#to be appendages of some sort similar to arms or wings

[front-facing-pokemon]

[scattered-irises]

The Spare and the Heir

This was written before the companion analysis paper but I had to type it up from its handwritten version.

Rating: General

Word Count: 1880

Characters: Christopher Arclight, Thomas Arclight

Warnings: Angst

Summary: After the World Duel Carnival, Thomas comes back to their childhood home to reflect.

Once upon a time, there were two brothers. The oldest was raised with the highest of expectations. The finest tutors money could hire. The finest clothes tailored for his alabaster skin. From the moment he was born, the world was promised to him. Gazed upon with hope and admiration, the heir held the future in his hands. 

In his shadow was the spare, educated and clothed in a similar manner, yet held only an inkling of hope in his dark hands. The spare was a dubious being, only allowed to carry on his father’s name over the corpse of his older brother. While the heir lived, the spare picked at what the heir left behind, his fate no better than that of a carrion-crow. 

It had been tradition for centuries. 

Thomas knows this. Feels it in his bones, all the way to the marrow. The walls in their childhood home know this, banishing away all covetous aunts and uncles into the depths of oblivion. The wallpaper closes in on him as he walks down the halls alone, counting down the time he has left as a guest. Someday, he will be the shadowy Uncle Thomas, seen only on television and the austere holiday gatherings he knows Christopher will fetishistically uphold. 

If things between them don’t improve, Christopher will paint him as the convenient villain for his children. Behave, or else I’ll give away our estate to Uncle Thomas and his frightful children, warns the future Christopher to his own white-haired, blue-eyes offspring. Thomas scoffs. The perfect covetous spare and the righteous heir. 

It’s an archaic tradition, child mortality now an extremely rare occurrence. Of course, accidents are always bound to occur, but with the way Christopher lives, the most likely accident he’d have was being crushed to death by a heavy bookshelf. Or, he’d be sucked into a portal at the lab and disappear forever. Thomas didn’t really trust the latter, knowing how his father ended up returning. For all he knew, he could be sitting in the Arclight estate one day and a monstrous Christopher, armed with fifty tentacles and wings could show up at his door and demand the return of his birthright. 

Thomas should be kind though. 

Christopher couldn’t help his sedentary lifestyle. He had been encouraged to remain indoors growing up, lest a stranger snatched him away. The housestaff always had plenty of Arclight relatives to turn into monsters. Their father, with his penchant for drama, wasn’t particularly helpful in this regard either. Such childhood fears have calcified in Christopher’s being. His brother is content with his lifestyle of books and fortified walls, supposedly. Until Thomas remembers the pleading and begging his brother did to accompany their father on his adventures. Maybe Christopher did enjoy a little outing every once in a while. 

While Thomas…Thomas was quite free from the beginning. After his lessons alongside Christopher, he would always run outside and play with the dog. Sometimes, he’d even slip out the gates to play with the housestaff’s children. They would get in all sorts of mischief not befitting an Arclight, but Thomas never cared. Around those children, he was their equal, not some maligned appendage to his brother. 

Christopher never deigned to play with the children, preferring his books over any friends. He had derided the children as filthy and rowdy. The children had seen him as a haughty bore. Once, Thomas even saw Christopher glaring at him through the windows as he played marco polo with the chef’s son. At that time, he had thought he was being too loud. Now, he suspects that Christopher had been envious of Thomas’ freedom beneath the sun. 

Thomas opens the door to the ballroom and breathes in the cold, dusty air. The white marble staircase is covered in dust. The banister covers his sleeve in a light coating of gray as he descends. There is a draft blowing from somewhere. It’s a cavern of a room, every slight movement echoing throughout the dusty walls. The house seems to creak in displeasure, admonishing Thomas for coming to a place outside of his domain. After all, it was the heir’s duty to host parties.

Although their father attempted to treat his sons equally, he could always sense that Christopher was their father’s preferred son. Either that or the baby, Michael. Not exactly a spare, Michael was simply there. There were no rigid expectations for him, his future open and wide. With his sweet smile and gentle nature, the housestaff constantly indulged him in ways both Christopher and Thomas frowned at. Michael had often been allowed to skip his lessons and go to the museum instead, much to the brothers’ chagrin. 

There was a reason why he was two grades behind. 

Thomas will never admit it, but he knows that both him and Christopher were often envious of Michael. What was it like to live without rigid future expectations? The taste of freedom must have been intoxicating. 

Sometimes, Thomas wonders if Michael was the spare to the spare. If something had happened to Thomas, say, he ran away and eloped, would Michael have assumed his duties? Or, what if he and Christopher had both been killed in an accident? Would Michael then be the heir-apparent? What would happen if Michael died next? He doesn’t dwell on this thought too often, disliking the idea that his father saw both him and Christopher as replaceable. There had been enough of that during the WDC. 

Thomas looks out the window of the Arclight mansion’s ballroom. Their gardens had fallen into disuse, dead flowers scattered across the paths. His footsteps echo forlornly against the pink marble, a place where hundreds of footsteps had danced every month. With his father’s current state, he doubts that there will be any large gatherings soon. Unless…Christopher is declared the new Lord Arclight while their father whispers to him from the shadows.

He would be a puppet lord then, the previous Lord Arclight still in power. Thomas knows his brother would find no issue in this, his rigid upbringing instilling undying loyalty to his father. His brother is content with being controlled and jostled as long as his controller was their father or individuals acting under the name of their father. Sometimes, he wonders how Christopher doesn’t shatter from such a rigid lifestyle. 

Thomas looks back at the ballroom. The sun’s rays do little to light up the darkened exterior. The once-brilliant velvet curtains hanging from the large windows have been eaten through by moths, spreading speckled shadows across the floor. He sighs, dredging up a memory from the past. 

Once at one of his father’s parties, he was cornered by a group of bullies. They sneered at his swarthy skin and unkempt hair. He’s forgotten all of their names and faces. Most of their insults have been forgotten as well. Of course, he still occasionally has to deal with these slights, but it was what the bullies had said afterward that haunted him. 

“If Christopher were to ever be in an accident, Lord Arclight wouldn’t hesitate to cut you open for spare parts,” they whispered. 

Spare parts. That’s all he was. He hates it. Hates that word. Spare. Undesirable, leftover parts. Things only remembered or useful when the main part is gone. A poor substitute for the original. An afterthought. 

Which was why he leaped at the opportunity of becoming a duel champion. FInally, a chance to become something on his own. As the East Asia Duel Champion, he stood alone, owning the title with his own hands. It wasn’t something given to him by some contrived birth order lottery. 

In front of his adoring fans, he was a person. IV. A codename, but a name, nonetheless. He’s always had a complicated relationship with his real name. Thomas. It sounded so stiff. Whenever Christopher was upset with him, he’d always say his name as if he was spitting out a curse. Thomas also meant twin. As if he was meant to be Christopher’s twin. But he isn’t. He’s not a copy of anyone or anything. He wants to be himself. 

If only his father could try to understand. If only Christopher would stop resenting him for existing. He wasn’t born to constantly remind Christopher that he was replaceable. Like any other person, he was born to live. 

Thomas leaves the ballroom and walks down the well-lit hallways. His footsteps are muffled by the blue carpet, making them sound less forlorn. He sticks his hands into his pockets, glad that Christopher wasn’t there to scold him. 

No wonder Ryoga had called him angry. Thomas has been angry his entire life. He grew up under the shadow of someone he never wanted to be. He was surrounded by traditionalist ideas that chafed against his free-spirited nature. 

“Please, for God’s sake, just let me breathe!” he had once screamed at Christopher in the midst of an argument.

Christopher merely looked at him with a pinched mouth and narrowed eyes. How could his brother not sense his anguish and pain in that plea? How could he not see that Thomas had wanted nothing but to live his own life and take pride in his own accomplishments? Would Christopher spend the rest of his life despising Thomas?

Thomas has tried. He’s truly tried to understand his older brother. He’ll never be as smart as him but at least he can read in-between the lines. Christopher was never really good at communicating. Thomas has tried to reach out to him, yet all of his attempts are perceived as threats. He is an unwelcome invader in Christopher’s territory. 

The resentment bears its fangs whenever Thomas excels at something Christopher doesn’t. Dancing, sports, social interactions, hell, even dueling. His brother’s expression darkens and his personality grows cold. Jealousy radiates from his lanky body in waves. 

“Oh,” breathes Thomas as he opens up the music room. 

Christopher starts, sitting up from their mother’s piano. Thomas had been scared away from the instrument when they were younger, Christopher’s sharp admonishments raining down on him like thunder when he dared run close to it. 

“Thomas,” he says, not spitting it out but instead whispering it. 

They hold each other’s gaze for a few moments. Briefly, Thomas can see Christopher as Lord Arclight, his hair braided, his custom suit dark blue and accented with a cravat. Then, the present returns. The sun shines down on his brother’s long hair, left loose as usual. 

“I’ll leave you to it,” murmurs Thomas as he goes to close the door. 

Christopher’s brows raise, as if he was about to say something. Thomas briefly pauses, waiting. 

One. 

Two. 

Nothing. 

The room seems to let out a sigh. Quietly, he closes the door behind him. 

Since returning to their family home, they’ve briefly agreed to a truce. A vein of fear has seeped into their childhood home, draining it of its vibrancy. Something is coming to Heartland. They have to prepare. 

Surrounded by bittersweet memories and a looming future, the both of them are equally confused. They couldn’t help what they were born into, could they? The weight of their ancestors seemed to increase the longer they remained behind these walls. 

Spare. Heir. Thomas. Christopher. He realizes now that they had been free in Heartland. 

[cxnsolatio]

a long time ago, i asked for some child anons where law's paternity was involved. writing this piece made me happy at the time, so i am posting it today as a drabble after revising and polishing it a bit further. the input sees a little girl donning a pink dress and pink hair asking for her daddy's attention at the massive beetle she holds in her hands. she comes with an odd request: to pull the thing apart so they can see its insides, an elementary allusion to law's devil fruit powers. by the description, it is implied this girl is the child of law and @bucketfullofocs, so i hope they enjoy this.

At the unmistakable and familiar tug of a child's plea for attention, Law got down on one knee, left arm hanging over the lifted leg while the other clung to his sword. His eyes searched the little girl's to level with them and, as he did, Law found two pools of the same gold in his irises staring back at him, not one shade darker nor lighter. That she had inherited from him, but not just: Law's daughter was every bit as curious about the natural world as he had been as a boy, constantly uttering 'oohs' and 'ahhs' like she lived in a permanent state of awe. Things he had long forgotten held beauty in this world he discovered anew through her small hands and golden eyes so full of wonder. Soon, she would be reading Darwin and Lavoisier, Saint Augustine and Descartes… But not too soon, he hoped, the father's expression soft at the endearing dimension of the child's hands.

The beetle was not all that massive, but it did appear so by contrast. Green-backed and rimmed in yellow towards its back, the poor thing writhed, not intent on giving up his freedom from the girl's small but sure grip. Law's head cocked to one side then the other as he analysed the animal, for there were a couple of species that fit the description. ❝ A Cotinis,❞ he mused, ❝ but what's your binomen? ❞ As it tossed and turned in the toddler's hand, the beetle appeared a bit dull at first, not glossy, but then it showed its jewel-like gloss when the light hit right, and turning it over on its belly metallic green shone, thus allowing Law to reach a conclusion. ❝ Cotinis mutabilis, that's your name.❞ He stated it as a kind of satisfying gotcha.

Hanging on the wall in his chambers, next to a similar board showcasing a rainbow of butterflies, Law had a frame of shiny beetles, all specimens curatorially pinned to the canvas so that their fragile wings and appendages stayed whole. Law had made it a habit of sitting his daughter in his lap, at the desk, and teaching her not just about anatomy, but of the other sorts of curios he owned, such as the concise collections of Lepidoptera and Coleoptera. The scientific names were still too complex for the little girl, but the common names she could grasp. She had been showered with knowledge far too advanced since she had drooled out her first 'mama', 'baba' and 'moomoo' — that one had proven difficult at first, until Law noticed a patterned link between the use of the word and a fixation with the mother's breast — and now that his daughter could walk with him and hold a basic conversation, Law was not taking chances on her education. He kept her mind constantly stimulated, sure that it must be brilliant like his own, such was the comeliness of genetics mixed with a heightened sense of vanity as far as intellectual skill was concerned.

❝ Also known as 'figeater'.❞ He explained to his daughter with glee.

But the child was not just interested in admiring the beetle's glimmering outside, and while another may come to abhor her suggestion, Trafalgar Law, now, he relished in the infant's scientific mind, his own eternal desire to know piqued. ❝ Hold it firmly, then. We don't want it skittering away, do we? ❞ And conspiratorially he added, in a whisper that was perhaps a matrimonial plea of his own, ❝ Don't tell mummy. ❞ She approved of the learning, but not quite so much of the means of teaching.

What Mother did not know could not hurt Mother. The green gem resisted the imprisonment of silky clutches with admirable stamina. Law opened a drawer in his desk and laid out some canvas over the working surface; a fresh, sharp nail in his hand, ready to fulfil its purpose in material existence. Once his sword stood erect against the desk, and his daughter was enthroned in his lap, Law pinned the beetle down so that it would not escape its fate. Grim, but not without mercy — he need not kill the animal, nor put it under anaesthesia to satisfy his daughter's interest. His forcedly acquired powers coupled with diligently honed talents allowed him to section through the beetle without killing it; without even causing it harm. Although, it should be a funny feeling to have your insides en plain air while wide awake and sentient. Thank God the beetle had no thoughts to gather, or else it would have gone utterly, irrevocably mad from this experience.

Law called his daughter by her name. ❝ Now pay attention. ❞ To use a scalpel would have been more apt on a subject so tiny, but it was not any old scalpel she wanted, the insatiable little thing that she was. She wanted the mad scientist emerged from mists of chemical reactions and brimstone; she wanted the magnetic showman with his theatrics and the fireworks. To stick to the edge of her seat as she wondered whether Daddy could cut through something so small with a blade this large without damaging it, or herself, for that matter; and then to gasp in amazement as his fingers buzzed blue and flesh and blade worked as one to split the beetle vertically in half, as one would do to share an apple with a lover! A tiny world unveiled just for her delight, cells forming tissues, tissues forming organs, all working like cogwheels before their eyes. The heart pumped, the lungs bellowed albeit with no music and in the beetle's gut, something could be seen moving, making its way down the digestive tract. 'Poopie' they said in unison, the girl laughing at the mere mention of excrement and Law laughing at his own use of such a puerile word. It was fair to say becoming a father had emaciated his stoic persona a bit.

Other than that, his child was speechless, her eyes darting to the beetle's every little nook and cranny like the world's tiniest dollhouse. Law rubbed his index and thumb together to create a spark and moved his hand over her head, so her pink strands stuck up in the static. That, too, made her chortle with happiness.

❝ I think that's enough coleopterology for today. ❞ Against protests most vehement, Law flourished his hands and the beetle's shell fit together, finishing up the jigsaw with a final click. A moment later, the animal was still confused as to its surroundings, but otherwise unscathed. When Law unpinned it, it did not hesitate before making a run for it, or a flight, to be more scientifically accurate. Law called for his daughter to let it go, and kissed her plump cheek.

❝ Why don't we go look for Mummy? ❞ He offered the girl his hand. ❝ I wonder what she's making for supper. Beetle stew, I wager. ❞

[angrenwen]

"An invitation to host the state convention???? After looking up SoCEP bylaws (all online, fortunately), they clearly state that the host must be non-human. Must is underlined. 

So I called the number back, and got through to Dr. Matthias Pluck, a large gentleman of the Bigfoot persuasion, as he calls it. His rumbling voice sounded somewhat familiar on the phone. “Miss Harris, I’m so glad to finally hear from you,” he said. “Please, tell me you can make it.”

“I think you may have got the wrong person,” I said. “I’m Angela Harris, and I’ve been a human my whole life.”

“Hm, that does sound puzzling. Why don’t you come up to the institute, we’ll see if we can sort this out?”

“Harris is a common enough name,” I said. “Probably some confusion in the records? I donate, sometimes, if the databases got swapped…”

“I think… well, I’ll look into it. How quickly can you meet me?”

“Uh, I’m free all day.”

“Come up as quickly as you can.”

“Sure, what’s the address?”

It was a bit of a drive, but how often do you get to meet persons of the bigfoot persuasion?

Well, that’s an interesting question, I guess.

Matthias Pluck is, apparently, my next door neighbor, I know him as Matt, and he loans me his lawn mower if I let him borrow my washer and dryer. Nice guy, honestly. He’s just a tall kinda hairy guy, I thought. No crime in being tall and hairy.

“I knew we had the right Angela,” he said, immediately.

“Matt,” I said. “I’m human.”

“Angie,” he said. “Everybody- literally everybody in our neighborhood- is a cryptid. We all shapechange, but… surely you noticed?”

“No? What?”

He sighed, and pinched the bridge of his nose. 

“You didn’t think it was odd that I’m extremely tall? You live six houses down from the Octopus in Lake Thunderbird.”

“Jane is an Octopus?”

“She has six arms!”

“Well… so? My dad had wings, that doesn’t mean anything. Little stubby ones, it was some kind of birth defect.”

He sighed. “Our human disguises are perfect. No human can penetrate them at all. Fellow cryptids can get through them a little bit. If you were human, you wouldn’t have noticed her extra arms, or my unusual height. You see because you’re wearing a similar disguise.”

“I’m completely normal.”

“You’re harder to pick up on because you’re from one of the older lines, I think. You blend really well. Bigfoot is a younger species of magical creature. But Cryptids, in one way or another, have been around a long time. They’ve interbred, too. So probably several really ancient lines of cryptid, going back to ancient times, I imagine.”

“Listen, sometimes people have extra arms,” I said. “Or legs, or wing stubs, or tails or really weird thick hair oh my god Melissa is Medusa, isn’t she?”

“Of her line, anyway,” Matt said. “We invite you every year, you never RSVP.”

“I get those donation letters all the time,” I said. “Everyone gets them.”

“Every cryptid gets them- your parents really didn’t talk to you about this?”

I shrugged. “People have… weird things, sometimes. That’s normal.”

“It’s- I mean, at the base of it, you are correct, but your information has been skewed because since you were a small child you’ve been surrounded by disguised cryptids. Even before we were open about existing, we’ve lived among the humans. As have you. And your family. Most people have two legs and two arms and no extra appendages at all. There is, rarely, the odd tail, or missing limbs, but if you have an extra appendage you’ve been hiding and you aren’t featured in some paper or Ripley’s Believe it or Not, you’re one of us.”

This is one of those things that’s difficult to deal with at the best of times, but I was thinking as quickly as I could. “My parents died,” I said. 

“Oh, I’m sorry.”

“It was a long time ago,” I said, thinking. “Before the secrecy thing… stopped being a thing. I think I need to go home and, uh, do some research.”

He nodded, looking sympathetic. “That’s probably for the best.”

“I don’t think I’ll be able to host this year.”

“Oh, no, that’s… you’re right. I’d ask you to consider perhaps hosting next year? And please, do come. We’d love to have you. Lines as old as yours are fairly rare.”

“What line is that? We live three houses down from a Medusa. I mean, I’m just learning about this and I don’t know much, but I know that’s an old one.”

“I’m aware,” he said. “There’s some resources for genealogical research of this type. I’ll put you in touch with someone who may be able to help do a deep dive.”

“But what line is it?”

“Well, you’re a dragon.”

“Excuse me?”

“A dragon.”

I thought it for a long minute. “Huh.”

“It took me a while to figure out because you don’t display the usual signs. Wing stubs, the scent of fire. It wasn’t until winter that I realized.”

“Realized what?”

“Heat just rises off of you. You’re never cold, are you?”

“No, I guess not. Hey, you know what I’m mad about right now?”

“You could have been flying this whole time?”

“I could have been flying this whole time,” I replied.

“Find a nice abandoned area to practice in or it’s going to be a disaster.”

“Yeah, thanks, Matt.” I wasn’t sure if I was being sarcastic or not.

“You’re coming to the thing this year. I’ll introduce you to the dragon who lives upstate.”

“Only one?”

“Yeah dragons tend to spread out.”

“Hm.”

“You gonna be okay?”

“Yeah. Yeah. I mean I’m apparently a whole different species than I thought I was, but anybody could make a mistake like that I guess.”

“You know what’ll cheer you up?”

“Flying,” I said.

He laughed. “Go find an abandoned quarry.”

I did. And you know what? I’m still mad that I have had wings my whole life and just recently learned how to fly. I am going to accept the host position next year, because the convention this year was a lot of fun, and after a lot of practice I’ve mastered cooking a steak to the perfect doneness with my own flame. 

Things are going pretty good.

Note: this has been living in drafts for ages, I’m gonna try to go through and clear some of the drafts out. 

If you got some money to spare, and I know times are lean, but if you do and you enjoyed this and want to help a girl out, here’s my ko-fi. 

(I am disabled and unemployed, tips really help me out! This is accurate as of March of 2024.)"

You are a human in world were all of the cryptic creatures you’ve ever known are real, every year there is a reunion where all of the local cryptics reunite and have a chance to talk with the humans.

This year for some reason you received an invitation to be the host of the ceremony, however, this is a position that only cryptids can have. Your neighbors all have the same invitations, that’s were you notice, you are the only human in a neighborhood of shape-shifters.

[rose-fall]

SOULS: POWERS

-

History

The people living in this world have developed soul powers as a strange form of evolution. Eons ago, their ancestors started to develop soul powers to help survive since they had a harder time surviving in the harsh nature than the prehistoric animals did. The animals had evolved in ways that made them masters of their environments and can survive the environments rather easily, so their souls never developed soul powers. The ancestral people evolved more through their souls. These powers were eventually used to help each other, since the prehistoric people lived in groups. The powers started off as the basics like basic elementals, flight, and some basic perception based powers. Basically anything that helped with survival, examples; fire helped with warmth, flight helped with navigation, night perception helped to look out for any dangers, etc.

Classifications

While the people have comfortable lives in modern times and don't have to worry about the harsh weather or predators as much, the soul powers continued to evolve and vary. They're still used regularly so they never went away. Powers can be sorted in the following classifications, with examples:

Elemental: Power shares similar qualities to natural elements. (fire, toxins, ice, crystals, etc.)

Enhancement: Power heightens the user’s natural abilities. (defense, speed, strength, night vision etc.) [note: this doesn’t momentarily “cure” disabilities.]

Appendage: Power acts as a new appendage, attached to the user’s body. (wings, spikes, armor, extra arms, etc.)

Weaponry: Power replicates weapons and their abilities. (swords, daggers, bullets, landmines, etc.) [note: they may not look detailed or fully resemble a weapon, but still perform like artificial weapons do]

Physical: Power affects the form of tangible things, inanimate and living. (reparation, crushing, levitation, melting, etc.)

Psychological: Power affects the minds of others. (hallucinations, mind reading, memory reading, etc.)

Soul powers used to be able to be easily categorized like this but nowadays they're so varied that some are hard to categorize, giving way to an “Other” category.

Soul Energy

The powers are just an extension of the soul, powered by the core, so soul powers like fire or water aren't actually fire or water. Just soul energy with fire-like or water-like qualities if that makes sense. Water powers, for example, isn't actually h20, but it could still cleanse and cool one down in the heat, but it can’t hydrate.

Genetics

soul powers are inherited from a blood-related family member, most often parents. Sometimes the offspring can share the same power with a parent or other blood-related family member, but with a minor difference that adds something new enough to the power. This is how new types of powers can be made, they're kinda like genetic mutations. Example: if someone has standard bubbles as their power and they have a kid and that kid has a mutation like this, their bubbles could be a different shape than circular bubbles. It's similar enough since it's inherited from a blood relative but different enough that it's considered a separate power than “standard bubbles”. Something to note: If two people share the same power, it doesn't automatically mean they're related. For example, Liam could meet someone else who has the fire power, but they’re not blood-related. Back when soul powers were relatively new, several people would have developed the fire power without being blood related since soul powers weren’t as varied at the time. This lead to multiple people having the same powers much later down the line. This isn’t limited to those who have powers that’ve been around since the beginning.

Soul Conditions

It is impossible to not have a soul power though soul conditions do exist. They're rare but some people can have their power "leak" more than normal or not enough. These are known as LEC (leaking energy condition) and REC (restrained energy condition). They’re both genetic. Whether or not a condition is a problem depends on what the power is. LEC leads to someone activating their power uncontrollably and the power being stronger than normal. REC leads to someone not being able to activate their power easily. Essentially those with LEC need to work on not putting as much effort into their power activation as they normally would if they didn’t have the condition, which is harder than it sounds. And those with REC have to work on putting more effort into their power activation than they normally would if they didn’t have the condition. A singular person cannot have both LEC and REC.

Development

No one is able to use their power for the first several years of their life. While the soul is there and the power is already predetermined once the soul was formed, the power itself needs time to develop and be ready for use. A kid doesn’t know what their power is or use their power until they’re around 7-9 years old. Though at this point, the power is fairly weak.

Colors

Just like eyes, the color of one’s power is also based on their soul. If one has a yellow soul and their soul power is fire, then their fire will appear as yellow. If one has heterochromia, their soul power will be bicolored to reflect this. Etc. etc.

[vivlily]

Operator Cacophony

Arts Defender

Due to sensitivity to certain lights, common among Vesperti, she uses various Aegir chimes and bells, in conjunction with her astounding hearing to determine her surroundings.

Her dress was also created by an Aegir admirer of the arts and a fashion designer aboard Rhodes Island. Within this dress is where most of her chimes and bells are stored.

She is confirmed infected, with her arts taking the form of a sort of audio amplification, able to turn the slashing sound of her wings into a sharp bladed projectile, or turn the sound of her bells and chimes into a concussive force.

Her lack of stealth works to her benefit, since as with most Vesperti she is able to grow a winglike appendage from her arms, and through the combination of her auditory amplification she is able to create a defensive sound barrier due to the make up of her wings.

She is often found playing with many of the younger infected onboard Rhodes Island, acting as a sort of elder sibling. However often times among some of the more scientific inclined operators she seems to exhibit some amount of trepidation. This does not stop her from trying to befriend these operators.

Whether we find out what might be the source of those feelings or not will be up to time to tell.

For the time being though, if you ever see Cacophony a little turned around on the landship, be sure to point her in the right direction, these halls tend to be a tad bit too similar in structure.

This was day 15 bat and I'm using this spooktober list created by revilonilmah

also heres without any fancy things

[attic-club-sandwich]

To Ascend Again

Summary: After falling from the Celestial Realm, the seven brothers must rely on each other emotionally to cope with the loss of their sister, Lilith. Meanwhile, they are also trying to adjust to their new forms and heal both the physical and emotional wounds caused by the Celestial War. Their bonds become stronger than ever since the fall, and they learn to rise again from the calamity that befell them.

Genre: Angst/Hurt

cw: mentions of blood, mild descriptions of gore. Swearing.

A/N: Here is chapter 2, I hope you guys enjoy! Remember that all feedback is appreciated and reblogs are extra appreciated!

Chapter 1

Chapter 2: The Reunion

Mammon’s eyes shot open wide as he gasped for air. He was laying face down in the middle of a giant, stone structure, which he assumed to be some sort of colosseum. It was completely dark, except for the moonlight shining through the opening of the dome above him. His head was pounding and he could barely think. He could smell blood, which made fear begin to bubble in his chest. What the fuck happened? Where are my brothers? Where’s Lilith?

He sputtered and coughed as he rolled himself over onto his side. The cold ground sent shivers through his body and goosebumps began to form on his tan skin. He looked down at himself and noticed he was completely nude except for what was left of the frayed material of what was once the intricate, white and gold sarong he wore in the Celestial Realm. He also noticed delicate, white lines now spreading down his bare torso and coming to an end just below his navel. Dammit. I’ve got to find the others… he gritted his teeth as he sat up, bones aching and sending shockwaves of pain through his body. Mammon groaned as he ran his hand through his hair. He gasped when he felt an unfamiliar sensation from the sides of his head. “W-What the…?” he choked out as he felt the newly acquired horns poking out from his white hair. They were short and thin, but he could feel the tightly coiled shape of them as they twisted up into a single, sharp point. He began to breathe heavily as he whipped his head around to see what fate his once beautiful, white wings had suffered. They sprouted from his lower back, and very much resembled wings of a bat. They were black in color, with a thin membrane of skin being connected by white boney-like appendages. No feathers in sight. His wings drooped behind him on the ground as he began to weep. 

His tears dropped onto the ground below him. He was almost too caught up in his own emotions to hear a second sob from somewhere behind him. Mammon’s head spun around to see his brother, Leviathan, in a similar state. “L-Levi!” he called out as he jumped to his feet. He hissed when he felt a wave of pain hit him but he persevered. He stumbled over to his younger brother. Taking in his appearance, he saw the now branched, coral like horns that protruded from Levi’s temples. Scales were now imprinted along the right side of his neck and he now possessed a long, winding, scaly tail. Levi grabbed Mammon’s arm, bringing his attention back on the current situation. “M-Mammon,w-where are w-we?” he choked out between sobs. “What’s h-happned t-to us?” Mammon winced. There was so much pain in Levi’s voice, and he hated it. 

He hated it so much. 

But he wanted to be strong for his brother.

 “I believe…we’re in hell.” 

***

The future Demon Lord and his butler made their way back to the colosseum. They’ve managed to gather all of the brothers but two of them so far. They’ve only searched the outskirts of the colosseum, as that’s where most of them were found, lying unconscious and in a very similar state to Lucifer. They only had one area left to check. “My Lord, I think I can see someone over there.” Barbatos said, motioning up ahead. 

Diavolo squinted, scanning the opening of the colosseum. He could definitely make out at least two figures sitting in the middle. “Very good, Barbatos. Let’s go.” As they made their way into the entrance of the colosseum, the two figures instantly whipped around to meet their gaze. Their eyes were glowing, one a golden blue, the other a deep amber-orange. “Now, now. There’s nothing to worry about, we’re here to help you.” Diavolo said, gently. Mammon and Leviathan held each other close as the two demons approached. “W-Who the hell are you?” Mammon hissed. “I’m Diavolo, son of the Demon King. I’m here to take you two back to the castle.” Diavolo gazed down at Mammon. His white hair, now blood stained where his horns protruded. The other, with indigo hair and an intense orange stare as his serpent-like tail flicked with warning. “And what exactly are ya planning on doing with us at this ‘Castle’?” Mammon questioned, suspicion edging in his voice. Diavolo couldn’t help but chuckle. “Why, based on your current state I would say you two are in need of some help. My friend Barbatos here is an excellent healer.” Barbatos bowed his head, hoping to gain the trust of the two fallen angels. Mammon dropped his gaze, the adrenaline of the situation coming down. He really should just accept the help. The pain was becoming unbearable as he leaned into Levi’s side. 

“Here, take this.” Diavolo shedded his jacket and offered it to Mammon for him to cover up. Mammon took it graciously and wrapped it around his shoulders. “Alright, fine. We’ll go with you…but only if you tell me where my other brothers are. And Lilith… She's our sister.” Diavolo’s face took on a grim expression. “I think you should come with me first before I disclose those details. But I assure you, your other brothers are safe.” he hesitated before continuing his statement. “...As well as your sister.”  Mammon swallowed hard. What was that supposed to mean?

They made their way back to the castle, slowly. Diavolo carrying Mammon with Barbatos and Leviathan in tow behind him. Both boys were now unconscious, the pain finally getting the best of them. As soon as they entered the castle doors, a booming voice sounded from the throne room. “DIAVOLO!” The young demon lord flinched as he and Barbatos quickly made their way through the long hallway and up one of the several staircases that winded and twisted above them. Diavolo hated ignoring his fathers shouting, but he needed to take care of the current matter at hand. “Quickly, we must get to the infirmary.” Barbatos murmured. Finally, they reached the infirmary where all of the other brothers lay in their respective beds, some of them beginning to stir awake. Diavolo carefully laid Mammon in his place, retrieving his jacket again and shrugging it back over his shoulders. “I’m sorry, for I must go tend to my father.” Diavolo whispered to Barbatos. The butler nodded. “Of course, My Lord. I’ll take care of the brothers.” Diavolo quickly made his way out of the room. Barbatos draped a blanket over top of Mammon and began to get to work on his and Levi’s wounds. 

***

“Oi! Watch what you’re touching, demon!”

“Mammon stop moving.” 

“For fuck sake Mammon quit whining.” 

“...I’m hungry.”

Lucifer’s head was still pounding when he woke. Was that Mammon? Of course it was, he could recognize his aggravating complaints anywhere. And were those voices the twins? His eyes began to flutter open and he turned his head over to where the noise was coming from. His vision was still a bit blurry, but he could see that Barbatos was leaning over his brother, attempting to stitch one of Mammon’s many cuts that covered his body. “Mmm…Mammon. Enough.” Lucifer mumbled as he attempted to sit up. Everyone stopped what they were doing to stare at their eldest brother. “Lucifer, please don’t move!” Barbatos shouted. All of a sudden, 2 small black forms were holding him down onto the bed. “W-What the hell?!” he gasped, but he didn’t have the energy to fight them off. The little creatures appeared to be demons, but took on a very different form than what Barbatos and Diavolo did. “Those are called ‘Little D’s’ apparently. They’re kind of cute though.” said a voice next to him. He looked over to see Asmodeus, who was sitting cross legged on his bed and sipping something from a mug. Lucifer noticed that his brother also dawned a set of horns, and 2 sets of small wings on his back. 

Asmo could feel Lucifer’s stare on him, so he kept his eyes on the little demons as they bounced away. Only one stayed behind to tuck a blanket around Lucifer’s bare shoulders. “Asmo…everyone’s here?” he asked, tugging the blanket further around himself. 

Asmo nodded, finally looking at his brother. “Yes, we’re all safe. All except, well…” he trailed off. Lucifer let out a sigh. His brother didn’t have to finish to know where his thoughts were heading. Lilith. Before Lucifer could reply, Diavolo entered the room. “Hello boys, how are we feeling this evening?” he said, cheerfully. Mammon rolled his eyes. “How do ya think? Your butler currently has a needle in my ass.” Diavolo crossed his arms and let out a loud chuckle. “My apologies, it seems I've come in at an unpleasant time.” Lucifer sighed, rubbing his forehead. “Don’t apologize, Diavolo, he’s just an idiot.” Diavolo smiled softly and made his way over to Lucifer, taking a seat on the edge of his bed. “Lucifer, there’s something I need to discuss with you privately.” Lucifer blinked at the red haired demon. Remember. Absolute loyalty. “Of course.” 

The other brothers were looking their way, obviously trying to eavesdrop on the conversation. “When we found you…and after the incident with your wings…” he whispered. Lucifer flinched. He was actively trying to forget about his embarassing outburst. “After you passed out…we found something. Or rather…someone.” Diavolo said quietly. Lucifer’s eyes widened. “W-What are you talking about?” The future demon king hesitated. “I could show you, if you’d like. I just don’t want to push you too soon.” Lucifer locked eyes with the demon. His voice grew louder. “Tell me what’s going on right now.” Diavolo didn’t even flinch at the sternness of Lucifer’s voice. “Come on in, Satan.” All eyes shot to the doorway of the infirmary. A small child with blonde hair entered. He had long, winding S-shaped horns and a black, spikey tail which faded into a bright green at the tip. 

“Uh, Lucifer…who the hell is this?”

Chap. 3 : The Avatar of Wrath

[saijspellhart]

Little oneshot about Atem meeting Sphinx Yugi

Part of my Sphinx AU. Please enjoy.

Atem clutched his cloak around him, trying to settle back against the date palms again, only to sit up with a start at the rustle of leaves. The once vibrant and friendly oasis he’d happened upon in the day, had turned into an absolute nightmare as soon as the sun set.

He hadn’t managed to get a fire going, he couldn’t find anything to eat, and although the water in the massive pond looked clean and tasted good, he was convinced he’d be sick by morning.

The night was so dark, even with all the stars, he could barely make out his surroundings in the dense thickets of trees and brush surrounding the pond. He could swear something was out there. Could feel it staring at him, hunting him.

He snapped his head to the left at the sound of disturbed undergrowth, and swore he caught a glimpse of yellow eyes. Like the glowing pupils of some large animal. They disappeared almost immediately.

It wasn’t the first time he’d seen them. Could be a fox, or a crocodile, perhaps a leopard, or even a hyena. Although he really doubted it was a hyena. Too quiet for that noisy pack animal. Never the less, he was convinced he was being stalked by some silent predator.

Hours were passing, and he continued his restless watch.

The night wore on leaving him more and more exhausted, and the chill set in harder. He felt cold in his bones without a fire or proper insulation from the frigid desert night.

He would die of exposure before he was ever rescued by his priests.

Atem saw the flash of yellow eyes again in his peripheral and scowled at them sleepily.

Or I’ll simply get eaten alive. What an end for a mighty Pharaoh. He should have simply died earlier in the day during the skirmish with the brigands. At least then it would have been in the service of his people, and not alone, lost in the desert, and at the jaws of local wildlife.

Another hour passed, and he couldn’t hold his head up anymore to stay alert. He was so cold.

So tired.

His eyelids drooped. And each blink was a little longer, his mind a little hazier.

He searched for the eyes in the dark, but saw nothing. He heard nothing. He couldn’t hold his eyes open any longer and he drifted out of consciousness.

0000

Atem’s world was a lot brighter when his brain clicked back into consciousness the next morning.

And warmer.

So much warmer. He’d been so cold the night before and now he was wrapped in a blanket of warmth and fluffy comfort.

It felt like his head was pillowed against a cloud. A slightly dusty, musky scented cloud with an edge of sweetness, almost like grass. It was pleasant.

In fact everything was pleasant. Even the comforting weight settled over him. Atem didn’t want to move. Didn’t even want to wake up. Instead, he inhaled the pleasant scent again and tried to drift back to sleep.

His hand reached up to sink fingers into soft fur and snuggled deeper into his pillow.

Which gasped, and shifted beneath him.

Atem’s eyes shot open, getting an eyeful of white and tawny red-gold fur. Something like a tail swished just over the swell of golden fur he’d taken a handful of. He was up in an instant, flailing against feathers, and violently slapping a large wing off of himself as he stumbled to get away.

“Ouch!” a stranger’s voice yelped.

He ended up crawling backwards through sand and grasses. Drawing his knife—his khopesh having gotten lost when his horse threw him in the strange and sudden sand storm—he pointed the blade, putting as much distance as he could between himself and the strange creature he’d been cuddled up to only moments before.

“What in Ra’s name are you?” Atem demanded.

The creature blinked large and bewitching purple eyes at him. “What does it look like?” It asked, sounding almost offended. It shook out one of its large black-tipped white feathered wings, as if shaking off pain, before gingerly folding the appendage against its back. “In fact I’m one of the god’s creatures. I’m a sphinx,” it announced rising up on its very feline paws.

This gave Atem a very good look at the creature, and yes. Yes, it was a sphinx. He quickly lowered the knife so as not to disrespect it.

It was not the type of sphinx he was most accustomed to seeing depicted in scrolls and in reliefs. That being a creature with a lion’s body and the head of a human. No, this creature had the head and torso of a human, its arms changing into a feline’s paws starting at the elbow, and its torso becoming a feline’s lower half starting at the stomach.

The stomach that Atem’s head has been pillowed against, he noted. That’s what had been so soft like a cloud. He swallowed thickly.

“It’s been awhile since a human has wandered into my oasis,” the sphinx said conversationally. It took a few steps towards Atem. “What’s your name?”

He wasn’t about to give a magical creature such as this his name. Magical creatures could do dangerous things with your name. “Atem…” the name tumbled off his tongue unbidden. Fuck. He suspected some magic must be at play, but Ra would have to smite him before he would tell this creature he was a Pharaoh. Absolutely no good would come of this creature having that knowledge.

“Atem~” the sphinx tested the name on its tongue, and smiled brightly at him. “Hi Atem! My name is Yugi,” as it introduced itself it made a tight circle giving Atem a look at its entire body from nose to the end of its stumpy tail.

It was just like a cat to give someone an eyeful of its ass. If the lack of breasts hadn’t clued him in, Atem could safely conclude that the very effeminate looking creature was indeed a male.

When Yugi turned to face him again he couldn’t quite meet the Sphinx’s eye anymore and sort of looked off to the side instead.

It was actually startling how much the Sphinx’s hair resembled Atem’s. Should he be flattered? Or maybe the sphinx was flattered. It was probably far older than him. Their hair was strikingly similar, both having flowing blonde bangs and unruly black spikes tinged with color at the tips. Although Atem’s hair ended in red, while Yugi’s seemed to be a gradient of purples and reds. That was where the similarities between them seemed to end though. Yugi had large eyes and a small nose, with a slight build and fair skin. Where as Atem had a large nose, thick brows over slanted eyes, with the build of a fighter and brown skin.

“I’m sorry for scaring you when you woke up,” Yugi dipped his head and looked genuinely apologetic.

“What was…that anyway?” Atem jerked his head at the Sphinx and reached a hand down to pluck at some grass, tearing the blades between his fingers.

“I was keeping you warm,” Yugi explained. Almost comically large cat ears flicked on either side of his head, disturbing locks of hair as they did. Atem could make out black tufts of fur on the ends of the ears that reminded him very much of a caracal. Yugi kept his distance but sat back on his haunches. His wings adjusted on his back, fluttering a bit before folding back into place. “You were so cold, shivering in your sleep, and well… the elements don’t bother me.” he shrugged. “So I curled up beside you, and covered you with my wing.”

Atem narrowed his eyes at the creature. Were sphinxes usually so kind? He couldn’t recall many stories about sphinxes but the stories he did recall they were always dangerous and tricksy. “I suppose I owe you a debt now, don’t I?” He growled out, tossing his handful of shredded grass on the sand before him.

Yugi blinked at him. “No? Oh well maybe…” he tilted his head and it looked like the wheels had begun to turn in his mind. “Why?” he asked slowly.

“Because you probably saved my life. Kept me from succumbing to exposure or something.” Atem explained impatiently. He didn’t want to be in debt to a magical creature, but he was also a Pharaoh and it could spell disaster to leave debts unpaid. Should the sphinx ever find out he was a pharaoh and decide to collect on the debt it might ask for something outrageous. Like a child, or a golden statue in its likeness, or perhaps to stay in his palace to live like a king. “Creatures like you always want payment for a life saved.”

Yugi seemed to consider this, all the while studying Atem curiously. “I suppose that’s true,” he purred. “How about we play a game? Win, and consider the debt repaid. Your life will be your own. But should you lose, then your life is mine.” This time when the little Sphinx grinned at him it was far more predatory. If he wasn’t so adorable Atem might have felt more intimidated.

A game? A smug sense of triumph curled in Atem’s stomach. A game wasn’t so bad. He was excellent at games. “What kind of game?” Atem hedged warily. Skills aside, making a deal with any magical creature was extremely dangerous, but especially with a sphinx.

Yugi laid down on the ground and crossed his front paws. “Oh, nothing complicated. Just a simple game of riddles~”

Atem adjusted until he was sitting cross-legged facing the Sphinx. He placed his hands on his knees and did his best to school his expression with confidence. “Alright then. I’ll play your game.”

“Great!” Yugi chirped happily, and his cat butt wiggled with excitement. “I will start.”

Atem bit his cheek and silently reminded himself that this cuteness was probably a facade. He would focus…and he would win.

[umbreonix]

Random Revalink Fluff

The hammock was entirely still, sheltered from all wind by the outermost rock walls of Tabantha’s massive volcanic caldera.

It wouldn’t have been Revali’s pick of spots, he usually quite enjoyed a gentle breeze but it would have been uncomfortably chilly for the hylian nestled into his side. Instead they came here, to a small cluster of cedars that overlooked the village, just far enough to be private.

That part, Revali did agree with. The privacy that was.

How had this happened?

It was absolutely absurd. He wasn’t exactly sure what this was but had the good sense to know that until it had a name, it was better to be kept a secret. He did everything in his power to keep these baffling moments hidden from the gossiping geese and glancing ganders that patrolled the spiraling wooden platforms of Rito Village for their daily blabber. Goddesses above! If nothing else, they could be commended for their unwavering hyper vigilance. If only his soldiers showed that same dedication to their own rounds.

Link moved, finally rousing from their afternoon siesta. One of his legs was tangled with Revali’s and his squishy pink little foot purposely began playing with the rito’s own much rougher and taloned one. His toes soon found and curled around Revali’s hind claw while his nose traced a slow line up his feathery side before burying into his chest.

When had this happened?

Well, he did have an answer for that. It was after the fall of the calamity. The unbearable little knight had disappeared into the Great Hyrule Forest and returned without his holy sword… and with the first smile Revali had ever seen painted across his lips.

His soul had been body-swapped and he was a different person entirely. It was the only explanation.

Except that couldn’t be the case. Even now, in this moment, as Link continued to stir awake, he began absentmindedly rubbing circular motions over the scar on Revali’s abdomen. It was the spot where he had once felt compelled, for some unknown reason, to take an arrow for the princess’ guard dog. The flesh mark had long since become hidden under his regrown feathers and so was something that this imposter could have never known about.

Therefore and in conclusion, this man he now held in his wings and the knight he once despised with all of his being were one and the same.

They hadn’t gotten to this point immediately of course.

There was a gap of time even where Link had disappeared entirely. It had to have been for over a year although Revali hadn’t cared enough at the time to keep track.

Just as he figured he was gone from his life for good, he started showing up in Rito Village.

It seemed he had been travelling. His hair had grown long and unruly, his skin was darkened by sun in all the areas that used to never see the light of day from under his clunky metal armor. There were freckles that now dotted his face and shoulders where his skin had once been the same pure porcelain as Zelda’s, indicative of how much time he spent stationed inside at various doors in the castle. When combined with his wooden expressions, he looked remarkably like one of those creepy-eyed dolls hylian girls like to carry around.

Now, in present time, his face was more often than not twisted into some wide and wild grin, matching the disorderly mottled canvas of brown spotty constellations over reddening sun-streaks in equal measure.

When he had first shown up, he mostly spent his days at the flight range. He seemed determined to finally remedy his piss-poor archery. Too little, too late if you asked the rito bowmaster but his efforts seemed to be more so for ‘fun’ than necessity. Still, his sense of self preservation was no better than when he had worked for the hylian royal family. He continually attempted death-ensuring maneuvers with his paraglider and Revali ended up having to save him from snapping his neck on the rocks below numerous times.

Soon, Link had taken to following the rito about on his daily wanderings like an imprinted fletchling.

Then, just as that strange turn of events began to feel almost normal, he began making moves.

Touches that couldn’t have been mistaken as innocent, looks that were too soft and affectionate to just be friendly.

Revali pretended to not notice and that was his downfall. By not talking about any of this, it had been taken as a sort of acceptance and, being given that inch, Link started to feel entitled to miles.

By now he had kissed just about every part of Revali’s face at one time or another. He would also often come up behind him when he wasn’t expecting it and wrap those tiny little arms around his torso and bury his face in Revali’s scarf.

Eventually, for whatever reason, Revali acquiesced to these gestures and now here they were taking afternoon naps on sunny days with the clandestine secrecy of a lover’s tryst.

Is that what they were? Lovers?

Link had grown bored with Revali’s scar and has since sat up, beginning to let his hand wander up and down his front, carefully reading and cataloguing each muscle, feather texture and imperfection (non-existent by the way)

“You hylians sure are handsy, aren’t you?” Revali finally murmured, interrupting the blond’s exploration before he could reach back up to his chest to feel Revali’s now thundering heartbeat that traitorously echoed his sudden revelations.

Link looked at him.

“Really,” Revali insisted, now curious. “Why do you all need to touch everything you see with your hands? Your whole body is covered in exposed skin is it just convenience or?”

Link pulled away the hand that had been tangled in his stomach feathers to look at it for a moment before showing it to the rito.

Revali tentatively took it, sitting up as well and turning it over in his wing, not entirely sure what he was inspecting.

“There’s ridges,” Link said, never really having lost his tendency towards short stilted sentences. “They help us feel things better.”

Revali squinted at the crinkly skin of the palm, initially thinking he was referring to the wrinkles set into the places that creased whenever he folded his hand into a fist. Then his keen falcon-like eyes noticed the patterns that spiraled all across the hills and valleys of the inner hand, extending all the way up to the pads of each finger.

He quickly examined the back of Link’s hand and down his arm where the skin looked more scaly, like what he came to expect of a skin texture, similar to what one would see on the shins and feet of a rito.

The spirals were apparently contained to just that one area of Link’s flesh. 

He grazed a wing tip over the natural designs, as if he would be able to feel them though the thin hair-like feathers that fuzzed over the skin of the finger-like appendages he used to hold his bow. He couldn’t end up feeling them of course, but he could watch the way the touch-sensitive hand closed a little in ticklish reaction.

He readjusted to holding it in a more typical manner,  although with the size difference of their ‘hands’ Revali had to use only the tips that approximated a pointer finger and thumb.

They weren’t lovers, but they could be.

Maybe that wouldn’t be so bad.

Link’s hair was out of its ponytail and completely free, the locks sprawled out behind him where Revali’s other wing was still cradled beneath him, bolding demonstrating how well his wheat-coloured hair was complemented by the deep navy of the feathers behind. He would look good in braids. Specifically, braids intertwined with a carefully selected assortment of Revali’s feathers.

Altogether, it would all just look… right.

Revali took Link’s hand and guided the fingers upwards to brush his cheekbones along the little specks of red feathers that he never seemed to have grown out of.

Link looked at him in surprise, unused to Revali ever initiating any of these little acts of affection.

Mind made up, he slowly trailed the hand down along his neck until it was splayed out firmly on his chest where his heart drummed through his ribcage to meet it.

His green eyes, the shade of sunlight through a leaf canopy, bore into Link’s teal ones, asking him without the words his dishonest beak would never be able to muster out anyway if he understood the message.

Link stared at him for a good long moment before nodding a leaning forward, kissing the flange of his gape at the furthest corner of his beak.

They spent the rest of the afternoon not moving from that hammock, sprawled out on their sides exchanging experimental caresses. 

As lovers would do.

[feastfic]

Some hypotheticals behind "baby" Legendary Pokemon, including my process behind how I came to points I did and things I'd imagine them to do when they're young. Starting with Kalos!:

Xerneas: It and Yveltal naturally were the easiest to come up with; one would've been a fawn, the other a chick. For Xerneas I really tried getting into the frailness that a fawn has, and the caution around people. It'd still be large, even for a fawn (around the same size as your typical adult deer in the real world) but it's height wouldn't be too much a hindrance in the wild. Xerneas fawns aren't left alone- typically they follow the parent around until they're able to walk steadily, graze easily, and be able to fend for themselves. As babies, they're sensitive to human disturbance; they live in the deepest reaches of forestry- although it isn't unheard of for stray fawns to wander off and end up near a settlement, it's extremely rare to spot even then because of their nature to hide at perceived threats. The spots on their coat can both reflect light and change colors, aiding in their ability to hide from danger.

Yveltal: Based loosely off the hoatzin's chicks, a young Yveltal grows out of the claws on its wings after molting into its first adult plumage. As a chick, its down is well-suited for insulation and blending into rocky outcroppings; Yveltal are known to nest either at high altitudes or dormant volcanoes, both of which tend to be fairly undisturbed places. While young and still fledging, chicks tend to pick up a hot streak of hunting on anything they can get their talons on- while not particularly aggressive per sé, they're absolutely rambunctious and can leave injury through even thick clothing. Speaking of talons, when young, their claws are black- the keratin eventually becomes weathered and worn as they grow, becoming more grey over time.

Zygarde: A solitary Zygarde is the most common depiction of one, and for good reason. Once enough Cells and Cores coalesce, a Zygarde is "born" and is left to fend for itself. While young and still growing, it lives mainly underground, burrowing through soil and making a sizable gallery for itself to dwell upon. As it grows, over time the amount of green on it's body is replaces by more black, and also darkens once it leaves its burrow to live aboveground. The feelers on its sides serve similarly to whiskers- they detect vibrations while burrowing, and are sensitive to changes in wind or air pressure when not underground.

Diancie: "Born" most commonly around colonies of Carbink, Diancie young are soft-bodied and vulnerable. They use the Carbink to their advantage, gaining protection from threats by living among them and being raised by them until its body hardens up. Its crystals are still developing as well, and it isn't uncommon for newborn Diancie to actually have other gems on its body; it sheds them with age to be replaced by the signature pink diamonds. The same is true of the hard white sheet of rock around its shoulders- it begins soft, almost like a sheet of sorts, before growing along with the Diancie and hardening as another layer of protection.

Hoopa: When young, Hoopa has no real way of being confined. Hotheaded and boisterous, it's been known to pick fights with Pokemon much larger than itself, despite whatever power imbalance there may be. The fur on its body ces in different lengths and layers, depending on the living conditions around it. No matter the environment however, a young Hoopa will have a tail packed with fat and other nutrients to support its growth into am adult- similar to how both geckos and gila monsters will store reserves inside its tail as well. The hole in its chest is nearly completely covered by fur when young, and it is still gaining control over its legs and arms- this gives it a disadvantage in fights, due to its unwieldiness and all the learning it still has to do.

Volcanion: Based loosely off turtle hatchlings, and very similar to Zygarde, Volcanion young grow up alone. Born from small clutches, the young remain until the last egg hatches, then they all take their separate ways. Newborn Volcanion have a hefty control over the steam and water they can eject, as it is their primary defense system at this age. Dangerous, it cannot use these resources indefinitely, so it sparingly goes into the attack when defending itself. Babies are primarily non-predatory and even complacent with people, if exposed to them enough and given enough time to healthily grow. When feeling threatened, Volcanion young will make a series of dry barks and defensive postures- this includes aiming its ejective appendages at the threat and blowing a warning steam from its vents. If found and raised well as a newborn- a hard task that isn't impossible because of its voracious appetite at such an age- it's quite easy for one to become tame and a regular visitor to specific places in a town, or to a person's backyard.

[kuriquinn]

A Tender Harvest [one-shot]

Disclaimer

AO3 Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25994254

Pairing: SasuSaku

Summary:  Sakura and Sasuke help a village with their apple harvest, and Sasuke thinks about his relationship with Sakura. The thing about traveling together is it makes it that much easier to fall in love.

Author’s Note: So, I wrote this for the fanzine Seasons like a year or two ago and then completely forgot that it existed? And then I was trying to organize the mess that is my writing files and stumbled upon it again and figured, hey, why not post it? Especially since we’re coming up on Fall again lol. (Also, I don’t want people thinking I’m dead or something. I am working on some stuff for SasuSaku, but the creative juices haven’t been flowing as easily as they used to for this fandom…or, well, any fandom if I’m being honest. Kind of stuck in one of those “I should be writing original stuff” funks that hinders all of my fanfic efforts of late. But I am trying!)

Anyway, so here’s something (sort of) new for your enjoyment!

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Sasuke curses at the sudden lancing pain in his hand and yanks his arm out of the foliage to glare at his palm. In the centre, a wasp sticks to his skin by the stinger, its tiny wings and appendages flailing to remove itself. Sasuke gives a harsh flick of his wrist, dislodging the insect and sending it flying off somewhere near the ground.

He doesn’t kill it; if there is a nest nearby that would attract others, and there are enough of the little pests buzzing around the trees as it is.

It is early October, the hot autumn sun unimpaired except for some light haze and few bulbous white clouds in the distance. Crickets chirp, and the scent of wet earth inundates the air, mingling with sweat and the distant smell of a brush fire.

The little village where Sasuke and Sakura have been staying the last few days has an economy based largely around produce. Their apple trees, vineyards and rice fields require rigorous tending, as the yield is what keeps them from starving during winter months. They plant a lot, which means they harvest a lot, and any extra hands are welcome. Originally, Sakura and Sasuke travelled here because there was a need for a healer, but they chose to stay and help.

That’s a common enough pattern these days. Sakura keeps an ear out for places that need extra medical attention, and Sasuke fills his days with odd work. The routine is also an excellent cover for gathering information. People rarely ask them questions, too thankful for Sakura’s medical skills, and even without them, Sasuke’s arm usually discourages comment. There were enough men and women badly wounded in the war that no one needs to ask.

It also lends credence to his and Sakura’s wandering, since many people’s homes were destroyed by the war; first by the Zetsu army, and then marauders in the aftermath.

And we’ve encountered quite a few of those, too. Some friendly, some…not.

While Sakura makes house calls, he helps in whatever field where they need him. There were initially some who looked uncertain of his ability be useful, but he soon showed that his missing arm was barely a handicap.

Today he works in the apple orchard. It’s fairly large, maybe twenty acres, and there are a hundred or so people working alongside him. Clumps of men and women are scattered throughout, picking and packing apples in large baskets. A similar number of people sit just beyond the orchard, slumped or lying on the ground, or gathered around the few wagons with water. A few children squeeze into the tiny bit of shade provided by the wagons, but in this heat there’s barely any point to it.

The only ones happy in this weather are the wasps, Sasuke decides, frowning at his palm to see if the stinger is still attached. It’s not, but the skin is already beginning to puff up from the venom.

He shrugs it off—it’s not his first injury of the day, and he’s endured much worse in his life—and goes back to twisting the gleaming red fruits off their branches. It’s uncomfortable, but he finds he’s more irritated by the sweat drenching his clothing than the minor wound.

The orchard workers have had to work in shifts because of the rising temperature, and because Sakura insists that everyone who works needs to stay properly hydrated.

Sakura…

Sasuke became aware of her proximity about a half an hour ago, obviously finished with her work in the village and now arrived to help. Since then he has been vaguely conscious of her bringing people water or traipsing into the orchard to retrieve anyone who she thinks looks tired. No one bothers to protest the way she’s taken charge, either, and though it could be her status as a respected healer, he somehow doubts that’s the reason.

He remembers what she was like back in Konoha, carrying out important errands for Kakashi and running the hospital.

As always, on the tail of that thought he experiences a half-second of guilt for having taken one of their village’s most important resources on a mission of indeterminate length. The second half-second he buries that feeling, reminding himself it was her choice.

And he has no intention of admitting it out loud, but he can’t imagine how the past few months would have been without her by his side.

Well. He can imagine; he just doesn’t care to.

A bell rings in the distance, and someone shouts, “Break time! Change shifts!”

There are groans all around—relief from the orchard workers, and resignation from the vicinity of the wagons.

Sasuke ignores the call, intending to finish filling his basket before heading in, but even as he reaches for the next branch, there is a cough from down below.

When he glances down, he is unsurprised to find Sakura there, hands on her hips. “That means you too, Sasuke.”

“I’m almost finished.”

“No, you are finished. The foreman told me you started with the morning crew and didn’t switch out with the rest,” she informs him. “Just because you’re about the greatest shinobi alive, doesn’t mean you can’t get heatstroke. And just because I will take care of you if you get a fever and start throwing up everywhere, doesn’t mean I’ll like it.”

Sasuke’s mouth tugs upward a little.

It’s been an interesting dimension to their travels, Sakura speaking to him so frankly. There were a few days when they first set out together that she was still stuttering and wordlessly following his lead in everything; a few bandit encounters and a shouting match later, she found her backbone again.

Now, the only time he sees her flustered or nervous is because he’s caught her gazing at him, or when she realises she’s said something with unintended innuendo. 

“Annoying woman,” he murmurs into the tree, but the words have long since graduated from contempt to affection.

With an affected air of reluctance, he picks up the basket he was filling and raises an eyebrow at her. She grins, and says, “Come on.”

Sasuke trudges after her toward the nearest wagon, sets down his basket, and heads for the water barrels. Children pour it into cups for the workers, some darting among the amassing crowd to pass them out. This is how Sasuke ends up with one of them, and he is quick to put it to his lips.

He takes several slow mouthfuls, to minimize the risk of brain freeze, and takes pleasure in the way the liquid dissolves the dry, gummy feeling in his mouth and throat. The second cup he is offered, he pours over his head, enjoying the sensation of the cold rivulets cutting through his sweat-streaked hair and down his neck.

Sakura lingers nearby, the look on her face conveying an ‘I told you so’, which he patently ignores before joining the line for lunch. The women of the village pass out rice balls and beef skewers; he accepts gratefully, and then he searches out the nearest bit of shade he can.

There’s an old momiji tree several yards away from the larger group of workers, its leaves already turning red and gold, but still providing enough cover from the sun. He heads for that and is unsurprised when Sakura joins him.

As they pass, he notices people shooting them knowing glances or smiling in something like approval. Several young girls whisper conspiratorially. When he was younger, he would have purposely ignored such scrutiny, at times not even realising what the whispers meant. Though he still pretends obliviousness now, he now fully understands the reason for the unspoken interest.

The implication that he and Sakura are more than just travelling companions doesn’t bother him the way it might have before. In fact, he finds odd comfort in the thought. These days, they are on the cusp of something more, something inevitable. They’ll get there eventually, but he finds himself in no great hurry to do so.

Not because he doesn’t care for her—there’s no question that he does.

But too much of his life was spent hurtling from one state to the next, never content with his current existence and always wishing for more. With this—with Sakura—he wants to take his time and experience every moment.

He’s pretty sure Sakura is of the same mind.

As they sit, she sets down the plate she was balancing between her forearms, and two cups. He takes the latter, still more thirsty than hungry, and drinks deep.

Noticing his blink as a bitter taste hits his tongue, Sakura says, “There’s cold tea mixed in. That quenches thirst better than just water alone, and the electrolytes will keep you going.”

“Hm.”

They eat in companionable silence, yet another new quality to their relationship. Part of it is that now Sakura has an appetite that rivals his own and doesn’t like to waste time talking when she could be eating. The rest stems from the indescribably pull that has always existed between them, an ease one only experiences with the most trusted of kindred spirits. Words would mar that somehow, and neither seems willing to do that right away.

It is only when her meal is finished that Sakura reaches into her pack and produces—of course—two bright red apples.

“I may have snuck a few,” she admits with a smile.

Sasuke snorts. “You’re in an apple orchard. I think you could be forgiven.”

She laughs at that and bites into one of the fruits, making a tiny noise of pleasure at the flavour that has Sasuke swallowing uncomfortably. A rivulet of juice drips down her chin, and he finds himself tracking its progression.

Sakura notes his attention before he can look away, and her cheeks darken.

“Sorry!” she says, a little flustered, and puts aside the apple. “You probably want some too, right?”

There is something I want.

The thoughts present themselves unbidden as Sakura digs around in her kit for a knife, and starts to peel the second apple over her empty plate. His cheeks a little warmer than earlier, he looks away and pretends disinterest.

“Don’t trouble yourself. I haven’t even finished my lunch.”

“Then it will be ready when you are,” she quips without stopping.

Out of the corner of his eye, he watches her carefully dispose of the peel and then cut the apple into eight equal slices. Anyone else would think she was babying him, but he knows this is just her way. She genuinely enjoys doing this. He is, of course, perfectly able to cut up his own fruit, or eat an apple as is. But he doesn’t like apple peels, and never has.

He wonders when exactly Sakura noticed that about him.

She holds out the plate of apple slices to him, beaming, and he remembers a similar scene, many years ago. Of her worried and smiling face, her nervous chatter and her hand holding out a plate of apples. And then the clatter as the plate and fruit itself were knocked to the floor.

This time he accepts, forgetting that he hasn’t finished his lunch, and bites into the first slice. The white flesh is sweeter than the apples he usually eats—he prefers them tart and sour—but it’s perfectly in season and tastes good. 

Sakura’s lips part in surprise, and the motion causes him to nearly miss as he pops the rest of the fruit into his mouth. Thankfully, she doesn’t appear to see; instead, her eyes flick toward his hand, mouth firming.

Damn. I meant to keep that hidden.

Sakura barely waits for his hand to be empty before taking him by the wrist. “You’re hurt!”

The skin of his forearm and hand is crisscrossed with welts and scratches, as well as several wasp stings from when he was reaching into the trees. He’d forgotten about them, but with her attention, the dull hurts flare to life.

“It’s nothing,” he tells her, trying to take his hand back, but she doesn’t relinquish it.

“You always say it’s nothing. I’ve stopped believing you.”

“I guarantee everyone else working in the orchard has the same thing.”

“And I’ll get to them. But you’re here right now, and knowing you, you’re going to throw yourself back into work right away, so it won’t be until this evening when I get my hands on you again…” He raises an eyebrow at her. Her eyes widen. “That…didn’t come out right…”

He can’t help the slow smirk that pulls at his mouth, and she scowls at him.

“Shut up,” she grumbles, twin spots of rouge flaming even darker across her cheeks but holds his hand closer to her. Green chakra flickers between her fingers, seeping into his muscles and tendons, easing the sharp aching of scraped skin and pulling muscles.

While she heals, her expression relaxes, embarrassment giving way to concentration. He’s noticed that about her: when she uses her medical ninjutsu, everything else appears to fall beyond her awareness.

Still, there’s a tiny smile upon her lips and the fading colour across the bridge of her nose and cheekbones that has nothing to do with the autumn swelter. 

When she releases him, she is unabashed and cheerful again. “Better?”

He flexes his fingers, studying the newly healed skin, and nods.

“Thank you.”

Sasuke straightens and reaches for another apple slice, frowning at a mild pinching sensation behind his neck. He hasn’t even rolled his shoulder once to disperse the tension, before Sakura is leaning toward him again, eye filled with concern.

“You’ve strained your neck,” she says, and it sounds accusing, as if she thinks he deliberately kept it from her.

“No, I haven’t.”

“Yes, you have! I know what that looks like.”

“I haven’t done anything strenuous enough,” he replies, a little indignant because he knows his body’s limits.

“Spending the day with your arm raised overhead and twisting fruit off branches requires different movements than kenjutsu or taijutsu,” she lectures. “If you don’t take care of it now, you’ll regret it tomorrow.”

“I’ll be fine.”

“Stop being so stubborn! Lie down and I’ll fix it for you.”

“No.”

“Sasuke…!”

She is growing annoyed, not understanding the reason for his refusal. He is easier with her lately when it comes to touching or being touched. It’s happened often enough—huddled together in the shelter of a tree when it rains, elbows bumping when they crowd into communal meal halls, or checking each other’s wounds.

If they were alone, he would let her ease the knots from his neck and shoulders, but right now they are in front of an entire village of people. Some of whom are viewing the interchange with blatant interest and amusement, others barely concealing the smiles on their faces.

The back of Sasuke’s neck feels warm. He dislikes such attention.

A look creeps across Sakura’s face, the one that Sasuke knows he will have no recourse against, and he has to act before it fully manifests..

“If you don’t lie down right now…” she begins, her voice rising with each syllable.

“Sakura,” he says, his tone soft but firm in its finality.

Her expression freezes at that, and she blinks, coming back to herself. Then, glancing around, she spots what he has been aware of for a while—the audience of workers pretending not to be observing them. 

Her look of surprise is almost comical, and her cheeks flood red once more.

“I didn’t mean— I wasn’t going to— not in front of—” she stammers, all apologies and embarrassment and avoiding eye contact. She jumps to her feet, nearly slopping tea over them both. “I have to get back. They, um, probably need help cleaning up, and I have to go out and check on the other workers, and you…well, you’re right…we can, um, your arm…I’ll just…”

He’s enjoying her fluster more than he should and opens his mouth to speak—to say something smooth in delivery or laden with implication—so that it continues.

But she’s biting her lip as if to physically stop herself from stammering, and her eyes are shining just so, even as they dart about trying to avoid his gaze, and as has become a frequent occurrence, Sasuke discovers every word in his vocabulary suddenly vanishing from his brain.

It takes him several seconds longer than he expects to remember at least one.

“Later?” he suggests.

Sakura stops her fidgeting and meets his gaze. This time he doesn’t bother hiding his small smile from her.

That unnameable something passes between them, bolstered by the rustling leaves and dense heat around them.

Then she smiles back, a gentle and pleased upward curve of her lips, and nods. “Right. Um…later.”

She hurries away after that, tripping a few times before her posture straightens and he watches her transform from his Sakura to the no-nonsense, hyper-confident medic and director.

Sasuke finishes his meal and eases to his feet, ready to head back into the orchard. On his way, he passes one of the workers who is staring Sakura with an air of awe.

“Your girl is something,” he says, impressed.

Sasuke considers Sakura once more, as she directs a group of villagers to go around picking up discarded plates and cups.

In his mind’s eye, he sees a skinny girl with long pink locks, hands on her hips and lecturing him or Naruto or Kakashi for some misbehaviour or other. In a blink it’s replaced with the brave kunoichi, bruised and battered, caring for him when he was ill, or holding him back from throwing himself into danger.

A girl who wouldn’t give up on a boy filled with darkness, even when he shoved away what she offered, be it a plate of apples or her heart.

It’s not the first time he wonders what he did to deserve her.

But he doesn’t reveal any of this to the worker. Instead, he shrugs and says with complete certainty, “She is.”

終わり

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I am trying to figure out how to fit this one into the Legacy of Fire series, but it mostly depends on me writing a completely different fic to allow that to happen, so this can exist in the same series as Miso Soup Everyday and You Are Cordially Invited. So for now it’s not part of the series...

I want to know what you think of my story! Leave kudos, a comment or if writing comments isn’t something you’re comfortable with, as many of these (or other emojis) as you want and let me know how you feel!

❤️️ = I love this story! 😳 = this was hot! 💐 = thank you for sharing this 🍵 = tea spilled 🍬 = so sweet and fluffy! 🚔 = you’re under arrest! the writing’s too good! 😲 = I NEED THE NEXT CHAPTER 😢 = you got me right in the feels 🤯mind blown 🤬god damn cliffhanger 😫 whyyyyyyy?!?!?

栗

[anangelicday-mrwolf]

Wolfsbane : Noblesse Fanfic (post-ending)

(previous chapter)

Chapter 61 – Classical Is the Best

“...Well? Is it over now?”

Tao muttered as he neared his communicator-plunged ear with his shivering hand, with Rael and M-21 nervously attending.

To their dismay, Takio, who was supposed to be reporting at the scene, was silent.

The men are appalled, assuming that Takio entered the scene when the gas was still lingering, effective.

Thankfully, that was when they could hear Takio’s voice.

<I’d say it’s over. We were standing by in a distance, as we could see the gas ghosting close to the surface.>

“Is that so...? What about the people?”

“What about their body modification? Is it gone now?”

“Don’t tell me it’s not over yet...!”

M-21 and Rael, out of impatience, almost barked into Tao’s ear, forgetting that he was not the only one who happened to be equipped with a communicative device.

<They’re...>

They’re...?

They’re what?!

Hearts clattering at Takio’s statement, the three listeners could not dare to pull out the question stuck in their mouths.

<The people... Their bodies are returning to normal! I think that gas did its job!>

Takio cried out loud, sounding like he would weep as soon as he is offered with a handkerchief; Tao, M-21, and Rael replied with a trio of a sigh so deep they might as well spit their lungs out.

“...What about the 3rd Elder?”

Tao hesitantly added, and they tightened their lips once more, all ears on Takio’s reply.

<...Found him. He’s alive, but... Tao, I think you were right. Looks like that gas did get to him as well. Somewhat.>

Evaluated Takio, looking down at 3rd Elder, his body reeking of fatal fatigue, the sort that modified humans will never get to experience without a life-or-death battle that forces its participants’ lives on a line for at least a dozen times.

Although his body was perfectly clean of physical trauma, the white-haired man remained immobile, breathing like a fish pulled out of water.

Apparently, however, the man did not forget his portion of the mission, and he did not hesitate to ask as soon as he spotted Takio.

“Is... Is everyone okay...?”

“...Yes. Their modification is going away, thanks to you.”

“...No. Don’t thank me. This is... This is all thanks to...”

Cough, cough.

The 3rd Elder coughed lightly, but Takio and Yuigi who joined him started, their shoulders hitching.

Their eyes told them his state was nowhere near serious, but their senses told him he needed hospitalization this moment.

An exchange of looks was all it took Takio and Yuigi to settle to move him to KSA this instant.

“Don’t worry about me... Take care of the... Cough. And... Takio.”

“Y-yes...?!”

“Could you please... Send the fastest among you... To this place I’m about to tell you...? And do it... Now.”

The fastest among us would be Rael.

But more importantly, is there an issue that requires Rael right now?

Barely meeting Takio’s eyes, who was suddenly quivering with anxiety, 3rd Elder whispered, his blue eyes curiously having lost its hue for a tone.

“I’m sorry, but... I need a favor.”

*****

Meanwhile, in Lukedonia

“Huff... Huff...”

Lunark’s hand swiped her forehead, a drop of blood turned viscid with sweat trickling down.

It was more than forehead that was soaked with sweat and blood, but it was the best she could do.

She had been fully committed to this battle, reminding and reminding and REMINDING herself that if she is to slip even for a second, this power will drain away like a school of fish making its escape through the holes in the net.

And the battle was much more onerous than she had envisioned, as she had to put herself against the Dark Spear brandishing its true form AND struggle against this power vigorously bubbling within her like gas next to fire.

Just when the round 2 of this fight began, she had thought that now she can finally understand what Frankenstein would have been burdened with as he wielded the Dark Spear, though this power and Dark Spear are not even similar in terms of essence.

Alas, she learned that she was mistaken – mistaken and hubristic.

‘Just how...? How could Frankenstein walk and talk and smile with this power lurking within him? How could he possess both this power and the Dark Spear? How did he manage to use this power along with the Dark Spear?’

Theory and practice are two different things; Lunark learned that, as she saw for herself how controlling this power was nothing far from hellish.

When she sought openings for her to push and pull against the Dark Spear, the power accelerated on its own.

And when she concentrated this power at her limbs to leave a pregnant blow on her foe, it flailed about and disobeyed her.

‘If this keeps going, I’ll end up losing this power and repeating what happened right before I was thrown into the sea.’

At least, Lunark thought, the Dark Spear was treating her with more caution.

She had been clumsily but persistently building damage onto the Dark Spear, which was by no means meaningless.

And with the knowledge on the power Lunark had made her weapon, it could not dare trash about like it used to.

Notwithstanding, Lunark did not dare dub herself upper-handed.

In other words, the lead of this battle was a flag unmastered, out in the open for either one of them to snatch at.

And both of them knew by instinct that the one who is to prevail victorious in the catch-the-flag will be the one to announce this battle as terminated.

‘Now, what should I do?’

Lunark knew what was the most commonly employed compass at the face of a pathway that requires most essential choice of direction – the basics.

Which is probably why her head retrieved a tip from her parents, from the moment she was just introduced to the art of war and combat, excited to start her baby steps – perhaps too excited, as a beginner full of spirit and clumsiness.

How to win against a strong opponent? Hmm... Very well. It’s bit early for you, but I guess it can’t hurt to save a cat from your curiosity.

The win and loss in a brawl between powerful fighters are commonly decided by a very small element. Including, but not limited to, the out-of-norm degree that is added to your right shoulder. The squint that narrows your vision. The tempo that connects your step to your fist. The elements you’d deem so insignificant that you feel no time or need at all to mind can sometimes aid you to take flight. Or take a fall to your doom.

So, once I become strong enough to keep them all in mind as I fight, does that mean I won’t lose to anyone?

Not quite. A combat is composed of more than punches and slashes and whatever that seems decided. It is bound to be entailed with variables.

Which is why some say a battle between powers will end in only two cases – either it never ends, or it ends in a blink of an eye.

Which is why getting your basics correct is the key. Once you have basics to serve as a rope for you, you will be able to save yourself even if an unexpected makes you take a tumble down the abyss. In fact, you can use it to your favor if situation allows it. Which is why we shall try again! On your feet. Get set – and let’s go!

Reiterating her parent’s teaching in the speed of light, Lunark focused her pink pupils, glowing with crimson ring of light.

‘A battle between powers never ends... Or it ends in a blink of an eye.’

And considering their current situation, Lunark knew her next move must put an end to this fight.

She recalled her not-so-plentiful battle data she had personally earned on Dark Spear, before she kicked at where she was standing.

From her head to toes, the blood-red wings of aura as majestic as a burning phoenix spread out its silhouette.

Dark Spear flinched, but it gritted its teeth and lunged towards her, clearly having realized that there was no way to avoid this collision.

Two storms, one bloody and one dark-purple, swept through everything in their paths in deadly incineration.

Their distances were not great, but for some reason their races had yet to reach the finish line.

“Huh...?!”

Until from Lunark’s shoulders the red aura suddenly started to lose its glare.

Bafflement dripping from every curve and cut in her faces, Lunark hurriedly stomped on her feet; and of course, the Dark Spear did not mean to gape at the moment.

“Looks like Lady Luck decided to smile upon us!”

Dark Spear spread out Frankenstein’s lips to more than what they would normally handle and revealed his teeth.

At the same time, it lashed out its true body like a child waving a balloon at a theme park.

Lunark’s skin could not stay unscathed at the wind smeared with black aura, and naturally she recoiled, her legs taking backsteps.

Now with the flow of the battle in its hands, Dark Spear was no longer reluctant.

For it knew this was its only chance to eliminate her.

Which is why it took a rushed step forward to spear itself into her.

Just as the Dark Spear’s vicious red eyes were targeted upon Lunark right at the tip of her nose, with a thump supernaturally strong hands gripped Frankenstein’s arms under Dark Spear’s control, so strong it might as well have snapped the appendages.

And with a crack Lunark’s head was raised, and Dark Spear’s thoughts froze upon meeting her eyes, to find the red circle of light still very vivid in her eyes.

‘She didn’t lose that power! She tricked me into her grasp...!’

Dark Spear’s belated realization was exactly what Lunark had in mind as she set her trap.

Her original plan was to cumulate physical damage upon Dark Spear, so that it cannot retain itself within Frankenstein’s body due to weariness.

Which was canceled almost immediately.

She did manage to add damage that not even Dark Spear could ignore, but it was none other than Frankenstein’s body that Dark Spear was maneuvering.

‘And the problem lies within Frankenstein, not outside. So it’s no use to beat the heck out of that thing.’

Thus she edited her plan – to return Frankenstein’s body to himself by pouring this power into his physical build.

But with the Dark Spear highly keen on keeping her away from itself, what she needed was a crucial moment.

‘My best option is to make that thing fixed on its spot. I don’t need to perfectly overpower it. Once I secure for myself a second that Dark Spear cannot stay away from me, I’d be able to pour this power into Frankenstein’s body. And if I do that...!’

She wondered how she would be able to pull this off, with Dark Spear held in Frankenstein’s hand; the answer came right away.

And there is a reason why people say classical is the best.

‘Hopefully you’ll give me a pass just this once, Frankenstein!’

Lunark attempted to once again grab Frankenstein’s arm, which was trying so hard to shake her away, as if she were a patient caught with a contagion.

Nevertheless, a crisis is bound to lead to a power unbeknownst before, and Dark Spear was no exception to this rule.

Feeling how her opponent’s arm is about to slip out of her fingers, she gave up on arresting the Dark Spear and took in a huge breath.

Upon making sure both their mouths are open, she weighed her neck with velocity.

And she pressed down a pair of dark purple lips with her own.

(Illustration by. RyO - you can find her DeviantArt page here)

Her eyes were shut tight for full concentration, and Dark Spear’s red eyes snapped open wide in shock.

Almost simultaneously, red cloud of light was recast upon her silent body, to cascade straight into Frankenstein’s body through Lunark’s mouth.

Mumbling with its mouth blocked, Dark Spear fired sinister glints from two red pupils.

If we can’t beat you, we’ll at least make sure you won’t get to feast on your victory!

That was when Frankenstein’s arm clutching the Dark Spear was finally freed, and without hesitation the dark pillar of energy hit right through Lunark’s back with deadly aim, still whipped up with crimson maelstrom.

*****

“...I believe it is over.”

Lascrea, who had been walking back and forth before her throne ever since her initial report on the situation, spoke with her gaze stationed far.

Kei, Karious, Gechutel, and Claudia followed suit, who happened to be present at the Lord’s Hall to protect her just in case.

A series of tremor from sprinting footsteps, too loud and too definite to miss even for humans, was approaching fast and furious.

Soon enough, somebody broke through the doors, almost tackling through the Central Knights who tried to stop him.

“...Frankenstein?”

“...Or are you still that damned weapon?”

Frankenstein’s skin had regained its natural tone, but his upper body was drenched with dark red blood.

Hence the nobles did not relieve their bodies of tension.

At then they took in what he was holding in his arms, and their eyes trembled with distraught.

“I need every doctor in this place right now!!!!”

Frankenstein screeched, his manners and introductions cleanly forgotten.

And nobody blamed or chastised him, for through his fingers squeezing down on Lunark’s back to the best of their possibilities was gushing out a strain of black blood.

“I said right now!!!”

Frankenstein’s eyes, back to their natural-born cerulean, were shuddering as if they would burst any moment.

(next chapter)

Frankie and Lunark’s very first kiss was supposed to happen in this chapter. But I didn’t want to wait for 60 chapters to pass until these two finally kiss. And more importantly, since Dark Spear has taken over Frankie’s body in this chapter, I felt it wouldn’t really be their first kiss. Which is why I moved their first kiss to Ch. 29. XD And finally, Lunark’s battle against the Dark Spear is over, and every battle sequence has been terminated. Now all that is left is the aftermath of the battles and finale for this fic. I assume this fic will meet its end in August or September, and I’ll do my best until I reach there!

[yourdeepestfathoms]

False God AU

based on my own story and the characters in it, Tales From The American Slaughterhouses (or: Wake Me Up When September Ends)

The UK government has decided that human soldiers are no long exceeding their expectations, so when the US comes to them with a proposition, they accept. A special chemical has been created called “miasma”. When infused with human blood, it will mutate that human into a monstrous creature that has never been seen before. Permanently.

These mutants are called “False Gods” and must wear thick metal collars (Restrainers) at all time, which keep them in their dormant forms and pump human hormones into their brains to stop them from being completely feral. However, when the collar is removed, they will transform into their godly bodies and lose their humanity. Hopefully, this will only ever happen in war towards enemies.

They’re housed in old slaughterhouses on the edge of England--or so everyone thinks. But below the ocean lays the underwater city, No-Man’s Land, housed in domes of glass and lit up brightly in the depths. Here, the False Gods live normal lives, or as normal as lives mutants can live. And they all go about their days with the same thing in mind: they will never see the surface ever again, unless it’s to kill. 

Now, let’s meet our Gods.

Aragon- The Church Lamb

Description: Out of most False Gods, Aragon appears one of the most human. The only real outlandish feature about her is her pitch black ram head with large ears and horns that curl around her head. Her eyes glow gold in the darkness. She’s also usually seen wearing suits with a cross necklace that she never seems to take off. She likes to dress snappily.

Procedure: Aragon was a willing test subject who signed up to be mutated. Her procedure consisted of a dead ram’s head being sewn onto her own head and then left in stasis for three days so it can fuse to her skull after the miasma was given. She had to breathe through a tube for those three tubes, but her procedure was one of the more painless ones.

Anne- The Leviathan

Description: Anne always appears in her full God form because of experimentation gone wrong, but she’s very stable with her human mind. She’s a very large sea dragon, with varying shades of green scales and bioluminescent stripes all along her legs, tail, neck, and wings. 

Procedure: After being injected with lizard’s blood and miasma, Anne was kept in a salt water pool for a week, where she grew all her new appendages and her skin rotted off. However, she was unable to be given a Restrainer because she was far too mutated, so, instead, she was pumped full of human hormones.

Jane- The Winter Owl

Description: Jane is a tall, anthropomorphic snowy owl with pure white feathers and black streaks. Her wings are usable and can also double as hands (think Ritos from LoZ). She also wears a dark grey bow tie.

Procedure: Like the medieval torture method, Jane was tarred and feathered, then injected with miasma and snowy owl blood.

Cleves- The Brazen Bull

Description: Cleves is very much like a minotaur, with dark brown fur and hock-jointed legs with hooves and a tail and everything. The only catch is that she can light her entire body on fire. The tufts of fur on the end of her tail are always burning, even when she sleeps. Her horns also glow like lava and smoke often comes from her mouth and nostrils when worked up.

Procedure: Cleves was injected with bovine blood and miasma before placed into a heated room, where she would inhale smoke for several hours through an oxygen mask.

Kitty- The Chimera

Description: Kitty sure is a chimera alright. The bottom half of a snake and the torso and head of a human, wings of a bat, horns of a deer, thick paws of a lion. Her scales are pink with black diamonds and cover her entire body except her face and stomach, so she doesn’t wear any clothing.

Procedure: You would think her transformation process would be painful, but it actually wasn’t. She was put under while her new limbs were sewn on and kept asleep until they fused with her body fully. Only a little bit of soreness once she woke up, but fine nonetheless, unlike many others.

Cathy- The Organ Donor

Description: Cathy also looks very human, much like Aragon. You may even think she was normal if it weren’t for her second pair of arms. In reality, Cathy can mutate her body into very horrific shapes, but she prefers to stay as normal as possible. She can feel no real pain and gets her name from the way she can duplicate her organs, making her a very valuable False God.

Procedure: Cathy was one of the first False Gods, and therefore her procedure wasn’t as in depth as some of the others. She was simply injected with miasma and then had to wait for the effects, which was when her ability to duplicate organs appeared.

Bessie- The Blue-Eyed Blackbird

Description: Bessie, as her name may suggest, is a bird creature, sort of like Jane, but slightly more human. She’s covered in black crow feather from head-to-toe, except on her stomach and face. She had hock-jointed bird legs, large wings, and big feathery ears that stick out from the sides of her head. However, she is always wearing a white plague doctor mask and cloak because she hates her appearance. She also hates herself in general and doesn’t talk very often. Also, birds sometimes grow out from her right eye.

Procedure: Bessie was a victim of suicide and her corpse was brought into No-Man’s Land and brought back to life (people get paid to bring in bodies for testing). She was injected with miasma and crow’s blood, then left to transform, which was painful, especially for her wings.

Maria- The Birch

Description: Maria appears as a humanoid tree creature. She has four legs instead of two and thick, branch-like arms with sharp points for fingers. Moss and shrubs grow all over her body, which is made of bark instead of skin.

Procedure: Maria was injected with miasma and tree sap, then left to soak in sunlight as she transformed.

Maggie- The Bog

Description: Maggie is a tall, alien-like swamp creature with aquamarine scales and webbed fins running down her spine, tail, and extending from her elbows and ankles. She also has a finned ruff at the sides of her head.

Procedure: Maggie’s procedure was similar to Anne’s, injected with miasma and reptilian blood, but she was bathed in a vat of hot mud until she transformed.

Joan- The Angel of Death

Description: Joan is a very strange case, in which her process sort of got messed up. She has giant grey moth wings with red spots like eyes on them, hock-jointed fuzzy legs, silk glands in her wrists, and antenna. Think Mothman, basically. But then, she has strange floppy ears made of fuzzy silver fur (that fades into light blue at the tips). Her blonde hair has turned silver at the roots as well. She also has a glowing halo, tiny devil horns, and a long, thin tail with a light blue tip. Nobody really knows what she was supposed to be. Also she wears overalls.

Procedure: Joan is the newest addition to No-Man’s Land when she went into the abandoned slaughterhouse facility to show off to her “friends.” Of course, she was captured and tested on against her will, where she was injected with miasma, moth blood, and some other type of blood. Within seconds, silk began to pour out from her wrists and consume her, trapping her in a cocoon, where her wings grew in painfully, legs snapped into a new position, spine elongated into a tail, and organs began to rearrange themselves. It was quite a traumatizing experience, especially in such a tight space.

[inkspottie]

I have a question for your Monochrome Madness AU. Whatappen happens when they go to the doctor for the first time? I mean, I know there's patient confidentiality, but they have tails and horns and halos and WINGS. What happens if Henry breaks a wing? Does he have to go to the vet? Because even though the bone structure in a bird is similar to your arm, your doc isn't gonna have a cast for that. Eventually, the FBI is gonna notice something is up. You don't have to answer. Just thought I'd ask.

Mm a good question! No doubt there is a doctor that Henry absolutely trusts that he would go to if anything was to happen to himself or to the crew. (No doubt a character I’ll have to make up) but I imagine he trusts his doctor a lot since he has often gone to the hospital either for himself or for his wife.

I like to think that he has that sort of trust in someone he can relay it to without having issues. Henry’s gotta have friends outside of the studio right? Probably not a lot, but he still has some.

And you’re right about the vet, they’d have to go to one if his wing is ever damaged. Dont think that would happen in the near future but I’m sure they get the help they need. This is the prologue after all. Only a little bit of angst with the happy ending, they’ve been through so much after all.

As for the FBI...yeah that might be a problem. I’m sure Henry does his best to keep him and his friends from being super suspicious but it’s inevitable considering that all of them like...disappeared for thirty years and suddenly came back looking the same age. And with added appendages.

[thebladeblaster]

Pokémon: the Vanguard Descends The Movie: Celebi Lost In Time (part 1)

Aichi’s current team

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Many years ago Arceus foretold that his messiah would appear as the offspring of Gin Gaillard…

“Subject 003v. The human to Pokémon ratio in his dna is perfect. As well the programming has been perfectly calibrated to account for his power. As for his power he is far stronger than our previous two successes in project Psyqualia.”, Ryuzu said.

Gin touched the tube with his hand looking at his recently born son: A familiar blue haired boy with blue eyes. He looked back at his father.

“003v is the one who will fulfill our ambition. The perfect life form who will allow us to finally take over the world and defeat that infernal god, Arceus. You understand right my son?”, Gin said, smirking.

However, much to the terror of the world and the mistake of Arceus he told Gin this. Thus Gin decided to take control of destiny and the messiah. Instead of being Arceus’s avatar to fulfill his will he turned him into his avatar to fulfill his will upon the world, Team Asteroid ultimate weapon, the strongest creation of project Psyqualia, the ultimate despair, the anti-messiah, 003v...

Emi rode as fast as she could on the back of a Galarian Rapidash. She looked a bit older than she should be, looking more in her teens. By her side flew a girl with vibrant red hair and red cat-like eyes. She wore a yellow and orange dress with a big yellow hat and red shoes. She had glowing white angelic wings. Riding upon a Corvknight by their side was a shadowed figure and weirdly Suiko.

They flinched as they heard explosions in the background they hurried as fast as they could through the greenery.

“Come on Kai, Miwa, Kamui, Kyou, *static*! You’ve gotta buy us the time we need!”, the figure grumbled.

“Your fools if you think you have anytime without Team Asteroid’s permission.”, they all froze and paled in fear as they heard a familiar voice.

Descending down in front of them covered in a murky dark blue aura and rainbow spirals in his eyes was none other than 003v. Like Emi he looked a bit older for some reason. He wore a long black general-like coat lined with red. The side of the shoulders had a yellow part hanging off. Underneath was some sort of white zipped up top. He wore grey pants and long white boots. He had a belt similar to his father’s with a red A. His arms were crossed, his expression had a bit of annoyance and exasperation. He simply raised his pointer finger sending a blast of energy that stopped their mounts and the flying girl in their tracks, a dark blue aura and two intersecting rings surrounded them, binding them. The rings were pitch black with an ominous red along the edge.

“Absolute lock!”, 003v said as he binded the girl and the other Pokémon.

“Stop this 003v!”, Emi pleaded as 003v turned his gaze to her, his expression looking a bit softer when he looked over to her.

“I should be telling you the same thing Emi. Seriously rebelling like this? It must be another teenage phase. Come on, it’s time to come home Emi.”, 003v replied as he rubbed the back of his head.

“Stop treating me like this is simply a phase! Team Asteroid isn’t protecting anyone! It’s merely an authoritarian power controlling the world!”, Emi replied, very red.

003v nearly scoffed at this.

“Wait, but he’s here does that mean he…?”, Suiko questioned.

“Oh, yes your so-called god is dead. You know, for the battle that had been hyped up my whole life it was rather disappointing.”, 003v answered smugly.

They all looked completely horrified.

“You killed Arceus!? You're supposed to be the messiah! The one who was supposed to bring peace to the world! How could you!?”, the winged girl questioned.

“I have brought peace to the world. Ever since I enabled Team Asteroid’s take over of the world there had been no wars, disasters, or conflict. Not until you tricked my sister and tried to mess everything up.”, 003v replied with his voice full of venom, glaring at the winged girl.

His presence that had been restrained before was leaking out. They felt themselves choking from his oppressive aura. It made them feel like bowing and groveling for forgiveness at his feet. If they had weaker wills they would be doing so. It was so impossibly strong and seemingly infinite that they shook. They knew internally that no being could defeat this monster, but they tried anyway.

“Hey idiot! Can’t you get it through your thick skull that you’re on the bad guy side!?”, the shadowed figure said as he got in front of 003v dismounting the Corviknight.

003v completely ignored him as if he wasn’t even there focusing his attention on Emi. The shadow figure growled at this enraged that he was being ignored like this. He raised his fist and Suiko looked very panicked.

“*static* I don’t think that’s a good idea! You’ll only piss him off!”, Suiko warned.

The figure didn’t listen, punching 003v which was also ignored. He threw a punch and heard a loud crackle as his fist bent at an unnatural angle and blood tripped from it. He fell to his knees howling in pain clutching his fist.

“*static*!”, All of them minus 003v and the figure cried out.

003v looked completely unfazed by this, single mindedly focused on Emi. The figure growled throwing out a master ball revealing the seed of destruction; Yveltal. 003v still didn’t seem to care, even with the destruction legendary right next to him. He simply didn’t fear it or seemingly anyone or anything else. What should an ultimate life form have to fear?

“I’ll keep this bastard at bay!”, the shadowed figure said.

This made 003v break into uncontrollable laughter.

“Oh so you can hear me you bastard! Grieon use oblivion wing!”, the figure ordered angrily.

“You think you’ll stop me. That’s cute. You people never learn do you?”, 003v replied.

Emi took this chance to slip by paling as 003v was hit by the red light shot by the legendary, only to look untouched. The others remaining gaped in disbelief as 003v stood in the crater created by the destruction Pokémon‘a attack unfazed. He casually looked over his coat.

“Dang. You couldn’t even ruffle my coat, this is going to be so boring.”, 003v groaned.

“You arrogant prick! Oblivion wing!”, the shadowed figure replied as Grieon fire at him again.

They gasped as 003v walked through the blast like it wasn’t even there.

“Man you're so weak. I’ll just have Imaginary Plane deal with you so I can pick up Emi.”, 003v said, talking as if the legendary was merely a minor inconvenience.

003v threw out a Poké ball revealing a Haxorus who smiled sinisterly at Grieon.

“Not her!”, the winged girl called out.

003v turned his back to leave as the Haxorus fired scales at the legendary. Grieon raises up its wings in defense. Loud bangs could be heard as the scales bombarded Grieon’s wings.

“Arceus was wrong about you! You're not the messiah! Your pure evil the opposite to the messiah! The anti-messiah!”, the winged girl yelled venting all her frustrations in tears.

003v just smirked at this.

“As I said before I am the messiah. I brought peace to the world as Arceus desired.”, 003v replied, holding out one of his hands and gesturing with it.

“You're so brainwashed you can’t tell the difference between right and wrong! What you’ve done subjugating the entire world! Taking away everyone’s choice! Having them live in fear! That’s wrong! ”, the winged girl yelled.

“Pfft. I’m brainwashed, sure. Emi completely changing her mind about Team Asteroid after years was totally natural.”, 003v replied sarcastically.

The winged girl fumed with anger glaring at him. The shadow figure growled as Grieon was losing ground.

“Haxorus! Haxorus! Haxorus! Haxorus! Haxorus! Haxorus! (You can’t lose yet! I’m still having fun!)”, Imaginary Plane said.

003v suddenly froze, realizing something. He looked around seeing Emi was out of sight now.

“You're stalling me.”, 003v growled with annoyance.

“Of course.”, the winged girl replied.

003v took a step forward, seeming to disappear to them. Emi jumped hiding something in her arms as 003v seemed to appear in front of her. Emi backed away a bit as he walked forward.

“It’s time to come home Emi. Stop this nonsense.”, 003v said, outstretching his hand to Emi.

Emi turned away as 003v frowned.

“I wish…I wish things didn’t have to be like this. I wish you could be the kind person you naturally are. I wish...we could have lived together with mom, happily far away from dad.”, Emi said quietly with tears in her eyes tightening the grip of whatever was in her arms.

003v narrowed his eyes.

“You know that can never…”, 003v trailed off, freezing as could see a yellow cloth-like appendage sticking out not covered by Emi.

She looked up at 003v, her brother who for the first time in a long time looked genuinely panicked. His eyes widened in shock Emi’s arms revealed what was in her arms as he shook in tears. It was Jirachi, the wish Pokémon. 003v quickly faster than humans could ever comprehend thrusted his hand forward at Jirachi. He sweated nervously as he realized it was too late the eye on its belly had opened.

Light enveloped everything and the winged girl was released from her binds being swept away by the light.

“Emi!!”, she called out as she held her hand out as she was swept away.

The next scene showed Shizuka holding an infant Emi and Takuto standing before her. Shizuka’s eyes widened with complete disbelief and betrayal as she read the hacked information about her son and Team Asteroid.

“I know you may not trust me Shizuka Dou. But, something that is an irrefutable truth that I have revealed to you is that your son is alive. And your husband hid that fact from you. You must realize the kind of man your husband has become and leave here with your children.”, Takuto said.

She just wanted her babies to be safe so she nodded. Takuto disappeared for a brief moment teleporting before reappearing in a few minutes with an unconscious boy. He had blue hair and blue eyes. He wore a grey dress shirt and pants with black shoes. It was 003v, only 3 years old. Shizuka instantly grabbed hold of her unconscious child holding him close to her chest along with an infant Emi.

“We have to go now. Grab a hold of my hand.”, Takuto said urgently.

“Get him!”, Gin yelled from behind the door.

In a flash Shizuka was gone with her children to the small region known as Kakusa. She calmed down the crying baby Emi. She still held 003v close to her chest as well.

“I’ve altered his memories. As far as he’s concerned he’s been raised by his single mother and that you fled Galar with him and his sister to escape Team Asteroid.”, Takuto explained.

“You messed with his head?!”, Shizuka questioned, glaring at Takuto.

“Trust me it’s better that he doesn’t remember. You remember what you read right? How Gin had been raising him?”, Takuto replied.

“I know but…”, Shizuka trailed off as she looked down.

“Wait, what about his name? Isn’t his name being 003v a bit suspicious?”, Shizuka questioned.

“What do you want his name to be?”, Takuto asked as he held his fingers up to Aichi’s head.

Shizuka froze remembering the name she had originally thought up for him.

“Aichi...I want his name to be Aichi. It has many meanings including love, wisdom and...light of hope. Also, I don’t want to find it easily so our last name will now be Sendou.”, Shizuka replied.

An aura flashed around Takuto as 003v now was named Sendou Aichi. To further distance themselves from Gin they said their names like those in Kakusa did with their family name first.

She finally got to sit down when they got to PSY Sweets and she would stay there till she found a place to live. She was rather anxious as Aichi gained consciousness after sleeping soundly in the room’s bed. She held in a deep breath as Aichi stirred, rubbing his eyes in confusion. He looked over to Shizuka who held Emi in her arms. Emi roused from her sleep laying her eyes on her brother for this first time.

“...mom? Where are we?”, were the first words she heard her son say groggily.

She froze as he heard her son call her mom for the first time, forgetting to breathe. She also noted his noticeable Galatian accent like her own and Gin’s. To blend in further in Kakusa she would later make him hide it till eventually he lost his accent all together.

“We’ve made it to Kakusa, Aichi. We’re in PSY Sweets.”, Shizuka replied, finally remembering to breathe.

Aichi looked around tiredly in a way that reminded her of Gin in the morning. The physical resemblance he had to Gin added to it though he had Shizuka’s colors.

“Oh okay…”, Aichi replied, half asleep.

He crawled over to Emi who looked over at him curiously in her arms. Emi giggled as he came near and Aichi smiled.

“I’m glad Emi’s alright.”, Aichi said as Shizuka felt a very warm feeling in her chest.

Later after they had found a home in Sanctuary town. Aichi had a fateful encounter with a certain someone.

Aichi walked along the street wearing a blue shirt, black shorts and a backpack. He had scuff marks and a bandage on his face. He looked down sadly walking back home. Tears were stinging his eyes and he was recently used as a punching bag by the local bullies again.

He stopped when felt someone wipe away his tears. It was Ahmes as Ralts with him was a younger version of Kai.

“Ralts! (Don’t be sad!)”, Ahmes said, wiping away his tears.

Kai looked equally stunned by the Pokémon’s action before smiling.

“Ahmes seems to have really taken a liking to you.”, Kai said laughing a bit.

“O-oh this is your Pokémon?”, Aichi asked.

“Yeah, but I think it should stay with you now it seems like you need it a bit more.”, Kai said.

“T-there’s no way I c-“, Aichi stuttered.

“It’s fine I got other Pokémon. Besides I have a feeling that together the two of you will be able to get real strong.”, the young Kai replied, patting Aichi’s back.

Later…

Aichi smiled as he and the Ralts, Ahmes played tag together. He had never had friends to do this with so he didn’t realize you were supposed to have more people play. They both chuckled as they laid in the grass.

Many years later Aichi met Kai again and finally got to battle him after he moved all those years ago. He miraculously beat the experienced trainer and promised to battle him again one day. This was the start of Sendou Aichi’s adventure through Kakusa. On his journey he met various people, many who had become his friends. He fought Team Asteroid liberating Megacolony town, Kagero town, Grandblue city, Oracle town, Tachikaze town, Palesville, Dai city, Sanctuary town, and eventually the league from its control. He trained with Alfred and Takuto to defeat them. With Kamui he battled Kyou. With Kamui and Kourin he fought Asuka and he later fought Tetsu alone. He battled Ren after defeating the elite four, saving the region and becoming champion. Afterwards a huge party was thrown in Sanctuary town with people from across the region joining in. Then, Mamoru who had recently been freed from Team Asteroid’s prison was sent by the Kakusa government to determine if he was truly on their side. He passed and was accepted by the government. For Christmas Aichi went above and beyond as a champion to make everyone happy. So, for him Emi and his friends came together to give him a happy Christmas. Finally, when the day came he finally fought Kai as a rival and equal. Kai left to help those outside the region suffering from Team Asteroid and they vowed to meet again one day. Aichi would stay to protect Kakusa as the champion.

A couple of weeks after Aichi and Kai’s battle…

Aichi’s current team

Level 78 Ahmes (Gallade) psychic/fighting

Moves:

Close combat

Solar blade

Swords dance

Future Sight

Level 76 Wingal (Lycanroc (dusk)) rock

Moves:

Stealth rock

Crunch

Stone edge

Play rough

Level 74 Llew (Golisopod) water/bug

Moves:

Sucker punch

Blizzard

Liquidation

First impression

Level 75 Gancelot (Lucario) fighting/steel

Moves:

Focus blast

Stone edge

Meteor mash

Dragon pulse

Level 80 Soul Saver (Haxorus) dragon

Moves:

Outrage

Iron tail

Dragon dance

Scale shot

Level 100 Alfred (Aegislash) ghost/steel

Moves:

Sacred sword

King’s shield

Iron head

Shadow Claw

Emi opened up Aichi’s door looking annoyed as Aichi was still in bed fast asleep when he’s supposed to go to school.

“Man that dream was so stupid. My idiot brother could never be a super villain like that. It was probably because of all the crazy stuff we were told recently that I had it. I mean come on, brushing off an attack from a legendary? Killing god? Taking over the world?That has to be an exaggeration.”, Emi thought, shaking Aichi to wake him up.

“Five more minutes…”, Aichi groaned sleepily.

“You don’t have five minutes! If you don’t get your butt up you’ll be late!”, Emi yelled, causing Aichi to groggily get up.

[tazmilyxfamily]

@salmonidparty​​​​ inquired:

🐉 ( I know none of my muses have encountered Lucas in general yet, but I always thought it’d be neat for 3 to have met him, and then discovered he's a dragon )

Send 🐉 to find out my muse is a dragon

Of all the places Lucas might’ve expected to find himself after that last PSI Teleport, he certainly hadn’t expected it to be a place quite so... large. The space was open, and he was on a strange platform that was splattered with a purple substance of some sort. A few gigantic objects floated impossibly in the air surrounding the area. Most were unrecognizable to him, though he did recognize the staple remover, terrifyingly sharp at that size as it was. A bubbly gurgle distracted him from what he was staring at.

Then, all at once, he realized that he was surrounded.

Strange creatures stood on either side, weapons he’d never seen the likes of before pointed at him and tentacle-like appendages curled in on themselves angrily. The situation was clearly hopeless. He was thoroughly outnumbered by them, and if their face expressions were something to judge by he somehow had a strong feeling that they didn’t intend on showing him much mercy over his intrusion. There was only one real solution for him if he didn’t wish to be killed (or captured, if he was lucky), and that was to call upon the Dark Dragon’s power.

Their anger quickly turned to evident fear as he pulled an invisible needle, fear only turning to terror once the golden light faded and a dragon stood before them instead. Lucas only needed to spread all four of his wings to send the smaller of the creatures fleeing, while a PSI Offense Up in the form of a roar to show his own aggression sent the humanoid ones following after them. 

Alone once again and momentarily out of danger, he raised an arm to pull the needle that stuck out between his shoulders... but paused before he could do so. There was another presence somewhere nearby he hadn’t sensed before, only truly feeling it now due to the way the draconic form enhanced his psychic senses among other things. The effects of his prior PSI Offense Up still active, he turned in the direction of the presence. It was diluted in the same way many chimera had been- something he’d never forget.

This fact sent his level of caution skyward, so his sapphire eyes glittered as he silently cast up a PSI Defense Up as well. Whether or not this was something similar to the creatures that had been about to attack him was something that would hopefully become apparent soon enough, though he had a distinct feeling it was not. Lucas hadn’t felt them for long, but it had been long enough for him to get something of a good idea. This? This one was something quite different; there was no denying it.

[“I know you’re there. Come out.”] The dragon demanded telepathically, throwing his voice in the general direction of the monster being.