#unclear character status

[whumpy-bi]

Soldier

Warnings: blood, murder, general combat situation, unclear character status.

The soldier barely managed to push herself onto her back, blinking through the harsh sun even as it tore into her eyes. Her sight was half blurry—blood had splashed into one of her eyes, if she had to guess, based on the sticky feeling on her cheekbone.

Her head was buzzing—unpleasantly, nothing like the joyous buzz of liquor—and she struggled to feel most of her limbs. The ground was hot under her from the midday sun, and it felt as though she was sinking into the earth with every passing second.

The soldier pinched her eyes shut, tears squeezing past her eyelids. She’d failed. Her body still refused to obey her, refused to move, simply stuck in the dirt and blood as she heard her attacker stepping beside her. Her thoughts were hazy, dreamlike, but still…her Captain. Where was her Captain?

She flinched imperceptibly as the noise ripped through her eardrums—a sleek, metallic noise, followed by a sickening squelch and crunch. A voice cried out, gurgled and bloody—but familiar. Her Captain.

They hadn’t even seen him coming. How did one man overpower both of them? She was supposed to be faster than this, stronger than this. She wasn’t supposed to die this way.

She heard more footsteps, and braced herself for her own demise. She absently hoped someone would find their bodies, that they might still get the proper burial rites.

But���the footsteps continued, and got softer. Until she couldn’t hear them anymore��just her own ragged breathing and the distant cawing of a bird.

The soldier was able to register her own confusion. He’d left. Why had he left? Was she bleeding out already, so he hadn’t bothered? That had to be it…

She tried to push her eyes open, hoping to see the sun one more time. But…as much as she fought, exhaustion pulled her into darkness.

[courtneygacha]

Who

Tw: Stabbing, blood loss, unconsciousness, unclear character status

Whumpee fell onto the couch, holding a jacket to their side. Underneath was a stab wound that wasn’t fatal (yet), but was bleeding freely. Whumpee could feel the warmth of their blood behind the cloth and it was making them nauseous. They were took weak to put enough pressure on it… surely they would faint sometime soon.

They took shaky breaths through their teeth, trying to focus on anything but their injury. The room was dark and humid. They couldn’t see but they were sure some of their blood was dripping onto the floor.

Just then, the light flicked on and Caretaker stood down the hallway.

“Whumpee? I didn’t know you were home.” They said, walking closer.

Whumpee didn’t say anything; they couldn’t speak through their pain. Caretaker’s smile faded once they saw the jacket. They froze, trying to register what they were looking at.

“Whumpee…?” They said uncertainly. Caretaker rushed to their side when Whumpee let out a groan in response and their head flopped backwards.

“Whumpee?! What happened?? What…”

Caretaker’s horror was immeasurable once they moved the jacket and saw the blood-stained clothes underneath. They looked back at Whumpee’s face, who was very much in pain and wincing with every movement. Caretaker put the jacket back and forced pressure onto Whumpee’s side. They let out a yelp of pain.

“I know that hurts but it’s keeping you alive right now… Whumpee, what happened?!” Caretaker asked frantically and they fumbled with their free hand, trying to call for help.

“I-I got s-stabbed…” Whumpee said, letting their head fall back again before Caretaker lifted it back up to keep them from falling unconscious.

“No kidding, I mean by who? Did you see who?” Caretaker asked again, finally getting hold of the emergency number.

As Caretaker told the operators their location and situation, Whumpee’s vision grew darker and darker slowly. Their breathing became irregular. They were going to die of blood loss, they were sure of it.

“C-C-Caretaker… I don’t f-feel so g-good…” They stuttered.

Caretaker’s focus snapped back to them as they made Whumpee hold their head up again. “No, don’t start with that.” They said, putting more pressure onto Whumpee’s side. The jacket was soaking up some blood and leaving marks on Caretaker’s hand like they were being dry brushed. “You’re not dying, you’re fine.” They tried to assure them.

But no matter what Caretaker said, it wasn’t helping clear Whumpee’s vision and give them the strength to stay awake. The more pressure Caretaker put on their wound, the more Whumpee winced in agony.

“The authorities are almost here Whumpee, can you stay awake a few moments longer?” Caretaker pleaded, seeing the color drain from their friend’s face.

“S-S-Sure…”

“Do you remember who stabbed you?”

“…”

“Did you get chance to look at them?”

“…”

“Whumpee, answer me!”

But Whumpee was dazed as their breathing slowed dangerously and their eyelids began to fall.

“Whumpee! Stay awake!” Caretaker fought with them, “Who did this to you?!”

There was a banging on the door, alerting them that the paramedics have arrived. They looked back at Whumpee: Eyes closed and pale.

Caretaker had to leave their side to open the door for the doctors, who swarmed Whumpee once they saw their state.

Caretaker watched blankly at the scene played out, with the doctors announcing Whumpee wasn’t alive and trying to resurrect them.

Caretaker looked at their stained clothes and hands, moist with the blood of their friend. Their mind became fuzzy as they only thought of one thing: “Who did this to you…?”

Taglist: @whumpy-whump-fanfics @bookbutterfly9 @whumpdreamz @diamond-flavored-whump @whatwhumpcomments

[hithertoundreamtof23]

Whumptober 2023 Day 23

Alt. Prompt- Reluctant Whumper

Chapter 3/4 of Light is Dark and Dark is Light

*Read Chapter 1 (Day 9) & Chapter 2 (Day 19)

Stephen's captor begins the tests, but they aren't what Stephen prepared for.

~~ Excerpt::

It was just an illusion, an illusion like the Images of Ikkon. 

There was no way Wong was in front of Stephen. Maybe Falcone was right about the hallucinations.  ~~

Will continue on Day 29....

Whumptober Masterlist

[serickswrites]

Rot

Warnings: captivity, torture, restraints, blood, wounds, rescue, unclear character status, caretaker and whumpee

Caretaker had gone into a blind rage when they burst into the basement and seen Whumpee. Whumpee was slumped over, chains pulled tight on their wrists and throat, a pool of blood growing around them.

"C-C-Caret'errrrrrr," Whumpee rasped, weakly trying to lift their head.

The team, including medics, followed closely at Caretaker's heels. "Where is Whumper?" One had asked Caretaker.

But Caretaker didn't answer. They stared at the blood. Stared at the gaping hole in Whumpee's gut. Stared at the gurgling wound as the medics surged forward and surrounded Whumpee.

And their resolve broke. They turned on their heel and searched through the compound. Searched and searched until they found Whumper.

"It's you," Whumper sneered.

That was all it took for Caretaker to pounce on Whumper. They punched and kicked at Whumper, a wordless roar of anger ripping from their throat. Whumper fought back weakly, but they were quickly overwhelmed.

It was only when Whumper stopped moving beneath them that Caretaker stopped. Their fists were coated in blood and Whumper's face was a swollen ruin. Caretaker didn't care if Whumper was alive or dead. Or if they would live. "Rot in hell," they spat as they rose.

Caretaker could hear their name being called and their stomach dropped. Whumpee. They had run from Whumpee. They raced out into the hall and almost collided with one of the medics.

"Caretaker! Whumpee's asking for you. They.....you just better come."

Caretaker nodded, their mouth going dry at the medics words. "I'm coming, Whumpee. Hold on. Hold on," they muttered over and over as they made their way back to the basement.

[tokiro07]

Ichi the Witch ch.11 thoughts

[WitchCon 2024]

(Topics: praise - comedy, narrative progression, world building, thematic analysis - freedom vs. order, predictions)

Make 'Em Laugh

Y'know, for a chapter that was like...90% political dialogue and exposition, this still managed to end up being one of the funnier chapters so far: Desscaras' report being a comic book that makes her look like the hero and Shirabedonna just throwing it away, Ichi straight up leaving the Zoom call to get food, Togeice goofing up her dramatic entrance; and that's not even every funny bit from this chapter

Handled wrong, this could have come off as a super dry and meandering chapter, but for the sake of setting up the conflict of revealing Ichi's existence to the world, I think an in-depth analysis of both sides of the argument was necessary

Better to Ask Permission than Forgiveness

While I agree with Togeice that Shirabedonna's conclusions are being made on too few datapoints (one grateful village and three unusually quick hunts in only two weeks), I'm also inclined to agree with Shirabedonna that this is a tricky situation to maintain

The longer Mantinel tries to hide Ichi, the more contradictions and public distrust are bound to pile up. Coming up with excuses later to explain every little detail will just make discussing it more difficult, and Mantinel will only look more suspicious. On the other hand, coming clean now less than a month in should be fairly understandable given the implications of Ichi being a male Witch that acquired Uroro - some people will be mad, sure, but most people would probably be forgiving of the caution exercised

More than that, though, Mantinel's acquisition of the first male Witch would do wonders for their reputation, as that's a historic discovery. Even if he ends up being dangerous, the narrative wouldn't be too hard to spin in Mantinel's favor, as no one could have predicted how a male Witch would behave

The fun thing about this argument to me, though, is the acknowledgment of other Witch organizations

Frog in the Well

We haven't been shown a world map or anything yet, so we don't really have any sense of scale to this world, but I wouldn't have been too surprised either way if either Mantinel had a monopoly on Witch administration or if they were just one of many such organizations

The acknowledgment of an equivalent of Japan last week was a good clue that there was more to this world than...whatever this one country is called, but we still know nothing about this fantasy-Japan's society other than that they still have sashimi

Do they have their own Witches Association? Do they even have Magiks there in the first place, or are they endemic to the current focus country?

Black Clover kept expanding to reveal that other nations had different relationships with magic, while JJK revealed that Curses pretty much only exist in Japan for...some reason. I would imagine that this is more like the former, but the realization that one nation is hoarding the concept of magic would be pretty wild, wouldn't it?

Then there's the fact that ch.1 told us that there's only a 0.001% chance of a man being able to acquire magic even if he did have the capacity to pass a trial and physically handle casting spells. That seems like a low number, but...it's one in a thousand

For every thousand men, one of them has the capacity to acquire magic. Presumably this number is compounded by the ability to use it, since the narration said there were so many other factors that had to line up perfectly first, but that just means that the chances of finding another man with the potential to overcome those factors aren't actually all that slim

EDIT: It's been brought to my attention that I goofed the math and this is one in a hundred thousand, but my point stands! I thought it was going to be like one in a million or even a billion, and it ended up being a lot more generous than I anticipated! In our world, that would still be 40,000 men with the capacity for magic!

In other words, it's only a matter of time until another male Witch is found

From there, the method for cultivating male Witches will likely start to become more widespread, and eventually the proportion of female to male Witches should approach an equilibrium

That's probably looking too far ahead, though. That's the kind of thing that would probably take several generations to pass, so while we may have like...a dozen male Witches by the end, they probably won't be a normal part of Witch society until a far-flung epilogue

For now, I'd like to focus on the worldbuilding that we actually received this chapter: that Ichi's acquisition rate is ridiculous

Gotta Go Fast

Ichi has three Magiks under his belt in less than two weeks, and Shirabedonna tells us that one week is on the fast end for a hunt. That seems especially strange to me, since one of the first trials we're ever told of was only set for an hour, but I suppose that figure is based on the number of attempts and the prep-time? It's easy to assume "oh, they got it one," but this statement gives the impression that almost no one acquires a Magik on their first try

I do think it kind of skews our perceptions to tell us the upper and lower limits of one week and ten years without also giving us an average or at least a mean. All she says is "some take X amount of time," like that means anything statistically...

It also doesn't help that the first hunt we actually saw would have been over almost immediately had it not been for the circumstances: Desscaras immediately stabbed Uroro's heart, and only failed to pierce it because she was a woman. Now, Desscaras is likely an outlier herself because she's ostensibly the strongest living Witch, but sub-10 minutes is nowhere near a full week!

Again, it's entirely possible that the hunt for Uroro was on a constant timer since Mantinel first started trying, so that would be an extreme circumstance no matter what. I suppose in a sense that would mean Ichi has the record for clearing both the shortest and longest hunts?

But just being fast or lucky doesn't make Ichi an expert, and it's only a matter of time until he hits a wall where his unique perspective fails to compensate for his lack of experience in the field he's so suddenly found himself in

Rising to the Level of Your Incompetence

Togeice is being presented as morally incorrect here, with her talk of reforming Ichi into a "proper Witch" being accompanied by a vision of all of Ichi's best qualities being sanded down to a bland scholarly appearance, but that doesn't mean that she doesn't have a point

Ichi's lack of experience makes him something akin to an outsider artist, which is what allows him to discover unconventional methods within the field, but it also means that he's not familiar with the pitfalls of the profession. Ichi took Hisame's challenge in a different direction than what was intended by the rules; it worked out, but if Hisame hadn't been impressed with this loophole, then that gamble would've gotten everyone present killed. Since she expressed that she wanted to attack another village as a palette cleanser, it's entirely possible that she could have taken this approach as an insult and gone on an even worse rampage after the fact

In fact, Ichi going straight for attacking Hisame could have resulted in her not even bothering to issue her trial, which would have effectively made her invincible in the resulting combat encounter. Perhaps Magiks don't work that way and they have to share their trial in order to maintain their power, but there's no precedent for that yet, so Ichi's ignorant and rash behavior could have sabotaged the entire mission

There's also the possibility that Ichi will continue to acquire stronger and stronger spells that he's less and less equipped to control and will cause some kind of huge disaster. He already used Parthion to create an entire new ecosystem on Druid Mountain, which could well have untold consequences on the local wildlife and nearby settlements, so what's to stop him from naively trying to save a desert village with Poltata and just washing them all away?

Togeice's desire to force her vision of order onto Ichi is obviously wrong and potentially detrimental to Ichi's value, but she is right that he's not capable of wielding his powers effectively or responsibly. Even if Ichi is a perfectly moral and upstanding Witch, if his trump card will only result in him being rendered unconscious for three days, then he's only going to be a liability when the time comes to use it against a major threat

The goal then should be to cultivate Ichi's sense of freedom and experience using magic while also giving him a clear sense of the responsibility that he carries. Fortunately, he's already demonstrated the capacity for that with his strict adherence to Death for Death, but unless he can prove to Togeice that he already has the discipline she's looking for, she won't be able to trust such an unknown with her back

Fortunately, the upcoming challenge provides the perfect opportunity for Togeice to get to know Ichi

Just a Little Guy

It was pointed out to me by @wickedsick that because the mushroom Magik isn't a human-hater, it likely doesn't hold any ill intent towards humans and doesn't go out of his way to hurt them, and therefore shouldn't trigger Death for Death. This would likely prevent Ichi from harming it, and in turn give Togeice the opportunity to take the win

The way I see it, there's five ways that this could go

Ichi loses because the mushroom isn't hurting anyone and he can't bring himself to hunt it -> school arc, Ichi learns valuable lessons, though he doesn't fundamentally change the way that Togeice wants him to

Ichi is just hopelessly outclassed and decides he has plenty to learn from Togeice and Mantinel -> same outcome as above

The circumstances of Ichi's refusal to hunt the mushroom somehow prove to Togeice that he's already plenty disciplined -> she wins, but still lets him go free because she doesn't believe she has anything to teach him after all

The nature of the trial doesn't necessitate Death for Death, and Ichi wins solely through his specific skillset -> Togeice realizes that she was not equipped for this specific scenario and different approaches will always be necessary for different circumstances, so she drops her objection

Togeice accidentally goads the mushroom into triggering Death for Death and realizes that it was her irresponsibility that endangered people, not Ichi's -> same outcome as above

For sure, there are more nuanced outcomes available, but those seem like the most likely either for developing the themes of the story or driving the plot in a specific direction. I'm definitely open to whichever route Nishi chooses to take, as I think that the two broadest outcomes of Ichi going or not going to school both provide interesting opportunities for the story going forward. Whichever she chooses, I have faith in Nishi that it'll be a fun time

Until next time, let's enjoy life!

[sleepyiswhumping]

A New Supervillain In Town

Content: Violence, Death, Living Weapon, Whumpee-Turned-Whumper, Multiple Whumpees/Caretakers, Kidnapping, Unclear Major Character Status

This is an idea I've had about a pre-existing OC, but I've no names for the others. Working on that.

~~~

Hero 1 laughed with her team as Youngest cracked another joke. Hero 1 and Youngest were the newest members of the team, yet they already felt at home. The rest of the team were amazing, and Leader had made sure the missions they went to warmed them up to the job, instead of tossing them into the thick of it right away.

Youngest continued as they flew to their next mission.

"-so anyway, that's how I got kicked out of a Red Robin."

Hero 2 snorted, incredulous. "Wait, that was a true story? Jesus, Youngest. You've gotten up to some shit."

"Hey, I like to have some fun!" Youngest chuckled, dismissing the absurdity of the story.

"Hey, hey, focus up." Leader said as they approached the location. "This is a different call. It was urgent, and the caller sounded terrified. We need to be on our A-game here, got-"

Leader trailed off as they saw what had happened.

The first thing that caught everyone's eyes were the bodies. Policemen's corpses had been flung across the road, through the shop windows, and the recognizable bodies of another team of heroes lay motionless, strewn out, twisted and broken, in front of an unmoving figure. A hulking figure, almost nine feet tall, its flesh a mass of scar tissue, the countless bullet wounds not seeming to affect it.

"What the fuck?" Hero 3 blurted. Everyone else remained silent in horror and awe.

The figure turned toward the team, hearing Hero 3. It began to walk toward them, stepping on the bodies in its path, crushing them underfoot. Approaching them languidly, its grin glinted in the sunlight, pointed teeth shining like polished steel.

"Stand back." Leader whispered, stepping in front of the team, then they called out to the figure.

"Stop! You are under arrest! Do not resist!"

The figure continued its lazy approach, grin widening.

"It's real cute you think you stand a chance against me. I mean if they-" it motions toward the broken corpses of the other heroes- "didn't, what makes you think you do?"

The creature's voice sounded like gravel and broken glass as it taunted the team.

Leader hesitated, taking a step back as the figure reached the team, hulking over even Medic, the biggest member of the team. Its eyes glanced over the team, before coming to rest on Youngest, a malicious glint noticeable in them.

"I like them." It said, pointing at Youngest. "Give them to me."

Youngest cowered behind Medic as Leader and Hero 3 stepped in front of the two protectively.

"Yea? And what makes you think we'll just hand them over?"

The figure's arm lashed out faster than a bullwhip, its speed seemingly impossible for its size. Grabbing Hero 3 by the throat and lifting him to its face, it began to squeeze.

"Give me them or he dies, and then I'll kill you all the same way and take them anyway."

After moments of no movement except Hero 3 hitting and kicking at the figure and trying frantically to shake their head, the figure sighed.

"No? Oh well. His blood is on your hands."

With a squeeze and a twist of its wrist, it snapped Hero 3's neck and tossed their limp form to the ground.

"Now. Who's next?"

[crescentfool]

on spoiler tags

since reload is coming out soon, i wanted to give people some heads up for tags i'll be using as a courtesy. please curate your experience accordingly! if you haven't used the mute feature, here's how to 👍

i will continue to use #persona 3 for all posts related to p3 (it's my main tag)

for posts about reload specifically, i'll be using #persona 3 reload, but it might also be worthwhile to mute the abbreviations #p3r and #p3re.

for the people who don't know anything about p3, i will attempt to tag spoilers for p3's events as #persona 3 spoilers but i cannot guarantee that i will remember to do so...

i hope everyone enjoys their experience with the game! i will still post here occasionally, but in general i'll be steering clear of socmed until i'm finished with reload.

tangentially related- i expect splatoon 3's side order dlc to come out during this time. all stuff related to that dlc will be tagged with #side order and will also be tagged as #splatoon (main tag)

thank you for your time! enjoy gaming, and remember to drink water 🥤

[kyolypso]

NEW GREAT PRETENDER MOVIE IS SO GOOD BTW.

[deanofsam]

just saw megalopolis and all i have to say: shia labeouf oscar when

[aspergirl2022]

Beware of the Monster

Sometimes I got randoms ideas who pop in my head without warning. This is one of it.

Monster Caretaker, Inhuman Caretaker, Unclear characters status

Caretaker was struggling fruitlessly against the ropes holding them while Whumpee was bleeding in front of them, they didn't let a single scream when Whumper started to cut them but now Whumpee couldn't choke their sobs anymore.

Whumper flash an grin towards Caretaker.

"-Admit it! Admit your a vampire and I let them live! Admit your a blood-sucker!

-I'm... not... I’m not... a vampire!" say Caretaker despite their red eyes and their mouth watering at the smell of Whumpee's blood. I'm worst than that. A far worst type of monster, that’s why I can’t let it in control!

Whumper's grip around their knife tighten and suddenly yank Whumpee's hairs who can't suppress a whimper before the knife is press against their throat. The blade is barely grazing at the skin, it wouldn't take much for Whumper to slash their throat.

"Even in a hopeless situation like this you’re still clutching at your lies... Be honest for once, show to our little Whumpee you’re just a bloodthirsty vampire who wanted to turn them into an obedient bloodbag!"

The knife is so close to Whumpee's throat, Caretaker can’t take it anymore. They whisper "I'm sorry Whumpee!" before the monster takes control. They feel their bones grow longer, their skin covering in dirty white fur, antlers growing on their head and their face turning into something more animalistic. In their last moment of humanity they see the look on Whumpee's face, they know what they really are, they remember that day when Caretaker talked about the Canadian's legends.

"-What the fuck is that?!?" scream Whumper in horror.

"-It's called a Wendigo..." say quietly Whumpee before the beast screech in hunger.

[anaalnathrakhs]

argh you just know there’s something a little shady under that whole retirement situation :))))

[freyito]

hiii first of all i just love your drabbles 🫶🫶🫶 Can i request mk1 characters reactions when their partner is hurt? yk when they found out that their s/o is in the hospital or sth. You can write for whoever you want but I would love if you include Raiden, Johnny Cage, Kenshi and Syzoth in this ❤️❤️

✭ pairing(s): liu kang, bi-han [sub zero], kuai liang [scorpion], johnny cage, kenshi takahashi, kung lao, raiden, zeffeero [rain], tomas vrbada [smoke], baraka, syztoh [reptile], havik, general shao, shang tsung, reiko (seperate) x gn reader

✧ a/n: thank u smmmmmm anon!!! i hope this doesnt sound egotistical or anything, but i really cant get enough of people telling me they love my writing, it's really affirming and i will always appreciate it ! it's always like... woah.... really......

this is the perfect request, but i am gonna put my own little spin on this and make it pretty angsty, whoops :P super sorry this one took so long too.... ough i put my heart and soul into it. i hope i am not only tumblr user freyito to you, but an angst writer too... well most of these are angst. some are a little more fluffy and less dire... also just could not for the life of me figure out what to write for geras' so no geras in this one :(

🗒 cw: gn reader, certain character's deaths, gore/blood, depiction of death, angst, in some you are close to death, stitching without painkillers in havik's, kidnapping in shang tsung's/mention of kidnapping in rain's, not proofread

✎ wc: 6.3k

ᴛʜᴇ ᴋᴏᴍʙᴀᴛ ʙᴏʏꜱ + ᴀ ʜᴜʀᴛ ʀᴇᴀᴅᴇʀ

⎯Liu Kang

Not much evokes emotion in him. He is a god, he must been even with his feelings, and any shift in the balance could set so many things wrong. On the battlefield, there is no room for failure. With you, he's always been relatively neutral, he makes sure you know he loves you, and he's gentle with you. Yet, he keeps a distance. Liu Kang harbors a fear deep down, that his actions, his status, will bring you to your end. He's a sought out target, after all.

So, when those fears come true, Liu Kang can't help but feel his rage consume him. To watch Shang Tsung's claws dig deep into you, festering, plaguing your own strength. Ripping into you, decorating his hands in your warm blood. Shang Tsung had done this because of Liu Kang, he was so sure. Flames engulfed him, near incinerating the foot soldier he had been fighting. He approaches Shang Tsung, as you lay at his feet, struggling to breathe. Unforgivable. To do this to his starlight, Liu Kang will not make this mans death slow and savory, no. Within an instant, he pushes Shang Tsung's head through his own body, splitting the man in half, as well. Death is too merciful, but alas, that is not important, now.

Once the initial wave of anger washes off, adrenaline and logic set in. Liu Kang picks you up, he treats you as if you're porcelain. Just barely, as you struggle to stay conscious, you can hear him assuring you it's okay. That nothing else will happen. It is unclear whether he is saying this to you, or himself. Regardless, he leaves the battlefield quickly. He knows his comrades can handle the rest. But knowing that he is so close to losing you, as you bleed out within his arms, it is haunting. Every second counts, and he knows it. He entrusts your care to the medics at the Wu Shi academy, as much as he trusts them, he cannot bring himself to leave your side. For hours, he is still covered in your blood. His eyes do not leave your face, resting and peaceful, even with death knocking on your door.

Liu Kang is there every step of the way. When you are in recovery, he makes sure to attend every session. He brings you books, something to keep you occupied on the days where you are stuck in bed. Regrettably, he can't enjoy a lot of alone time with you, because duty calls. He'd love nothing more than to spend every waking moment with you, but he still has stuff to attend to. However, when you are cleared to leave the academy, he keeps you close. Liu Kang is afraid it will happen, the image of you bloodied and ripped up still fresh in his mind. He's only a little protective, the thought of you going back into Kombat a little rattling. But he does not stop you. Because it makes him feel better knowing that you are back on your feet.

⎯ Bi-Han

As the grandmaster's partner, Bi-Han knows that you could be caught in danger. But he does not lament this. He does not celebrate it, either. He admires that you can fight, and he loves fighting by your side. He always looks out for you, of course he does. But he cannot be by your side in a large fight, he knows you can hold your own.

It is a sharp cry that draws his attention towards you. That is all he needs. Bi-Han prides himself on being an even and logical man, but the minute he sees A Tengu assassin's knife dug deep into your ribs, he snaps. Within an instant the battlefield grows colder, and the second you blink, the assassin already has his spine ripped out and shattered. A little bit of a flashy display for a man like him, but he wastes no time in bathing in the glory of his kill. He was lucky enough that the fight was nearing an end, the last of the Tengu clan that was sent out were either retreating or being taken care of.

Off you go to the medics of the Lin Kuei, and he insists you are priority. The one thing Bi-Han was unfair with was you, near fighting with the medics to tend to your wounds. Your blood paints his hands and upper torso, and he refuses to wash it off. Not until he knows that you have priority. When the medics relent, he finally disappears to wash off. He cannot stay by your side as much as he'd like, but he's not only restricted by his title, but his emotions. He takes a couple minutes outside, to calm down his own nerves. Bi-Han does not cry, but a few shaky breaths escape him as he tries to calm himself down. His mind races with every possible outcome, ultimately landing on the worst.

But, Bi-Han's thoughts do not come to fruition. The medics have worked their magic, and you are on the path to recovery. As much as he'd love to be with you, he cannot. But, he does send you a bunch of gifts. Letters, mainly. Small incentives for you to recover quickly, but he sends in flowers frequently, as well. The days he does visit you, he is a softer man. He's especially gentle with you around your ribs. He keeps a very close eye on you during missions once you are out of recovery. He doesn't mean to seem overbearing, but his position alone paints a big ol' target on your head. This attack was the first that brought that to his attention.

⎯ Kuai Liang

Fighting alongside a pyromancer is tricky, to say the least. There's a lot of variables to account for, and aside from that, Kuai Liang can't really keep an eye on you in certain instances. This was one of them, a rather messy battle, one where he couldn't keep track of you. Not that it mattered, he knew you were strong enough to hold your own.

However, it is a stray spark that leads you to stumble back. You flinch, which drives you back into the sword of the enemy.  When Kuai sees this… the world goes silent. Water stills, flame fizzle out, swords clash and the dull clang of steel against steel quiets. Only for the water to suddenly form a raging tide, the flames to burn brighter, and the steel fades against the sound of a brilliant flame. In your fading vision, you see your partner's kusarigama impale your attacker's jaw, and pull it clean off. It is a sight he will regret later.

When the battle is over and the medics have taken you away, all Kuai Liang finds himself doing is worry. Pacing constantly, he messes up the mission report and has to have Tomas or someone else from the Shirai Ryu. He can recount things normally without a hitch, but knowing that it was him and his own ‘reckless’ use of his pyromancy with you in such close proximity makes him trip over his words, and even his thoughts. With what little free time he has, he’s pacing outside your cot, frequently checking in on the medics and the progress, until they ultimately have to push him away. Which calms him down, somewhat.

When the medics assure him that everything is fine, and that you are on the path to recovery, he’s much more relieved. He’s a lot less tense, and he’s a lot more coherent. He’s able to compose himself. Granted, he tends to sneak off (when appropriate) to check on you. He really just loves talking with you afterwards, he doesn’t want to bring up any unpleasant memories or thoughts (particularly what you saw before you blacked out), but there will always be a point where you have to talk about it. He’ll also ramp up his affection. The entire ordeal (while he knew what would come with forming the Shirai Ryu) made him realize that maybe he takes you for granted. Kuai Liang has been surrounded by death, sure, but for some reason, when it comes to those he loves… it is hard to understand that life is fleeting.

⎯ Johnny Cage

Johnny is used to deaths and his partner being hurt… on screen. He’s so used to the dramatized version, where his stage partner dies in his arms, and he wails real loud. He’s blissfully unaware that it could, in fact, happen to you in real life. He likes to think of himself as a great source of protection, believes no harm will come your way, not when you’ve got just a big, strong, handsome hunk around. And one of Earthrealm’s Defenders. As much as he’s grown, he still needs to learn a few lessons from the world.

And he’s in for a reality check. There are some unsavory characters out there, ones that aren’t too happy about his status as a whole. All he gets is a call from the hospital and a nice little greeting from officers. The only things he can make out in his newfound panic is ‘attempted murder’, and he’s REELING. He wasn’t there, he reminds himself. He doesn’t know what went down. Officers are still trying to figure it out. In his hazy and reckless state, he goes to his best friend.

Kenshi helps ease his nerves, and gives him a couple of LOGICAL ideas. Considering Shang Tsung had wormed his way into Kenshi’s life to steal Sento (and ultimately got his ass beat), he brings it up. Which leads to a whole meeting with Liu Kang, Raiden, and Kung Lao. To discuss the possible threats, and the future. Johnny cannot sit still that meeting, he’s practically bouncing off the walls, asking what this means for you. Every single question is about you, and you alone. Liu Kang dismisses him, and he practically speeds off to the hospital.

Johnny relaxes when he’s able to finally enter your room,– after a lot of arguing with the doctors about visiting hours– but his mind still spins. How could he let this slide? He should’ve been there, right? Regardless of how much blame he puts on himself, (which it was never his fault to begin with) he’s sat by your bed, sulking. From the police report, it’s clear that it was AT LEAST linked to Shang Tsung, but that’s no longer his problem. He gets you anything from the cafeteria if you ask, and he brings you flowers every. damn. day. He’s got so many gifts coming your way, that when you get discharged, you’re practically smothered by all the gifts he got you as an ‘apology’. When you ask him what he means by an apology, he doesn’t say a single word. Johnny’s very on top of your medication, he’s soooo very delicate with you, he almost condemns you to bedrest. But with enough pushback, you’re able to be up and about; but that doesn’t mean he won’t be worrying over you for quite a while. Even if Liu Kang assures him that it won’t happen again.

⎯ Kenshi Takahashi

Kenshi is aware of the danger that surrounds him and his existence in general. He’s protective of you, of course. And he knows full well that you could be swept up into the mix of the Yakuza, and his work with Liu Kang and the OIA. But, you yourself had fought hard for the relationship and made it clear that you could care less about the potential dangers; even if he felt a little frazzled at all the dangers out there. All the hands that could be grabbing at you, the guns, the knives, the weapons that would be pointed at you the minute you were spotted next to him. You didn’t care.

Yet, when he gets the call that you were involved in some crime, landing you in the hospital, his mind omits all the other details. Aside from the hospital you’re at. He even skips over the fact that it was Jax calling him. Part of him wants to cry. And he probably would, if he could. But he tries to keep himself composed. Whatever he’s been occupied with is now a distant memory, other agents can take over. As calm as he looks on the outside, there’s a war raging within him. He knew this would happen. Ever since he felt feelings for you, he knew.

When he finds you at the hospital, Sento left behind, he’s scared. He doesn’t know if he should be grateful that he can’t see you, or if he should lament over it. While the doctors had described your injuries as non-fatal, and that you’d recover in no time, Kenshi’s mind has already spun a horrifying image, but once the doctors have left, he can hear your soft breathing underneath all the bustle of the machines. And it soothes him. Only then does he find some peace of mind, you are safe, and the danger has passed. Somewhat. When his worry starts to dissipate, he remembers that Jax had actually called him first, not the hospital. When he calls Jax back, the first thing he says is that he’s taking time off, and Jax doesn’t protest. They discuss what happened and that it is now a government matter, and something that expands past OIA boundaries. The short version of the conversation is that someone from a different timeline had managed to worm their way into this one, and harm you. Someone with striking similarity to himself. 

Now that Kenshi has calmed down and knows you’re safe, he understands why the nurses and the law enforcement seemed tense around him. It unnerves him, to say the least. That another version of himself would hurt you. His heart, his guiding light. It’s also an entirely new threat that he hadn’t accounted for. Once discharged from the hospital, you have all of his attention. He’s oh so gentle with you, like any little touch and you’ll crack. He does every chore around the house for weeks, until you’ve fully healed. He cooks a lot (with the help of Sento), even bathes you (despite your protests). It’s his way of an apology for what happened, and not just that, but an apology for being with him. He holds immense regret over this, knowing that– even if it was another him from another timeline– he did this.

⎯ Kung Lao

Kung Lao is… protective, alright. And that often gets swept up within his cockiness. Of course, you do feel pretty safe with him. Maybe not around the hat, but you do feel safe around him. Aside from his interesting choice of weapon, he’s a great martial artist. And also just someone who’s really nice to cuddle with. He’s a Shaolin Master, of course he’s going to be a horrifying opponent.

And, there would be hell to pay if anyone hurt his love. He isn’t just all bark. Even the thought of you being hurt has him seething, he tends to overthink. There’s a lot of things that have made him realize that he may be a high value target– even if he can’t help but think he’s done nothing to get to that point. But, under Liu Kang, and just the title ‘Defender of Earthrealm’, there’s some sort of pride that lingers. Something that makes him want to challenge anyone and everyone he can, tell them to ‘bring it on’.

But not at the expense of you. The one thing bigger than his ego? His heart. So, when you stride into Wu Shi Academy,– though, limp is the better term– all cut up and bruised, barely able to speak or see, there’s a rage that burns within Lao. One that even Raiden hasn’t seen. He can’t help but run his mouth about how he’ll teach whoever the hell got to you a lesson. But he’s also despondent, he barely touches his food, he barely shows up to Madame Bo’s… and that makes her worried, until she learns about what happened to you from Raiden. Now not only does the culprit have a bastard with a really sharp hat after them, but the most badass little old lady after them, too. Madame Bo loves you like one of her own, really. She dotes on you, where she’ll normally scold the boys. You are her golden child.

Ultimately, their shared hunt leads to a dead end. Your mind is too hazy to remember anything aside from a silhouette, before getting beaten senseless. As much as Lao seems hellbent on tracking the culprit down, he ultimately gives up when you ask him. But, as you recover, he seems to be in much better spirits. He likes to curl up next to you at night (despite the monks telling him not to), just to reassure him that you’re safe. And Madame Bo arguably puts on more of a show than Lao does. She treats you with free food every day of your recovery, and when you’ve got clearance to be walking around without supervision again, she’s made a FEAST for you. While it feels all sunshine and rainbows once you’ve recovered, Kung Lao works tirelessly to get better. He blames himself, mainly for the fact that no matter what he did, he couldn’t find the one who did this to you. Even if you tell him outright that it is okay. It’s another mark on his list of failures, to him.

⎯ Raiden

When he got the amulet, Raiden didn’t exactly have it down. It took a great deal of focus and strength to hone it, more than he’s known. Sure, there have been some points where it feels like he’s got it down, like he can actually control the lightning. But before the tournament, he had a hard time controlling it, and spent many days doing his best to hone this new power. It was exhausting, and took a toll on him, both physically and mentally. He might have been trained nearly his whole life in martial arts, but that doesn’t necessarily correlate to any sort of magic.

However, it is his connections that ground him. Kung Lao, yes. But you, mainly. Normally, his training sessions with the amulet consist of him trying not to fry Lao, while you sit by and encourage him. A positive environment encourages progress, right? That’s what Raiden thinks, anyway. And all things considered, he’s doing well today. The lightning had been easily tamed, Lao hadn’t been zapped, and all was well.

While training with a staff, however, one wrong move sends a strike horrifyingly close to you. You barely register what happened, the loud bang by your right is followed by a popping feeling, like you’ve been in high altitude, a sharp pain through your eardrum, and then a dull ringing in your right ear. Raiden comes running up to you near immediately, checking over you. Your mind spins at how fast things happened, so you can’t necessarily explain clearly to him what you felt. Before you can collect yourself, Raiden is suddenly set on high-alert, and hauling you away to the medics at Wu Shi. Even Lao is a little confused as he follows after the two of you.

At the medics, you’re able to piece everything together. Ruptured eardrum, and Raiden can’t help but blame himself for it. When you’re getting checked over, Raiden is pacing outside, and Lao is trying desperately to calm him down. It had been a fear of his since the very start of his training. But as time went on and you went unharmed… it started to slip into the back of his mind. He feels horrible for letting go of that worry, for letting it happen. And when the medics let you go and tell you that it’ll heal in a couple weeks, you do your best to comfort him next to Lao. When it’s just you two, however, Raiden is a lot more calm. The adrenaline of the moment got to him earlier. Still, all he feels he can do is apologize, as much as you assure him it’s fine. Over the next couple of weeks, he’s very, very mindful of himself. He’s practically banned you from his training sessions, he makes sure to approach you from your left side or make his presence known if he’s coming up from behind you.

⎯ Zeffeero

There’s not much Rain has to worry about in his day-to-day life, even with his status as High Mage. He knows his title holds weight, but he believes that if he spends all his time worrying, something will happen sooner or later, and he’ll be more of a mess if it comes true. He’s more worried about his actual duties, coming home to you (almost) every night, and what books he will read on his days off.

That being said, he isn’t able to spend all his time with you. Which is a bummer, really. His job isn’t necessarily ‘remote’. He doesn’t worry over you too much, he knows you’re strong enough to cover for yourself. And those who are against him and the royalty should be smarter and focus their attention towards him and Sindel. Keyword, should.

So, when Zeffeero is met by the couriers during his duties, he’s confused. The only words he can make out in their frantic speech is your name, and hostage. Which snaps him out of his normally calm demeanor. But, regardless, he does his best to stay collected. He gets the couriers to explain the situation clearly, that Sindel’s detractors had chosen you out of all people to make an example. The good news is that it was dealt with just as quickly as you had been taken away, criminals don’t really get their way so easily in Sun Do, especially.

But that doesn’t mean they didn’t do a number on you. Rain immediately puts his work to the side and meets you at the infirmary. You’re pretty beat up, a couple bruises on your arms and a gash on your forehead, and the medics inform him that you’ll need to stay here for at least another week, you’ve gotten a couple of bruised ribs, as well. For the next couple of days, he is by your bedside, perfectly on time when the medics open up visiting hours. He’ll even do his work by your side, filling countless journals and going through way too many reports as he does.

⎯ Tomas Vrbada

Stealth missions require the utmost focus, especially ones of this caliber. Tomas is confident in your ability, so he doesn’t worry unnecessarily over you. But his mind can tend to wander sometimes. Still, he does his best to remain on track, stalking through the rampart. It was a simple recon mission, keep an eye on the territory. It had been left abandoned after the events of Armageddon, but there had been indications that Bi-Han was looking to start something there again. Considering the cyberization of the Lin Kuei, Kuai Liang and Tomas agreed to simply check it out, make sure nothing was being done.

And they were right to be suspicious. Either out of paranoia, or a hunch, Bi-Han had sent scouts as well. This makes the operation a lot more high-risk, both parties may be aware of each other, but have no idea where the other is. It looks as if there’s a rather hefty amount of spies in the rampart as well. As Tomas stalks through the tops of the wall, searching for anything slightly out of place, he gets the sudden feeling that he’s being watched.

Just as he raises his head, he hears the thwip of a bow string, causing him to jerk away from his position. An arrow flies past his head, a few centimeters from it, and as he follows it’s trajectory, he sees you, across the rampart. Fighting with two ninjas, doing your best to, well, stay alive. Realizing that you two are horribly outnumbered, he completely ignores the archer behind him. Utilizing his practical magic, he wastes no time disappearing and taking off. It’s not as easy as it sounds, practically throwing himself off the wall and doing what he can to make it across the rampart. As adrenaline rushes through him, his actions are near mindless, reckless, jumping over stray ballistas and rubble.  Does he know that this could put his life at risk? That it puts the mission at risk? Yes. But there’s a tiny voice inside of him that screams at him, tells him you are much more important than the mission. He got the intel anyways.

Things blur together for Tomas after that. He can’t remember exactly how he reached you, he can’t remember what he did with the two ninjas, the only thing that brings him back to the present moment is the pained breaths of yours and heaved gasps. He’d been singing some lullaby that he couldn’t remember the name of, his voice cracking here and there. His throat is raw, blood pouring from a head wound, and he can’t tell if the blood coating his arms is from you, who lay motionless (but thankfully breathing) in his arms, the ninjas, or his own. He’s barely noticed that he’s made his way to Harumi’s house. Not to Kuai Liang– to Harumi. Which, eventually, the knowledge that you’ve been hurt and that the Lin Kuei are pushing to claim territory over the Rampart. When Harumi guides the two of you to a room while she calls for the medics, all Tomas can do is blame himself. He’s spaced out the entire time, the only thing that snaps him out of his catatonic state is when they try to separate the two of you. He doesn’t let them. He doesn’t let anyone separate you from him. He’s too scared that he will lose you.

⎯ Baraka

While the restrictions on those inflicted with Tarkat have been lifted slightly, there is still some public animosity towards Tarkattens. And some of those people tend to direct their anger at those who support this decision, or those close to those afflicted with Tarkat. And unfortunately, you just so happen to be one of those people.

You aren’t entirely vocal about your relationship with Baraka, but you aren’t entirely quiet about it, either. The only reason Baraka doesn’t talk about you two is because he is afraid of what could happen to you. It doesn’t matter if the public’s opinion will turn, if there will ever be a cure, he has always been distant. He loves you, and good god, he’d do anything to even hold your hand. But he is afraid. He can’t help but be afraid of what will happen to you.

And rightfully so, when you are visiting Sun Do with Baraka. It’s a routine visit, to talk about how to integrate precautions for those with Tarkat, and how the vaccine progress is coming along. It feels like hours in a stuffy room, talking with Mileena. Eventually, you step out for a moment, to get some fresh air, and to clear your head. Unfortunately, one of the people against the aid for Tarkattens takes this as an opportunity to attack you in broad daylight.

Luckily, you don’t have to suffer much. A couple of kicks and hits that have left a couple of bruises, but the Constabulary was able to pull them off you quickly. The commotion brings Mileena and Baraka out, which leaves you feeling a little flustered. Needless to say, the talks for that day are cut short, and Baraka spends his time worrying about you. He asks you to stay in Sun Do for a while, that he can handle the talks himself now.

⎯ Syzoth

Syzoth’s biggest fear is Shang Tsung. Even after all is said and done, the fear still lingers. With his past, he can’t help but worry, especially about you. He wants to imagine a future with you, and he’s more than content with the days you two spend together, but he will never be able to shake the idea of his happiness being ripped from him again. While he is still all cuddly with you, there is something always gnawing at him. An eternal dread.

And his fears come true, in some way. He had to leave home for a couple of days, out on official business. It was nothing major, nothing that would pull him from you for longer than a week. Integrating yourself along with Zatterans was a challenge alright, something you didn’t mind facing. Syzoth had said it was a good way to get them used to humans, to earthrealmers.

However, when he comes back home, he is greeted by you, with a black eye, and multiple, bandaged, gashes down your arms. You smile at him warmly, despite your injuries, which have had at least two days to heal. He’s stunned, and after a moment of silence, he’s all over you, asking question after question. Despite what he asks, he knows what the Zatterans have done to you.

He tells himself he should’ve known, as they had killed those with his mutation, he should’ve known that they would’ve treated you the same. You can’t give him exact details, you can’t even give him a description. It happened all too fast, and you were helpless in the moment. He spends the next week by your side, never leaving, unless it was for food, or necessities. When you two are out, he’s very diligent about his surroundings, and those around them. Most of the Zaterrans express their apologies to you, even if it wasn’t them, which makes Syzoth even more wary about who he should be keeping an eye on.  

⎯ Havik

Danger comes with the territory of dating Havik. Yeah, he keeps you close, but he’s wanted. And he’s well aware, he tends to get himself in fights quite often. If you wanna participate? Hells yeah, he’s all in. But if you’d rather sit back, hide away, anything like that, he doesn’t mind. Even if he prefers a more active partner on the battlefield. Just because he’s got his anarchic ways and enjoys a little bloodbath every now and then, doesn’t mean he’s thrown care and (at least) sympathy into the wind. Granted, it’s hard to coax that reaction out of him.

But, it’s different with you. His heart; quite literally. He’d do anything for you, he’s (almost) as obedient as a dog. But when he gets to watch you in kombat… it’s a treat. He’s like actually drooling. He’s got a twisted sort of smile on his face when you slash through enemies. Sometimes just the thought of it makes him blush. He’s a little fucked up, actually! But for a being who thrives on chaos, that’s the norm.

When it comes to you being injured, if it’s just a little nick, (which is categorized very loosely; can be deep cuts, slashes, not just a scrape) he doesn’t find any reason to retaliate against your assailant. Havik is proud to have a lover that can take care of things themselves, but that doesn’t mean he won’t leap at the chance to tear someone limb from limb. Especially if you’re wounded near fatally. That’s when any semblance of humanity leaves him. He’s brutal, horribly so, and for once, you have to turn your head away.

When the fight’s done, Havik returns to you, covered in blood and viscera. He made it quick, as much as he would’ve enjoyed making it slow and painful, he knows that time is of the essence. Given his situation, he can’t really take you anywhere. So a little impromptu ‘healing’ session is underway. Some alcohol (that’s 100% not stolen) and some pressure to make sure the bleeding stops and that you don’t get an infection. After, he’s got to stitch up the wound. As he does so, he’s murmuring praises,– a rare thing from him, really– doing his best to make this as painless as possible.

⎯ General Shao

There is no greater place than the battlefield to Shao. It is something he grew up on, and to be fighting side by side with his beloved, it fills him with pride. Of course, he knows the dangers, he knows there’s a target on his back, but he could care less. He almost revels in it. Yes, he’ll worry about you, but he also knows that you can handle yourself.

But that doesn’t mean he isn’t above teaching those who choose to hurt you a lesson. He’s sensible, he’s strong, and he’s just a little, teensy weensy bit protective of you. Of course, you can handle fights on your own. But it’s when the enemies got you in a tough spot, managed to daze you, anything like that. That’s when Shao lets hell break loose.

A sword pierces through your arm, and while it’s not fatal, the minute Shao sees it, he’s raging. A bloody warpath follows him as he marches towards the assailant, the opponent he had been fighting long forgotten. He can’t gloss over an injury like that, he is unsure if they had cut through the brachial artery. So he makes it quick, practically splitting them in two as you watch. The battle continues to rage on, but all Shao can do is huff and encourage you to make an escape,– mainly because he’s afraid you might bleed to death– even if you don’t want to.

At the end of it all, you oblige, retreating and making it to the field medics. You are glad to hear that they did not cut through your brachial artery, and that you won’t bleed to death. But the gash in your arm still needs treatment. You’re stuck in that tent for quite a bit, mourning the loss of a good fight. That is, until Shao interrupts. He’s barely pulled back the tarp of the entrance, and he’s already looking for you. And when he spots you, lying down with a defeated look, bored as hell, he’s at your side within an instant. He needs to know the damage, if it’ll take you out of combat, etc etc. He quietly worries over you, which is quite charming in its own way.

⎯ Shang Tsung

Shang Tsung is no pushover. He may be despised, he may have been outcast, but that doesn’t mean he’ll stand there and take it. Especially when it comes to you. He’s a bit of a drama queen, sure, but he’s charming. Even after everything, it seems like people won’t forgive him. They aren’t wrong to leave him unforgiven, either.

But, their anger should be pointed towards him. So when he receives a letter for ransom via courier, he’s rightfully pissed. How dare they take his sunshine away from him, all because of what he’s done. What he’s done. And to try and rip him off, as well. You aren’t worth a mere 50,000 koins! You’re worth at least 5mil! Needless to say, he’s fuming.

What’s he going to do? Ask the Constabulary to help? No! He’s more than capable of handling it himself. A little dirt on his hands never hurt anybody. Time is short, so he rushes over the details. A couple sleepless nights spent scouting, collecting any sort of information, and he’s off to a shabby little shack in the wastes. The audacity of these people to not only take you from him, demand 50k koins, but also keep you in some run-down place! As much as he’s nitpicking what they’ve done to you, he’s doing it to calm himself down. Yeah, he’s got this in the bag, but any one taking his love from him, especially with malicious intent, makes him scarier than his most evil counterparts.

It is there where Shang Tsung finds out the kidnappers haven’t necessarily… prepared. Only two captors, and they’re dealt with easily. Torn into like meat, left to rot. He disregards their state, food for the vultures and whichever desperate soul wanders past. You’re a mess, head down, mind hazy, legs weak. He treats you like a knight saving his darling, picking you up bridal style. He coos at you, whispering things like ‘you’re alright’, and ‘I’m here now’ as he takes you away.

⎯ Reiko

It’s a calm evening, paired with a little sparring. As Reiko watches you train an over-ambitious rookie, he seems lost in thought. Why? It’s unsure. It feels like he’s simply lost his grip lately, he feels that he hasn’t been doing well in combat, and has actually regressed with his progress. Seeing you humble the soldier over and over again somehow reminds him of this, telling himself he needs to catch up on his training, build on his weaknesses.

It’s a subtle snap that brings him back to reality. It seems the trainee had enough of your teaching, and didn’t quite enjoy the lessons you were drilling– punching– into them. They’ve managed to pin you down, thanks to a very direct, very heated punch to the face. They’ve got you in a headlock, spouting nonsense at you like you’ve greatly offended them. You groan, so close to yelling out uncle. But, you’ve gotta admit, you like their fire. Even if it severely clouds their judgment.

Reiko is quick to pull them off of you, grabbing them by the nape as if they were a dog. It’s a little bit of a struggle, mainly the trainee squirming and protesting like a child who’s been denied candy. It’s shameful for him, but the very thought of the runt taking advantage of the moment to hurt you makes him believe they are unbefitting of a soldier. And it makes him a little pissed. He’s lecturing them, doing his best to hold back some very choice words. All the while you’re nursing your possibly broken nose, trying to get Reiko to let up on them. Eventually, you just shoo them away, and then give Reiko his own lecture. They’re your student, so they’ll get your discipline.

He’s not the best at consoling you, especially over something that he’s deemed ‘minor’. A quick ‘are you okay?’ and a nod is all he really gives you. But, after you’ve ended the training session early, and confirmed that your nose isn’t broken, Reiko picks up the opportunity to hone in his skills. Given the fact that you still had time left in your schedule, you take up his offer.

© freyito, 2024 | masterlist | queue | kofi | star header by roseschoices

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Careless pt.3

Part 1, Part 2

Tw: Escape, bruises, passing out, unconsciousness, dehydration, unclear character status

It was very easy to escape from Whumper, especially since they hadn’t bothered to chain them to anything. Whumper had assumed that Whumpee would cry and cry, make themselves too weak to stand up. I mean, they hadn’t moved since Whumper took them about a week ago. Why bother tying something down that wasn’t going to move anyways?

But after a few days the realization hit Whumpee that Whumper was right; Caretaker wasn’t coming for them.

And so Whumpee regained their strength and fled Whumper’s home. Which to their surprise, was in the middle of nowhere.

Whumpee was sore and exhausted, trudging through the night with bruises all over their body. They even thought that their wrist was broken.

Maybe me and Caretaker will match… Whumpee thought painfully.

The night was hot and humid, giving them heat flashes and making them sweat a lot. Their mouth was dry and they were oh-so-thirsty. If Whumper didn’t try to kill them, dehydration surely would. When was the last time they drank water…? It’s been a bit since they’ve been with Whumper…

The highway they were walking on seemed like it would go on for miles.

Whumpee was shaking with every step, expecting their knees to give out and crumble each time they moved. They wanted to lay on the floor and sleep forever, but they knew that no one would come for them if they did.

“W-We’ve just gotta… get to safety…” they huffed with each step.

A little pebble on the sidewalk of the highway threw Whumpee off their balance, having them land sideways on the ground. Their cheek scraped the road and it began to bleed. Whumpee started to cry. Cry because they were tired and hurt. Cry because they were sweating and thirsty and on the verge of passing out. Cry because they knew nobody was coming for them.

If nobody’s here to help, why am I trying? They thought to themselves. Whumpee just laid on the side of the road, too weak and too much in pain to push themselves up.

Whumpee started to have muscle spasms in their legs from dehydration. Their throat was dry and their body was begging for a drink of water. There was nothing in sight, and Whumpee’s vision began to grow dark.

I’m sorry… Whumpee thought, though they weren’t sure who they were apologizing to. Caretaker probably wouldn’t give a shit if Whumpee was able to apologize to their face. So they were apologizing to themself, for being too weak to get to safety, for always being such a nuisance to other people, for putting themselves in this situation, and for giving up and letting them die in the humidity of the night.

Taglist: @whumpy-whump-fanfics @bookbutterfly9 @whatwhumpcomments @whumpdreamz @diamond-flavored-whump @zoethehead @annoyinghairdoranchhumanoid-blog

[exhausted-archivist]

Dragon Age Character Heights

A post that puts all character heights in one place, based on game models, dev word, and scaled statues and figures. Dev word and Scaled statues are deferred to for characters from dao-dai as they did not have the varied heights of datv. At the moment dev word is what I have for any Veilguard character and until I have access to the game models what I will defer to.

I'm working on reexporting the dao models into blender, so I can get accurate heights for the other models.

This list will not have any spoiler characters until October 2025.

Updated: 10/2024

DAO

Alistair - 6’ / 1.83cm [Source]

Morrigan - 5'8 / 1.73m (Sans heels) 5'10 / 1.78m (with heels) [Source]*

DA2

Varric - 5’ / 1.53m [Source]*

DAI

Game Model Heights

Blackwall: 6’ / 1.83m

Cassandra: 5'9 / 1.77m

Cole: 5'11 / 1.82m

Cullen: 5'11 / 1.82m

Dorian - 6’ / 1.83m

Josephine: 5'9 / 1.77m

Lace Harding: 4'8 / 1.42m

Leliana: 5'10 / 1.78m

Solas - 6’ / 1.82m [Source]

Sera: 5'10 / 1.78m

The Iron Bull - 8’ / 2.43m [WoT Vol. 2]

Vivienne: 5'8 / 1.73m (sans heel) 5'10 / 1.78m (with heels)

Previously shown characters in-game height

Morrigan: 5'8 / 1.73m (sans heel) 5'10 / 1.78m (with heels)

Varric: 5’ / 1.53m

Inquisitor Model Heights

Dwarf

Masc: 5’ / 1.53m

Femme: 4'8 / 1.43m

Elf

Masc: 5'10 / 1.80m

Femme: 5'7 / 1.71m

Human

Masc: 5'11 / 1.82m

Femme: 5'9 / 1.76m

Vashoth/Qunari

Masc: 6'9 / 2.04m

Femme: 6'7 / 2.01m

DATV

Bellara Lutare: 5'6-5'8 / 1.67-1.72m [Source]

Neve Gallus: 5'4-5'5 / 1.62-1.65m [Source]

Fun Facts and Notes

Sera's model uses the human female model, which is why she's different than a femme Lavellan.

Bull's game model is 6'9 / 2.04m due to game restrictions.

Bellara's height is an estimate because John Epler could not remember her model height. He said she had the "energy of", unclear if it includes bun height.

[serickswrites]

Going to Sleep

Warnings: captivity, torture, forced to watch, potential mcd, unclear character status (choose your ending folks or make a request)

"Does it hurt?" Whumpee asked, their voice breathless. Their face was pale, their eyes fever bright.

"What?" Caretaker asked as they stroked Whumpee's cheek. Whumpee lay with their head in Caretaker's lap. Caretaker had tried to make Whumpee as comfortable as possible. Caretaker tried to ignore how pale Whumpee's skin had gotten. How ragged their breathing had become. How still they were becoming.

Whumpee blinked sluggishly. "Dying."

Oh. Caretaker swallowed around the lump in their throat. Even though they did everything they could to break free, they had failed. Had failed and Whumpee paid the price. "No, I imagine it's like going to sleep."

"Th-Th-Th-That's ggggggooooood-d-d-d," Whumpee said as they slow blinked once more. "I'mmmmmm v'ryyyy t-t-t-iredddddd."

"I know you're tired," Caretaker replied, no longer able to keep from crying. "But I need you to stay awake a bit longer."

"C-C-C-C-Can'ttttttttt." Whumpee took a long, slow blink, their breath stuttering.

"Please. Stay awake for me, Whumpee. The team is almost here." Whumpee just needed to hold on a bit longer. Help was on the way. More help than Caretaker had been able to give. "Please, just stay awake. Stay awake with me, Whumpee."

"TTTTTTTTry'gggggg," Whumpee said as their eyes fluttered closed once more. "'m s'ry," Whumpee exhaled.

"I'm sorry, too," Caretaker sobbed as they watched Whumpee's eyes close once more. "I'm sorry, too."

[angrykittybarbarian]

A list of things that bother me about Dragon Age: The Veilguard:

!Beware of spoilers if you want to go into this game blind!

Word of advice: I truly think that it is better however to play this game fully informed or else you are in for a big shock.

The dialogue feels artificial.

What do I mean by that? From what I have observed the dialogue between Rook and the companions is unnatural. This expresses itself in lack of emotional expression or too much of the same in an unfitting situation. But for the most part it's the first resulting in the companions never being truly mad at Rook nor expressing such feelings towards them whatsoever. Instrad the dialogue seems to function like a simplified explanation of things and events around you to make sure you understand properly and don't get fancy ideas like interpreting a situation through your own personal lense and take away an understanding the devs did not explicitely want you to have.

The game has strange priorities in terms of exposition.

The game has companions and NPCs either state the obvious in a slow and clear pronounciation or doesn't give necessary background info at all.

For instance it has the Veiljumpers state that Arlathan Forest is dangerous as multiple members of their organization are being carried away and injured, as if the player wouldn't conclude this fact by, I don't know, engaging with the game? At the same time it doesn't provide who these Veiljumpers are exactly and how they know of Solas and the true character of the Evanuris as these facts are not common knowledge among the people of Thedas.

Rook and Varric seem to have an established history but we never get to see how they met and what they did together. We don't get to build our relationship with Varric as Rook like we did as Hawke or the Inquisitor. We have to pretend it's magically there.

Which brings me to my next point: the game doesn't care for established lore and replaces it with a nonsensical version

Said Veiljumpers, including Bellara, consist almost entirely of dalish elves who have an extensive lore surrounding their pantheon, religious ohilosophies and principles. Their gods are the Evanuris, also called the creators. Elgar'nan is the Allfather in this pantheon while Ghilan'nain is the Mother of Halla in dalish tradition. This should have lead to conflict with Rook who is fighting these very gods. Instead the elves seem the accept the fact without second thought.

The same goes for Davrin who somehow identifies Ghilan'nain as the Mother of all Monsters while it remains unclear from where he takes his information.

On the flip side human Andrastianism doesn't seem to play a role at all. The game does not explore what rise of the elven gods means for the belief in The Maker. The human companions don't comment on it either and the templars have seemingly vanished.

The Antaam are waging an expansionist war without command from the Arishok now. Despite the Qun being a highly disciplined doctrine that values firmly set roles and chain of command above all else, the entire qunari military arm is somehow able to act without order and war amongst themselves.

But wait, there is a word for Qunari who behave like this already established. Tal Vashoth! So the game is basically claiming the entire qunari military went rogue.

The Antivan Crows, hitmen for hire, who buy kids from the slave market to raise them to be obedient killers and use trorture to reach this goal and are willing to kill said members if they go rogue or mess up a job, are the good guys now who protect Antiva's streets from harm.

Ferelden and Orlais got swallowed by the blight and whoever rules Orlais got assassinated by the Venatori anyway which renders the entire questline of Wicked Eyes and Wicked Hearts pointless.

And appearantly Morrigan slept around a lot now and Shaper Valta from the Decent dlc has become a statue in Kal Sharok?

The devs lied about previous choices not mattering

It becomes clear that the devs may have had a certain world state in mind when writing the story. This becomes clear when Harding talks about the Inquisition's spymaster being Charter but also mentioning Leliana. But we all know Leliana was the spymaster. So if the position fell to Charter there must have happened something that forced Leliana out of the position, like being named Divine for instance?

This impression is further cemented by the attitude of the First Warden towards the Inquisitor. It was stated that the First Warden had no high opinion of the Inquisitor. But why? They never met before. Could it be that the First Warden could be holding a grudge because of a specific decision made at Adamant, possibly the banishment of the wardens by the Inquisitor?

This is not even complete as I have not finished the game yet. But lord, this is a lot already in the beginning. At this point a miracle needs to happen to to render the points above meaningless but it isn't going to happen.

Part 2