#unforgiven-blade

[comicwaren]

From X-Men: Unforgiven #001, “Cure for Pain”

Art by Sid Kotian and Edgar Delgado

Written by Tim Seeley

[denimbex1986]

'Christopher Nolan's "Oppenheimer" is finally here, providing a unique look into the mind of J. Robert Oppenheimer, the father of the atomic bomb. But if Nolan's three-hour epic leaves you wanting more, here's a cool (and free) opportunity to learn some more about that period of history. The Criterion Channel has announced that from now through July 31, 2023, subscribers and non-subscribers alike will be able to watch Jon Else's 1981 documentary "The Day After Trinity" for free on the streaming service. The film, which was nominated for an Academy Award and won a Peabody Award, tells the scientist's story through archival footage and a myriad of interviews with collaborators, friends, and family members, and it's currently unavailable to stream anywhere in the United States except The Criterion Channel.

"We were fortunate enough to have made the film at a time when so many of the original Manhattan Project people were still alive and happy to talk with me on camera — Hans Bethe, I. I. Rabi, Robert Wilson, Frank Oppenheimer, Robert Serber, Dorothy McKibben, Stan Ulam, Haakon Chevalier," director Jon Else said in a statement. "It may not be IMAX, but it's the real deal."

I watched "The Day After Trinity" a few days before seeing "Oppenheimer," and since I hadn't studied anything about this event in decades, I found it immensely helpful in terms of re-establishing a foundation for which this story takes place, providing valuable cultural context for what Oppenheimer and his peers were doing at the time and placing me in the milieu of Los Alamos and the Manhattan Project. But I suspect it will work equally well as a follow-up to Nolan's movie, allowing viewers to compare and contrast his take on the material with the real-life accounts of what happened.

That trailer captures the somber tone the film adopts in the aftermath of the bombing of Hiroshima, but the majority of the movie isn't quite as dire. It's not exactly a barrel of laughs, given the subject matter, but it's much more about the scientific community in the 1930s and '40s, how Oppenheimer was viewed by his colleagues, the immense task of setting up an entire community in Los Alamos, what it was like to live and work there, how Oppenheimer interacted with government and military personnel and basically became the de facto leader of a small town during the race to invent the world's most terrible weapon.

"'The Day After Trinity' remains the high-water mark in documentary representation of the Manhattan Project, and it is currently unavailable to stream anywhere in the US except the Criterion Channel. Millions of people will see Christopher Nolan's 'Oppenheimer' in the coming weeks, and many may want to compare Nolan's imagining of that historic moment with the documentary record," a spokesperson for the Criterion Channel said. "We felt it was important to remove any barrier to people discovering Jon Else's landmark film, so we've taken down the paywall and made it available to subscribers and non-subscribers alike. Of course, we hope some of those viewers will discover the many other treasures on the Criterion Channel and decide to subscribe, but our main goal at this moment is to help this remarkable and important film reach the largest possible audience."

"The Day After Trinity" was written by Jon Else along with David Webb Peoples and Janet Peoples, the husband and wife team that went on to write Terry Gilliam's "12 Monkeys" together; David also wrote notable films like "Blade Runner" and "Unforgiven." It's also worth noting that The Criterion Channel has a director's commentary that's also available to watch for free through July 31, so if you're fascinated by this period in history, don't miss this opportunity to dive deeper into the world of Oppenheimer.'

[thebuhonerodazorrow]

X-Men: Unforgiven #1

Marvel

[moviesinfocus]

Book Review: SALUTING THE BLOOD OF HEROES: BEHIND THE APOCALYPTIC FILM Delves Deep Into Dystopian Cinema

Film writer Danny Stewart‘s book, Saluting The Blood Of Heroes: Behind The Apocalyptic Film takes us on a journey into a world of post-apocalyptic cinema. Anchored with a focus on David Webb Peoples’ 1989 cult pic The Blood of Heroes (I will always know it as The Salute Of The Jugger), Stewart delivers a unique look into Peoples’ film – and the science fiction sub-genre it resides in. He looks at…

[dongnan001]

‘We must hurry,’ said Azrael, looking at Ezekiel. ‘We have to block the breach. Move the fleet and the Rock to stem the tide until we can break through.’

The Supreme Grand Master started to pace, eyes locked on Tuchulcha. ‘You cannot speak but you can still understand me. I need you to m–’

‘Say no more!’ Ezekiel swung his blade at Azrael’s chest. Instinct caused the Lord of the Rock to raise the Sword of Secrets to block it. As the two blades clashed, the Supreme Grand Master looked into the psyker’s eye, feeling himself drenched in golden energy.

——The Unforgiven

[will80sbyers]

Do you still have the list of movies that inspired ST4? I had a picture of it but I lost it and I haven't been able to find it since. Please and thank you in advance.

Yep!

Long post warning lol

300

2001: A Space Odyssey

47 Meters Down: Uncaged

12 Monkeys

28 Days Later

13th Warrior

Ace Ventura: Pet Detective

Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls

Altered States

Amelie

American Sniper

Analyze This

Annihilation

Aristocats

Armageddon

Assassins Creed

Avengers: Age of Ultron

Arrival

Almost Famous

Batman Begins

Batman V. Superman

Basket Case

Battle at Big Rock

Beauty and the Beast

Beetlejuice

Behind Enemy Lines

Beverly Hills Cop

Bill and Ted’s Bogus Journey

Billy Madison

Black Cauldron

Black Swan

Boondock Saints

Borat

Bram Stoker’s Dracula

Burn After Reading

Broken Arrow

Blade Runner

C.H.U.D

Con Air

Cast Away

Congo

Constantine

Children of Men

Cabin in the Woods

Crank

Casablanca

Carrie

Crimson Tide

Clueless

Dukes of Hazzard

Don’t Breathe

Death to Smoochy

Doom

Dark Knight

Dogma

Deep Blue Sea

Dreamcatcher

Drop Dead Fred

Die Hard

Die Hard 2

Die Hard 3

Don’s Plum

Dances with Wolves

Dumb and Dumber

Edward Scissorhands

Enter the Void

Ex Machina

Event Horizon

Emma (2020)

Forrest Gump

Fargo

Fisher King

Full Metal Jacket

Ferris Bueller

Fallen

Fugitive

Ghost

Girl with the Dragon Tattoo

Ghostbusters

Good Fellas

Girl Interrupted

Godzilla: King of the Monsters

Get Out

Good Will Hunting

Hackers

High Fidelity

Hellraiser 1

Hellraiser 2

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

Hidden

High School Musical

Hurt Locker

Heat

Hunger Games

Highlander

Hell or High Water

Home Alone

I am Legend

It’s a Wonderful Life

In Cold Blood

Inception

I am a Fugitive from Chain Gang

Inside Out

Island of Doctor Moreau

It Follows

Interview with a Vampire

Inner Space

Into the Spiderverse

Independence Day

Jupiter Ascending

John Carter of Mars

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom

James Bond (All Movies)

Julie

Karate Kid

Knives Out

Kingsmen

Little Miss Sunshine

Labyrinth

Long Kiss Goodnight

Lost Boys

Leon: The Professional

Let the Right One In

Little Women (1994)

Mad Max: Fury Road

Magnolia

Men in Black

Mimic

Matrix

Misery

My Cousin Vinny

Mystic River

Minority Report

Mr. and Mrs. Smith

Neverending Story

Never Been Kissed

No Country for Old Men

Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors

North by Northwest

Open Water

Orange County

Oceans 8

Oceans 11

Oceans 12

One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest

Ordinary People

Paddington 2

Platoon

Pulp Fiction

Papillon

Pan’s Labyrinth

Pineapple Express

Peter Pan

Princess Bride

Paradise Lost

Primal Fear

Prisoners

Peter Jackson’s King Kong

Reservoir Dogs

Ravenous

Rushmore

Road Warrior

Rogue One

Reality Bites

Raider of the Lost Ark

Red Dragon

Robocop

Shooter

Sky High

Swingers

Sword in the Stone

Step Up 2

Spy Kids

Saving Private Ryan

Shape of Water

Swept Away

Star Wars: Return of the Jedi

Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back

Superbad

Society

Swordfish

Stoker

Splice

Silence of the Lambs

Source Code

Sicario

Se7en

Starship Troopers

Scrooged

Splash

Silver Bullet

Speed

The Visit

The Italian Job

The Mask of Zorro

True Lies

The Blair Witch Project

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy

Tangled

The Craft

The Guest

The Devil’s Advocate

The Graduate

The Prestige

The Rock

Titanic

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

The Fly

Tombstone

The Mummy

The Guardian

The Goofy Movie

The Peanut Butter Solution

Toy Story 4

The Ring

The Crazies

The Mist

The Revenant

The Perfect Storm

The Shining

Terminator 2

The Truman Show

Temple of Doom

The Cell

To Kill a Mockingbird

Timeline

The Good Son

The Orphan

The Birdcage

The Green Mile

The Raid

The Cider House Rules

The Lighthouse

The Book of Henry

The A-Team

The Crow

The Terminal

Thor Ragnarok

Twister

The Descent

The Birds

Total Recall

The Natural

The Fifth Element

True Romance

Terminator: Dark Fate

The Hobbit Trilogy

Unforgiven

Unbreakable

Unleashed

Very Bad Things

Wayne’s World

What Women Want

War Dogs

Wedding Crashers

What’s Eating Gilbert Grape

Welcome to the Dollhouse

Welcome to Marwen

Wet Hot American Summer

What Lies Beneath

What Dreams May Come

War Games

Who Framed Roger Rabbit

Weird Science

Willow

Wizard of Oz

Wanted

Young Sherlock Holmes

You’ve Got Mail

Zodiac

Zoolander

[omercifulheaves]

Oh dip, Umbrella Entertainment just announced that they're working on a 4k and UNCUT restoration of Blood of Heroes / The Salute of the Juggler, the post apocalyptic sports flick written and directed by David Webb Peoples, the writer of Blade Runner and Unforgiven. Underrated flick that so far has only been available in a DVD where the picture looks like it's been dipped in napalm and a crappy upscale blu. Umbrella's an Australian outfit but their discs are generally region free, so I'll be grabbing this when it comes out. And Berserk fans will want to check this out if they haven't, since it's another 80's movie that inspired Kentaro Miura, as you can see in his manga Japan w/ Buronson and some early parts of Berserk's Golden Age arc.

[the-one-who-lambs]

When the Lamb holds him,

Narinder’s heart beats with the antithesis of pain. The unfamiliar rhythm batters his ribcage because this freedom, too, is a prison. The shackles, forged by his own debilitated hand at the threshold of opportunity, dance to someone else’s divination. He taught his Lamb this choreography: evade every absolution of your Odyssean carnage, crush their impiety beneath your cloven steps. Plunge your blade into flesh until it coats your borrowed claws, and eat of it. Collect the liquid life draining from their veins; this too is our blood, so drink from it.

Those curved horns and sharpened teeth, unforgiven enterprise beneath a woolen cloak, mark a beast of his own creation. To which stars does he owe his fate? He lives in the cracked space between the bars built to confine him. Loving like this rhymes with every broken promise he’s fallen for. Nevertheless, he buries himself into them and whispers back every lie. Now, he dreads neither the silence nor the truth. He weaves his reflection into this new god who, despite bearing his crown, makes him fall to his knees.

Neither of them need to sleep, but they make this communion a nightly ritual, if only to have tangible proof that– as their twisted horns meet fleece and his fur covers the ghosts of skeletal limbs– a hard-fought peace accompanies their coupled immortality, serene as the night that embraces them.

It is a mercy that his unspoken salvation passes his lips as a rumbling lullaby, purring a prayer known only to him.

[zileans-big-cl0ck]

Hii, if ya feel up to it could you write some comforting headcanons for Yasuo and Talon? They need some good hugs but honestly what league champion doesn't

(if you feel like writing for others too go for it, I like to read anything you make)

✦–Comforting them headcanons.✦ (SFW)

✦Hurt/comfort, because they also deserve a hug. A lot of hugs. Every single one of them.

✧ prompt: ✧ hurt/comfort.

✧ champions: ✧ Talon, the Blade’s Shadow; Yasuo, the Unforgiven; Cassiopeia, the Serpent’s Embrace.

✧ reader: ✧ gender neutral.

✧ author’s note: ✧ oh, dear readers and anons, you don’t even know how appreciated I feel whenever you send me some positive energy or compliments, haha! Every time it’s so adorable, I couldn’t feel any better. Thank you for everythig, especially since english is not my first language, so. I basically have no idea what I am doing. Ah, but apart of this anecdote, the reader is really into self care, but I think it shouldn’t be a problem since we are doing a comforting post.

masterlist

✦Talon, the Blade’s Shadow.

He left his blade by the door, because he would never want you to see it in the comforting space of your home, begrimed with blood and disgustingly obscure.

He has lost his prey. His target fleed - he failed; he didn’t manage to complete the only merit of his life that he truly named his own, his passion and devotion, the thing he has been created to do.

If he fails in something so elementary, a thing fankled into his soul and his whole being, an aspect pierced into his heart, then what is his worth?

You spotted his inconvenient posture imidiately, sensing an unnatural twist in his mood, so used to his everyday harshness, enriched by a little bit of sweetness towards only your person. But this time he was different - apathetic with stilted aura of dullness around. Talon let himself tiredly slide on your shared bed, ignoring you just because of the guilt that has been oppressing his heart.

And you, instead of letting him perish alone, you offered him your silent comfort - just yourself by his side. You sat there, your head on his shoulder, gentle touch of your hand on his back, maybe even the tip of your fingers making little circles, massaging.

You asked him what happened, though for the most of the following time you remain quiet, relishing the moment, only you two as the centre of the universe.

But he still felt the enveloping sensation of the failed mission, a feeling he had never experienced before; he has dishonoured his sacred mission. Should he be allowed to feel comforted after a mistake so unforgivable? If he could, he would wear the disgrace as a punishment, visible and vociferous, so everyone would see his shamefull attempts to find comfort in someone else, unworthy of it and pathetic.

Talon was always a mysterious person, but you were like a stronghold for him - it wasn’t a long time until you heard these thoughts of his vocalized out loud, honest and brutal. He murmured them into your ear, while you listened silently, cherishing this sacred moment of his true, intimate self, the person behind the blade.

His thoughts seemed like a form of self-flagellation, noxious and malign. Something pitiful that made your eyes wet, little droplets settling on your eyelashes.

You couldn’t listen to him anymore, saying those denigrating and disgusting statements about himself. All it was untrue, made from the years of abandonment and loneliness, and you were positive to cure it.

But how many times more will you hear him saying that his name doesn’t matter? That as an assasin he is not a human being - he is just a blade that cuts efficiently, deeply and terminally.

“I couldn’t wish for a better person in my life than you, love.” You beggined with you voice brittle, like you were telling him a unconfronted secret. “There is nothing that could make me feel even slightly different. I love you the same amount, as you should love yourself.”

Your words were prosaic, menial. But these were honest promises of adoring him countlessly times, endlessly and for eons, until he comprehends the feelings you wanted him to nurse not only for you, but also himself.

And at some point Talon chuckled, though it wasn’t a sign of joy - it was depressing, unnatural. He tried assuring you that it wasn’t a problem big enough to enwrap you, his beloved one, in - but you could sense his poignant sadness running through his body, just like you could feel his pulsing heart or heavy breath.

You promised him to dedicate to him all of your time, just to assure Talon in his human ability to make mistakes, even so meaningful; to help with his low esteem, even if he firmly disagreed to have anything to do with the mythical term of the mentioned ’low esteem’.

You wrapped your hands around him, tigh and lovely, planning on imprisoning him in a cage made of adoration from someone, who could gave him the comfort he deserved.

Talon left his blade by the door as a symbol of rejection - he rejected the person beyond this place, the one who covered his face with a hood, exchanging him for a more relaxed one, the one made from flesh and honest feelings, the real ones, the right ones, and the absolutely normal ones.

✦Yasuo, the Unforgiven.

As we know, Yasuo escaped Ionia after the unfortunate tragedy that led him despair.

He was lost and longing for a company, though he stated out loud that he didn’t want anyone nerby - he was still too fragile, still in shock of the brutal act he allowed himself to do, bewildered, horrified by himself.

He didn’t want to hurt another human being again. He didn’t want to accompany yet another person, only to betray them nor to give up on them. Another loose would be too painful, too demolishing.

For them, of course. He thought he could handle all of this crushing on his mind.

But Yasuo wouldn’t survive seeing his acquaintance being betrayed by him, once again.

He wasn’t eager to befriend new people here, in Bilgewater; he didn’t seek anyone particular. You found him by yourself, and soon became his only comfort in those times, only way to drift his depressing thoughts away.

And even though it was admirable, your acts of desperate tries, as he considered you as the most valued person in his life, you knew he shouldn’t be feeling so much pain. It could broke even the toughest weilder. His nailed heart pulsing right in his chest was aching and trying to free itself every time Yasuo bestowed you with his deep, sad eyes.

He suffered in silence, though he claimed that you were the only cure for this desease that was gutting his body.

You could name this curse - it was guilt in its purest form. And you were determined to free Yasuo from it.

At some point, he must have opened himself before you, render a vivisection of himself, show you his insides and the putridity that has enveloped his heart and soul. Something you should despise, scream and shout at the sight of, bewildered and cheesed.

But instead of pushing him away as he expected, almost desired, instead of feeling overwhelmed by the emotions he had dropped on your shoulders, you hugged him tightly, the words of comfort pouring from your mouth.

”That wasn’t your fault.” ”You regret this, and you are not the same person you were back then.” ”That was an accident.” ”You are always there for me - let me be here for you now.”

So he declaimed the weight of the world like a poem. About his past and his brother, who has lose to his blade in the accident. You cried with him, mixing your own tears with his own, brushing his problems and concerns off.

You couldn’t even imagine how deeply was he hurt. But humans tend to crawl for the concept of empathetic co-suffering; it makes them feel understood and is crutial when it comes to comforting, therefore it was enough for him: getting the heavy burden off his own mind, sharing it to the world, admitting that he had commited something unforgivable.

You forgave him, though he has never hurted you. But any mercy given from a human being was a relief for Yasuo.

✦Cassiopeia, the Serpent’s Embrace.

Cassiopeia didn’t need your comfort. She despised it. It made her look pathetic and weak, even if she already looked miserable as half a serpent.

But she was a proud woman, a lover of many in her halcyon days of glory. Everyone longed for her and everyone needed her like an antidote for a deadly poison. It was a desire not in a lovely, romantic way, but in a frantic, melodramatic and amusing form of begging for sparing a life.

She manipulated the whole nation of pathetic Noxians into her hands, toyed with them on one of her palms, treating those little figures like ants, just simple pawns on the board that she created from her life. She would be considered infantile if anyone knew what a little mouse wanted to adhere to her, hug her scaled waist and tell her that… she deserved love.

Of course she did! You should have seen her when she was still human, not an abomination, just a twisted figure of her past self.

”No, I am not thinking like this of myself, little mouse. Do not approach me, we can bargain from a distance-”

She would admire your confidency with honesty, if only you weren’t so… clingy. Your hugged her in a devoted way that spoke without words - that you will always follow her as her dearest worshipper, even if she turned into something more fearsome than a half-snake. Even if she turned into a sculpture, you would attend her every day.

Cassiopeia indeed had to admit to herself, in her own convoluted way of a serpent, that your confession made her feel better. Like she had one person that was truly her admirer, not just another human she led on and wrapped around her claw, ready to allure and use. And that her little mouse was kind of adorable; more like a pet, but at least a faithful one.

It was a change of perspectives for her, a phenomenon that made her smile softly, her hand slidding from the top of your head to your back, where she pushed you closer, admiring and loving.

[thirium-drinker]

Hello! You asked for some Sixty hc's and I'm here to give you my two cents on him, lol! I have a few different iterations of him, though they all have a similar base. The Sixty I wrote for my RK Bro/Anderfam-centric series where Hank, Connor, Nines and Sixty were all living together after the Revolution is very much The Problem Child™️, lol. He's rather like many portrayals of him where he's more forceful and obnoxious than Connor or Nines, often making decisions just because he curious about how people will react, reveling in starting arguments, and all-around being kind of an asshole, lol. He might also be classified as mildly sadistic, often chaffing at societal expectations and fairness. He's haughty, supremely confident in his own skills, and isn't afraid to use every cheapshot advantage he can in order to gain the upper hand. As he expresses in one of the monologues he gives in one of my fics, he is "the mean one," haha. Sixty is a very "bad foot forward" kind of guy to me. He likes to make the worst impression possible and instigate because it amuses him, but also as a way of gauging the people around him, seeing just what they're willing to tolerate and how far he can push them.

But that's not all there is to him. I definitely feel like he has a softer side to him, one that he uses his often-callous attitude to try and cover up. He is extremely loyal when he decides he cares about something or someone and, though he may not show it conventionally, he is capable of love and is fierce in his defense of it. He loves his family, i.e. Hank and Connor and Nines and Sumo. He may antagonize them constantly and get on their nerves a lot, but he will move heaven and earth to help them if they're in danger. He will break whatever laws of morality he needs to to keep them safe. And he'll do it all with a mocking smirk on his lips and a frigid chill in his eyes. I hc he's closest with Nines (due to some backstory I wrote between them), still harbors some resentment for Connor, and respects Hank, but he definitely loves them all dearly, even if he'll never admit it, lol. I also hc that he's dived into the idea of his newfound freedom wholeheartedly, oftentimes eschewing human conventions like manners and politeness, pointlessly gendering things, or dressing conventionally. (His fashion sense puts even Hank's to shame, omg. He is very out there. XD) I hc he absolutely adores old Westerns (they really vibe with his chaotic worldview) and has physically watched Unforgiven a ridiculous number of times.

Also, and I cannot reiterate this enough, Sixty is the Knife Guy™️. Haha, somewhere along the way, Connor became the Gun Guy™️, Nines became the Punch Guy™️, and Sixty was left with knives, but like... I really think they fit his personality? Going along with his casual sadism from earlier, he enjoys the intimacy of this approach and how it lets him get closer to his opponents. He enjoys the precision needed to competently use both the short blades meant for hand-to-hand combat and also the throwing knives he keeps up his sleeves at all times. Knives are also easy to conceal and he keeps some emergency blades stitched into the linings of his clothing in case of an emergency and knowing they're there make him feel more secure. Because, while he enjoys a good fight probably more than is sane and he also has a perverse love of terrorizing people, this is another instance of him covering for more insecurities.

Because I hc that CyberLife and Amanda's betrayals really fucked him up. Loyalty is such an enormous part of who he is but one of the very first instances of his life was characterized by nothing but callous abandonment by his creators and carers. He was left to fend for himself against Connor and, when he's defeated, he's not granted another chance. He's deemed defective and his programs frozen to await termination. (This is part of that backstory I was talking about, lol, and Nines ends up saving him from that fate.) But it's led to him being deeply, deeply insecure about his value as a living being, his place in the grander scheme of things, and his ability to trust completely. He's got some very deeply-rooted authority issues stemming from that, as well as an inferiority complex a mile wide in relation to Connor, and also probably his fair share of imposter syndrome, too, which is why I image he works so very hard to differentiate himself from his predecessor. In one of my other works unrelated to this series, Sixty actively tried to usurp Connor's role after his revival. He planned to sabotage his life and then slide in to take his place, and when that didn't work out for him, well... It led him to a very dark place that he never would've made it out of without some chance intervention. This version of him is colder, more desperate for a reason to even exist, wrestling with the weight of his past actions and the necessity to grow past them in order to thrive. He's meaner, ruder, and all around very unpleasant. But even then, when he chooses to care about something, he gives them his whole self, always loyal to a fault.

Honestly, I have a lot more I could write about Sixty and my hc's for him, but good lord, this has gone on way longer than I thought it would, lol! As you can see, I care him muchly. ☺️ But yeah, that's the basis of how I usually write him: chaotic, inflammatory, sarcastic. But also protective, and funny and intensely loyal. I love the strange dichotomy of his character so damn much, he is always a blast to write! And I hope I did a good job summing it all up for you, lol! Feel free to DM me if I was unclear about something or if you want to talk more about him or anything, lol! I always appreciate a fellow Sixty enthusiast. XD

Thank you for dropping this lore bomb in my asks. I absolutely ADORE this characterization of our beloved Sixty. He deserves the world and the way you write him sounds like so much fun!

[drmorbius12]

Passing Nightmare

Human-like creatures stand before me

in sullen silent ranks, a sad story of woe

and damnation, behind gigantic

stone gates carved in the faces

of trapped souls caught forever

like insects in amber:

A robed apparition swings its

dark blade in tremendous arcs

cutting them down like rotted wheat,

opening the terrible gates wide

for Ashtaroth to emerge rolling on wheels

made of skulls shot through with

the bodies of blooded acolytes as axles,

stinking smoke from the heat of friction;

He spies me out and heads straight

for where I am standing, unbridled hatred

flashing from reptilian eyes, hell bent

on running me down before

I can move a muscle;

Just then the grey skies burst forth

in lightening and thunder, spewing a

deluge of rain upon the cursed scene,

carrying away the entire crowd

of infernal beings, washing them down

into the maw of a monstrous fish-like

creature leaping out of the maelstrom;

I am swept up in the conflagration

hapless and unforgiven, sliding toward

oblivion, when of a sudden

I spy a rock in the distance;

Swimming madly toward the only thing

solid I can see in the roaring waves,

I reach it, clutching like a mad man to

what sanity is left me, I emerge soaked

and exhausted to find the storm abating

and the black clouds opening to a peerless

blue sky specked with white gulls;

Screeching with what sounds like satirical

laughter, they fly away untouched

by the entire passing nightmare

[comicwaren]

“Oh geez. What am I even looking at?” -- Jubilee

Cover art for X-Men: Unforgiven #001, “Cure for Pain”

Art by Kyle Hotz and Dan Brown

[spadesofgrass]

maybe trystan's scared of nora - scared of being unforgiven, scared of finding themselves under her blade, scared of learning she is not the person he thinks she is and it is a big deal, right? a king has to keep a marksman in check, an aid under pressure like a blood diamond press, a marksman has only his honour to lose, a king his head that holds the crown; a marksman can't afford to go rogue, a king is tied to the ground like a tree older than time itself, they are the change, the country, the world, essentially - and it scares him. nora makes vengeance so reachable, she's a man without a land, without a name, acting on her own and she tells him he can stop being a bystander, all he has to do is actively seek out for himself and it is impossible to ask a tree to uproot itself, a king to strip himself of the clothes the people gave him, to go nameless - it is cursed, the very act is unholy; trystan is no killer, trystan is no killer, trystan is no killer - roots are everything they have, but can they live forever like their marksman? a tree without clay, a home without a roof, a headless king? why is it so tempting, why is it practical, why is it the most plausible thing and why is he so, so alone?

[thebuhonerodazorrow]

X-Men: Unforgiven #1

Marvel

[valandhirwriter]

20 Questions

20 Questions for Fic Writers

I came across this in @andordean blog and decided to invite myself to the party. As I have two Ao3 Accounts, my answers will list them as needed.

Taggig @do-androids-dream-ao3acc @regis-favorite-raven @lohrendrell @tumbleweedtech

How many works do you have on A03?

Valandhir: 11

Cardhwion: 40

What's your total A03 word count?

Valandhir: 1,249,377

Cardhwion: 644,842

What fandoms do you write for?

The Witcher, and Lord of the Rings. I would love to write for Star Wars, Dragon Age, Wheel of Time, but haven't gotten around to doing it yet. General Bel Riose brought the idea of Foundation writing on my to-do list.

What are your top five fics by kudos?

Valandhir: Durin's Bane, The Twilight years, The heart of the journey

Cardhwion: Strange Blood, In my father's house

Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I try to, because I enjoy the conversation. But sometimes I forget, because there is too much going on, or I have no idea what I should reply.

What's the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

Valandhir: Wishes are no horses or maybe Durin's Bane, the latter does only half-count because the next part, the Twilight Years changes something about the death at the end of Durin's Bane.

Cardhwion: In the darkest places, or maybe In my father's house. I just realise, I killed Eskel a lot.

What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Valandhir: The Heart of the Journey

Cardhwion: Song of the Dragon

Do you get hate on fics?

Yes.

Do you write smut?

Sometimes, I need characters that have that dynamic and need to be in the mood.

Do you write crossovers?

Haven't yet, but do have some in mind.

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not to my knowledge.

Have you ever had a fic translated?

As English is my second language, I did translate the whole Raven's Blade series on my Valandhir account into German myself. But only posted two parts. Would need a beta to read over it, to ever post it full.

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Yes, with @do-androids-dream-ao3acc, titled "The Unforgiven"

What's your all-time favourite ship?

That's a hard one, I love so many ships, and am a passionate multi-shipper. So a real favourite is hard. Coën/Erland of Larvik comes close.

As far as the sheer hilarity is concerned nothing ever beat Henselt/His throne.

What's the WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

Song of Stone on the Valandhir Account

What are your writing strengths?

Description and Detail I think

What are your writing weaknesses?

Emotions, romantic feeling

Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

Full dialogue I use rarely but having some arrogantly spit a line in Latin, or use a spell in Gaelic is fun.

First fandom you wrote for?

Three Musketeers

Favourite fic you've ever written?

The Raven's Blade series

[stanislawkowalski]

Now I gotta send something different 😭

does your muse consider themselves petty? would others describe them that way?

I did write a fun fact about him previously, so here you go::: M O N S T E R - STORY OF AN ELEPHANT.

Nastka is a man whose soul seems to simmer in a cauldron of old wounds and unforgiven slights. His grudges are not fleeting resentments but deep-seated vendettas that burn with the intensity of an inferno. His life is a mosaic of past betrayals, each piece contributing to the unrelenting flame of retribution that drove him.

One notorious episode that illustrated Nastka’s unforgiving nature was when a lowly informant within his ranks had betrayed him. This snitch had spilled critical details to the authorities, leading to a raid on Nastka’s operation. The betrayal was more than just a breach of trust; it was a personal affront, a stab to Nastka’s very essence. In the labyrinthine shadows of his secret hideout, Nastka concocted an elaborate plan of revenge. He managed to acquire uniforms and badges from a local police precinct, fabricating documents that mirrored official credentials. With these in hand, Nastka and his loyal accomplices executed their daring operation under the cover of darkness.

The prison where the informant was held was a fortress of steel and stone, but Nastka had meticulously studied its layout and routines. Disguised as law enforcement officers, Nastka and his men walked confidently through the gates, their fake badges gleaming under the dim prison lights. They navigated the corridors with practiced ease, their hearts beating in synchrony with the soft echo of footsteps on the cold concrete. Once they reached the informant’s cell, Nastka took a deep breath, the weight of his vengeance pressing heavily upon him. Without a word, he slipped a shank into the informant’s side, the blade slicing through the man’s flesh with a finality that spoke of Nastka’s unyielding rage. By the time dawn broke, the informant was found lifeless, and Nastka had vanished into the night, leaving no trace of his retribution.