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paisholotus · 7 months

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𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐢𝐞𝐠𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐡, 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝟐

A/N: This mf long. Hope y'all enjoy, tho 🩵

Narrative

four massive fireballs arcing over the Water City walls and into the city. It is daylight, and the battle for the survival of the Northern Water Tribe has begun in earnest. The four fireballs land at various points within the city and explode. Back to the sanctuary, where Appa and the others are, the black and white fish circling each other in the sanctuary pond. Katara sits sadly in front of it, with tears in her eyes, Aang has been taken by Prince Zuko.

Above the waterfall, the Moon Warriors are perched on their polar bears on the frigid tundra, keeping an eye on Katara, Sokka, and Yue. They get on the flying bison and soar above them to find Aang. Lilia, Yanna's third command, motions for three Warriors to go protect them while the rest guard the oasis.

- Time Skip-

Yanna and her mother rushed to save women and children. Many Moon Warriors are fighting with the Northern tribe, taking down soldiers on rhinos and catapulting fireballs against the wall. The women gasped as they watched the Warriors take down the soldiers, Yanna covered a woman holding a small child. She covered her face and told them to stay put and take cover.

The Fire Nation assault on the city below. A line of Fire Navy ships abuts the outer wall, which continues launching fireballs deep into the unoccupied portions of the city. The invaders have penetrated the outer wall with infantry and armor. The Water Tribe still holds one of the towers in the foreground, but it is clear the defenders are losing this battle.

A couple of Fire Nation war rhinoceros, each with small catapults on either side of its saddle. One after the other, the soldiers on the rhinoceros fire their catapults.

Yanna and her sister waterbends tall structures around the houses of women and children. She waterbends the snow up and pushes the soldiers back away from the second wall. The secondary wall still holds a thin moat of water in front of it. The defenders are few, however, and a deadly rain of fireballs spreading destruction deep inside the city, Fire Nation tanks, firing as they advance toward the secondary wall.

Yanna looks up into the black, smoke-filled sky, and then the sky turns red. Yanna's heart sunk as she gazed at the now-red moon. She stared at the Northern Waterbenders, who had lost their ability to bend. Something has happened to the moon spirit, and the fire balls then penetrate the second wall, forcing the benders to flee.

The Moon Warriors formed a defensive line in front of the second wall, and Yanna felt wrath wash over her. Yanna's eyes began to glow as she moved her hands, as did the Warriors in a circular motion. They carved a hole in the ice, causing a few soldiers to stumble through. The sky then darkened to grey, Yanna's eyes blazed with rage as she realized what had just occurred; the moon spirit had been destroyed.

As she lifts her hands and cries, "RISE!" Hot tears streaming down her face. When the ice begins to quiver and shatter, the Fire Benders cease firing.

Seconds pass before the serpent emerges from the ice, leans down, and Yanna leaps upon the serpent, raising her swords into the air, "FOR THE WATER TRIBE, ATTACK!" The Warriors charge the army on their polar bears, while Yanna swipes her swords, taking out soldiers, tanks, and catapults.

A glow spreads from behind the citadel to encompass the entire citadel area of the city. A huge, incandescent blue wave rushes under the footbridge as if some huge creatures were moving underneath it. Appa stands on the oasis, but he is dwarfed by the creature that rises from the pool, the citadel, and the city visible beyond it.

The blue, white veined creature is a huge fish like being. At its center is a blue white bubble, and there is Aang, who spreads his arms wide. A moment later, the Ocean Spirit, for this is truly he in communion with the Avatar, duplicates the motion. The Fire Nation soldiers who stand in front of the last wall, who back away in fear, start to run back to their ships. The Ocean Spirit towers over the citadel, its arms still spread wide, its blue spirit lighting the city like a beacon. The Spirit begins to move down into the city. Master Pakku and his waterbenders instantly bow to the floor in honor of their god. Across the canal, some Fire Nation soldiers raise their spears in defiance but are swept away by a wall of water sent by the Ocean Spirit. Aang inside the body of the Ocean Spirit, flailing his arms about, directing the power of the Ocean Spirit against the violators of the Moon Spirit and the Water Tribe City.

The Moon Spirit looks down at the Moon Warriors and motions for them to follow it to the ocean. Fire Nation tanks fire blasts of fire at the Ocean Spirit, but they are absorbed with no effect. The soldiers and tanks are washed away as if they were toys. The Ocean Spirit passes by the Water Tribe citizens who make obeisance to their lord. The Fire Nation army in full retreat, trying desperately to escape the vengeance of a living Spirit. The Ocean Spirit reaches the main canal in front of the third wall and melts into it.

The Moon Warriors and the Moon Spirit make it to the ocean. Yanna, on her serpent take down Fire Nation ships while the Moon Spirit pushes the rest of them back. The Moon Spirit looks at the pushed backed ships and dissipates back into the water. The Spirit lifts out the water and puts Aang back on the wall, causing him to fall to his knees. The Spirit then goes back into the water and spirals around, lifting Yanna into the air.

"YOU WILL BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CRIMES YOU COMMITTED TODAY! FIRE LORD OZAI WILL FALL TO HIS KNEES AND PAY FOR THE WORLD'S DESTRUCTION! LEAVE AND NEVER RETURN!" Yanna said assertively. The spirit placed Yanna back on the serpent and vanished back into the water.

-Time Skip-

Yanna's pov

I watched the Northern Water Tribe and my Warriors starting to rebuild the structure of the city. I looked at Arnook and grabbed his hand. He looked down at me with sad eyes while i gave him a sympathetic smile. He looked back up to the Moon and said, "The Spirits gave me a vision when Yue was born. I saw... a beautiful, brave young woman... Become the Moon Spirit." He Closes his eyes and signs deeply, "I knew this day would come." He said, doeful

"You must be proud." I said. He smiled, and quietly said, "So proud. And sad."

I looked at Aang, Katara, and Sokka, hugging beside their bison. My heart wanted me to go talk to them, but I don't know what I would say. It's been years since I've spoken to them, I was a little girl the last time I spoke to them, I'm 18 now. I felt Arnook looking down at me, and he smiled, grabbing my hand. He turned back to the people and began to speak. "Great People Of The Water Tribe, we just fought the greatest fight our people have ever encountered, I would like to thank THE GREAT MOON AND OCEAN SPIRITS FOR GUIDING US AND FOR GIVING US STRENGTH TO WIN THIS BATTLE! But most importantly, I would like to thank the Avatar and thank the people who we thought were legends. PLEASE EVERYONE BOW BEFORE THE MOON WARRIORS WHO SHOWED INCREDIBLE STRENGTH AND POWER, MAY IMIQ CONTINUE TO BLESS US!"

I watched everyone bow before me before my Warriors. I felt joy and pride in my heart, that I had done my people proud, that I've done my father proud. Arnook nudged me to speak, and I walked down the steps in front of the people, and in front of Sokka and Katara.

"I am Yanna, the Moon Warriors' leader and the daughter of Tarak and Myra. I was chosen by our previous Avatar, Imiq. At a young age, I had no idea I had so much power and responsibility at the time. My father would often tell me that I was destined for greatness, but I never knew what he meant. Every day, we would train, and I had no idea he was preparing me for who I was meant to be.

The day the Fire Nation arrived at the South Pole was the darkest day of my life. It was the day I lost my father. I had to abandon my friends and fully isolate myself from the rest of the world in order to become powerful enough to protect both the south and north poles.

I've questioned whether I was giving my all mentally, physically, and emotionally. I felt like a failure every day, until one day I realized I couldn't feel sorry for myself anymore. My people were counting on me. Every day, I trained and fought hard. There were days when I stumbled, but I always got back up. Because that is what a leader does—they do not give up when things get difficult.

When life knocks you down, you get back up and keep pushing until you can't anymore, and even then, you try again." I felt tears brim my eyes as I raised my fist to my chest.

"I am proud to be a member of the Water Tribe, a Moon Warrior, and most importantly, I am proud of the Avatar for returning to us. And I'd want to thank my fellow brother and sister, Sokka and Katara, for bringing him to us. As long as there is air flowing through my lungs, there isn't a challenge or fight I'm not willing to face," I said, raising my fist in the air. "MAY THE GREAT SPIRITS KEEP SHINING ON US!"

Everyone raised their fists and chanted. I looked at Katara, who was crying, and Sokka, who was smiling slightly. I approached them while standing in front of them. My chest felt heavy as I opened my mouth to say something, but it wouldn't come out. Katara then grabbed my hands and pulled me into a hug, causing me to sob, then I felt Sokka wrap his arms around me and Katara, too. "I missed you, Yan." Katara said. I kissed her cheek and said, "I've missed you more, Tara."

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hadrians-wall95 · 27 days

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Ser Octavius surveyed his battleline. Preparing for the assault to come.

The Saguine Knights, Fleet Based Successor Chapter of the Blood Angels, had come to Forgeworld Snifflick after hearing the Distress Calls of the Covenant of the Omnisiah. The Skitarii defenders had done well to contain Hivefleet Behemoth, but they had been unable to push into the most corrupted parts of the Forgeworld. Today, Ser Octavius and Court Librarian Merlinius would change that.

The Tanks of Trebuchet Company were deployed. All that was left was the order to assault. The objective: to open a hole in Tyrannid Line, and to cleanse the birthing pods scattering the battlefield (the orange leave piles. Work with what ya got). He gave the order, and the treads of the Emporer advanced.

The Company advanced, bringing the full might of the Emporer to bear. Lascannons scoured the flesh of the Xenos, bringing down great beasts before they could even react to the assault. On the right flank, Ser Octavius and the Rhino Carrying Black Squadron ran into early trouble. The genestealers meant to break open the Rhino and Slow the Tactical Squads advance. Ser Octavius, in response, heroically charged the brood, sure he could bring the beasts low before they could open up the APC.

It is unfortunate, then, that Ser Octavius has the wrong of it. The Xenos was Cunning this day, and knew that killing him and the Librarian would be worth a hundred line brothers. The Assault Marines deployed from the landraider, hoping to save their Warlord.

Unfortunately, it was too little too late. Ser Octavius was thrown from his bike, his armor torn asunder. As he lost consciousness, his thoughts were only of vindication, praying that Merlinius would finish the Job.

Merlinius would have no such luck. I'm fact, it was all the Librarian could do to survive and avoid a rout. Both Landraiders had collapsed under Tyranofex fire, and the objectives seemed impossible to secure. Meanwhile, Behemoth was out for Blood, bringing weapon after weapon crashing down on the Wizard and his honor guard. As the terminators around him fell, Merlinius ordered one last charge. They'd take this objective, or die trying.

A final charge was ordered, to some success. Tactical Squad Green was able to take and hold the left objective, giving a path to victory. Tactical Squad black charged into the frey, hoping to hold the center and steal a victory. A last desperate push.

That ended not with a bang, but a whimper. Ineffective charges meant that time would decide this battle. Merlinius, the last of his Bodyguard dead at his feet, sounded a fighting withdrawal. The retreat saw the death of most of the enemies great beasts. The biomass lost today would be a terrible blow. They would hold the Xenos this day, true. But this was no victory. Just like the Skitarii before them, the Space Marines had failed to cleanse the planet. This would be a long campaign. Merlinius have the order. The Death Company would son be Unleashed.

#space marines #warhammer 40000 #40k #arts and crafts #blood angels #narrative game #battle report #technically #fan fiction #tyranids #wh40k #your dudes

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longwindedbore · 2 months

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Democrats: THERE ARE TWO ELECTIONS in 2024

PRIMARIES in which you can often vote among a field of Democratic candidates for House Congressional and State Legislative contenders whose political beliefs align with your own. These races don’t require a lot of money so there are usually good new choices.

Win or lose in the Primary, in NOVEMBER the Democrats and Republicans square off for who will occupy those seats in Congress and the Legislature.

Every exiting GOP member will be replaced by a bat-shit insane MAGA theocratic lunatic candidate who has unhealed childhood trauma driving them to make life horrible for everyone so that by comparison with us they can feel better about the empty black hole inside themselves.

Otherwise known as “Owning the Libs”.

This is is a once on a Lifetime, 1932 FDR NEW DEAL golden opportunity to flip those seats Democratic in the House and State Legislatures.

If you have the time the Democratic Party in your neighborhood could always use help in canvassing Democratic voters to encourage them to show up to vote.

MAGA has lost every off-off year election since the overturn of RvW. The old RHINO GOP NEVER lost an off-off year election.

Better days are possible.

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trayzen-the-infinite · 10 months

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The Spot

I always feel like when talking about movie adaptations of Comic villains that we look at what they’re adapting The Spot is interesting because it more Lore accurate than you think. His name before the became The Spot was a pun. His name was Johnny Ohnn as in “Johnny on the spot. In the comics he was an MIT Scientist employed by Kingpin to try and find out how to purposefully create superpowers.

Dr. Ohnn was failing at every turn and Kingpin was about to “remove” him if he didn’t create results. Until while trying to figure out the secret to the teleporting powers of the Hero Cloak (he had a large black cloak and would fall into the darkness of his own cloak and teleport between shadows) what he instead created was a literal Black Hole in his lab

Not liking the idea of dying by Kingpins hands he took the chance of a lifetime and went inside. Instead of finding pathways of Darkness that Cloak used he found himself in white Void with infinite Dark Pathways. He did not stand inside the holes of dimensions somehow he managed to stand OUTSIDE of all dimensions. Upon finding the Hole that led out his body forever reflected that strange void he would call “The Spot World”

He would then use his powers to try and kill Spider-Man and his first words to Spider-Man were “I’m your arch nemesis!” To which Spider-Man laughed and said “no you’re not” and fairly easily defeated him after figuring out how he can run out of spots after a while.

After some time The Spot would return with a bunch of genuinely pathetic D Tier villains like Kangaroo 2 (a man who gave himself a super suit in the shape of a kangaroo with all the abilities of said animal) Grizzly (a Rhino Knock off with a grizzly bear costume) and Gibbon (a wannabe hero who dressed like a monkey with his only skills being acrobatics and was promptly laughed at by Spider-Man which is why Gibbon turned to villainy in the first place and YES THATS DUMB) this group of absolute losers called themselves the “Spider-Man Revenge Squad” and Spider-Man called them “The Loser Squad”

Spot would eventually display a new ability which I call the Kenny Power. As in Kenny from South Park, apparently much like Kenny Spot will die one issue and then come back in another. He broke Tombstone out of jail and Tombstone thanked him by snapping his neck. He was killed by Electra who was brainwashed by Hydra, he was recruited by Hydra then killed by Hydra after he tried to betray them. After all these years later Kingpin killed him after forcefully using his powers far more effectively than Spot could on his own (I’ll get back to that)

Spot can full on die and then come back like nothing happened not because he can heal like Deadpool but because he’s Inter-Dimensional super being and whenever he dies he just respawns in Spot World

The thing is despite the fact the Marvel World constantly shuts on Spot and calls him a loser (and he is) his powers are also extremely powerful and basically God-like. The problem is that he’s a terrible Villain. He just straight up sucks at being the bad guy. Theirs been many stories of villains capturing Spot and forcefully using his powers for their own ends or villains straight stealing his power. It’s always horrifying. The Spot is basically a newly born unkillable Eldritch God whose only held back by the fact he doesn’t comprehend the scope of his own power

#spider man: across the spider verse #the spot #Johnny ohnn #miles morales #spider man #jonathan ohnn #across the spiderverse #spider-man

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mask-of-prime · 10 months

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VG: Speed Run

It was early in the morning. A certain rhino paced as he thought up his speech. He took a deep breath as he contemplated returning to the Pridelands. He was onto the next part of his plan... "Hey." The rhino in question sighed in annoyance before turning to the voice. He saw that it had been Mrembo, the monotone, hairy lion. "Any idea when our next mission will be? Dying to get something to eat." "No missions today!" the rhino then grimaced, "And you know how uncomfortable it makes me when you talk about the types of things you eat! Now, please! I've got a very important speech to make to a few friends." "Oooh! Can we come?!" Jeuri suddenly piped. "NO! Absolutely not!" the rhino roared, "I-I mean... why don't you try Flat Ridge Rock, I thought I spotted some nice big lizards there..." "Lizards? Again?" Mrembo sighed in annoyance, "Better than nothing, I guess." Jeuri rushed to the cave he and his made a home in. "Hey, Kiume, no missions today!" "Good," the older lion glared from the shadows, "I don't want anybody to see me like this..."

____ Later that morning... The cacophony of several impatient, angered, and hyped calls made by various ungulates and birds rang across Mizimu Grove. There, they awaited the return of a certain pachyderm they placed all of their trust in, especially as of late. The crowed turned to the sound of stomping. It had been their glorious leader, Ngurumo, surrounded by an intimidating, austere crash of elite rhinos guarding him. The crowd cheered in delight. The cheering, however, gradually ceased as Ngurumo gracefully held up a hoof, preparing his rallying speech. "My fellow prey... It seems every day I hear more and more about the violent nature of our oppressive leaders after my undeserved banishment! I understand that some of you, my dear, faithful bretheren, have been caught in some of these fights these barbaric creatures keep starting amongst themselves?" "YEAH!" a few notable supporters shouted. "Ngurumo? Sir? How are you receiving this news?" asked an inquisitive Oryx doe. "I'm glad you asked." the rhino smiled. "While I stood in the outskirts of the Pridelands, where I had been mercilessly ejected to by the very perpetrators of these attacks, I was only able to hear of the goings-on of the Pridelands from my trusted, loyal tickbird, Uongo!" The bird in question smirked cunningly as he flew into the scene, as if on cue. "Now Uongo, what was it you heard these lions say about us poor herbivores?" The tickbird, who possessed a drongo-like ability to mimic voices to an uncanny level, formed shapes with his mouth to recreate voices of a few lions: "Kupatana?! -- nobody cares about that holiday!" the bird cherrypicked in Vitani's voice. "We could've had them now, then it'd be over with!" he said in Shabaha's voice, completely out of context. "Just beat 'em black and blue like the usual deal." he then said in Vitani's voice once more, and once again devoid of the true context. The ruminants gasped, as did Ngurumo. "Such violence!" he said, "The King orders bloodthirsty huntresses -- not even from here -- to form his new Guard. Not only was it such a foolish thing to get rid of his old Guard -- one that had a hippo, by the way --, but he allowed his own enemies to keep us in check, and now they want to eat us all! Siding with anything so long as they're predators, and specifically lions at that!" The crowd of herd animals yelled in disgust. "I don't know about you, but I wouldn't hire my own killers. What an idiot, that Simba is!" he cleared his throat, "But anywho, I hear a few brave animals, here, fought back at the Lion Guard, is that right?" Karani screamed loud for Ngurumo to hear, and the vicious hippo that hogged the watering hole -- who was currently concussed -- bellowed proudly. "Yes, heh." Ngurumo's chuckling face became a sympathetic frown, "I, too, am saddened by the senseless attacks made on some of you by these monsters for leaders. Especially around Kupatana! A day of supposed unity! These lions have morphed the very meaning of Kupatana. To them, it's their one day of the year where they gaslight us back into trusting them, in 'the spirit of the holiday'! Bah! I say we take inspiration from the bird and hippo, and fight back! I say we take back the true meaning of Kupatana -- what it meant to all of us since before these predators came about! The real origin of the holiday..." The animals listened intently. They supposed they didn't know the old meaning of the day due to being younger generations raised under the rule of carnivores. They trusted in Ngurumo, who seemed to have knowledge of the past. "In the Spirit of Kupatana, I shall hereby declare all the herds as one! Together, with my lead, we shall overthrow this so-called 'King of the Jungle.' For your loyalty, I promise tickbirds for everyone!" The united herd screamed joyously as the tickbirds made their way to them. A few members of the crowd -- especially Kutoba, the scrappy, short-tempered Oryx -- enthusiastically rooted for the war that would rage on the coming holiday. As the tickbirds became aqcuainted with their new partners, Ngurumo chuckled to himself, speaking in a low voice that most couldn't hear: "Such easy animals to please. Anything works on them -- OW!! Not so hard, Uongo..." The yellow-billed oxpecker glared slightly as he continued burrowing his beak into the rhino's hide. ____ Afternoon... "Oh, man... it's too quiet!" Shabaha lamented, "Where's the excitement? I'm LOSING it!" "Why are you wishing for something bad to happen?" Tazama squinted. Vitani ignored her Guard as she looked and listened still. Today's patrol, so far, had been rather uneventful. No herbivores screeching derogatory remarks, no rogues hunting and marking things that didn't belong to them, all was quiet for now. Peaceful as it was, for once, the Guard was still on-edge anyhow. Though it was only natural for the former members of Zira's pride to never trust a day going too well, silence was strange at a time like this. Vitani had identified this phantom sensation as something called an 'anxiety attack', courtesy of Kiara's education on healthy ways to deal with trauma. She, and all the members of the Lion Guard suffered these, especially after this recent series of intense, violent events. She'd pondered if maybe her anxiety was unwarranted today. Still feeling like she couldn't be too sure, she proposed an idea: "Kasi, why don't you make your usual rounds and scan the area? I'm still too achey to go too far." "You wanna bet I can cover more land within the same time as last time?" "I guess we have a little time for fun." Vitani smirked, "You got until sunset." "I'll be back before the sun touches the top of Mekundu Cliffs!" Kasi was off, "Time me!" The Guard smiled warmly and confidently as they watched the Fastest dash. After moments of silence and staring, Shabaha plopped down in the grass. "Soo... now what?" ____ Though Kasi was on a timed mission, she quickly took in her surroundings as she brushed by them. She had many parts of the Pridelands memorized, showing the remarkable amount of work and traveling the Lion Guard has done for about a year, now. Feeling adventurous, and ambitious, she let her paws take her to parts unknown. Before she knew it, she'd been far on a border if the Pridelands she hadn't seen before. Feeling the grass vanish and be replaced by dry, cracked land was a sign she'd essentially left the kingdom. She was exhilarated as she felt downhill gravity make her sprinting go even faster. A huge cloud of dust gathered beneath her paws, making her feel powerful. Bordering this dry wasteland was a forest that Kasi didn't know what territory it belonged to, be it the last bit of the Pridelands, or the beginning of the Backlands. Something caught her attention, she almost could've sworn a pair of eyes and a pointed face poked from the bushes of the forest. She came to a screeching halt. "Good, I was beginning to think you were never gonna slow down." "Kelele..." "In the flesh." grinned the wolf, "Pleasure seeing you again --" Kasi turned the other way. Growling, Kelele quickly stopped her. "Don't run." the wolf relaxed her pose, "I'm not your enemy..." Kasi backed away slowly. She saw that Kelele's tail had been singed slightly from Vitani's first ever use of the Fire Roar. "You have to believe me..." Kelele urged. "I dunno, I mean you literally kidnapped a puppy because you thought he had powers..." "And it's because of that, I cannot return to the Pridelands. I've got something I've been wanting to tell the Roar-wielder for a long time." "Alright. You can tell me, and I'll see if I want to deliver it to her." "Fair enough..." the wolf grinned again as she bowed her head, "While I have come to challenge the Roar, I don't plan to exterminate it. That's not what this is about. I wish to learn more about it, and bring that information back North, where I come from. There aren't very many of us left. I want to make my small pack proud by making history that will live on in paintings and legend." Kasi listened intently. She still had her doubts, given the fact that Kelele's story sounded a tad self-centered, and it didn't at all explain why she threatened Sauti's life over it. But, then... what would the real story be if she turned out to be lying about it all? The slender lioness continued to hear Kelele out, allowing her mind to open more. If it was all a lie, she could just warn Vitani. If it wasn't, maybe it was life-saving information for all parties. ____ Over a course of hours, Kasi settled beside Kelele. Their initial rocky start blossomed into similar things they bonded over, such as a shared competitiveness and snarky, dry humor. Though, speaking of competitiveness... The Fastest's eyes suddenly caught the change in color of the sky, she glanced back to see an orange sun about to set. It looked like it was much further below the top of Mekundu Cliffs, she feared. Maybe there was still just a bit of time left. "Oh, no... I really gotta go..." "That's too bad." Kelele perked up, "Hey!" "Yeah?" "If you don't tell Vitani the things I wanted to share with her, I understand." Kasi nodded. She was unsure if Kelele's self-awareness was out of modesty, or possibly manipulation. "Fastest way back is through the woods. Less steep this way. Safe travels." The slender lioness took the wolf's word for it, eventually finding her word to be true. She wondered, if Kelele was being genuine about the way back, were her intentions genuine, too? ____ Kasi watched as the sky fell into twilight. She cringed. She knew it was long past the time she'd promised everyone. Her sprint turned into a gradually-slowing scamper as she panted heavily. She saw the Guard all bonding. Shabaha was telling outrageous hypotheticals, resulting in some of the liveliest banter they've had in years. The leader of the Guard stood up as she saw Kasi on her way. "You're way late, Kasi!" Vitani balked, "Very uncharacteristic of you. What kept you, you make new friends along the way?" Kasi's panting slowed. A piercing question that happened to be. "Maybe..." She was still unsure of her judgment in Kelele. But she could save it for now, either way... ____ ((Author's Note: This is one of those episodes where I just started drawing and THEN worked a story around it. Kasi's a hard character to really figure out so I blanked out pretty bad on her story for a good while. After all these years of trying to figure her out, I finally reached a rather meta final idea: She's supposed to be an enigma. She's blunt and comes off mysterious, but is passionate and experimental, trying all sort of crafts and adventures. Her adventurous, risk-taking side is explored here as she daringly explores niche parts of the Pridelands. I also really projected my struggle of constantly not being on time, especially times I promise/estimate to people. Fun Fact: I actually worked Kelele into this story because I'd originally planned an episode where she would find Vitani alone and try to learn more about her, but then I started getting that idea to explore the other Guard members, so I revived most of the concept and made Kasi the one who ends up stuck with Kelele. Another Fun Fact: Ngurumo's campaign scene (which would totally be a musical number) was originally set to take place in the original concept of Moral Eyes, which was originally gonna fully revolve around Kupatana since Tazama and Jeuri's bond symbolized unity and peace. Kupatana will be even more significant later Yet another Fun Fact: It's believed that tickbirds and herd animals actually do not have a mutual relationship in which the birds feed on parasites off the backs of the mammals, but rather that the tickbird is a parasite, itself, as it feeds on more than just ticks; it apparently deliberately cuts the skin of the mammals they're eating off of in order to suck their blood. We'll see how well that relationship between Ngurumo and Uongo/the herbivores and other tickbirds goes lol Lastly, to make things relevant to Pride Month despite it not being too obvious in the story, my headcanon for Kasi is that she's Panromantic/Asexual. She may or may not find a love, but that doesn't take away her attraction to others. People with romantic attraction but no actual romance going on: Y'all valid [insert "Well, of course I know him, he's me" meme here]))

#The Lion King #The Lion Guard #Vitani's Guard #Kasi #Vitani #Shabaha #Imara #Tazama #My Art

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talesofsonicasura · 10 months

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Transformers Meet One Piece: Devil Fruits

I got bored. This is basically a Transformers based Self Insert where our favorite robots in disguise learn about the peculiarities of the One Piece realm. For this reader will be a human from the OPverse who ends up stuck in Transformersverse.

Only detail I'll add description wise is that they're tall, like 10 ft since it's funnily considered a bit above average for humans in One Piece standards. *Looks at Charlotte Katakuri whose around 19 ft*

As for what Devil Fruits are, these are fruits enchanted by sea devils that grant incredible powers to those who eat them. Though the price for such abilities is never being able to swim again. Devil Fruits come in three main types.

Paramecia which can be anything from a rubber body or turning others into toys. Zoan, that allows the eater to become various animals, prehistoric/mythical creatures and even deities. Then finally Logia which are living elements such as fire or ice.

Gonna be three entries with one Devil Fruit Type per an entry. Also it won't be the same continuity every time! For this, I'll be using Cybertron, Prime, and Bayverse! This can be read gender neutral or preferred gender. Enjoy!

Cybertron: Dino-Dino Fruit Model Allosaurus

You have been stuck on this strange planet for quite some time. Honestly thought the place was an island at first but none were as massive as this. Plus good ol' steel rhino solidified it.

Backstomp of the Beast Planet was the only one who knew about your existence. A personal preference and the elder easily respected it. It wasn't for your safety but those of the foolish challengers. Picking a fight with this allosaurus was a death sentence.

To the inhabitants of Jungle Planet, you are just a new beast that calls the place home. It should've stayed this way as the days go by. That is until Megatron and his lackies threw the idea down the drain.

Whatever peace the place held had been thrown overboard in seconds. Black hole threatening to devour the entire universe? War between Autobots and Decepticons? Four Cyber Planet Keys being the way out? Yeah no.

Obviously kept out of it as it wasn't your war. Well that was the plan until Backstomp got dragged in and no one is gonna hurt old man rhino without getting bitten. Like mosquitos, the Decepticons decide to impede the Autobots once again on their way to see the planet's ruler.

You knew Scourge's honor bound temper and any tardiness will ignite his fury. What better way to slander 'Optimus Prime' then have him late from trying to save his team from an ambush. It was time to intervene. You let your body shift from human into the beast form granted by the Dino Dino Fruit Model Allosaurus.

The shifty looking bot, Starscream, didn't expect a massive clothed Allosaurus to leap on his back nor bite into his wings. He obviously screamed in pain as he tries to get you off but you were stubborn. The distraction allowed the Autobots to turn the tide and chase away the pests.

You shift into your half beast form while allowing Backstomp to do introductions on the way to see Scourge. They obviously had questions especially upon hearing that this strange dinosaur is a human. Your response? "Gotta earn it first. A home cooked meal is a good way to start."

Prime: Calm-Calm Fruit

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You had brought this particular encounter on yourself. Everyone craves some peace and quiet at some point. A task that can be easily done thanks to the abilities given by the Calm Calm Fruit.

You were listening to the radio while eating another stolen meal from KO Burger. A normal routine since landing in this strange place about 3 months back. The only source of easy entertainment other than reading or drawing was a dinky little radio you had also stolen.

It broadcasts a very odd telenova about a war between giant robots and that's it. Didn't know why but you always tuned in out of curiosity. That and this Ratchet character tossing wrenches at his companions is so funny.

It was currently on the Decepticons' side with Starscream being a whiny two faced bitch again. "For someone who wants to replace Megatron, he sure doesn't have any balls." "What did you just say Soundwave?!"

Oh. This wasn't a telenova. You might've been eavesdropping for three months on either crazy people or actual giant robots. Well fuck. The radio immediately got trashed upon hearing the word 'Investigate' and took off with weapons in tow.

You found it been the latter as you watched shit go down from the sniper's roost atop the cliff. First three robots, obviously Decepticons, shown up through a portal to snoop. Then other bots who must be the Autobot party, since they weren't primarily purple or grey in paint jobs, emerged to start the fight.

Alright, time to be a neutral terror with silent explosives. Watching giant robots scatter in a panic as a soundless rocket crashed down is hilarious. And it grew even funnier since no one could find out where the shots came from.

Thus the next 20 mins were spent unleashing utter hell as both sides scramble to survive. It sadly ended when a very large truck robot had snuck up(via groundbridge) and snatched you from behind. He definitely didn't expect an oddly tall human to cause his team trouble. Or for them to sheepishly smile. "Guess you caught me.😅"

Bayverse: Smoke-Smoke Fruit

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You didn't know how a nap escalated to escorting a injured medic robot to his companions. It just happened as smoke tendrils from the Smoke Smoke Fruit help Ratchet walk to his berth/bed. The two of you been trying to find Optimus for the past two weeks.

Drift about whenever possible and keep off Cemetery Wind's radar. You had no experience in fixing machinery so Ratchet had to guide any repairs on him. Mainly cause his hands were still wonky and he rather not shoot himself in the foot.

Both of you were currently hiding out at an abandoned steel mill somewhere in Texas. A perfect place to find scrap metal for more repairs on the Autobot medic. Well it should've been until Ratchet picked up someone approaching your temporary hideout.

It was pretty obvious what needed to happen. Thus Ratchet sat in the basement as you handle the unwelcomed guests. It was go time when the first black car came into view.

"Whiteout!" You let smoke swallow the entire field and tear into the intruders. Cemetery Wind still hadn't learned that bullets were worthless here from how fast they began to drop like flies. Smoke choking each foolish soldier as it slowly snuffs their life out.

A loud truck horn had gotten your attention. It would've tasted a smoky fist if it weren't the blue and red firey decal on the front. This had to be Optimus Prime.

Whatever Cemetery Wind grunts were alive found their necks snapped in two. You kept your smoke tendrils out even when three people got out the truck and Optimus gone into robot mode. A surprise since it was humans who took out his team.

He obviously saw you as a threat until you took him to see Ratchet. Any distrust faded when the two Autobots were reunited and the medic got better repairs. They still had questions but only one got an answer from you. "Why did I help Ratchet? It wouldn't be right to leave him to die."

And that's it! Until next time folks, I'll see you back on the Grand Line. Now transform and roll out!

#Youtube #tales of sonicasura #sonicasura #self insert #transformers #transformers series #transformers prime #transformers cybertron #transformers bayverse #tfp #transformers x reader #transformers x you #devil fruit #devil fruit user!reader #devil fruit user reader #one piece #one piece manga #one piece anime #maccadam

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zef-zef · 1 year

Audio

black hole industrial techno

Relentless, crushing & pulverising, Mick Harris provides us with an intense soundtrack for the coming apocalypse.

Fret - Rhino Patch from: Fret - Because Of The Weak (L.I.E.S., 2022)

#2020s #Mick Harris #electronic #industrial #techno #power noise #scorn #black hole industrial techno #L.I.E.S.#2022 #w47-2022

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xblackreader · 1 year

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Heavy Nashuri Angst (Hurt/No Comfort) ahead:

warnings: character death

so I have this vision of nashuri marrying after Wakanda rebuilds solely bc of merit. Shuri feels nothing for him but she’s willing to marry him for Wakanda bc she is heartbroken and numb.

So they only produce one heir. A girl, she is gifted with pointed ears and winged ankles and strength…

But not slow aging.

So Ku’kul’kan knows he will outlive her and someday have to see her age into an old woman and die.

16 years later, his daughter is gaining normally and he still has barely aged a day. He’s beside himself and attempts to distance himself from her and look for ways to give her his power or something so he can keep her until the end of time. No parent should ever have to bury their child.

So let’s say a Thanos-level threat returns to Earth and threatens to destroy it using a black hole/nuclear threat like a bomb.

His daughter is the only person he feels truly loves him. Not as a god or a king, but as a father. He knows he won’t emotionally survive outliving her.

So he takes the threat just like Ironman did in that one avengers movie into a black hole and sacrifices himself.

He dies a hero’s death and all of Talokan, Wakanda - all the people who knew of him - mourn. He got what he wished, he didn’t have to watch his daughter die.

And she is broken. Her mother, Queen Shuri comforts her and sheds a tear.

Shuri didn’t know when but at some point she had grown to love him.

Info on their daughter: Itzia

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tenfoldrage · 2 months

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WHAT FAMOUS AUTHOR DO I WRITE LIKE?

Douglas Noel Adams (11 March 1952 – 11 May 2001) was an English writer and dramatist. He is best known as the author of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, which started life in 1978 as a BBC radio comedy before developing into a "trilogy" of five books that sold over 15 million copies in his lifetime, a television series, several stage plays, comics, a computer game, and in 2005 a feature film. Adams's contribution to UK radio is commemorated in The Radio Academy's Hall of Fame.

Adams also wrote Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency (1987) and The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul (1988), and co-wrote The Meaning of Liff (1983), Last Chance to See (1990), and three stories for the television series Doctor Who. A posthumous collection of his work, including an unfinished novel, was published as The Salmon of Doubt in 2002.

Adams became known as an advocate for environmental and conservation causes, and also as a lover of fast cars, cameras, and the Apple Macintosh. He was a staunch atheist, famously imagining a sentient puddle who wakes up one morning and thinks, "This is an interesting world I find myself in—an interesting hole I find myself in—fits me rather neatly, doesn't it? In fact it fits me staggeringly well, must have been made to have me in it!" Biologist Richard Dawkins dedicated his book, The God Delusion (2006), to Adams, writing on his death that, "Science has lost a friend, literature has lost a luminary, the mountain gorilla and the black rhino have lost a gallant defender."

tagged by: stole it from @thecptn

tagging: @isbrilliant @carbondated @cosmicangsts @bravevolunteer and anyone else who wants to

#[ i like that i got someone who wrote doctor who episodes lolol ]#[ i've never read the hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy so now i feel like i should ]#/ out of character #/ dash games

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doppelnatur · 1 year

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Anyways!! Look at the cool pants i made!!

[ID: a greyish jeans that i sewed patches on. The right leg has a black patch with holes that green fabric shows through. A trans symbol is drawn on it and pink plastic vampire fangs are sewn to it. The left leg has a green patch that reads "Cisgenderism ist das Opium des Volks" translated: "Cisgenderism is the Opium of the masses" with a long see through orange patch over it and another one from the same fabric under it. Over the orange ones a black patch with the rhino by Albrecht Dürer is fixed end id]

#:3 #I'm literally the most obnoxiously nbg person ever #i have a nbg sticker on my fucking phone case #Albrecht Dürer patches on my jeans and Jean jacket #can't believe this #my jacket has the rabbit

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transingthoseformers · 5 months

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You're gonna learn about two new-old ocs of mine, Skyblade and Blackbox

Skyblade, from what I've got, has a large jet/shuttle altmode and he's the lead officer of his division, ultimately small potatoes compared to autobot high command but like he's trying and let him have his power trip. Don't got much on design other than his winglets being built more like Pharma's and Skyblade's helm having flat immobile audials horns and a large horn like a rhino. As far as color palette I kept struggling until I settled on mostly cyan with a secondary of white with some red or yellow, blue optics

I'm getting such a distinct image of Sky relaxing in a chair with a cy-gar in one hand, fucker manspreads like hell and it's gender as fuck. Bold, smug, specializes in strategy but pokes just enough holes in the plans to let them breathe, of course this leaves holes in the plan so yeah. I'm betting in a no war au Skyblade woulf have mob boss energy.

Blackbox, now I'm tempted between a flying altmode with their wings tucked in in root, or a situation where they turn into an actual black box (or hell I considered an altmode like g1 Soundwave's and that would allow me to make cassettes/symbiotes) he works directly under/with Skyblade frequency. I know as far as design they have a hot pink visor and are primarily charcoal-black/gray with orangey highlights, not that much on physical design besides him being noted as having especially sensitive audials in the old oneshot these two are from

They're the Jazz to Skyblade's Prowl in terms of roles in their division with Skyblade covering strategy and Blackbox covering spy shit. It's no contest that Blackbox is skilled in special operations, and that they have the autobot insignia, but for the drama I'm going to leave it up in the air which side he's actually rooting for.

#maccadam #transformers #ocs #tf oc #prowl #jazz #I'd say they're for a mix of g1 and IDW-G1?#I'm using he/him for Skyblade and he/they for blackbox for now

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kaiju-wolfdragon · 1 year

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The past story of twiggy and tacky

It was a sunny day, the ant colony was busy with collecting food and leaves for the queen, then there's a young ant that's more different than the other ants, they go by the name, twiggy, twiggy is more braver than any ants, he always like to be rowdy and have fun. He had his ant friends, and little brother, he had his best time with them. Until one day, he tired to help other people but they seen him as a weird curse or a mutant breed think maybe soon they need to get infect them thinking he can cause a disease to turn them into a dead zombie or something.

The queen was watching twiggy seeing what move he'll cause. Then to the ants' surprised he see that twiggy was fighting a huge lizard with no problem, he did tired to ride on it and tried to neutralize the huge lizard to put it to sleep, he uses the antenna and stings it and it started to turned the lizard into a tiny lizard that's smaller than him. The lizard stops and looks up at twiggy all scared. Twiggy grabbed the lizard and pokes it while it laughs. All the ant's witnesses twiggy's ability and they're all scared of him thinking he's a freak but his little brother thinks that he's super cool.

Meanwhile one of the ant's told him about twiggy and his ability to shrink any predators and he's way to powerful to be with them and maybe it'll infect them too. The queen then decided to try to get rid of twiggy. Then the guards bring twiggy in the queen's place. They all looked at him in fear except for his little brother. The queen asked him why or how did he do that to the big lizard, he just want to have fun with it. The queen through that with that power he can use him to take over the whole world. The queen smirked and wanted to let him to be the ultimate execution for those who mock her or tried to eat/kill the colony. Twiggy doesn't think if it's a good idea, it's kinda felt brutal to do that even when he shrunk the lizard when he's tease him a bit until he learn his lesson and then he'll let it go. He refused to be that and tried to leave but then the guards tried to stop him and then he uses the antenna to shrink the guards and everyone's afraid of him and then twiggy runs away from the colony as the guards started to chase him. His little brother tried to find his brother while he was following twiggy.

Twiggy was hiding from the guards and was never be seen again. Twiggy was walking around trying to find somewhere to live temporary. Then he spotted the spider web and wonder who lives here, he plucked it like a guitar string and then a shadow went above him. He looked up and saw a spider but was way different than all spiders, the young spider was climbing down towards him and looked very curious, even he's pretty surprised that he didn't ran away from him in fact, they should run away from a giant spider. Twiggy introduce himself to the spider, and the young spider introduced himself as tacky the spider

Twiggy and tacky are now best friends after talking and playing around with each other, they was having so much fun. Twiggy even told him how did he get here and why he's here, and tacky on the other had a different ability than the other spiders and wanted him try to become like them and he just need some alone time until he saw twiggy. Then a huge shadow covered them and as they looked up, it was a human with a white lab coat and glasses. They tried to grab them and then they tried to run away, then the science capture them as they tried to struggle out of the human's grasp, then the scientist put them in a small bottle with some peeping holes so they can breath better.

After the long trip to the lab, the scientist pours them out at the bug sized testing chamber, twiggy and tacky looks around seeing another insects just like them, they see a moth that had gray fluff, green-blue tail and striped wings like a radioactive zebra moth, a black and turquoise bee, a shadow purple scorpion, glowing green crickets, a grey and white Rhinoceros beetle, and a lot more.

Twiggy and tacky are trying to escape but there's no anvil. Then a moth with gray fur, green-blue tail and striped wings told them that they can't escape, they always catch them everyday. He introduced himself as deacon the moth, he left the moth family when they had a fight and seeing him way different with a different ability.

After a few days many humans are testing them with different antidote on other bugs, then they do the final test which it the glowing mystery sugar cube. The scientist give to the rhinoceroses beetle the sugar cube and then she ate it and it transforms her into a tiny beetle.

the crickets, a scorpion, deacon, twiggy and tacky and the other bugs were shocked about this sugar cube. Tacky was scared and twiggy tried to calm him down. All of the scientist tried out this glowing sugar cube at all of the insects and a lot of them take a lot of side effects. Then it was was deacon, twiggy and tacky's turn to try it. But first they grabbed the trio out and place them on a silver platter they started to back up. Then the scientist gives them the big piece of the same strange sugar cube, twiggy stepped forward and then ate it a bit, it's pretty sweet, tacky and deacon goes to the sugar and tried it as well, then after that, they finished it all of it and left crumbs on thier lips. Then they felt strange and then their stomach growls and then they felt thier body's began to stretch like rubber.

The trio grew a bit to the human's height and they looked shocked at each other as the scientist writes down the details about them and then they're keep growing out of control, the scientist was panicked and the scientist warned the other scientist to go outside as the lab collapses a lot.

Then after that, the trio out grew the lab and then they got out and the other bugs are free. They looked at each other seeing there new size. Deacon then flew and was flying in the city and the other two followed deacon in the city and the humans panicked seeing a giant moth, a giant ant, and a giant spider on the lose, then after a lot of obstacles they have been going for, they went back where they came from, they don't have a home anymore and it's been a few days that they have stuck in the lab. They also need to work together to find the home together.

A lot of them went into different homes and they liked to hang out. But then deacon have to go to the migration so then he left and told them that he'll be back at first day of spring. Then now it's just twiggy and tack. Now on they'll find a forever home to their safety and for deacon to stay home with them when he comes back.

The end

#g/t #g/t story #twiggy and tacky #twiggy the giant ant #twiggy #tacky the giant spider #tacky #deacon #deacon the giant moth #new character coming soon #story #growth story #past story

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turtlethon · 8 months

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“Divide and Conquer”

Season 10, Episode 8 First US Airdate: November 2, 1996

Lord Dregg absorbs the powers of a group of alien warriors as he prepares for a final encounter with the Turtles.

After ten seasons, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles reaches its final episode, “Divide and Conquer”. Jeffrey Scott is credited as writer for this milestone adventure.

The Turtles battle a plasma blaster-wielding alien near an airport, who has one eye on a stopwatch the entire time. Michaelangelo takes out the bad guy by piloting an old airplane; when Leonardo confronts this mysterious attacker and demands to know his intentions, he snatches the team leader’s belt and teleports away. Talking amongst themselves, the Turtles note that this is the sixth time in the space of a week that a foe has appeared out of nowhere and then vanished again, with Michaelangelo’s grappling hook getting nabbed in one of the previous encounters.

We go from an airport to a spaceport/cantina, where it’s revealed that Lord Dregg survived the destruction of the Dreggnaught in the previous episode and is challenging assorted alien lowlifes to defeat the Turtles within 90 seconds, promising power and wealth to whoever can pull it off. Back on Earth, the Turtles head home in their van, still trying to figure out the story behind the assorted bad guys who’ve been popping up lately. Michaelangelo discovers a tracking device which had been placed within his shell, and hurls it out the window, but it’s too late to stop their next challenger from materialising in the back of the vehicle: a blue-skinned, four-armed woman who shape-shifts into a rhino-like alien as the Turtle Van is sent flying off a cliff. The vehicle lands safely thanks to an in-built parachute, but not before the invader snatches Donatello’s bo staff, disappearing seconds later. Confused as to why their opponent would flee when she had the upper hand, the Turtles note that the tracking device resembled Dregg’s microbots. Back at the spaceport, Dregg selects five aliens, including the two who most recently clashed with the Turtles, to participate in his next scheme.

Still trying to figure out what’s going on, the Turtles reach April to ask if she’s heard of any unusual alien activity recently. We’ve touched upon our ace reporter’s apparent Internet addiction throughout this season already, but I think it’s also worth noting how odd it is that she sits in her home at night, working in her office, and wears her new jacket the entire time when she isn’t going anywhere; I guess it’s too late in the day to justify the creation of an alternate indoor attire for her now. Back in the Lair, Donatello tracks the transporter energy from which the assorted aliens have been appearing back to the black hole Dregg had been sent into. Convinced that they’ve overheard an intruder nearby, the Turtles sneak out of the workshop only for Leonardo to almost end up thumping Splinter – somehow, they managed to forget that he lives in the Lair, too. The team are encouraged by their sensei to join him in meditation to calm their nerves.

Mung oversees the breeding of new swarms of microbots when Lord Dregg arrives, demanding a cannister of the robots to use in his Scheme of the Day. The underling points out that they’ll require all the microbots for the creation of their invasion force, and is sort of half-assedly knocked to the ground for what Dregg views as insubordination. Dregg launches into a tirade about how he doesn’t care about timetables and had nearly defeated the Turtles when he “had the power of Shredder and Krang”. (There’s a little bit of revisionist history going on there on Dregg’s part, as of the two of them he only managed to absorb Krang's abilities.) Now obsessed with gaining revenge against the Turtles above even his desires for galactic domination, Dregg declares he needs “something special” to finish off his enemies once and for all. When Mung points out in the politest and most conciliatory way possible that this is misguided, Dregg unleashes his laser eye beams to punish his flunky, missing him and instead hitting a tank full of microbots. Scooping up a handful of the tiny robots, Dregg places them in a cannister and makes his exit. For the first time, Mung is clearly furious, yelling at his departing master that he’s “gone mad”. Teleporting aboard the Dreggnaught – which was seemingly destroyed for a second time at the end of the last episode, so presumably this is the third version of the ship – Dregg sets the microbots to work, enacting the next stage of his plan.

In the Lair, Splinter oversees a training session for the Turtles, during which it’s revealed he’s taught them a new move in which they leap onto the back of their enemy, restraining them from behind. The team are told that if they perform the Flying Claw well, they won’t need to learn any further attacks. Back on his ship, Dregg watches as the microbots complete the creation of the morphogenesis exoskeleton, a suit which he dons before using it to absorb the five alien warriors he recruited. Ready for his final battle with the Turtles, Dregg prepares to teleport to Earth.

It doesn’t take long for the Turtles to pick up on the transporter activity. Heading up to the surface, they confront Dregg in a construction site in his new get-up. The team assume their old enemy must have arrived with a group of his underlings, but soon discover he doesn’t need troops now as he uses the exoskeleton to become a giant who towers over them. Dregg announces that the warriors that had been sent to dispose of the Turtles were the most powerful in the galaxy; now, having absorbed them, he’s become an enemy that the green teens will never be able to defeat.

The Turtles work together to turn Dregg’s new abilities against him, wrapping one of his arms – which has transformed into a lengthy chain - around one of the construction site’s girders. This doesn’t work for long as Dregg is simply too powerful, and is able to bring down the entire structure. The Turtles run for cover but again, Dregg has an answer for this, turning himself in an enormous ball and hurtling down the street after them. Dregg uses x-ray vision to pursue our heroes as they escape into the sewers, dropping a robotic arm through the ground and briefly pinning Michaelangelo. The Turtles escape into the lower drains of the sewers, flooding in the area above them as they leave to slow their foe down; a resulting surge of water knocks the warlord into the air.

Returning to the Lair, the Turtles tend to their accumulated injuries. Splinter suggests to the team that “when the hermit crab wants to impress its enemies, it gets a bigger shell”. This gives Donatello an idea, as he rushes to his workshop to bring up the schematics for Krang’s android body on his desktop PC. As you may recall, Krang’s duds had the ability to grow to giant-size, something showcased most memorably in “Shredder & Splintered” but also later in season six’s “Krangenstein Lives”. To get what they need, the Turtles will need to travel to Dimension X and retrieve it from the Technodrome, a risky prospect given that the team had written off the idea of ever using Donatello’s dimensional portal again at the conclusion of the previous episode.

April’s Internet addiction leads to her having a hallucinatory episode, as she sees the vision of Lord Dregg’s face appear on her monitor. Okay, that’s not technically true: this is the real Dregg, who emerges from the screen to take shape in her apartment in his new super-sized form. The villain sends a transmission to the Turtles over their communications systems, threatening to send the captive April to “the labour mines of Dimension X” if they don’t show up to rescue her. The Turtles opt to split up, with Leonardo and Raphael setting out to save April while Donatello and Michaelangelo head through the portal.

In a nice touch, the old Technodrome theme music returns as Donnie and Mikey approach the now dilapidated fortress. The Turtles make their way inside, unaware that they’re being watched. Back on Earth, Raph and Leo free April but are manhandled by Dregg, who threatens to finish them off with his integrated weaponry as we head into commercials.

Okay, here we go – the concluding act of the last ever episode!

Dregg gives the captive Turtles the choice of being killed by a liquid nitrogen ray or his carbine shredder, and while there’s perhaps something fitting about idea of the Turtles meeting their maker in the last episode at the hands of a shredder, that’s not how things play out. Instead, Leo and Raph use their surroundings to their advantage, dropping furniture onto Dregg and sending him crashing through the floor, marking yet another time that the Turtles have inadvertently destroyed April’s home and demonstrated zero remorse. Our heroes leave with April in the van, but Dregg remains undeterred. He bursts out the side of the building and – I shit you not – becomes MOTORCYCLE DREGG, popping a wheelie before speeding off to pursue the Turtles as I stop what I’m doing to try and contain my laughter one final time.

In the Technodrome, Donatello and Michaelangelo uncover Krang’s android body, but there’s definitely something off about it: for one thing, since when did it have fangs? Before the duo can retrieve it, the alien brain’s old suit reveals itself to be a shapeshifting creature that springs to life, opening its mouth to expose a forked tongue and going on the attack. From the sidelines emerge a group of creepy cyborg-like beings who the two Turtles fight off before finding the real android body under a pile of scrap metal.

Motorcycle Dregg chases the Turtle Van into a scrapyard, where it soon becomes trapped in a crane by the villain and is set to be dropped into a trash compactor. Meanwhile Donnie and Mikey opt to use the Technodrome’s portal to return to New York rather than their own, but struggle to get the failing systems in the fortress operational while also fighting off the assorted enemies now hanging around the place. Mikey’s last “cowabunga” begins as he leaps into the portal with Donnie, and ends as he emerges in the scrapyard on the other side.

Leonardo, Raphael and April face the prospect of being squished by Dregg in the trash compactor when the now giant-sized android body appears on the horizon, piloted by Donatello and Michaelangelo in Krang’s place. Dregg uses his assorted powers to attack the android, leading Mikey to suggest they increase its size even further, but Donnie explains the bigger it becomes, the more rapidly it’ll collapse: as it is, they only have about one minute before Krang’s old suit shrinks to the size of a ping-pong ball and explodes, with the two Turtles inside it.

Leonardo and Raphael use the roof-mounted blasters on the Turtle Van to fire upon Dregg, but he rebounds by again assuming his ball form, knocking down Krang’s body like a bowling pin. Changing shape again he takes on the form of a tentacled creature, resembling one of the five warriors he recruited earlier. With only seconds remaining, Michaelangelo suggests they do “THE MOVE, dude”. Taking the controls, Donatello has Krang’s android body perform the Flying Claw, capturing Dregg from behind. Mikey and Donnie escape and push Dregg through the portal along with the android body seconds before it's due to explode.

All of this brings us to the very last scene of the series. In the Lair, Splinter tells the Turtles that they are “truly exceptional students... and [he is] proud to be [their] equal”. This confuses Michaelangelo, who’s used to referring to Splinter as their sensei, but he explains that this would make him their leader or guide, something they no longer need: “like the lion,” he tells them, “You have no superior in the jungle of life”. Leonardo agrees that the Turtles can take on any challenge when a noise is heard from nearby. Rushing into the kitchen, the team find a bag of popcorn overflowing in the microwave: Raphael gets the last line of the series, remarking that the one thing they can’t handle is Donatello’s cooking.

And so, this is how is how Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ends, not giving us any substantive sense of closure but simply puttering over the finish line. That last scene, all 35 seconds of it, is the closest thing we get to a goodbye after all these years, a hurried acknowledgement that the Turtles are now equal to Splinter that honestly doesn’t feel earned: we just had a bunch of episodes in a row where the team were staring death in the face and the planet was in danger, today’s adventure feeling restrained by comparison. After pulling apart the adventures of the Turtles for a few years now, I went into this one expecting to feel... I don’t know, something, anything, but there’s almost nothing emotionally resonant in “Divide and Conquer”. I’m honestly disappointed.

Why did TMNT end in such an anti-climactic fashion? I’d speculate that, much like the conclusion of season seven, there was a desire to not fully close the door. Turtles as a property at least still had name recognition at this point, and perhaps Fred Wolf’s camp felt there remained a chance that a rival network would pick up the show for a few more seasons on that basis. It’s entirely feasible that an eleventh season would have seen either Dregg or Shredder and Krang return, but given how troubled the last few years of the show have been creatively, I’m not surprised this didn’t come to pass.

The first Turtlethon entry opened with an acknowledgement that Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles debuted on TV only weeks after the series finale of Transformers, and this could be considered a passing of the torch: TMNT was, in many ways, the last great series of the 1980s “half hour toy commercial” era. As we close things out in the autumn of 1996, the Transformers have finally made a successful return to western animation with Beast Wars, which should give you some sense of how much the world has changed in the time between the premieres of “Turtle Tracks” and “Divide and Conquer”: that kind of half-hour computer generated animated show would have been unthinkable in the mid-eighties when Turtles was green-lit, but will come to dominate kid TV schedules as the millennium approaches. Which brings us nicely to...

AFTERMATH

Let’s do a lightning round covering how the various parties involved in the creation of TMNT fared after the show went off the air:

CBS pivoted to showing nothing but educational programming on Saturday mornings beginning with the 1997/98 television season. This came about as the result of strengthened regulation requiring that broadcasters air a set number of hours of informative fare each week, but also followed on from the budget cuts for programming mentioned in previous entries, and increased competition from cable channels such as Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon. A few years later the network would be absorbed into Viacom, Nick’s parent company; Nickelodeon would go on to purchase Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles as an IP from Mirage Studios at the end of 2009.

Fred Wolf Films, the successor to Murakami Wolf Swenson, would putter on for a few years after the loss of their meal ticket. In a newspaper article from the boom years of TMNT, Fred Wolf suggested that the studio wasn’t making any money from the success of the series at the time due to the huge financial outlay required to make as many episodes as they did, and that it wouldn’t be until the show had ceased production and began playing in reruns worldwide that they would begin to see a return on their investment. It doesn’t seem like things played out this way, the firm moving on to work on a few Zorro and Sinbad cartoons as the nineties closed out; their website, last updated in 2000, is somehow still online and suggests they were looking to move into web animation around that period, but as far as I can tell nothing ever came of it.

Playmates Toys had financed the initial effort to bring the Turtles to television and would keep the brand afloat at retail throughout 1997, in part by re-releasing older toys in new packaging. They would go on handle the figures for the next incarnation of Turtles a short time later, and in fact continue to hold the master toy license to this day, a line of figures based on the recent Mutant Mayhem movie currently running in parallel with (often shoddy) recreations of toys from the classic era.

Mirage Studios perhaps had the most to lose with the continuing decline of TMNT and the end of the original cartoon. To ensure the survival of the property and that they could continue to employ their roster of artists, Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird made the decision to do business with Saban Entertainment, the production company behind Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers; this was the same series which, as covered in previous Turtlethon entries, had been a key factor in TMNT’s rapid decline in the kidvid marketplace to begin with. The Mirage/Saban alliance would lead to the creation of the live-action Ninja Turtles: The Next Mutation, a disastrous series which would not only damage public perception of the Turtles further but also create a rift between Eastman and Laird which has only in recent years been patched up.

The four original voice actors for the Turtles are still active in the industry, and occasionally reunite on the convention circuit, often alongside Renae Jacobs (April). Barry Gordon, Rob Paulsen, Cam Clarke and Townsend Coleman reprised their roles as the green teens for the 2022 video game Shredder's Revenge. Between these stints Paulsen returned to Turtles for the 2012 incarnation of the show on Nickelodeon, this time as the voice of Donatello. James Avery (Shredder) passed away in 2013 following complications from open-heart surgery. David Wise is also no longer with us, having lost a brief battle with lung cancer in 2020, but both live on through their respective remarkable bodies of work, including their extensive runs on TMNT.

As I’m sure you know, Turtles continues to endure, not just in its 1987 incarnation but the countless versions which have popped up in the years since. Recently Viacom announced that they’ve finally reached an agreement to secure the broadcast rights to the original series: the first season is already up on YouTube for free (albeit in an altered form, and with a new theme song in place as presumably Chuck Lorre’s asking price for royalties was simply too high); the show is also in rotation now on Pluto TV’s Totally Turtles channel in the US and will be arriving on Paramount+ in short order. Personally I’m still hoping we get a nice Blu-Ray set of the series down the line at some point with the entire series in better quality than the occasionally substandard Lionsgate DVD prints.

So... now what? Next time on Turtlethon we’ll wrap up all the loose ends, reflect on the last few years of exploring TMNT and try to figure out what the point of all this was – as well as where we go from here. See you then!

#teenage mutant ninja turtles #tmnt #tmnt 1987 #turtlethon #ninja turtles #dregg #lord dregg #1996 #divide and conquer #divide & conquer

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