My mum was in there. Little sister, too. You lot are murderers. ”

“I lost my wife to the darkspawn,” said another, “Lost my son to the fire. Heroes my arse,” He bounced his daggers in his hands and spat, and then flung one at Nathaniel. Before he could move to dodge the projectile a wall of roots and vines surged up in front of him catching the dagger before receding back into the ground.

“A knife-eared witch,” rasped the man on the ground, pointing a shaky finger at Velanna who now stood just behind Nathaniel.

“What did you say, Shem,” Velanna growled, clenching her fists. The ground around them trembled and Nathaniel stretched an arm out in front of her.

“Don’t,” he said softly,

“What?” She shook her head indignantly. No!”

“Look at them,” Sigrun spoke, “They’re terrified, and they look like they haven’t eaten in days.”

“We haven’t,” the men chimed in unison.

“We’ve got nowheres to go,” the boy added, a large tear visibly streaking down his face. “No money. Nothin’ to our names.”

“You meant to rob that man just to get by.” Sigrun furrowed her brows and frowned. She was thinking of Dust Town, no doubt.

The men nodded, silent and stone-faced. The hooded man who had remained remarkably still and quiet, clutching his wounded arm, had only been attacked because these men were desperate. They were only desperate because they’d lost everything. The Wardens had cost them all but their lives. It didn’t matter how many people had been saved, the Wardens were villains in their eyes. To them, the means would never be justified, regardless of the ends.

“On behalf of the Grey Wardens,” Nathaniel said bowing his head, “I apologize for your losses, I-“

“What do you now of loss, Warden?” The middle- aged man spoke calmly, despite the deep, disdainful lines on his forehead, and his stance that suggested he was ready to attack at any moment.

“Me?” Nathaniel laughed a dry and empty laugh, reaching up to remove his hood despite the heavy rain that still fell. “My name is Nathaniel Howe. In case you are unfamiliar: these were my family’s lands before the Wardens took them from us. I am bitter, and I am angry, and there isn’t a day that goes by without me wishing I could have been here to make sure that this didn’t happen.”

Nathaniel paused and scanned the faces of the men, noting their shock and bewilderment. They all had lowered their weapons, and the boy had stopped his crying.

“But I am also grateful. You heard what happened at Ostagar, the West Hills. Without the Wardens, there would be no lands left untainted by darkspawn filth. I am sorry for what happened to your families, your homes. It was a difficult and terrible decision, but it was the right thing to do. We desperately want to make things right -- I desperately want to make things right -- but that won’t happen if you go around killing us before we get the chance.”

“Lord Howe,” the middle-aged man said with some degree of reverence. His shield was clearly a symbol of his loyalty to the family.

“I am no lord,” Nathaniel said, shaking his head, “Not anymore.”

“But -.”

“Here. “ He removed his coin purse from his belt and tossed it to the ground at the man’s feet, “There’s enough there to feed you and your men… and to fix that one’s leg.” He motioned to the wounded man.

“I… thank you.”

“If you need refuge, you are welcome at Vigil’s Keep. We’ve been providing shelter for those displaced by the darkspawn uprising.”

“But we tried to kill you,” the boy protested.

Nahaniel smirked. “You’ll be surprised to know how little that matters to the Warden-Commander.”

He sighed as he watched them walk away, hoping he’d made some difference, that they’d choose a better path. There was no way to be sure.

A warm hand squeezed his shoulder and he turned to see Velanna offering him a smile. “As much as I would have loved to teach those shemlen a lesson, I believe you did the right thing.”

“I agree,” Sigrun added, a sad smile on her face as she, too, watched the men walk away.

A rustling and scraping together of metal behind them reminded Nathaniel that the man he’d saved was still there, wounded. He turned to see that the man had risen to his feet and removed the hood he’d been wearing. Nathaniel blinked several times at the sight of his face, a familiar face, and one he would never have expected to see in the middle of the Coastlands being attacked by starving refugee bandits.

“Maker’s Blood.” He took a few steps forward, examining the man more closely. There were more lines on his face since the last time they’d seen one another, but there was no mistaking who he was. Especially not when he smiled that wide, cheerful grin. “Fergus?”

“Little Nate,” Fergus replied, clicking his tongue, “All grown up, and a Grey Warden at that.”

There was a long, heavy pause before he moved forward and embraced Nathaniel, who tensed at the sudden affection. It was as tight and sincere a hug that could be managed with only one arm unwounded, ending with a rough pat on the back as Fergus pulled away. For the first time Nathaniel could ever remember, there was an indescribable sadness behind the man’s eyes, and he didn’t know what to say.

He didn’t have to, as Fergus spoke first. “It’s good to see you, brother.”

Brother. It had been so many years, and there was so much strife between their broken remnants of families now, the term hardly felt deserved.

“It’s good to see you, too,” Nathaniel said, still stunned. This whole affair had been emotionally taxing to say the least, and now Fergus Cousland was standing in front of him. Not dead, and a very solid, very real reminder of what Father had done. He looked down, rage and grief building in his chest again. Then, he looked up. “I-.”

“I know what you’re going to say, Nate,” Fergus interrupted him, shaking his head, “And don’t.”

“Delilah told me what Father did,” Nathaniel explained, holding onto his composure by a thread, “I owe you an apology.”

“No you bloody don’t,” Fergus snapped, “You aren’t you’re father, and you’re not responsible for his actions. Besides, I’m sick of apologies. It’s been the first thing out of everyone’s mouths when they see me. It’s a nice gesture and all, but no amount of sorry is going to bring my family back, you know?”

Nathaniel nodded. “I know. I just… wish I could have been here. I would have never let it happen. I’d have died first.”

“I know.” Fergus smiled somberly but then hissed and clutched at his wounded arm with the opposite hand, which was stained with fresh blood when he pulled it away. “Damn. It’s worse than I thought.”

“Velanna, do you think you can…” He trailed off, motioning vaguely at Fergus, his mind in a blur.

“I will see what I can do,” she answered, “But we will need to get out of this rain.”

“Good idea,” Sigrun said, teeth chattering, “I’m starting to change my mind about this whole weather thing.”

They returned to their spot beneath the rocky overhang, Fergus walking along beside Nathaniel, clumsily. He must have been disoriented from falling from horse which had run off during the fighting. Fergus said that he figured she hadn’t gone far and would wander back eventually. Either she was a well trained horse, or the man’s hopes were misplaced.

It was still cold under the ledge, and it’d be difficult to start a fire with damp kindling and wood. However, it was dry and illuminated well enough by the daylight that Velanna could get a better look at Fergus’ arm.

Nathaniel sat quietly observing as Fergus introduced himself to the other Wardens, charming as ever. Sigrun bantered back and forth with him playfully, but Velanna scoffed and rolled her eyes. She was probably a lot more entertained than she’d let on.

“Can’t say I expected you to return to Ferelden after everything,” Fergus said, grimacing as Velanna pulled away his armor and the tattered bloody fabric just below his shoulder.

“I had to see what happened for myself.” Nathaniel laughed. “I planned to kill the Warden who destroyed my family and took our lands.

“And so you joined them instead?”

“I was conscripted, a pardon for theft.”

“Theft?” Fergus squinted. “You’re no thief.”

“The Wardens claimed some of the Howe heirlooms belonged to them. I got caught trying to take some of them back.”

“Maker’s Breath… and they conscripted you for that?”

“It was that or the noose.” Nathaniel shrugged. “I chose the noose, but the Warden-Commander refused, so here I am. Killing sentient darkspawn and pissing off the people of Amaranthine.”

Fergus shifted uncomfortably as Velanna began to tend the wound. Without healing magic, it needed stitches, and stitches were painful. Nathaniel wished he had something to offer him to cut the pain. It was a shame Oghren wasn’t around with a flask of whatever. Ever since he’d started to cut back, he was much more inclined to share. In fact, he’d been annoyingly pushy about it. Nobody wanted the ale he found in some dungeon somewhere.

“That’s actually why I came out this way,” Fergus said through a pained growl, “I’d received word of some commotion in Amaranthine City, but nothing official from the Arlessa.”

“The Warden-Commander was busy putting out fires,” Nathaniel replied more defensively than he should have.

“Seems more like she’s been busy starting them,” Fergus said with a wink and Nathaniel relaxed, “Sounds like it was necessary, though.”

“Unfortunately.”

There were a few moments of silence and Nathaniel spoke again hoping to change the subject from such an intense focus on himself. “You’re the Teyrn now, huh.”

“Unfortunately,” he mimicked Nathaniel, before grinning. Again, his smile only barely concealed his sadness. “It’s unbelievable to me that people would be so hungry for this kind of power. It’s miserable. I miss my family. I’d be a poor, powerless man if it meant I could kiss my wife again, if I could tuck my son into bed.”

“I can’t imagine.” Nathaniel frowned, unsure what else to say besides an apology that Fergus would no doubt reject.

“Elissa had it worse than I did, there in the castle, witnessing it all…” Fergus trailed off, eyes losing their focus briefly. “She blames herself, you know. Wishes she could have died instead of my son as if the Maker would have been open to barter. You should really try to talk some sense into her. She might listen to you.”

For a moment time stood still, as Fergus’ words rang in Nathaniel’s ears. Liss was alive.

“What’s wrong, Nate?” He flinched as Velanna continued stitching the wound. She looked up at Nathaniel briefly, meeting his eyes. Sigrun watched him as well, and Fergus continued. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”

“I…” He couldn’t quite form a meaningful message for his mouth to say.

“You… you didn’t know my sister survived, did you?”

Nathaniel shook his head. “No. My sister told me everyone who was in the castle that night died. I just assumed-.”

“You know better than to underestimate Liss,” Fergus scolded, “Fought her way out with a borrowed sword wearing nothing but her nightgown. She’s a damn legend.”

“Where is she now?” Nathaniel’s breath was shallow and his heart raced up his throat as if it were going to crawl out of his mouth at the news.

“Denerim, working for Queen Anora,” Fergus answered, smiling mischievously. “You should pay her a visit. It’d make her entire year, I think.”

“I can’t.”

“Why not? Your father isn’t stopping you anymore.”

“It’s been nine years.” Nathaniel laughed and shook his head, despite his nagging desire to take off to the capital at that moment. “I’m sure she’s -.”

“What? Happy and moved on?” Fergus interrupted him. “Hardly. I mean, she tried, but nobody ever mattered to her like you did. She never stopped waiting for you, even when she swore she had.”

“Oh, how romantic,” Sigrun said, clasping her hands together.

“There,” Velanna announced abruptly as she finished tying up Fergus’ bandages.

“Thank you, Lady Velanna,” he chirped cheerfully.

“Ugh. There’s two of them,” she groaned, and rolled her eyes. “You are welcome, I suppose.”

She wiped her hands off with a strip of cloth and busied herself with putting things back into her pack —loudly— and announced that she needed to take a walk, stomping out into the rain, which still lingered as just a light drizzle. Fergus looked to Nathaniel, eyebrows raised in amusement, but Nathaniel just sighed. It wasn’t amusing.

“Anyway,” Fergus said rising to his feet, “You should at least talk to her. You’ll regret it for the rest of your life if you don’t.”

“I will need to think about it,” Nathaniel stood as well, “I am not the same person I was when I left.”

“Neither is she.” Fergus laid a heavy hand on his shoulder and eyed him sincerely. He hated that the man could still get to him like that

A horse whinnied behind them and Fergus’ face brightened.

“There’s my girl,” he said, walking over and running a hand down the horse’s forehead and muzzle. He turned back to Nathaniel. “Well, the storm’s let up. I suppose I should head out. Let you all get back to… wardening. Thanks for saving my arse back there.”

“Take care, Fergus.”

“Yeah, you too,” Fergus said, climbing up onto his horse, “Go talk to my sister, and don’t be a stranger. We’re family.”

Nathaniel nodded, a smile spreading across his lips and Sigrun waved at his side.

“It was nice to meet you, Lady Sigrun. Lady Velanna, too, if you’ll pass along the message.”

“Did you hear that?” Sigrun giggled, bringing a hand to her face, as they watched Fergus ride off in the direction of Highever. “He called me a lady.”

Nathaniel was silent in response, aching already at Fergus’ departure. As fraught with emotion as their reunion was, it had been good. He’d missed the man, someone who’d so readily accepted him as a friend and brother. Perhaps they’d have more time to catch up in the future, especially if Liss, well, if he went to her in Denerim. If nothing else went horribly wrong.

“What are you going to do?” Sigrun asked, eyes blinking up at him.

“I’m going to find Velanna,” he answered, knowing that wasn’t what she meant, but hoping to avoid a discussion about it. “Then, I’m going to kill whatever darkspawn are nearby making my blood itch.”

It did not take long to locate Velanna, who sat in the grass, leaning against a large tree that looked as if it had been split in two by lightning. She stared off into the distance, forehead wrinkled and twisting the tattoos that marked her face.

“There you are,” he said, sitting down beside her. “I’d ask if you’re okay, but considering the way you stormed off, I think I already know the answer.”

“I apologize for leaving as I did.” She shook her head. “It was juvenile.”

“My conversation with Fergus upset you, didn’t it?”

“As foolish as that sounds, yes. It did.” Velanna brought her eyes up to meet his briefly before looking away. “I have always been an outsider. Lonely. Misunderstood. Excluded even by my own kind. I thought that it was some sort of flaw in me, that it was how I deserved to be treated. It’s not as if I had any reason to believe otherwise.

“Then I met you, a human, a noble...the epitome of everything I should hate, and yet I could not. Besides Seranni, you were the first person to ever treat me as if I was worthy of kindness before I did anything to earn it, or before I scared it out of you. On top of that you gave me compliments, called me beautiful. It would be hard for anyone not care for you after that, I should think.”

“You would be surprised,” he answered, dryly, “Justice did not take kindly to my compliments about his complexion. The rotten bastard called me disingenuous.”

“You were being disingenuous,” she said laughing slightly, “With him. Not with me.”

“No.” He shook his head, tone serious. “I meant what I said to you. Still do.”

“That woman you all spoke about, his sister. She is the person you could never move on from isn’t she?”

“Yes,” Nathaniel admitted, “I have been in love with her since I was just a boy, though I was never allowed to say as much.”

Velanna was quiet, and he worried for a moment that she would lash out at him, furious that he led her on, but she didn’t. Instead, she just smiled and sighed. “I envy her.”

The soft acceptance pierced him more deeply than any amount of anger could have. “Velanna, I’m sorry. I would not have been so forward with you had I any idea whatsoever that she was alive.”

“I know that,” she assured him. Her small hand was warm to the touch as she placed it over his. “Please do not be sorry. I’m not.”

“But-,” he began, interrupted by the soft pressure of her lips against his cheek.

“I am disappointed, but that is all,” she said, laying her head on his shoulder. “I will get over it, and I would like it if we could still be friends.”

“I’d like that, too.”

Taking a deep breath, Nathaniel wrapped an arm around her shoulders, and they sat in silence for several moments before Velanna spoke again, moving out from under his arm to glare at him. “You have to tell her how you feel, Nathaniel. You would be a fool to let her go again.”

“I know,” he said, rising to his feet and offering a hand to her, “As soon as we take care of these darkspawn stragglers and return to the Vigil, I will ask for leave to go to Denerim.”

“Good.” Velanna took his hand and allowed him to help her up. “I will harass you if you do not.”

“At this point, I think everyone is going to harass me if I don’t.”

By the time they found Sigrun, she had -- to no one’s surprise -- already dealt with a half-dozen darkspawn, and made a much-deserved prod at Nathaniel and Velanna for being “lazy bones.” They had not exactly been lazy, but they also had not been fighting hurlocks either. Altogether it only took a couple of hours to scout the area and finish off the remaining creatures. They located only one Deep Roads entrance in the area, and boarded it up so that some unfortunate wanderer would not stumble into it accidentally, and set out on the return trip to Vigil’s Keep. One of the experts there could seal the hole properly at a later date.

It was not until the next morning that Nathaniel sought out Lucia to request permission to travel to the capital. He and the others had not arrived back at the Keep until late at night, and he’d been too emotionally and physically exhausted to do anything but take a bath and collapse into bed. No doubt the Warden-Commander would grant him permission. She would most likely wonder why he even felt the need to ask her. Still, regardless of their friendship, she remained his commanding officer, and he intended to give her the formality and respect she deserved.

He made his way to the Great Hall, intending to visit Lucia in her office, which was just off it’s east wing. The office had previously belonged to his father, and he was never allowed in there. He wondered what the man had been hiding, if anything at all. He was stopped in his path by Garavel, the former Guard Captain who was promoted to Seneschal in the wake of Varel’s heroic demise.

“Warden Howe,” he shouted, his voice reverberating throughout the hall, “I take it you are looking for Warden-Commander Amell.”

“Yes.”

“She’s not there,” Garavel stated with some hesitation.

“You seem concerned, Seneschal.”

“We don’t actually know where the Warden-Commander is right now,” the man explained, “Some of the guards saw her leave her quarters in the middle of the night, but she has yet to return.”

“Was she armored?”

“The guards said she was just wearing nightclothes…” he trailed off as Nathaniel shook his head and sighed. “What is it?”

“I know where she is,” said Nathaniel, turning to exit the hall. He grabbed a woolen blanket from the storage bin conveniently placed by the main door. “Thank you, Seneschal.”

The battlements that surrounded Vigil’s Keep were extensive, encompassing the entire courtyard, as well as the castle itself. When he was a boy, Nathaniel had often sought refuge from his father’s wrath up there. If anything, it kept him out of the way during the worst of it. Father had lacked the patience to search the entire length of the wall for him. He suspected that’s what had happened with Lucia and the guards. He’d run into her up there several times, often late at night and completely underdressed for the weather. She seemed to have as much trouble sleeping as he did, perhaps more.

Certainly enough he found her, elbows on the parapet, looking out over the Keep. She did not hear him at first, and he took a moment to watch her as she twisted what appeared to be the dried up remnants of a rose between her fingers. There were tears in her eyes, and she looked so broken and sad. It was too intimate and not for him to see. He shifted uncomfortably, preparing to walk away and attempt to speak with her again later, but she heard him, hurriedly wiping a tear from her cheek and straightening her posture.

“Nathaniel?” She furrowed her brows at him as he moved forward to stand by her side.

“Sorry to disturb you. Some of the guards saw you leave your quarters in the middle of the night, and Garavel was worried when you did not return. I figured I might find you up here, attempting to freeze to death,” he explained, unfolding the blanket and draping it over her shoulders, “If you want to die, I can think of a hundred more noteworthy ways to go about it.”

“I’m not trying to freeze to death,” she snapped, pulling the blanket more tightly around her, “I just… couldn’t sleep.”

“Troubled?” It was none of his business, really, but he had to ask. He leaned forward and joined her in resting her elbows on the parapet.

“I’m fine. Just restless.” She looked straight ahead, off into the distance, and sighed.

“You know, you’re an excellent commander, but a piss poor liar.” He looked at her, then down to the flower in her hand, nodding at it. “What’s that?”

She laughed humorlessly and looked at him. “My latest weapon of choice.”

“A withered rose?” It appeared he was not the only with difficult feelings he’d rather avoid.

Lucia shrugged. “It’s poetic.”

“Right.” He rolled his eyes, grateful she was his friend as well as his commanding officer. Any other commanding officer might be offended by the sheer insubordination. “Permission to speak candidly?”

“Always.”

“I’m not sure what is on your mind right now, and I’m not going to ask. Whatever it is, though, you’re thinking entirely too much about it.”

“That’s a bit hypocritical, don’t you think?” She raised her eyebrows and grinned. “I believe “brooding” is the term Anders uses to describe you.”

“Maybe so,” he conceded, “But, just from experience alone, I know that it’s stupid to waste so much time thinking about all the things that could go wrong that you lose something important to you.”

“It’s unwise to act without thinking things through,” she argued, “That’s how you end up hurt: making rash choices.”

“Failure to act is also a rash choice.”

“I… I don’t know what to do, Nathaniel,” she exclaimed, throwing her hands up, voice cracking, “I feel like every decision I’ve made in the past year has been wrong. I made sound, logical choices and they all had horrible consequences. People got hurt. People important to me. I don’t want that to happen again.”

“People always get hurt, even when you do the right thing ,” he said gently, his own voice raw with emotion, “Sometimes, all you can do is go with your gut, and hope it works out. You have to trust yourself. I learned that the hard way.”

“How does one go with one’s gut,” asked the woman who had clearly never made an impulsive decision in her life.

“If you could do anything in the world you wanted right now without consequence, what would you do?”

“I’d go to Denerim,” Lucia replied almost instantly. Nathaniel couldn’t help but smirk at her coincidental answer.

“Then you need to go to Denerim.”

“Just like that?”

“Just like that,” he answered with a nod, “It’s funny because I actually came up here to ask for leave to go to Denerim. I have some business to attend to there, myself.”

“That’s ironic,” she laughed, “When shall we leave?”

“Now, if you’re up for it.”

Lucia tensed up and blinked several times. “Now? Right now?”

“Yes. Right now. I’m tired of both of us moping about.” He whirled around as he spoke, waving for her to follow, and she did.

For better or worse, they were bound for Denerim.

#dragon age #dragon age origins #nathaniel howe #cousland #nathaniel howe x cousland #velanna #sigrun #Temperance #update #long chapter #my writing

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ghostladyofwinterfell · 5 years

Text

Phases of the Moon

Jonsa AU/ Buffy the Vampire Slayer Inspired

Summary: For some reason unbeknown to Sansa, the old gods had chosen her to be the next girl to have the power to stop the Wights and the Long Night. But they shouldn’t have.

Not this Stark girl at least. No, Sansa just wanted to be on the cheer squad and get into a good college far from the North. This hadn’t come into the equation.

But neither had Robb’s best friend Jon, whose absentee father had shown up out of blue just shy of his eighteenth birthday and taken off with him. Now he was back and changed. He had come back wrong.

Chapter Two: Lie To Me

"So, what is Robbs little sister doing out in the middle of the night when she's supposed to be at a sleepover?" Jon drawls out as he plays with the tip of her dagger.

"I was... er... you see I- I sleep walk. Yep, it's really bad. I can end up anywhere in the morning. Just like with here and now, its a condition you know."

One eyebrow rises up at her answer. "Right," he says incredulously at her, like he doesn't believe her, which yer, that’s not hard to do with that lame and stumbled out excuse.

"Yes it is right, what about you then?" she huffs as she yanks the dagger and herself back. Better to keep a safe distance she thinks, especially when he's looking like a predator with those sharp and gleaming teeth.

"Oh I've been following you most of the night." His eyes tighten at her as he searches her face for a reaction.

But it's blank in utter shock at his admission, so he continues on. "I was already in the woods when I saw you leave that coffee place at nine. Then I went to go after you, perhaps tease you for pulling one over on your parents about your little sleepover, but then I saw you leap right over the cemetery gates across town. No one could jump a gate that high, at least no one human."

Her heart squeezed in her chest. He knew. Maybe not everything, but he knew something wasn't quite right. All because she was being careless, she was too busy sipping on her caramel mocha to notice her surroundings.

And now he was looking at her all smug at his outright honesty. He's caught her out there. But fine, if he liked being so truthful two could play at that game, she also knew something wasn't quite right with him.

"I was out hunting Wights. Its been like, my job, for a few months now."

She can see from the smirk he's in a teasing mood, "Still in the training period then from what I've seen."

Ugh- when did he get so playful.

She knows it was in a jest but the comment stung all the same. Especially after Davos' comment earlier about the world being doomed with her as its protector.

"Wait a minute. Oh I see it now. You're her. The slayer. Well I never would have pictured her being you," he says quite matter of factly. Well he's all about dropping the truth bombs tonight.

She preferred it when they didn't talk. "Yer, well that makes two of us," she knows her eyes are big and sad she doesn't want him to see her like that, like his words effect her but she can't help it.

He starts rubbing at his neck nervously, "I'm just joking with you Sansa. You did great out there, a bit more practice and if you just let go you'd be unstoppable." He's trying to be nice she guesses, but now she's not in the mood.

"Thanks but I already have somebody on my back who tries to give me helpful pointers I don't need two. And anyway back to you stalker boy. Question one, how did you throw that Wight that far and question two, how did it just die without being stabbed by dragon glass?"

Because if other people can kill these things then Sansa's going on a little vacay for some me time.

"You remember I used to be on the high school football team right and I'm one of the star quarter backs at Castle College. I used one of the block and shove techniques, I've pushed off guys bigger than that."

Yep she did remember, his butt always had looked good in those tight pants.

He and Robb were naturals when it came to athleticism and had both gotten football scholarships for it. Cheering her brother on with the rest of her family on big game nights had actually made her try out for the schools cheerleading squad in softmore year. She was one of the youngest to ever get on the squad with it only being filled with seniors and juniors. She used to have so much potential.

But she's never been an idiot, Robb wouldn't have been able to launch it a few feet away. Sansa could have, but that was only because of the abilities she now possessed.

"You don't seem shocked by what's just happened. Something like that's not normal, how are you not freaking out?" She was being a little intense with her questioning she knew, but Jon was different now as well and she wanted to know why.

He shrugs, "You'd be surprised at the things I've seen."

Did he always have to be so ominous and talk in tongues. Now they're back to silence and side eyeing each other again.

After a moment she yawns quite loudly, the adrenaline leaving her body to be replaced with a tiredness she feels in her bones.

He takes some pity on her, holding his hands up as he suggests they head back.

She shouldn't let him go back to her home, where her little brothers and sister are. She feels pulled in two, she doesn't think he can be trusted but then he had been around her family since he changed and hadn't done anything untoward.

So she simply nods and gestures for him to lead on first as she grabs her bag.

On the walk home together they ensure a slight distance is kept, as they both seem to be on alert around one another.

As they head back they begin to talk. Which isn't a strange thing to do, but it is for them. Jon and Sansa don't really talk past pleasantries.

Maybe there's something about the night, about being shrouded in darkness with only the moon watching, that she feels more open. Or maybe she just craves to talk to somebody about this stuff with, other than a stuffy sixty year old librarian.

So she tells him about what happened when Davos came along and plucked her out her perfect bubble that was her life and dragged her into this. That she wasn't normal anymore and now even something as simple as school was becoming harder.

Because the flashes of her parents disappointed eyes enter her mind, over her slipping grades and her teachers comments that were no longer filled with praise and how she excelled but that she was only maintaining an average grade and her homework was rushed.

She tried to cover up the quivering in her voice at the end by masking it with another yawn but she failed miserably.

Jon tells her about the first time he saw a Wight when it ripped apart his mother when he was thirteen. She remembers that time he had to go live with Mr Aemon after it happened. The whole family had been in morning during that period.

She remembers how at school everybody had treated Jon differently, and how he hated it. The adults talked to him softly, afraid he'd burst into tears at any moment and handled him with kid gloves.

His jaw used to be permanently clenched and his hands always curled into fists like he was ready to pounce.

Instead when Ramsay Bolton had made a horrible comment about his dead mother he had just punched a wall and Robb had pulled him outside.

She's silent for a long time, what do you say to someone after that?

"I- I'm sorry," she murmurs, knowing it was a stupid thing to say, but that it was true nonetheless.

"Yer, everyone's sorry," he huffs out.

She grabs at his elbow to stop them, "I am Jon. So sorry. I couldn't even begin to imagine what losing my mother would do to me, and seeing it as well. I'm eighteen and can barely handle this situation I'm in and you were thirteen. So yes, I am sorry for you Jon and I wished it had never happened to you. Your mother was brave and beautiful and she should still be here, its not fair."

She cups his face, her thumb swiping at the tears that fall from the corner of his eye. All she sees is that sad little thirteen year old boy sat at their house on the front steps during his mothers wake. She had used her cardigan sleeve to wipe at his tears back then. He had been so mad, mad at the world, mad at himself for crying and mad at her for seeing him cry.

She had given him her sunglasses to hide his red rimmed eyes when they joined the others in the back garden.

She guides her hand from his cheek down his arm and hovers her open hand over his in an invitation. He grasps it up, interlocking their fingers as they moved forwards.

For a few moments they can pretend to just be Jon Snow and Sansa Stark. Normal teenagers sneaking around in the dead of night. And not deadly people with inhuman strength and secrets.

When they reach the back garden they stand before the big willow tree outside her bedroom, the one that she uses to help her get back inside.

She pauses turning to him, "You know you still didn't really explain how you threw it that far, or how it died?"

"I didn't did I." He ignores her questioning again, she thinks he likes annoying her.

He distracts her by asking how she's gonna explain being back when she's supposed to be at a sleepover.

"Oh I'll just put my alarm on vibrate to go off at half eight and come right through the front door like I usually have to," this is her new normal now.

"Hey you don't mind me using your window to sneak back in do you, it seems easier than scaling the drain pipe to get back into Robbs?"

She shakes her head and watches in stunned silence as he leaps up higher than a normal person should, onto one of the branches and flips his body onto her window ledge and steps into her room.

She should be concerned about that, but she's more worried about the fact a boy is in her bedroom. What if she's left some underwear out?

Oh god, she'd hardly been wearing black lace at the minute, they were all grey cotton and sports bras. That quickly spurs her into action and she follows him in.

She sighs in relief. He's not snooping, of course he's not, Jon wouldn't do something like that. He was just smiling at the photos on her wall.

Specifically, the one of all of them from the lake house two summers ago. They had been in the water, Sansa had given up trying to not get her hair wet after Arya and Robb made it their mission to nearly drown her after she moaned about it. When they had all gotten out, with wrinkled fingers, her mother had taken a photo.

She looks to the photo as well, seeing Jon's arm wrapped around her waist as they stand on the jetty smiling at her mother.

Jon comes right up to her and she freezes wondering what he wants to do so close to her. He still set her belly full of nerves and she still didn't know if it was a slayer thing or just a girl/boy thing.

But he just puts a simple kiss on her forehead and she's left in a daze at his rich and heady masculine scent that invades her senses.

He moves his lips down to her ear and whispers good night. Maybe he does it so he's quiet and he doesn't wake anyone up in the house, but she likes to think its so he can keep close to her.

His face stays at the side of her face, his hands hovering near his hips. She knows this is dangerous as she feels a heat rise within her. She should stop it, this was Jon, not only her brothers best friend but also something not entirely human.

She grabs a fistful of his shirt pushing him backwards as she stays close to him, nearly right up against his body. They only stop when she's backed him into the wall by her door, she leans back, her eyes darting to his mouth. She sees him lick his lips in anticipation, she leans in close and whispers goodnight as she opens her bedroom door with a click.

He huffs out a small chuckle at her.

She's going to reply until she sees movement on the landing. They really should have made sure everyone was in bed.

They both freeze at the person on the top of the stairs holding a glass of water. They all seem stiff and wide eyed at the situation. No one dares to move because then it all becomes real. She knows how this looks.

Coughing from her parents room seems to get them all off of pause as they spring quietly into action.

Bran thankfully goes silently to his room and Jon goes to Robbs, giving her a wink as he shuts the door behind him.

When she closes her bedroom door, she has to lean against it for a few moments to catch her breath.

Her alarm softly wakes her at half eight and she feels well rested, almost as if she had no dreams at all last night keeping her mind busy. She knows she did, but the memory of them had already been chased away at her waking.

She dresses slowly, putting on her coat and grabbing her bag before she sneaks back through her window and around the house to the front door.

She goes straight to the kitchen and adjoining dining room which was the heart of their house.

She enters to her parents hushed voices which she ignores as she greets them, plonking her bag on the counter top.

Her mother kisses her head good morning and Sansa pulls away sharply, looking at her mother weirdly, when she heard her take a small sniff of her hair.

Her mother just smiles, a rather large one that stretched right across her cheeks before she tells her to go put her things away. She needed to get cleaned up so she could set the table for breakfast.

There's a sinking feeling in her stomach that makes her go up the stairs slowly as they begin whispering again.

Her parents probably think she won't be able to hear them this far away, but she can now.

"And?" her father asks.

"I'm not sure, it was to faint to tell really," her mother replies as she begins getting pans out of the cupboard for breakfast.

"There we go then, you're getting yourself worked up over nothing."

"A mother knows Ned, you just don't want to think it because she's your little girl," her mother tells him finally.

That sinking feeling in her stomach does a one-eighty as it rises to her throat, so she shoots up the stairs not wanting to hear anymore.

Did they know too?

She supposes they had been picking up on her changes lately.

Gods, she was rubbish at this. Davos had warned her of how dangerous it would be if people found out.

Sansa fiddled with the strings on her sweat pants- she would never have been caught dead in these things before- and decided she would not tell her watcher.

It's not like she had gone and blurted her secret out to them all, they had either followed her and found out or just seemed to know.

A mother just knows Ned.

She doesn't know how she would, but mothers often did seem to know things. Especially her meddling one.

She flees past Robbs room as she hears deep and grumbling morning voices through the door and goes straight to Brans.

Poking her head round she waits until he looks up from his computer before she speaks, "You better keep your mouth shut."

Bran doesn't say a word, instead he pretends to zip his mouth and throw away an invisible key. At least that was sorted out easily enough.

Things go down hill once she's in the shower. Her hair is washed and now she's mindlessly scrubbing down her body when her thoughts keep going to a certain someone with dark eyes and darker curls.

Her hands just start to run away with her, but she can't help it when she's all slippery from her soap and starts to slowly caress over her breasts. Her hands drift lower, to where she's smooth and freshly shaven.

Its not her hand she's imagining is rubbing her in small circles, but Jon's. In her mind he's just finished kissing her neck before bending down right in front of her, pulling one of her legs over his strong shoulder as his mouth joins his fingers.

Just as her head falls back she has to yank her hand away as if its been scolded, as she had nearly cried out his name.

What was she doing, anyone could hear her.

She finishes washing off the foam from her soap and flees into her bedroom.

She's only half dressed when she gets side tracked and she stands in her room to replay last nights events with Jon. Where he had kissed her forehead and been so close to her lips. To where she backed him up against the wall and felt his hot breath on her. She saw the look in his eyes, he had wanted her to kiss him.

She bites her lip and looks down at her body, she's still flushed and now her chest is heaving.

Her mind wasn't on anything but on the throb between her legs which had only grown more demanding in her attention.

It held so much power over her that she hadn't even really thought about it before she had dived under her covers, not even fully dried.

Her hands trace over the same path again as what she did in the shower, her fingers gliding through her wetness. She can feel the difference of the water from the shower to her own slightly thicker wetness that makes her smooth through her folds with ease.

She closes her eyes and the Jon in her mind is now under the covers and has gone straight to eating her pussy. The Jon in her head calls it that, he's filthy and she loves it.

It doesn't take long for her to start keening softly, burying her face and biting at her pillow to quieten the moans that leave her lips.

She sings a song so sweet for him.

Imaging that it was Jon who wasn't being gentle and was shoving his fingers inside of her was bringing her quicker to the edge than ever before. He was currently whispering filthy things about what he wanted to do to her, about her whole family being just outside her door and anyone of them could hear her.

Her hips were now reaching for her fingers when she peaked, to keep riding out the blissful high it brings for as long as she could.

Once the waves have past, that feeling creeps up on her. Its not quite guilt, more a slight burning of shame and she quickly dresses, as if her mother and father are going to barge into her room shouting 'shame' at her.

She curses the gods, for who does she see as she's about to make her way downstairs but him.

Jon steps from Robb's room as he's pulls a grey hoodie down over himself, he pauses just out of the doorway and sniffs the air.

He zones in on her with blown pupils. There's a hungry look that has taken over his whole face and Sansa wants to whimper when the heat pools in her belly again. Again, she just had bleeding sated it.

He can't be looking at her like that because of what she'd just done could he?

He can't smell it on her, it wasn't possible. She still smelt the slight lingering sweetness of it but only because of her heightened senses.

But then Jon seemed capable of impossible things lately.

She knows her breathing had still not slowed down normally yet and her cheeks must be flushed.

His eyes drop to the hand at her side, the one that had a sheen of wetness on it moments ago before she wiped it on her bed covers as she fled the scene.

She fists her hand and hides it behind her back as if that would solve the problem, out of sight, out of mind.

It doesn't, he seems under no control as he stalks towards her.

His eyes are darker than she'd ever seen as he reaches her. Before he can say a word her eyes flicker to Robbs bedroom where her brother is coming out.

Jon doesn't seem too concerned at what this might look like. But she does.

"I have to set the table", she blurts out as she bolts down the steps, making it her first priority to scrub her hands raw before setting the table.

Jon makes sure he subtly brushes past her siblings so he can claim the chair next to hers and it makes her stomach flutter.

He wants to sit next to her, he wanted to kiss her. He wants her and she feels something strange, something like giddiness at the thought of it.

She wonders what would happen if she just stopped fighting things so much, so she gives him a secret smile hidden from the others through the curtain of her hair.

One of his hands grasps at her thigh under the table. It was strange how they had gone to this. From not really having a relationship to shared secrets, hand holding in the moonlight and grasped thighs. All in just one night.

She should be scared at how quickly things had changed between them, but she's not. All she feels is a weight lifted off of her shoulder that she thinks she can now talk to Jon about all of this.

She wants to tell him lots of things, she wants to be close to someone again.

As soon as her mother has put the last of the plates in the middle of the table it begins.

They're like a pack of wolves as they wrestle for spoons and forks to pile sausages and scrambled eggs onto their plates.

Sansa would have once had a little scoop of a few things, now her appetite is as large as Robb's and Jon's.

Her mother had loved when she started to laden more bacon slices and toast on her plate, because she thinks its to do with Sansa no longer caring much about her appearance and enjoying her mothers cooking more again. When in reality it was just that she needed more energy so had to consume a lot more now with how much she was burning off.

Her mothers not smiling though, as she picks up her tea cup and sips it slowly staring at Sansa until she finally relents and looks upon her mother. She has haughty look on her face and Sansa shrinks back, what had she done now.

"I rang Beth's mother last night just to make sure you got there alright," her mothers lips are pursed and she knows that means trouble.

Oh shit, she gulps.

"Why did you do that, I texted to say I did," thats right Sansa make this worse by getting defensive.

Her mothers eyes narrow at her respnce, "Well isn't that strange, because she said you weren't there and couldn't remember the last time you had slept? So then I rang Jeyne's mother as well. Can you guess what she told me?"

She knows her mothers being rhetorical but she can't help try to scramble a response, "Er-

Her mother beats her to it, obviously not in the mood for some half assed excuse by asking yet another question, "Is it some boy?"

Everyone whips there heads to look at Sansa now, she see's Arya smirk at the shit show unfolding right in front of her, thoroughly enjoying watching Sansa squirm.

Her father has the decency to roll his eyes at his wife's tactlessness and she had to agree, like really, right at the breakfast table mum.

Robb looks like he's going into big brother mode with a frown and accusing eyes like how dare she at seventeen even think about sneaking out to see a boy.

Which she didn't, which makes this all the more annoying.

At least Jon's keeping his big trap shut as chugs his whole glass of fresh orange.

She didn't have long to think of anything with them all waiting on her and what lie would actually sound believable in this situation that wouldn't get her grounded.

How was she going to explain the fact she that she left with her stuff to sleep out at her friends since her mother had proof.

Gods, was it getting hot in here.

No, she was just panicking and everyone was still looking at her and even Jon had turned his smarmy looking face to her as if he couldn't wait to see her try and get out of this.

"I wasn't feeling well just before I got to Beth's so I came home and quietly went upstairs because I didn't want to disturb anyone?" Well done Sansa, she cursed, say it like a question.

"That's what you're going with," Arya snorts.

"That's funny considering you texted saying you were there safe. And if you left at sevenish and came back from walking to Beth's you would have been home when I saw your room empty at around ten when I went to sort Rickon out after his bad dream."

Well she had her there. And Sansa did not work well under pressure.

"Maybe, I was sleep walking then?"

Jon snorts beside her.

A mother knows Ned, it means something different now.

Of course it wasn't about her mother suspecting she was a slayer, but about her mother suspecting she was having sex with boy.

How could she not have guessed that was what they were whispering about.

Her mother didn't believe her anyway. Which is why they were now sat in their family's doctors office waiting for the birth control prescription that Sansa now had to take.

She thinks both herself and Doctor Luwin, who has seen her grow from being a baby, will not look each other in the eyes for a long time.

It wouldn't have been so bad, most girls her age went on it, but her mother had to scandalise it with retelling her now being moody and secretive and all about her late nights of sneaking out in and out of the house at all hours and lying about it.

Probably for the best, rather she believe she was sneaking out with boys than what she was really up to.

All the way to the car Sansa had to listen to her mothers constant barrage of questioning.

"Who's this boy then, the one thats got you sneaking about? Is it just the one?"

"There's no boy and of course it would be one mother, gods."

"Do I know them or any of their family?"

"There's no boy."

"Do they go to her school? They better be school age, how old is he?"

Her mother cuts her off again before she can repeat that there is no boy. "Oh, or how old is she... that kind of thing is something to be proud of, you don't need to be worried about telling us if that's why you haven't mentioned it."

"Mom you can actually say the words 'are you gay Sansa?', and no I'm not. Also boys my age are stupid but yet again I say there is no boy."

"Maybe you could bring them for tea to meet me and your father."

Oh somebody save me please.

Her phone vibrates between them as the message pops up, her prayers are answered.

Only the message is there to be read as clear as day as it sits in between them both. Shit.

Jon: Last night was interesting. Perhaps we should sneak out again together...

Well that clearly made it look as if Sansa had been straight up repeatedly lying to her mother when a text like that comes through. Why couldn't one thing just go right.

She knows her mothers seen it. A gasp falls from her lips and her mother has to quickly right the car when they nearly swerve into a tree, because her eyes were to busy re-reading the message before Sansa could make a grab for it.

She slips it into her purse with flaming cheeks. She opens and closes her mouth several times before finally giving up on trying to recover the situation and stares out of the window.

Her mother waits until they've got home and are parked up on the drive before she speaks.

She unclips her belt and turns her whole body to face her.

Great, I'm so in for it now. Stupid Jon, sending that stupid text. Wait until I see him.

"Really Sansa, your brothers best friend. This could be messy you know, although a part of me is glad it's Jon. As a mother no one will be good enough for you but he comes pretty close. Of course he's a sweet boy and so handsome, a little troubled lately though. Oh this is strange, I'll see what your father says about it."

Why does she need to tell father.

She doesn't even try to explain, what was the point.

Wights kill me now.

A/N: I hope you guys enjoy!!

#jonsa #jon x sansa #jonsa fic #jonsa au #jon and sansa #jonsa ao3 #jon x sansa ao3 #my fic #phases of the moon

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xeno-odyssey · 6 years

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Top 10 (Slightly Revised) Smash Ultimate - Fighters Pass Predictions

Keep in mind, these are fighters I personally want in Smash Ultimate. With the surprise reveal of Joker, and that he’ll be joining the roster soon with only a month away, anything is possible at this point. Also, Mii Costumes and Spirits usually does not mean a fighter is de-confirmed. For example, Mario is a fighter and he has multiple Spirits of himself from other Mario games. This will be a slightly lengthy list, so I’ll put a cut underneath.

Rex & Pyra/Mythra - Xenoblade Chronicles 2 Unfortunately they did not make it into the final roster as Smash Ultimate’s development period was around the time Xenoblade 2 released in December 2017, and Smash Ultimate released the next year. As compensation, we got a Mii Fighter costume of Rex if we pre-purchased the Fighters Pass DLC for free. I still have hope for Rex being in Smash. Some people say they want Pyra & Mythra as solo fighters, I have to disagree on that. They share their life-force with Rex, and without him as the Driver, they’re not at full strength, even if they are the Aegises. I COULD see Mythra as a solo fighter, should Sakurai and his team choose to use her Torna iteration. For their special attacks and Final Smash, here’s what I got: Sword Bash in Neutral-B, Rolling Smash is Side-B, Double Spinning Edge is Up-B akin to Link’s Spin Attack, and Down-B can be Blade Switch by changing between Pyra or Mythra respectively. For Rex’s Grab, it can be Anchor Shot akin to Young/Toon Link’s Hookshot, and it can also work as a tether-grab on ledges. For their Final Smash, it can be something like how Ryu and Ken have a 2-in-one Final Smash; Chain Attack - Burning Sword (Pyra), and Chain Attack - Sacred Arrow (Mythra). Rex call upon either Nia & Dromarch, Tora & Poppi, Mòrag & Brighid, and/or Zeke & Pandoria. They let their Blades go all out with the Special Attacks, and Rex deals the finishing blow with Pyra or Mythra using either of their respective Level 4 Special Attack.

Elma - Xenoblade Chronicles X Elma is one of many highly requested fighters to be in Smash, especially during the Fighter Ballot back in 2016 for Smash 4. Even if Elma doesn’t make, I can see the avatar, Cross, be in it. Elma’s moveset can be directly pulled from her origin game, and from Xenoblade 2: Neutral-B is Stream Edge, Side-B is Sliding Slinger, Up-B is Shadow Strike, and Down-B is Ghost Factory as counter akin to Lucario’s Double Team. For her Final Smash, it can be call Full Metal Jaguar Overdrive: This can be similar to Shulk’s Chain Attack in a way. Elma activates Overdrive, then splits clones of herself with Ghost Factory like in her boss fight from Xenoblade 2. Elma and her clones then go all out using moves like Violent Streak, Executioner, Electric Surge, Hundred Shells, and the original Elma finishes the attack with her signature Art being Shadow Strike. For a special aesthetic, one of Elma’s alternate costumes can be her True Form, where she’s actually one of the mysterious peaceful aliens trying to protect humanity from the Ganglion Alliance.

Kazuma Kiryu - Yakuza series I know what some of you might be thinking; “But Kiryu has never been on a Nintendo console before!” This is where I say, not true! The first two Yakuza games had HD ports on the Wii U. Sales didn’t do so well though.... But that’s okay! If we can get characters like Bayonetta and Joker, why not Kiryu? For Kiryu’s fighting style taken straight from 0 and Kiwami 1 & 2, he has Brawler, Rush, Beast, and Dragon of Dojima. For most of his standard and aerial attacks, Kiryu can use both Brawler and DoD styles. When dodging, that’s where Rush Style comes in. For his grab attacks and throws, Beast Style is in play. So all in all, Kiryu will mainly be using Dragon of Dojima with hints of his other 3 fighting styles mixed into one, just like in Kiwami 2 and onward. I’m not entirely sure what his B-specials can be like, but they’ll be something straight out of his DoD style. For example, his Down-B can be the Tiger Drop as a counterattack, where Kiryu gut-punches foes causing them to be stunned, similar to Ryu & Ken’s Focus Attack. For his Final Smash, Kiryu goes into Extreme Heat, unleashing powerful Heat Action attacks on anyone that gets in his way. The finisher is using his signature high kick, causing foes to be sent flying. A Kiwami symbol (極) will appear as an aesthetic when the Final Smash is finished.

Byleth - Fire Emblem: Three Houses With FE: 3 Houses recently announced and coming to Nintendo Switch soon, it won’t be a surprise if yet another FE avatar makes it into the roster alongside Robin and Corrin. Corrin especially since both them and Roy were originally put into Smash to promote both of their respective origin games. Roy being The Binding Blade, and Corrin being Fates of course. Robin, Corrin, and Byleth. Wouldn’t that be amazing? As of making this list, we don’t know much of Byleth other than they can use swords and have mysterious powers in Three Houses and how that’ll be incorporated into Smash Ultimate, but I have a feeling they’ll be an original FE fighter much like Robin & Corrin. Robin using their tomes & Levin Sword, Corrin wielding the Omega Yato & using their Dragon Fang ability, so I’m curious and I’d like to see what Byleth could bring to the table.

Shantae - Shantae series Reminder once again, Spirits don’t usually de-confirm fighters. In Smash Ultimate, Shantae & Risky’s Spirits are represented in their Half-Genie Hero appearances & design. So what I’m thinking is that we can bring in the “recent” Shantae iteration from one of her more popular games being The Pirate’s Curse. Shantae’s Smash design can be a mix of all of her past and present iterations, like her vest from PC. All of Shantae’s attacks can derive from all of her games. She can use her magic, and use other means of weapons & attacks from Pirate’s Curse. Shantae can be slightly similar to Robin, and how they use swords & magic. Like she can use her signature Hair Whip attack on the ground, shoot magic fireballs or use a flintlock pistol for projectile attacks, and use a pirate cutlass for her aerial attacks. She can even use moves like Power, Drill & Uppercut Kicks. Her dodge can even come from her notable Backdash. Her most iconic magical bellydances can be her special attacks, and her taunts. Shantae’s Final Smash can be something like unleashing powerful Genie Magic via her magic bellydancing.

Phoenix Wright - Ace Attorney series & VS. Capcom series I mean, c’mon now. We gotta have another joke-fighter in Smash. Nick works as a joke fighter in the VS. Capcom games because most of his moves are taken from his games and from Project X Zone 2. Shouting an “Objection!” can be a forward-Smash attack, his Up-B can be a powerful sneeze, and other attacks can involve his partners such as Maya & Pearl Fey (with the Steel Samurai), Apollo Justice, and Athena Cykes. For his Final Smash, the name can be something like “Final Evidence Presentation” A.K.A., “TAKE THAT!” Phoenix presents the final key evidence on the “suspect”, belittling them even further that they were at the crime scene with no alibi and hope left, with the finisher being a powerful “TAKE THAT!” shout sending the suspects flying. For this, both Apollo and Athena join Nick like they both did in Dual Destinies.

Neku Sakuraba - The World Ends With You I was one of the people that voted for Neku to be in Smash during the Fighter Ballot. If you’ve played TWEWY, you probably already know how Neku can fight. Most of Neku’s powers come from pins, allowing him to use pyrokinesis, electrokinesis, shockwaves, energy projectiles, quakes, soundwaves, and more. If he were to be a fighter, Neku can be similar to Robin. In his game, the pins’ powers have a limit use and time limit. After a certain amount of use, Neku must wait to use the pin again until it reboots. This goes for all of his special attacks. Neutral-B can be Energy/Force Rounds, Side-B can be Shockwave akin to Marth/Lucina/Roy’s Dancing Blade, Up-B is Vulcan Uppercut or Teleport, and his Down-B is Pyrokinesis which is controllable. Neku’s Final Smash will be Final Fusion. He summons Shiki, Joshua and Beat where they put all of their power in the Harmonizer Pin with Neku dealing the finishing blow. If Final Fusion manages to KO opponents, this fully reboots all of Neku’s pins.

Monster Hunter - Monster Hunter series Smash Ultimate feels nearly complete as it already has the armor as Mii Costumes and Rathalos as a boss & Assist Trophy. I know very little of the Monster Hunter games, but they can work as a fighter with their various weapons.

Ruby Rose - RWBY series Ruby seems very unlikely for a fighting game like Smash Ultimate, but she already has her own game which is RWBY: Grimm Eclipse, and stars in another crossover fighting game being BLAZBLUE: Cross Tag Battle. But what she can bring to the table is that she’s the most unique fighter out of everyone in Smash. Ruby wields her favorite weapon, Crescent Rose, a high-impact sniper-rifle scythe hybrid weapon. Most of her attacks from the show involve using her Speed Semblance, and attacking from a distance thanks to the rifle part. In a way, she can be similar to Bayonetta as both characters uses guns and attack from far away. Her speed can even match Sonic’s and Shulk’s Monado Speed. For Ruby’s Final Smash, it can be similar to Shulk’s Chain Attack, where she summons the rest of Team RWBY; Weiss, Blake, and Yang. All four girls use their unique team attacks, and the finishing blow is all four of them attacking together with their respective weapons.

Sora - Kingdom Hearts series Sora is on the very bottom for this list because I feel he’s highly unlikely to be the next DLC fighter. He’s technically a Disney character, and Square-Enix is usually careful with their IPs, though some producers seem to be okay with his inclusion in Smash Ultimate. Anyway, should Sora become a fighter, of course he would bring his Keyblade, the Kingdom Key to the battle. All of his attacks can derive from his origin games, like moves from Limit & Second Form. Sliding Dash is his Dash-Attack, Ripple Drive can be his Up-Smash, Stun Impact can be his Down-Smash akin to Zero Suit Samus’s, and Magnet Burst can be a Neutral-Air as an example. I’m not sure what his Neutral-B will be like though for the rest of the Special Attacks; Side-B will be Strike Raid akin to Link’s boomerang, Up-B is Aeroga, and Down-B is a Counterattack being Zantetzuken (or even his latest reprisals from KH3). Sora’s Final Smash is a bit tricky as he has a lot of powerful finishers and attacks. They can be either Ragnarok, Sonic Blade, Ars Arcanum, Union χ, Ancient Light, or Trinity where he teams up with Donald & Goofy to unleash a powerful attack.

#nintendo #nintendo switch #super smash bros.#super smash bros ultimate #predictions #top 10 list #xenoblade chronicles 2 #xenoblade chronicles x #yakuza #yakuza kiwami #fire emblem #fire emblem: three houses #shantae #phoenix wright #ace attorney #the world ends with you #monster hunter #rwby #kingdom hearts

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ask-the-monsters-guild · 6 years

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A short story I wrote to accompany Ask #52 on my askblog: https://ask-the-monsters-guild.tumblr.com/post/176181306329/

This was a lot of fun to write, and it felt good writing it. It’s also much longer than my TP’s Full Name story at six pages in OpenOffice :D

I'll open up the Vale Crew to Asks at some point in the future too, even though they’re technically not part of the Guilds ^^

Read the full story beneath the ReadMore linebreak below....

A great Girros scurried rapidly through the dark musky depths of the Rotten Vale, clambering over rocks and piles of bones. He had been summoned to the depths of the caverns earlier, in the middle of a meal he was sharing with his pack too, but when Varynea requests your presence you do not ignore that call.

Varynea was a Vaal-Hazak who lived in the deepest depths of the Vale. She oversaw the Vale and ensured that things ran smoothly, such as keeping track of new arrivals – whether deceased or still breathing – and dealing with anything that may disrupt things for her home and those that dwelt within. Lately, this has mostly taken the form of relatively frequent intrusions from hunters and their less well-armed but nonetheless equally annoying researchers.

The Great Girros continued down the path leading into the deepest depths of the Vale, wondering what exactly she was calling him for. Whatever it was, it had to be at least somewhat important – Varynea didn't call monsters like him for idle chatter. Somehow, this concerned him a little.

He was mulling over these thoughts when a gruff sounding voice called out to him.

“Hey, Yaegr! Wait up!”

The Great Girros quickly came to a stop and turned towards the source of the voice. An Odogaron leaped down from the ledge it was standing on and down a slope before approaching him.

“Varynea send for you?” the odogaron asked.

“How'd you guess?” Yaegr answered back.

The odorgaron shrugged. “Why else would you be heading down this way?”

“You're right on the mark Odo,” Yaegr said, bobbing his snake-like head in confirmation, “she called me to her but I don't yet know why. To be honest it's made me a touch nervous.”

Odo chuckled “Your first time seeing her I take it?”

Yaegr fidgeted slightly before responding “Yes, it is...”

Odo patted the Great Girros on the shoulder and grinned widely “Don't fret any about it little guy, she probably just wants your help with something.”

“My help? With what??”

“Well you'll find out when you meet with her.”

Yaegr's concern wasn't alleviated any by this. If anything it made him even more anxious somehow.

Sensing Yaegr's doubt, Odo tried to reassure the great girros. “Really kid, don't worry about it too much. I've met with her many times, she's a reasonable elder take my word for it.”

Yaegr thought about this for a moment. When Varynea rose to power here in the Vale one of the first things she did was chase out a fair number of monsters from this part of the Vale, claiming it as her own and bringing a sort of order to the chaotic underworld. This helped the daily lives of the weaker monsters dwelling there, such as his own kind.

“Before you leave I was wondering if I could ask a favor of you though” Odo spoke up, interrupting Yaegr's thoughts.

“Oh? What sort of favor?” Yaegr asked

“I wanted to know if you could lend me the aid of some of your pack to help me out with a new arrival in the Vale.”

“Is it living or deceased?”

“Deceased. And recently at that.”

“Why do you need the help then?”

It was Odo's turn to fidget, and he was quiet for a moment before continuing in an almost awkward tone. “Well you see, I hurt my shoulder earlier...” the fanged wyvern paused briefly, then continued quickly “And so could use the help with bringing the corpse into the Vale proper”

“So you slipped and hurt your leg on your way back down into the Vale earlier?” Yaegr asked bluntly.

“I did not say that!” Odo barked hurriedly.

Yaegr chuckled briefly “Your secret is safe with me.”

Odo huffed indignantly. He wasn't sure how the girros was able to tell he had hurt himself simply traveling back down into the Vale, but he didn't seem like he was going to press the matter and when Yaegr said he would keep a secret, he would indeed keep it.

“Now then, you said you wanted some help...”

Yaegr reared back and let out a wave of sound from his neck frills, a strange and curious sound that to anyone else would have been meaningless noise. To the girros however, that brief display conveyed a far more complex message, and one that could be relayed over a greater distance than simply yelling could. Within minutes, two Girros came scurrying down the path to join them.

Yaegr turned to address the pair that answered his call.

“Number 8, Number 17! You two follow Odo here and help him with the newcomer, when you're done head back to the den.”

Odo watched as the two girros scampered rapidly past him.

“You didn't even give them names?”

Yaegr shrugged. “Girros tradition. A girros life expectancy was pretty low before Varynea came around. If it wasn't starvation or the effluvial vapor, it was clan rivalries, predators, or the hunters.”

Yaegr shook his head sadly “Not many made it to adulthood. So naming the younger ones was pointless. If you made it to adulthood though, you earned yourself a name.”

Odo titled his head to the side quizzically “Why do you still call them by number then, now that things have changed?”

“Like I said, it was tradition. Some things don't change that easily”

The two monsters said their farewells and then headed on their separate ways, Yaegr toward the path that circled down to the Vale depths and Odo the opposite direction and towards the eastern caverns. He followed the path through until it opened up into a brighter area, kept lit by the glowing pools of acid that dotted the cave. Avoiding the dangerous fluids he proceeded into the deepest portion of the cave where Varynea waited.

Yaegr found the Hazak waiting in the penultimate chamber, rather than her den proper. There were several girros nearby her, possibly the ones she kept personally as “pets”. As he approached he noticed her fiddling with something in her claws. When he drew closer he recognized it as a Raphinos, and it didn't appear to be moving.

“Lady Varynea?” Yaegr called out as he approached, “Y-you asked to see me?”

“Yes, just one moment.” she replied, without even glancing in his direction.

Varynea lifted up the raphinos' limp body with her claws and then swung it into her mouth, thrusting her head forward slightly to get it fully inside and then swallowed it whole, displacing the scales on her neck slightly as it traveled down her throat.

The elder then turned to Yaegr. “Sorry to keep you waiting. I'm glad you've come so soon.”

She was keeping me waiting? Yaegr thought to himself, somewhat surprised but a touch amused as well.

“Now then, as to why I called you.”

Yaegr swallowed nervously. This was what he was concerned about, and he tried to remember what little he knew about Varynea, and Odo reassurances that she was a reasonable dragon.

“I don't know how else to phrase this, but I need someone to look after my Girros while I'm away.” Varynea explained, gesturing at the handful of girros by her side, one of which was climbing up the deceased flesh covering her wing.

“That's... Not exactly what I was expecting to hear.” Yaegr replied.

Varynea smirked. “Oh? What were you expecting then, may I ask?” she asked teasingly.

“I-it's just t-that.. I mean...” Yaegr stammered, trying to pick the right words and then actually get them out of his mouth. Preferably without offending the Elder.

Varynea raised her hand, stopping him. “It's fine. I understand you're nervous about this, but you don't have to be.”

Yaegr took a deep breath, then exhaled. Having collected himself, he made a second attempt at conversing with her.

“Did you have someone else watching them before?

“I had another that watched after them, but when he came to age he asked to leave so he could find a mate, and hopefully raise a pack of his own.”

Varynea returned her attention to Yaegr. “And that's where you come in. I'd like you to fill in for him.”

“You just let him leave?” he asked.

Varynea nodded. “Of course. He has every right to live his life the way he wants to. I wasn't keeping him here by force.”

“I have a pack of my own, what will they do while I'm here?” he asked, having concluded from Varynea's previous comments that it likely wasn't a permanent position. Though in the back of his mind he couldn't help but harbor a sliver of doubt that maybe she was lying. You never could tell what was running through an Elder's mind after all.

“There's plenty of space in the caverns for them, and my girros may appreciate some of their own kind to play with.”

Before Yaegr could respond a pair of Raphinos flew in to the chamber, one of which swooped up to the elder and chattered something into her ear. Despite his excellent hearing, Yaegr wasn't able to make out what it was saying.

“Alright, tell him I'll be up there in a moment.”

The Raphinos bobbed its head rapidly in acknowledgment then flew off back up the tunnel with its companion. Varynea lowered her wing and gestured for the Girros that was climbing on it to get off. Once it was back on the ground she stood up.

“I'm sorry to cut this short but I need to be going. You can give me your answer when I return. In the meantime you can return to your den.”

“But what about your pack?” Yaeger asked as she walked past him.

“They'll be fine on their own for now, I won't be gone long.”

Upon reaching the mouth of the tunnel, she stopped. “Ah, before I go...” she glanced back at Yaegr, “I don't believe I got your name.”

“It's Yaegr” he responded, “But didn't you know already?”

Varynea shook her head. “I simply asked Hyurem and Myurem for the nearest Great Girros.”

She was referring of course to her two Raphinos that she trained to be messengers for her, and to keep an eye on the Vale where she could not. The two were the third generation of raphinos she had raised for this role, having replaced their predecessors after they had passed away from old age. They weren't terribly experienced yet, but they were taking to the role rather quickly.

With that, the two monsters left the brightly lit caves, Yaeger to his den and Varynea towards the surface. Along the way, Varynea passed various monsters going about their business and daily lives. Several stopped to greet her as she passed, others continued their current tasks without distraction. She wanted to stop to converse with the monsters that greeted her, to ease the frustration that was swelling up inside her, but she kept going. Better to get this over with quickly.

She was still dwelling on this when she reached the surface. Upon reaching the designated meeting spot she found the elder already waiting for her, a Valfalk by the name of Victor. He had dull silver scales, golden bracers on his wrists fashioned after those some humans were seen with, and a pair of goggles over his brows held in place with leather straps around his neck.

At his side was a bird wyvern from the Coral Highlands, known as a Tzitzi-Ya-Ku. She had her light-emitting frills retracted, and was fidgeting uncomfortably in the cold. Varynea knew that the Valfalk would be coming but she didn't know he'd be bringing the bird wyvern as well.

Varynea glanced at Hyurem and Myurem who were perched nearby, the two bickering with each other over something. She was slightly irritated the two neglected to mention that Victor brought the Tzitzi-Ya-Ku with him, and decided to request that they inform her of any guests he brings along in the future once this meeting was over.

“Varynea, it's been a while.” the Valfalk spoke, being the first to initiate conversation.

“Only seventeen days since your last visit.” she responded, not taking any care to hide the irritation in her voice.

“Good to see you again too, Hazak.” squeaked the bird wyvern.

Varynea sighed. The Tzitzi-Ya-Ku was like this every time Victor brought her along. Why he still brings her to these meetings baffled her.

“Now then, I feel it's safe to assume you still want to discuss letting your... What did you call it again... Questing Group, to be allowed into my vale?”

“Guild,” Victor politely corrected her, “Questing Guild. But yes, that much has not changed.”

“And neither has my answer to your proposal.”

“Told you so.” Zeeki quipped to Victor.

“I don't know why you're so insistent about this”, Varynea huffed, shaking her head, “I already said that I wasn't interested in joining your group nor did I want others making a mess of the place.”

“Isn't it already a mess?” Zeeki asked, a hint of sarcasm in her squeaky voice.

Varynea glared at the bird wyvern. “The Vale might not look like it, but it does have a semblance of order,” she then turned her attention to Victor and continued, “an order that I work hard to keep it in and do not want disrupted by you and your friends rummaging through it.”

“I can sympathize,” Victor started, “Running an organization with many varied individuals can be stressful and complicated. I assure you though that the monsters and hunters that would be--”

“Hunters??” Varynea interrupted, “You want to bring them down here too? Absolutely not!”

“They won't be a problem. I explained before it'd just be duels in controlled environments, nobody would be coming to any harm. Any lasting harm that is.”

Varynea fumed silently, her tail whipping from side to side in agitation and tapping the gravely soil with one of her hooked claws. She wasn't too concerned about the hunters as a threat. Since they'd begun poking their noses into her caverns she'd sent each of them packing without issue, and if what the valfalk was telling her was true then they wouldn't be any further problem for her at all. Not directly anyway. She had other reasons for wanting them out of her caves.

“Varynea... I understand you have your reasons for not wanting to get involved with us.”

“Then why do you keep pestering me about it?” she growled

“Because it'd be of benefit to all of us.” Victor replied.

The Vaal-Hazak turned away, saying nothing.

Zeeki fidgeted uncomfortably, and tapped Victor on his shoulder. “Hey can we wrap this up?” she chirped, “It's getting cold and I want to go home.”

“Be patient Zeeki, we're almost done here.” he whispered back.

“Almost?”, Zeeki squeaked loudly, “I think the walking corpse has made it quite clear she wants nothing to do with us. Let's leave her be and focus on getting our latest arrivals settled in.”

Through the corner of his eye, Victor noticed Varynea glancing in their direction, clearly having heard the 'walking corpse' remark.

Victor sighed. “Alright Zeeki, let's go...”

Varynea watched as the valfak picked up the Tzitzi Ya-Ku in his arms and took flight, quickly disappearing from view. He'd be back, she knew he would. That valfalk was persistent, and she had to admit, was almost as stubborn as she was.

“Hyurem, Myurem... Come along.”

The two wingdrakes leaped from their perch and fluttered after the Elder, and the trio made their way back into the depths of the Vale. Varynea did not like remaining on the surface for very long, and she wanted to get back to Yaegr and see if he'd be willing to monstie-sit for her little girros pets.

#victor the valphalk #varynea the vaal hazak #yaegr the great girros #nonask #story post

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ayearofpike · 6 years

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Spooksville #12: The Hidden Beast

Pocket Books, 1996 120 pages, 10 chapters ISBN 0-671-55073-X LOC: CPB Box no. 342 (Stored at Landover) OCLC: 35300821 Released September 1, 1996 (per B&N)

Bryce Poole has finally come to the Spook Squad for help. His cousin Leah has come into a treasure map and needs some help understanding it, and if Bryce can't do it he knows someone who can. The gang still doesn't quite trust him, but they soften their stance when Leah offers them half of what they find. But ... maybe they should have stuck with their instincts, they realize, when Leah takes off with the treasure and two of the kids get stuck in a cave with an angry dragon.

I know, I know. You're wondering the same thing I was: do these assholes ever have to go to school? As it turns out, this has been one summer so far, with an adventure every week on average. With only a couple of days until school starts, the gang is itching for something else to do, and Bryce knows it. He catches them at the donut shop and entices them with the promise of wealth beyond imagining. His cousin Leah is just outside with a map that could lead them to treasure, but the map and its instructions are hidden behind a riddle that neither she nor Bryce has been able to solve.

Sally has done a 180 on Bryce Poole since he almost got her killed in the ancient past, and so she doesn't want anything to do with it. Adam and Watch are mostly of the same mind, but all it takes is the offer to split the riches for them to agree that it couldn't hurt to look. So Leah comes in, and of course she's a beautiful teenager who makes Cindy jealous even though she's five years older. She shows them the map and the riddle, which takes Watch about five minutes to figure out: they have to go to this set of unusually sharp hills deep in the mountains and wait for Venus at its apogee to cast a shadow on the tallest and narrowest peak that will reveal a door, where there are speaking crystals guarded by an ancient pet, whatever that means. Leah is thankful but not excited, somehow, and they determine to set out that day, as tomorrow morning Venus will be at its highest and brightest, with no moon.

So Leah gets ahold of a truck and the kids ride out as far as they can before they have to start hiking. (There is a token mention of getting parental permission to camp that night, in case you were worried.) Watch knows it's solidly six hours to the mountain, and they make it four before dark, when they have to make camp at a pond fed by a spring that literally sprays out of the cliff wall. This far from civilization, though, they'll have to consider wild animals, especially in Spooksville. No problem, Watch says: the fire should keep them away, and he'll set an alarm so he can get up and feed it. Leah wants to know what time Watch will be getting up, just out of curiosity.

Or so she says. Next thing Adam knows, Watch is shaking him awake. Leah is gone, no doubt ahead on the path so she can stiff the kids and abandon them in the mountains. Bryce is still there, but that proves nothing because they could have coordinated it ahead of time. They decide to try and catch her, and they've been around the girls long enough that they know not to leave them behind like chauvinist dickholes. Bryce comes, too, and they eventually make it to the mountain, where there's a ledge near the top fronted by a polished statue that has a small hole in it, blocked by another rock. When they remove the rock, Venus shines through the hole and onto the cliff wall behind it — and the perfect circle cast by the light of the planet reveals a door that swings open into the mountain.

This peak being so tall and narrow, of course all they see inside is a staircase. They make their way to the bottom, where there's a pool of water and a flicker of light in the distance. They follow it, but pretty quickly they hear a rumbling, rasping sound. Kind of like some enormous creature breathing. Fortunately, there's enough room to quietly edge around it, and right behind it is the promised treasure room, full of gold coins and gemstones and jewels. But in the middle of it all are four silver stands, two of which are topped with gigantic quartz crystals. These must be the stones alluded to in the riddle, and obviously Leah has already been here and taken two of them. Sally goes to pick up another — and holy crap the giant monster in the other room starts waking up. She puts it back, and the thing falls asleep, and they get past again and run for it.

Only not fast enough. The sun is starting to rise outside, and the door is closing. Bryce and Sally get there first, and slow it down enough for Adam to squeeze out, but Watch and Cindy are too slow. The door actually catches Adam's jacket before it turns back into solid rock, leaving him no choice but to shrug out of it. So now what? Venus isn't up again until tomorrow morning, and it might not even work again. All they can do is try to chase Leah down so they're not trapped in the mountains, and try to figure out where another entrance to the cave might be so they can go back for their friends.

Cindy and Watch have no choice, meanwhile, but to go back down the stairs and get a drink from the pool. While they're down there, they hear the thing wake up and go into its treasure room — and roar with rage. As they're scrambling to get away from it, it hears them, but they manage to get far enough up the tunnel to be safe from its fire breath. It's then that Watch recognizes what the beast is, and figures it's smart enough that he can try to reason with it. He yells down that they don't have the crystals, and the dragon responds by trying to convince them to come talk to it so she (yeah, they determine the dragon is a she) can get her property back. But Watch knows she's just trying to get a meal, and holds Cindy back from the dragon's hypnotic effects. This only makes her mad, though, and she squeezes enough info out of them to know that some girl named Leah is out there with her crystals and there's a town called Spooksville that she can lay waste to until she gets them back.

She leaves the cave (not the way the two kids trapped inside are hiding; it's too small for a dragon) and chases down Adam, Sally, and Bryce, who have had no luck finding Leah. She corners them in another cave and tries to get more info from them, and when all three of the kids are stronger-willed than Cindy she attempts to turn the cave into an oven. Fortunately, Sally has a heat-repellent tent in her bag, which saves the kids from slow-roasting. The dragon takes off, and they have to think of some way to slow her down. What if they could raft down a river and get to Spooksville before her, to warn the people? As it happens, Bryce has a raft stashed up here in the mountains, along with an emergency cell phone that he can use to warn Leah. But she doesn't want to hear it, and hangs up on her cousin.

Meanwhile, Watch and Cindy aren't getting any safer staying in the cave. They decide to explore the opposite direction and find OH HOLY GOD ANOTHER DRAGON. But this one is a kid, and interested in getting to know humans rather than eating them. He tells them that his mom uses the crystals to talk to dragons on other planets, which makes them realize they can try to call Leah on them. Of course, she hangs up the crystal on them too, however one does that, so the only recourse is to ask Little Dragon to fly them out of the cave and to go find her before his mom does. There's just one problem: Little Dragon is afraid of heights.

Rafting down the river, Sally has a brainstorm: there's a rocky outcropping near the power plant outside town that, if painted gold, might get a dragon's attention. While she was investigating, they could shoot down the power lines and stun her for a little while, maybe even long enough to get Leah to give back the crystals. Bryce apparently has gold paint stashed nearby, as well as a hunting rifle, and they set up their trap. Sure enough, Mama Dragon comes swooping down and they manage to knock her out. But OH FUCK HERE COMES ANOTHER DRAGON.

And this is the first time I'm really bugged by Pike's storytelling in the Spooksville series. Because Little Dragon has not only Watch and Cindy, but also Leah on his back. He has persuaded Leah to return the speaking crystals, and given her a handful of diamonds in thanks. But Pike just TELLS us this. As every storyteller has heard at some point in their craft, showing an audience what happened is much more effective than telling them. We're just expected to believe that a sociopath who would abandon five twelve-year-olds (one of them RELATED TO HER) in the mountains is happy to return this priceless treasure to an animal. PLUS: what happened to the fact that Little Dragon was afraid to fly? It's never mentioned again. Apparently he was totally cool with this crippling, paralyzing fear to help some humans he literally just met. My suspicion is that Pike got to this point and realized he was running up against a page limit for the series and had to cut a whole bunch. But it makes the story fall flat at the end. Like: did the kids actually HAVE to electrocute a dragon if Little Ex Machina was gonna show up and make her calm immediately? Get your ass to rewrites.

So that's The Hidden Beast, and with that we are halfway through Spooksville. There are a few untied ends that still have to be looped back, and maybe Pike is starting to do that. We still don't know very much about Watch, except that he's starting to be willing to open up to Cindy but he's not totally ready yet. But check out that next book title: I expect we're going to start school pretty soon, and school in Spooksville will be just as screwed up as the rest of the town.

#spooksville #spookstober

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