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i-am-a-closet-fanfic-fiend · 4 years

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Carnival of Hearts (Part 2/6) ~ Bucky x Reader College!AU

A/N: Hi lovelies! Hope you’re all doing well! So good news! I’m pretty sure I’m going to be able to do regular updates for this fic. The plan is for weekly updates on Fridays at 12 PM EST. I will let you know if I can’t do it though. For now enjoy!

This is my entry for @buckysknifecollection ‘s 3k Follower Challenge. Congrats on the milestone lovely! Go check out the blog. Personal fave is Hush (a must read if you’re into soft!Biker!Bucky)

Prompt: Our friends set us up on this carnival date but we’re both pining after someone else and this a bit awkward

Summary: When you’re set up on a carnival date with Bucky Barnes NOTHING turns out the way you expected.

Rating: T

Warnings: Language

Word count: 1916

Story Masterlist | Main Masterlist

After six outfit changes, you were finally satisfied with your appearance. The red wrap shirt was your favorite, your jeans hugged just right, and you were rocking your favorite white converse. The last touch was to clip in a white hair flower just behind your ear before declaring yourself ready.

Steve was on set up duty so he had already been at the fair grounds for hours and Natasha was meant to meet you there after her shift at the coffee shop, so you grabbed your backpack purse and headed out, cautiously optimistic for the day ahead. You paced back and forth a little ways away from the ticket booth as you waited for your friends and your date.

Your phone buzzed in your hand as you checked the time again.

Nat: Coffee shop got slammed last minute. Going to be a while. Sorry. Just go meet Bucky and Wanda.

“Wonderful,” you muttered.

You could go meet Bucky and Wanda if you had either of their numbers. You were about to text Nat and ask her to pass the info along when your phone buzzed twice. One from Steve and one from an unknown number. You opened the latter.

Unknown Number:Hi this is Bucky. Wanda is running late so she said for me to just meet you and Natasha.

You rolled your eyes, but snapped a quick selfie and responded.

Y/n: I'm by the ticket booth. Red shirt and a white flower in my hair. Just me though. Nat’s late too.

Bucky: Be right there!

He responded with a selfie of his own.

"Y/n?"

You turned at the shout of your name. Bucky shot you a shy smile and a small wave, wading through the crowd of people.

“Hey, it’s nice to meet you.” He stuck his hand out.

“Nice to meet you too, Bucky.”

“Sorry, I’m late. I was technically on time, but I was waiting for Wanda.”

“No problem at all.”

He had a kind smile and it eased the knot of tension in your stomach, though an awkward silence stretched between you. It broke when you both laughed.

“I’m sorry. I’ve never been on a blind date before,” you admitted, worrying your bottom lip with your teeth.

“That makes two of us. But,” he continued before the conversation could lapse again. “I have been to a lot of carnivals with friends in my time.”

You clung to the lifeline.

“Well that we have in common. Although-” You crossed your arms over your chest. “I did just meet you so I’m not sure we can be called friends yet.”

Bucky put both hands up to concede the point.

“Well let’s start with the carnival part and we’ll see the friendship comes naturally.”

“I can work with that.”

Bucky bought an armload of tickets and the two of you entered the fairgrounds. Happy screams from the roller coaster mixed with ride music, and you were practically vibrating with excitement.

You grabbed a map from the information booth, smiling at Hope who was manning it.

“Enjoy the carnival!”

“Thank you!”

You huddled out of the way of the hoards of people, carefully surveying the map.

“Now, what I have learned over the years, is that there are two types of people. Ones who plan their carnival route. And chaos entities who cause their friends to miss their favorite rides.”

You raised an eyebrow at him.

“I sense some bitterness there.”

Bucky chuckled and shrugged but didn’t elaborate.

“Well, I’m certainly not a chaos entity.”

“Excellent. So where should we start?”

“R.C.F.A.”

“Excuse me.”

“Roller coasters first always.”

“A girl after my own heart. Any rides that are a hard no?”

“Not a one,” you announced proudly. “But don’t let me eat before any spinny ones.”

“Noted. Okay, then.”

Bucky scanned the fairgrounds trying to track the flow of the crowd.

“It looks like the tilt-a-whirl has the shortest line.”

“Ooh and it’s right next to the two best coasters,” you pointed to the cluster of rides on the map.

“Then we’ll start there. And then we can follow the circuit back to the food area for lunch.”

“Sounds good. Let’s go!”

Unable to contain your excitement any longer you grabbed his hand and dragged a laughing Bucky through the crowds.

“So what happened to Nat?” he asked as you waited behind a group of middle schoolers.

"Stuck at work. Cafe got slammed last minute. Wanda?"

"She was getting a haircut and they were running an hour late.”

You poked your tongue into your cheek. Bucky voiced what you had been thinking.

“Do you smell a setup?"

You let out the laugh you’d been holding back. "Oh yeah. I mean technically both of those are real things that could happen, but…”

“Yeah, it seems a bit suspicious.”

“I should have known Nat would weasel out of her end of the bargain."

"Bargain?" Bucky asked.

You inhaled through your teeth and offered him an apologetic smile.

"It may have taken a bit of convincing to get me to go on this date."

“What were the terms of this deal?”

You counted them on your fingers.

“We would meet as a group. I had a guaranteed out at lunch time. And she wouldn’t set me up for the rest of the semester. It wasn’t anything against you. I promise,” you explained.

He waved off your concern.

“Trust me I took a similar deal. But you were smarter than I am. I should have gotten the no meddling clause in there.”

You exhaled a laugh, relieved you hadn’t offended him.

“Well now you know for next time.”

“True. Though based on how Wanda talked about you there won’t be a next time because you’re supposedly exactly what I need.”

"Nat gave me the same speech. Think they practiced?”

“Probably,” he snorted. “She says you're perfect for me. So my expectations are high just FYI.”

"That’s fair. Personally, mine are astronomical,” you replied in a haughty tone.

“I guess we’re both in for disappointment then.”

“Not so far at least,” you admitted with a sly smile that he returned as you were strapped into the tilt-a-whirl.

The line for your first roller coaster was longer than you anticipated, but Bucky kept you entertained. He questioned you on your taste in movies and TV shows which led to an in depth debate of the character arcs in Supernatural. In the next line you discussed Bucky’s favorite book which happened to hold a special place in your heart.

When you stopped for snacks -cotton candy for him and watermelon slush for you - you were comfortable enough to tease him.

“So, did you find Insta-stalking me last night helpful in preparing for this date?”

Bucky’s cheeks went red despite his best efforts to appear nonchalant.

“Pfft. I didn’t Insta-stalk you.”

“Oh, so it was a different JBBarnes317 who liked the picture of me moving into my dorm Freshman year.”

“I…” he hung his head, peeking at you through his long hair. “Okay so maybe I did. I tried really hard not to, but I was really nervous and I thought maybe if I knew something about you we could avoid a lot of awkward pauses. Sorry.”

You shook your head and patted his knee.

“Don’t be. I had been arguing with myself all night. And when I saw that you liked my photo I totally caved. It was honestly a relief. Though I’ve got to say that your profile picture on Facebook does not do you justice.”

“Well I only change my profile picture if it’s a leap year.”

You opened your mouth to respond, but nothing came out. You tilted your head with an incredulous laugh.

“I have nothing to say to that. Are you serious? If so, why?”

He snorted at your expression.

“No. I just haven’t spent more than like ten minutes on Facebook since I was seventeen. I don’t even know why I have it any more.”

“That’s fair.”

“Well, since I’ve been exposed. I’ve got to ask. How far did you row yourself in the moving cart?”

“About 500 feet before I hit a bump and nearly pole vaulted myself out of said cart.”

“That was the funniest video I have ever seen. And I’m kind of mad I never thought of it.”

“There’s always move out.”

“I don’t live on campus. So no yellow carts for me when I move out. Just lots and lots of boxes.”

“Bummer. You can always help me move out!” you concluded triumphantly.

“Let’s see how the rest of the date goes before I agree to that,” he laughed. “But maybe.”

You smiled at the implication before returning the conversation at hand.

“Are you in an apartment then?”

“Yeah. It’s a really nice two bedroom about ten minutes from campus.”

“I assume two bedroom means roommate?”

“Yes. Sam. He and I got randomly roomed together sophomore year, but it actually ended up being the best thing to ever happen. He’s my best friend. I can’t imagine living with anyone else. We thought we were going to have to get a third roommate, which would have been a bummer, but luckily we were able to find a place for just us.”

“That sounds ideal. I’m lucky because my scholarship pays for housing, but honestly I would kill to have a full kitchen again.”

“Or you could just ask nicely.” He smirked. “Do you like cooking?”

“No, I am a mediocre cook at best. But I love baking.”

Bucky’s eye glittered.

“Well then you’re definitely invited to use my kitchen.”

“Let me guess. Payment in baked goods?”

“It seems fair.”

“It does. Do you cook a lot.”

“I can manage. But Sam’s an amazing cook. I keep telling him he’s in the wrong career path.”

There was a hint of frustration in his tone.

“What’s he studying?”

“Business. He plans to open and manage restaurants. Says it’s the smarter path. Which like I get it. But man, the look he gets in his eye when he makes a good dish. He just lights up the whole room. I mean he usually does just by being there, but this. It’s pure joy. It makes you excited to try his food. Even if you hate the ingredients. I just don’t want him to lose that. It makes him special.”

“He sounds pretty amazing.”

“He definitely is,” Bucky sighed, before shaking himself slightly. “But he has his flaws. Like, he likes to run. Every morning.”

“I’ve got one like that too. Steve gets up at the crack of dawn every morning. He’s even in the running club.”

“Sam is too.”

“Really? Huh. I wonder if they know each other.”

“They must. There can’t be that many people who willing give up sleep to run.”

“I swear it’s an illness.”

“Agreed. But I do get fresh muffins out of the deal. Steve always brings me my favorite. This summer, we lived together and he’d wake me up after his shower and we’d eat on our little balcony before work and it was perfect.”

“Sam and I eat on the roof sometimes and he always brews the best cup of coffee. He even manages to time it so it’s at the perfect temperature when I get to the kitchen. He may have magic powers.”

“We’re really spoiled aren’t we?”

“I think we are the appropriate amount of spoiled.”

You both laughed as you tossed your trash and continued on your way.

A/n: I hope you enjoyed and I’ll see you next week (hopefully)

Tag lists are open (Please send an ask) I am removing all tags that don’t work after three failed attempts.

Carnival of Hearts

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#bucky x reader #bucky barnes x reader #Carnival of Hearts #College!AU #College!Bucky Barnes #buckysknifecollectionchallenge #challenge fic

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nelllraiser · 4 years

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the kids are alright | adam, ariana, athena, blanche, connor, nell, orion, & winston

TIMING: a few days before the full moon. LOCATION: connor’s beach house. PARTIES: @walker-journal, @letsbenditlikebennett, @athenaquinn, @harlowhaunted, @connorspiracy, @nelllraiser, @3starsquinn, @danetobelieve SUMMARY: just a truly wholesome and youthful time.

Connor didn’t know what everyone liked, so he tried to get a little of everything; chips, dip, beers, spirits (no pun intended), and a few takeout menus scattered around in case they wanted to order. The house wasn’t huge by any means, but one thing he prided himself on was having a bloody good entertainment system, complete with several consoles and a massive telly. They’d have some fun. Watch some shit movies, play some Mario Party, forget that the world outside was shit, at least for a few hours. As the first knock at the door came, he headed over to answer it. “Hey, welcome. Come on in. Make yourself at home. Telly and consoles are obviously in here, but we have this bit of beach as well if we decide we want to take it outside.”

While Ariana wasn’t sure of who all would be in attendance tonight, she knew she hadn’t wanted to leave Athena back at the apartment. Especially with everything that had happened recently, she knew they could both use a fun evening. When she knocked on the door, she smiled brightly as Connor greeted them and introduced him to Athena. “I think I’ll skip testing my luck with the beach, I’m more interested in seeing how I can build a new entertainment system for ya anyway,” she turned to Athena and said, “This is my friend Athena. Athena, this is Connor. You may have seen some of his YouTube videos.” She held up a bag and added, “We brought some extra snacks, too.”

She wasn’t entirely sure that she was up for a party, but she also knew that she didn’t want to be all by herself with her thoughts. So when Ariana had offered to bring her along to the party, Athena had quickly agreed. “Hi.” She waved to Connor from where she was standing behind Ariana. “I don’t watch a lot of YouTube outside of some videos about baking, or science, or one of my sorority sisters has a vlog channel, so I’m subscribed to that… but still! Nice to meet you.” She grinned, and it still didn’t feel entirely comfortable, but she knew that she had to get back to the usual routine to some degree sooner or later. She nodded over at the bag Ariana was holding up, using that time to look around the house. Her fingers, bare except for one with a golden ring that Amanda had gotten her for her birthday, found her cross necklace and she twisted it around, a bit out of a nervous habit. “Thanks for letting me come, it looks like you have a really nice place.”

“Always love a good snack,” Connor teased. “That’s why Adam’s coming.” Pity that boy was so painfully heterosexual. “Hi, love,” he greeted as Ariana introduced Athena. “Nice to meet you. Nobody else is here yet, but come on in, have a drink, let Ariana check out my furniture…” He gave a little chuckle, helping himself to a beer.

Nell and Blanche had arrived in tandem, sporting their matching ‘burn your bra’ crop tops in a yin and yang color scheme with Nell in black, and one of her best friends in white. As she walked through the open front door, an amused grin cracked her lips as she saw Blanche and her hadn’t been the only ones to have a similar idea. “Well I’m glad we all got the memo,” she said with a nod towards Athena and Ariana’s complimentary jerseys, knowing full well there had been no such thing. Then she was raising a hand to wave a group greeting towards everyone, and presenting the plate she’d brought. “I brought these- they’re brownies obviously, but the kind that might make you astral project a couple planes over.” Probably stuffed with enough homegrown pot to get an elephant high, they were a staple when it came to party favors.

Orion had been to Connor’s on quite a few occasions now. Since the two had first met up at the old haunted house that Rio had grown up learning about, the two had hung fairly often while Rio helped film and edit videos every now and again. He was still clearly a beginner, but either Connor was desperate for the help or just enjoyed Rio’s company. He came hand in hand with Winston, overly excited for the night. Ever since his birthday, people seemed to walk on pins and needles around him and he didn’t know how to convince him that he was completely fine without potentially coming across as a sociopath. “Connor’s place is nice! He has a really cool set up for editing videos. Maybe you two can geek out about computer stuff together?” Rio grinned as the two made towards the front door.

Connor took a look at everyone’s outfits. “Well, if you brought bras to burn, I already mentioned we’ve got the beach for a little campfire,” he teased. “And Nell, maybe we let people settle in for a bit before getting high on brownies, yeah?” He gave her a playful grin. “But I like the way you think.” There was another ring from the doorbell, and he momentarily excused himself to go answer. It was Rio and his roommate. Holding hands. Cool. “Hey, you made it,” he greeted, smiling over at Rio. “Did you know we were supposed to coordinate? Everyone else has come dressed in pairs,” he teased, then looked to Winston. “Hi. Nice to meet ya. I’m Connor. Come on in.” He led them inside to the rest of the group. Now that almost everyone had arrived, he made sure everyone had a drink and knew where the snacks were, and where the bathroom was. “Just waiting for Adam then. For movies we’ve got pretty much anything that’s on Netflix, Prime, Hulu, or anything I can illegally download.”

Glancing around the room, Winston shot Nell and Blanche a knowing smile before keeping their hands tightly interlaced with Orion’s. Things seemed to have relatively blown over with Athena, the fact that she was here with Ariana was a separate matter. “Thanks for the invite, if I’d known we were supposed to coordinate I’d have joined in but I guess we’re always the last to hear about these fun facts…” Winston gave a gentle smile before continuing into the house. They were about to mention that they were pretty sure they could connect Connor’s place up to the database in their home, but they weren’t sure that they wanted to potentially share any info that was not entirely secure. “Adam’s coming too? This really is going to be a party.” Winston just hoped he wasn’t armed with assault rifles and grenades this time.

“Hey guys,” Blanche gave a wave. She hadn't expected Athena to be here, but then again, she also hadn't expected Rio either, especially after… everything. But she wasn't one to judge when people needed to blow off steam. “I would highly recommend the brownies. Once, you know, we’ve all settled in.” She nudged Nell playfully. “I have a 12 pack of beer too if anyone wants a drink.” She set it down on an end table, before curiously eyeing the TV. “Alright then, why don't we focus on picking a movie while we wait for Adam -” would he roll in with kegs like he did at Nic’s party? She fought back a snide internal comment, reminding herself that she promised to rewind for the evening, and honestly… she was so tired of being angry. Not just at Adam, but with everyone. “What genre are we feeling? Horror?” she asked, hopefully.

It seemed like she and Athena hadn’t been the only ones who showed up matching. Ariana waved to Blanche and Nell appreciating their crop tops. She stood up to grab some drinks for her and Athena though she was pretty sure she’d be skipping out on the brownies. She’d never tried them before and wasn’t sure a big group of people was the place to start. “I’ll take you up on one of those beers. Did you want one, Athena?” At the mention of horror movies, Ariana shrugged. “Sounds a little close to real life, but I’m down.”

She figured that her brother was going to be here. Athena gave a small, half-wave to Rio, though she didn’t look over at him for too long. They hadn’t been together since everything and she still wasn’t sure what she was supposed to do. The idea of the brownies wasn’t especially appealing, even if part of her wondered if Nell’s addition to it was a bit more magical than most. “Uh, sure.” She said, looking at Ariana. “If there’s cider I’d prefer that but beer can do.” She waved at Nell and Blanche. “Nice matching.” It didn’t hurt to at least appear pleasant, and she could only do so much to calm down her nerves - getting into an argument wasn’t going to help with any of that. “What horror films? I can’t say I’m super expert on that genre.” Ironically enough.

There was the sound of a large truck pulling up and a loud bawdy conversation on the street about someone being manscaped with a weedwacker, only for said someone to shout back an incoherent taunt about some physically impossible things Adam’s mother engaged in last night. More voices joined in the from the truck until it was unclear where mothers, weedwhackers, body hair, contortionist sex positions, chocolate fudge, and lighter fluid all fit into this. However all involved seemed to part even more cheerful than before and the car departed.

Sporting a letterman jacket and a red baseball cap with faint stains of a deeper scarlet, Adam burst in smelling faintly of lock-room soap and the lingering grass scent of the football field.

Still flush with post-practice endorphins, Adam vaulted over the back of the nearest free couch as if it were a track hurdle and crashed down into the open seat.

“Sup my bodacious bastards?”

"Horror is good by me. Blair Witch or something? Could always go with Scream. Classic slasher." Connor grabbed a cider for himself. He had bought enough so that nobody needed to bring their own, but it was a nice gesture. It wasn't long before Adam turned up. You really couldn't miss him. "Life of the party, I see," Connor greeted. "The loud-mouthed jock of my dreams,” he teased, his grin flashing all the way up to his eyes. “Want a beer mate? We were just deciding on a movie."

Nell abandoned her pot filled brownies on the coffee table, grabbing a few drinks after waving a welcome to Winston and Orion, and first offering one to Blanche with a “For you” before taking another. Then she plopped herself down on the same couch before also handing one to Adam should he want it. “And here you go, ‘bodacious’;” she said with a slight snort. Nell couldn’t pretend that she wasn’t a bit worried to have the two of them in the same place after Winn’s death, but maybe alcohol was another key factor in glossing all of that over for the moment being. She popped open the top of her own bottle with a household spell, realizing she’d forgotten a bottle opener before taking a swig of it. “I’m right here,” she joked at the mention of Blair Witch, even if she knew it was less about witches and more about general spookiness.

Swallowing a mouthful of beer, Winston watched Adam enter the room. This was not your classic set up, hunters, werewolves, exorcists, spellcasters and god knew what else. But they were their friends and Winston was doing their best to be more normal in their endeavours and their life. “Not everything is about you Nell sweetie,” Winston reached down and plucked a brownie from the plate, tentatively nibbling on it and smiling. Thank God they weren’t driving tonight. “I’ve heard that Midsommar is meant to be really good, Heritage too. Not sure if any of those appeal to you. They’re meant to be more nordic or something? I don’t know. I read something about them a while back.”

The place was full of familiar faces, and maybe for the first time Orion found himself at what could basically be considered a party surrounded completely by people that he considered friends. Or at least, friends plus one very odd addition in the first of his twin sister. She stuck close with Ariana. The pair still baffled Rio, seeing them together and matching was even more jarring. Coupled with Blanche and Nell wearing the same thing maybe Rio and the others really had missed some sort of memo. Athena’s small wave was maybe a step, but not much of one. Rio returned the wave, both of them turning their backs to each other as Rio made his way to the kitchen, pondering whether or not he was going to drink. He decided to go for it after a long moment’s hesitation and picked a cider, “It’s someone’s job to make sure I don’t get drunk. I have an embarrassingly small tolerance.” He said aloud to no one in particular, only sort of joking and then found his way to the couch where Adam had just leapt over, “A cult movie may be hitting a bit close to home, don’t you think?” Rio laughed, but shrugged the concern away, “It looks pretty though. I’m down for anything.”

Connor was pretty indifferent to any drama that might have existed between anyone in the group, so he didn’t pay any mind to Blanche’s reaction to Adam. "Yes, Nell, you're our White Crest witch, very different," Connor teased. Since everyone was here, it wouldn't do any harm to grab a brownie. He'd just have to pace himself. "Oh shit, if we're talking 'high brow' horror," he made little air quotes around the words, "Hereditary and Midsommar would be sick. Get Out, too. I just figured we'd probably want something we can get pissed and stoned to and not pay that much attention," he snickered. "Oh, there's also Happy Death Day and The Babysitter if we want newer Netflix shit." He shrugged, sipping his drink. “I’m not fussed though. Whatever anyone else wants to watch.”

It was good to see Adam in seemingly better spirits than the last time she saw him. Ariana still felt a twinge of guilt that her trust in others had nearly led to his death, but he was here now and they were all going to have a good time. “Hey, Adam,” she greeted with a wave as he swung over the couch. She looked back to Athena with a small smile and said, “Cider it is.” She made her way to the kitchen and chimed in, “I’m not sure Winston, I’m pretty sure Nell took a DNA test and she’s 100% that witch.” She grabbed a beer for herself and a cider for Athena. It dawned on her that she hadn’t seen any of the movies mentioned but she laughed a bit over the cult part. “I’ve seen like none of those, so I’m good with whatever.” She slid back into her seat by Athena and handed her a cider. “Here you go,” she said brightly. She knew Athena was still down over everything that happened and she wanted this to be a nice night for both of them. Hell, she was pretty sure everyone in this room needed a break from White Crest being White Crest and she wanted that for all of them.

She gave a small wave to Adam as he arrived. At least he seemed to be in relatively good spirits, which was something. “How’s it going Adam?” She raised an eyebrow. “This feels a little different than our usual sort of party, doesn’t it?” Athena nodded at Ariana’s comment, watching as she went over to grab the drinks. “One of my sisters is a sociology and film double major and wrote a paper about Get Out - she had us all watch it so I actually have seen that, but I can’t say I’m too familiar with the others.” She did know that if anything was too full of jump scares she might react poorly, but that was what fiddling with the hem of her shirt was for, wasn’t it? She accepted the cider from Ariana and took a sip. “Whatever everyone else wants to go with.” She couldn’t help but sigh when she noticed that her brother had the same drink as her, though only a small smile covered her lips.

Connor had a big grin on his face as they drank and chatted. It had been a while since he'd had a proper group of friends like this. He had friends, of course, but high school and college he'd still been coming into his own as a medium and starting up his YouTube channel. People thought he was kind of weird. In White Crest, he wasn't weird at all. He was probably one of the most normal. "Okay, we're gonna have to take votes on the movie," he snickered, smoking his vape. "Probably something on the less serious side of things, yeah? We've got enough shit going on. Happy Death Day or The Babysitter are both on Netflix." He got a feeling there was a little more going on with the ‘serious’ side of things than he knew about, but he didn’t want to stick his nose into other people’s business. This night was about relaxing, not rehashing the bad shit.

Adam had once been taught that he’d been born to stand apart from humanity, amongst but not a part of it. The preservation of mankind’s destiny required forsaking anything that’d inhibit neutrality or cause a Hunter to become entangled in disputes between human beings. Thus Adam had grown up play-acting, his life during the day just a pleasant cover identity for who he really was.

Now it was all he was.

This reversal tugged at Adam as he watched his friends banter and meander on the way to actually choosing a movie. All his life Adam had been told to focus, remain vigilant against the inevitable return of the old gods. Was that why he lost his powers? Focusing too much on enjoying humanity’s company instead of protecting it?

These and other thoughts whirled behind Adam’s grin as he accepted the beer. “Glad my beach body lives rent free in your head Con,” Adam replied with a wink to Connor at the mention of being the jock of his dreams.

“Dunno about Happy Death Day, I’ve had about enough dead chick drama for a while.”

Adam ‘thought’ for a moment, which is to say he took a few glugs of beer like a man dying of thirst in the desert and went with the first idea that popped up in his brain when the alcohol hit his system.

“Let’s do truth or dare while we decide? Bet that should be a trip with well...us”

Blanche had a hold on the remote, somewhat zoning out while people debated the choice in movie. She was doing that more, lately, but she had always been easily distracted. That was more because ghosts though. Only at the mention of Truth or Dare did Blanche snap out of it. Leaning against the armrest, she took a sip of her beer, glancing over at Adam. Considering it a moment, she put the remote down. “I'm down for a game of Truth or Dare,” she said, glancing around. Was this what all parties were like? She looked over at Nell, almost a little unsure for a second. “Sounds like fun?”

In all honesty, Nell much preferred the concept of Truth or Dare in comparison to a movie. At this rate with all the strangeness that made its home in White Crest, horror flicks were nearly laughable at times. Besides- Truth or Dare was probably something that demanded more attention, which was a welcome distraction from current stressors. And that was the whole point of this get together, wasn’t it? Giving Blanche a reassuring nod, Nell sat straighter on the couch as if readying herself for the game. “Let’s do it.” She took another draw of her drink before looking around the circle with a new and challenging glint in her eyes. “Who wants to go first?”

“Truth or Dare? That’s on Netflix as well,” Connor said, flicking through the horror suggestions until he found it. Only a few clicks in did he realise that wasn’t what Adam had been referring to. “Oh, did you mean the actual game?” He laughed, just switching to a music playlist in the background and folding his feet under him while he made himself comfy on the sofa. “Wait a minute, I’m down and everything, but someone’s gonna have to explain what rules we’re playing by. Everyone does ‘em different.”

Truth or dare sounded like the worst idea possible. Orion did not consider himself to be a very daring person by nature. But at the rate life had been going the last month, he wasn’t exactly keen on the idea of answering any truths either. Not that he was far bound to answer truthfully anyways... unless that was a thing in White Crest. Regardless, the result terrified him. But the Rio here tonight wanted to be the okay version of Rio. The one not bogged down by the death of his parents. So he took a long drink from the cider and wiped at his mouth, making the gesture overly dramatic to try to hide the soured look he gave from the taste of alcohol. “Me. I’ll go first. Dare me.” This was absolutely a bad idea, but Rio had gotten pretty good at those. “Oh. Rules?” Rio heard what Connor questioned, but had never played the game before. “Cool. Well explain the rules and then dare me.”

This was just about the last game that Athena wanted to play. Even if she chose truth, which she wasn’t planning to, she could still omit certain aspects of it. It came along with her training and she didn’t trust most people here enough to reveal any deep secrets. So dares it would be - and it seemed like her brother was following the same path. “I mean, different versions are different but you get asked truth or dare - if it’s truth, someone can ask you any question about anything,” she raised an eyebrow at him, “and if it’s dare then you have to do whatever they ask. There’s sometimes consequences for not completing either.” She took a sip of her drink. “But dare? Since you’re new at this, we can start easy. I dare you to drink the rest of your cider in under a minute.” She crossed her legs. “Whoever’s up next, I also choose dare.”

Orion was surprised that Athena had been the first one to dare him. She had even been pretty lenient, daring him to just finish his drink. Easier said than done to a complete lightweight who had no experience drinking, but as far as the things he could have been dared to do this felt like he was getting off easily. “Done.” He had seen the movies before, so Rio kneeled down on one knee and tipped the bottle against his mouth, chugging as fast as he could. The drink instantly turned bitter against his tongue and he thought it would never end. But if he could survive his birthday he could finish a cider. He finally finished the thing off with an explosive coughing followed by him falling back on his butt. “I’m totally not going to puke.” He wasn’t sure if he was telling everyone that or trying to convince himself not to.

Adam stood up from the couch and strode to the far side of the room, gingerly stepping over and around people so as to not crunch knees or beers. He took an empty solo cup and placed it on a piece of furniture. The footballer knelt next to the door and produced a small grip-exercise ball. He offered the little squishy ball to Athena with a grin..

“I dare you to close your eyes and try to throw this call in the cup. Take a shot each time you miss.”

Adam performed another one-handed vault over the back of the into his seat, but the alcohol and post-practice endorphins in his system caused the Hunter to land far more ignominiously in a heap of sinewy limbs and cushions.

“Truth”

“Easy-peasy.” Athena smirked, before standing up. She handed her cider to Ariana and grabbed the ball from Adam. “I’ve got this no problem.” She took the ball and closed her eyes, concentrating on the location of the solo cup before rolling her shoulders and giving a small toss, eyes flickering open as she heard it hit the inside. She turned around, walking by Adam before bending over to whisper in his ear. “I do have excellent reflexes, just to remind you.” She found her space back by Ariana again. “Feeling rather successful right now, I think.”

”Wow, nice!” Connor enthused as Athena hit the shot. “I’ve got a truth,” he blurted out, feeling the effects of his drink and Nell’s magic brownies, a pleasant tingling sensation overtaking his body. “Have you never done anything even the slightest bit gay? Because honestly, only the most heterosexual guy ever could have not understood those sword crossing comments,” he laughed at the memory. Ah, simpler times, when he didn’t know that half these people were murderers and there weren’t freshly resurrected evil spirits out to get them. Then again, Connor was starting to get the impression that stuff was common in White Crest. Best not get too comfortable. “And you can truth or dare me all you want. I’m not bothered, mate.”

Ariana watched somewhat in awe as Athena performed her dare. It was definitely impressive to watch and she couldn’t help the small grin on her face as Athena came back over to take her seat by her. “That was awesome,” she said as she gave Athena a small pat on the back. There was another dare to be dished out so she quickly chimed in, “Connor, I dare you to do a dance challenge as your next YouTube video. I’m thinking the In My Feelings Challenge.” She realized that meant it was her turn, so she added, “I pick dare for myself.”

“A Dance Challenge?” Connor snorted, waving his hand, affectionately dismissive. “That’s not my style, babe. Oh, I could definitely do it on TikTok though. You didn’t say which platform it had to be on.” He whipped out his phone, looking up a couple. “I can probably film it right now, since I’m tipsy, but you’ll have to hold my phone.” He looked up a few examples then got up, only a little wobbly on his feet. “I have no fucking idea how to do this shit,” he laughed, looking over to Ariana and handing her his phone. He’d watched a few versions of the thing he was trying to recreate. “Ready?”

Adam hadn’t been raised with particularly strong feelings on different sexualities other than that they existed. Really, Dad had been far more concerned that his sons knew the proper masculine values of honor, wilderness survival, coordinated squad tactics, and the domestic arts of building explosives from homemade materials rather than getting hung up on what dangly bits were going where.

“Uh,” Adam thought about Conner’s question. “Was never really wired that way, but after I pledged I was curious bout what I was missing,” the footballer acknowledged with a shameless ease. “Talked to some frat brothers who were all about that life, and they uh…showed me around…in the showers.”

“Was kinna funnish-awkward,” he admitted with a shrug, “but not really my speed…. not sure that lgeit counts as gay though. It was just educational, y’know?”

Nell saw her opportunity as it became Ariana’s turn for a dare, and leaned forward on the couch to set down her now empty bottle on the table, feeling a nice, warm buzz as the alcohol began to do its work. She hummed for a moment, as if taking her time to come up with a suitable enough dare for the girl. Ariana knew how to go big or go home— which admittedly was something the two of them had in common. “I dare you to....” Then the idea came to her. What was the most horrendous thing that White Crest had to offer? “Match with a mime on Tinder. Match with the mime- and have at least five back and forths of texts.” Then Nell sat back, satisfied with her work to say, “And I’ll take a dare.”

“Educational and gay,” Connor nodded. “Sorry I missed it.” He made sure Ariana was ready to record and then going into the routine. He pretty much nailed it. Although he was a little drunk, it was evident that the experience and intent behind the moves was there. “Did I forget to mention I did ballet and theatre for years?” He winked into the camera before grabbing it for Ari so he could edit and laugh. “Aw, that was sick. Sorry, what was that?” His expression changed when he heard what Nell’s dare was. “There are mimes on tinder?”

Ariana whooped and cheered into the camera as Connor finished showing off his moves. She tilted her head surprised by his revelation. “That explains the moves,” she said with a laugh, “Gotta respect a guy who knows ballet, right?” As Nell took the chance to dare her, she looked to her with a raised brow that was practically challenging her to do her worst. She burst out laughing at the thought of mimes on Tinder. “Oh god,” she said through laughs, “Blanche get over here and help me mime-ify my Tinder.” It was only a few back and forth messages. Hopefully, the profile update wouldn’t ruin future matches, but she found she was losing interest in it anyhow, especially with her current roommate. “I’m thinking more dramatic and artsy to go with the mime vibe?”

“Nell!” Blanche said, “That's cruel!” But she was laughing. She pushed herself to her feet, though, and carefully made her way to grab Ariana’s phone. “Artsy, got it.” A Connoisseur of Mime. Don't talk to me if you don't mime. And if you do mime… you know what to do ;-----). Blanche read over what she wrote, before she grinned, hanging the phone back to Ariana. “Happy swiping!” Which meant… Blanche turned to Nell, a mischievous smile on her face. “In order to get revenge for poor Ariana… I dare you to call the Stripe Club to inquire about employment opportunities and if you get an interview, you gotta go.” Blanche said proudly.

She paused, considering her own options. “Truth. For me, I mean.”

“There are definitely mimes on Tinder,” Nell confirmed with a grin, having seen some of them for herself during perusals of the app. “Maybe Ari will find her true love with a mime, who knows?” It was disturbing to say the least, though sometimes she’d match with a mime just to troll them for a while. After all— every mime was guilty by association. She should have expected the mimery to be turned back on her, but still pulled a revolted face at the thought of going anywhere near a mime establishment. “If I die- it’s your fault,” she pointed an accusing finger towards Blanche all while googling the number for the Stripe Club. She wasn’t sure who exactly it was that asked Blanche her truth while Nell began her job search at a mime strip club and Ariana commenced her swiping. Someone was leaning over to watch the dance video Connor had made, and another person was getting up to grab another drink from the fridge. The air was warm and bright as the night stretched onwards, and it seemed that against all odds the youth of White Crest had finally managed to find a single evening where they were allowed to exist only as themselves, and not the people the world forced them to be.

#wickedswriting #chatzy #the kids are alright #ch:adam #ch:ariana #ch:athena #ch:blanche #ch:connor #ch:orion #ch:winston

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jakeperalta · 4 years

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So do you think 1989 is definitely next now cuz of Wildest Dreams in the Spirit trailer? Sorry idk if you've been on..I actually just got on and found out about it too. I know it makes sense, but I also saw the theory that July 9th is a Friday and she could release Speak Now on that day. But also 1989 is a good summer album..then Red will be a couple months later in fall and potentially debut around the original anniversary then idk where 1989 would be so maybe this is right. Also releasing them out of order can be more exciting for fans..but I still think the newer albums could probably have more vault songs that she would wanna wait to release..but maybe that doesnt matter? I will admit that I never really go back to Speak Now as a whole album and listen to maybe a few songs but I would wanna hear more songs from 1989 like the singles and I guess that's the point. Also some people who may not like Taylor that much still love that album or at least the singles and she is trying to keep the public interested. I do think she is waiting until the Grammys are over to release something next..maybe a vault track? And what do you think her Grammys performance is gonna be now that we know Aaron and Jack will be there? Maybe she will do a medley?

yeah definitely seems like 1989 is going to be next which does make a lot of sense! it's one of her big milestone albums and everyone knows at least one or two singles from it. idk if she'll do speak now on july 9th, I feel like the fandom always talk about that date but she never actually acknowledges it �� 1989 really works as a summer album then red in the autumn makes sense (plus after fearless & 1989 I think red's singles are probably the most profitable/in demand for tv, ads, etc)

I'm leaning towards a cardigan/august/betty medley for the grammys! that would work well with aaron and jack since she did one with aaron, one with jack and one with both. plus it really shows the range of folklore! I think whatever she does it's going to be an amazing performance

#answered #anonymous

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fengshuiatl · 7 years

Text

Go’s Story - A Prequel

Back when I was running the Feng Shui game that precedes the setting outlined in this blog, when we go to the end I wanted to do something special for the players. They got pretty attached to Go Hideki, an NPC that served as their driver, and their characters’ entry point into the Secret War. So, in addition to giving them CD copies of a soundtrack/mixtape for the campaign (I might still have a copy, if I find it I’ll take a picture), I wrote a short script (page wise, it’d be about an hour on TV w/commercial breaks) detailing how Go got involved in the whole mess. Since Feng Shui’s based on action films, I thought it was a neat meta way to present the world to them. I’ll be posting it up here over the course of the next couple of days.

I forwent a lot of exposition and explanations for certain details I would’ve otherwise because the players already knew them from the game itself, or their knowledge of Feng Shui (although I did do some character sketch write-ups in case someone wanted to try their hand at drawing the cast). I wrote out camera instructions because there’s no one trying to film this thing, and it was for my friends, not a director. You’ll get to see how I treated the future juncture compared to how the book. Also I wrote this five or six years ago. There’s stuff about this that I’d change if I were to tackle it again, but it’s something that I enjoyed working on at the time. Let me know what you think.

INT. THE JUNKYARD - NIGHT

Surrounded by piles of electronic refuse and dimmed

watchtowers, GO HIDEKI sits in an old rusted folding chair,

KAR FAI and THE PROFESSOR standing in front of him.

THE PROFESSOR

We'll help you along as we can.

We're limited in our resources

above ground of course...

She stops short, unable to find her words.

KAR FAI

We can get you back on your feet,

Go.

CUT TO:

EXT. THE BEACH - MORNING

GO and LAUREN lean on the hood of his car, Lauren settling

contentedly into his embrace as he holds her from behind.

THE PROFESSOR

(V.O.)

It's probably best that at least

for a time, you stay here in the

Netherworld as we don't have much

in the way of safehouses on the

surface.

He puts his lips close to her ear and whispers something that

earns a bright smile. She turns away from the tide to face

him.

THE PROFESSOR

(V.O.)

Anything you want or need, Kar Fai

and I will do our best to provide

for you.

The two melt into each other as their lips touch.

(V.O.)

My life...

CUT TO:

INT. THE JUNKYARD - NIGHT

The Professor and Kar Fai each give Go a unique look. The

Professor confused, Kar Fai crestfallen.

THE PROFESSOR

I'm sorry?

You're going to help me get my life

back.

CUT TO:

EXT. SUBMETRO SPEEDWAY - NIGHT

Go walks through a veritable circus: Jalopies like something

out of Wacky Races with colorful drivers to match, bleachers

that look like a mosh pit and jury-rigged spotlights

illuminating the whole mess.

(V.O.)

The Professor set me up with a

car...

He stops in front of a Frankenstein's monster of a vehicle,

like a cross between the Popemobile and a luge sled with nary

a hard angle in sight.

(V.O.)

Found the nearest gate to 2056, and

it started from there.

DETECTIVE CORKER

(V.O.)

Actually, I was more curious about

what got you there in the first

place.

Go settles (somewhat) into the contraption and is greeted by

a small spherical robot that is set into the dashboard. Blue

lights in its "eyes" pulsate in time with its speech

patterns.

LU-SID

Good evening Mr. Hideki, I am the

locomotion, umbrage and safety

initiative drive.

You may refer to me as LU-SID.

Adjusting driver's seat cushions.

If not for the automatic seatbelts, Go's uncomfortable

fidgeting in his seat might've been a full fledged jump.

(V.O.)

You'll forgive me if I didn't think

to tell the cop about how I used to

do crime...

CLOSE UP

Go takes a breath and squeezes the steering wheel, brow

furrowed.

DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. SWEDISH HOLDINGS COMPANY - DAY

Go's behind the wheel of a decidedly more mundane vehicle,

adjusting his rear view mirror.

(V.O.)

...but you know most of it.

Drove for a crew of thieves, had a

good run until things went south.

'Course, when an old man asks you

to steal a diamond that's a

reservoir for centuries worth of

chi energy so that a worldwide

group of conspirators can't use it

to opress the poor, you figure

you're probably on the cusp of a

downturn.

Just as he starts to notice red and blue lights in his

mirror, Go's passenger door opens.

A dapper young gentleman hops in, admiring a newly pilfered

diamond the size of a baseball before flashing Go a million

dollar smile.

LENNY

Home, James.

Go chuckles and speeds off, three police cruisers pulling up

from behind. Before they give chase, all three have their

engine blocks punctured...

SPEED TILT UP:

The monstrosity responsible is lifted from its tripod one

handed by MICHAEL, the other hand lifting to his earpiece.

MICHAEL

The rear's clear, the boys got

daylight?

LAUREN

(O.S.)

Green lights all the way to The

Pit, you're cleared to move, B.A.

CUT TO:

INT. THE PIT - CONTINUOUS

Lauren sits on the floor of a spartan storage facility, dimly

lit by the blue glow of a laptop.

LAUREN

You copy, Murdock?

(O.S)

Got it.

LENNY

(O.S)

What, no cute callsign for me?

EXT. DOWNTOWN L.A. - CONTINUOUS

Go weaves effortlessly through traffic, finding a steady

pathway through the sea of vehicles on the road. Police

cruisers attempting to intercept at cross streets are caught

in the jam.

LAUREN

(O.S)

Forgive me, Face, I'm a little busy

at the moment.

LENNY

Face, huh? Guess I know what that

makes you then.

LAUREN

(O.S.)

Well, I do love it when a plan

comes together. I'll have the van

running when you get here.

The sedan abruptly makes a wide turn into a small parking

garage, sliding perfectly into a space. Go and Lenny run to

a kiosk in the lot as cop cars barrel toward the entrance.

CUT TO:

ECU - A FINGER SLAMMING DOWN AN 'ENTER' KEY

Less than a second later, police cruiser tries to drive

through and is sunken half way into the ground in a cloud of

sand.

INT. THE PIT - CONTINUOUS

Lauren shuts her notebook and stands to face the boys as the

descend from an elevator.

LENNY

There is a distinct lack of van

here.

She simply smirks and pushes a button on a nearby wall to

reveal a utility van, idling in a tunnel.

God, that's sexy. Let's move.

LAUREN

Shotgun!

She cheerily grasps Go's hand and practically skips to the

van, Lenny following behind. By the time the cops are

spilling into The Pit, the trio is already deep into the

tunnel.

CUT TO:

EXT. NETHERWORLD CAVERNS - NIGHT

While dozens of vehicles jockey for position all around him,

Go navigates the precarious twists and turns of the caverns

at break-neck speed.

So where am I going, Prof?

A staticky image of The Professor is projected onto the

windshield.

THE PROFESSOR

I'm nailing down the exact location

of the gate, LU-SID will tell you

when I have it. From there you'll

be in 2056.

From there?

THE PROFESSOR

I'll be able to lock onto the

device you need so long as you keep

LU-SID with you. Get it, then get

back here so I can re-configure it.

Anything else?

Just as LU-SID's eyes pulse in time to its announcement of

the nearest jumpgate being 800 yards straight ahead, Go

notices a pair of motorcycles in his rear view.

One of the leather and spike clad riders (we'll call him

Hawk) grimaces and levels a sawed-off shotgun at Go's

windshield dome.

How impact resistant is this glass?

THE PROFESSOR

Umm, it should withstand most

highspeed crashes and small arms

fire. Are you being attacked?

Nothing I can't hand-

The stock of the shotgun opens up and a mechanism attaches a

small RPG to each barrel.

Shit.

Go wrenches the steering wheel hard when the RPGs are sent

his way, and the car spins in place while simultaneously

banking right.

The first narrowly misses the car as Go curves just out of

its reach. The second explodes as it skims the dome,

splashing glass in every direction.

LU-SID's eyes change from blue to red as he warns of a

malfunction with the vehicle's climate control.

Animal lines up with a similar weapon, but his stock opens up

to reveal a harpoon/grappling hook contraption.

Go drives in reverse to face the pair, not even looking as he

avoids the falling debris from the first RPG.

Hawk closes in, unsheathing a massive machete. Animal fires

and Go ducks, literally, speeding underneath the harpoon

line. The hook digs into the cavern wall and Hawk gets

clotheslined as he tries to make the jump from his bike to

Go.

The track becomes increasingly treacherous slalom of falling

rocks on the cavern floor. After a few near misses, Go slams

a button on the dash.

LU-SID

Spider treads activated.

In a flash, Go's driving along the cavern walls. Animal

responds by pulling a Calico pistol and trailing after Go

with automatic gunfire.

LU-SID announces that the gate is less than 200 yards ahead,

but as Go finally rights himself to face forward, all he sees

is a wall of rocks from a cave-in. Animal takes careful aim

as Go turns further up the wall, onto the ceiling.

Go grits his teeth and speeds up.

Animal follows suit, keeping his aim steady.

LU-SID

Temporal doorway reached.

Go looks down to see that the cavern floor ends where the

doorway he's looking for begins. With Animal still taking

aim, Go keeps one foot on the gas and takes his hands off the

wheel.

With his car speeding toward a crash, Go yanks his seatbelt

off and plucks LU-SID out of its housing.

Dedicated, Animal doesn't cease his aiming to take note of

things like the slight incline at the end of the cavern floor

that vaults him up as Go falls. The force from the two

vehicles colliding sends Go flying through the portal.

EXT. THE BEACH(NETHERWORLD) - DAY

Go sits on the hood of an Audi S6 Plus, a few bullet holes

and scratches along its exterior but it certainly fared

better than his race vehicle. Similarly, Go looks a little

scratched and bruised, but he carries it with a lazy (or

weary) charm.

He deftly twirls a zippo between his fingers while watching

Detective Corker pace in front of him. He tries to match

Go's lackadaisical demeanor but his interest in Go's tale

betrays it.

DETECTIVE CORKER

But you don't go trying to turn

back time just because of a score

turning out bad, right? It's like

gambling for you guys, you take the

beat and go home. S'what I've

always been told.

The Detective offers a cigarette, which Go waves away with

his right hand, an absolute monster of a handgun held loosely

in its grip.

The whole good cop schtick leads me

to believe your questioning's not

just out of idle curiosity.

DETECTIVE CORKER

Cop instincts aside, you're in the

middle of fucking nowhere, in the

Netherworld, hand cannon the size

of all outdoors in your mitts,

looking like you're about to cash

out. Call it compassion for my

fellow man.

Sure...well, to further string

along your gambling analogy, when

the stakes get high enough for a

player they can go two ways. Cash

out and go home, or you put up

everything you've got for a last

push to win.

Corker arches an eyebrow at that, lighting his own cigarette.

DETECTIVE CORKER

So how high were they, Go?

You read all the files, Detective.

CUT TO:

EXT. SUBURBAN NEIGHBORHOOD - MORNING

An idyllic picture of American Surburbia...if not for the

swarm of police and SWAT vehicles converging onto a modest

split-level home.

CUT TO:

INT. BROADNAX RESIDENCE - MORNING

Michael hurries his two kids out of the kitchen while his

wife frantically turns out the lights. The pair lock eyes

knowingly before Michael takes a breath and steps out into a

sea of red and blue lights.

(V.O.)

You know how close we all were.

CUT TO:

EXT. CITY STREET - MORNING

Go stops at a red light on a decidedly barren street. He

cranes his head upward to spy a helicopter above, and just as

the light turns green he's surrounded by black and whites.

(V.O.)

And you know who the only one not

to end up in the Case Closed

portion of your file was.

CUT TO:

EXT. L.A. COUNTY JAIL - DAY

The midday sun beats down on the jail as Go exits. He

squints out at the parking lot and adjusts his watch,

waiting.

DETECTIVE CORKER

(V.O)

So go pay him back, right? A lot

simpler.

A small coupe pulls up in the driveway and its passenger side

window rolls down. LAUREN sits in the driver's seat and

offers Go a small smile.

Go can only give an uneasy smile in return, running a hand

through his hair as he walks toward the car.

(V.O.)

Revenge wasn't good enough.

Just as Go reaches out for the door, the car EXPLODES,

lifting him off his feet. Employees rush out to help him to

his feet, but end up having to hold him back from running out

to the wreckage.

DISSOLVE TO:

EXT. THE BEACH(UNDERWORLD) - DAY

The Detective frowns, making another offer of a cigarette.

To answer, Go snaps his lighter shut and tucks it away.

DETECTIVE CORKER

Helluva undertaking, s'all I'm

sayin'. So you're in 2056, what

for?

There was a device the Architects

developed using energy from diamond

the crew and I nicked.

EXT. RECLAMATION CENTER - DAY

The site of the SWEDISH HOLDINGS COMPANY is much different in

the year 2056. The building is now smaller by a few stories,

and none of the identifying architecture from 1996. It's all

a smooth, featureless polymer.

Surrounding it is a bland, featureless gray expanse. The

street has no traffic marks, there are no road signs or

billboards. The sky itself is an unnaturally flat gray, with

no variation in its hue.

Go spills out of a trash receptacle across the street,

wreckage and refuse following in his wake. Just as he starts

to sit up, LU-SID hums to life, blue lights emanating from

Go's jacket pocket.

LU-SID

Device located.

Go blinks as a decidedly contemporary looking vehicle rolls

by, the Audi from The Beach, sans scratches and bullet holes.

It stops outside the Reclamation Center and its driver, a

hulking behemoth of a man encased in a bulky exoskeleton,

exits. There are pipes and valves that connect the various

panels and plates to his body, and viscous fluids ooze

through them.

(V.O.)

It harnessed the raw chi in the

stone into like...an energy bomb.

Closest thing I could think of is

an EMP, but for chi sites, and it's

permanent.

The driver waves a hand over a section of the seemingly

smooth wall and a door-sized panel recedes, then slides

aside. He steps inside and Go climbs to his feet with a look

on his face approaching relief.

Before Go takes a step, the driver exits the building and

retrieves a package from the backseat, activating the keyless

entry before shutting the door. On cue with the driver re

entering the building, LU-SID announces that the device is

out of range.

The relief on Go's face quickly turns to a furrowed brow and

mouthed curse words.

DETECTIVE CORKER

(V.O.)

So you figured you'd grab it

and...?

Once the driver goes back inside, Go takes a deep breath and

steels himself. He takes another moment to dust himself off,

then heads for what he thinks might be the front door. Much

to his surprise, after passing a hand over the wall

tentatively, the door recedes.

CUT TO:

EXT. THE BEACH(UNDERWORLD) - DAY

Lenny sold us out to the Ascended.

Given that the Ascended's greatest

strength is just how much chi real

estate they hold, that's what they

probably rewarded him with.

DETECTIVE CORKER

But with the kinda cards the

Ascended hold...they could've

bought him off with money, or

something way less valuable...

...but Lenny, to his credit, is a

smart guy. If he was able to

figure out just how big the

Ascended was, he's gonna make a

gamble. In either case, the

Professor and Kar Fai kept

explaining to me how wrong the

whole going back in time to kill

Hitler idea is. You really wanna

change history, you change how and

where chi flows.

Corker regards Go thoughfully for a moment before chuckling

out a breath of cigarette smoke.

DETECTIVE CORKER

Pretty lateral thinkin' for a fella

who notes 'reckless driving' as an

occupational necessity and carries

a piece that could punch a hole in

God.

Go smirks down at the Automag as though he's just realized

how big it is.

Man, I've never even fired this

thing at an actual person before.

CUT TO:

INT. RECLIMATION CENTER - DAY

The entire building is brightly lit, with no light bulbs in

sight: The walls themselves are luminescent.

Inside is just as spartan as out and Go marches through row

after row of nothing dead-eyed workers slavishly typing away

at computer terminals, holding aforementioned Automag at his

side.

DETECTIVE CORKER

(V.O.)

So what'dya carry it around for?

Scare factor?

Separated from the data entry bank by a guard rail, Go spots

a receiving area ahead of him where the behemoth sits at a

desk in front of one of the workers, going over paperwork.

(V.O.)

Honestly? 'Cause it's heavy.

One hand vaults Go over the guardrail, the other rains blow

after blow from the handle of the Automag onto the behemoth's

head.

CUT TO:

EXT. DOWNTOWN L.A.(2056) - DAY

What was once eerily calm is now absolute bedlam, all

centered on Go's newly acquired Audi. Spherical droids chase

him from the air, while hovercars close in on him from the

rear like silver bullets.

Bullets. Lasers. RPGs. Flak bursts. All manner of strange

ballistic munitions come flying Go's way, and none of them

can manage to find purchase as he weaves in and out of impact

range.

LU-SID

Temporal doorway up ahead.

Two roads run parallel alongside the one Go's being chased

down, and all three lead to a single platform. Normally the

platform would travel along a track to the doorway -- a huge

ring in the sky, suspended in place by small anti-gravity

gyroscopes -- but it sits dormant at the end of the road as

warning klaxxons sound.

Go looks to his right and sees two more hovercars speeding

toward the intersection. Still at full speed, Go sticks his

gun out of the window and begins firing.

The contrast between Go's masterful driving and his shooting

skills could not be more stark as he gets closer and closer

to the end of the line with each missed shot.

By bullet four he's cut the wheel and is drifting sideways to

buy himself time. Five and six graze the top of a hovercar.

With the seventh, the slide locks open and a bullet slams

into the hovercar's propulsion system.

It drops and skids along the ground, wedging into the space

between the road's edge and the platform at an angle. The

Audi slides up the trapped hovercar and goes airborne,

eventually slamming down onto the rails of the track.

The car does a tightrope act, sending sparks everywhere as he

slides sideways through the gate into...

CUT TO:

EXT. SUBMETRO SPEEDWAY - NIGHT

The Audi screams out of the caverns and crosses the

finishline of the Powercharger to a chorus of cheers,

gunshots and sirens.

A horde of scavengers converging on the vehicle are quickly

turned into scattering bowling pins as Go lays on the horn

and barrels through whoever still wants to try their luck.

DETECTIVE CORKER

(V.O.)

So you secured the device, then

what?

CUT TO:

EXT. THE BEACH(UNDERWORLD) - DAY

Go tucks the pistol away and stands, walking to the water's

edge.

From there I needed to find a

target, so I got down to doing

legwork. For the record, you guys

have a tougher job than I gave you

credit for.

CUT TO:

To be continued in the next post...

#feng shui rpg #screenplay #heists #car chases #betrayal #go's story

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actutrends · 5 years

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The DeanBeat: My favorite games of 2019

Games grew to a $148.8 billion market in 2019, up 9.6% from 2018 and reaching over 2.5 billion people across the globe. Console games, the lion’s share of the industry a decade earlier, were smaller than mobile games in 2019, a continuation of a multi-year trend, according to research firm Newzoo.

We watched the further growth of esports and game watching expand this year, and we saw the introduction of subscription gaming for Apple Arcade, Google Play, and Google Stadia’s cloud gaming service. Hyper-casual mobile games that last 30 seconds emerged, but big mobile titles like Call of Duty: Mobile emerged to hold their own against the nanosecond attention spans.

I didn’t think we could match last year’s brilliant titles such as Red Dead Redemption 2, God of War, and Marvel’s Spider-Man. For me, last year was the triumph of traditional narrative triple-A games that blended open worlds with deep narratives.

But the highest end of the industry didn’t rest on its laurels in 2019. As usual, I didn’t have enough time to play it all. But I enjoyed everything across the board, from Sandbox VR’s Star Trek: Discovery — Away Mission virtual reality experience to episodic games like Life is Strange 2 to mobile titles like Call of Duty: Mobile and Apple Arcade’s Where Cards Fall. I re-engaged with favorite maps from years past in Call of Duty: Mobile and plunged into battle royale maps with squadmates in the multiplayer action of Apex Legends. And I was scared out of my wits playing titles like The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man of Medan.

It felt like I had less time to explore indie experiences that my peers played, so I wasn’t the first to stumble on titles like Untitled Goose Game. But I enjoyed delving into my own passions, such as the World War II real-time strategy game Steel Battalion 2 from Eugen Systems, where I could zoom in on a single tank in a battle or pan out to see an entire division marching across the Russian landscapes. Toward the end of the year, I rushed to finish titles such as Remedy’s Control and Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order.

For the sake of comparison, here are my favorites from 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, and 2011. In each story below, the links go to our full reviews or major stories about the games. And be sure to check out the GamesBeat staff’s own votes for Game of the Year and the best individual favorites of the staff soon.

Check out our Reviews Vault for past game reviews.

10) Sayonara Wild Hearts

Above: Sayonara Wild Hearts takes you on an impossibly fast ride.

Image Credit: Annapurna

Developer: Simogo Publisher: Annapuana Interactive, iam8bit Platforms: Apple Arcade/iOS, PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Windows, MacOS, tvOS

I wasn’t expecting to enjoy this dream-like game, as music games don’t usually get me dancing. But Sayonara Wild Hearts has an artsy combination of dance-fighting, pop music, and high-speed motorcycle chases that clicked for me. I played it on an iPhone with Apple Arcade‘s $5 a month subscription platform, and I used a Rotor Riot wired game controller to play it rather than brave the untrustworthy touchscreen. You can also play it on an iPad or Apple TV.

It’s a high-adrenaline game where you tap, jump, and maneuver to collect little hearts in a beautiful neon-and-black landscape. And it isn’t that long with 23 levels. The neon-on-black art is beautiful. It’s hard to believe a small game studio put it together, because the art is so well-crafted. There isn’t much of a story, but the developers tell you what you need to know.

In Sayonara Wild Hearts, you play as a young woman who suffers a heartbreak. A tarot card pops up and dubs her The Fool, transporting her into an alternate universe. She sets out to restore the harmony of the universe hidden away in the hearts of her enemies. As you take control of The Fool, you speed along on a motorcycle within a tunnel-like view of the horizon.

The fusion of music and gameplay reminds me of music games like Rez from 2001 or that wacky and artistic “Take On Me” music video by A-Ha in 1985. The gameplay in Sayonara Wild Hearts seems impossible, and it takes a lot of skill to avoid crashing. But it’s whimsical and forgiving at the same time, as you can start up right where you crashed to try again. I thought songs like Begin Again were catchy and hard to get out of my head. I’m not going to say that this was far better than many of the triple-A games that debuted this year, but this is my nod in the direction of creativity, fun, and the indie spirit on mobile devices.

9) Rage 2

Above: Rage 2 couldn’t fight the dying of the light.

Image Credit: Bethesda

Developer: Avalanche Studios and id Software Publisher: Bethesda Platforms: PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Windows

When id Software’s Tim Willits visited Avalanche Studios in Stockholm, he told his new compadres to ignore constraints. “When I met with the team in Stockholm on the whiteboard, “More crazy than Rage” That was the first pillar of this game,” Willits said.

And he got what he asked for. Rage 2 didn’t get the best reviews, but I thought it was underrated, as I played it through the end of the single-player campaign and played a lot of silly side missions as well. Rage 2 had a lot of environments, ranging from the Mad Max-style desert to jungles and cities. The script was a bit weak, but the enemies were tough and the weapons were glorious. The “nanotrite” capabilities that you discovered along the way are critical to defeating the biggest bosses. The art style was absolutely wild, with plenty of bright pink and yellow colors splashed across the punk habitats. And I enjoyed reuniting with my old friend, the Wingstick, which is like a boomerang that could slice an enemy’s head off.

If it had flaws, it was that it wasn’t Red Dead Redemption 2. It often littered the landscape with side missions and enemies to kill, to no purpose. You could get damaged on your way to an important mission, and then have to figure out a way to recover. It’s good if you stayed on track, built your capabilities up, and stuck to the good stuff.

The final part of the game lasted a lot longer for me because I had trouble taking down General Cross, the bad guy, and his pet monster. But to me, it was a thrill when I finally succeeded.

8) Days Gone

Above: A horde of Freakers chases Deacon St. John in Days Gone.

Image Credit: Sony

Developer: Sony Bend Studio Publisher: Sony Platforms: PlayStation 4

The amazing success of its first Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) hampered this game, as did a couple of years of delays. By the time it came out, many were sick of it, and it suffered from having some of the worst bugs I’ve ever seen in a triple-A game. Others wrong wrote it off as a copycat of The Walking Dead, World War Z, and The Last of Us.

But I admired Sony’s guts in standing by Bend Studio, and I stuck by it too as my colleagues ragged on it. I played it for perhaps 50 hours over several weeks, and I was quite possibly the last critic to review the game. I rated it only as a 75, because of the bugs. But without them, it would have been more like a 90, based on the quality of its story and the thrill of fighting the hordes of zombies, or Freakers.

I was drawn to the story of Deacon St. John, a bounty hunter in the Oregon woods and a broken man in a fallen world. He had a death wish and could ride a motorcycle through a horde of zombies just to get them to chase him. But Bend Studio delivered on the big scene where a few hundred zombies chased the biker through an abandoned lumber mill. It was a thrill to figure out how to beat that challenge, and I was hooked on the story of how Deacon was haunted by the memory of his lost love Sarah.

The adventure took me across the beautiful Oregon landscape into horrifying creature battles, motorcycle chases, infected crows, memorable horde battles, stealth missions tracking the secretive government agency, and just plain-old surviving in the wilderness. It was kind of an art to orchestrate your escape from several hundred Freakers. And it was good to see Deacon change and become the person that Sarah would have wanted him to be.

7) Steel Division 2

Above: Your forces appear as icons when you zoom out in Steel Division 2.

Image Credit: Eugen Systems

Developer: Eugen Systems Publisher: Eugen Systems Platforms: Windows

There are no Metacritic reviews for Steel Battalion 2. I may have been the only one who played it. But I saw the game being played on YouTube by some dedicated influencers with tiny audiences. And I was fascinated. I’ve been playing the Total War series of real-time strategy games since they first debuted more than 15 years ago, and I played Total War: Attila for hundreds of hours in 2015.

And I was glad to pour scores of hours into it this summer into Eugen Systems’ real-time strategy World War II games, which are a niche within a niche. It dwells on a bit of war history I didn’t know much about, Operation Bagration. It was the Soviet Union’s huge summer offensive in Belarus to take back big chunks of Eastern Europe from the Nazis, as the Allied invasion of Normandy was gathering steam in 1944. It was a massive set of tank, infantry, and air battles that left the German Wehrmacht in full retreat on the Eastern Front.

It has a steep learning curve. The game has more than 600 historically accurate units, 18 divisions, and an astounding level of detail in its graphics. You can focus in on an individual scene, such as above, or zoom out to get a birds’ eye view of an entire battle with thousands of soldiers. Your job as general is to constantly feed the right kind of troops into the fray to make the enemy’s forces melt away from you. This is easier said than done, as you can dislodge well-trained enemy squads from a forest trench, even if you’ve got superior armor. The enemy AI is smart, taking out your anti-tank guns on a hill with artillery or air power.

I lost dozens of skirmish matches against the AI before I figured out how to win. On top of the tactical battles, I also got hooked on the Army General mode, where you moved around divisions like chess pieces on a map. But you can still choose to play those huge campaigns, one tactical battle at a time. That’s what is amazing about the title.

6) Gears of War 5

Above: Kait gets here close-up.

Image Credit: Microsoft

Developer: The Coalition Publisher: Microsoft Platforms: Windows, Xbox One

Coalition head Rod Fergusson humbly said that Gears 5 was the best entry yet in the Gears saga. And he wasn’t making that up. I was gratified to see the developer get the balance right when it came to creating a wild action game with an emotional story with strong characters such as the hero, Kait Diaz.

Gears 4 got pretty goofy at certain points in its narrative about the human race losing its battle for survival against the Swarm in a world gone mad. But this story balanced that goofiness that brought us chainsaw bayonets with the moments where you mourn the death of a lost friend. These are tough moments because the cast of characters has survived some very tough times, and they’re a close-knit group. When you rip a character out of that group, it leaves deep wounds.

The campaign’s longer than usual, and it features cool features such as a skiff that sails across both the desert and ice. shoot out the ice under the feet of the Scions, the heavy tank bosses that carry a heavy weapon and are often shielded from attack by flying drones. This was very different from past Gears games. I remember spending an hour battling a blind boss, slowly figuring out a kind of choreography to stay out of its way, replenish my ammo, grab new weapons, and spray it with the frosty freeze guns. The title also had some cool additions to multiplayer and co-op play.

Gears 5 delivers a sense that you’re losing a big war at the same time it delivers the blow of a personal loss. And it generates a resolve to hit back. I like how this team outgrew its urges to be goofy and shocking and instead opted for something closer to fine art.

The post The DeanBeat: My favorite games of 2019 appeared first on Actu Trends.

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