#we're here now

[nebuladreamz]

POV: Your friend gets a little silly

[lykorises]

like this post to hold death's hand for a random starter actually, but death thanks u for the thoughts. mwah. [ also we can plot iiiif you prefer, my disco is kingmoogle ]

[mushroompollution]

A Mother's Love

part 1 || part 2

He has to find the Sealing Stone.

He doesn't want to.

But he has to.

He needs to.

The labyrinth of hallways in the basement eventually lead Leo to a mezzanine overlooking a large, open chamber. And at the center of that chamber, within an ornate stone pavillion, stands a massive, scarlet gem.

Leo's heart nearly stops.

That's it.

That's the Sealing Stone.

He knows it.

He feels it.

And now, he just has to... break it. Right?

And then he'll be one step closer to finding out what he's meant to do. What his fate is begging of him--

Vincent had said the stone is weak. Could he break it from there? Nervously, he takes his gun from his jacket and looks down the sight. No luck. The angle, and the roof of the stone temple surrounding his target, make a clear shot impossible.

He knows he's doing to have to get closer.

Several figures in hooded, red robes guard the Sealing Stone. One seed of Humpty Dumpty floats above them, and there's no way to know which one is its Contractor. Vincent had said that Chains would be useless in the presence of the Stone, yet that one seems unaffected.

Leo takes a deep breath.

At least they're all adults. Not his little siblings. He checks his pistol, an upgrade from his old revolver, given to him by Vincent. Then, he raises his free hand against his chest.

hold on, Elliot.

With that, he races down the stairs. Humpty Dumpty starts at the movement, but it holds that razor sharp tongue. Still, Leo fires three quick shots into its gaping mouth. As one of the hooded figures drops to their knees, another summons forth their own seed, and Humpty Dumpty appears again.

And again, it hesitates to attack, giving Leo enough time to levy another two shots, bringing the second Contractor to their knees as their Chain fades away into black smoke.

Already though, Leo is panting. He had spent several days training for this. But several days are nothing. He turns sharply, raising his gun as the third figure approaches.

But he recognizes that face.

Leo hesitates, his pistol lowers as the figure's hood does too.

The Duchess Nightray smiles a gentle, warm smile, despite Leo's violent entrance.

"You made it," her voice is warm as she approaches him, arms held open. "Elliot will be so happy to see that his little bird's come home."

But Leo takes a nervous step back.

Why is she here?

And why is she dressed in that red robe...?

Her trembling fingers wrap weakly around his free hand and begin to guide him into an adjacent chamber. He can feel the stares of the other Glens beneath his skin as he allows himself to be led.

The side chamber is small combared to the main event space surrounding the Stone. A stone table stands in the center, surrounded by burning candles and candelabras. An ornate, silver dagger waits at one end.

"Are you here to play the role of the hero's friend?" the Duchess asks. Her voice is calm, somehow. "I expected Elliot, but it's nice to see you too. He's been so worried about you."

Leo's voice sticks in his throat. "y-your grace, you need to get out of here," he urges. "Isla Yura is going to recreate the Tragedy of Sablier--"

"I know." His eyes widen at the Duchess' words. "Isn't it wonderful?"

Leo feels his blood run cold. "how... is that wonderful?" he gasps.

The Duchess brings him him before the table, positioning herself between him and any idea of grabbing that knife. She wraps her shaking hands around Leo's right, carefully taking his gun from him. He can't fight back. Not against Elliot's beloved mother.

"The Abyss will bring us salvation. Elly won't need to miss his brothers anymore, once we're all together in the golden paradise."

Leo's ears ring. Whatever he had expected, it wasn't this. Never this. She sets the revolver on the stone table behind her, along with the knife-- out of his reach.

Another red-robed figure storms into the chamber, but the Duchess waves a hand to dismiss him. "It's alright. Our friend here was simply confused when he arrived," she explains. "He didn't know his role, yet."

The other figure seems to accept that. "We'll be starting the Ceremony momentarily. Our hero should be rushing in soon," he says, before turning to leave the small chamber.

Leo can can feel a dark realization building inside him.

"...your grace, whatever Isla Yura has told you is a lie," Leo argues.

"Lies."

The Duchess finally frowns.

"The only lies are Pandora's," her voice is colder now. "They conceal the existence of the True Abyss in order to maintain their monopoly on its blessings. They speak only of the False Abyss, where the wicked and selfish Illegal Contractors are sent."

"your grace..."

"We're trying to bring everyone into the True Abyss, where the living and dead can be together again. The Tragedy of Sablier wasn't a tragedy because the city was swallowed," she explains, eerily calm. "The real tragedy is that the entire world was not led into its golden light."

Leo wants to scream. But he swallows it down with the bile in his throat.

"you're right that the Abyss was once a beautiful place," Leo tries to protest, revealing the things he'd learned from Vincent and the others. The truths he feels beneath his skin. "but that was warped a long, long time ago. and anyway--"

"You're wrong." There's a haunting look in her blue eyes. The same blue eyes as her precious son. "You're wrong."

is she one of Humpty Dumpty's Contractors, too--?

There's the sound of some terrible commotion going on in the next room.

But that all sounds so very far away.

"You'll see in just a few moments," the Duchess says. She reaches out a hand to Leo's shoulder. His back hits the edge of that stone table. "Lie down now, little bird. Once that clock chimes, we can find Elliot together, in the salvation of Abyss--"

"Mother--?"

The voice from the doorway makes Leo's stomach drop.

The Duchess turns to give her precious son a warm, welcoming smile. "Oh, Elly. You made it after all."

Elliot rushes across the chamber, grabbing his mother's wrist as she reaches for that silver dagger.

"Mother, stop!! What are you doing?!" he cries.

"Let go of me, Elliot," the Duchess urges, her tone urgent. "You mustn't interfere with our divine mission."

"You're being lied to!!" Elliot's heart aches as he raises his voice against his own, beloved mother. "Isla Yura is using you! They're experimenting on kids in the House of Fianna, and that snake is overseeing the whole thing!!! He's been forcing them into Contracts and grooming them to recreate the Tragedy of Sa--"

Elliot is cut short by a sharp slap from his mother's free hand. He staggers backwards, releasing her.

Leo feels his stomach turn as he watches helplessly.

"Don't say such dreadful things!" the Duchess cries. "Humpty Dumpty is a sacred power bestowed upon us by the Abyss."

Elliot can hardly believe the things he's hearing. His hair stands on end. His head aches.

"Mother, please--" Elliot's words are cut short by a sudden, sharp pain. His hand goes to his chest as he drops to his knees with a gasp. This is nothing like his migraines, or his bouts of nausea and lightheadedness.

He swears he feels like he's just been shot.

"What the-- Hell-- ?" he struggles against the throbbing, wobbling as he tries to stand again.

Leo feels his blood run cold. "Elliot--!" he cries. But as he starts toward his precious friend, he hesitates. His eyes flick to his pistol on the table as the Duchess bends down to retrieve that silver dagger.

"You're undoubtedly being punished for interfering," she says calmly as she picks up the blade. "Just watch,"

Leo grits his teeth. Hell. It's not like he could bring himself to shoot her, anyway. He makes his decision and runs to Elliot, only for the Duchess to grab him by the collar. The sudden force catches Leo off guard, and he stumbles to the floor.

"Leo!!!!" Elliot cries.

"Be good children now, and behave," she chides. Leo scrambles backwards as he sees the bubbling mass of Humpty Dumpty come together over her shoulder. "Once everyone's in the Abyss, we can all live happily together again--!"

The blade lands with a sickening sound.

There's a burst of blood.

A thud.

And Leo screams.

[fagexe]

I thought he said he was going to stop dragging that corpse around

[bean-chaointe]

i have. officially started the process to turn my side project, macha's justice, into a Proper Nonprofit so that i can finally offer proper state-recognized certification in domestic violence counseling specifically for pagans and polytheists.

aaaaaaaaaaaah

[jxwz]

❝— @jxwz // i am flesh and i am bone

|| PRIVATE || PORCO GALLIARD || DIVERGENT || ©

CANON TURNED ORIGINAL CHARACTER FROM AOT / SNK. MULTI-VERSE. REINCARNATION!AU MY BELOVED. SPORADIC / SELECTIVE ACTIVITY. WRITTEN BY JACK / 31 || 21+ ONLY || READ THE RULES.

|| RULES || VERSES || PROMPTS || PINBOARD || ☆

— starters/asks/threads/etc open to mutuals only.

— absolutely no minor/ageless blogs whatsoever.

— please be patient for replies, sometimes i'll be slow!

— tracked tag #jxwz

— don't be rude. don't godmod. don't assume ships.

— will add+ to this later but basic rp etiquette, that's all ♥

[lazylittledragon]

as promised some koralina lore (the lore is 5 and likes dancing)

[technically-human]

This happened, it just wasn't relevant to the plot

[landoslastnerve]

DEADPOOL (2016) dir. Tim Miller DEADPOOL 2 (2018) dir. David Leitch DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE (2024) dir. Shawn Levy

[brightdeadthing]

Come. And Be My Baby, Maya Angelou

[livelovecaliforniadreams]

Polin + Parallels, Callbacks, & Foreshadowing (Seasons 1-3)

[egophiliac]

I'm still processing 7-13, in the meantime have this super quick thing! of all the things that happened that I didn't expect, one of 'em certainly was a not insignificant subplot revolving around Silver unintentionally committing international mail fraud.

[aashiqeddiediaz]

you know what boils my blood.

over the last 2 weeks, i've seen countless patients walk into my urgent care center, symptomatic for so many things, refusing to get tested for covid and flu, citing that they don't want to knowingly bring it to their holiday tables. i had a patient tell me, verbatim, "i don't want to test for covid, because i don't want to be the asshole who brings it on a plane."

i understand that - i understand that holidays are times where people look forward to meeting loved ones that they might only see once a year, or where they get a break from the hectic back and forth of their lives.

but here's the thing - whether they get tested or not, they will bring whatever they have to their holiday tables. it's pure recklessness to know that you're sick, and walk into someone else's house spreading the disease.

today, january 2, i saw 91 patients, many of them who have tested positive for covid and flu. many of these patients are the same ones who didn't want testing 3 days ago, until their events were over, and now, they will have to reach out to everyone they know to let them know that they were positive because they were showing symptoms well before their event.

the next week or two? we're going to see many, many more, all people with symptoms that started around christmas. these are the only two viruses we test for rapidly in our office, but they are potent and can be fatal in many people.

so here's why i wrote this post, and maybe it's a little late, but - if you care about your loved ones, please get tested if you know you're sick. it doesn't have to be at a clinic if you don't want it to, because the over-the-counter tests work just fine too (if you test within 5-7 days of symptom onset). just...please don't try to run from the knowledge that you might have covid, because immunocompromised people, elderly people, people with co-morbidities like asthma, pregnancy, diabetes, etc...many of them may not recover. and they may not be sitting at your holiday table in the future because of it.

[hyolks]

nina's a little bit older here but she's still very much a little sister to them!!

[sometimesrendog]

[Day 172] Uiscefhuaraithe / The feel of coldness only water brings

[zondearts]

I wanted to draw her with some birds ok?