#this file was killing my drawing program it's huge

[chronic-art]

I wonder, when God is your literal dad, if the feeling of being watched by thousands of all seeing eyes ever truly leaves you.

[click for higher quality]

[ivystoryweaver]

Decadent chapter 14: FINALE

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Summary: An accident in the lab - and Miguel has missed what was right in front of his face (that's you)

Pairings: Miguel O'Hara x f!reader

Word Count: 5.3k

Content: nsfw, 18+ , some angst, unprotected p in v, grinding, scratching, biting, blood consumption, bondage, rough sex, not beta'd

PREVIOUSLY on Decadent...

“That’s why I want you to live here with me.” Seeing your eyes go wide, he squeezed your hands. "You can keep your apartment if you want. I'll even pay for it. But..." His eyes dipped almost shyly as he exhaled in a rush. "I love you. So...move in with me?"

"Of course I will. I love you," you confessed. "But..." Caressing his fingers, you swallowed hard, but held his gaze bravely. "First, I need you to tell me where you go all weekend."

FINALE

Spiderman 2099's unstable molecule fabric suit stretched itself across his defined muscles. His heavy cape unfurled behind him. With a sudden leap, he glided across New York - or at least this universe's version of New York, prepared to make sure this universe's timeline didn't somehow collapse.

"Uhhh, boss?" Lyla chimed, appearing in the air, near his head as he floated through the sky.

"Kinda busy, can't it wait?"

"No. You programmed me to let you know if your girlfriend were to ever be in danger, soooo she’s in danger," she fired back.

Miguel aimed for a low rooftop and came to a tumbling stop.

"Where is she? What's wrong?" Miguel had a timeline to attend to, but if you were in danger...

"There was an explosion in the lab - "

Lyla said nothing more before Miguel was quite literally tearing through the fabric of time to get back to you.

His virtual assistant may have overstated the danger you were in. When he arrived at the lab, he realized there had been a very small explosion. More of a misfire of sorts -

...which wasn't the major issue. The reason Lyla interrupted Miguel's mission soon became clear to him.

This was the part of the lab with the spiders. The explosion had destroyed some of the spiders and freed the rest. They must have scurried away. But you were lying on the floor amidst debris, unconscious, with a huge, angry spider bite on your hand.

You were bit by a radioactive spider.

"It can't be," he whispered, rushing to your side and checking you over frantically. Thankfully, you were breathing, but unconscious.

"Baby, what happened?" He gasped, pulling you into his arms and rocking you gently. Pressing a fierce kiss to your forehead, he murmured against your skin.

"This isn't supposed to happen. I'm Spider-Man here. I'm Spider-Man...how..."

Horrible dread filled Miguel's heart.

If this world already had a Spider-Man, that meant this spider bite wasn't going to turn you into a spider woman. It would most likely either kill you or turn you into a villain.

How could he possibly have missed this? How did he not see this coming?

First things first: he wanted to make sure you were okay. Which one of these spiders bit you? They were all radioactive, so in that regard, you were fucked. But it was nothing venomous...right?

Miguel placed you on a lab table and got to work, analyzing your condition and reaction to the bite, drawing your blood, watching you closely for signs of venom - rashes, difficultly breathing -anything to explain why you were unconscious.

He simultaneously had Lyla pull up everything on you - anything that could explain why you would have been bitten by a radioactive spider and he didn't see it coming, as some sort of canon event. Maybe it was just a freak accident. After all, you worked in a dangerous, experimental lab daily.

But Miguel knew the universe. The multi-verse, even. There were no accidents. Ever.

Your Aunt Jessina practically raised you, at least since your parents died at age 12. Miguel had even met Jess.

"Wait, what the hell?" Miguel gasped. Your Aunt Jess actually adopted you and changed your name. And her name.

As Lyla untangled well-hidden files, she discovered that Jess' name was Jessina May Parker. The sister of a scientist named Richard Parker.

Your last name used to be Parker?

Aunt Jess married a man named Ben, who also died. She took his name and completely abandoned the name Parker. You took Ben's last name as well. It was as if Jess wanted to erase any memory of her brother Richard, as well as the name Parker.

But Jess knew what she was doing. The paper trail was virtually nonexistent. One would have to know what to look for and exactly how to look, to find it. And Miguel simply wasn't looking for any spider-related canon events in this timeline because he was Spider-Man.

As Lyla dug deeper, the connections became obvious.

You were raised by your Aunt (Jessina) May. Your Uncle Ben died. Your parents - the Parkers, died behind a veil of secrecy.

Your friend's name was Gwen.

The guy with a crush on you? Jackson Watson. Mitchell Jackson Watson. He went by 'MJ' Watson as a child.

Your life read like a pretty common spider story. So...you were meant to be a spider. That meant he was the wrong spider in the wrong place. Typical. No wonder his entire existence felt...well, wrong. Until he met you...

Now he just had to wait for you to wake up.

You eyes fluttered weakly, struggling to open. You inhaled sharply - shakily, feeling like your skin was on fire.

"Corazón?" Miguel gasped, gently tracing your jaw with his fingertips. "Hey..."

"W-what happened?" you croaked, your throat parched and your lips dry.

"You were bit by a spider. Scared me to death- how are you feeling?” He gently questioned.

"Everything hurts,” you coughed out, struggling to sit up. "Was it poisonous?"

"Take it easy. Just lie still. Let me take care of you,” he softly admonished. "I’m running some tests but you don't seem to be having an allergic reaction. I don’t think that’s what’s happening here."

You moaned in agony, pressing the heels of your hands to your eyes. "My head is pounding- my skin hurts, Miguel please...”

“It’s okay, baby - "

“Please take me home,” you whimpered. “I-I don’t feel good.”

Miguel explained to you that he wasn’t quite done with the tests he was running in the lab, not to mention the headache of dealing with the accidental explosion and confidential cleanup. So you endured nearly an hour of waiting on an uncomfortable lab table until Miguel felt satisfied with your test results.

Then he carried you to the car, held you close in the back seat, and took you to his home.

Well...hopefully soon to be your home. Miguel had asked you to move in, but you wanted complete honesty from him first. This was way more than working together, sleeping together, or even being exclusive. Miguel loved you and wanted to start a life with you.

He had asked you for one more weekend and then promised to show you all his secrets first hand. This gave you pause, but he explained it would be easier to show you than to explain it to you.

The Spider Society was meant to be a secret, so Miguel honestly wanted to let a few people there know what was going on - how serious he was about you, and how much he trusted you.

Now, it seemed you would not only learn of the Spider Society as Miguel's girlfriend, but as a spider yourself.

Your transformation into a spider wasn't an easy one, but not atypical of other transitions Miguel had heard about and witnessed. Of course, his personal transition was a different type of lab accident, and he was quite the unique spider.

Still, your whimpers of agony tormented him all night as you clung to him, clenching his t-shirt in your firsts, begging him to hold you, to stay with you.

He groaned as you shifted against his body, pulling yourself on top of him.

"Why does it feel like this?" You cried, you lips brushing his throat. "Please make it stop, Miguel, please."

He must have whispered a hundred soothing Spanish whispers and pet names into your ear, promising you he was there - that you were safe, and this would pass.

As you drifted off into a fitful slumber, he wondered how you would ever forgive him for letting this happen to you - for not seeing it coming.

The next morning, you woke up in his arms, feeling much better. And bizarre. A trip to the bathroom later, and your new life started to make itself known.

You tried to brush your teeth, but accidentally snapped the thing in half. Next, you broke the toilet handle when you went to flush, which, made you flinch in surprise, sending your hand slamming into the counter's edge - taking the corner right off as it smashed to pieces.

"Oh my god!' you shrieked, "Miguel?" you called out, rushing back toward the bedroom, only to collide with his solid chest…

…which somehow sent him stumbling backward. All six foot, nine inches or your massive wall of a boyfriend almost lost his balance after you ran into him.

“Miguel? I’m so sorry.”

“It’s okay.” He grasped your arms to calm you down Damn, you were strong. “Let me explain, okay?”

So Miguel info-dumped absolutely everything about the Spider Society, the multi-verse and your spider powers. He even explained that you getting bit was apparently a “canon event” - a life and story similar to so many other spiders.

To say your mind was blown was an understatement. The fact that you had super powers now? Like super strength, amazing reflexes and possibly something called a spider sense, where you could sense danger coming?

Not to mention a lot other people had these same powers too but they were from other worlds.

You started to understand why it took Miguel so long to tell you where he went on weekends. It would have been difficult to grasp if it hadn’t happened to you personally.

You couldn't believe your eyes when Miguel actually took your hand and led you through a portal to another dimension. A psychedelic, seizure-inducing, multicolored portal, which might have been terrifying if it weren't so amazing.

When you got to this so called Spider HQ, you clung to his hand as you passed by several other people in skin tight suits that looked like Miguel's blue one, but more of them were primarily red.

Each person knew Miguel and seemed to defer to him or acknowledge him as the two of you passed by.

Lyla was there as well, chirping away, updating him on all things multiverse.

The biggest surprise came when you got to what appeared to be the heart of the operation, or perhaps Miguel's...office, containing a rather dramatic elevated platform surrounded by several computer screens.

"So this is where you go every weekend?" You asked him, nodding around you.

"Nights too, sometimes. When we're not together." He winked down at you.

You made a face. "Baby, when do you sleep?"

"He never sleeps," a familiar voice resounded behind you. "That's why he's so damn grumpy."

The multiverse got a lot weirder when you turned around and saw your neighbor's lookalike standing there in a black and white spider suit.

"Gwen?"

Seeing your neighbor/friend's doppelgänger was shocking enough, but Miguel knew it was time to head back to your own universe when you discovered, quite by accident, that you were the proud, new owner of organic webbing.

You accidentally shot a long roped web out of your wrist and shrieked in surprise, inadvertently firing off a few more before Miguel could explain to you what was happening. He knew it could be a possibility - some spiders made their webbing in the lab and wore the tech on their wrists - while others, like you, had organic webbing as a part of your altered DNA.

There was really no way to know for sure until it happened. The thought of spiderwebs flying out of your skin freaked you right the hell out, so Miguel took you home.

After explaining things to you and making you some Mexican food, he noticed you hadn't spoken or even looked at him since he poured your first margarita.

"Mi amor?" He gently prompted, reaching for your hand. "Talk to me."

As if simply waiting on an invitation, you dove right in.

"Why didn't you tell me about all this - about the other spiders?" You whispered. "I mean...this is huge."

"I know." His gaze dropped. "I wanted to, but the Spider Society - we don't really...advertise."

"I get that," you nodded understandingly, "But I'm not just your girlfriend. I'm your research partner. Don't you think it's pertinent to our research - all those other spiders? Didn't you think maybe this information could help you?"

"There are no other spiders like me. No one had the accident I had and no one...drinks blood."

"But we don't know - there could have been something," you argued. "A-and the fact that I was working around radioactive spiders every day?"

"Well...you did know about the spiders, to be fair," he reasoned.

"Maybe, but not that I would turn into a spider-person - and that there were other universes with...us out there. And Gwen - there's another Gwen?" You pulled your hand away during your confused and impassioned speech, running your fingers over your wrists where your spiderwebs had shot out.

"And now like - I'm part spider and I am completely freaked out, Miguel, d-do you understand that?"

His scarlet eyes found yours and he nodded. "I think I do. I definitely do."

Your eyed him sympathetically, understanding his meaning. This was the whole point of your research together - the reason you met. Miguel didn't want to be part vampire spider anymore, and he never wanted to need to drink blood again. He'd spent most of his life vexed by his very existence.

"I didn't mean for this to happen to you, mi amor - you have to believe that."

"I know," you sniffled. "But what about me? Are you...friends with another me - somewhere out there? You and me - are we just carbon copies of - "

"No." Miguel's scarlet eyes swirled with uncertainty as his dark eyebrows arched pleadingly. "There is no one else like you. There never could be."

Seeing your hesitation and sensing your distress, he pushed off his barstool where you were seated at the kitchen island. Brushing his knuckles across your cheek, he struggled to find the right words as slivers of fear began to wind around his heart - a dread that somehow, he could lose you. "Corazon..."

"You're sure you haven't met a bunch of other me's?" You softly questioned, blinking up at him.

"Mi vida," he breathed, touching his forehead to yours as he stood between your legs - his hands spreading across your thighs.

With little effort, he lifted you off your barstool and set you on the counter top, easing closer until his body pressed against yours. Pulling your thighs around his waist, he shifted his hips before pressing his waiting mouth to yours.

You hummed against his lips, slipping your fingers around his neck to wind through his dark locks. He tasted you slowly, pushing his hands back up your spread thighs to grip your hips. Thrusting against you temptingly, he licked hotly into your mouth, but it didn't last long.

Touching his forehead to yours, the warmth of his breath enticed you closer, but he shook his head, murmuring your name. Miguel so often spoke through his body. Some of your wildest nights together stemmed from his anger and desperation.

One memory in particular came to mind - one Saturday in your apartment, when he admitted to you that his daughter had passed away. He tried to tell you more about it that day, but instead, he had pulled you against his body and kissed you so tenderly. You had taken him to your bed and that was the first time he was so sweet and deliberate with you.

Whispering his name, you brushed an errant lock of hair from his ruby gaze.

Shaking his head slightly, he inhaled, as if ready to speak, but somehow couldn't...stammering, instead, leaning into your touch. "I can't..."

"What," you murmured, twirling your fingers through the hair behind his ears.

"Lose you," he choked out, his gaze dropping to your lap.

Dragging your fingertips down his jawline, you lifted his face back up to yours. But you didn't answer - instead, sealing your mouth to his once more, pulling him closer still, and squeezing his torso with your thighs.

He responded hungrily, lifting you up to carry you to the nearest flat surface, which was the living room couch - his tongue tangling with yours urgently.

The two of you tumbled down, bodies pressed eagerly together as you rolled all the way down to the floor, grinding together for the friction you so desperately craved. So often, you searched for the connection needed through communication with your bodies.

It happened quickly - with both of you craving the intensity of your shared bond when your bodies joined. With only a few deliberate yanks of clothing off or aside, he pushed his way snugly inside you, the two of you a hopeless tangle of limbs and clothing.

But you wanted him closer stil. "Tear these," you pouted, pulling at your shoved-aside panties...

...but they ripped with the strength of your finger.

Before you could react, he obeyed your command, shredding the other annoying articles of clothing, easing down onto his back as your joined bodies continued a tantric rhythm.

He groaned as you worked your naked body over his cock, your tits bouncing, granting him his favorite view in all the universes he'd ever laid eyes on, or even imagined.

"Even if I met...another version of you somehow...it still wouldn't be you," he panted, running his hands all over your beautiful body.

Miguel had needed reassurance that he wouldn't lose you, but it was you doubting your uniqueness, and for the first time, you understood, even if only in part, why Miguel might feel like a freak or a monster.

A radioactive spider bite had altered your DNA and your body was a mystery to you now. You didn't know your own strength and the whole spiderweb thing really sent you...

But the biggest fear driving the vigorous use of his body beneath you was that he might discover another you somewhere.

"Tell me again," you whined, twisting your body down into his with brutal ferocity. "Tell me I'm the only one."

"F-fuck," he stuttered out - your newfound strength making his huge frame buck like a rag doll.

Wishing he could sit up and hold you while you came - to reassure you that you belonged to him, and that no one else ever could, Miguel instead found himself coming hard and instantly because he could not move - your strength rendering him incapable of lifting off the floor.

"Miguel, please," you gasped, digging your nails so hard into his chest that you drew blood, so close to your release but feeling that he'd already come inside you.

You kept on riding him even as he went soft, expecting his superhuman stamina to have him hard and ready for you soon, but you forgot one small factor:

He had to keep up with you now.

Your frustration and desperation came to a head and you finally stilled your movements, opening your eyes to find bloody streaks scraped into your boyfriend's massive chest.

Before you could even react or worry, Miguel trapped your wrists in his hands. "Está bien, cariño."

You gasped out his name, horrified, still unaware that you were literally pinning him down.

"I'm okay, it's okay," he assured you, pulling at your wrists. "Let me up."

"Oh god," you croaked, finally releasing him and staring at the angry red marks and trickles of blood. "I-I didn't mean to. I didn't even realize."

"Hey..." he caressed your cheek, readjusting as your bodies pulled apart. "Felt so good. I'm okay."

"But you're bleeding," you argued. "Look what I did..." You trailed off as he nodded, understanding, better than anyone, exactly how you were feeling right now. You hurt him - drew blood, surprising and horrifying yourself, only to have him come faster than ever, telling you how good it was.

Okay, so the tables had turned.

Miguel suggested the two of you go upstairs to clean up and get more comfortable, promising to clean up the Mexican feast tomorrow.

You were quiet - perplexed, mostly, but the tiny slivers of fear slipped back into Miguel's mind over what his lack of candor might ultimately mean for your relationship.

"Mi amor," he started again, just the way he had right after dinner. The two of you had showered and changed into pajamas even though it was hardly bedtime.

Gripping you by the arms, he ducked down closer to your height. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry for this."

"It's not your fault," you reasoned, resting your palms against his chest. "How could it be?"

He simply shrugged, pulling you close to his chest for a hug. "I promise there's no one else like you," he whispered against your temple. "There are other Parkers, and other spiders, but no one else is like you."

Easing back, he took your face in his hands. "Every single person I've met - other Peters and other Gwens - none of them are exactly alike - they're all unique."

Pressing a soft kiss to your mouth, he rested his forehead against yours. "You can't honestly believe I could love anyone else."

He kissed you again, slotting his mouth against yours as his strong arms wound around your back. Then he took you to his bed and made you believe it.

Six weeks later...

Miguel turned out to be quite the capable coach - helping you understand your powers and practicing using them. He even encouraged the use of your spiderwebs outside the lab, reasoning that you needed to get used to them domestically.

A few pillows lost their stuffing and you shattered a teapot and a margarita glass, but, with practice, you adjusted.

This was an absolute must before working in the lab. Flying spiderwebs did not mix with delicate test tubes and beakers.

Your favorite part of training was when Miguel insisted you use his body for practice - testing your strength, agility and your webs while he taught you how to fight. It took you weeks to unleash your full strength on him. Your kick knocked him across a rooftop.

But when it came right down to it, he actually was bigger and stronger. Not by much. Your advantage came from your more powerful webs and your precognitive spider-sense.

Work had completely changed for the two of you, since you started focusing your time less on a cure for Miguel, and more on the needs of the Spider Society.

Miguel started to feel like maybe being a spider wasn't so bad. He used to feel alone, despite all the other spiders in the society - constantly wracked with guilt over the blood he took from others simply to sustain his life.

Then you came along - brilliant, beautiful and so full of life - challenging him at every turn - in the lab, in the bedroom. You knew what you wanted out of a career and you definitely knew what you wanted from a lover.

What started out as a wild bit of coworkers-with-benefits gave way to a twisted relationship of sorts - he used your body for pleasure and for feeding and -miracle of miracles - you loved it.

Craving the dark things he did to your body - the scratches of his talons, the puncture marks from his fangs, the weakness from blood loss and paralyzation - all while he used your body for his pleasure - it was a mirror to him of how much of a monster he really was.

But you showed him that person deserved love as much as anyone else. Miguel finally accepted your acceptance. He allowed you to love him and heal his heart. He still wasn't comfortable with hurting you, however, and remained determined to find a cure for his condition.

At least until a couple weeks ago.

The two of you were sparring and Miguel was pushing you pretty hard. He was still superior at hand-to-hand combat, simply from years of experience.

Sparring with an absolute tank of a delicious boyfriend like Miguel taught you a lot, but it also made you feral. He usually insisted the two of you calm down and cool off - keeping your training separate from your personal life.

But this particular night, you were having none of it.

Miguel had you pinned on the ground between his thick, gorgeous thighs.

"Ready for a break?" He nonchalantly and almost smugly questioned.

"No way," you huffed, firing webs to bind his ankles together.

You could feel a slightly condescending chuckle rumble through his body, so you fired another web right at his mouth, silencing him.

Your face was right next to his crotch and, as you ordered him to stop fighting you, his cock started getting hard.

Certainly not the first time that happened.

He reached for your hands to try to stop all your spiderweb nonsense, but you stuck his hand to the floor with another web.

He only squeezed his thighs together harder, keeping you trapped.

"Have it your way," you purred, mouthing him through the thin cotton of his joggers.

He mumbled out a protest, through the web covering his mouth, reaching for you with his other hand. While teasing his cock with your lips, you managed to stick his other hand to the floor and start to wiggle free.

Miguel really was stronger than you, but lost his concentration just enough to forget to keep clamping down with his thighs.

You rolled away, laughing victoriously, but knowing he wouldn't stay trapped for long. So you straddled his waist, enjoying your few moments with him bound and silenced, rolling your hips over his length, grinding down temptingly.

"I wonder if I could make you come before you get free," you taunted, firing more webs to trap his entire arms - from shoulders to wrists - to the floor. You used more webbing to secure his legs as well, loosening his ankles just long enough to secure his legs all the way down, spread apart, just like his arms.

He didn't fight you.

Instead, his ruby irises flashed with lust as you pulled your sports bra over your head. He was already shirtless, so it felt incredible when you removed the web silencing him. You laid down, your breasts mashed against his muscular chest, grinding your core against his length as you kissed him hard.

You felt him shift and strain against the webs - he no doubt wanted to run his hands over your skin, but you nipped at his lips, tutting condescendingly.

"Be good for me," you teased, ripping his pants open with no effort. He groaned as you roughly pushed your own pants down and kicked them off, leaving you naked as you draped yourself back over him, rubbing your bare wet cunt up and down his stiff cock.

"Baby, please..." he panted as you undulated - your tits bouncing as you found the friction you sought for your clit, but left him desperate to push his way inside you.

You eased down again, lying on top of him, rolling your hips teasingly as your slid your tongue inside his mouth, purposely dragging it across his sharp fang.

Miguel moaned as the taste of your blood filled his mouth, sucking your tongue, drinking your sweet nectar as you kissed him and teased him endlessly.

You sat back up after a moment, licking your lips clean of blood as your tongue healed itself almost instantly. Bracing yourself with your palms on your boyfriend's huge chest, you locked eyes with him, smirking slightly as you continued rocking your hips just enough to rub your clit pleasurably but to leave him wanting.

"Fuck me," he panted, running his blood-covered tongue over his lips - his muscles straining against your webs.

Biting your lip coyly, you paused the movement of your hips. "Make me." And you continued the drag of your clit over his tip, panting as pleasure sparked up and down your spine.

You wanted his cock inside you as badly as he did, but it was just too fun to see him squirm. Back and forth you went, faster and faster, working yourself close to your release.

"I'm so close," you moaned, concentrating on your own pleasure and loving the flex of Miguel's muscles as he struggled. Soon enough, his warm laser webs, convenient talons and sheer strength freed his arms just enough to knock you off balance.

A bit of sparring ensued - the two of you hard and wet and naked - fighting for control and desperate to fuck.

You attempted to ensnare your boyfriend in your webs again, but he dodged you, rolling away and firing his own, which bound your ankles and made you trip. Before you could hit the ground, however, you ripped your ankles free and rolled to a stop...

...but Miguel was ready, firing his laser webbing to bind your hands. He grabbed you from behind, pushing you down to the floor and pinning you there with all his weight, pushing your bound hands up over your head.

You squirmed but he was pressing down on you with all his might.

"You're going to be still, little spider, while I fuck you."

"Doubt that - " You started, but weren't surprised at all as Miguel's webs covered your mouth. You wriggled against him, but were secretly thrilled that he was using his strength on you. He had shown some hesitancy bringing his powers and his full strength into the bedroom, aside from the way he would regularly drink blood from your tongue when you purposely sliced it on his fang.

Two strong hands gripped your hips, shifting you up just enough for him to thrust his thick cock into your dripping channel. Memories of him bending you over his desk flooded your mind - times when you would cry from how good he would fuck you.

And now, as he pounded into you, with all the power and speed in his beautiful body, you felt pressure but no pain. And he felt release with no guilt.

The webbing across your mouth muffled your screams of ecstasy as he shifted his hips to hit that spot so perfect.

"My beautiful girl," he breathed on the back of your neck. "You were made for me."

His fangs tore into your flesh and he fed - the feeling of his fangs inside your skin made you come instantly - your body convulsing with the wildest, hardest orgasm of your life.

Miguel's paralytic venom could no longer incapacitate you - it merely slowed you down for a minute or two, giving him just enough time to drink his fill, feel your body submit and give out, as he pumped his seed into you.

The two of you collapsed together on the floor, panting and spent. Miguel freed you from his webs, rolled you over to face him and pulled you against the warmth of his chest.

You melted against him, satisfied, accepting his lust-filled kiss.

He pulled back a moment later, amazed as the angry wounds in your throat closed and vanished as your body healed itself.

After two weeks of feeding on your new blood, and dozens of tests to make sure your blood wouldn't somehow hurt him, Miguel put to rest the idea of looking for a cure for his condition.

"I told you - you're perfect just like you are," you whispered one night, lying on top of his chest.

"Maybe I was just waiting on my cure," he murmured back, running his hands down the curve of your bare back. "You fixed me. You healed me."

"You fixed me too. I had no idea what I was missing before super powered sex," you teased him.

He playfully swatted your ass. "We're going to break everything in this house if we keep going like this, corazón."

You smiled to yourself. "I don't know. I think we're going to have to take it easy for a while."

"Why...did I hurt you?"

"No." You pressed a quick kiss right over his heart. "I'm pregnant."

END

Thank you for taking this wild ride with me! It was fun to explore unhinged, blood-drinking Miguel. xoxo - Ivy

Miguel O'Hara Masterlist

Main Masterlist

[koreaunderground]

2021-02-20: Dianna Ortiz, American Nun Tortured in Guatemala, Dies at 62

[nytimes.com][1]

  [1]: <https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/20/us/dianna-ortiz-dead.html>

# Dianna Ortiz, American Nun Tortured in Guatemala, Dies at 62

Katharine Q. Seelye

* * *

She became a champion of survivors of torture and helped compel the release of documents showing U.S. complicity in decades of human rights abuses in Guatemala.

![Sister Dianna Ortiz in 1996. After being raped and tortured in Guatemala, she helped focus attention on the 200,000 people who were killed or disappeared during that country’s 36-year civil war.][2]

  [2]: <https://static01.nyt.com/images/2021/02/19/obituaries/00ortiz1/00ortiz1-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale>

Dianna Ortiz, an American Roman Catholic nun whose rape and torture in Guatemala in 1989 helped lead to the release of documents showing American involvement in human rights abuses in that country, died on Friday in hospice care in Washington. She was 62.

The cause was cancer, said Marie Dennis, a longtime friend.

While serving as a missionary and teaching Indigenous children in the western highlands of Guatemala, Sister Ortiz was abducted, gang-raped and tortured by a Guatemalan security force. Her story became even more explosive when she said that someone she believed to be an American had acted in concert with her abductors.

Only after years of extensive therapy at the [Marjorie Kovler Center][3] in Chicago for survivors of torture did Sister Ortiz start to recover, at which point she began to hunt down information about her case. She went on to become a global champion for people subjected to torture, and her case would help compel the release of classified documents showing decades of U.S. complicity in human rights abuses in Guatemala during its 36-year civil war, in which 200,000 civilians were killed.

  [3]: <https://www.heartlandalliance.org/program/marjorie-kovler-center/> ()

It was never clear why she and many other Americans were targeted. She was told at one point that hers was a case of mistaken identity, an assertion she didn’t believe. Her attack came during a particularly lawless period; ravaged by war, Guatemala was being run by a series of right-wing military dictatorships, some of them violent toward Indigenous people and suspicious of anyone helping them.

Sister Ortiz’s 24-hour ordeal, initially labeled a hoax by American and Guatemalan officials, included multiple gang rapes. Her back was pockmarked with more than 100 cigarette burns. At one point she was suspended by her wrists over an open pit packed with the bodies of men, women and children, some of them decapitated, some of them still alive. At another point she was forced to stab to death a woman who was also being held captive. Her abductors took pictures and videotaped the act to use against her.

The torture stopped, she said, only after a man who appeared to be an American — and appeared to be in charge — saw what was happening and ordered her release, saying her abduction had become news in the outside world. He took her to his car and said he would give her safe haven at the American Embassy. He also advised her to forgive her torturers. Fearing he was going to kill her, she jumped out.

The trauma left her confused and distraught. She had become pregnant during the assaults and had an abortion. As often happens with people subjected to torture, much of her memory of her life before the abduction was wiped out. When she returned to her family in New Mexico and to her religious order of nuns in Kentucky, she didn’t know them.

“To this day I can smell the decomposing of bodies, disposed of in an open pit,” she said in an interview in the late 1990s with Kerry Kennedy, president of Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights, an advocacy organization. “I can hear the piercing screams of other people being tortured. I can see the blood gushing out of the woman’s body.”

Image

![At a news conference in 1996, Sister Ortiz displayed composite drawings of her Guatemalan attackers.][4]

  [4]: <https://static01.nyt.com/images/2021/02/19/obituaries/00ortiz2/merlin_183998217_d3a1bcff-aca8-4d70-ab8a-9e74a2c79241-articleLarge.jpg?quality=75&auto=webp&disable=upscale>

When she suggested that her abductors were supervised by an American, she was smeared. “The Guatemalan president claimed that the abduction had never occurred, simultaneously claiming that it had been carried out by nongovernmental elements and therefore was not a human rights abuse,” she said in the interview with Ms. Kennedy.

Sister Ortiz filed Freedom of Information Act requests. She pressed her case in American and Guatemalan courts. In 1995, a federal judge in Boston [ordered a former Guatemala general to pay $47.5 million][5] to her and eight Guatemalans, saying they had been victims of his “indiscriminate campaign of terror” against thousands of civilians. (She never received the money.)

  [5]: <https://www.nytimes.com/1995/04/13/world/us-judge-orders-ex-guatemala-general-to-pay-47.5-million.html> ()

She recounted her story to the news media and participated in protests to urge the American government to release its files on her. In 1996, she began a five-week vigil and hunger strike across from the White House seeking the declassification of all U.S. government documents related to human rights abuses in Guatemala since 1954.

In a little-noted moment, [Hillary Clinton, at the time the first lady, met with Sister Ortiz][6] during her hunger strike. Ms. Kennedy said in a phone interview that Mrs. Clinton’s prodding had helped lead to the release of government papers regarding Sister Ortiz.

  [6]: <https://www.nytimes.com/1996/04/05/world/hillary-clinton-visits-with-protesting-nun.html> ()

The files were heavily redacted and did not reveal the identity of the American or by what authority he had access to the scene of her torture. But Sister Ortiz’s case became part of a sweeping review of American foreign policy and covert action in Guatemala during the Reagan, Bush and Clinton administrations.

Over time, declassified documents showed that [Guatemalan forces that committed acts of genocide][7] during the civil war had been equipped and trained by the United States.

  [7]: <https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/daily/march99/guatemala11.htm>

“Dianna shined a huge spotlight on the fact that the United States government, through the C.I.A. and military intelligence, was working hand in glove with the Guatemala military intelligence units,” Jennifer Harbury, a close friend, said in an interview. Her husband, a Guatemalan commando, had been killed during the civil war.

In 1999, [President Bill Clinton apologized for the American involvement][8].

  [8]: <https://www.nytimes.com/1999/03/11/world/clinton-offers-his-apologies-to-guatemala.html>

Sister Ortiz’s book, “The Blindfold’s Eyes: My Journey from Torture to Truth” (2002, with Patricia Davis), recounted the psychological toll that both the abduction and her quest for the truth had taken on her.

And at some point, her friends said, she realized that she had to stop, for her own sanity.

“It was so exhausting for her; she had to pull back, or it was going to do her in,” Meredith Larson, a friend and fellow human rights activist who was also attacked in Guatemala, said in an interview.

Sister Ortiz stopped agitating for information in her own case, Ms. Larson said, but she became a champion of torture survivors, remaining active in torture-related causes.

“She has moved our collective consciousness on how destructive torture is and how important it is to support the well-being of survivors,” Ms. Larson said.

Dianna Mae Ortiz was born on Sept. 2, 1958, in Colorado Springs, Colo., and grew up in Grants, N.M., one of eight children. Her mother, Ambroshia, was a homemaker; her father, Pilar Ortiz, was a uranium miner.

She is survived by her mother; her brothers, Ronald, Pilar Jr., John and Josh Ortiz; and her sisters, Barbara Murrietta and Michelle Salazar. Another brother, Melvin, died in 1974.

Dianna yearned for a religious life from an early age and in 1977 entered the Ursuline novitiate at Mount St. Joseph, in Maple Mount, Ky. She then became a sister of the Ursuline Order. While undergoing her religious training, she attended nearby Brescia University, graduating in 1983 with a degree in elementary and early childhood education. She taught kindergarten before going to Guatemala in 1987.

In 1994 she moved to Washington to work for the Guatemala Human Rights Commission. There she met others who had lost loved ones to torture or who had been tortured themselves, and they started a group called Coalition Missing to draw attention to those who were killed or disappeared in Guatemala.

She later helped found the [Torture Abolition and Survivors Support Coalition,][9] which became a global movement.

  [9]: <https://www.tassc.org/>

“What we saw was a woman of incredible courage and integrity who literally came back from the dead,” her friend Ms. Dennis said in an interview. “It was a struggle for her for years and years not to be pulled back into that awful place. But she claimed life and was able to do phenomenal work.”

[margridarnauds]

Hey there loving your blog! If I'm not imposing too much, can you talk about tohobeth? Any version and anything at all!

I ALWAYS have time to talk Tohobeth. Since I feel like it would be unfair to talk about productions I haven’t personally seen, I’m going to keep my discussion mainly to the 2015-2016 production, since I have the DVD on it. My views on it aren’t as solid as they are on, say, 1789 or MA, mainly because, somewhat embarrassingly, I only got my DVD AFTER I left the States, with my mom scanning the files in and sending them on to me via GDrives. And, with my Master’s program....well. I’ve not been able to watch it anywhere near to where I usually do before forming hard opinions. (Generally speaking, it takes about....six months or so for me to REALLY settle into my opinions, though, as you can see re: Lady Bess, there are a few times where my opinions are still variable after years.) 

It’s a fact well known at this point that I’m not the biggest Hanafusa Mari fan in the world, and it’s also a fact that she was recorded as Elisabeth twice, as opposed to Hana Ranno, who was double-cast in the role with her, getting a DVD of her own. Was I happy about this? No. Whenever I see Hana Ranno footage on Youtube, I feel this sort of ache in my chest because I REALLY would have loved to see her Toho Elisabeth. Maybe she wouldn’t have been a personal fave, maybe I would have actively hated her performance, but as it is, she’s acquired a semi-mythical significance to me now as The One That Fell Into Oblivion. 

Such a pity she couldn’t show up on the DVD. Such a pity. 

Part of why I’m so scathing, of course, is that I tend to REALLY like getting both casts so that I can see the differences between performers, and, with a musical called “Elisabeth” that obviously has Elisabeth as a protagonist...it can almost feel like getting half of what I normally get. It’s still good, I still do recommend the DVD, obviously, but also if I could go back in time to talk to some Toho execs and be like “Look, guys.....record both Sisis.” 

Now, I come not to bury Hanafusa Mari, but to praise Tohobeth, so I won’t be too far on the attack here especially since, to be perfectly fair, I feel like Elisabeth is the single best Toho performance of hers I’ve seen (between Mozart, Lady Bess, Marie Antoinette, and Elisabeth). She’s been playing the role since 1996, so she has very much fine-tuned her interpretation at this point, and there are MANY people who feel like she’s the definitive Japanese Elisabeth. This is the role, more than any other single role, that made her a legend in the industry. I personally feel like she REALLY starts hitting her stride about midway through the first act and, by the start of the second act, she’s at her peak performance. The role of Elisabeth is very challenging for any actress; most Elisabeths are drawn to one of the three stages of Elisabeth’s life that we see - Some of them are very good at playing 15 year old Elisabeth, some the Young Wife/Empress, and some the older, bitter Elisabeth, and, personally, I feel like Hanafusa is best in the latter role. As an actress, she very clearly feels a draw to sadness and mourning (in both Lady Bess and Marie Antoinette, she took the sadder interpretation of both characters she played, as opposed to her costars, who separated between the low points and the high points of their lives) and Older Elisabeth gives her the chance to stay in her comfort zone. Unfortunately, when it comes to Younger Elisabeth, especially in the very beginning, I find that she can age revert herself a little TOO much, so that she plays Elisabeth-at-15 as Elisabeth-at-8, which makes her interactions with both Der Tod and Franz Josef a little bit on the uncomfortable side. 

A personal highlight for Yoshio!Tod for me is his Die Schatten Länger in the first act, where he goes from sympathetic to seductive to sinister and then back to seductive. It’s an impressive performance of one of my favorite moments, if not my ULTIMATE favorite moment of the entire musical, and he does it so effortlessly. Watching him....he reminds me a little of Uwe Kröger? He isn’t quite as aloof and ageless as 1992!Der Tod, but looking at him in the role, I do get this vision of this otherworldly entity. He has this kind of floating, ethereal voice that we tend to associate with the classical Phantom of the Operas, with a very nice, smooth lower range in particular. I do also like his dynamic with Hanafusa Mari during “Wenn Ich Tanzen Will” -- She isn’t as reactive as some Elisabeths that I’ve seen, but I do still get the feeling of the two of them acting and reacting to one another, and this production is thankfully less....aggressive than certain productions. (2005, I’M LOOKING AT YOU.) I always prefer this scene as a verbal battle of wills, not necessarily Der Tod manhandling Elisabeth, and Toho delivers that. 

His performance almost makes me forgive him for 2006 Marie Antoinette. Almost. 

Shirota Yu on the other hand...he’s STILL otherworldly, but in a totally different way. He isn’t immature (I’ve SEEN immature Deaths, and he’s not), he isn’t the Bastard Boyfriend Der Tod, but there’s...something almost NAIVE about him at times? Not in a way that makes him less deadly, but in a way that makes him MORE so. He’s never interacted with a human before, not on this level, it’s very obvious he has no idea how humans really function or work, and Elisabeth confuses him just as much as she intrigues him. I also think that, at various times, you can REALLY see him having the time of his life in the role, playing a very, very expressive Tod in comparison to his more refined, aloof counterpart. Take their respective approaches to the death of little Sophie. 

“Oh, Elisabeth! This is so ~sad~ Here, let me console you! (This should work, right?)” 

“Hm, interesting, it seems like she’s upset. This isn’t what I anticipated.” 

And, at the beginning of Der Letze Tanz, which I’m including here purely because Shirotan is looking particularly memeable here. 

“Hello, it’s me, and yes, I’m majestic, I know, look at me.” 

“You hate death, but live as a mortal. Curious! I am very intelligent.” 

He’s a little rougher than Yoshio, a little less refined (I’ve heard Yoshio Inoue’s Der Tod compared, both positively and negatively, to a European aristocrat, which is actually a little ironic since, of the two of them, Yu Shirota Fernández is technically the more “European”, but. Well. In approach...) He has a wonderful voice (honestly, if you ever want to send your eardrums to heaven, listen to his cover of Die Schatten Werden Länger with Ramin Karimloo. Thank me later), though it’s different than Yoshio Inoue’s more classical voice. I think he has a little bit of a pop influence in there. Which might SEEM like the kiss of death for a performer, but in my opinion, he does work it. (Look, I can’t say anything negative about the guy: My mom has a massive crush on him, I own his album, and also I wasn’t able to finish the one video of him immediately following Miura Haruma’s death where he tried to sing through tears because it GOT me and now I can’t see Shirotan’s face without wanting to give him a massive hug. Which I can’t. Both for geographical reasons and also social distance.) It’s actually a little hard to compare the two Tods because, while they wear the same costumes, sing the same music, act against the same actress, they take such radically different approaches that it’s hard to say “Oh, yes, this one!” or “Oh, yes! That one!” Especially since I’m not sure that Shirota Yu’s voice would have worked with Yoshio Inoue’s approach or vice versa. I ended up loving both Der Tods for various reasons. I THINK that if my copies of Elisabeth were dangling off a cliff and my archnemesis told me to pick one, I would have to end up rescuing Yoshio Inoue’s version because I tend to prefer my sleek, elegant Tods (”Tode?”) but like. I’d be in mourning. Not the least because I’d have to tell my mom about the loss of Yu Shirota’s Tod. 

Speaking of crushes...look. Takanori Sato’s Franz. We know that I have a minor, unfortunate crush on his Louis XVI in Marie Antoinette, and as Franz...He did SUCH a good job with a character who is hard to make sympathetic in the limited time he has. Most audiences are rooting either for Elisabeth/Death or Elisabeth/Independence, and Franz quickly loses sympathy as the musical goes on, so an actor who can make him likeable is working against the tide there, but Takanori gives him SUCH a huge degree of warmth that I found myself rooting for Elisabeth/Franz to make things work out even though we know that it can’t.

 I repeat my assessment from my Marie Antoinette write-up: #FersenDerTodWho?

Mario Tashiro...we know that I do love this man’s work. In my opinion, he has one of the single best voices in the industry. But also, in my opinion....as an actor....he just.....doesn’t have it. He tends to act like the single most one-dimensional version of a role he can get away with. In the beginning, when Franz is young and in love with Sisi during “Nichts ist Schwer” there were a few moments where I felt like I might go into a sugar coma. 

They’re so cute together. Kill me now. 

And, unfortunately, Franz doesn’t have enough time to REALLY show off his range, with the exception of a few low notes and the act one finale (which to be fair, he is BRILLIANT in), to the point where I did, however slightly, end up preferring Takanori Sato both vocally and acting wise. I wouldn’t say that he’s wasted in the role, because he DOES do a good job with what he’s given, but I do think that it’s hard to appreciate just what he can do from this alone. 

It’s only fitting, after talking about Franz, that his mother should come right after him always lurking in the background, as always. And, overall....there isn’t THAT much difference, namely because Sophie, as a role, just doesn’t have that much variance in the role. And most of the fanbase is kind of. Actively rooting for her to die at any given point. There’s not that much that a given actress can really do with it. It’s nothing against them, it’s just a matter of how the role is written. I do find it interesting how both approached the death scene: Tatsuki Kohju’s Sophie is crying at the end, frightened of the afterlife as she clutches, frantically at the death angels before she slumps over, her cane falling out of her hand. As powerful as she was in life, she’s terrified of what comes beyond, as powerless as any other mortal. Suzuke Mayo tries to say something, mouthing some words, but then jerks sharply at a pain in her chest, trying to stay conscious for as long as she can but staggering backwards anyway, falling into the arms of the death angels with a look of pure relief on her face. You get the feeling that she’s been fighting for Austria for so long, made so many personal sacrifices of her own, that the chance for rest is coming as a relief to her. I THINK I prefer the latter interpretation, but honestly, both of them are solid in their own right, though I’m not sure that the role REALLY gets enough to justify a double-casting. (Also....I have to say that, while I wouldn’t necessarily get a musical just for Susuke Mayo, I’ve seen her in enough to have suitably warm feelings for her performances, so I’m already coming in with some amount of bias.) 

Lucheni...I don’t REALLY pay as much attention to, compared to, say, the main trio, but he is our narrator, and both Luchenis did take very different approaches to the character. Songha’s Lucheni was...well, if he isn’t in love with Der Tod himself, he’s obsessed with him. We see him reaching out to Der Tod both at the beginning (when he appears on stage for the first time) and at the end, when Der Tod drops the knife to him. There’s a fervor to him in those scenes in particular that I tend to associate with worshippers in a Baptist Revival. Yamazaki is a little bit more subdued, in the beginning I get the feeling that he’s almost under Der Tod’s trance himself, and, in general, I think he’s a little bit more cynical, though, by the ending, he’s dropped a lot of that pretense. He looks at the knife after he’s stabbed her (Songha’s Lucheni almost lets her walk into the knife, but Yamazaki’s STABS), before a smile comes to his face as he falls down while running, finally laughing. It’s like he’s been playing things more or less subdued this entire time and this is his real BREAK, now that he finally has the opportunity to kill. With Songha’s...

He’s actually shocked. I’m not generous enough to Lucheni, as a character, to say that he really feels bad about killing ELISABETH per se, but that...he’s borderline-fetishized Death for so long, waited so long, and then, when he finally has the chance...it doesn’t live up to his expectations. A woman walked into his knife. (She walked into his knife ten times.) There’s nothing dramatic or exciting about it. One small action, and it can’t be taken back, there’s no getting away from it. He actively stumbles around stage afterwards, confused as he tries to run away, like he doesn’t know what to do now. 

Of the two of them, Songha has a rougher, kind of growelly voice, to the point where I didn’t REALLY like his Lucheni all that much until I started to analyze his acting. Voice is a MASSIVE factor in whether I enjoy a performance, simply because...it’s my eardrums. I very much want to keep them intact. (For what it’s worth, Songha is NEVER rough to the degree it hurts my eardrums, but there have been a few...) It’s arguably fitting for someone who, as a character, is as rough as Lucheni, but it wasn’t to my personal taste, while Yamazaki...I mean, he’s playing Der Tod in the 20th anniversary. Whenever we get the 20th anniversary. He’s played some of the most celebrated roles in Japanese theatre. The man has RANGE and a fantastic control of the role. (Also...look. As a bisexual woman, I’m just going to say it: He’s more personally attractive to me, though the Toho Lucheni isn’t....really....designed to be attractive. If you go in expecting Takarazuka Lucheni or Serkan Kaya’s extremely pretty Lucheni...well. He isn’t. Either version of him. He looks like someone just pulled him out of a garbage can.) I did notice that both of them have quite a bit of growl in their voice during “Milch”, though, so some of this could be directorial intervention. While BOTH of them absolutely nail the high note in the Prologue, in my opinion, Yamazaki’s riffs are an absolute HIGH point for me (...okay, yeah. Literally and figuratively. I didn’t mean to make a pun. But here we are.) I do think, at the end of the day, I prefer his voice, though I think that both of them did interesting things with the role, taking what is essentially opposite approaches. I don’t think I have a really clear favorite there. One of these days, I’ll have to check out Songha’s other work to see what his voice is like in its “Natural State” so to speak since if, for example, I’d only ever heard Oka Kojiro’s voice in 1789, I’d have just assumed he only knew how to bark out his roles. 

One role that wasn’t double-cast but that I WOULD like to draw attention to anyway is Furukawa Yuta as Rudolf. My friend @chibimyumi‘s already written some wonderful meta on Furudolf that I highly recommend, and there’s very little that I can really add except to say that he’s probably my personal take on the role, mainly because, while he IS sympathetic, that isn’t the entirety of his character. He isn’t just a pawn in Der Tod’s game,though Der Tod is unquestionably manipulating him, but a character in his own right. I’ve noticed in the Elisabeth fandom...it can be quite common to go “POOR WOOBIE RUDOLF” and....yes, he did have a very tragic life, but there was more to his life than just the tragedy. He had a life and a personality outside of that (that and....the general erasure of the 17 year old girl who died by his side, but it’s hard to be too harsh on the fandom for that when the musical itself kind of skips over that.) 

Now, on those notes, there’s one thing that...I don’t want to talk about, but I feel like it’s an elephant in the room if I don’t. 

Namely, Hass. 

I don’t like talking about this scene, mainly because it’s deeply uncomfortable subject matter, and it’s deeply controversial subject matter that, as a goyische white person, I really am out of my depth in talking about. There’s a reason why “Hass” was censored from the Zuka, and I know that some fans have gotten hooked on the Zuka, only to go to the German or the Toho, and have subsequently found themselves shocked and/or traumatized. I understand that it’s meant to be deeply uncomfortable, and the Toho DOES show Rudolf actively getting them to stop, which further solidifies the idea in Die Schatten Werden Länger of Rudolf WANTING to stop things from getting out of control, but he can’t. The Toho is also a little bit more brutal than I’m used to, showing an explicit attack on a Jewish man. It’s the kind of thing that, especially in the German and Austrian productions, was meant to give the audience a wake-up call and remind them of their own past, as a country, but can be traumatizing for any Jewish fans or fans of color who might be watching. Especially given that Lucheni, who we tend to associate as a jerk, yes, but as our more-or-less likeable narrator, is actively taking part. I know what they were going for, but also there’s a reason why I never stream this production without a warning ahead of time, and I also tend to end up skipping this scene. 

The staging is very nice, probably one of the more intricate Toho stagings I’ve seen, with a lot of props and backgrounds moving around, often mid-song, as well as projections in scenes such as Die Ersten Vier Jahre in order to show the passage of time.

 The costuming is, predictably for Toho, fantastic, lavish without being quite as sparkly as their Takarazuka counterparts, having quite a few nice velvet numbers in there. The costuming of Elisabeth is so iconic it seems pointless to discuss outfits like the Sternenkleid or the coronation outfit, but I think this production does well on even some of the non-iconic ensembles. See: 

And...you know, I said no iconic numbers, because they tend to be all people talk about, but like. One Sternenkleid pic. Because it’s what she deserves. 

Is it Too Soon to say that I’d stab her for that wardrobe alone? Because damn. And that’s not even touching the jewellery. 

I want. 

Overall, I believe this is probably my favorite production of Elisabeth. Toho really knocked it out of the park, and it’s a good compromise between the Takarazuka and the original Austrian in many, many ways (I do love them, for example, keeping Der Tod’s presence in Alle Fragen Sing Gestellt from the Takarazuka) while also making a production that’s distinct and stands on its own two feet. I really would like to have another proshot of the 2019-2020 cast, whenever the Japanese theatre community is in a more stable place, because I really, really would like to see Manaki Reika, Yamazaki, and Furukawa Yuta’s takes on their new roles, because I feel like they could be really, really solid and I’ve heard fantastic things about at least Chapi and Furukawa Yuta (nothing against Yamazaki, just that I don’t know anything about his take on Der Tod.) 

[worldwidemochiguy]

Hii! 💜😘 Can I please request another “Made for Each Other” part when Y/n & Tae are going to his work? I’m sure Y/n would be wide-eyed, clinging to him as they drive there & enter the huge, fancy building. Jimin & the rest of the boys would already know who Y/n is & how Tae got her in the first place, but wouldn’t mind b/c they’re Yanderes too (They just give knowing, proud smirks). Tae proposes to Y/n in the bedroom he has a work + kisses & hugs + Y/n is spoiled & happy + always a good girl

(these two requests were kinda similar so I decided to merge them, in response to the proposal bit of the first one I think I’m gonna make that a post in itself so its not included in this one lol sorry 💜, I know I have other inbox messages as well and I promise I will answer them it just takes me a while sorry! xx)

cherry kisses

Pairing: Yandere! Taehyung x reader

Rating: M

Word Count: 3K

Part 1, Part 2 (not necessary to understand this but like idk I just thought you might enjoy them as well)

Masterlist

The sound of an alarm blaring is never the most pleasant way to wake up, but if it is followed by the adorable grumbling and whining of the girl curled up on his chest, Taehyung would happily be woken up the same way for the rest of eternity. Your hand reaches out to smack the bedside table a few times, stubbornly whacking around until you finally knock the persistent clock onto the floor, allowing the room to relapse into contended silence. Taehyung can’t bring himself to care if you’ve broken the clock. You settle yourself back onto his chest with a little sigh, nuzzling into the crook of his jaw, where you’d left an adorable little love-bite the night before. 

Taehyung lazily runs his hands up and down your back, but you refuse to lift your head, still stubbornly pressed into him as if you could sink into his bones to avoid getting up. Taehyung understands how you feel all too well. He could stay with you like this forever, but he has a commitment to his workplace, and he couldn’t say he doesn’t feel a sense of smug excitement at the thought of parading you around so all the office could see how beautiful and perfect you are. And how you belong to him. He feels confident the necklace of mouth-shaped bruises he gave you last night would illustrate that quite clearly. 

“Baby,” Taehyung plants a kiss on your hairline. You shift your weight slightly, but stay quiet. “My love, we have to get up now.” At that, you let out a soft whine and Taehyung allows himself a smile that he’s sure could be described as smitten, if only because no one is there to see him. 

“Don’t want to,” you mumble, and he can sense your nervousness at contradicting him. 

“Are you… saying ‘no’ to me right now, baby?”

“N-no, no,” you stutter, sitting up now as you begin to panic, and Taehyung represses his satisfaction, “I’m not saying no, I just- I wish we could stay here… just the two of us, right? Don’t you want that?” Your insecure questions tug at his heart and he straightens up, causing you to slide downwards on his lap until your torso is resting against his. He gathers you into his arms, cradling your head in his hands as you begin to tear up — thoughts of Taehyung not wanting to stay with you and being displeased with you for your disobedience swirling around in your head, heightening your distress until-

“Y/n,” he says, and your mind goes blank, all your focus directed on him and only him, “You know how much I cherish our alone time together. If I could, I’d get rid of everyone else in the world so that it was just us, together, always.” You smile at the thought and he can’t resist kissing you before continuing, “But I have to go into work. But I’m not letting that keep us apart, remember? I’m taking you with me!” You exhale in relief, because of course, Taehyung had sorted it out and you had gotten worried again like the silly little girl that you are. 

You apologise for your stupidity and he accepts it graciously, asking only that you allow him as many kisses as his heart desires, whenever his heart desires. 

“You can have that anyway, Tae. I’m yours, I always will be.” Had been your response, and then the two of you hadn’t been able to leave the bed for a while, lost in your love for each other, until Taehyung had guides you towards the closet to put on the outfit he had set out for you. When you see the delicate bralette and panties he bought for you, your cheeks flush bright red. Taehyung coos at your adorable reaction and kisses your cheeks.

“You- you want me to wear this?” You stutter out and he chuckles,

“Why else would I have picked it out for you, baby?”

“But… why?”

“Well,” Taehyung steps behind you, looping his arms around your waist and drawing you backwards until your back is pressed against his chest, turning you slightly so you’re facing the mirror “When everyone else looks at you, they will see an innocent girl, dressed up in the clothes her daddy picked for her.” He starts to press kisses against the side of your neck and you feel your breathing stutter slightly, “But when I look at you…” You watch as his eyes darken, his hand running down the side of your body to your thigh where the hem of his shirt which you wore in bed rested, dragging his fingers up slightly.

“When I look at you, I’ll know what’s beneath.” He grips the hemline and tugs it upwards, revealing your naked body in the mirror. He pulls the shirt over your head in one fluid motion. Taehyung’s hands continue perusing your smooth skin, you are now fully resting against his chest, your head tilted backwards against his shoulder to avoid looking at your naked reflection, but he grips your chin and forces your gaze back down. You meet his eyes in the mirror, and he looks almost possessed by lust. You feel heat coiling in your stomach. 

The scent of your arousal — and you know he can smell it by the way his grip tightened after his nose flared — is creating a heady atmosphere in the walk-in closet, and you start to wonder whether you will make it to Taehyung’s office at all. 

As if he can hear your thoughts, Taehyung snaps out of his trance, stepping back slightly.

“Get yourself dressed, baby. I have something important to attend to.” As he finished his statement, both your gazes drift down to the tented material of his pants, and you shoot him an amused expression before he leaves. You hear the shower start up a few moments later, and you don’t have to guess what temperature it is. You are very tempted to join him and help with his problem, but you know you should obey his command for you to get dressed. 

Clad in the fluffiest sweater you have ever worn, as well as an adorable floaty skirt and cute pink pumps, you wander into the kitchen to find Taehyung in a suit, cooking eggs. His eyes scan over you appreciatively and you love the rush you get when you know he is pleased with you. It’s like your body is programmed to submit to him, and you couldn’t be happier. 

Over breakfast you talk about what he expects you to do at the office — not much, basically — and you wash up the dishes for him, relishing the satisfied smile you get as a reward for your actions. 

When he leads you to the door of the apartment, your hand in his, you tense and a whimper escapes your lips. Instantly, he crowds you against the wall, taking your face in his hands and looking deeply into your eyes which had started to swim with tears.

“What’s wrong, baby?” His voice, so soft and concerned for you, only makes you cry more.

“I’m s-scared.”

“Why are you scared? I’m right here, my love, I won’t let anything or anyone hurt you. I’d kill anyone that even laid a finger on you.” His protective words soothe you slightly, and your tears slow.

“I just- it’s been so long since I’ve been outside. What if someone tries to take me away from you? Or they try to touch me? Or-“ 

“Hush, baby.” Taehyung silences you and you drop your head to his shoulder submissively, “Anyone who touches you will lose their hand. I will not allow anyone to take you from me. That will never happen, I swear it.” You release another broken sob into his shoulder. “Do you trust me?” You don’t reply and he lifts your chin with a finger underneath it.

“You have to answer me, baby.” 

“I trust you. I trust you more than I trust myself.” A smile curls along Taehyung’s lips. 

“Good girl.” 

Outside is noisy and busy and distressing and you hold Taehyung’s hand as tight as you can while he leads you to the car. You curl up with him in the backseat while the driver takes you to the office, and you should have guessed the car would be nice since the penthouse was a clear sign Taehyung was rich but you really don’t care about anything other than being as close to Taehyung as possible right now. When the car stops in front of the tallest building you’ve ever seen, he helps you out onto the curb, smiling at the awestruck look on your face. 

Taehyung leads you through marble hallways, past decorative water features and underneath glass chandeliers, and onto a trip on the fanciest elevator you’ve ever rode on. Many workers, all of which are people who carry a dozen files and wear suits that are almost as nice as Taehyung’s, greet him as they pass. Some glance at you, surprised, but most learn not to do that after Taehyung sends them a death glare. One man even says “Good morning” to you, which causes you to whimper and burrow even deeper into Taehyung’s side. Taehyung fires the man on the spot, and calls for security to escort him off the premise which they do immediately. You are amazed at the amount of people under Taehyung’s thumb. You suppose you are one of them, now. 

Once you get to the top floor, there are a lot less people around, something which relaxes you greatly. Taehyung seems happier too, leaning down slightly to place a kiss on your forehead, which you turn into a real kiss by tilting your head up slightly. He hadn’t kissed you since you left home and it really is only his fault that you are so needy now. 

You can only see six other men on the entire floor, each with their own workspace and equally fancy suit. One of them glances up to see Taehyung, and gives him a respectful nod. Taehyung replies with a nod of his own — which surprises you, since he barely acknowledged anyone on the previous floors when they had given him a full bow — and then the man’s gaze slides onto you. He shoots Taehyung an amused smile and stands up, heading towards you both. You tense, expected Taehyung to punch the living daylights out of the man, but a quick glance at his face shows he is feeling nothing other than smug satisfaction. His hand curls around your waist possessively and you sigh into it. 

“This must be the famous Miss y/n. Or, should I say Mrs?” You turn to Taehyung, confused, but his gaze is fixed on the man and he looks almost annoyed at him. 

“Very funny, Jimin.” The stranger, Jimin, snorts and then redirects his gaze at you.

“H-how did you know my name?” You stutter timidly, and Jimin laughs again.

“Oh, Taehyung has told us all about you.” 

“Damn right he has!” You hear another voice holler, and turn to see a man making his way to meet the small but growing group.

“We thought he’d take years to bring you around though. We had a betting pool.” You wait for Taehyung’s growl, but nothing comes.

“Who won?” He asks instead.

“I did.” A low voice echoes through the floor and you don’t bother to try and find the source, knowing that they will be coming over to meet you whether you want to meet them or not. 

“Yoongi always wins. We should know better than to bet against him by now.” The new man, who had teeth which reminded you of a bunny, informed them almost remorsefully. 

“Yoongi” appears in your line of sight and you are slightly surprised. He is shorter than you would’ve expected based on his low voice, but still taller and broader than you. You are starting to feel intimidated by all the men gathering around you, as there are three already, and you can see three more closing in, and you burrow further into Tae’s side. 

“Aw, she’s so cute.” Says yet another man who’s name you don’t know, and Taehyung’s possessive side finally comes out to play in a growl, the vibrations rumbling against your side. You feel almost comforted by the appearance of something you know so well.

“Careful, Hoseok.” Remarks the tall man, the tallest among the group, who exudes an aura of calmness and cultivated intelligence. “Y/n belongs to Taehyung, you should be more considerate.”

“Tae,” you whisper, and he leans down to listen to you as if the entire circle of men won’t be able to hear you. “Who are these people? How do they know me?” Your confusion triggers chuckling to echo through the circle and your cheeks heat up.

“These are my subordinates, baby.” You nod in understanding as the rest of the men make noises of indignation.

“That’s Namjoon,” Taehyung points at the tall man, “that annoying prick is Hoseok” he gestures towards the man who called you cute, who flips him off in reply, “then we have Yoongi, Seokjin and Jeongguk.” The short one, the broad-shouldered one and the bunny-teeth one, you translate in your head, trying to get the names to stick. “And you already know Jimin.”

“Only for like a second longer than the rest of us!” Bunny-teeth — Jeongguk — objects,

“It still counts. I’m obviously her favourite.” Jimin shoots back smugly. Taehyung shoots him a warning glare and Jimin hurries to rectify, “Besides you, of course, Taehyung.”

“And, to answer your other question,” Seokjin butts in, “We know you because Taehyung doesn’t know when to shut up about you, Y/n. Or, should I say, Mrs Y/n.” 

“I already made that joke.” Jimin dismisses Seokjin, who then starts scolding him about something to do with ‘joke-stealing’ and ‘breaking the bro-code’ but you don’t really listen because you’re already wrapped up in Taehyung.

“Why do they keep saying tha-“

“Don’t worry, baby, it’s just a silly joke. They’re idiots.” Taehyung explains as he leads you to what is presumably his section of the floor, the largest part, and you allow yourself to forget it. 

As soon as you’re in the office and sealed away from the rest of Taehyung’s friends, he peppers you with kisses. 

“You did so well, baby,” he praises against the hollow of your throat, “I’m so proud of you. You are such a good girl.” You whimper and go lax in his arms, allowing him to take whatever he wants. “You’ll always be my good little girl. Mine.”

“Always,” you agree, but he doesn’t need you to, you’ll always be his no matter what and the thought makes you feel light and happy, carefree because you know your choices don’t matter, so why make any? Everything will always lead you back to right here, right now, with Taehyung pulling you into his lap, sitting in his office chair and grinding you against him. You moan, absently wondering if the office is soundproof. The thought that it probably isn’t, meaning that all those men can hear Taehyung owning you, unravelling you, makes you moan even loader and roll your hips. 

Taehyung pushes up your sweater to reveal the pretty cherry bralette underneath and he mouths at the fabric, right over your nipple, and the sensation shoots through you like a firework. Taehyung exploits your sensitivity as much as he could, switching to the other nipple while his hand finds its way under your skirt, pushing your panties aside. The thought that he chose this outfit with convenience of access in mind turns you on even more than you thought was possible, and you start begging him to stop teasing you and just fuck you right here. 

“Alright, baby, you think you can take it?” Taehyung pants and you whine, nodding frantically since you’re pretty sure you can’t speak at the moment. He leans in close, until his mouth is pressed against the shell of your ear, making you shiver, and whispers, “Bend over my desk.”

——————————————

You can’t bring yourself to be embarrassed over how loud you were, even once the haze of lust lifts after Taehyung expertly takes you to the brink and then shoves you off several times. The lazy, smug, possessive smirk that greets you every time you look up from the novel you’re reading on the couch to glance at Taehyung makes you feel so deeply happy, you have barely made a start on your book since you keep getting up to kiss Taehyung. He accepts it happily each time, even though he has work of his own to be doing on his state-of-the-art computer. 

The day passes like that, both of you in your own little bubble, frequently bursting it when one of you wants affection and love, which is roughly every 20 minutes. Taehyung knows his productivity must have gone way down, but he doesn’t care at all. He doesn’t care about anything but you, happy in his arms, and what he can do to keep you that way. When they leave the office, Taehyung receives his six friends’ whistling and cat-calling with a prideful smirk, while you bury your flaming cheeks in his shoulder. 

Once you return home, Taehyung orders pizza for the both of you, and you talk about his work and your book over delicious, greasy take-out. After dinner, Taehyung leads you into the bathroom and the two of you have a long, relaxing bath and a few bouts of sex, because a wet, naked Taehyung is impossible to resist, and he wraps you in a warm towel and helps to dry you off. The last thought that flickers through your head after you’re both in bed, Taehyung holding your waist from behind, legs intwined, is how you hope every day is as perfect as this one. You never want Taehyung to let you go. 

[amltdaily]

For a second consecutive year, the season finale of A Million Little Things ended with the question, Who hit Eddie? The incident, which left Eddie fighting for his life, was the big Season 2 finale cliffhanger. Tonight, Eddie received a call from a woman claiming to be the driver who hit him. And that was not the biggest Season 3 finale cliffhanger.

Once again, AMLT left someone’s life hanging in the balance; this time, it was music teacher/sexual abuser Peter Benoit. He was attacked at his doorstep by Gary, who put a bag over his head and dragged him inside. In an interview with Deadline, series creator/executive producer D.J. Nash discussed both shockers as well as the slew of other developments in tonight’s packed finale. Before we get to that, here is a brief rundown on some of the Season 3 finale highlights.

Gary’s assault on Peter was a culmination of the Sophie storyline, in which she decided to go to the police and file a report so Peter could not harm other girls. Holding the diary of another student of Peter’s, Layla, who had killed herself, Sophie was interviewed by the police, but the detective did not think there was enough evidence to charge Peter, and indicated that a text exchange between Sophie and Peter after the alleged assault might have undermined her case. Gary, who felt responsible as Sophie’s guardian at the time, did not take this well and kicked a trash can in the hallway of the police station.

Already reeling emotionally, Gary was further jolted when Darcy shut down his suggestion that they may start a family by telling him she did not want more kids after he’d agreed to follow her to Lenox where she was moving so her son can be close to his father. Gary then got into a heated conversation with Delilah, who blamed him for not protecting Sophie. That was after Delilah’s older children found out that she was planning to move the entire family to France, something the teens strongly opposed.

The next time we see Gary he was at his father’s, creating an alibi, leaving his phone and saying goodbye before he headed to Peter’s house. Thus, he did not get Darcy’s voicemail, in which she told him she had changed her mind about kids, praising Gary, who has been the MVP of the group of friends this season, helping everyone, from raising Delilah’s older children while she was in France to taking in Eddie and chaperoning his visits with Theo.

As Gary went all vigilante on Peter, Sophie went after her abuser by telling her story — and revealing his name — on Maggie’s podcast.

In other developments, Eddie and Katherine, who spent most of the episode arguing over custody, came to a workable solution at the end, just before Eddie got the surprise call from the woman confessing to being behind the wheel of the red SUV.

Regina closed the restaurant but not before feeding a young father who had lost his wife to Covid. Rome and their foster son Tyrell continued work on their documentary about systemic racism. It led to Tyrell reconnecting with his mother’s former partner who now has the job Tyrell’s mother was vying for before she got deported. Convinced that the ex-partner had turned her in, Tyrell confronted the guy, with Rome intervening to deescalate the situation. It turned out that Tyrell’s mom took her partner’s car to drive to a FedEx office to mail her son’s summer program application when she was pulled over by cops.

Here is the interview with Nash, in which he also discusses the main theme and mystery next season and what is next for all characters (Rome’s documentary will be a smashing success), reveals that he had considered having a major character die of Covid, teases the return of AMLT favorites and his plans for ending the series.

DEADLINE: Let’s start with the second biggest question at the end of this finale. It’s a case of déjà vu because at the end of last year’s finale, we have exactly the same question, who hit Eddie? What can you say about bringing back the mystery?

NASH: We were talking about bringing it back a few episodes before. The reason we didn’t is because it obviously would make a great cliffhanger, but we wanted to, this season, examine Alex’s dad, the reverend, and all those stories. But just when we got you to forget about who did this, the question resurfaces again, and I think that’s true to Eddie’s journey. Just when he is accepting this is my life, and this is what I’m going to do, and I actually am going to find strength in who I am now, it’s upended by that call coming in, and what we will watch next season is everything about Eddie tested by this call, his sobriety, his ability to be the person he wants to be right now.

You sometimes have a settled moment and you’re able to move on, and then something else happens that challenges it, and I think we see that in the finale with Sophie. She is more at peace with what has happened to her than at any point since it happened. She is going to Maggie. She is going from victim to survivor and retelling her story, but as that’s happening, obviously, Gary’s doing something over at Peter’s that’s going to challenge and threaten all that.

DEADLINE: We’ll go through all of those one by one but let’s finish with Eddie’s call. What can you say about the identity of the woman? Have we seen, heard her? I assume we haven’t because some fans would recognized the voice.

NASH: That’s right, yes, and we definitely treated that voice in post. So, yes, it does not appear to be someone we’ve seen. I don’t think that it’s Alex’s sister. It does not appear to be Eddie’s sister, Lindsay, and some of the fan-favorites of who could’ve hit Eddie seem to be off the table. It’s another person, and it sounds also like she has remorse. So, either it was an accident, or it’s something that she did that she regrets doing. It definitely feels as though she feels horrible that this has happened.

DEADLINE: So, you cannot say whether this was an accident or intentional? Why is she contacting Eddie now?

NASH: Yeah, I think I want the fans to experience it the way that the episode leaves it, which, it definitely, definitely feels like this is a person who has great regret for what happened and is probably reaching out, out of guilt. I think guilt is a huge theme that we’ve started to uncover this season. Obviously, it’s leading a couple people to make some not-so-great decisions in our finale, and it’s something that we’ll see our friend group struggle with. There’s healthy guilt and unhealthy guilt, and I think it’s important to draw the distinction between them.

DEADLINE: A tangential question. Why didn’t the police investigate and get to the bottom of that hit? They have access to street cameras. It seems like this this should’ve been resolved by now.

NASH: They did. If you remember, there was an episode where the detective calls and says that they saw a camera that was on a gas station nearby, and it wasn’t a pickup truck, it was an SUV. So, there is an investigation. I think a lot of these investigations… I know, in our own life, there was an accident that happened in our family this year, and I called to say, hey, can we see the street camera to see if we can identify exactly what happened, and we weren’t able to get that.

DEADLINE: I remember that, that’s how we ruled out Reverend Stewart as a suspect. So, can we rule out a connection to Alex backstory now? Can we assume that this is part of a brand-new mystery that is not related to Alex’s death anymore?

NASH: I don’t know that we can rule out, but I’m happy to rule that out for you, right now, yes. This has nothing to do with Alex and the boathouse, and that story and that chapter is behind us.

DEADLINE: One last question about Eddie. I know we discussed this before and said that because of the strength of David Giuntoli’s performance, you wanted to explore more of Eddie in the wheelchair, but is there a possibility that he might begin to recover and start walking next season?

NASH: Yeah. I really am so impressed at the way in which David Giuntoli is approaching this storyline, and his work this season as someone who is in a wheelchair, he’s playing him with just authenticity and true grit from the moment we wanted to tell this story. There’s two writers in the room who have parents who are physically challenged, and as you know, I’m one of them, seeing my dad go to law school blind; he went to law school when I was a kid, and he was 45. I think he wasn’t a dad that you might think someone would be, but he was probably always better, and I think we were really excited to see that strength and to see Theo experience his dad’s true grit.

DEADLINE: You didn’t answer the question. Is there any chance for him to walk next season?

NASH: I think there is as much a chance of him getting out of the chair as there really is for someone who’s in a chair to get out of the chair, which is, it’s really highly unlikely, and in telling that story, I think while that might be an interesting story turn for TV but I want to be really respectful of the community that we’re representing, and I think the likelihood that someone walks again and puts the chapter of a wheelchair behind them after the accident Eddie’s been through is really unlikely, and our show is all about authenticity. So, I can’t say with 100 percent certainly we would never have him have movement and feelings and maybe walk a few steps, but for right now, for this next season, he’s in that wheelchair.

DEADLINE: Okay. Now, to the bigger cliffhanger involving Gary. What exactly is planning to do with Peter and why is he doing it? Clearly, Gary is not going for a quick death.

NASH: Well, I think the why goes back almost to Gary’s childhood. His mom left, he felt this loss of family, and he has, so many times in his life, tried to re-create that. I think it’s one of the reasons went to 41 hockey games a year with a guy he met in an elevator, because he’s just that desperate to have a family, which is probably why he proposed to Maggie earlier than he would have. It’s why he is moving so quickly with Darcy, prepared to move to Lenox and wants to have a family with her. You look at Gary, and he’s like the greatest friend you could ever have, and I think the reason he is so giving is because he’s treating his friends like family because he doesn’t have that family that he once had. When he was taking care of Sophie, he feels like if he hadn’t circled back to talk to Peter, if he hadn’t convinced Peter to give Sophie another chance, she would’ve been out of his world, and because Gary circled back, he gave Peter a lot of the tools to groom her, and I think he carries tremendous guilt of it.

It’s one of the examples of unhealthy guilt that we’re going to follow into next season, and that, combined with Delilah saying she’s moving to France, Darcy, at least leaving him earlier in the episode as though she doesn’t want to have kids with him, he had nothing to lose. I think the anger he’s feeling, the guilt that is overtaking him, and then the nothing to lose attitude is the perfect storm for whatever it is he’s doing over at Peter’s.

In answer to your question of what is he doing at Peter’s, whatever he’s doing is premeditated. He went over to his dad’s and came up with an alibi, and he puts a bag over Peter’s head. It is Gary. It is Peter. That is a bag. He pulls him inside and closes the door. So, that is a mystery, and certainly the question that we’re following next season is what happened over there.

DEADLINE: Will the question be answered in the Season 4 premiere? Will you pick up where you left off in the finale, or will that be something that will be revealed slowly?

NASH: What we’re watching in the first half of next season is how did Gary go from kicking a trash can at a police station to putting a bag over someone’s head. We’ll uncover all of that, and it happens quickly. It’s not at a frustratingly slow pace. We will get to it, and we will learn exactly, is Peter alive or dead? We’ll learn that right in 4-01 and what the fallout is of all of that. It happens right away.

DEADLINE: Moving onto Sophie. For her, doing the podcast feels liberating, but would there be any consequences for her naming her abuser? Peter, he obviously has bigger problems right now with Gary, but will there be anything more to this plotline for Sophie or has she gotten closure by sharing her story?

NASH:  It’s a great question. I’m trying to be sensitive with every topic we do, but especially with this one, because it’s loosely based on something that happened to one of the writers in our room, it’s loosely based on something that’s happened to our community and to our world. I think since the #MeToo movement has been here, we’re seeing that there’s different stages that a survivor goes through, but moving from victim to survivor, one, is just acknowledging to someone that something happened.

The other would be acknowledging publicly that something happened, and then this huge step of saying and this is the person who did it. We’ve seen with some high-profile people the ramifications of saying that. It appears that Maggie was not aware that Sophie was going to single out Peter by name in the podcast, and she does, and what does that mean? What is the positive, and what are the potential negative consequences for Sophie of saying that? And all of that sort of power, strength, liberation that Sophie is having in reclaiming her story and reclaiming the power of her life, moving from victim to survivor, that is all potentially undermined by what Gary does over at Peter’s.

DEADLINE: What about Regina, Rome and Tyrell? By the way, another tangent. I have high school kids who are applying to a lot of summer programs, and all applications are done online, not via FedEx. Aside from that, will Tyrell be able to reunite with his birth mother or could he get adopted by Regina and Rome?

NASH: That’s really funny, Nellie, because when I was watching Star Wars with my wife, and she was like, you know, guns don’t make noise in outer space, and I was like, other than that, this is a perfect story, but that’s hilarious. So, I’m sorry, I was all fixated on that. I didn’t hear your question.

DEADLINE: It’s about whether the boy will be able to reunite with his mother. And you mentioned guilt, that clearly will affect Tyrell and the dynamic in his new family.

Nash: Yeah, 100 percent guilt is a big part of our series. He is feeling the guilt, and he now has confirmation that he caused his mother’s deportation. We worked very closely with Define American and with FedEx in bringing this story. I don’t think Regina and Roma will adopt Tyrell because he does have a mother, and she is alive and well. They wouldn’t want to offend her. He has a mom whom he can’t be near because of something he did, and how he processes that guilt, how they help the son that they’re fostering work through that. We saw him immediately want to run out and confront Kyle, and Rome trying to contain that, only to then have to chase after him. So, we’re dealing with someone who might let their feelings and emotions get the best of them, and so, how does Rome be there for his foster son and prevent him from making a mistake the way Rome’s other friend, Gary, did.

DEADLINE: Tyrell reuniting with mom this coming season, possible?

NASH: It’s certainly possible. I want the fans to see how the story plays out, but we did cast that mom, and she’s a fantastic actress, and we’re certainly hoping to see her again.

DEADLINE: Regina, she had a difficult, emotional arc this season, and now she lost the restaurant. Will she be able to revive her dream or owning a restaurant or is that part of her career over?

NASH: We really wanted to make sure, this season, that we tell the story of losing at least one person to Covid because, obviously, so many people were lost. There was a time in this writer’s room where we talked about potentially losing a recurring character or maybe even a series regular to Covid, and I think we felt like, honestly, we love these characters, we don’t want to lose them. That was really a big factor, and also, I think that we wanted to be authentic to the loss that people faced but at the same time not bring too much sadness and pain to that. The story was really deliberate. We wanted, as Regina is losing her dream and her restaurant, to put it in perspective, and earlier in the episode, Rome says ‘How are you doing?’, and she says ‘Compared to what?’

What we gave her for a story throughout the episode was a comparison, to have her realize that she’s doing better than she thought she was doing. Yeah, she lost her restaurant. Yeah, she lost her dream, and I think it’s really easy for us all, right now — I could say I haven’t been able to get to the stage this year, I haven’t been able to go out with friends, but compared to other people, we’re really fortunate. So, we wanted to have Regina have that moment where things are put into perspective At the same time, we also wanted to look at where we were at the end of last season compared to where we are this season. At the end of last season, Eve changes her mind, and Regina is denied the family she wants, whereas at the end of this season, despite losing her restaurant, she’s able to get through that because she is surrounded by her family, and Tyrell comes in and delivers this beautiful speech, and I think that is really the message of our series,. When you surround yourself with the right people, you can get through anything.

DEADLINE: Onto Delilah. Will there be an AMLT spinoff, Delilah in Paris, like Emily in Paris, or is her move doomed, or is she going but only with Charlie?

NASH: That’s what we’re watching. It really appears as though what this woman needs is a fresh start. It really feels like she was suffocating and didn’t even realize how much her level of pain was until she got to France and had a chance to step back and appreciate that. I think in Episode 3, as she’s leaving, buys a suitcase and was talking about how she hasn’t taken a trip without Jon. I think we were setting the table for her discovery in France, and we really wanted to tell that story.

Delilah has done many things in the series that make the fans question her, how good a mom she is, how good a person she is, and we wanted to make sure that we were telling her side of the story. So, that fight that she has with Gary really is that opportunity for us to hear that she went to France, it was supposed to be just for three weeks, and she was going to give her dad, who had memory loss, the last trip of his life, and then he fell, and yes, she was not there for some huge moments for her children, but that’s not out of choice. It’s because the pandemic happened, and so, we just wanted to humanize and continue that theme that I love, which is just when you think you know someone, you don’t.

DEADLINE: You didn’t say anything about her move to France? Is that happening, for her with/without her older children?

NASH: We really want the fans to see how that happens, but what I love about our series is just when people think, oh, it must be a card flip, maybe it’s not.

DEADLINE: Eddie and Katherine, they looked like they were starting to find a way to co-parent. How will their relationship evolve next season with that jolt Eddie got with the call? You hinted that he may relapse as a result.

NASH: I’m happy to say, because I think the finale, the story really depicts this beautifully, that they are not able to be there for each other the way the other person needs them to be, but they are determined to be there for Theo, and they are determined to not let the fact that they are divorced keep them from being the parents they want to be. So, we’re going to watch them have to navigate these very new waters for them, mostly separately, sometimes together, just trying to be everything to Theo that he deserves.

DEADLINE: Looking ahead to Season 4, you mention guilt as a theme, you mentioned the new mystery of the female caller. What else do you have in store? Do you have any other major themes and mysteries that you’re planning?

NASH: Well, certainly, we have what happened behind that door. We’re also following whether or not this family moves to France and if some of them do and some of them don’t and what’s the fallout of how that affects this family. We have the mystery of how did what happened to Peter affect what happens with Gary and Darcy, moving forward. We left the season with Maggie also aware that Gary wasn’t where he was supposed to be, and so, we’ll see how her awareness might affect the story.

We’re also seeing Maggie, who’s found her voice in this podcast, gain some notoriety, and that story is a story we’re tracking next season that has some very funny and fun actors, who are fans of our show, joining our series that we’re excited about, and then, finally, for Rome, his documentary is picking up, and we’ll see him have incredible success. We’re telling that story, and for Regina, her figuring out what the next chapter of her life is going to be and her relying on her friends, who have had to face similar questions, for support and love as she finds that next chapter. That will involve a return of some people who have been in our series before that we have been excited to come back.

DEADLINE: Covid limited your guest actor choices this season. Can you tease any favorites that are coming back? Jason Ritter? You also mentioned new guest stars. Would they be playing themselves as guests on Maggie’s podcasts or will they play characters?

NASH: Well, certainly, Covid has restricted us, and that’s we’re excited about some of the mystery of what happened and where we left things at the end of this season. That’ll get us through, hopefully, the quarantine part of Vancouver, which hopefully will lift before Thanksgiving, at which point, we will be bringing even more guest stars in. We have found, in the last couple seasons, that there are some more high-profile actors who are fans of our show, and I’ve had a conversation with a few of them about coming in and doing parts, and it’s incredible. In fact, there are people who I’m a fan of, and I’m like, you watch our show? That’s awesome.

So, we will see a couple of those people. I can’t say yet who they are, because those deals aren’t closed. In terms of the other part of who, who’s been in our show, who’s coming back, yes, there’s quite a few people who we want to have back. Again, it’s just a question of when we get to that point of the season, are they on other series that allow them to come hang out with us, but we put a pin in some pretty big stories going into season three because of Covid, and those are stories that could wait to be told, and hopefully, now, we can unpin them and bring them back, because we’re doing 20 episodes this year. It’s the biggest season we’ve ever had, and we want each episode to be special.

DEADLINE: Delilah had a love interest at the end of Season 2, played by Parker Young. He disappeared.

NASH: She did, Miles. Parker is on a series (United States of Al), so, that might be difficult to bring back. And maybe…she’s in France. Maybe she meets a guy or a woman in France.

DEADLINE: What about Ron Livingston? We heard him in the finale but will we be able to see him next season?

NASH: I would love to see him in this season. He and I talked about him possibly being in that finale, and for the amount of screen time I would’ve had him and for the amount that I would’ve had to have him quarantine. He’s got kids, and it didn’t feel like I could justify asking him to do that. He was awesome and willing, and I said to him, let’s wait for a future episode. So, I’d love to see him back. With where I want to go with our series, I know, for sure, he’s in it again.

DEADLINE: You have a very serialized show, and you’re going into now Season 4. Are you already mapping out a final arc? Do you know when/how the show is ending?

NASH: I knew what the last season of the show was when I pitched the pilot. So, that’s already mapped out. Every year, when we get together with the new writers, it’s the second or third day, the first thing I do is tell them is how the series ends. So, they’re all aware of that. They know what we’re building towards. What season that will happen in is a conversation that as soon as we get up and running, this season, I want to have with our partners at the studio and the network, just to find what we think is the best length of time to tell this story.

DEADLINE: So, you have the ending ready but you won’t know until the summer whether you should proceed with the idea or shelve it for next season?

NASH: I basically have about the six-episode last segment of our show, and that can fit at the end of any season. With us getting a 20-episode order, it doesn’t feel like that ABC wants this to be our last season. I think there are three things that are balanced, how our fans are and whether we still continue to get the numbers and the Live+ numbers that we get. I think the second factor is just the actors and their desire to keep telling these stories, but the biggest thing is me and the writers and us feeling like do we still have fresh situations that we want to put our characters in. At my heart, in my roots, I am a stand-up comic, and rule number one is leave the audience wanting more.

DEADLINE: How do you feel, do you have more stories? Can you do multiple more seasons?

NASH: There’s no question we have enough to do 20 incredible episodes this season.

[cl4ptr4p-4-d4ys]

[ You. Questions for you. Spare no details. What does Claptrap think of 5H4D0W-TP throughout the Claptastic Voyage? Did Claptrap ever try to communicate with 5H4D0W-TP before the events of the DLC? (I'm sure you know my answer to that when it comes to 5H4DY's side). Also, why did Claptrap never give the Vault Hunters a heads-up about 5H4D0W-TP? Not until the last moment, anyway... Explain for your muse, even if it's headcanon. ]

Ah, yes. Here are my thoughts.

Did Claptrap ever try to communicate with 5H4D0W-TP before the events of the DLC?

I think that in the beginning, Claptrap didn't even know about his existence. That, or he was keeping that information to himself. His lack of knowledge about it throughout the main story of TPS might mean he didn't know about him until later towards the DLC, since there isn't any evidence of Claptrap being aware of his presence until the Claptastic Voyage. But it may also signify his lack of focus towards the issue.

During his time as Fragtrap, his emotions had been controlled heavily to make him less prone to things such as nausea, fear, and general care for human life.

"My sense of post-murder guilt would be lessened if I knew why you wanted me to kill Deadlift."

"Who needs identity or free will? I'm doing great! -Followed by laugher that quickly morphs into crying.-"

"(in response to Pickle asking him a question.) My stair-climbing wheel also comes with a free program upgrade that wiped me clean of vertigo, so no."

"Apart from the fact I've lost my sense of self, and no longer value human life, it's totally AWESOME!"

He may have known about him the moment he was placed into his software, but without him ever mentioning it throughout the game, chances are that he didn't know about him until the DLC rolled around.

It doesn't seem likely that he would want to get in contact with him anytime soon, as in one echo log in the Subconscious, his systems involuntarily shoved him into quarantine without much reason, meaning it must've known about how much he would warp his personality and made it seem less significant than it was.

What does Claptrap think of 5H4D0W-TP throughout the DLC and why didn't he give the Vault Hunter's a heads-up about 5H4D0W-TP earlier?

In the beginning, Claptrap was more indifferent to him of him and prolonged the sharing of information he knew about 5H4DY because he may not have seen it as important. He couldn't have known about 5H4D0W-TP's ability to manipulate his system and how dangerous he was to it. That, or it might also be his own subroutines that originally captured him and warned Claptrap of him, and Claptrap didn't take it seriously.

"Yeah -- I think there's a virus or something going around. Those guys sound ill."

He's ignoring the significance of the voices of the characters in the Fyrestone simulation. Like "Hey, don't worry about it! It's probably something menial and we don't have to worry about it at all!" When it's actually a huge issue that he should've mentioned earlier. He eventually starts caring about him when he is revealed in quarantine and Claptrap keeps trying to stop 5H4D0W-TP from going into Memory Cluster 99002 OV3RLOOK.

"Aww shoot! I just realized, the data stream you need is totally broken -- looks like this plan's a bust!"

"Oh really? Analyzing. I already have a solution."

"This sure seems like a lot of trouble to get to one totally unimportant memory cluster!"

"No way past those bad-boys -- looks like it's back to the ol' drawing board!"

"So quick to surrender, eh, Claptrap?"

He's playing it cool (miserably) and is trying to demotivate the vault hunters from accessing the file, and I think there are two primary reasons for this. One, he doesn't want them or himself to see it, and two, he's worried about what 5H4DY has planned when he mentions OV3RLOOK, which finally seems to be a threat to Claptrap. He's trying his best to stop them from listening to him after he realizes that.

"It's in the uh... the... oh, I know it, I know it! In the... uh..."

"In Memory Bank 4, cluster double-nine, double-zero, two, OV3RLOOK."

"Was about to say that! Oh uh, that old place? There won't be anything there, I guarantee it."

And when he hears this, rather than being helpful like before, he becomes resistant and tries everything he can to block the vault hunters and 5H4D0W-TP from accessing that memory cluster.

"Oh yeah! That's 5H4D0W-TP! He's pretty much the most corrupted thing in the entire system! The one thing you don't want to do is release him. Ohhh.. whoops."

The moment that 5H4DY finally does break loose from his chains, Claptrap gets to see his real intentions and rather than becoming more hateful or fearful of him, he turns over completely.

"Hey! Over her--"

"Don't trust them. -Proceeds to push Claptrap down a flight of stairs-"

"Waaaaaaaaah!-- Oh, oww, oo, oh, ow"

"Aghh, that hurt! Took forever to find you! I didn't even know this place existed! But now, I'm back on the team!"

I think the fact that he's not even concerned about the fact he was pushed down the stairs, betrayed, and such by him seems to make him more inspired by him instead of disliking him.

"I've gotta say, this guy's kinda cool -- he nails an 'A' for ambition and he's played YOU like a n00b!"

Near the end, he refuses 5H4D0W-TP's offer to join him in conquering the whole world, and I don't think he considered it for a moment, as his prospects for the future didn't fit his desires. Sure, he wants to be respected and to be able to fight back, but he wouldn't give up his friends for that. They're all he has and the risk of losing that is not something he would trade for world domination.

His psyche at the high-five was also very clearly a retaliation for earlier where 5H4DY took the H-source and did something very similar, which I probably do not have to explain.

So in conclusion, Claptrap probably didn't know and didn't try trying to get in contact with 5H4D0W-TP during the main story, he withheld the information because he didn't deem it as important (and also probably forgot) and he feels indifferent to him for the most part until he's free from quarantine, where he seems 5H4DY as a cool guy that inspires him. That's about all I have for today and I hope this answers your questions!

[angrytigertastemaker]

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[fcbabyx]

Joaquin “Joker” Phoenix

Helloooooooo, it’s me again.... popping in after watching Joker earlier this week. You know, the controversial movie that could incite violence, crime, shootings, etc... yep that one. The one that people “are walking out “ of, yeah, that movie. As a long time comic book reader, I can assure you I stayed for the whole 2 hours. 😂😂😂😂😂

SPOILERS AHEAD!!!! 

The Good: Joaquin Phoenix , enough said. 

The Bad: 

The Ugly: the media and some’s response to the movie.

The 2 hour film did a fantastic job in humanizing and dehumanizing Arthur Fleck. The movie does a fantastic job in portraying a more human origin of the Clown Prince of Crime. Hilariously enough, people just can’t take it. The mass media and some percentage of the general public just can’t take the reality of whom The Joker is.  People can’t accept that the character that they have used in inspiring quotes and relationship goals with Harley is a sociopath murderer. You know for someone like myself, whom is a huge Red Hood fan, I just laugh at said reaction, tbh.  See how he kills my boy below. Get on with the program, people, the Joker is the personalization of insanity and chaos. 

Anyhow, the movie does a wonderful job in humanizing and dehumanizing Arthur Fleck. The low class mentally ill clown that also has to take care of his mother, Arthur Fleck. Arthur, the one that kills 3 men in the train. Actually, lets stop for a second, the killing of the 3 Wayne Enterprises boys, is the tipping point for the society. It draws a clear line of how one even is seen differently by people. However, Arthur kills the “Wayne Boys” after they wouldn’t take a no from a woman. The irony. When Arthur’s condition kicks in a.k.a the laugh, he gets their attention, and eventually kills them in an act of defense. True, he could had shot one and call it a day, but killing all 3 means no one is going to rat him out and it makes it a little more difficult to find. 

Fast forward, Arthur gets a girlfriend and mommy dearest is still waiting on the letter from Thomas Wayne. Arthur gets fired if the clown job, tries stand up comedy, that fails, and you know what, the state closes down his state doctor/program. So no meds nor resources cause they don’t give a fuck about people like Arthur. Mommy dearest has a stroke during a police interrogation about how Arthur could had possibly killed someone. At this point the public is backing up the murdering clown. Arthur, then finds a letter from mommy dearest to Thomas Wayne stating Arthur is a Wayne. Hold please. 

Arthur then goes to the Manor, meets Baby Batman, Bruce Wayne, but gets no access to meet his father. His does meet him at the theater, yeah, that theater, in which Thomas is like lol nope. Your mother adopted you whenever she worked for us and became obsessed with the idea of you being mine, but is not true. When Arthur starts being in denial, Thomas punches him in the face, and warns him about getting close to Bruce. 

Arthur then goes to the hospital, Arkham State Hospital and scares the clerk/administrator guy and gets the file. He snaps. He snaps so bad, that we realize that his girlfriend was all in his head and eventually murders mommy dearest. However, he is happy. He is sooooo happy that he kills one of his former clown coworkers when they stop by to give their condolences.  Is a bloody scene. Literally.

After that Arthur is no more and Joker is alive.  He is alone with the public backing him up and he is also invited to a live late night tv show. We all knew he was going to kill the man whom has been humiliating him on a nightly basis, on live tv tho? Of Course. When he is introduced as Joker, he explains why the makeup and how is not a political symbol. After a little more humiliation, he goes on a speech about the consequences of leaving the mentally ill and the poor to fend for themselves in a crime ridden city.  Eventually he ends his speech with a bang. A shot straight to Robert De Niro’s head. Trust me when I say, it was such a throwback to The Dark Knight Returns, when The Joker kills the audience and everyone in the room. I died, cause someone in the film’s team has at least seen the DC animated movies TT^TT . 

Anyhow, Joker gets arrested and the city is up in arms in a violent protest. As the city goes up in flames, the most famous murder of Gotham City is happening behind a theater, as the pearls hit the floor, the ambulance smashes into the patrol car freeing Joker. In true Joker fashion, we get scenes and shots of the chaos that Joker has fueled, the crime, the violence, anarchy, and nonetheless, insanity. The movie ends with a beautifully disturbing scene of Arthur killing a doctor in Arkham State Hospital and running away from the other staff members while leaving bloody footprints. The End. 

Is a fucking masterpiece.  The reason why some are upset at this movie is due to how explicit it is with the violence and crime. However, is a Joker movie. In the era where we get superhero movies and the bad guy always lose, Joker has no hero. Batman is nowhere close to be Batman. In reality DC could had started their “universe” with this movie, but they didn’t. At the same time, this movie is beautifully disturbing on its own and it works. 

I’m tired of how divided the social media is with this movie. I’m tired of seeing the ones whom have never picked up a comic book say how the movie destroyed the character and is garbage. No dude, fuck you and shut up. The character The Joker, the Clown Prince of Crime, is not what you think it is. The fucking clown, murdered Jason Todd as a teen, paralyzed Barbara Gordon/Batgirl, hence why she is in a wheelchair, he brutally beats up Harley (Mad Love), hell they both kidnapped Tim Drake ( one of the Robins) brainwashed him into thinking he was their child and had him try to kill Batman AND had him tell them Bruce Wayne is batman. The mental torture of the Batfam on the Death of the Family with the cruel joke of cutting their faces off and showing them to them. The shooting spree in the tunnel of love during The Dark Knight Returns, hell he is responsible for the death Lois Lane and Superman’s unborn baby in Injustice, the murder of Sarah, Jim Gordon’s second wife with a bullet straight to her face, the Skinning of Monty, etc.... but above all HE KILLED JASON TODD!! 

What I am saying is, this version of the Joker shows how bloody and psychotic the character is. However, The Clown Prince of Crime did had a phase on which he was the Red Hood. The Joker is not known as The Clown Prince of Crime for no reason. He is also one of the most evil villains of all time, you guys really thought it was due to his rivalry with Batsy? The clown needs Batman, he is not going to kill him, in fact when he did, he went insane. The fuck? This movie was never meant to end with Batman stopping him, it was meant to showcase, that in the end DC is not afraid to show their dark side. The Joker still has people thinking if Arthur Fleck is The Joker? Is a well written movie that destroys the image of the romanticized, idolized, mainstream Joker for plenty. Do not confuse this with me not liking pretty much any other version, anything except Jared Leto’s tbh. However, the movie its brilliant and Joaquin Phoenix deserves an Oscar for the performance. 

[chimakiisane]

Time for another (hopefully) motivational post on game making for beginners! Also I guess artists, too ;w;

Don’t feel like you can’t get better when it comes to your assets. Practice makes perfect, or at least improvements! When I first started, I drew all my stuff by mouse thinking that was the only way I could do it. Because of that, what I made was very lackluster aside from one sprite that remained in use until demo 4.0. But as I figured out more that I could do and programs that helped me be able to let me add my pictures into the game without making them black and white or become so de-saturated that they looked like dirty colors were just slapped on, I began to improve.

Now I would show the very first cutscene that was ever made for ONE but alas, I cannot find the file (if I do, I will edit it in at a later date) so we’ll go with the first “official” entry cutscene to the game.

It certainly isn’t the best, but I was proud of it at the time. It gave a general idea of what needed to be said on what was going on. At the time I was also trying to stay close to the original style of OFF, but that changed later down the line when it became too difficult for me and I just did everything in my own.

Now onto the new one

A lot has changed and I am very proud of it. There’s so much more going on and it shows more depth.

Now let’s go to another cutscene that has definitely changed as I tried to progress in what I wanted to do with the style of the game. Blight’s battle cutscene.

This is what I meant by my older cutscenes having muddy, de-saturated colors. When trying to save the file to be compatible with RPG2k3, it would do this before I got photoshop.

Then we move to the one after that where I would draw the image huge and then shrink it down to size. It would kill some quality, but it looked better than the previous. And now onto the final one.

I now draw everything to scale as not to kill the quality and it also helps to fit in as much detail on a smaller scale as possible.

So just because you feel your work may not be good now, as long as you keep trying to improve, I know you can improve! And even if it is hard, you can always ask others for help. Sometimes a big project, especially a game project, can’t be done by one person alone unless they’ve got some good experience behind them.

Believe in yourself and you can definitely get better.

[homespork-review]

Homespork Act 2: The Racism of the Conductor’s Baton (Part 1)

Years in the future, but not many…

TIER: Now what in the heck is this I wonder?

BRIGHT: ...the reader wonders what’s going on now, as we jump to a sun-bleached desert with a Wayward Vagabond wandering across it.

CHEL: Here, we introduce another count:

WHAT IS HAPPENING??: 1

Should the baffling developments to which this count is applied be explained satisfactorily later, we’ll take the points off, but we use the counts in the present to express how one feels on seeing them for the first time. Even if it does get explained later, I feel like this is oddly placed, especially since it doesn’t get explored in any detail here. Mileage may vary, though.

FAILURE ARTIST: I think when I first encountered this upd8 I didn’t click on the link.

BRIGHT: Thankfully - and unexpectedly - this state of affairs only lasts a page, and then we return to something associated with the storyline so far: Rose Lalonde has started a game walkthrough of SBurb. After spending quite a few words to say that she will be brief, she explains that installing the game is bringing about the end of the world.

Then she takes a couple more paragraphs to express her condolences and reassure everyone that it was all inevitable anyway.

CHEL: Not a case of HURRY UP AND DO NOTHING, as I considered briefly - writing the FAQ is about the only thing she can do in the circumstances. Warning people not to play the game won’t help now, since enough people have already started that the resulting meteors are going to destroy the Earth anyway. All anyone can do now is set up their own session and hope to escape through it, and all Rose can do to help is advise them in the hopes some succeed. Sucks for all the people in the world who don’t have a computer, though, but the apocalypse isn’t exactly supposed to be fair.

FAILURE ARTIST: Amidst her purple prose she uses the r-slur. It’s one thing reading John or TG say it, it’s another thing with her.

CLOCKWORK PROBLEMATYKKS: 5

BRIGHT: Over on the next page, John has survived! As has his house, and his father, although there are eyes peering out from under the bed...and through the kitchen door...oh, yeah, and the house is now perched atop a rocky crag in a dark sky.

FAILURE ARTIST: That’s a good atmospheric animation. The next animation doesn’t have the [S] for sound but it’s longer than a couple seconds. I probably accidentally clicked next when I first saw it.

Next, we get a new voice: some mysterious insistent prompter who calls John “BOY”. We’ll find out later who this person is.

CHEL: I’d say this doesn’t earn a WHAT IS HAPPENING point because we’re used to John obeying prompts. It’s curious that the style has changed, but not completely confusing.

FAILURE ARTIST: Next comes the first walkaround game! The reader moves John via the mouse, arrow keys, or the WASD keys. When you click on certain objects, a little yellow box comes up with messages clearly from the mysterious prompter. If you click that box, John’s opinions come in a green-lined box. You can walk around the whole house and backyard - except for John’s father’s room.

Since this is an interactive game, you can go in whatever order you want, but for the sake of summarizing, let’s go by the order in the printed edition.

John surveys the balcony. The prompter wants you to “do something with” what it calls the “ghost clown” and John explains that ghost clown is the kernelsprite and the Sburb server player is supposed to be the one to prototype it. Meanwhile, the kernelsprite spouts wingding.

John goes down the hallway. Dad’s room is locked so John goes to the bathroom. He notes that Rose did a “piss-poor” job of fixing the bathroom. He wonders if he could just pee over the cliff. Thankfully, this never happens.

John goes into his bedroom. It’s a mess. The door has been ripped off the hinge and there’s black goo everywhere. John is annoyed at the mess but begrudgingly admits Rose saved his life. John (or the reader) takes the time to look at the posters.

The prompter doesn’t like Little Monsters anymore than TG but John wishes he could hang out with Fred Savage. John’s wish to hang out with candy-corn-horn monsters could be considered foreshadowing and Hussie jokes about it being that but Hussie probably didn’t have trolls in mind at that point. Clicking the Con Air poster elicits the question “IS THAT JOHN CUSACK?” from the prompter. When we find out who the prompter is, it will make little sense they would recognize John Cusack, but the actor is a universal constant. Clicking the Ghostbusters 2 poster, we find out TG calls the film “nasty manbro bukkake theater” and poor innocent John doesn’t know what that means. It’s rather disturbing that TG does know. (CALL CPA PLEASE?)

CHEL: Not sure. At that age with access to the internet I picked up a bunch of obscene words without actually seeing the material they applied to. Then again, this is TG, and considering his later-seen home life it’s quite possible he didn’t just get curious on Urban Dictionary, so…

CALL CPA PLEASE: 1

FAILURE ARTIST: He examines the totem lathe, which the prompter calls a “sewing machine”, and wonders if other punch cards will make other shapes.

If you click on the computer, you see Rose is trying to get in touch with John. He ignores her for now.

John leaves the bedroom and makes his way down the stairs. Both he and the prompter hate all the harlequin art, but John does like the crude bust sitting on the floor.

The Cruxtruder is still in the middle of the room with its lid open. When you click on the lid, the prompter commands John to reseal the opening and John says “Pandora’s tube” has been opened, which is awfully literary for him. When you click on the Cruxtruder itself, the prompter demands John push it and exit the house. John says he can’t without grist and comes close to dropping the comic’s name.

When you click on the urn, the prompter commands John to topple it. John refuses, saying he’d never do that… at least intentionally. If you click on the portrait above the urn of Nanna, John wishes for her wisdom.

The prompter calls the doors to the kitchen “like you see in a cowboy saloon”, a turn-of-phrase that will be weird when we find out who the prompter is.

So John goes into the kitchen. There’s lots of black goo around and an orphaned bowl of cake batter, but no Dad. The black goo is apparently oil. John wishes for his father back. If you click on Colonel Sassacre’s book, John declares that both it and WISE GUY are his “favoritest book”. The prompter wants John to eat some of the Betty Crocker cake mix but John calls Betty Crocker a “wench”. This is the start of John’s feud with Betty Crocker. On the fridge is a primitive drawing of Slimer that John drew at the tender age of almost thirteen. This won’t be the only picture on a fridge we see. There’s board games in the kitchen cabinet, a callback to Death’s games in Problem Sleuth and also a weird place to put board games. If you click on the kitchen phone, you find out the prompter does know what a telephone is, but this phone doesn’t work.

Through the door is a laundry room, but both John and the prompter agree there’s no time for that. Note that the prompter knows what washer and dryer machines are.

Next, John goes into the backyard. The prompter wants John to fiddle with the live wires and John wisely refuses. John checks what the prompter calls a “wall-mounted gadget” (electric meter) and discovers the house is still powered. How come the prompter is familiar with so many electrical devices but doesn’t know about live wires and electric meters? In his commentary, Hussie does note that this is strange.

CHEL: To be fair, “magic” is a legitimate power source in this world.

FAILURE ARTIST: From the tree hangs a pair of trick handcuffs over the void and the prompter wants John to claim them. The prompter seems to be out to get John killed.

John goes back into the house (via what the prompter calls the “luncheon parlor”) and goes to the piano room. If you click on the huge mural, John says Cirque du Soleil filed a restraining order on Dad. I think Hussie once said it was because Dad tried to shave a performer. The prompter wants John to “consume nut” (again with the death!)...

CHEL: “Consume nut”? *immature snickering*

FAILURE ARTIST: ...but John says there’s probably no hospitals in this dark realm. If you click on the piano, the sheet music for Showtime pops up and that songs plays instead of the constant wind noise. Maybe you should visit this room first. There’s a safe in this room but John doesn’t know the combination.

Though Dad seems obsessed with clowns, we’ll later find out something that turns that on its head. However, Hussie does have his own interest in clowns, having once created a comic about a hapless circus clown named Whistles.

According to the book commentary, the entire walkaround game took less than twenty-four hours to draw, write, and program. Still looks good. That wind noise does get awfully annoying.

CHEL: The walkaround game is also the original source of “Trickster Mode”, an Easter egg in the Flash in which Hussie’s face floats on the screen and John looks like this:

Speculation ran rampant in fanfic and art for years, usually involving the “Tricksters” being the Superpowered Evil Sides of the kids. This isn’t quite how it turned out when Trickster Mode appeared again (much to my disappointment, I admit, I liked those), but that’s for much, much later in the comic.

John and Rose chat again. John can’t find his dad. Rose explains that John and his house have been transported to a mysterious somewhere which saved him from the meteor impact that destroyed his neighbourhood. Her research has turned up many similar collisions across the world, getting bigger with time, and the two conclude that the objective of the game must be to stop the meteors and save the world. There’s a rather cute bit of dialogue where Rose wishes John happy birthday and mentions her gift to him is in progress, and she helps him retrieve his father’s PDA from the precipice for portable internet.

FAILURE ARTIST: In Andrew Hussie’s annotation, he says this conversation made fans see the two as a “shippable commodity” (Hussie’s exact phrase) but compares them to shipping Colonel Sassacre/Pogo Ride.

CHEL: I’m pretty sure he was being facetious there, especially given that equally weird ships are actually canon, but the worse parts of the fandom latched onto it and John/Rose shippers get a lot of shit, mostly from people who ship Rose with girls. People who ship John with boys seem a lot more mellow about it. That’s Tumblr for you.

FAILURE ARTIST: On Dad’s PDA, you can see a chatroom called SERIOUS BUSINESS where a FedoraFreak is updating everyone on his rescue of his wardrobe from a house fire. FedoraFreak’s story doesn’t end here. While he doesn’t ever appear on screen his conversation can be seen on the PDA a few times later and at the end a character exposits important backstory to him before he passes away. Andrew Hussie brought up FedoraFreak a lot on his defunct Formspring with facts that like many of his answers on that site might be just taking the piss.

CHEL: John is now starting to notice the mysterious commands in his head, and attempts to refuse to follow them further; the cut back to the Wayward Vagabond immediately afterwards shows that he’s the one giving the commands by way of a strange-looking console. The console has four screens, three dark, one showing John. Now he’s starting to seem a lot less random, though we still don’t know much about him. If it was up to me I might have used this as his introduction instead of the first page with him that we got. He’s wrapped in rags but we can see enough of him to know that he doesn’t look human - his fingers are sharply pointed, his eyes are tiny and beady, he has no hair, and his flesh is stark black. Admittedly he doesn’t look a lot less like a real human than the stylised sprites of the human characters do, but you see what I mean, he doesn’t fit the appearance they have.

FAILURE ARTIST: I like this reveal of Wayward Vagabond, though I think again my first read I didn’t click the link. I don’t know why it’s a link and not a panel.

CHEL: Rose’s FAQ further explains what was demonstrated earlier, warning users not to activate the Cruxtruder until they’re ready to start the countdown. Once it is activated, it produces “cruxite dowels”, cylinders of mysterious material, which can be used in conjunction with the “Totem Lathe”, the “Alchemiter”, and special punchcards to produce objects from nothing, which will prove useful, though honestly I don’t know why they need to put the punchcard through the Totem Lathe and then the totem in the Alchemiter. I feel a step could be eliminated there in the design of these machines.

Unfortunately the FAQ also contains this line, and I don’t mean it’s unfortunate because Rose making typos is OOC:

Removing the lid signals the moment your life becomes a great whirling batshit pandemonium, somewhat resembling the chaos of an especially ethnic wedding. Somewhere, a soused uncle deliberately shatters china on the floor. Muddy livestock is decorated, and then lost track of. The question “Who’s mule is this?” at times can be heard over the din. CLOCKWORK PROBLEMATYKKS: 6 WHITE SBURB POSTMODERNISM: 3

FAILURE ARTIST: Oh wow. Guess there’s a lot hidden in these easy-to-skip parts.

CHEL: Rose herself is still in the observatory, watching the storm outside and the flaming collisions of meteors in the distance. Her laptop battery is running low, the house’s electricity is out, and the fire is getting closer, but there’s a backup generator behind the backyard mausoleum. While she has time, she tries to help John by prototyping the sprite for a second time, but it dodges the various items she tries to put in it, until Nanna’s ashes are knocked over a second time, directly onto it.

FAILURE ARTIST: I think it is said later that the prototyping is drawn to dead things. While the Betty Crocker box would be very interesting considering the mythology that later develops around that marketing icon, obviously the sprite would chose Nanna’s ashes.

CHEL: The Colonel Sassacre book has some importance in the lore, too. We’ll see that when more backstory is revealed.

The sprite disappears, but as John searches for an escape route from the house to retrieve the second CD-ROM, we see it again, slightly changed…

TG messages John and still seems pretty calm about John’s reports of weird happenings, coming out with a pretty entertaining rap about the situation. I still always giggle at “afflecks saclifice, i mean -crifice, would have to sufflice. aw fluck it”.

TG: ill have to make a rap about TG: i dont know TG: morgan freeman or something TG: being the president TG: itll be called TG: "obama made it so that no one gives a shit about black presidents in movies anymore" WHITE SBURB POSTMODERNISM: 4

FAILURE ARTIST: Fanon makes TG a great rapper but he really sucks and the only time he doesn’t (and in fact is the best in paradox space) we don’t actually get to read it.

CHEL: Probably that’s because the fans saying he’s great can’t rap any better. I know his rapping is a lot better than any I could do - for one thing he’s able to come up with one at all that quickly. I mean, yes, he does use words like “derangerous” in it, but I listen to a band who tried to rhyme “plane” with “California”.

FAILURE ARTIST: Good point. I can’t rap either.

CHEL: Is this a Problematykks point? I don’t think black people are the butt of the joke exactly, but…

Anyway. John stands on the balcony and Rose lifts the car from its precarious position on a spike of ground over the abyss, with the intention that John can break the window to retrieve the second part of the game, but just as he almost reaches it, her connection is lost, and the car plummets out of view below the clouds beneath the house.

FAILURE ARTIST: “The loss of any Dodge Dart is a terrible thing.”

CHEL: While checking his PDA, John is messaged by GG again! She’s surprised when he knows the explosion near her house was a meteor. Fortunately she’s unharmed, and mildly surprised but encouraging when John explains. Since he can’t reach Rose, John decides he has to get TG involved; TG is still rap-typing, and John’s reaction of “aaaaaarrrgh!” is pretty appropriate. John tells TG he has to use the game to save Rose, but TG’s lost his copy, and his brother apparently won’t be happy about TG borrowing his.

Rose gathers up her stuff to head out to the backup generator. Attempting to use her Grimoire for Summoning the Zoologically Dubious in her strife specibus results in this creepiness, so instead she uses her knitting needles. Some pages are spent consulting the Grimoire anyway, introducing the reader to the NOBLE CIRCLE OF HORRORTERRORS and some diagrams of what appear to be windows.

FAILURE ARTIST: Problem Sleuth had weird teleporting window shenanigans so this is a callback to that.

Rose goes outside briefly and thinks of a T.S. Eliot quote (“April is the cruellest month..”) that she attributes to Charles Barkley. Misattributed quotes are a running gag in this comic but for all we know in this verse maybe Charles Barkley did say that.

CHEL: She re-enters the house and prepares to risk confrontation with her mother…

And suddenly we jump to TG.

FAILURE ARTIST: Insufferable Prick Dave, unlike John and Rose, doesn’t simply shake his head disapprovingly at the joke name but takes out his sword and slices the box. He has a strong sense of self. Strider was probably a Lord of the Rings reference but Andrew Hussie didn’t come up with the names. He only chose them.

Like I said earlier, Dave Strider is sort of an author avatar for Andrew Hussie. Dave and Andrew have a similar sense of humor, similar bodies of work, and perhaps similar neuroses.

Dave’s introduction lists a few interests that never really come up again. He is said to like BANDS NO ONE’S HEARD OF BUT [HIM] but we never hear of these bands either. Andrew Hussie in the printed book bemoans that he never got around to talking about that interest. He collects WEIRD DEAD THINGS IN JARS but besides creating one abomination this collection never amounts to anything. He even lampshades his forgotten interests much later.

CHEL: The other kids at least get something made of their interests; John’s bad movies come up a lot and are the starting topic of a later important conversation, and Rose and GG’s interests are relevant to their game powers. Dave’s, well… The swords are his favoured weapon, but swordplay is much more of his brother’s interest than his, which is thematically appropriate, but leaves Dave’s own interests rather out of the spotlight.

Dave has a very cramped-looking room with furniture made of boards and cinderblocks and a bed which appears to merely be two mattresses stacked together. When the prompts bring up the game, he has the game in his possession and claims to have no intention of playing it, showing this is a flashback.

FAILURE ARTIST: Dave looks in his closet and finds the box his 13th birthday present from John came in plus a jar full of a yellow substance. John had given him shades worn by Ben Stiller in a movie and while the movie isn’t named it is the 2004 remake of Starsky & Hutch featuring the comedic duo Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson. That movie appears in Problem Sleuth and much much later Stiller and Wilson become part of Homestuck’s mythology.

Meanwhile, the jar full of a yellow substance is not what you think.

CHEL: He browses the internet for a while, showing his satirical reviews of GameBro magazine, and introducing one of the comic’s favourite running gags, Sweet Bro and Hella Jeff.

SBaHJ is something of a legend even outside the Stuckosphere. Hussie originally drew it as a parody of bad two-gamers-on-a-couch webcomics, intentionally using terrible art, terrible dialogue, confusing layouts, and non-sequitur “jokes”. It proved popular, so he turned it into an entire comic strip, getting steadily worse with each entry. It… well, go check it out, words can’t really do it justice. Be warned that there is some graphic and disturbing content including incest, scat, gore, and bestiality, albeit all drawn so poorly it’s kind of hard to tell what one is looking at.

FAILURE ARTIST: Not just a general parody, it was in response to this guy on the Penny Arcade forum who wanted to learn just enough art to make a two-gamers-on-a-couch webcomic and refused to listen to people who told him he’d have to learn the basics.

CHEL: In-universe, the comic is drawn by Dave, who has “legions of devoted fans, most of whom are totally convinced of your creative persona's sincerity. Which is just how you like it.” Dave’s devotion to the concept of “irony” is a major part of his character; he hides behind “irony” as his reason for doing almost everything, up to and including liking his birthday present.

We then see a few pages from the fictional webcomic John also liked, depicting the Midnight Crew. While this could be interesting and relevant (you’ll see why soon), it would be more so at a point when we weren’t waiting for one of the main characters to be rescued from a meteor strike and/or massive fire.

GET ON WITH IT!: 4

FAILURE ARTIST: That is a lot of panels just to spend watching a character read a webcomic, even considering the importance of the webcomic.

CHEL: And while we’re at it, I’m assigning another point for posting Dave’s first conversation with John again. The reader might need a reminder of what was said, yes, but the magic of the internet means it would be possible to provide a link back to that page rather than making archive bingers read the same thing twice.

GET ON WITH IT!: 5

The new conversation he has with Rose is entertaining and establishes their relationship of mutual friendly snark very well, though.

TG: if you ever find yourself in the position where your life depends on me playing that piece of shit game, then ill play

Unwise words, Dave.

We briefly cut back to John, who finds another mysterious trail of oil in his house, and whiplash back to Dave. This might be an issue of the webcomic format again; in a webcomic, it’s reasonable to occasionally remind the readers that yes, this character’s still there and still doing things. In a book or in an archive binge, it’s a little jarring, but if the former applies that’s not really the writer’s fault.

Back at Dave’s, there’s a Flash DJ game on Dave’s fancy mixing equipment (much nicer than anything else in the room, as we’ll discuss further later), on which Dave accidentally spills his bottle of what despite John’s comments is definitely apple juice. He emerges from his room to fetch a towel, and now we see some clearer hints of the weirdness of his home. In the short trip to the bathroom we see two marionettes, created out of photo collages in jarring contrast to Dave’s sprite self, one overlooking the hallway and one hanging in the shower. Dave, meanwhile, cleans up the juice and hangs the soaked CD-ROM envelopes up at his window to dry. Despite his remembering to turn off the electric fan so they don’t get blown out, the game discs naturally end up going out the window anyway in somewhat more unusual fashion; specifically, a crow flies in and randomly steals them. Dave’s attempts to stop the bird result in sylladex shenanigans, causing his katana to fly out, impale the bird, and send it and the game discs crashing through the window.

[the-beastslayers-queen]

A Dangerous Game: Chapter 4

Chapter 4 is here! Tagging: @queenofthearchitect @biforbecky2belts @writtingrose @mrsambroserollinsacklesmgk and @jeffhardyenigmawwefan If you wish to be tagged, hit my inbox or chat. Enjoy!

It’s been two weeks since Seth got upset with me. I’ve been on a downward spiral. I’ve been drinking every day, trying to forget his face, his laugh, his smile. But the more I drank, the more I remembered and the more it hurt.

I had been a good fiancé for Drew. I made appearances whenever he needed me too, but for the most part I stayed home. Hell I did the same thing for Finn and he had a feeling I wasn’t in the right state of mind, but gave me space.

“Cat,” I was in bed, an empty bottle of vodka sat on the table next to me, as I heard Finn come into my apartment, “Are you home?”

“I’m up here,” I replied, not leaving my bed, “Why are you here, Finn?”

“I came to check up on you,” he replied as he came up into my bedroom and sat on my bed, “The Club has missed you. Can you come to the meeting tonight?”

“I can make an appearance,” I replied.

“Oh and no more drinking,” Finn added, “I’m cutting you off. I’m going to need your cards and every bottle in your apartment. All the bartenders at Coup and Bullet know not to serve you as does Tama.”

“Damn it,” I groaned, “Alright fine, take my booze away.”

That night, I rolled up with Finn and Becky to our safe house on the outskirts of town to have our meeting with the rest of the Club. It was nice to see everyone. Finn went to sit at the large throne we had set up in the huge living room of the house and I took my place in the small throne next to his. I was struggling with the early signs of a hangover, but I managed.

“Alright,” Finn began to call the meeting to order, “We have a job coming up. We have a heist that I want to have Cat lead. We’re going to be going outside of Orlando for this. We’re taking on the upstarts of the Undisputed Era. They’re a small ring, but they have a lot of pull down south in the Miami area. We have ta remind them not to get ideas of moving north.”

“Which means I’ll need the heavy hitters to come with me to protect me,” I added in as I rose from my throne and paced the length of the room, “We can’t risk losing our potential alliance with McIntyre and his ‘clan’. I have to be protected during this heist.”

“I’m down,” Tama volunteered, “You know I’ll always have your back, girl.”

“I’m in too love,” Pete stepped forward, “I’m up to kicking in some teeth and breaking fingers.”

“What the hell,” Tyler joined Pete, “I’m in too.”

“We’ll tag along too,” Anderson and Gallows stepped up too. We’ll stick with Cat and keep her safe.”

“It’s settled then,” Finn rose from his throne, “Becky and Jordan will stay behind to help me hold down the fort. I also got some word from some old friends that want back into the fold and I have meetings with them tomorrow. We’ll run this heist in two days, so get prepared.”

I was sitting in my apartment the following night after the meeting. Since I had no access to any booze, I decided to get onto my computer. Since I wanted to keep tabs on Seth because I can’t get over him, I decided to boot up my back door I made into his system. I looked through his phone’s files and GPS data to see what he did during our separation.

Automated Message: Get out of Cerberus.

Damn it.

I got out of Cerberus and left his systems alone. I knew for a fact I might have kicked the hornet’s nest with getting into Cerberus. Seth was sure to find out I got in and retaliate. As I shut down my back door, I got a text from Seth.

Seth: You can’t take a hint can you?

Cat: No I can’t obviously. Will you please just hear me out? I’m sorry, alright. I should have told you who I was at the start. I regret that more than anything. But I’m going to let you know, I’m heading out of town for a heist job in Miami. I want to talk to you, face to face, and work this out.

Seth: No. You should have thought about telling me who you really were before I found out, Bálor.

Well, shit.

While I was getting everything ready to go for the Miami job, I was running diagnostics on my invasive program, getting it ready to run to disrupt their systems. That was when I saw trouble in the code. I lost control of the program and it started to run wild and open all of my most private files. The family pictures from Bray. From my upbringing. I even saw my pictures from high school pop up on my screen. That’s when a chat window popped up on my screen.

Automated message: Don’t fuck with Cerberus or you get the Oracle, Catriona.

I immediately kicked into overdrive and began to try to counter Oracle. I ran every kill program I could to flush Oracle out of my computer, I was not going to let Seth win this fight. I wrote new lines of code, trying to create a defensive program to get Oracle out of my systems. I didn’t want Seth to find these pictures I kept on my computer. I didn’t want him to find mine and Finn’s parents. I didn’t want to find my past of being a squeaky clean kid.

Once my counter program was live, Oracle was stomped out at last. I leaned back in my chair and breathed a sigh of relief at knowing that I beat Seth to finding my parents’ pictures on my computer.

Cat: This means war, Rollins. Those pictures are private. Oracle will not be breaking in again I promise.

Seth: Then don’t start a war with me, Catriona. Or I will go deeper.

“Are ye alright, lass,” Drew asked, seeing I was distracted. I was out with Drew tonight at his nightclub, Glasgow Kiss.

“Yeah,” I replied, “Just a lot on my mind. I was hacked last night. I wasn’t expecting it and it’s been on my mind.”

“That’s too bad,” Baron commented from his seat across from Drew, “Did you lose any data?”

“No,” I replied, “The attacker got into and viewed files I’ve kept private for years.”

“Do you want me to get Alexa to track the attacker down for Joe to take out,” Drew asked.

“No it’s okay,” I placed my hand on his chest to reassure him I had it handled, “I built up my firewalls and created my own defender program to keep out future hackers.”

Drew dropped the conversation at that point and he decided to kiss me. I was thrown for a loop at the sudden sign of affection. I also wanted to barf because his breath tasted like nothing but scotch, and I hated scotch with a passion. But I knew better than to pull away, so I gave into him.

“So you’ll be heading up the Bálor heist in Miami,” Drew asked.

“Yeah I am,” I answered him, “Did Finn tell you?”

“Aye, he did,” Drew replied, “Be careful, I don’t want to be a widow before I get to marry you, lass.”

I was able to get everything operational once again after Seth attacked my servers and invaded my computer. But right now we were down in Miami, ready to run this heist. I was stationed in my tactical van I had all of my equipment in to hack into the Undisputed Era’s security systems. I had Gallows and Anderson with me while Tama, Pete, and Tyler worked instead to steal what we needed from these four jewel thieves.

“Alright don’t bust in until I get their security system down,” I warned the three men as I began to break into their servers, “This should only take a minute.”

“Work fast, girl,” Tama called over the radio, “We need to get this done fast.”

I worked as fast as I could and I was struggling to get into their security grid. But I managed to get in and I worked on shutting it down. Once it was down, I made quick work to create a false feed of their cameras and sensors to make sure no alarms were sounded.

“Alright we’re clear,” I called over the radio, “Get to work, fellas.”

Gallows and Anderson stood guard over the van as I kept working to hide our presence from UE. We couldn’t risk any one of us on this job. The loot from this heist would help us out for several months to keep all of our businesses afloat. Since it was fall, not a lot of tourists come down to Orlando so we don’t make ridiculous amounts of money at the club and my bar doesn’t get tourists that often to begin with.

While I was working, I heard a noise off in the bushes not far from the van and I got nervous.

“Anderson, Gallows,” I poked my head out of the van, “I heard something in the bushes, can you check it out?”

“Yeah sure,” Anderson replied, “Stay in the van, Cat.”

I nodded and the pair wandered to check the brush for the source of the noise. I left the door open and had my pistol at the ready if I get ambushed with them gone. I was hard at work again when I heard the cocking of a gun. I turned around to find Roderick Strong standing at the van doors, his gun drawn on me. Before I could grab my pistol I hear the bang and I fall back from the impact of the bullet, feeling it rip through my right shoulder. I screamed out in pain as it felt like everything on the right side of my body was lit on fire.

“Cat,” I heard Gallows shout as he saw Roderick with his gun drawn. Gallows drew his pistol and put a bullet through Strong’s knee cap and got onto the radio, “Dunn, Bate, and Tonga get back to the van. We’re getting Cat out of here. She’s been shot.”

“Shit,” I heard Tama over the radio as I cried out in pain as Anderson got into action to work on stopping my bleeding, “Finn is going to kill us for this.”

I was fading in and out as we all pulled away from the UE hideout. I knew we’d have to go see the Doc to get me patched up. As we sped away onto the highway back to Orlando when I grabbed onto Anderson’s wrist.

“Call Seth,” I breathed weakly, “Tell him what happened.”

And with that, I passed out.

When I came to, I was laid up in a bed in a dimly lit basement. This meant I was at the Doc’s makeshift ER. Since we don’t want to draw attention to our line of work, we go to an off-the-books surgeon. He’s 100% neutral and works with every gang in Orlando to patch us up.

“Good you’re up,” the Doc came into view and began to check over my stitches he used to close me up, “You’re lucky you got shot where you were shot and it was a through and through.”

“How long am I going to be out of commission,” I asked him, “You can be honest with me, Shawn.”

“It’ll be a couple months of you being in a sling before I consider allowing you to go through physical therapy,” he replied, “Your overall heal time is going to be around 5-6 months. So you’ll be very limited for now.”

“Thanks,” I replied, “Are you going to give me a script for pain killers? I do not want opioids for this, just Tylenol would work for me.”

“Yeah I got you some 300 mgs of Tylenol that should do wonders,” he handed me the pill bottle, “Oh and there’s someone here to see you too. He’s been waiting for you to wake up.”

“Is it Finn,” I asked him.

“Actually no,” he replied, “It’s Seth Rollins of all people. I would have thought Finn or Drew would be here to see you when you would wake up. Do you want me to let him in?”

“Might as well,” I sighed before groaning in pain from my shoulder, “I’m sure he finally wants to talk to me after the disagreement and cyber fight we had before I went to Miami.”

[thisdiscontentedwinter]

Stella and the Wolf - Chapter 6

You can read it here on AO3, or find the Tumblr Chapter Index here. 

The way Stiles figures it, the Alpha is the heart of the problem. As long as the Alpha is out there wanting both Derek and Scott to turn into mindless killing machines, that makes the Argents a problem too. Maybe they’ll back off when the Alpha is out of the picture? Although the amount of times Derek has been shot or stabbed, that’s a big maybe. There’s not a lot of love lost there, clearly. But the Alpha is still the biggest problem. And Stiles has no idea who it is.

He keeps circling back around to Deaton, Scott’s boss at the vet clinic, because Deaton is developing this habit of just kind of being in the vicinity when werewolf shit goes down. And when he talks, he’s always saying more than his words, even if Stiles doesn’t know exactly what he’s saying. He knows something, that’s for sure.

Except…

Except Scott works with Deaton three afternoons a week, and every Saturday. So if Deaton is really the Alpha, why hasn’t he taken the opportunity to get Scott to do his evil bidding or exert his mind control or whatever the fuck it is that Alphas do, when Scott is right there? Deaton is shady as fuck, basically, but him being the Alpha doesn’t quite add up.

Stiles has always loved solving puzzles, but when literally every person in town is a potential suspect? It’s not as easy as Law and Order makes it look, is all he’s saying. Despite his best efforts, Stiles is not going to solve this in forty-five minutes plus ad breaks.

He needs to know more about the Alpha’s victims. The bus driver, and the two guys drinking in the woods… Because if the Alpha is batshit insane, why haven’t there been more killings? Why isn’t he out there in broad daylight tearing people apart?

So maybe there’s a pattern, right?

Maybe there’s an actual motive.

He really needs to get a look at Dad’s reports.

Unfortunately, Dad knows better than to bring that stuff home, and has ever since Stiles was nine, helped himself to some light reading, and then asked Dad over dinner what carnal abuse was.

So now Dad’s files stay at work, and Stiles is pretty sure the laptop he brings home is password protected to NSA levels. Which leaves him with no choice—he needs to get to Dad’s files at the station, and copy them.

Stella, of course, is happy to help. For all that she’s a tattletale whenever Stiles is keeping secrets from her, all he needs to do to buy her undying loyalty is to make her an accomplice.

“You got this, Batgirl?” he asks when they pull up at the Sheriff’s Department.

She gives him the thumbs up. “Got it!”

Nobody has ever accused Stiles of stealthiness, or even subtlety, so lucky he’s got Stella to act as a distraction. She barrels into the station talking a mile a minute—she gets that from him—and straight into the bullpen, where she finds Dad and a few of the deputies, and proceeds to spin a tale about how mean one of the boys was at school today, and how he pulled her hair. Her outrage is palpable, and she adds the icing to the cake by announcing, “And Mrs. Svensen, she was the teacher on playground duty, said that he must have done it because he likes me. But I don’t like it when he pulls my hair! It’s not fair!”

Stiles slips away into the file room.

He finds the files on the recent killings, and photographs the pages using his phone. Even the autopsy reports, although they make his stomach churn. He does the same to Laura Hale’s file—stopping once and freezing when he hears footsteps passing—and then, more on instinct than anything else, looks for the file on the Hale house fire.

It’s huge.

Three massive folders stuffed with papers, and there’s no way Stiles will be able to copy it all.

Not in the few minutes he has left, anyway.

He doesn’t allow himself a moment to second-guess what is probably a monumentally stupid thing to do. Just unzips his backpack, shoves the file inside, and zips it up again.

By the time he gets back to the bullpen, Tara is showing Stella how to stomp on a guy’s foot and knee him in the balls in one smooth movement.  

It’s sort of hot, but that’s Tara all over.

“Want to be my guinea pig, Stiles?” she asks him with a smile, fingers hooked into the utility belt hanging off her hips, and Stiles tries very hard not to think about what it would feel like with her hands touching him. Like, he’s pretty sure it’d be worth getting kneed in the balls.

He feels his face burn. “Um… I… um. What?”

“Back to work everyone!” Dad says suddenly, putting a hand on Stiles’s shoulder and steering him firmly away from his humiliating inability to speak in actual sentences right now. “So, what did you two drop in for anyway?”

Stella skips alongside them. “Stiles is taking me to the hospital, but I wanted to see you first.”

“The hospital?”

“My Reading in the Community program!”

“Oh, right,” Dad says. He looks at his watch. “What time does that finish?”

“Five,” Stiles says. Now he’s out of Tara’s sight he can apparently remember how to use his words. “I figured I’d drop her off then go to Scott’s and do some homework before I go back and collect her.”

He’s actually intending to sit in his Jeep in the parking lot and photograph the entire Hale house fire file, but why muddy the waters with truth? Then he can hopefully return it to the station before Dad notices it’s even gone. Not that Dad will notice, right? The Hale house fire was years ago. Why would anyone want to look at the file today suddenly?

Stiles ignores the snarky little voice in his head that reminds him that the obvious connection is Laura Hale, because come on, Dad’s probably already made that connection, and probably already looked over the Hale fire file again recently, and the chances that he needs to do it again in the hour that Stella is at the hospital at miniscule at best, right?

Totally.

This is fine.

Stiles is not going to get busted.

This is fine.

“Sounds good, kid,” Dad says. “I’ll see you both at home for dinner.”

Stiles and Stella escape back into the sunlight.

***

There are four other little kids waiting at the hospital with their moms when Stiles turns up. It’s always a little awkward. Stiles is pretty bad at mom talk. Usually he just slinks to the edge of a space and plays games on his phone until he can escape, but this is a pretty small crowd and it’s hard to get lost in it. Stiles figures most of Stella’s school friends know her deal, but they don’t necessarily tell their parents, because there’s always at least someone who looks at him like ‘Why is this kid here at this thing?’

And Stiles really doesn’t like explaining his life story to strangers.

He’s saved from having to do it today when Stella’s teacher arrives. “Okay, we’re all here! Let’s go and read. Parents, you can pick your kids up from here at five!”

She saves a special smile for Stiles.

Stiles likes Mrs. Lucas, but it’s weird. She’s middle-aged, and it’s weird that she was actually his teacher in elementary school too, and the one big memory he has of her is the time he had a meltdown in class because his mom was going to die, and she took him outside and hugged him and didn’t even complain that he got snot all over her blouse. It’s awkward because he sometimes wonders if that’s her one prevailing memory of him as well, and he always feels like a little kid playing dress-up when he has to interact with her for Stella’s school stuff as like Dad’s proxy.

He smiles and waves as Mrs. Lucas ushers the kids into the hospital, and then dodges the other parents and hurries back to the parking lot.

He’s got an hour to photograph every page of the Hale house fire.

He sets his alarm on his phone and gets to work.

***

“I thought you were going home after the hospital,” Dad says when Stiles and Stella turn up at the station again.

Stella bursts into tears.

She’s not pretending this time.

Stiles watches, hollow-eyed, as Dad pulls her into a hug.

“Hey, it’s okay,” Dad says, rubbing her back and looking at Stiles. “It’s okay, baby girl.”

“She got a coma patient,” Stiles says, his throat aching. “Mrs. Lucas said she was fine with it, but then we got to the car and this happened.”

Dad presses his mouth into a thin line for a moment. “Okay. You don’t need to go back next time, Stella.”

She draws back, tear-stained and affronted. “No! I want to!”

“You want to?” Dad asks, brows raising.

“Mrs. McCall says that it’s not like being asleep. He can still hear me read, so I’m going to do it again.” Her grim determination wavers. “It just makes me sad.”

Dad looks at Stiles, helpless.

Stiles shrugs. “I um, I need the bathroom.”

He’s feeling pretty close to a breakdown himself, after skimming through the Hale house fire file. He’d known, in the abstract, how bad it was. He’d even dealt with the autopsy photographs okay, since none of them looked like actual people as long as he didn’t study them too hard. But it was the other photographs that felt like a stab in the guts. Cora Hale’s yearbook photo. Talia and James Hale with their arms around one another, laughing. Patrick Hale in a little league uniform. Eight of them in total. Eight real people whose lives had been cut short in that fire.

That fire that Derek said had been started by hunters.

By the Argents.

Stiles had looked at the file and felt a chill to the core at the thought of that happening to Scott and Melissa. Happening to someone just because there are werewolves in the family.

He shuffles down the corridor toward the bathroom, taking a quick detour to replace the files in the file room.

He thinks of Derek again as he closes the door and makes his escape.

Thinks of everything that he’s lost.

Scrubs at his face before he returns to Dad and Stella, but it’s okay if Dad thinks he’s been crying too. He knows how Stiles feels when Stella gets hurt.

Dad ends up clocking out early from work.

They get pizza for dinner, because nobody feels like cooking.

They eat on the couch, Stella sandwiched in the middle.

Everything feels strange and fragile, like an itch under his skin, and Stiles hates it.

It’s not fair.

Nothing in the world is far.

Later that night when Stella and Dad are both asleep in their rooms, Stiles eases his bedroom window open, grabs the keys to the Jeep, and climbs out into the night.

Because nothing in the world is fair, and Derek shouldn’t be out there alone.

[eri-blogs-life]

So, I finally beat Final Fantasy XII for the first time. And now I shall summarize my thoughts about it, in a nearly 2000 word post.

First off, my history with this game. I bought Dragon Quest 8 when I was a kid, and that game included a demo disk for FFXII which I played a ton. I eventually was able to purchase a copy of FFXII for myself, back on the PS2. It formed part of a trifecta of big JRPGs that kinda defined the middle school era of my life - Final Fantasy XII, Dragon Quest 8, and Tales of Symphonia.

But I never did beat it back in the day. The farthest I remember getting was some big tower in the sea, which I have now in retrospect found out is the penultimate dungeon. So I was damn close when I was a kid, but never quite did finish it up totally.

I came back to it from time to time, starting up new save files and trying to push my way through to see the whole game. But it was only now, on this attempt on the Switch version of the game (the Zodiac Age version of the game) that I have finally seen the ending cutscene. To be fair, there’s a bunch of optional content like most of the espers that I never quite did get around to doing, so it’s arguable if I’ve really fully completed the game, but it’s a long experience, so eventually I settled on just pushing through the final fight so I could consider it done for now. I might come back to my save just before the final dungeon to “complete” the game some day, but not today. (I was using the 2x speed mode for most of the game, and I still have about 55 hours of playtime)

I’m gonna break down my thoughts into a few big sections here. Lets talk story first, then characters, then aesthetics, then gameplay, and then we’ll wrap it up towards the end of this very long post.

FFXII’s story is... fine, I’d say. It feels kinda... erratic at times, throwing you into some situations without really feeling like there’s much justification for that to be a part of the greater story, even if each scenario does have some small way to play into the greater story.

But I can certainly appreciate what the story seems to be inspired by. I can’t really say for certain if FFXII is meant to be a metaphor for the war in the middle east, but damn if it doesn’t feel like that’s the intended goal. The Archadian Empire really does feel like America in a lot of ways, being a “democratic” political system led by a powerful lineage who just always happens to end up in the throne for some reason, having a group of senators who serve as council and support for the emporer, but during the war the emporer claiming full command over the military. It’s not necessarily a perfect comparison, but at least to me the comparisons overall felt strong enough to at least try and interpret the game through a lens of the american war in the middle east. The game features a struggle for power with immensely powerful weapons, there’s these huge oil fields that draw natural resources up out of the ground, there’s a huge nation on the other side of the territory being claimed that could start a war with the Archadian Empire at any point in time.

And to that end it... is decent, I guess. I mean, I’m playing it so far after the events that would theoretically have inspired a lot of the game’s design, so to a large degree I’m also just looking at the game as it stands on its own and not in the cultural context it may have once held. And it’s fine. The story isn’t necessarily anything special, but it’s fine

I could talk about the big theme of the game, which I read as “should humanity be guided by gods or by our own actions?” But... I don’t know, I don’t think there’s a ton to be said about that. The game seems to posit that sometimes even those who claim to be doing things of their own free will are still doing them under the orders of another? But ultimately making your own decisions is still the best course of action, even if it ... you know what, I don’t know. I’d have to replay the game a few times and really try to process everything the game’s narrative takes on to really have a discussion on this point, so we’re gonna leave it aside for now.

So FFXII’s characters, primarily the main cast of 6 playable characters. They’re a real mixed bag, honestly. I enjoyed them, for the most part. But Vaan and Penelo are.... not great. And Ashe and Fran felt kinda bland to me at times. But Basch and Balthier are amazing.

Vaan is kinda an interesting case. He’s just some kid, a street urchin from our central city of Rabanastre, a citizen of the oppressed Dalmasca but ultimately just a guy. He’s our everyman protagonist who the player is meant to have as something of a vessel to learn about the world from someone not very traveled or well-versed in how this world is shaped. And to that end he holds up okay. But even by the end of the game, Vaan doesn’t stand up to do anything particularly unique that would make the player surrogate really something special. He gains some level of strength and stability, and I guess that does put him on a similar level to many of the other characters in the main cast by the end, but he still just feels kinda out of place, even in the end.

Penelo is like Vaan but she’s also used as a damsel in distress early on in the game. Great!

Ashe, the princess of Dalmasca, is the real main character. The story really revolves around her struggle to reclaim her kingdom, her fight for Dalmasca’s freedom from the Empire, and her decision of whether to destroy the weapons that the Empire holds or get her own weapons to rival theirs. She’s a fine character, though at times I did feel she felt kinda bland. But in a sense that actually works out really well, since she ends up as a better player surrogate than Vaan.

Fran holds some important narrative weight, using her knowledge and her unique position as one of the viera to help drive the story along at a few points and that’s great! But I feel like she kinda takes a back seat a lot of the time, mostly playing a supporting role to Balthier

Basch, the knight of Dalmasca and Lady Ashe’s protector feels like such an interesting character. And part of that is not even his fault, but rather the fact that he has a twin brother who fights for the Empire. And that slaps. Seeing the two of them confront each other at times throughout the story, or seeing how their choices differ but how each could have easily become in the other’s position, feels really strong as a narrative drive.

And Balthier. Oh, Balthier. What’s there to say about Balthier? He plays the Leading Man.

I. Love. Balthier. He’s a suave, charismatic son of a bitch and he plays such a good role in the party, providing transportation and guidance and so much more. As we find out late in the game, he’s actually from Archades, being the son of Doctor Cid, but he abandoned his name and his fame to take to the skies as a sky pirate. His constant insistence that he plays the leading man, that he’s the real center of attention in this story, just holds such a special place in my heart. He’s cocky and it’s so great. (Side note, there’s a lot about Balthier that reads to me as an unintentional trans allegory and I just loved head-canoning Balthier and Fran as this T4T trans man / trans woman couple who left their respective homes and found home in each other. It’s almost definitely not their intended purpose but boy howdy I’m gonna think it anyway cause I’m trans and desperate for something like representation)

Aesthetics. Sound and visuals, basically. FFXII is usually a pleasant game to look at and listen to, in my opinion. The soundtrack is gorgeous (and all up on Spotify~), and has been a part of my listening rotation since I first downloaded a copy of it onto my iPod Classic back in 2009.

The graphics are decent. I mean, it was a PS2 game so I guess they were good for the time? The enhanced Zodiac Age version you can pick up on modern consoles cleans up the models and makes things look overall pretty solid. No real complaints there on my part.

The visual design of the game I absolutely adore. You get these fantastic fantasy environments that, while not feeling visually consistent at all times, really tell of a beautiful world that’s something to behold. And every area you encounter - from each city, to the deserts, to the jungles, to the inside of a giant crystal - feels unique and is fascinating to look at.

And then we get to FFXII’s gameplay. FFXII is definitely an interesting one. The game uses an Active Time Battle system, much like most other Final Fantasy games, but the big unique thing in FFXII is Gambits.

Gambits work basically as programming - you can assign an If->Then statement that your character will follow as their default action if you don’t give them specific commands. So, for example, I could define for Vaan that if there is an enemy nearby with the lowest health among enemies nearby, attack that enemy. And for each character, you can assign 12 gambits that they will follow in priority order, and 3 different sets of 12 gambits each that can be swapped out. It gets wild. It’s an interesting choice of system, which allows for some weird gameplay paths. So, I relied heavily on gambits, setting up rules for how my characters should behave in combat, and mostly relied on them to follow those commands whenever possible, without giving any of my own input on-the-fly to how they should act. Which to me felt fun - I was programming out choices and seeing if they would play out successfully in combat. But the gambit system could easily be very boring for some people, since it does limit what you as the player need to actually provide input for on a moment-to-moment basis.

The other big gameplay thing I wanna touch on is the Hunts, which are one of my favorite aspects of FFXII. A huge, HUGE list of optional bosses to track down and kill? Some of which have unique little quests to take on? Sign me up! Ultimately they’re just a list of side quests you can do, but something about the structure of them as these hunts for unique monsters that lie out there somewhere in the world, that you may sometimes have to complete special objectives to even get them to appear in the first place, has always struck me as really fascinating.

( ^ nice)

So, altogether? Final Fantasy XII is... fine. It’s well put together, but it doesn’t necessarily feel like it has anything too special to stand it apart (except of course for Balthier, my beloved). It’s long, but that length doesn’t necessarily feel like it always translates to game segments that are really necessary. I enjoyed my time with it, but only up to a point. I’m not left craving any more. I enjoyed it for the first couple dozen hours in re-playing it, but eventually it got to a point where I was just so so ready to move on to something new.

[chooseywoozy]

Across the Void, Book One: Chapter 1 - Sky Captain

(NOW PLAYING AS NITTY)

The battle rages all around you. Enemy fighters zoom in and out, firing at your ship.

Nitty: How much damage have the deflector shields taken?

Your pilot, Zekei, looks down at his data screen.

Zekei: We’ve lost seventy percent of shield capacity.

Nitty: Move away from the smaller fighters! Avoid any more direct hits!

Zekei: That might not be possible. Void torpedo incoming!

You turn to Zekei to give him the order.

Nitty: Spiral dive to avoid the torpedo’s lock on us!

Zekei: On it!

The ship veers sharply away from the torpedo, drawing it off course until it collides with a Void fighter!

Nitty: Woohoo!

Zekei: Shields and ship remain intact!

The scanners beside you let out a steady beeping.

Nitty: Is that another fleet of Void fighters?

Zekei: Looks like a hundred at least. Plus a handful of battleships.

You watch as the enemy vessels appear in the bridge viewport.

Nitty: Our ship won’t last very long against those…

You take a deep breath.

Nitty: We’re out of options. We’ve got to escape while we still can.

Zekei: Leave the fight?! That’s a huge risk.

Nitty: My first priority is keeping our passenger’s safe. This is the only way to ensure their safety.

Zekei gives you a respectful nod.

Zekei: Understood. Getting us out of here.

As Zekei programs the coordinates, you reach down to switch on the hyperspeed controls… Only to see that they won’t be recharged for another hour!

Nitty: The hyperspeed is disabled!

Zekei: We’re stuck. In a few seconds, the Void will blow us apart…

The ominous red lights on the Void ships flicker as you stare out into the darkness, mind racing for a solution.

Nitty: Wait… if we turn off the life support system, we could boost the engines enough to activate hyperspeed!

Zekei: you want to turn off life support?!

Nitty: It’ll only be for an instant. And you said it yourself, we’ll die if we just sit here!

Zekei: I… I don’t know…

Nitty: This will work. Trust me, Zekei.

Zekei: Okay… Shutting down now.

He reaches out a shaky hand… then switches off the life support.

Zekei: It worked! Hyperspeed’s online and ready when you are!

Nitty: Initiating hyperspeed in three… two… one!

The moment you press the button, lights flood the room… and the simulation vanishes! Zekei stands up, shaking nervous energy from his arms.

Zekei: I can’t believe we’re done!

You let out a hoot in excitement.

Nitty: Woo! We did it! We finished our Captain’s Exams!

Zekei: I’m in shock that you found a way to bypass the disabled hyperspeed. I’ve never heard of something like that!

Nitty: Hopefully it was the kind of unusual that’ll get me hired for my creativity, not punished for breaking the rules.

Zekei bites his lips nervously as the recruiters start filing into the room.

Nitty: Relax, Zekei. You’ve been talking about getting a job keeping the galaxy safe ever since we were kids. The Vanguard will hire you as a Marshall. Trust me.

Zekei: You’re right. We can do this.

He takes a deep breath.

Zekei: I’ll go talk to those Vanguard recruiters, while you meet with those luxury transport line owners over there.

Nitty: Next time you see me, I’ll be the captain of the biggest luxury transport ship here.

You start walking over to where the most well-known recruiters are, but a muscular Celd blocks your path.

Hostile Celd: You’re the one who shut off the life support on her ship, aren’t you?

Nitty: That’s me… Uh… I tried my best?

Hostile Celd: Let me give you a tip. You could use some advice from an expert. Life support reboot sequences are notoriously glitchy. The process can take hours. A stunt like that could’ve killed everyone on board.

Nitty: Or saved them.

Hostile Celd: Whatever you say. Good luck getting a job… I know I wouldn’t hire you aboard one of my cargo vessels.

Nitty: I don’t want the kind of job you’re offering anyway. I’m looking for a respected job captaining a luxury transport ship.

The Celd scoffs.

Hostile Celd: You want to work on a ship lugging snobby socialites across the galaxy as they lounge around sipping cocktails?

Nitty: Not everyone smuggles their passengers in cramped cargo crates. Some of us prefer comfortable, legal travel accommodations.

Hostile Celd: I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but there’s a war going on out there. It’s the reason the Captain’s Exam now includes a combat simulation. And before the Vanguard can extinguish those filthy Jura, those fancy ships you worship will be nothing more than target practise.

With a sneer, he spits at your feet, then storms away. A second later, Zekei runs up.

Zekei: Nitty, is everything okay? Was the Celd upsetting you?

Nitty: It was nothing. Just a bully with too much time on his hands.

Zekei: I’m sorry you had to deal with that.

As you look more closely at Zekei, you notice that he’s having a hard time keeping a straight face.

Nitty: You’re hiding something.

Zekei: How do you always know?

Nitty: Whenever you jiggle your knee like that, I know you’ve got good news.

Zekei: You got me. I’ve been offered a job as a Marshall!

Nitty: That’s fantastic!

You throw your arms around him and laugh merrily.

Nitty: I’m so proud of you!

Zekei: Thanks, Nitty. I couldn’t have done it without you by my side. You were always there for me when I started to doubt myself.

He gives you another squeeze before letting you go.

Zekei: They want me to meet with them.

His smile falters as he looks around, and sees that you’re the only student left waiting to be recruited.

Zekei: Do you want me to--

Nitty: Go on. I’ll be fine You don’t want to be late for your new job.

Zekei: I’ll meet you outside after, and you can tell me all about how you snagged your dream job.

Zekei hurries over to where the Marshalls are waiting for him. The moment his back is turned, you let your smile fade.

Nitty: Do you think I ruined my shot, Vee?

Vee lets out a shocked beep from where she always hovers, just beside your shoulder.

Vee: Never! Don’t give up Nitty!

Nitty: I shouldn’t--

Before you can finish your thought, Vee starts beeping excitedly.

Vee: Major Hottie Alert! I might have to shut down my circuits cause he’s approaching with a determined and sexy stride!

You follow her faze and see a tall, graceful Dynamas heading straight towards you. His deep voice calls out your name.

Stranger: Nitty Elara.

Nitty: Yes?

Sol: My name is Sol. I’m the First Officer aboard a Gemini Class luxury transport ship owned by Artemis Enterprises.

Nitty: Nice to meet you, Sol. I’ve done a lot of research on luxury transport lines, but I’m not familiar with yours.

Sol seems momentarily flustered. He stumbles over his words as he tries to recover from being caught off guard.

Sol: Oh, um… I suppose we have a tendency to keep to ourselves. The company itself is rather small. Anyway… if you will follow me, I have a proposition for you.

Nitty: Is this a romantic proposition?

Sol: Oh… no.

His cheeks blush a neon pink.

Sol: This is more of a business proposition.

Nitty: If you insist.

Sol leads you over to the now empty recruiter area, where a single Orcana sits with her hands poised over her lap.

Sol: Nitty, let me introduce you to the owner of Artemis Enterprises, and my employer, Artemis.

Artemis: Nitty! A pleasure. I watched your Captain’s Exam. You are precisely the kind of Captain I want working for me.

Nitty: Really? I was starting to worry--

Artemis: No need to be modest. You are a luxury transport owner’s dream. You came up with creative solutions to stay out of trouble.

Sol: She also proved that she could react quickly and effectively to an attack. I noted her response time in my files.

Artemis: My finest pilots couldn’t have done it better. You’d be surprised how many captains don’t have the same knack for avoiding trouble as you do. Especially my last captain.

Nitty: Did something happen to them?

Artemis: Never mind that. His mistakes is your gain! One of my prized ships, the Atlas, now needs a captain.

Nitty: Well, I think I’d be a great fit--

Artemis: The job is yours! You start tomorrow. Meet me at the hangar bay at dawn. The Atlas will depart as soon as you arrive.

Nitty: I’ll get to captain one of your ships? Thank you for this opportunity. I won’t let you down.

Artemis: That’s what I like to hear.

Nitty: I’m truly honored.

Sol looks up from the screen he’s hurriedly been typing away on.

Sol: I just sent the paperwork over to you, Nitty. Please look it over, and have it back to us before tomorrow.

Nitty: Got it. Is there anything else I need to do?

Artemis: Yes. Try to wear something that makes the passengers respect you. I’d hate for our more spirited guests not to take you seriously.

Artemis rises and strides away in one elegant motion with Sol effortlessly falling into step alongside her.

After you’ve finished filling out the paperwork, you step out onto the bustling city streets of the space station. You scan the crowd for Zekei.

Vee: Nitty! I see him! And he’s looking goooood. Like a tall glass of Starberry Julep!

Nitty: You say that every time you see him, Vee.

Vee: And every time it’s true!

Zekei sees you and smiles brightly as you walk over. You quickly fill him in on what happened.

Zekei: Congratulations, Nitty! Or should I call you Captain now?

Nitty: Hm… I wouldn’t mind you calling me Captain.

You shoot Zekei a mischievous smile.

Zekei: Yes, Captain.

Nitty: That’s more like it.

Zekei falls into step beside you as you start walking toward your favorite local bar.

Nitty: How’d your meeting with the Vanguard go?

Zekei: Good, I think. Though I was too nervous to form a semi-intelligent sentence.

He glances around the dome of the station, a nostalgic look on his face.

Zekei: I know we’ve spent so much time dreaming of getting off the station… but I’m going to miss this place, you know?

Nitty: Yeah… Will you miss me?

Zekei: The thought of not seeing you every day… it makes my heart ache.

Nitty: I’ll comm you so often, you’ll get sick of me.

Zekei: I don’t think that’s possible.

Ships fly over your head as you cross the street, buzzing as they zoom back and forth.

Nitty: This is it, Zekei. I’m finally going to be a captain of my own luxury transport ship. I’ll get to see the universe and help others while I do it.

Zekei: Plus, I’m sure you won’t be too broken up about leaving your siblings behind.

Nitty: Are you kidding? I’m ecstatic. I don’t think I can handle another day listening to them argue, and they’re on a different station. My job as a mediator will finally be over.

Zekei laughs as he holds open the door to the bar for you.

Zekei: Don’t worry, soon it’ll be smooth sailing light-years away from their meddling.

You step into the lively bar, and find yourself instantly lifted to your feet by the anti-gravity dancefloor.

Nitty: I’ll grab the celebratory drinks, while you go snag a seat.

Zekei: Good plan. I’ll get us one of the booths over there.

You fly over to the other side of the bar. As you land near the counter to place your order, the bartender sets down a drink in front of you.

Bartender: Compliments of the Apri over there.

You turn your head to see who sent you the drink, and find an Apri with bright eyes staring at you from across the room.

Vee: Ooh! I’m already intrigued! She’s a knockout!

The Apri walks over to you with a tentative smile.

Stranger: Hi there. I saw you come in… I hope you don’t mind I bought you a drink.

Nitty: I’d accept anything from you. You’re stunning.

The Apri’s face flushes a rosy pink.

Stranger: So are you.

Nitty: What’s your name?

Before she can answer, someone grabs your arm!

Nitty: Hey!

You turn to find… your brother, Eos.

Eos: Nitty!

You glance back at the Apri, but she has mysteriously disappeared.

Nitty: Eos?! What are you doing here?

Eos: I’m here to celebrate your new job as a Captain! And Zekei joining the Vanguard!

Nitty: You already know? I’m so glad you came to support me! I can’t believe my dream of being a captain is finally coming true.

Eos: You should be ecstatic! This is an amazing accomplishment. I wanted to see you in person to tell you how proud of you I am. Not everyone gets as lucky as you and lands a job as captain fresh out of their exam!

Nitty: That’s called skill, not luck.

Eos: You were a little unconventional… When I took my exam, I flew into the battle instead of away from it. But that’s why I got offered a job as a Marshall protecting the galaxy.

You roll your eyes.

Nitty: Uh-huh. We can’t all be as brave as you, Eos.

Eos follows you to the booth, where Zekei is waiting for you. Your brother flashes him a lopsided grin.

Eos: Speaking of defending the galaxy! Zekei, do you know who your partner is going to be yet?

As Eos speaks, he slings his arm around Zekei’s shoulders and gives him a friendly squeeze. Zekei takes a quick sip of his drink to try to hide how his face flushes.

Zekei: Uh, no. I haven’t been assigned one yet.

Eos: Really? That’s interesting…

A hand touches your back suddenly, and before you can react, arms wrap around you in a tight hug.

Pax: Nitty! Congratulations on making Captain!

You pull away, shocked to see your little sister standing before you.

Nitty: Pax?! What are you doing here?

Pax: I hacked into the feed from your exam and saw the whole thing. It was stellar!

Nitty: You watched my exam? It’s so sweet of you to support me! This is a huge moment for me. It means a lot that you wanted to be a part of that.

Pax: Aw, you’re making me tear up. Wouldn’t have missed it.

Eos steps closer to Pax, and she immediately straightens her posture.

Eos: You can’t just hack into the Captain’s Exam, Pax. There are protocols in place to stop that kind of behaviour.

Pax: Not everyone can follow the rules as blindly as you do, big brother.

Zekei takes a swig of his drink, then whispers in your ear.

Zekei: I’m going to head out. I know by now that once Eos and Pax start arguing, it’s time to call it a night. I hate to leave you stuck with them though.

Nitty: I’ll be okay. I’m used to their bickering. Meet me by the cadet quarters in about an hour.

Zekei: Will do. I’ll need you to help me calm my nerves before my first day. Good luck, Nitty.

Nitty: Thanks, I’m going to need it.

As Zekei walks away, you turn back to your siblings.

Pax: You should tell your Marshall buddies to get a life and stop throwing me in jail.

Eos: Maybe if you focused more on your engineering career, I wouldn’t have to spend my time bailing you out.

You jump in to try to redirect the conversation.

Nitty: I forgot to mention what my first destination as Captain will be! The ship is traveling to Matara!

Pax: Oooh! The Capital planet! How glamorous!

Eos draws his eyebrows together thoughtfully.

Eos: It’s a long journey to Matara… that is, if you intend on taking a safe route through space.

Nitty: The First Officer sent me the ship’s itinerary already. We’ll be traveling along the Cassiopeia route.

Eos: The Cassiopeia route?1 That’s right alongside a war zone! The only ships that travel near there are Jura and Vanguard battleships! You’ll be in charge of a ship full of high class passengers who paid for the best travel experience money can buy. How do you plan on keeping them happy while dodging in and out of enemy fire?

Nitty: We’ll never be in the war zone. It’s far enough away. I’ll be perfectly safe. You worry too much.

Eos: I’m your big brother. That’s my job.

Pax sets down her drink, linking her elbows with you and Eos.

Pax: Enough talking. Let’s dance! It’s Nitty’s big night!

Your sister pulls you out to the zero gravity dance floor. As she lets go, you float up into the air. Your limbs rise up, and your body rotates under the changing neon lights as you give into the feeling of weightlessness.

Nitty: It’s about time we celebrated.

Eos: As long as Pax doesn’t make us do the routine she invented when we were kids.

Pax: I totally forgot about the infamous Antimatter Arc! Now we have to do it!

Eos groans loudly as you laugh.

Nitty: You’re the one who brought it up, brother.

Eos: You’re right. I have only myself to blame.

Pax: Come on, you know you love it. Now line up!

You fly in between Pax and Eos, with her on your right side and him on your left.

Pax: Remember how it goes? First I’ll tumble over Nitty’s back, then she’ll flip over Eos’s back.

Nitty: Right. Then we finish with a group somersault!

Eos: It’s all coming back to me now. Let’s get this over with.

Pax uses the zero gravity to roll over your back and jump up into the air, then you gracefully use your momentum to twist over Eos and leap into the air!

Nitty: Woo!

Eos launches himself up into position, so the three of you are hovering in a circle.

Pax: Time for the big finale!

In unison, you each roll outward in perfect somersaults!

Eos: Yeehaw!

Nitty: We did it--

Before you can finish, your foot hits a large Celd in the chest… the same Celd from your exam!

Hostile Celd: Oof!

Nitty: Uh oh!

The Celd roars loudly in anger.

Hostile Celd: I remember you! You think you can hit me as payback for calling you out at your Captain’s Exam?!

Nitty: I didn’t mean to hit you. I’m really sorry! I swear it was an accident!

Hostile Celd: You must think I’m stupid to believe that!

Pax whirls over to move between you and the Celd. Her petite frame is nearly a third of the size of him.

Pax: You need to back off. That’s my sister you’re talking to.

Hostile Celd: That’s funny, all I see is a coward who’d flee from a fight.

He spits the last part in your direction. Pax is about to retort when Eos floats over to gently guide her away. He then addresses the Celd authoritatively.

Eos: Take it easy. I’m a Vanguard Marshall. We can all walk away peacefully.

You’ve just turned away when you hear Pax shout…

Pax: Nitty, watch out!

Out of the corner of your eye, you see the Celd’s fist flying toward you! You bend backward… and watch as the Celd’s arm swings through the air harmlessly.

Nitty: Missed me.

Hostile Celd: Let’s see you be clever when there’s no life support system for you to cut.

Pax launches herself at the Celd as she lets out a battlecry.

Pax: Get your grubby hands away from her!

The Celd growls and rips Pax off of him, his fingernails drawing blood.

Hostile Celd: Pathetic gutter rat!

Pax screams as the Celd flings her into a group of nearby dancers.

Pax: Aaaah!

You rush to your sister’s side.

Nitty: Pax! Are you okay?

As you untangle Pax from the frightened patrons, Eos throws his body into the Celd, sending him flying!

Hostile Celd: Arrghh! What happened to walking away peacefully?

The Celd tries to kick your brother as Eos approaches, but Eos catches the Celd’s leg and flings him into the glass window!

Eos: You went after my siblings. Peace is going out the window… and so are you!

You speed through the air, rushing to help Eos as he dodges the Celd’s punches.

Eos: Nitty! Hold down his left wrist while I get cuffs on him!

Eos removes a pair of cuffs from his Marshall belt, and clamps them down on the Celd’s right wrist. You grab the Celd’s left wrist and hold it still as Eos slaps the cuff on it!

Eos: Nice work! You’ve got Marshall quick reflexes.

Nitty: Thanks! Do I get a citizen’s arrest badge?

Eos: Sorry, we only give those out to kids.

Instead of giving up, the Celd pumps his cuffed arms into the glass wall of the dome!

Hostile Celd: Raarg!

Eos: Stand down, now! Backup is on the way. I suggest you don’t make this any more difficult for yourself.

Hostile Celd: I’ll tear this whole place apart if it means taking you down with me!

He pounds on the glass again with his exceptional strength. A tremor ripples through the room!

Hostile Celd: Let’s see how you handle a real life situation outside of the simulation room!

Nitty: That doesn’t look good.

Eos: What should we do? If that glass cracks, this whole space station will collapse!

The bar shakes again as you frantically search the room for some kind of solution.

Nitty: I’ve got it! Pax, disable the zero gravity controls!

Pax: Good thinking, sis!

Down below, Pax somersaults over to the zero gravity panel.

Pax: This will just take a sec…

As the Celd bangs on the glass, Pax’s fingers speed over the controls.

Nitty: Pax, hurry!

Pax: I need everybody to get off the dancefloor this instant!

The other dancers scream and fly over to the booths on the far side.

Pax: Cutting the power!

You, Eos, and the Celd drop suddenly toward the ground… Eos crashing directly on top of the Celd, while you fall directly on Pax!

Hostile Celd: Ugggh,,,

Nitty: Acck!

Pax: Oof!

Eos drags the Celd to his feet as a group of Marshalls swarns inside to retrieve the rabble rouser.

Hostile Celd: Get your filthy hands off me!

You stand up, then help your sister.

Nitty: Nice going with those controls, Pax! How’d you know the Celd wouldn’t land on Eos?

Pax: Uh… wishful thinking?

Eos shoots Pax a glare, then glances around at the mess left in the wake of the brawl.

Eos: Since I’ve avoided being crushes, I’m going to go give the bartender a tip for cleaning this up.

As Eos head over to the other side of the bar, you step outside with Pax.

Pax: Nothing like surviving a good bar fight to make you feel alive.

Nitty: Instead of getting in bar fights every night, you should be using your engineering talents for noble causes. I mean, you hacked into that zero gravity system like it was nothing. Think of all the good you could do, Pax.

Pax: I don’t get into bar fights every night. Sometimes it’s a street fight… or a spirited arm wrestle.

Nitty: I’m not kidding around. Listen… It’s great that you always stand up for others. I know you want to do the right thing. That’s admirable, but you don’t always get to decide what that is.

Pax: I don’t always think I’m right…

You shoot a sideways glance at your sister.

Nitty: Uh huh.

Pax: Okay, maybe I do.

Nitty: My point is, you should spend time doing what’s best for you, and quit acting on impulse. You can’t take on the whole galaxy.

She flashes you a playful smile.

Pax: You say that like it’s easy to quit being such a stellar galactic hero. You’re right. Something has to change. I promise, Nitty, from here on out, I’m going to turn things around.

Nitty: I hope for your sake that’s true.

You and Pax have crossed to the other side of the street when you hear footsteps behind you.

Eos: Wait up! Nitty, you can’t leave the station without saying goodbye to your big brother.

Nitty: I guess I don’t have a choice.

Pax: Oh right! I didn’t even think about how we weren’t going to see you for a while! What’ll we do without you?

Nitty: Without me, maybe you’ll learn to get along. Now’s your chance to get closer!

Your siblings look at each other uncertainly.

Pax: ...Um, great?

You reach the crossroads on the other side of the street.

Nitty: Well, I guess this is goodbye.

Pax throws her arms around you, standing on the tips of her toes to reach your neck.

Pax: I’ll miss you, sis.

Eos: Maybe we’ll see each other sooner than you think.

You let out a startled chuckle.

Nitty: No offense, brother, but I hope not. I’m ready for a fresh start.

After you’ve finished saying goodbye to both of them, you head down the street to meet Zekei in front of the cadet quarters.

Zekei: I didn’t think you’d ever get away from them.

Nitty: Me neither. How should I celebrate my newfound freedom?

Zekei: I was hoping you would want to come lay out on the top of the dome with me.

Nitty: You want to stare up at the stars together one last time?

He casts his eyes down for a second.

Zekei: There’s nothing I’ll miss more than the hours we used to spend up there together. So, what do you think?

Nitty: Let’s go.

Zekei: Lead the way.

After climbing up the stairs to the top of dome, you step out onto the glass beneath the air shield.

Nitty: I’ll never get tired of this.

Zekei smiles and lays down for a better view of the stars.

Zekei: It’s so peaceful out here.

You start to bend down beside him… As you lie down, you place your feet over his, the bare skin around your ankles touching his.

Zekei: This is nice.

Nitty: It’s surprisingly cosy.

Overhead, a shooting sky darts across the dark sky.

Zekei: I can’t believe this is the last time we’ll be up here.

Nitty: I know. I can barely remember when we started doing this. But think of how far we’ve come. We used to lie here dreaming of the future.

Zekei: You swore you’d be a captain someday.

Nitty: And you vowed to become a Marshall.

He turns his head to look at you.

Zekei: We should set a new goal. Something to work toward.

Nitty: Let’s promise to come back here together one day. That way, no matter how far apart we get, this place will always be our place.

Zekei: We’ll always find a way back to each other.

Nitty: I wouldn’t want it any other way.

Zekei: Neither would I.

A large, sleek spaceship rumbles as it flies above.

Nitty: Soon I’ll be up in something like that. Can you believe how long it’s been since we left Cyber?

Zekei: It feels like a lifetime ago that we packed up everything to come here. I was terrified. The only thing that kept me from turning around and going home was having you beside me.

Nitty: I couldn’t have been happier to leave all of it behind. Especially my siblings.

Zekei: I know Pax and Eos drive you crazy… but the three of you have always been like family to me. When they showed up on the station today after all this time apart, I was glad to see them again. I’d really missed them.

Nitty: I bet you missed Eos’ charm. I swear he gets out of almost any situation when he flashes his smile.

Zekei: We’re lucky he doesn’t use it for evil. Friends like Eos and Pax don’t come along every day. They’re the only ones who’ve literally taken a hit while defending me before.

Nitty: What?! Why have I never heard this story?

Zekei: i guess I was embarrassed, You and I must’ve been about ten. There was this group of kids who’d pick on me on my way home from your house every day.

Nitty: Zekei, you should’ve told me. That’s terrible.

He shrugs, trying to brush it off as nothing.

Zekei: It was typical stuff. They’d make fun of me for wanting to be a Marshall. Say that a Technical Cyber could never become a Community Cyber.

Nitty: I know Pax was told the reverse. She always hated that. Especially since she hates when anyone tries to tell her what to do.

Zekei: I think it’s part of what brought me closer to Pax. You and I were best friends, and Eos and I shared the desire to become Marshalls. But with Pax, we  both felt like outcasts.

Nitty: So what happened that day?

Zekei: I’d gotten one of those Marshall badge stickers they give kids. The oldest bully came over and tore it right off me, then shoved me to the ground and let the other kids kick me. Eos and Pax came running out of the house screaming at them. Pax jumped on the back of the kid who’d shoved me and started punching him, while Eos stopped the other kids from attacking me.

Nitty: Were you okay?

Zekei: A few bruises. Pax and Eos kept fighting until the bullies ran away screaming. Eos helped me up off the ground and said I’d never have to worry about those kids again. And I never did. Not once.

Nitty: I never knew they did that for you. I guess I can’t say Eos and Pax were never there for us. Even though, in my case, it was mostly when I didn’t want them to be.

Zekei lets out a gentle chuckle.

Zekei: Were you glad to see them today? To say goodbye?

Nitty: Yes. Despite everything I love them. They’re my family. I know they mean well. Even if it doesn’t feel that way most of the time.

He nudges your shoulder with his teasingly.

Zekei: Nice of you to give them points for effort.

You spread your arms out to encompass the vastness of space.

Nitty: Once we’re out on our own in the galaxy, all of this will be a million light-years away.

Zekei: I’m really glad you came up here with me tonight.

Nitty: Me too. This was the perfect way to say goodbye to all this.

He tilts his head to catch a glimpse of a passing comet… You scoot closer, resting your head on his shoulder. You feel his smile as he leans his cheek against your hair.

Zekei: I could stay like this forever.

Nitty: We’ve got too much ahead of us to stand still.

Zekei: I’ll try to remember that when I’m missing you.

As you gaze up at the comet streaking across the sky, you find yourself anxious to be flying among the stars.

The next morning, you take one last look at the city streets as you head over to the entrance to the lift.

Nitty: This is it, Vee. My first day as Captain.

Vee: The galaxy better be ready because you’re going to be the best captain ever!

As you chuckle, you see Zekei striding towards you in his new Marshall uniform.

Zekei: I can’t believe I finally get to wear one of these uniforms.

He tries to smooth down the front of his shirt, but his hands are shaking too much. His expression wavers as he glances back up at you.

Zekei: Do I look okay? I’m worried I don’t look the part.

Nitty: You look gooooood. You’re one dapper Cyber.

Zekei’s face turns bright red.

Zekei: I don’tknow about that… but thanks. It’s probably just the uniform.

Nitty: You’re the one making that uniform look handsome.

As you step into the lift headed to the outskirts of the space station, Vee perks up at the mention of clothes.

Vee: Ooh! Nitty! I made something for you!

Nitty: You did?

You lean toward Zekei conspiritorially.

Nitty: Back in a minute, Vee’s in full fashion mode.

Zekei: Have fun. I know how passionate she can get.

The walls of your virtual closet spring up around you as Vee twirls back and forth in excitement.

Vee: I made a captain’s hat for you! I even put the symbol of your new ship, the Atlas, on it!

You wink at yourself in the mirror.

Nitty: I was made to wear this.

Vee: I also virtually designed a uniform fit for a luxury transport ship captain! If you like it, we can make it for you! If you look the part, the crew and passengers will have no choice but to welcome you with open arms! I’ll have to shut down your closet to recharge for a while after this, so act now! … Eeeeek! You look so commanding! Like a real captain!

Nitty: That’s good, since I am a real captain.

The virtual closet dissolves, leaving you standing on the landing platform as the lift zooms to a stop.

Nitty: All set. Wish me luck on my first day.

Zekei looks your new ensemble up and down.

Zekei: In that outfit, everyone will follow your orders. I know I would.

Nitty: That’s what I’m hoping for.

Zekei: I expect to hear everything about your first day. Even the boring stuff.

He starts walking across the platform.

Zekei: Come on, I’ll walk with you to your ship. Then I’ve got to hurry over to 24A before my nerves get the better of me.

You stop mid-step to stare at him.

Nitty: Wait… the Atlas is docked at 24A.

Zekei: That’s right, the Atlas. The Senior Marshall I’m partnering with wants me to report to him on board.

You hear the sound of your brother chuckling behind you.

Eos; Yes, I do. I pulled a few strings and got Zekei assigned as my partner. Then I pulled a few more to get us assigned to the Atlas. This way I can keep my little sister safe, and the gang is all back together.

Nitty: Eos--

Before you can finish your thought, Pax appears and throws her arms around you and Eos.

Pax: It’s not a reunion without me! I snagged the Chief Engineering job aboard the Atlast!

Nitty: Pax?!

Artemis appears up ahead, waving you over to her.

Artemis: Nitty, over here!

As you leave, you hear your siblings begin to bicker, and Zekei attempting to mediate. You quickly collect yourself to face your new boss.

Nitty: Good morning, Artemis. It’s good to see you.

Artemis: We’re on limited time here, Nitty. Are you ready to see your ship?

Nitty: Yes! I’ve been waiting for this moment my whole life. I feel like everything has been leading me to this.

Artemis: That’s exactly how I felt when I captained my first ship.

As you step onto platform 24A, Artemis sweeps her hand out with a smile.

Artemis: Nitty, this is the Atlas.

Thoughts on the episode…

Okay, so… first off the music is incredible. Especially in the diamond scene with Zekei, it was giving me goosebumps! It’s great that Pixelberry are more able to create more music for individual stories now.

The LI in this story so far are… eh. I’m hoping we meet some more in chapter two. Zekei feels too much like a friend even when I chose the romantic options. Sol was cute, but also I don’t trust Artemis so I feel like by extension I don’t trust him all that much. The girl at the bar was hot, actually. So maybe her?

I really like Eos and Pax actually. The only time when I thought they were actually as invasive as MC makes out is right at the end when they suddenly all turned up with jobs on the Atlas to keep an eye on us. How the hell did Pax get a job as the Chief Engineer when she’s apparently nothing but trouble? She might be skilled but if she’s always getting into fights, it doesn’t really scream professional.

Vee needs to go into the bin. Such an unnecessary addition to the whole story… do we really need a cute little sidekick that, at it’s base level, is just a horny wardrobe? There are other ways to relieve the tension.

Fave Character of the Chapter: Pax

Least Fave Character of the Chapter: Vee

[commhunter736]

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Ultimately, this plot has been done to death so many times on so many cop dramas that it's difficult to get engaged. This is just the beginning of where the game goes downhill. Obviously, high production values went into this game, but as is so often the case lately, they missed the mark in some very key areas. The controls for one. Amd display driver whql 8.10. I have rarely seen a more convoluted control system for PC.

I'll be the first to admit that this was originally for console, but it seems that barely a token effort was made to translate the commands to a keyboard layout. My fingers got a workout hopping all over the keyboard for the numerous and poorly constructed commands. If you're thinking that a gamepad might fix all this, nix that idea too. My Logitech PS2 Styled PC gamepad looked like a perfect match for this game, alas it was barely configurable and did not coordinate to the multiple styles of game play, you could set it up for driving, but not running, or vice versa, but its limitations soon had me back on the keyboard.

After I had adapted to the controls somewhat, the physics had me somewhat at a loss. Keeping in mind that this is not a driving simulation, at its core, I don't expect much more than doughy arcade style driving. Labtec speakers drivers download. But nothing handled as I expected, the cars were sloppy, sometimes you lightly skidded off the front end of a fire truck, other times being brushed by a motorcycle had you recoiling and turning 360's while your perpetrator was getting further and further away. The fighting system was convoluted as well, with a light attack, a heavy attack, a grab attack that was also the way to frisk people, which is also the button to arrest people, plus the buttons to put away your gun, pull it back out, fire a warning shot, flash your badge, tackle someone, all while trying to keep the squirrelly camera centered behind you (which it rarely does well).

In the graphics department there were glitches, clipping into walls, as well as criminals falling through solid concrete and waiting in the ether for you to attempt, in vain, to arrest them. At one point I was forced to kill a non-lethal perp by shooting him in the foot, just to end the mission. Top this off with some frame lag and a whack targeting system, and you can sense my mounting frustration. You'll often find yourself tackling air, punching civilians and firing point blank at walls. There were also numerous points where the textures for multiple guns seems to be missing, and your Uzi,s or pistol would appear as a white textureless shape.

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In a GTA-styled attempt to test the limits of my virtual city, I shot an arsonist, grabbed his flamethrower and took out 30 people before highjacking a public bus and driving over half the residents of the Lower East Side. I finished up with some cop killing. reckless driving and traffic accidents. I was being hunted by every cop in the city and identified as a rogue cop who was 'mentally unstable,' according to the radio. Assured of my own impending death, I ran to and fro waiting for the inevitable. Which never came. I made a break through the park and dived into the bay and swam around for 2-3 minutes. Upon returning to shore my 'criminal' rating had gone back down and I was back to being boy hero. Realism indeed. In another game glitch, I began a mission to follow a motorcycle courier on a bike of my own for an exciting chase, but after trying 20 times to follow him, he wrecked within two blocks almost every time. Finally I just tracked him down on foot after he fell and interrogated him, wondering why I even got on the motorcycle. It's this kind of unfinished and unpolished gameplay that brings this gaming experience to its knees. I couldn't bring myself to care about the characters, the city, the law; nothing in this game draws you in efficiently enough to make you want to finish it.

The controls need work, the engine needs work, the collision detection needs work, the AI needs serious work, all in all I wouldn't be surprised if you told me this was a beta. A brief look at the customer support page for Activision also shows that numerous glitches and problems were had by users of all consoles. Overall, a well-presented, high-budget flop. Advanced systemcare ultimate 7 crack. The world doesn't ever need another World War 2 game but developers keep making them, which I guess is the same reason they keep trying to capitalize on the awesome profits of Grand Theft Auto. But a bigger budget does not make a better game.

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