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ghostly-penumbra · 3 years

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Ectober Week 2021. Day Four

“Insects”

Summary: Team Phantom watch the butterflies. Shameless butterfly propaganda ahead, baby!

Warning for a (non-threatening) swarm of insects.

Ao3 FFN

- - -

“So, if you put this command inside this other one, you gotta make sure to close it inside the one you put first, otherwise it won’t stick. You guys get it?” Tucker asked as he coded away on Sam’s PC.

“Oh, yeah.”

“It makes sense now…”

Tucker checked his friends’ notes, satisfied to see they had actually paid attention. “Good.” He said, smiling. “BECAUSE I WILL NOT EXPLAIN IT AGAIN!”

“Jeez, alright!” Danny said, holding up his hands in a peaceful gesture.

“We get it! No need to shout!” Sam added, covering her ears with her hands.

“Thank you.” Tuck said with a sweet smile. He stood up with a groan and popped his backbone. “Now, while you noobs practice some more, I’ll stretch my legs.”

Sam, who was about to beat Danny in winning the Pc with ‘dis mine’ (which easily trumped over any call on ‘dibs!’, by the way) stopped short to call out, “Wait, no! Don’t go to the balcony, you will scare the butterflies away.”

Tucker turned back towards her, while Danny happily hogged the computer, and then looked at the balcony. “There are no butterflies in there.”

“Exactly! It’s already hard enough for them to approach in a residential area away from the park or the lake, to have you being all human-sized in their drive-thru!” She explained, waving her arms towards the many plants filling that space.

“Their drive-thru?” Danny asked, showing he had been paying attention to them.

Sam sighed, the starting signal of an ultra-recyclo-vegetarian speech incoming. “It’s milkweed, the only thing monarch butterflies, an endangered species, feed on. If some of them wander around here, I want them to have something to snack on.” She explained.

“So that explains all the cutsie pretty flowers…” Tucker said with dawning understanding. “Alright then.”

- - -

With a bout of good luck that surprised everyone present, Team Phantom got to see the butterflies, as they arrived later that day, while they chilled post-studying via DOOM.

“Hey, are those…?” Dany asked in a low voice, nudging Sam with his shoulder in the middle of her obliterating Tucker on the screen.

She turned to see while blindly pressing a combo, winning the match.

“Yes, they are!” She stage-whispered, watching as the little insects settled on their gifts. More started to arrive in small groups, but constantly, and then there was a whole bivouac of them on her balcony. “Holy shit! I didn’t think so many would come here!” She said barely in a whisper.

Her friends, who were not as focused on their game as they would like, found it amusing to see their goth friend so excited for something whose primary colour was not black. (They DID have black, though, and white, (the new black), but the little buggers were mostly orange.)

“Holy fuck, they are coming in!” Said goth exclaimed.

And they were indeed approaching warily and looking around while the teens froze in place. And Danny finally noticed it.

“Uh… Sam, are these supposed to be carrying a small, human spirit with them?” He asked, squinting his eyes to try and perceive any feature on said spirits other than the fact they had been human when they were alive.

“What? No, I… don’t think so. What?” Asked the dumbfounded vegan.

Before any of them could say anything else, the butterflies approached, surrounding them. Somehow, they gave off the impression of being curious.

“Are they… attacking us?” Tucker asked, even if he didn’t believe it himself, because someone had to remind them that most ghosts that came after them weren’t often the friendliest.

“No, they are not.” Danny said distractedly, but sure.

A butterfly settled down on Danny’s forehead, opening and closing its wings slowly.

“Uh…”

Another one followed, and another one, and yet another one, until they had formed a living crown on Danny’s head.

“Um, I have a question,” he said, “what the heck?”

- - -

Here I come with my monarch butterfly propaganda!

The monarch butterfly is an amazing, kick-ass species of butterfly that makes a journey all the way from México up to freaking Canada in four generations!

In pre-hispanic times, they were said to transport the souls of the deceased that came for Día de Muertos. Unlike now, Día de Muertos was festivity that took place across different dates, but when the Christians (*cough* Spaniards *cough*) came, the one date that stuck was the one in Autumn, which is around the time where monarch butterflies return to México seeking warm weather.

Monarch butterflies as well as caterpillars do only feed on milkweed, so here’s a guide on how to plant it for them if you have the resources.

Since I headcanon Amity Park to be in Illinois, I did my research and yes, monarch butterflies travel through Illinois! So here is some info I found, mostly about Chicago.

Some info from Canada!

México (in Spanish)!

y algo serio, para que nunca olvidemos (tw muerte)

#Danny Phantom #Ectober Week 2021 #Ectober Week #Danny Fenton #sam manson #Tucker Foley #Team Phantom #monarch butterflies #information #butterfly crown #ghostly-scrypts #day four #insects #butterflies #links #día de muertos references

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fizzingwizard · 3 years

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OK gang here we go, episode 33!

It was better than last week, which was better than the week before, so... make of that what you will.

Pic of the week!

A look of steely Dan determination.

More below!

Like I said, this episode is an improvement on the last one, by virtue of plot stuff actually happening, a few big happenings, and references to the other kids that suggest they haven’t been completely forgotten about (only mostly). Don’t get excited though - it still leaves much to be desired. I cry endlessly for the animation budget. But let’s get into it...

Taichi and friends are still in pursuit of SkullKnightmon and Hikari. We found our for sure last week that the creature in the little crystal is, indeed, Millenniumon, or rather a fragment of him, and his fragments fell all around the Digital World at the end of the great war or whatever it’s called and they’re the source of the miasma and they absorb energy from the human world etc etc...

So we find this big ass crystal which seems to be the central one, I guess? because it’s the biggest? and several creepy looking acolytes (dun dun DUN it’s VADEMON my FAVORITE DIGIMON) surrounding it and chanting...

Vademon: Find the horcux, kill Harry Potter, find the horcrux, kill Harry Potter,

In other news, there’s a lot of doom and gloom happening with Jou, who, bereft of his underwear, is forced to censor himself with his partners head. Gomamon you don’t deserve this

Jou: I need to get away from these Nanimon before I go prematurely bald too!!

Mimi, meanwhile, is Boxing Champion of the World.

Koushirou is the only one working. He’s on his way to pick up Jou, so I guess that means Yamato will get Mimi? That’ll be fun lol. We saw Yamato for half a second but it was the same frame of him riding Garurumon we’ve seen five times already so why bother capping it.

Koushirou is also keeping an eye on the satellite situation but doesn’t know what to do about it yet. Kabuterimon asks if he shouldn’t take a break about now and Koushirou says “I’m okay, besides, this is the only thing I’m good for” T___T you know this would be heart-breaking if I really believed the writers have ACTUAL PLANS to make good on Koushirou-related character development.... >:[

no this honestly pisses me off so much but I STILL do believe we will get SOMETHING for him and the others and probably not too far in the future... I think... I hope ugh

Back to Team A, they see lots of Digimon coming at them. Taichi’s like “it’s an attack!” but Sora, whose Fight Mode unlike Taichi’s has an actual Off switch, is about to figure out that they are in fact not interested in the kids at all and are running away from something.

Taichi: I can’t believe they didn’t want to kill us. Doesn’t everything in this world want to kill us?

The Digimon are fleeing from a suspicious crater with a familiar stone in the center. SkullKnightmon raises his own crystal fragment into the air and stuff happens.

By stuff I mean black lightning and purple-blue light which is meant to signify Evil which is mega DUMB because blue and purple are the most awesome color combo EVER I mean it throw some turquoise in there too and I will buy it whatever it is a necklace a shawl a codpiece

There are eight crystals that rise from the ground surrounding the central crystal and share energy with it. I thought the number eight might be significant you know for obvious reasons but it doesn’t appear to matter in this episode.

Evil crystals or not, Taichi’s on his way to save Hikari once and for all!

Hikari: Thanks, but no thanks, oniichan.

Taichi: H-Hikari! You don’t understand! You’re too young to go off with a strange man!

Hikari: But oniichan I love him

Taichi: Who do you think I am, Tevye!? You’re not marrying him and that’s final!

Hikari: waaah why don’t you understand me!!

ok back to the story...

Hikari abandons her brother for his muscular studly lover SkullKnightmon.

... >_>

Using Hikari’s powers, SkullKnightmon evolves to Gundamon DarkKnightmon. Meanwhile there’s lots of chanting and stuff about this being SkullKnightmon’s purpose or some such. I still kinda hope we get a redemption arc for SkullKnightmon or that he has something more to do with the story...

Agumon stops Taichi from wigging out and they go to save Hikari together, but before they can they are beset from all angles by henchmen.

Sora: Hey, you take care of Tweedle Dee and I’ll get Tweedle Dum!

Birdramon: *gets punched in the head* I hope you brought enough aspirin...

Then these guys appear. I’ve forgotten their names but evil as they look they literally just stand there till they get blown up and then more appear... I guess that’s a kind of talent

Takeru: Leave the small fry to me!

Pegasusmon: Takeru when I said I wanted a Happy Meal this isn’t what I meant

Hikari begins to be absorbed into a dark pocket dimension of DarkKnightmon’s or something like that. It seems like a very chill experience.

Taichi: I’ll save you! Take my hand!

Hikari: O... nii... chan... Fuck you...

ok so here’s my problem here.

This is meant to be all emotional and stuff right?? Hikari’s been blowing off her brother for an unknown reason (we all figured out what it was but look the main characters don’t know and that’s what counts) and he’s finally managed to catch up with her. His hand is inches away from catching hers and pulling her to safety. She’s got creepy glowing eyes. She mouths “o..nii...chan...” with a creepy smile before being pulled into darkness.

I know it’s for kids so it’s not going to be too scary or anything but there ‘just like... no build up here. The storytelling style is too mathematical. “We go from Plot Point A to Plot Boint B via Battles 1 2 and 3...” There’s nothing happening in between to make us feel Taichi’s desperation, or even to know what Hikari’s feeling in this moment. Is she really okay with this? Is she having second thoughts? It doesn’t make any sense for her not to be scared. I fully expected her to go through with it, but she can be scared and still go through with it... come on...

It’s like that scene from Utena except sapped of any and all emotional impact.

I don’t really remember how Greymon got up there in the first place since he can’t fly but at least we get a scene of him and Taichi plummeting to the earth after failing to save Hikari. The kind of thing that would be dramatic if there were any kind of animation budget at all.

The one thing the show is sure to do is show us Taichi’s expressions, which I guess is something... It’s just so rushed and the accompanying dialogue leaves something to be desired.

Greymon: Don’t give up, Taichi... Taichi... um. what are you doing...

Taichi: stop hitting yourself stop hitting yourself stop hitting yourself stop hitting yourself

Anyway, Taichi is Big Mad. I thought (hoped, to be honest) that we might get a glimpse of him going wild with dark energy like in the Devimon episode again... Or at least a hint that that was a possibility in the heat of the moment before Agumon snapped him out of it. But nope.

He takes a moment to be upset and then says “There’s no time to worry about what to do” and goes to save Hikari... from inside DarkKnightmon somehow :P

This does not go well.

Meanwhile Hikari is surprisingly okay for someone who was just eaten alive by sentient VantaBlack. She discovers a peculiar light inside... DarkKnightmon’s intestine??? Is that where we are now??? lmao

She recognizes the light as the voice that has been calling her and tries to head towards it, but is blocked by some purple jello.

There’s a kind of cool thing that happens here... We just had a scene where Taichi desperately tries to grab his sister’s hand and yank her out of the clutches of evil, but fails, mostly because she doesn’t do anything to help him since she is weirdly okay with the situation. Now we get a mirror of that moment with Hikari bursting out of the jello with her arm outstretched to grab what is clearly Tailmon’s paw.

Only Tailmon does take Hikari’s hand.

It was really cool to see the brother and sister paralleling each other this much. It shows the ways they’re both courageous and determined and caring.

Meanwhile Taichi finally whips out WarGreymon. Honestly, I feel like this should have been WarGreymon’s intro episode. This would have been a good time for a new evolution, rather than in a fight with a nobody that I’ve already forgotten. Idk. WarGreymon uses Brave Tornado to knock DarkKnightmon’s lances away and burrow into his armor. So, yeah, Hikari’s in his intestines, lmao.

Hikari is being chased by a two-headed monster who is in for the migraine of its (their?) life when the tornado crashes into it.

Hikari: Big brother! You look so cool!

Taichi: Promise me that no matter how many men come into your life, I’ll always be number one.

Hikari: okay that is creepy

WarGreymon explodes DarkKnightmon from the inside out x’D and Taichi gets a redo of his hand-reaching scene. First he berates Hikari for running off on her own and then smiles.

Hikari says she always believed he’d rescue her. Aww.

Sweet sibling love.

Then there’s this really hilarious sound which turns out to be the Vademon hivemind giving a collective cry of distress x’D it’s lmfao amazing. Then they start chanting “Next time next time next time” just in case you thought Millennium was defeated and we can go home now.

Taichi: Sora, do you know where I can buy a leash for this kid? I can’t keep chasing her like this. Aren’t kids today supposed to be glued to their phones and never go outside?

Patamon’s Girlfriend Radar piques at the bundle in Hikari’s arms.

And it is indeed Tailmon, and she’s been waiting for Hikari all this time.

Tailmon: I am Tailmon, a Holy Digimon.

Patamon: oh my god you can’t just call yourself holy ugh you’re so self-centered

D’awww.

They’re both sooooo cute. I’m annoyed they didn’t get a cool ending card like Takeru and Patamon did last week though. But still, this is a sweet moment.

So, there’s not a lot to complain about in this episode, comparatively speaking. I wish we had more dialogue and understood the value of a dramatic pause etc. Also wish Sora and Takeru had more to do than fight the henchmen. Like, if you can just erase an entire part of an episode and it still works fine, you clearly didn’t need that part so why waste time on it.

But at least we do get reactions from Taichi, and at least we got plot development. The Taichi/Hikari parallels were cool. And even though I had other hopes for how this arc would turn out, I’m glad it’s over because maybe we can finally do some other stuff now. Maybe. I want to get back to Koushirou SOOO bad but more than anything I am still gobsmacked by how long it’s been since Yamato’s had anything to do but ride on Garurumon. That is WEIRD. He’s YAMATO.

Next week...

... Looks like it’ll be a light-hearted undersea episode. I’m cool with that. The preview clips had a “Sebastian’s Calypso” vibe that I dig. It’s still about Taichi’s group but I think that’s to do more actual face time with Tailmon and Hikari. I hope we see the others as well and if not maybe the week after. I will be happy if this episode has some personality to it.

#fizz watches digimon 2020 #digimon adventure 2020 #digimon adventure:#digimon adventure reboot #digi spoilers #digimon

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daebakinc · 3 years

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A Rearrangement (Preview)

Pairing: Jae x Female Reader, ft. DAY6, Kard, and Mina Genre: Arranged Marriage AU, Angst, Romance Summary: Blackmailed by your parents, you’re forced to alter your life plan and enter an arranged marriage with the male heir of the Park family. The even bigger surprise comes when you find out that heir is your friend Jae. Thrust together, as the two of you become closer than before, will it strengthen your friendship or be the unexpected start of something else?

You always imagined the path to doom would be violent, dark, and storm-filled. Who knew it would actually be paved in gold-veined marble and lined in bouquets of hydrangeas and lily of the valley bound in silk ribbons in slender silver vases. But then, only the finest auction block would do.

The temptation to fidget grows as you wait with your parents in the quietly decadent lobby. Your feet beg to be free of the pointed heels, too accustomed to sensible flats. The chiffon dress is light and beautiful, you won’t deny that, but it feels like a lie. Dresses like this are for special occasions, not a dinner. Even getting dinner during a normal hour seems odd given you’re usually too busy dealing with a revolving door of patients. Patients who you could be helping with now but—

It is only years of training keeps you from crying out when your mother delivers a sharp pinch to your underarm.

“Smile. You look like you’re attending a funeral,” she hisses beneath her breath, a gracious curve pasted on her own mouth.

“Aren’t I?” you whisper back. Your impudence is rewarded with another pinch, but every bit of defiance is worth it. If nothing else comes of this, you remind yourself, soon she won’t be able to touch you or anyone and anything you hold dear.

“It appears the other party is already here,” the tuxedo-clad concierge tells your father. “Shall I lead you to the room?”

With all the dignity befitting an assemblyman, your father nods and lifts his arm, looking back at the two of you. Another part of your heart breaks away at that look. The warmth that lay in your father’s eyes when you were a child is no more than a memory. Cool calculations necessary of a career politician extinguished it long ago. Instead of his only child, all he sees is another bargaining chip. Until yesterday, you were able to lie to yourself that an ember of affection still survived. But no more. That delusion is dead, forever buried alongside the many other dreams slaughtered by your parents.

“Remember what is at stake for your father,” your mother whispers as she releases your arm to reach for your father’s. “Remember what is at stake for you.”

As if you could forget. Otherwise, you would be hundreds of thousands of miles away. You would be penniless but for the paltry savings you squirreled away, friendless but for the few who didn’t know your family, homeless but for your own skin. And it would be worth it to be completely out of reach of their conniving hands. Free, totally and completely, for the first time in your life. But she was right. What was at risk was far greater than you.

You fall in behind your parents, precisely three steps as you’d been drilled since your father first ran for public office. Shoulders back and spine straight, chin up and eyes forward. None of the growing trepidation or swirling sick feeling in your stomach betrayed in your countenance. A true lady just as they wanted. If they could have, they would have broken and reconstructed your soul in their image as well. But you had at least held out on that.

The concierge reaches a plain, eggshell-colored door flanked by two more bouquets. He knocks, then opens the door for your parents. You stick out your fingers to subtly touch the flowers as you pass through the door. The fragile silk softer than the real fabric proves they’re real. As real as the people within are fake, your parents included.

An older couple are the only obvious occupants, rising from their seats at a rectangular table set with exquisite crystal and silver that twinkles in the light streaming from the bay windows. Distinguished gray touches the man’s hair while the woman’s is jet black, doubtlessly dyed to hide the age that lies in the makeup-covered wrinkles around her eyes and mouth. Both are simply but finely dressed. Yet together, you know their wardrobe costs enough to send a student to a decent university for a year. At least.

The stink of old wealth, enhanced by the surroundings, is as heavy on them as your mother’s perfume. You hate it.

The man rises, smile broad and hand outstretched. “Assemblyman! Welcome!”

“Good to see you again, Mr. Park,” your father replies, shaking his hand and flashing that million-watt smile he practices in the mirror for the press and donors. “Especially on such a joyous occasion.”

“Yes, indeed. So this is your daughter.” Mr. Park’s gaze falls to you.

You steel your back against the shiver of disgust you feel as his eyes openly sweep you up and down. His wife follows suite from behind him. You can’t help the feeling that they would have pried your mouth open like a prize horse if you weren’t in a more civilized age. The irony of that thought amid your situation almost distracts you enough to give a real smile.

“Not as beautiful as her picture, but her career and your prestige will make up for that. She will be a welcome addition to our family,” Mr. Park says approvingly.

Bile rises unbidden from the bottom of your stomach with revulsion. Who the hell is he to judge you, let alone speak such an opinion out loud. You inwardly scoff. Just proof money cannot buy manners or decency.

“Where is your son?” your mother asks, looking around.

Mr. Park’s smile tightens a fraction. “He was temporarily detained at an appointment, but he’ll be here shortly. No need to worry. He’ll be here to sign the marriage contract.”

Marriage contract. Those words are enough to make the embarrassment at Mr. Park’s callous comments evaporate, replaced by the unforgiving chill of reality.

Today, you’re getting engaged to a stranger. To say the idea doesn’t terrify you would be the most vile lie. The idea of being “tied forever” to someone you’ve never met, never even seen, makes you sick. It makes you want to shrink, crawl away, and mourn. It makes you want to roar, storm, and seize your autonomy back. But all you can do is stand and wait, your face the vaguely interested mask you have perfected to a fault.

Mr. Park steps back and gestures to the table. “Shall we?”

Men in trim tuxedos silently appear to pull out your chairs. Mr. Park and your father take seats opposite each other, then Mrs. Park and your mother. You sit across from the empty chair. The chair where your soon-to-be fiance will soon sit.

Beside you, the older adults talk among themselves. Whether they speak of social niceties, specifics of the pre-nuptial contract, or plans for the wedding, you don’t know. Their words are noise in your ears and they make no effort to include you in the conversation. It doesn’t surprise you. You’re accustomed to it and you’re glad of it. They don’t deserve the civility you would be expected to produce. Not to mention your temper is shortened by the lack of sleep caused by an anxious patient’s hours-long call last night.

There’s a knock at the door and your heart stops. It’s him.

Demon or angel. Brat or saint. Executioner or savior. Bane or mate.

There’s no way to know and no way out. If someone in this day and age would agree to such a bond, he’s either an idiot, a pushover, or a victim like you.

You steel yourself for disappointment or pity, determined to keep any emotion to yourself. These parasites won’t get anything else from you.

The door opens and a slightly rumpled, lanky man ambles in. His long black overcoat covers a slate-gray suit jacket with matching pants and dark burgundy turtleneck. His blond hair is ruffled, streaked with bold swathes of highlights, and longer than you would expect of a wealthy scion. His messy bangs brushing the lenses of his round, gold-rimmed glasses.

Your mouth drops open. How…

“Sorry I’m late,” he says without a smile or sincerity. “I was—”

When his eyes fall to you, his mouth mirrors yours. You quickly snap your jaw back together and give the smallest shake of your head.

Don’t let them know.

His mother gives a polite cough to try to call him back. When he continues staring, his father speaks for him. “This is our son, Jaehyung.”

So that’s Jae’s real name.

Your father immediately gets up and holds out his hand. “Pleasure to meet you, son.”

“I remember your hair being black this morning,” Mr. Park says, addressing his son as he greets your father. “Was there a mistake at the salon?”

Recovering from his surprise, Jae’s mouth twitches like it wants to smirk at the clear disapproval in his father’s voice. He smooths his hair, takes his seat and answers simply. “No.”

His parents’ mouths thin, but the first course being served saves Jae from further reprimand. The conversation picks up where it left off, articulated by the clink of silverware.

Again, you’re not invited to participate, but neither is Jae. You push the salad around with your fork, flipping the leaves as your mind attempts comprehension. Admiration for Jae’s blatant rebellion only briefly interrupts the bewilderment swirling around your head.

Jae, your friend since he almost killed you with his skateboarding antics in university and who constantly crashes on your couch to whine about being broke. This same man who usually dresses in some version of a T-shirt, jeans, and or plaid shirt combo and seems to have a guitar permanently attached to his hands. Reconciling him with the put-together heir in front of you, your almost fiance, is proving difficult.

Though now, certain gaps in your knowledge of Jae make a bit more sense. Despite claiming to be perpetually broke, he never fails to pick up the latest shoes he’s been drooling over or new production equipment when his band, Day6, needs it. He never mentions his family. During university, he always found a friend to go home with on breaks.

Just like you.

Maybe that’s why you felt drawn to him, became and stayed friends. A silent and unconscious recognition of similar ghosts haunting your shadows.

Your phone quietly vibrates against your thigh. You ignore it.

Something nudges your foot. Lifting your eyes from your plate, you find Jae staring at you. He glances down towards your lap, frowning and jerking his chin when you don’t move.

With a peek at your mother to ensure she’s not paying attention, you slip your phone from the pocket hidden in your dress.

Meet me by the bathrooms.- Jae

You immediately stand, smiling as the Parks and your parents finally turn their attention to you. Lifting your phone, you say, “Please excuse me. The doctor on-call has a question about one of my patients. I have to call him back.” Disregarding your mother’s annoyed expression, you turn on your heel and walk out of the room.

After asking for directions, you find the bathrooms and wait in the alcove beside them. You don’t have long to wait before you hear Jae calling your name.

He jumps when you poke your head around the corner, but rushes over, grabbing your elbow to bring you back out of sight. “What the hell are you doing here?” he asks, his voice a hoarse whisper and his eyebrows nearly forced together with a frown.

“You asked me to meet you here.”

“Not here, smartass,” Jae says, rolling his eyes. “I mean here here.”

“I could be asking you the same question, Jaehyung.” You pointedly look down at where he’s still holding you.

“Sorry.” Jae releases you, his hand immediately going to run through his hair. His mussing leaves it standing at odd angles so he looks more like the Jae you’re familiar with. You recognize the same struggle to reconcile your newly discovered realities on his face as well. “It's just... you’re the assemblyman’s daughter? You?”

“Sorry to disappoint,” you reply, not sparing the sarcasm. You sit on the bench and fold your arms, scrutinizing the friend you thought you knew. “But I guess we’re even.”

“What do you mean? You never your said your dad was an assemblyman.”

“And not once in all the years we’ve known each other, not once in all the times we fell asleep talking did you mention you were a friggin' heir, Jae. Never mind an heir of the Park family. You were probably born with twenty silver spoons in your mouth.”

Jae sighs and joins you, closing his eyes and leaning his head back against the wall. “I didn’t say anything because I never wanted it. Who wants to own up to a family that only wants you to become their version of you, you know?”

“Preaching to the choir here.”

He opens his eyes with a frown and turns his head to you. “I never pegged you as a “yes, daddy” kind of girl. A goody-two-shoes with an overdeveloped savior complex, yeah. Definitely. But this? You really going along with this?”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” you retort with a roll of your eyes. “I thought we were friends.”

“We are, which is why I’m really freaking confused right now. You’re a doctor, dude. A modern woman. You’re always going on about women’s rights. Totally support by the way, but—”

“You really think I agreed to this for shits and giggles?” you cry, anger bubbling over. Everything you’ve held back since this morning boils out. “You think I like your father making me feel like a piece of meat and telling me to my face I’m ‘not as beautiful’ as my picture? Oh, wait, that would require him to address me directly like I had my own mind. Yeah, Jae, I just woke up yesterday and said to myself ‘Hey, let’s toss my entire personality, morals, and career aside and agree to get married to some rich guy so my dad can profit from the family-man image and new connections boost this election!’ That’s exactly what happened. No reason other than that.”

Jae is uncharacteristically silent after your outburst, studying you. You can’t really blame him. In the entire length of your friendship, you’ve only seriously raised your voice at him maybe once. He’s mentioned more than once that that fact is one your more attractive attributes.

Letting out a sigh of your own, you lean against the wall as well. You shouldn’t have yelled at him. He doesn’t deserve to be the recipient of your pent up frustrations. Picking at the skirt of your dress, you say, “You know my friend, Mina?”

“Yeah,” Jae replies with a shrug. “The dancer who’s at that super fancy dance school for ballet or something, right?”

“She’s there on a scholarship. A scholarship my mother is on the board for. My parents didn’t even bother being subtle about it. As soon as I told them they were crazy for suggesting this, they threatened to take the scholarship from Mina or even get her kicked out of the school. She can’t afford the tuition on their own. Jae, she loves that place and dancing so much and with that kind of training, she has a shot at so many opportunities. I couldn’t let them do that to her. It would kill her.”

His face becomes somber. “Ow…”

You give a half smile and a shrug. “Figured I could suffer through a few years of this marriage ‘til she finished, then find a way to get divorced.”

Jae reaches over and squeezes your hand. “You’re a really good friend.”

“Thanks.” You return the pressure and keep your hand in his. The reminder of humanity soothes some of the anger and hurt that sits like a boulder in your chest.

“Though I guess I am too,” he says. When you just look at him, waiting for an explanation, he lets out a bark of laughter. “And you yelled at me for being a bad friend, ya hypocrite. You think that I, Jae, the Jae, would say yes to this kind of backwards shit?”

“No.” Adopting an awful Manhattan accent, you ask, “So what’re you in here for?”

Your attempt gets a small laugh out of Jae, just as you’d hoped. The smile that accompanied it disappears as he says, “My parents found out about Day6… Before, as long as I kept my head down and didn’t do anything ‘embarrassing,’ they didn’t care what I was doing since my sister is going to take over the business. But now, if I don’t do this marriage thing, they were going to cut me off. I’d miss my Jordans, but I could deal if it was just me. But you know I’m the one who books our studio sessions, pays for the travel and new equipment when we need it. The guys chip in when they can, but they don’t make that much at their day jobs. I don’t make enough for it all either.”

You put your other hand over Jae’s. His band is his life. You’ve seen the shelves at his apartment filled with notebooks of music and lyrics instead of books. Some he’s actually played for you or let you read. He has his guitars named and arranged in order of favoritism for crying out loud. Making him abandon his music would be less painful than cutting out his heart while it still beat.

“We’re this close to a break, Doc. I can feel it.” Jae meets your eyes, none of the normal charm or ease there. Instead, they beg for reassurance, belief in him and his dream.

“I know you are. I come to every show I can, don’t I?” You smile, feeling the callouses from his constant playing rubbing against your own skin. “You're going to make it big. You have more talent than half the people on the radio. We just have to get the right people to listen.”

“Then I could support myself and I wouldn’t be in this mess.” He suddenly chuckles.

“What?”

“You could be too. You could be like our bus driver or roadie or something.”

“I have a job, you know. I just don’t work at the right place to make the big bucks. The clinic can barely afford our necessities, let alone big staff salaries. Besides, I don’t think it would matter.” You sigh again, unable to stop yourself from leaning against Jae. Everything feels too heavy and there’s a headache brewing in your temples. “I wouldn’t be surprised if my parents just found someone else to foist on me if this didn’t work out.”

“Damn. Seriously? We really won the lottery on the crappy parents, didn’t we?”

“That’s an understatement.” Looking down at your joined hands, you try to imagine matching weddings bands on your fingers. The idea is laughable. But nothing comes out of your mouth except the words, “We’re really going to do this, aren’t we? Get married.”

Jae’s shoulders lift beneath your cheek in a hopeless shrug. “For now, I guess so. Unless one of us wins the actual lottery. Or Day6 gets signed with a big bonus.”

You start nodding, then stop as an idea hits you, and groan. “Dammit… Jae, what’re we going to tell our friends?”

“What’d you mean? I doubt our parents are going to invite them to the wedding. Mine are too snobby and yours seem just as bad. Not like our friends read the newspaper either if our parents do one of those corny engagement ads.”

“I know my mother. She’s going to insist on an engagement ring and not a subtle one. Our friends know us. They’re not going to believe we went from friends to engaged. And what about what’s-her-name? The girl you’re talking to?”

“Oh,… yeah, that didn’t work out,” Jae says with a chuckle. “She didn’t like how much time I spent practicing. She told me it was either her or the band.”

Lifting your head, you stare at him. “What the hell were you doing dating someone like that?”

“She was hot?”

And he’s back. You drop his hand to smack his shoulder. “Gross!”

Jae raises his hands in defense, but a smile is back on his face, at least temporarily. “I’m kidding, jeez. Well, not really. She was hot, but I thought she really liked music slash the band too.”

“Sure.” Restless, you get off the bench and begin pacing. You think better on your feet. “But seriously, what’re we going to tell our friends? Us dating wouldn’t be too big a stretch, but no one would believe we’d do something crazy like get married out of nowhere. You’re impulsive enough for that, but not me. They’re going to know something’s up.”

“Firstly, I resent that impulsive comment. I'm just absurdly curious is all. And why not just tell them we’re dating?” Jae pulls in his legs when you almost trip over them. “But only if our parents make us move in together or something. Otherwise, we don’t need to. You don’t have to wear the ring unless our parents check in or whatever. Plus, like I said, crappy as it is, our parents wouldn’t think to invite them to the wedding. The only people there will be people we don’t care about. Then after we’re married, we just wait it out, not telling anyone, and then, like you planned, get a quick, quiet divorce when everyone’s safe. No one knows, we live our lives as normally as we can, and then we’re home free.”

Pausing in your marching, you look at Jae again. He looks far calmer than he has any right to be. Seems like he’s already accepted your predicament. But maybe he is right. Maybe this abrupt drop in the road of your life can be smoothed into a less dramatic sharp turn, or even a slight detour. Maybe you can do it. Together. The demons of uncertainty’s voices quiet for now.

Out loud, you say, “Alright.”

“Cool. Now that that’s settled,” slapping the edge of the bench, Jae pushes himself up, “we should probably get back. By the way, why’d you not want them to know we know each other?”

Raising your eyebrows incredulously, you ask, “You really want to give them one more thing to use against us?”

“Yeah, you’re right.” Straightening his clothes, he says, “Let’s go back to the lions’ den.”

Seeing his smile, that smile you know so well and love, relief hits you so hard, it makes your knees almost buckle.

You rush to him, burying your face in his shirt and curling your fingers around his jacket lapels. Your eyes burn, but your tears are thankfully exhausted. “Jae, I’m so glad it’s you. I really am.”

Fate and your parents’ scheming could have put anyone opposite you. Yet somehow, it’s Jae. A solid ally and friend instead of a dreadful unknown. With Jae, you have a fellow victim, a fellow survivor. A partner. One with no expectations except a continued friendship and reliance.

Although Jae had been stiff from surprise, his arms close around you and his body sags. Despite his boniness, the warmth of his embrace more than makes up for it. “Yeah, me too, Doc. Me too.”

“Were you scared too?”

“Fucking terrified. I thought I was going to be stuck with some prude princess. You know I can’t handle high maintenance. Ain’t nobody got time for that.”

Laughing, you step back. As usual, Jae’s humor helps break through your cloud of ill mood. Beckoning, you say, “Come here. We have to fix your hair or they might think something happened.”

“Yeah, because they’re such examples of people who believe in love at first sight and get swept up in mind-blowing passion,” he retorts, but he leans down anyway so you can smooth his hair. “Thanks. You ready?”

“Yeah.” You nod. This time, you believe it.

#jae fic #day6 fic #kpopwritingnet #kwriterskollection #kwritersworldnet #kpop fics

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doomedandstoned · 3 years

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Lowen Return with Stunning EP, ‘Unceasing Lamentations’

~By Reek of STOOM~

Art by Hervé Scott Flament

London-based Doomters LOWEN return with an incredible, stripped back-to-bare-bones release next month. "Unceasing Lamentations" consists of 3 evocative, alluring tracks based on ancient Middle Eastern texts and highlighting Nina Saeidi's incredible vocal talent.

First track, "The Exalted One Who Walketh" shimmers with the arid heat of the desert, vocals soaring, plaintive and mesmerising, like a melding of Ofra Haza and Diamanda Galas, backed throughout by Shem Lucas' soulful Oud-style playing. Indeed, the lone vocal combo stretches across all three tracks, bringing a sultry and beguiling presence as powerful and majestic as the heaviest Doom out there.

Lowen have encountered many issues over the last 12 months, and this EP has been cathartic, heartfelt and deeply reconnecting with their roots. A Triumph!

I spoke with both Nina and Shem and posed some questions about the last year and their new release, out June 4th.

The new EP is obviously an accumulation of recent trials and tribulations for the band. How have you coped with such an acrimonious split?

Shem: It was a difficult situation but the core of the band has always been Nina and myself. The music is about her background and Lowen is a vehicle to explore that and always has been. Anyone that is unable or unwilling to accept that simply does not have a place within the band. There are many wonderful musicians that have approached us eager to work with us and that has been very touching.

Nina: As Shem said, it was a very difficult and sad situation that shocked us to our cores when it happened. The extreme nature of having a racially motivated hate crime directed at me by our ex-drummer has in a way allowed us to view it as a clean break from which we can move on without looking back. Shem and I have felt so much more positive and driven now that we can plan and write completely new material together and look to a much brighter future.

The support from our friends and fans in the immediate aftermath was really touching and we are so excited to work with some insanely talented new musicians this summer!

LISTEN: Unceasing Lamentations by Lowen

I'm also assuming that lockdown has played a part in the stripped-back sound? To what extent has this process changed the way you look at and create Music now?

Shem: Unceasing Lamentations is a result of Nina being invited to perform on a Solo basis by the Brighton Doomsday collective as part of their efforts to raise funds to keep the Green Door Store venue in Brighton open in the face of the pandemic. We were so happy with the results that we decided to have Magnus Lindberg of Cult of Luna master the audio so that we could release it.

The songs don’t represent a new direction so much as a pivotal moment in time for the band, we’re still writing our next album to feature big distorted guitars, drums and bass, though I would say that it was wonderful to finally release something that was a lot more eastern in terms of musical composition. It’s a nice bridge between the first album and the resulting musical studies we have undertaken to bring our sound closer to what we both hear in our minds.

Nina: It was so freeing to be able to improvise and really embrace the more Iranian and Eastern aspects of our sound and influence. It’s something I’ve been pushing to do more since we released our first album and I am so excited that we will now be fully putting that into the second one. This EP is more of a captured moment where I expressed the anguish and longing that I was experiencing at the time.

Due to the improvisational aspect of the performance we went in with no plan at all. Apart from the lullaby what you hear are musical choices that were made in that very moment. It can magical to simply give up all control of a creative situation and see what the body spontaneously produces musically.

LISTEN: A Crypt in the Stars by Lowen

The lyrics were based on folk tales or Eastern myths. How did you come to choose them?

Nina: The lyrics for the first two songs are directly taken from cuneiform tablets. The Exalted One Who Walketh is an arrangement of transliterated lines taken from a Sumerian city destruction lamentation referred to as “e-lum didara”. Against Evil Done by the Serpent is a transliteration of Akkadian from a clay tablet that directed the tuning of an instrument through metaphoric comparisons between gods and each string.

I met with renown museo-archeologist Richard Dumbrill and talked with him for several hours on how the words may have been pronounced and sung in the context of ancient music and modern interpretation. Though we will never know how ancient music and language sounded, it is thought that some of it has been preserved in folk music of the areas in which it originated when it comes to the music of the Middle East.

The third song is an Iranian lullaby that embodies the sorrow of war and abandonment felt by many children during the Iran-Iraq war and is still sadly apt for many children in the Middle East today. The lullaby centres on a child who has experienced the trauma of war being comforted by a mother who promises that she will not abandon them as they tread dangerous ground even in their dreams.

I chose all these because I am deeply interested in the history of language and culture in the Middle East. It moves me that music and lyrics that are thousands of years old can be resurrected and performed once more in a context where the sorrows and joys of multiple cultures that were geographically close can be viewed millennia apart.

How is the new line-up going? Any major differences or effects on the dynamic?

Shem: Lowen has always revolved around Nina and myself, but Richard Stevenson (our live bass player) is still very much a part of the band. We have been approached by other musicians who would like to work with us and we are excited to move forward with an array of incredibly talented musicians.

Nina: Our dynamic is stronger than ever as Shem and I are able to write and move forward with much greater speed and productivity than before. We always wrote the music in the past, but now we feel that we are able to be a lot more free creatively.

We are so grateful that we have Richard Stevenson, our live bassist, with us for what will be a very exciting summer in terms of shows. He always brings amazing energy to the stage and has been a dedicated member and friend for years now.

Soon we will be able to reveal who we will have drumming for us live and we can’t wait.

You have always been vocal about political and social issues in the East. What are your hopes for the future?

Nina: My greatest hope will always be for peace. War and political savagery has felt never-ending in the Middle East, and much of it is because of interference and backing from non-Eastern countries that profit from terminal instability and conflict. For example, we’re currently seeing horrendous atrocities in the news with the state of Israel attacking and tearing apart even more innocent lives and I hope that those who are actively campaigning for ceasefire and recognition of what is truly happening in Gaza and Sheikh Jarrah succeed. I’d like to clarify that my criticism of the state of Israel is not tied in with Jewishness or the nature of Judaism, I think it’s important not to veer into anti-semitism and anti-muslim sentiment when noting political matters in Israel.

My personal hope is to be able to go and see my family, who live in other parts of the Middle East, without fear of arrest and execution. I would be overjoyed if women were able to sing in public again and for the LGBTQ+ community in Iran to live without fear of death and persecution.

Will you be planning a tour or appearances at any festivals in the coming year?

Shem: we’re very excited to begin performing live again, the performances prior to pandemic had begun to feature increasing intensity, so we can only imagine what a renewed and focussed line up will add to that, as well as the prospect of playing new material.

Nina: We have a few more shows to announce in what is already feeling like a packed few months of shows around the UK but I can’t say anything yet.

What was the last thing you had to kick to get working again?

Shem: there was nothing to kick per se, but the many many hours of study into eastern music, rhythm and maqam are certainly paying off and the music we are composing now is focussed and features many techniques and devices not widely seen within western music, there’s also a lot of double bass drum!

Nina: A few cobwebs and a couple of boxes in order to find my stage mic after so long.

Follow The Band

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#D&S Reviews #D&S Interviews #Lowen #London #England #UK #doom metal #Persian #Middle Eastern #atmospheric doom #Reek of STOOM #Doomed and Stoned

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inventors-fair · 4 years

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Weird Commentary: Thanks

I would call this one of our most successful contests. Not every card was a gold standard, not every card made me squeal with glee, but every single one had love, thought, and heart put into them. I’m even more impressed with the fact that over 2/3 of contestants actually made their own art! As a not-artist myself, I understand how challenging that can be sometimes. I’m just having a moment where I’m proud of everyone.

Also, for this commentary, I’m trying something a little different. Tell me if you like it!

@3smuth — Burrow-Wing Amalgam

What I like: Besides the gorgeous art (look at the curve of the moon behind the wing!), the wording is great, and the abilities are well-rounded for an uncommon. I like how the flavor text builds up the “character” of the creature, making it seem more alive, and tying in to the abilities as well. That’s hard to do!

What we can improve: I find that the first ability giving it two mono-black abilities a little jarring. There are only two BG fliers in black-border canon, and that’s not to say that this couldn’t be added to that list, but it’s mildly off-putting; I kept thinking that this could be an Abzan card, maybe with G/W hybrid in the cost? But that’s entirely dependent on the environment. It’s hard to visualize one in which BG has an uncommon pseudo-flying beater, but it’s not to say that it’s impossible — just a hard sell.

Allison — Salheim, The Twisted Storm

What I like: This feels like a fun commander who would also be good in draft. A cheap body means that your spells can be small bodies that return at the start and huge potential bodies later. I like how it limits it to the first spell, so you can’t go infinite for less than ten mana with some other combo pieces. Honestly, this is a fantastic mechanical card.

What we can improve: There are a few grammatical mistakes to clean up, small pieces of Magic wording. “The” in the name should be lowercase, as should “Blue” and “Red” in the text box. “spells” should have a possessive apostrophe, and “it’s” shouldn’t. Don’t forget a period at the end before the quotation mark! I would also shorten the trigger: “...you may pay (X) [symbol], where X is that spell’s converted mana cost.”

@ceta-maelstrom — Camouflage Krasis

What I like: “Cat fish” is an awesome creature combo! Your art brings that across really well. With the new-ish arrival of Cat tribal and the rise in the creature type, I think that this is a welcome addition. I like the hexproof clause. It gives it a flavor of “as long as I’m small, I can’t be seen.”

What we can improve: Metamorph is a little hard to parse. Because of the “if” in the middle breaking up the sentence, I thought “it” referred to the creature entering the battlefield, and that that creature would get two counters. My mistake. Hm, how to reword it... “Whenever another nontoken creature enters the battlefield under your control, put two +1/+1 counters on this creature if it has no +1/+1 counters on it.” No, that’s a little awkward too... There can be a little more clarity. I think the mechanic is worth playing around with.

@dancepatternalpha — The Rat King

What I like: Simple, easy to understand, cool synergistic potential. I think this would be a fun build-around-me card. You mentioned something about Innistrad not having a rat king; would you believe they had one mechanically, in the form of Dark Imposter? I actually thought it was potential inspiration, different flavor.

What we can improve: Like Dark Imposter, I believe that the “all activated abilities” should be a separate line. When it comes to that, the similarities are a little stark, but I think the King distinguishes itself from the Imposter by its legendary status and the fact that it exiles your own creatures. I’m not getting a strong sense of either “ooze” or “construct,” though. “Ooze,” I would honestly just take off altogether. “Construct,” in Magic history, implies an artifact creature, something built by something else, and I’m not getting a sense of that either. “Noble” might be fun, if a little on the nose.

@dimestoretajic — Cryptizub, Steel Abomination

What I like: It’s certainly a limited beater, something that reminds me of Scuttling Doom Engine from back in the day. It can be incredibly powerful in the late game and can fit into any slot. Oof, give it lifelink? And you’re in good shape.

What we can improve: The first thing I got from this card that’s iffy is the name; it sounds like a legendary creature. “Steel Abomination” would be just fine. For the activated ability, I believe going off of Banshee’s oracle text, that you need to say “~ damage equal to its power to target creature, and damage equal to its power to you.” Not an absolute, but it’s one possibility. Don’t forget to italicize Threshold. The flavor text is a little on the nose. I would either shorten it or just leave it off. The card carries a world by itself as a magic beatstick.

@gollumni — Severed Stone-Seer

What I like: This is a card that would definitely get you a-head of the curve!..... Ahem. I think this card successfully fits into the world of Theros, with a little jank. The flavor text is really great. It’s a powerful card with a big butt. I can imagine this taking over games of limited quite easily.

What we can improve: Five toughness might be too powerful. A 3-mana 2/4 with deathtouch is pretty nasty as-is; at five toughness, stuff becomes a lot harder to remove. As much as I do like what you wrote here, I’m still having trouble fitting “Gorgon Hydra” into my mind as something reasonable, considering that the two have such distinct qualities already. “Gorgon Head” could be fine, maybe even “Hydra Head.” Both have great mythological flavor. Small note that I’m unsure of: would it be “create a token copy of” or “create a token that’s a copy of”?

@grornt — Carnivorous Multitusker

What I like: Yup, that’s a mutant boar hydra all right! It’s big, it’s bad, it’s green, it takes over games, and it’s a great bomb. This feels like a quintessential green creature right here, with the exception of the weird types. Maybe the Simic and the Gruul could come together to make something like this, yeah? I’d love to open this in a pack and/or add it to a starter deck. Wish it was powerful enough for Standard. Maybe it is, who knows? I like how your added aspects of both boars and hydras from Magic’s past.

What we can improve: This is a pedantic point, but I’d like to see “Mutant” at the end rather than the beginning. Aside from that, I think the flavor text, smirk-worthy as it is, doesn’t really add to the card or to the world. I’d rather see something like on Protean Hulk, a little more expanse.

@i-am-the-one-who-wololoes — Apex of Evolution

What I like: Wow, you really went all-out with the creature types, huh? I think that you used the mechanics pretty well to get the feeling of “a creature that grows from your experience and also eats other creatures to gain their strength.” It’s a build-around-me card that’s fun if you can beef it up.

What we can improve: Firstly, the flavor text pushes the card from “wordy” into “too much.” I love adding it where needed, but with this much text, and with this strong a mechanical focus, you don’t really need it. I feel that in this instance especially it doesn’t add anything that the card doesn’t already have. For the second ability, it should be a full if-clause: “If a creature dealt damage by ~ would die, exile it instead.” And the game already knows that those cards are imprinted “with it” so you don’t need to add that. For the last ability... That’s way too many clauses. “Apex of Evolution has all abilities of cards exiled with it.” It does add some baggage, yes, but most creatures won’t have those negative effects, and, well, that’s a risk of combat to take. This creature already makes combat complicated.

@ignorantturtlegaming — Fabled Fox

What I like: Cool art, and cool combo! I think that two creature types works well here; it’s a Fox, and it’s a Dragon, and that’s that. This seems like a card that, when it hits, can really get you ahead in a game. I like how the last ability implies a world with Fox tribal; that’s grokable.

What we can improve: There are a few things that this card has that it doesn’t necessarily need. The mana cost has no reason not to be 3WRG; why the doubling-up? I don’t really understand the blue restriction. Is this card a bomb, or a hate-card? I don’t feel that it needs to be both. In the Cycling part, don’t forget to add the cycling cost inside the reminder text and add a colon. I believe the last ability could be — and be mindful of the punctuation — “When you cycle ~, you may search your library for a Fox or Dragon card, reveal that card, put it into your hand, then shuffle your library.” See Krosan Tusker. Small note: I believe the way that abilities go, it should be worded “Flying, lifelink, haste” in that order.

@industrialsalad — The Origin of Oddities

What I like: I find it a little hard to take seriously, but you went ham with the types here, and I love reading “Elder Vampire Sponge.” It’s an interesting take on fossils as a concept. I think that with the advent of ability word counters, this card could be a fun little build-around me. I also like how it can steal counters from your opponents’ permanents!

What we can improve: This card does not feel legendary. I understand that it’s “the origin,” but I mean more in terms of how Magic’s other legends feel, what this card brings to that set of established unspoken rules. Maybe some flavor text could have amended that, and it could definitely explain the Vampire type, which feels distinctly out of place, especially for a colorless artifact. Small grammatical notes: “Oddities’s” doesn’t need “’s,” and it should be “fewer than five” spelled out.

@ishouldgetatumbler — Ash, Hydromorph Shaman

What I like: This is a distinct Simic feel! An elf shaman who becomes a hydra, who morphs themself into a mutant. Very nice. This is indeed a powerful card, and I think this is one of those legends that would be great in limited and in the other 99 in a commander deck. Or you could build around putting it into your hand! Fun stuff!

What we could improve: Not a lot to make better here. Firstly, though, this could be a rare in this day and age. It only brings it to hand, and you need to commit a fair amount for it to matter heavily. Small grammar notes: “counters on it” for the first ability, “its power” instead of “its,” and...that’s about it! Save it for a cube!

@jsands84 — Dandylion

What I like: This was really close to being a runner-up. I love the types and how they come together, the use of a powerful hybrid card and the pushing of it to uncommon without it feeling OP, the use of spore counters, the aggressive P/T for limited, and man, there’s flavor in the fact that it doesn’t fog itself. It’s like, Everyone has allergies except for me! It’s super cool. Shoutout to @iguanamouth.

What we can improve: Small notes. I think the name is a little cutesy for Magi, but that’s not a biggie, more of a personal quirk. I feel that “Cat Plant” parses better than “Plant Cat,” and maybe there’s alphabetical justification, idk. “Three” should be spelled out instead of “3.” I’d love to see flavor text here, just a line or so. Other than that, radical cat-ical!

@lyxine — Ahrizhel, the Wanderer

What I like: Now that’s a combo! It’s a bomb in limited to be sure, a great token-maker and legend to be reckoned with. I’ve always been a fan of Lure effects in green, even if they don’t always work out for me. Giving it to any creature you want is pretty neat.

What we can improve: My main concern is green fliers. I know that for dragons it’s an okay bend, but making more fliers as well? I think that’s too much of a bend; Hornet Queen is almost a break as-is, despite the massive cost. And the fact that this one can create 4-5 of them the turn after it hits the battlefield? That by itself is far too powerful. I would unfortunately call this one a break. Wording notes: “deathtouch” shouldn’t be capitalized, and there should be commas after the green mana symbols. The flavor text could use a little pizzaz, some more specific poetic words.

@mistershinyobject — Ludevic’s Familiar

What I like: That is indeed a weird zombie dog. The unique mechanical approach you took here is fascinating and experimental. It’s strange enough to warrant questions if it’s playable in certain formats. Modern Dog Mayhem? Hey, who knows.

What we can improve: This is a weird targeting system, and I don’t know if it’s in the good way. The fact that you can pay BB for a redirect effect is potentially a break, but it makes sense otherwise. (B)(U/R) could have worked, perhaps? I’m not entirely sure why the hybrid was chosen in this way here. It’s probably for the best, honestly, but it’s still a little iffy for me. I like the flavor text in a memetic way, but a) I don’t think I can see Ludevic saying this and b) it really toes the line. I think it would be best not to have it, or to have more wordplay and not a quote. I would also put the types as “Dog Zombie Weird” personally, but there’s probably not precedent for it.

@nine-effing-hells — Chalkyri Resplendent

What I like: Bonus points for having me learn a new word and new creature type. I had no idea the name was an actual thing! It’s useful for getting something like this, I suppose, and you did an amazing job with the art and flavor text. This does indeed seem like an awesome angel serpent thing.

What we can improve: My main concern is giving the permanents hexproof. It works for white, but not RW multicolor, in my opinions. Seems a little too powerful, despite the flavor work-in. I’m 65% sure the wording should be “it’s not your turn” instead of “it isn’t your turn,” but don’t quote me on that. See oracle text on Angry Mob. Aside from that, this is a fine beat-worthy beast.

@real-aspen-hours — Octothreat

What I like: Octopuses and spiders go hand in hand in hand in — etc. This is a huge limited card that reminds me of Pelakka Wurm from Rise of the Eldrazi when it first came out: big beefy boy. I think that it would be an interesting card for sealed, a huge blowout, and a great body. Very powerful card. Oh man, blinking it? Lordy.

What we can improve: Most of what we can improve are minute wording things for presentation. Keep in mind that if you do a text submission, your wording is copied exactly. The types should be capitalized, there doesn’t need to be a period after “Trample,” and there should be a period at the end of “step.” Mechanically, the text should say “up to eight target creatures.”

@shakeszx — Wyrveplasm

What I like: A big oozy boy! This feels appropriately like a drake and appropriately like an ooze. It’s a complicated card that works just as well on its own as it would in a deck centered around it. And I think that mythic is the right choice here, honestly. This thing can run away with games.

What we can improve: ...except for the death loop. If it had no counters on it when it dies, then it creates a 0/0 who dies and creates a 0/0, ad infinitum. Infinite death triggers on a single card, well, that’s a no-no. So how do we fix it? Change the last ability: “When ~ dies, if it had any +1/+1 counters on it, create a token that’s a copy of it, except that token’s base power and toughness are equal to the number of +1/+1 counters on ~ when it died.” ... Okay, it’s not perfect, but the token wording is right and the “base” is there. Modern Magic, woo.

@snugz — Chronocular Bivalve

What I like: Chronocular is a brilliant word. This card was super close to being a runner-up/winner as well. This is a control card for limited to the max. It’s powerful, it’s super complicated, and it exists in a world of theoretical phasing that’s, well — I might not want to play in it, but I know people that would. Super cool.

What we can improve: Not much to improve here. “Non” shouldn’t be capitalized, and I’m not entirely sure what the point of that second ability is, but that’s just about it. Sorry there’s not a lot to say here, but you did a fine job and the card speaks for itself.

@starch255 — Roving Squidtaur

What I like: It’s strong! It’s tentacled! It’s...got nipples? Squipples? Right, before I get any more sexually confused, let’s talk about the card. This is a world of sentient half-squid monstrosities. And I kind of love it. I think that mechanically you did some really neat things with this card. You included all aspects of the colors together, and they make for a three-colored beater that’s just plain good in the formats it would see play in.

What we can improve: I’m super bugged by vigilance in a way I shouldn’t be. Yes, I know it’s green, but it just feels...off?? Like, why is a berserker vigilant? I always got the impression that they would be more tramply, that they wouldn’t be as keen-eyed or direct. But that’s just me being weird. There’s nothing “””wrong””” with it. This one could definitely 10/10 have used some flavor text, though. I want to know more about this roving squid-person!

@tmstage — Bandicooze

What I like: Whoa! Yep, that’s a five-mana 3/3, but it’s a fine limited beater for its cost. Instant counters in the right deck and it’s good to go! I’ve only tangentially been connected with Crash games, but I get exactly how you tied it together nicely. This card just makes me smile.

What we can improve: I might make it a 4/3, or give it trample or haste or something. Aside from that... It’s a meme, and memes get what they deserve: a nice chuckle.

@whuh-oh — Arctic Narwhuck

What I like: The simple two-type “Whale Bird” aspect fits pretty well here. Other people did a diving/burrowing theme, and I think yours works well here. Four mana for a 3/2 flier with potential upside is pretty great in limited for an uncommon!

What we can improve: Islandwalk and landwalk in general hasn’t been in the game for a while, and I don’t know if this card needs that throwback. I get how it works flavorfully, and I like that part a lot. It’s just that modern sensibilities would let it just have hexproof. See Canopy Dragon’s oracle text as well; I think it gains things before it loses things. The flavor text is fine, but very vague, and doesn’t necessarily add to the card.

@woman-of-the-fen — Goldenhump Camelsaurus

What I like: Naya dinosaurs are always welcome! I also like the way you tied camels and deserts together to make a hybrid. The ape and rampage go together, I assume, and you conveyed that well in the art.

What can be improved: Rampage, well, hasn’t been around for a while, just like landwalk, and for good reason. It’s simply not a great mechanic. I can see it working as a one-off in a Horizons set, but it’s still not the aspect I would have chosen. The first ability creates an infinite loop that lasts until the Camelsaurus dies; you fight, get dealt damage, then fight again, etc. Give it indestructible and it’s a boardwipe. Wait, and it creates an infinite loop; if it survives, then it’s forced to target itself. “Enrage — Whenever ~ is dealt damage, you may have it fight target creature you don’t control.” Still doesn’t fix the board-wipe issue. Might need to take this one back to the drawing board. For the flavor text, don’t forget that if you’re quoting someone, their name belongs on a separate line.

@wpandp — Apaprik Muster

What I like: Gosh darnit. Deviled eggs. C’mon man... I do love it, though. I like the concept of an egg filled with demonic creatures, imps and whatnot. It’s a scary thought! I like how you played around with mutate here. I personally don’t like mutate as a mechanic, but it’s not a huge issue. You used it well.

What can be improved: I’m still a little uncertain as to what world this card is inhabiting and what the name is implying. Why are devils and demons mutating? Why is “Muster,” an abstract noun, being used as the naming convention for an egg? Why does it have the food ability? I mean, I know, it’s all part of the play that this card is making, but it doesn’t really make mechanical sense.

Thank you all for your entries! Get ready to make cards for tomorrow.

#mtg #magic the gathering #custom magic card #contest #entries #commentary #weird creature types #inventor's fair

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jinruihokankeikaku · 4 years

Note

Could you a classpect analysis for a Knight of Hope?

I could indeed!! This one seems… really interesting!!

Title: Knight of Hope

Title Breakdown: One who Actively Defends [wields in defense of, serves, applies, protects] Hope [faith, belief, magic, positive emotion, pure creation]

Role in the Session: So, here we have the Wwhitest of Knights. Straight-up Paladin, right here. Maybe they’re actually religious, maybe they have a more nebulous personal code, but either way, the Knight of Hope is bound to be someone committed to their beliefs to the point of zealotry. Not only are they committed, but they’re also liable to proselytize or project a holier-than-thou attitude, to cover up for an internal sense that their faith is wavering and/or inadequate. Their role in the session is to keep Hope alive – to hold their team together by providing a light on the horizon, and a beacon of faith when rational optimism is all but impossible.

Hope as an Aspect is all about conviction, about as opposed to Rage’s nihilism/absurdism, and acceptance/commitment as opposed to Rage’s skepticism. It shares with Time and Doom a fondness for grand narratives and suspension of disbelief, and will probably manifest as a belief in fate, predestination, or some similar force in those Bound to it. The Knight is there to defend and make the most of what little Hope their session has remaining, and in order to rise to the task they must realize that the Hope has been in them all along. As soon as they overcome the hesitance within themselves, they can become the force for truth and justice that their session so desperately needs.

The Knight’s Quest may involve a Planet whose native consorts have become despondent and pessimistic, despairing that any Hope could rise again. Their Denizen, even sleeping, may be a wrathful, depressive force that keeps them in this state, but before the Knight can confront the Denizen themselves, they will have to face their own demons and fulfill their duty of being a Light even in the bleakest of landscapes. Their force of will is their greatest strength, and it will confer an advantage greater than any weapon might; when all else is lost, they’re going to be the ones staggering to their feet and saying, despite all evidence to the contrary, that it ain’t over yet. This is a tremendous task to rise to, and the Knight will certainly struggle at first – it will be crucial for them to fall back on their allies when they must, even when it seems as though those allies’ convictions may not be so strong as their own. A Seer of Doom might help the Knight acquire resilience, understanding of how to press forward in the bleak circumstances they are all but certain to face. A Rogue of Time’s ability to “buy [the Knight] some time”, perhaps by literally sending them back in time to correct whatever the flaw may be in their Session, would be a formidable tool in conjunction with the Knight’s ability to utilize their beliefs in every way possible.

Opposite Role: The Rogue of Rage. Boy howdy are these two gonna have problems with one another. The Rogue’s role is to “appropriate, redistribute, and give their allies skepticism, anger, and destruction” – which is pretty much the last thing the Knight needs, given that they’re already less-than-confident in the strength of their beliefs. I could see a slow-burn of resentment building between the two, culminating in one or both of them Inverting or Over-embracing, and allowing the clash of their mutually exclusive beliefs to tear the team apart. Needless to say, the team should not(!) allow this to happen!! It is absolutely crucial, for the Knight especially, to have people on their side, and the Rogue of Rage is bound to be a real sower of discord. I never say never when it comes to relationships (romantic or platonic) or teamwork/collaboration between two roles, but these ones in particular are like oil and water.

God Tier Powers

The Knight’s Aspect is Culminative-Conclusive-Personal; their Class is that of the Active Defender. This means that their powers are going to draw on their own internal beliefs and conceptions, and be directed towards intensity/concentration as opposed to expansion or diffusion. They are literally carrying their faith as sword and shield, for better or for worse. Here are some ideas as to how that might manifest in their suite of post-Ascension powers…

Divine Grace: The Knight’s faith acts as a literal suit of armor, perhaps invisible, or perhaps made of shimmering white energy. As long as they’re confident that they will not be harmed, they could walk through an explosion unscathed, simply by virtue of their unassailable conviction. While they needn’t focus directly to keep this ability active, their defenses will drop as soon as their belief wavers, so they’ll have to have sufficiently developed in their personal arc to make the most of this ability.

Templar: When the Knight is near a symbolic manifestation of their cause, or their team’s cause, they are both physically and psychologically empowered, using any of their abilities (Aspect-related or otherwise) with greater skill and magnitude as long as they know that the symbol is there. They needn’t even see it directly, as long as they believe it to be present; obvious destruction of the symbol (which could be a flag, a building, or really any physical representation of what they stand for) will almost certainly shatter this belief, but they don’t have to have a direct line of sight, for example.

Hope Against Hope: The Knight can take the smallest glimmer of Hope and turn it into a great, radiant surge. Once they have reached the height of their control over Hope, they can invoke it to conjure up something they need, something fully real but only present so long as they believe it is. This could be a tool or a weapon at the time it’s needed most, or it could be something more abstract – a single moment of opportunity, perhaps, or maybe a message or a sign that the tides are turning. This is a very abstract and powerful ability and its limits are all-but-nonexistent, but it can only be called upon when all Hope seems lost, and the Knight truly relies on their faith against all the evidence that such faith is senseless.

Personality: The Knight of Hope’s zealotry might seem obnoxious to the, uh, less persuaded among their teammates, but it’s also what sets them apart and gives them much of their strength. What they really need to work through isn’t their conviction or stubbornness but rather their tendency towards burnout, and their constant anxiety that their faith isn’t adequate, that they aren’t holding up to their own standards. This doesn’t necessarily mean they should let their guard down or allow their beliefs to lapse or weaken, they’ve just got to learn that sometimes it’s best to let your actions speak for themselves, and to remain fully committed to practicing what they preach. If they can do this, they can do just about anything.

Their interests, outside of their religion or philosophical code, might involve some symbolic representation of belief or personal truth – role-playing, fiction writing, or dramatic reenactment are all possibilities. The common thread is that each activity involves significant creative energy and active, sustained suspension of disbelief – the very forces that the Knight will rely on over the course of their personal journey through the Game.

Songs: I’vve got a feww of these in mind already… 8y wwhich I mean I’m attemptin a rare and highly dangerous x3 Goats combo ::::p

Last Man on Earth by the Mountain Goats

Hail St. Sebastian by the Mountain Goats

Romans 10:9 by noted North Carolina Christian/Pagan ska/metal alt/pop five-piece, the Mountain Goats

Also like, viva la vida by coldplay or somethin

Anywways!! I hope you enjoyed readin this analysis; I certainly enjoyed wwritin it!! Thanks for the ask ^^^^v^^^^

~ P L U R ~

#Homestuck #classpect #Knight #Hope #knight of hope #Classpect analysis #Class #Aspect #the Mountain Goats #anon #ask

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paleblood-skyler · 4 years

Photo

I have some rambly words to say in honor of my one true love, the Beasthunter Saif. Every time I try to make a new character that doesn’t use the Saif, I can only get a short way through the game before the reality and the horror of it sets in... “You will not be using the Saif. What are you doing.” I choke, wander around the Hunter’s Dream, do some gestures for the Doll, see what Gherman is up to, look with great dread at my fortification screen. If I continue down this dark path of [Insert non-Saif weapon Here], I’ll have to live with not being able to employ a simple light attack to lunge into my enemies and follow up with a flurry combo of elegance and death. If I tap a strong attack I won’t get a quick thrust attack that lets me follow up with the same flurry. And, to my great disappointment, I realize that a charge attack will no longer be a combination of thrust AND blunt damage that lets me quickly end the lives of kin, executioners, or whatever else might be resistant to standard physical attacks.

But the greatest horror is yet to come, because I am soon beset by the terrible onus of knowing that a transform attack, committed at any point during the aforementioned dances and flurries, won’t UN-transform my weapon AND allow me to fall back in a sweeping gesture that doubles as both defense and offense, topped with the utmost style. And this attack, if I were to have it on the most woeful [Insert non-Saif weapon Here], would have bode most promising indeed for that weapon’s untransformed move set, for a litany of light attacks would have allowed me to cleave through great crowds of enemies with considerable damage, impact, and super-armor such that very few creatures of the night would have broken my resolute stature. Furthermore, tapping a strong attack would have allowed me to sweep with ever more impressive range and impact--spelling imminent doom for the posture of looming beasts that thought themselves safely out of my reach--while a charged attack, in the most ideal world, would have arced an unstoppable swing overhead, allowing me to easily win the toughest of headshots and capitalize on backstab damage before a visceral attack that, on the optimal Skill build appropriate for a hunter that would use such a weapon, would have left very little health left for the victim indeed. And let’s not dare to speak of the potential for adaptive combat presented by running attacks in either mode, nor the mid-combo or post-dodge attack that would re-transform the weapon in order to flow so cleanly into those original flurries with a snapping lunge that once again catches all prey off guard!

Honestly one might also beg that a weapon with these unequaled attributes offer serrated damage as well, but we are not beggars who desire the world of the Great Ones, throwing the entire hunting experience even further out of balance! Would they not have already given us a weapon that allows us to reliably use our firearms regardless of the trick weapon’s transformed nature, and to enhance its purely physical damage with bonuses from the elements of fire, bolt, and arcane as we desire them? But woe is me, for even if [Insert non-Saif weapon Here] were so blessed as to have such properties, it couldn’t possibly live up to its full potential without the spitting image of grace and elegance to match its momentous fluidity! Perhaps it could live up to this potential if it were based on the classic Saw-weapons’ designs, but with such a cleanly curving and refined double-sided blade that it could be respected as both a traditional (yet entirely unique) cleaving weapon as well as a holy marriage of sword and scythe.

But no such weapon could possibly exist, for if it did, all others would fall to unimaginable depths of inadequacy, whether they were of Yharnam origin or not. Indeed, any fateful wanderings from the blessed town of the Healing Church would be dogged by the quiet dissatisfaction born from this hypothetical weapon’s absence, and if (gods forbid) one were to remain in Yharnam and use a weapon other than the one I’ve precisely described despite having the opportunity to don it... my, what ludicrous madness! What fearful strayings from the wills of the Great Ones the likes of which I cannot fathom entertaining a second longer! Have mercy on the poor bastards! Bless us with blood! Iä! Iä! Beasthunter Saif ftaghn!! The Saw-Blade of the Dream with a Thousand Cuts!

#bloodborne #what I mean is #I like the saif a bit

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rosheendubh · 4 years

Text

Three swords there were, forged from elemental divinity--

Mimung, the weapon of the Waelsungs, split Brynhilde's heart and sped her to the embrace of her One Eyed God, wielded after, by Vortimer, Vortigern's son, of Sinfjotli's line, now Uter's (Ohthere's) blade, grim Ohthere, of two fathers sired upon unwilling Ygerna, Vortimer (Embreis Wledig), or perhaps of Egil-Ongentheow's seed, he vies with Onela (Aelle Bretwalda) for the soul of a nation, and a woman's heart...

Tyrfing, the doom of Arngrim's brood, that brave Hervor dared the barrows of her dead father's host, scorning sulfur and brimstone to retrieve metal cast to the Host of the Dead, shaming the fallen, seeking vengeance for slain brothers, sword recovered to living light, forever cursed to take life at price of unsheathing, whose hilt Onela's (Aelle Bretwalda's) strong hands now grip upon the Plains of Eboracum (York)...

The Sword of Ares, Sarmatian iron, born of stars, a virgin priestess's flesh mated in sacrament to the Stallion, King of Heaven, both sacrificed upon the alter of flame and blood, hammer and anvil, brought to the shores of Albion in the days of Empire's might, but as centuries passed, the Eagle decayed, raising Wolf and Raven and Mare, Venaura (Gwenhwyfar), gazes upon mighty Tyr's gift of blood-gold justice, bride of death, Raven Queen and Horse Goddess, daughter of blessed Saranyu who settled her nation upon the Isle of Mists centuries gone, and centuries gone, where this child of Peteova, Lady of the Cawnur, and her Beltane lover, Palomydez (Pabo Pillar of Prydain), Alani war-lord, once commanded fire from heaven, ripping through her mother's flesh, melting sinew with lightening-struck oak, petrified water-fused stone, blade clutched in her mother's hand, symbol of defiance against Egil-Ongentheow's invading host, salvaging a tormented island, where now his sons war, Onela (Aelle Bretwalda) and Uter (Ohthere), for supremacy over Albion's clashing tribes, and in one desperate hour, does Uter send harrowing word for aid of the North, and Venaura at long-last, asks grieving Palomydez, her true-father unknown, enjoin the war and sway the battle-tide, but bitter Palomydez, stubborn yet, refuses in contempt of the southern lords he blames for Petoeva's death, sword cleaved to oak-fired stone, petrified flesh, cold memory of his bright queen's sacrifice, until this moment when her daughter, whose spirit blazes like a thousand suns from gray eyes, stands proud before his hall, voice strong above the storm lashing through the vaulted chamber, she summons Aesir and Don, bearing in her clenched fingers the ghost-banner of Old Brigantia, insignia of Iazyge, Roman, and Briton, calling the God's fire once more from heaven in a blast that blinds his court, and bades men take shelter beneath table or bench, freeing star-iron from stone, so that Venaura, Peteova's proud daughter, frees the Sword of Ares born aloft once more, into the world of men--

"In the name of the Women of Albion, and Valentia between the Walls, I summon your One-Eyed god out of Shadow, and your queen, Palomydez, summons your horse-lords to war..."

Graphic, a result of me goofing around with PhotoLayers App, and ToonyTools online editing.

Verbosity, me droning in stream of conscience with highlights of how I see Uther's tale (and later, Arthur's) evolving with Gwenhwyfar's. Here, she’s based off a combo of Gwen, the daughter of Cunedda Wledig, and Gwenabwy (in my poor reverse linguistics, that’s actually Uindavia/Uendabhia), who’s the daughter of *Cawnur*, the sister of Gildas, Cywyllog, and Huail (from the delusional pedigrees of the Lives of the British Saints). Indeed, here Uther is actually adapted from the character of Ohthere (and in some bit, Amlwedd/Amlothi/Hamlet), who exists in some convoluted way, referenced as Vendel nobility, Ylfingas and Ynglingas (basically, Odin-Tyr progeny and Freyr progeny; Hamlet, and it’s predecessor Danish tale of Amothi/Ambhla-Odr, is basically another version, where Orwandil and Feng are representations of Odin/Tyr and Ingvi-Freyr. Somehow, Orwandil is also Egil-Ongentheow, which is also Angantyr. He shows up in various Anglo-Saxon genealogies as Angentheow/Angengeot). Amlothi marries both a northern British princess, and then a Scottish queen who was infamous for killing all her male suitors until she falls in love with Amlothi. Later, in Amlothi’s lay, the Scottish queen marries Wigleck, the adversary and new Danish king, and founds the line of East Anglians via Offa Anglian. Anyone whose ever read Widsith, and Beowulf, and any of the Swedish/Danish/Norwegian/Geat dynastic sagas knows how very convoluted are the pseudo-histories and personages. At the end of the day, I love the take of Aelle Bretwalda, something of a misplaced Teutonic invader, without any lineage, and 3 sons whose names supply locations in Sussex (Cymen, Cissa, Wlencing—my Lancelot/Gwallawg ap Lleenog, of the next generation with Arthur...who’s Vortiporius in my take), as Ale (Norse version of Onela’s name), as the 1/2 brother of Uther. My whole justification here is that Uther’s name shares a parallel meaning as Ohthere—terrible/fearsome warrior. Archaeology over the last few decades suggests something of a Swedish/possibly Geatish influx into East Anglia, from an earlier era (tentatively) based on the dating of certain artifacts, than traditionally believed. And possibly, the migration west of Mercian lines as East Anglian/Geatish pressure increased, reflecting a parallel migration of dynastic rivalries which followed them across the NorthSea board. The Sutton Hoo burial, and grave sites of mid-late 6th century/7th century East Anglia/The Norfolk-Suffolk areas allegedly have more features in common with the Swedish Vendel graves in southern Sweden than Anglian/continental Germanic burial sites of the same era. SOMETHING happened in Sweden/Denmark as well as Jutland that I believe involved late-Roman/Post-Roman Britain as well. Which leads me to wonder if the situation of the entire northern Seaboard all the way to the Baltic coast, isn’t a whole lot more complex than what our established theories reflect. Also, per poetic license, this circumstantial evidence allows me a bridge into fictional invite, proposing it’s Uther/Ohthere who becomes something of a prototype King Cnut/Canute, in my vision of his ambition, not of a Post-Roman Britain joined back with a dying Western Roman Empire which Constantinople refuses to concede, but a Britain united with the Nordic houses of Sweden/Daneland/Jutland, and reaching out to Theoderic the Great/Sexy Amalung to form some sort of Successor State confederacy, acting as a bulwark against Constantinople’s grasping influence, as well as the rising Frankish power of Clovis and the Merovingians. There’s reports Theoderic’s court of Ravenna hosted a Swedish king who’d sworn off his countrymen (Radulph—some scholars think he may actually be the personage upon whom Hrolfr Kraki was based), as well as Theoderic harboring, like his 18th century presidential doppelgänger, Thomas Jefferson (who was forever fascinated by the Western mystique of the American frontier and her indigenous peoples), something of an enlightened interest in collecting whatever history or knowledge related to northern tribal peoples, like the (mistaken, but heavily advertised) notion of Geats and Goths sharing a common root heritage.

This, This warped version finds inspiration from not just from the classic Brithish manuscripts or epics of Arthur, but combines Nordic legend/saga sources with late Roman figures synthesized with British/Germanic/Nordic figures. Story of Ongentheow and his sons, for starters. I have 2 notebook pages full up in finest logic tree form, like a jungle of neurons, detailing my convoluted interpretations and parallels of historic personages, and legendary/literary.

Lastly, Something about Vortigern's geneology always bothered me, especially in his kinship with The Jutes, Hengist and Horsa. A piece submerged or missing, that made me wonder if he wasn't only British, but as with so many high-ranking military officers in the early 5/mid-th century, perhaps also shared some Germanic/Teutonic lineage, which would explain his partiality to the Jutes, and their willingness to serve him in Britain at his invite. It’s recorded (in not very reliable sources), Vortigern’s father is a Vitalinus or Vitalis. A solidly Latin name, which shares a wonderful synchrony with Fitelis, the modified version of Sinfjotli, the son of Sigmund and Signy Waelsung, which relates back to the whole Brynhilde/Sigfrid/death of the Burgundians/ doom of Attila thread. I’m actually just partial to Wotan and his symbolism with changing eras of history—war/rebellion/evolution/revolution/enlightenment. I also seem inclined to a symbolism of male characters as something like representations of that iconography, while my female characters act as mediums of inspiration for social/political reform, and logic/temperance/challenging the notion change only comes through violent upheaval. In lieu here, is a young Gwen, educated in Rome, as physician (of course...she does tie to Caroline Eleanor Graham later in preRev Paris), as ruler-philosopher, and yes, as a warrior in the style of nomadic horsewomen (how I bring in the character, Alardin as her tutor in these studies through her formative years exiled from Alba/Caledonia after her mother’s death). I hate the warrior queen motif. Not that my perspective alleviates gross anachronism, but I’d rather suggest she’s a queen, or at least, per the tradition of Caledonian tribes around the Walls, it’s through marriage she conveys the right of rulership to the man she eventually selects as her husband. Until then, she rules/advises her father and older brother when her father invites her back from Rome finally. And later, when Uther’s wars require the companies of the Votadini (her tribe), she’s left ruling in her father/brother’s stead, until Uther asks for her intervention, to summon the Pictish tribes of the far north, and Pabo Post Prydein’s Alani heavy cavalry, who occupy the area of Rheged, I place in NW Cumbria and SW Scotland/Galloway-Dumfries. Rerigonium looks an awful lot like an inspiration for Rheged, IMHO. Also, oddly, according to the Lives of the British saints, Pabo shares some sort of weird root with Palomides (?.). So, I’d rather suggest, Gwen is a woman who becomes a queen, from a family of Romanized-buffer state Caledonians, and as any woman in a position of influence, raised in a volatile era, and volatile province, essentially defined as *frontier zone*, I’d rather think she was raised to be competent, and strong-willed, and perhaps, more talented/unconventional/resourceful than what might be expected in a more pacific time. As I would expect of other women, and their men as well—British/Roman/or Germanic-Nordic...

Anyway, as the whole tragedy of Waelsungs, the Burgundians, and later Britain ties back, according to the Eddic poems, and Wagner, to that tale of Andarvi’s gold, Otter, and a neck-ring from that cursed were-gild which comes into Gudrun’s hands, I have Gudrun as a grieving Abbess residing in Rome, the patron to whom Gwen is sent to be educated as a girl. They don’t have a good relationship at first—Gwen, a rebellious girl who hardly knew her mother, and resents her father for sending to a college of widowed and bitter women, and Gudrun, who mourns her daughter, Swanhilde, slaughtered in an act of betrayal, and now, lives lay to see her son, ERP/Hyrp, take the throne of Caesar. Don’t ask how, but legends say, Gudrun does have a son named ERP/Hyrp. Somehow, Erp/Hyrp relates to Eadowacer, and that name is a version of the eponymous Odovaver/Adavacrius who deposed the last emperor in 476. He ties in with the story of Gwen, and Theoderic the Great as well. Anyhow, that cursed treasure with it’s cursed neck-ring sits in a convent in a quite, genteely decaying corner of the old Capital. No one wants to touch it b/c it’s cursed, and by this point of Gwen’s maturing to a young, precocious woman, she knows the legacy and taint it has upon the Abbess Gudrun she’s come to love as her mother. So, she decides to enlist the best street gangs of the convent’s local neighborhood, various carpenters/construction crews/artisans/as well as river merchants who want a cut of profit, and retain their own armed guards, to basically revive the convent’s local marketplace, founding their local agricultural coop/and vendor sites, as well as establishing a neighborhood hospital (based of St Galla’s, I think), and to add one more twist to Wotan’s cursed treasure, she takes the neck ring, and has it melted/redrafted into surgical implements which, to her delight, NEVER rust. And have amazing antibacterial properties...as some metal alloys are known to possess. Anyway, that’s the same woman who, rather than Uther or Arthur (her son, by Uther and Theoderic), who pulls the Sword from the Stone, the Sword which took her mother’s life, if that made any sense, up above, to mend a dynastic feud of Northern British houses, which has embroiled her biological father (Pabo) and her acknowledged father, Cunedda, since Gwen’s mother sacrificed her life to fend off an invasion of Swedes when Gwen was a child. It’s the moment Gwen realizes she has the aptitude and the attitude to sovereignty in interests of her people, and claims rule of Valentia, that troublesome province of Count Theodosius dating back to 370AD, which has confounded modern scholars as to where Valentia was located. I place it between the Wall of Antoninus and Hadrian, to include the regions north and south of each those boundaries as well. Thus, she is, rather like Amlothi’s Scottish queen (no Scotland in late 5th/early 6th c...), The Queen of the North (ah, GRRMartin and HBO, I’ll never forgive you for Season8), and rallies the discordant tribes of the Pretani/Picts, and the Caledonians (those Lowland and Scottish Border regions) to Uther’s aid, outside of Eboracum. Which is my draw from GeoffreyofMonmouth, and the HistoriaBrittonum, of Battle 8/The Battle Guinnion/TheWhiteFortress (don’t ask, but root words of Eboracum aside, either as *yew tree*, in the British, the Latin root of *eburos* is ivory. And if you’ve been to York, they have those lovely white-trunked trees everywhere, and its Walls, albeit dating from the MiddleAges, must have been at least as magnificent, indestructible, and...white, even by the later quarter of the 400s AD. One of my favorite cities, and hope to back when the world’s not so crazy...). How the dynasty of Eleutherius and York/Eboracum becomes occupied by Teutonic forces, you ask? Ties with Germanic/Teutonic royalty, of course, but resolving that takes up way too much precious Tumblr space already. Rambles done, other than to add, the description of Cath Goddeu/The Battle of the Trees, from Welsh poetic sources, makes for wonderful mythic depiction of the Men of the North, and their Queen, advancing with a rising storm we all know is the Wild Hunt. And in the case of Gwen bearing the Sword of the Sarmatians/Iayzyges that had once belonged to the company of the long dead Artorius Castus, and his Brigantian Queen, who herself, once united a warring island in its desperate hour, Venaura’s actions have roused the old Guardians of Albion, the ghosts of Sarmati and their horse-lords, riding with their Alani scions of Rheged, in the name of the Women of Albion. My nod to William Blake, as Nemiane (my late 2nd c Romano-Brigantian military surgeon/Artorius’s lover), Gwen, and Caroline—the Scottish lady physician who becomes Jefferson’s lover in 18th c Paris, all find some reflection in the themes of Blake’s monumental mythicism. Thus, I believe we start this work with Blake, writing Vision of the Women of Albion...

#Arthuriana #Guinevere #Uther Pendragon #King Arthur #Sub-Roman Britain

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reinswoth-bdo · 4 years

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BDO journey of ReinsWoth

When I started BDO, the first character I made was a Kunoichi. I named her “KieyraAi”. I had a liking on assassin - since it’s a gender lock for BDO, I chose Kunoichi instead of Ninja (I like girl character more in most games since you’ll have more options on creation).

I still remember I had a green short-haired kunoichi grinding somewhere in Sand Grain Bazaar - Desert Naga, for sure.

I started gearing up for my kunoichi - bidding on her boss weapons (it was not central market yet that time). Won bid on kzarka shortsword, kutum and nouver kunai. Slowly, I try enhancing for PRI, DUO, TRI myself using the Cliff’s weapons. Few guides were presented to me from my guild <HELLION> during that time. It was hard playing the class since you need to master the combos and really need a very smooth gameplay. I went for node wars (defend team flame thrower and hwacha operators) and GvG - was badly under geared but for experiences - tried to join. Too bad, I was lagging so badly with constant FPS drop. My PC is not so high end build - indeed, just an office type of PC that I pushed for gaming.

It doesn’t means I can’t keep progressing on my character.

I started getting frustrated on kunoichi that I switched to witch for a new style gameplay and her name is “Rozenelle”. With witch, I feel so chill playing the class - most of my skills are in quickslots and really relax gameplay. I told my guild “if I succeed bid on witch’s awakening weapon (dandelion), I will fully reroll to witch” and you can guess what happened - I got it! So, it’s the true journey for me to restart all over again. I changed the armors I have on my kunoichi to my witch. She was originally a lifeskiller - farmer, cook, alchemist and trainer.

Lots more to learn all over again - combos, PVX and re-learns skills.

Slowly, I started enhancing gears for the witch. I brought so many outfits that I pre-order from the market (during this time, central market is introduced). From a DP witch to hybrid witch to AP-EVA witch. This time, I already left <HELLION> and joined <NYAA>. I still progressing my gears - goals from full TRI (boss armors/weapons and blue grade TRI accessories) then slowly, I enhanced again and make all TET with TRI yellow accessories.

It took me over one year since I started.

Slowly, I tried to progress again. My goals were - a dream horse or Vell’s Heart. Along with my friend, we made a promise. As I was saving up silvers, I had dilemma if I should go for a yellow TET accessories or the 2 of my main goals. Looking at the market, every time I had enough money for Vell’s Heart, the price went up again. Almost giving up - I did told my guild that I wanted a dream horse, not arduanatt or doom. Doom would be useless for me since I don’t really have high AP to go with. I wanted Dine because it can basically run on any type of terrains especially the Desert and... I did get a Dine. I don’t regret it.

I always say, “what is AP anyway?”

Looking back, I do still like playing on my kunoichi. I would hit some scarecrows or dummies for fun. Too bad I don’t focus on her now. I just use her for some pretty screenshots or for gathering when I’m out of energy. These two - kunoichi and witch is my most precious characters I made. I treasure all of my characters - but there’s nothing the same like the first and most progressed character you focused one. If I could main few classes at the same time, I would go back to kunoichi for sure but I’m going to focus gearing up my witch until I reached the goal of the game.

Well, there’s more content awaits. The game is a marathon, not a race.

#BDO #BDOSEA #BDOREMASTERED #BLACK DESERT ONLINE #BLACKDESERTONLINE #BLACK DESERT #KUNOICHI #WITCH #MMORPG #BLACKDESERTSEA #BLACK DESERT SEA

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about-feathers-and-claws · 5 years

Photo

Divinity Original Sin 2 : About Feathers and Claws - The Divine Doom Deleting scenes make me want to draw them.

-------------------- [Deleted Scene] --------------------

“So... how is that book, uh?”

Sandor blinked, “Do you want me to tell you about it?”

“Well... Unlike all that other stuff you usually talk about, I probably will get it.”

Ifan averted his eyes down for a moment.

Sandor believed to see a small fragment of insecurity. Raised eyebrows, he remained silent for a moment, surprised for such revelation. Putting aside the book he was reading, he observed Ifan who a bit uncomfortable hid his face in the curve of Sandor's neck.

Ifan was not a scholar. His knowledge of the world had always come from experience, from mistakes, from small teachings that other people gave him along his life. All what Sandor knew, that vast amount of fancy complicated words, of long logical procedures, of languages, of sources and books and authors; all that was completely out of his reach. He could follow the simplest concepts, but it was easy for him to get lost quickly. He knew he was not particularly the best companion for a scholar. And a scholar could not be the most suitable for him either. Still yet, here they were.

“Is it not boring for you?” Sandor said, his voice tinged with hesitation.

“Give it a shot. You have been reading that book since I know you. Almost.”

Sandor frowned. “Indeed, it's the same author but it's not the same book.”

Ifan closed his eyes, nuzzled in Sandor's neck breathing that scent of home-made bread that he liked so much, and embraced the man, letting his body relax. Sandor's voice, soft and calm, in combination with his warmth in that comfortable bed was the best combo to fall asleep.

“Well, what is it about?” Ifan insisted.

“It's a romance story, you know it.”

“Who with who?”

“You really want me to tell you all the details?”

“I'm not going to read it. I prefer your voice narrating it.”

Sandor smiled in a silly way and moved in the bed to be more comfortable. He slid his arm under Ifan's neck and caressed his long hair while talking. “It's the story of a Knight, defending the Empire from an foreign nation. There is a lot of political stuff. He found in the enemy line a Mage that he could not kill in an encounter.”

“Why? Too powerful?”

“No. The Mage had amber eyes. It's a feature of people of an almost extinct tribe that the Knight is part of. The Knight has been shamed for that past all his life, so he was under different magical procedures to change the colour of his own eyes. They turned black. It's an interesting concept, you know? Because he is described as the embodiment of moral and rightness, but his actions are twisted and dark, pretty much like his eyes.”

“Mhn?. So, he is all about shiny armour but dark insides?”

“A bit. It's more like a consequence of his inner battle against himself. Don't accept yourself and you will be twisted by your own nature. That kind of thing.”

Ifan only sighed a bit heavy, as if the concept had resounded a little bit in his mind. Then, he felt Sandor's fingers scratching his scalp gently. Ifan left a peck on Sandor’s neck.

“It doesn't look like a romance so far.” Ifan said.

“There are two more characters. The enemy Mage of amber eyes, who is attacking the Empire, and the son of the Queen of the Empire, who has been interested in the Knight since children.”

“Ah. A love story that started from childhood?”

“Kind of. The Knight and the Prince always played as friends, crossing certain limits in their teenage years. They... they had their first time together, in secret. It was lovely to read that part.” Now it was Sandor who sighed as his muscles tensed. “Exploring each other's body, their ability to feel, to share...” he swallowed hard, as his fingers tensed a little bit on Ifan's scalp. “First times shaping them, linking them, making their bond deeper...”

Ifan lifted his face a bit and saw Sandor's eyes. They were lost in the ceiling, only for a moment. Then, they lowered to see Ifan's. A long silence remained between them, observing each other. It was hard to say anything that could ease that pain in Sandor. It was part of his scars. Ifan only stretched his neck and kissed Sandor in his lips, returning to nuzzle his neck.

“So... the romance stops there?” Ifan said.

Sandor cleared his throat and continued, “No. When the Knight fought against the Mage, and saw his amber eyes, he was shocked. He could not behead the Mage so he took him prisoner. His soldiers interviewed the Mage with hard manners. One day, when the Knight went to the dungeon to see the progress, he found the Mage heavily wounded. The soldiers of that Empire hated that tribe. The whole series tells you that the tribe of the Sun Eyes were savages that attacked the Empire every time they could. They had massacred whole towns and killed and tortured people who were under the Empire protection. They were evil, so it was expected that the Mage would be treated that way. However, the picture of his mistreated body made the Knight wonder about his own present and his own secret. Would torture have been his future, had he not changed the colour of his own eyes?. Somehow, that wounded Mage was the answer of his thoughts.”

“Mnh, it doesn't sound like a bad story to read.”

“Do you want me to stop? So you can read it later?”

“No, forget it. I’ve told you already, I prefer the sound of your voice.”

Sandor beamed and accommodated his body on the mattress, noticing how immediately Ifan lifted his heavy body to allow him to do so, returning to his neck immediately afterwards. Several pecks were left there.

“Well. The Knight observed the bloody tortured body of the Mage, and his intense Sun Eyes looking at him, with hatred. You can't pretend before me, the Mage said. He could sense the Knight's true nature. The Mage knew that the Knight was one of them.”

“He needed to kill that Mage right there, before he could speak and use that secret as blackmail.” Ifan said, his mercenary mind stepping ahead.

“Too late.”

“Uh?.” Ifan lifted his head and looked at Sandor. “He had already spoke to the torturers?”

Sandor nodded, arranging Ifan's hair behind his ear. “They were setting a trap for the Knight. That scene was interesting too. The Mage confessed him that he had spoken about his secret. The soldiers were just trying to confirm his past, since for the first time, they wondered why the Knight had so many holes in his family story. So, the Knight had to run away, but he wanted to hurt that Mage for what he had done. For ruining his life. So he took him and left the Empire forever. They ended up in a cave where the Knight had decided to torture the Mage to his death, but the defiance of those Sun Eyes was a terrible weight for him. He couldn't. He only could punch him. And bursting into tears, the Knight shouted at the mage all the ordeals he had to pass through in order to have a life far away from the curse of the Sun Eyes tribes. The Mage told him that he was silly, that there was no curse. That only one to truly blame was the Empire. The Mage explained the tribe's perspective. How the Empire had taken them as slaves, had used them as workers to death, had stolen their cities, and destroyed millenia of culture and knowledge. No book from the Sun Eyes had survived the raging and euphoric systemic erasure of the Empire. The Empire rewrote the whole story of the Sun Eyes. All convenient lies. That was the last step to complete the massacre. Only a few children were spared that survived far away from the borders of the Empire. The Mage was one of them, and he wanted to spread the Truth.”

“The hell of a story. The romance is not important.”

“No, it is. The Mage and the Knight spent so many years in exile, reconnecting the Knight to his heritage, opening his eyes to the Truth, that they fell in love. They became the last of their kind: one proud of being a Sun Eye, the other, ashamed of it, with his feature contaminated. Their romance is full of contradictions and revelations. The scenes of those two are incredibly... hot.”

Ifan laughed. “Why?”

Sandor cleared his throat. “Sex with magic.”

Ifan blushed, burying his face in Sandor's neck. “Don't tell me you got ideas from them.”

“No, they are not Sourcerers. But the electricity thing... well... It gave me a lead.”

Ifan chuckled, his rumbling chest resonating against Sandor's ribs.

“The drama starts when the Knight joins the cause against the Empire and has to face the Prince. The Prince loves him so he is desperate to recover the Knight. He promises him that he would protect him from the Empire hatred, that he would manage to convince his Mother to accept their relationship now that the Knight has been uncovered as a Sun Eye too. That he still trusted in him deeply. And the Knight faltered.”

“Hell, no!. Don't tell me the asshole kicks the Mage.”

“Did you remember the other night you were worried about my tears?” Sandor said, a bit ashamed of the fact.

Ifan chuckled, “You told me it was the book.”

“It was that scene. The Mage could not compete with the childhood love. And the Knight betrayed him. They set a trap for the Mage. And the last one of the Sun Eyes, with amber eyes, died.”

“What? That's terrible!”.

“The scene was terrible. The Mage was still loving the Knight as he died, knowing it could have been very different if the world were not be so cruel. And the Knight, quite late, was mortified with the sight of the Mage being killed with a massive cast of ice around his body. The cold suffocating him to death. A death that, in the fantasy of this book, rips always the Sun from their eyes. Quite poetic. The Knight felt hollow with that execution. But it was too late to do anything. He was now the last one of his kind, but one who had tarnished his nature in all senses. He was a betrayer. And remained by the Prince's side. He kept sleeping with the one who had loved him without knowing about his nature, the one that kept encouraging him not to be who he truly was. Just because they were children when everything started. They kept trying to maintain things like they used to be in that more innocent time... and so far... that's the story. First times are something too engraved in a person's soul. They have a unique weight.”

Sandor's tears ran across his cheeks, as he analysed the story loudly. Worried, Ifan rested his body on his elbows and wiped Sandor's tears, smiling gently at him. “It's a story, Sandy.”

“It's something that has been happening for many, many centuries. The name or the ranks of the characters may be different. But this story… has happened thousands of times. It must be happening right now too. Imagine that... poor mage. First times shape a person too deeply.” His lips trembled.

Ifan lent in, kissed him slowly and gently. He looked into his eyes, caressing his temple. “Maybe. But...Don't worry, Sandy. You don’t have amber eyes. And I'll be choosing you in any story.”

That terribly cheesy phrase made Sandor smile, and a couple of tears fell accidently while accepting that strong embrace around him.

#fic: About Feathers and Claws #my crappy art #ifan ben mezd #Ifan Ben-Mezd #sandor das balurik #fanart #oc #godwoken #fiction #fanfiction #The Divine Doom - deleted scenes #deleted scenes

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lily-blue · 4 years

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CODE Z3RO | CODE 02

characters: BTS & Red Velvet genre: thriller, futuristic au warning: none summary: The twelve most ambitious and promising university students are welcomed in Choego, the world’s first entirely artificial intelligence-driven city, to compete for five job contracts that could change their life. But what if something goes wrong? What if they get trapped? What if the city suddenly turns against them? Can they find a way out before the countdown reaches zero? words: 4,3K tagged: @philosopher-of-fandoms

➼ Chapter Index

Bae Joohyun looked in the mirror in the common bathroom with pure desperation in her eyes while she was trying to arrange the messy locks atop her head in a presentable manner in vain.

‘Come on! You can do this…’ she whispered under her nose out of anger when her shaky hands found the edge of the metal sink along with the support that she needed. As her long fingers clenched around the stern material, her knuckles became white from one minute to another and the girl majoring in Psychology failed to calm her ever so jittery heart. Joohyun’s chest was bouncing like crazy which meant no good as her breathing became heavy. And the fact that the first drops of sweat ran down her temple didn’t help either. She was on the verge of throwing up.

As her right shoulder crashed into the cool wall, she closed her eyes counting to three, four and five. It took all her willpower to overcome her past that seemed to haunt her ever since she’d crossed the threshold of their temporary accommodation. Just like her annoying roommates, she was willing to do anything to get one out of the five contracts the company in charge promised them, yet with every passing moment she became less and less confident that she actually had a chance. With that genius brat who had all the background knowledge this place could have ever needed and the one with bunny teeth who had been aware of the hidden cameras before that powerful woman could even mention them…

Joohyun took a breath trembling like those withered leaves that couldn’t resist the will of the storm then slid along the wall with faint sobs as she tried to whisper a little courage into the void. After all, she was a grown-up woman now and nothing like the street trash, her ex classmates had used to call her. Considering all those years when they had bullied her, it wasn’t a surprise that she felt uncomfortable sharing her bedroom with her rivals. What truly amazed her was the fact that she’d almost fallen asleep before that stupid kiddo next room had shut that damn door a bit louder than she’d supposed to.

Speaking of noises, Joohyun lifted her head up as soon as she noticed the slight change in the atmosphere. Something was off outside of the bathroom’s protecting shelter but the unmistaken sound of someone’s firm order was quiet as if it came from under heavy layers of water. She couldn’t really put her finger on the upcoming problem nor the possible solution of it that indeed was quite troublesome.

Joohyun pinched her arm multiple times so that she could gather enough power to stand up without falling onto her knees. Dizziness still lingered in hear body when she leaned over the sink to wash her face.

The psychology student left the bathroom with fierce eyes following the noises that came from the common area perfectly halfway between the girls’ and the boys’ dorm.

‘What the heck is going on?’ she asked as her feet bumped into the threshold yet no one listened or gave her a detailed explanation of the messy situation. So lack of any better idea, Joohyun chose to head back to her room staying out of Jimin’s way who seemed quite lost with a sleepy Hoseok at his heels. The Sociology student from Seoul National clenched his jaw in fear when the girl accidentally pushed his bag out of his hand.

The Gangnam girl in her room, Sooyoung or whatever she was called, was still asleep when Joohyun’s hand reached the handle absentmindedly playing with the lock before she would have stepped inside. The girl with the cool, American name, the one that didn’t freak her out, sent her a relieved smile then rolled her eyes turning towards the nuisance drooling all over the sheets. Joohyun felt sorry for her but didn’t lift a finger to help her nor the sleepyhead.

‘Wake up! We have to leave,’ Wendy prodded Sooyoung in the ribs chewing her own lips out of frustration. She couldn’t just walk away leaving the girl behind whether or not Seokjin and his sister were right about the simulation that was supposed to start after a hearty breakfast or at least a relaxing nap. This whole situation was so out of the blue just as she expected from a competition. After all, only a handful of them would be able to sign these dream contracts of wealth and acknowledgement. It was only fair to get their chances to prove their worth.

According to Seokjin’s explanation, their first task was simple. They had to get out of the third area of the town or at least the building before the clock would hit three and the electrical grid would be turned off by the scientists watching them from afar. In a real life situation, if they hadn’t gotten out of the dorm or any other building in Choego in time, they would have stuck inside without a functional air exchange system doomed to die in suffocation. They were testing their abilities in emergency.

‘It’s still dark outside, so please do me a favor and fuck off!’ Sooyoung murmured under her nose before she pushed the redhead further away with one of her hands. Then she turned her back on the chaos and pulled the pillow onto her face as a lame attempt of shutting out all the noises coming from the corridor. She couldn’t care less, seriously, since she was absolutely sure that there was already a contract waiting for her classy signature in the upper drawer of that smarty woman’s desk. ‘I need my beauty sleep because this face looks hella gorgeous for a reason. You should try it too instead of those cheap products you use.’

Joohyun almost burst into giggles at Gangnam girl’s sassy reply while she was packing her stuff paying extra attention to her energy bars and water bottles just in case the simulation turned out to be more tiring than they’d thought. Not to mention that there was always a slight chance of them not being able to come back to the closed area until this whole thing was over. She couldn’t be careless even though she was finally satisfied and full of confidence now that she found someone who wasn’t a real match for her.

‘Come on! We’re teammates, don’t you remember?’ Wendy tried to reason as she pulled the blanket off of daddy’s princess throwing the soft textile onto the carpet. She put her hands onto her waist, flames dancing in her eyes, then kicked the wooden frame of the bed three times to got Sooyoung’s attention. She was scary in her own, warm-hearted way. ‘I won’t leave you here, so get your shit together and get up before I stop asking you nicely.’

After a few more grumpy moans, Sooyoung finally realized that she had no other choice left but to follow Wendy’s orders and the fact only made her already irritating personality worse as if it was possible. She changed her clothes with utter care regardless of the pressure that her roommates failed to put on her shoulders then made a high ponytail and also applied some dark blue eyeshadow just to get on their nerves. If Wendy hadn’t insisted on cooperation so badly, Joohyun would have left the room by then without regret washing over her. She had to admit, the redhead seemed to be a strong ally against the others. She needed Wendy’s fearless attitude - at least, until she didn’t find someone better.

When Sooyoung finally finished wasting their precious time with unnecessary things like searching for the world’s sweetest perfume in her flower patterned dressing case or putting a bedside lamp on the threshold to hold up the door that had constantly closed itself while she’d tried to take her bags out, she burst out of the room acting as their leader that boiled both of the girls’ blood. While the redhead’s face became a light shade of crimson, Joohyun’s nails dug crescents deep into her palms.

‘How dares she! That little piece of s…,’ she started with clenched teeth, a wide vein pulsing on her neck. She was more than furious but then she noticed a familiar object on Sooyoung’s bedside table and it cut the air out of her lungs. It was the same, neutral bracelet she had on her left wrist, the one that could open most of the doors in their accomodation along with some others outside of the building. It was more than a nice accessory which made it hard to believe that anyone - including daddy’s little princess too - would actually leave something as important as their master key behind. Yet, it was laying on the bedside table therefore Joohyun chose to take advantage of Sooyoung’s dense personality and put the accessory into her pocket with a satisfied smile playing on her lips. For the first time since they crossed the dorm’s threshold, she was happy to be in the same team as the Gangnam girl.

It took the Psychology major a whole minute to catch up with her roommates but eventually, her shoulder crashed into Wendy’s who greeted her with the same smile she had done barely twenty minutes ago. She didn’t care why the other girl was late, the only thing that mattered was Joohyun finding them in the middle of the mess. For the rest of the way, they stuck together as if they were indeed each other’s best chance although a part of Joohyun knew that without Wendy’s maternal instincts, the redhead would have never stayed by their side. As sad as it sounded, they were both useless - while Joohyun couldn’t help her win, Sooyoung was a real pain in the ass.

‘Holy Versace! Where is it? Aish. It’s supposed to be here!’ the Gangnam girl in her perfect leather jacket, ripped jeans and high heels combo cried out, lips trembling in agony. She looked devastated as if she was fighting with tears and for an ephemeral moment Joohyun almost felt sorry for her. ‘I must left it in my room. It has to be there!’ she came to a conclusion as her left fist crashed into her right palm.

Sooyoung gave her bag to Wendy paying no attention to the number of those bags the girl had already carried then turned her back on them and rushed back to her room regardless of the redhead’s opposition. If one could kill with a single glance, Miss Better Than Everyone Else would have been dead by now.

Wendy’s struggle was obvious, Joohyun could see it in her eyes. She couldn’t decide whether she should have run after her roommate or wait in one place completely clueless therefore she put her weight from one leg to another everytime she made up her mind.

‘Come on! We have to hurry,’ Joohyun cried out wrapping her fingers around the girl’s wrist at the same time as a pastel haired guy grabbed Wendy’s backpack.

‘Thank God, I’ve found you,’ Namjoon said pulling his dumbfounded girlfriend close to his chest. He was still in his pyjamas as if he had come looking for Wendy as soon as he had gotten out of his bed and a part of Joohyun felt bitter being unable to tear her gaze away from the lovebirds. She was twenty-six, three years older than Wendy, yet she’d never had anyone who would have looked at her the way Namjoon looked at his girl.

Chewing on her lips, Joohyun couldn’t help but to consider herself as the unwanted third wheel in a cheesy relationship therefore she felt truly relieved when Namjoon took two bags out of Wendy’s hands then pulled her towards the exit. Being left behind, the Psychology major’s breathing became heavy that didn’t take her by surprise. Whenever anxiety took control over her body, the symptoms appeared. Yet, as she recognized Seokjin’s calm voice from somewhere behind her back, she had the presence of mind to go after Sooyoung. She had to tell her that she’d found her bracelet. Wendy would have been furious if she had found out that she had taken it on purpose.

She arrived at their room’s threshold when Gangnam girl threw her blanket onto the ground finding the limited edition lipstick she’d been looking for and the fact only that she had noticed its absence before the bracelet’s pushed Joohyun to her limits. When the corridor seemed completely empty, she closed their room’s door, getting the lamp out of the way. For a few more seconds, she watched Sooyoung who smiled with satisfaction then ran out of the accommodation.

Jeon Jungkook was one of the last candidates who reached the common area that also meant that he got the ungrateful task to check every single room looking for abandoned fellows. It sucked and was most likely a waste of time but he couldn’t have come up with a proper excuse - as Seulgi did - when Seokjin had asked him to do this little favor for him while he helped the said girl with her belongings. He had to check the girls’ dormitory since the boys’ was already empty. All this trouble for a weak girl and her weak arms.

Fixing both straps of his backpack, Jungkook turned his back on the others with an annoyed face pouting like a child who didn’t get what he wanted. If that idiot roommate of his with his lilac hair and bad attitude hadn’t left his stuff in the way making it impossible for the younger to pack his things, Jungkook would have been the first who made it outside. It was something the engineer would bet his life on unlike on Taehyung’s intentions. That guy was a mystery.

‘You better see that I’m doing this for the team,’ he cursed under his nose reminding himself of all those hidden cameras the company had installed to observe every tiny step they made. He hoped that his cooperative skill was rather an advantage than a negative point written right under his name.

He stood in front of the bathroom’s door knocking on its cool surface when one of the girls ran across the corridor without even noticing his presence. Truth to tell, Jungkook wasn’t any better either since he couldn’t put his finger on the girl’s identity. They were all the same to him with their dark eyes, slim lips and long hairs. They were his rivals, his enemies and those who couldn’t accept the cruel reality were all fools destined to lose. Like Seokjin and his little sister who warned every candidate instead of leaving them behind. If he had been in their shoes, he wouldn’t have bothered with such things.

When he didn’t get any response from the bathroom, Jungkook walked down the corridor kicking an imaginary rock as if he had been on the street near to his family’s home. They lived in the suburbs in a small rooftop house, a flickering lamp pose guiding their way after a rough day at work. Because if there was something Sooyoung was actually right about, it was this place being everything his parents couldn’t afford but Jungkook was ready to change their fate.

As his steps died in front of the double room, the boy found it amusing that its owners had spent a couple of minutes to make the beds arranging the sheets and the blankets that he’d left alone as messy as it’d become while he was sleeping.

‘What a waste of time,’ he said tilting his head to right as he swallowed an inappropriate laughter and let his hand fall back to his side. One room was down and another had left to go.

Scratching his nape out of boredom, it took him six tiny steps and two annoyed sighs to reach the next room on the opposite side of the hallway. Unlike the other, this one wasn’t exactly clean nor empty - creasy sheets on the floor, bedside lamp broken and a girl with her back leaning against the wall - but the fact that Park Sooyoung was the one playing with the handle as if she’d had all the time in the world didn’t get the boy in the mood to play the selfless teammate. He stopped only for a mere minute to check the place behind her figure through the transparent door before he continued his way back to the common area.

Sooyoung didn’t understand what was happening but one thing was for sure, she couldn’t open the damn door without her bracelet. Fucking high-tech security. And that idiot, ugly, little accessory was nowhere to be found.

‘Hello! As you can see, I’m still here! Open the stupid door!’ she screamed into the void addressing her disrespectful words to no one in particular. She was mad at the company, their programme and the simulation that had started way too early for her liking. She prefered long naps and lazy mornings over hectic tasks out of nowhere and also liked her hot americano served with cold milk and sugar before she got out of bed. If only her father hadn’t insisted on putting her onto the list of the candidates! She would have been one of their employees by now.

She snorted when a dark shadow came across her view forcing her gaze to stick on the young boy whom she had called a charity case not so long ago. His features were kind of cute although tiredness dug itself into his appearance not to mention his clothes that were too cheap for Sooyoung’s taste. She hated the idea of begging for a poor guy’s help yet she tugged on the handle with all her might to got Jungkook’s attention. As awful as it sounded, she needed him. Well, his help to get her a girl who could have opened the door to be precise.

‘Hey, you! Help me!’ she screamed over and over again until her throat went dry and the saliva started to taste like iron in her mouth. A part of her - to the Gangnam girl’s honest surprise - was eager to prove her father wrong showing him that she was capable of passing the tests yet it would have been so easy to give up, throwing a tantrum as she always did. Last summer, she’d gotten a new car after she’d cried her eyes out in public. Getting the coolest job on Earth should have been as easy as pie.

When the girl’s hand flinched, Jungkook’s sank into his pockets, his brows knitted to each other with a strange mixture of confusion and annoyance. After all those things the Gangnam girl had said, he would have rather burnt his hands than carrying her designer bags full of unnecessary items like her expensive perfumes and golden accessories. He rolled his eyes then turned his back on the girl, walking back to the common area. By the time his sneakers crossed the dining room, everyone else was outside.

Sooyoung screamed when the boy disappeared and her knees turned into jelly as she fell onto the ground. She was trembling with rage meanwhile her hands slid down the glass leaving some dirty lines behind. She couldn’t believe that no one came back to rescue her when she was everything a guy could look for. She was beautiful and wealthy. Everyone desired a piece of her time.

‘Screw you! Screw you all!’ she whispered under her nose as the first teardrop fell onto her light blue jeans. Her knuckles became white when she clenched both of her shaking palms. The glass felt cold against her skin although Sooyoung’s forehead was burning as if desperation could have literally set her on fire.

But as it was bound to be, eventually the flames of her rage and sorrow died off followed by a couple of salty tears, tiredness sucking out all of the Gangnam girl’s energy. By the time she quitted playing with the handle, her eyes became heavy walking on the edge of falling asleep. Yet, her entire body twitched when the clock finally hit the next hour and the super modern building ran out of juice. As the silence melted into the darkness, Sooyoung felt nothing but loneliness.

Jungkook on the other hand was surrounded with people as his arm leaned against the door that had shut behind his back. He was panting although he couldn’t have been happier as he wiped the sweat off his forehead, smiling like an idiot. After all, he had done it! Regardless of Seokjin’s tiresome orders, he’d indeed completed the first phase and had gotten out of the dorm within their limited period of time. Thus unlike daddy’s little princess who had made a mockery out of his financial state in front of everyone, Jungkook was still in the game.

‘Hah! Who’s the pitiful now?’ he asked in a voice so faint that his question was barely above a whisper. He didn’t mean to be rude since that kind of behaviour wasn’t exactly his cup of tea but he hated when someone looked down on him simply because he couldn’t afford expensive clothes and fancy dinners and Sooyoung’s failure truly pleased his soul. It felt as if the universe had been in balance once again giving a little piece of bread back to those who worked hard enough to earn its kindness.

He sat down on the stairs far away from the others who were busy to find out what was this situation all about and what could have been the next task on the company’s list. If he had heard correctly, the guy in the fullcap insisted on staying in one place while the young heir of the Park family wanted to keep going. Considering the disfuncional public lighting, he personally was on Jimin’s side although Hoseok was right about the risks of an unknown area. If the scientists were measuring their abilities in emergency, sooner or later they had to make some tough decisions or else they would lose.

‘Is everybody here?’ Seokjin asked after he tousled his sister’s hair, sending her an encouraging smile. He stood up from the base of the nearest lamp pose then looked around in the dark, observing the groups that had been formed during the mess. Other than Jungkook, Yoongi was the only one who didn’t look for unnecessary company as he was sitting on his own a few metres from the wall. He stared back at the younger with his characteristic, emotionless gaze although when their eyes finally met, he was the one who turned away.

Jungkook snorted before he leaned his head against the concrete facing the bottom of the first floor’s balcony. What could he say, even a blind person could have told that he tried to avoid Seokjin’s question on purpose.

‘Sooyoung’s still missing,’ one of the girls declared out of the blue and to Jungkook’s honest surprise, there was concern in the smooth velvet of her voice as if she had been truly worried about the gossip girl with her unbearable attitude. Putting his weight onto both of his elbows, Jungkook looked at the redhead ever so confused, brows knitted to each other with disbelief. ‘She left something in our room so she ran back and…’ she rambled and her hands were living their own lives as they fidgeted with the hem of her tee.

It didn’t take long, the boy lost his interest in no time even though his gaze stuck on the scene when Seokjin shot a disappointed glance at him. Jungkook gulped when the older managed to decipher the details and caught him red-handed. Both of his ears became tomato red the moment Seokjin’s shoulders tensed up, nails digging into his own flesh.

‘You’re right,’ Jungkook agreed on the fact that Sooyoung had gone back to her room in order to find something really precious although he truly doubted that anything in that damn place could have been more valuable than the contracts they were all fighting for. He rolled his eyes at the thought then stood up and walked towards the biggest group including Wendy and Seokjin. ‘She seemed pretty busy even asking for my help to carry her stuff.’

He stopped right in front of the girl after all it was her whom he was talking to. Then he took a deep breath as if he could have sucked some confidence out of the cool air.

‘And?’

‘And as you can see, she ran out of time,’ he replied as he crossed his arms in front of his chest that was bouncing like crazy. He couldn’t let a girl make him unsure of himself, he couldn’t let her put all the blame on him when Sooyoung was the one who had chosen an object over their task. Jungkook lifted his chin up with a loud snort before he continued. ‘I’m not her puppet, it’s not my problem.’

And not my fault either, a tiny voice added whispering in his head.

‘You selfish little…’ Wendy screamed pointing at the boy’s back when he was ready to leave. If Namjoon hadn’t wrapped his arms around her petite figure, she would have surely gone after Jungkook to punch him in the face.

‘He’s right,’ a deep voice said on the boy’s right and Jungkook didn’t really know how to feel about Taehyung’s statement. It was true that he felt grateful for him for taking his side but it didn’t change the fact that something was off with him. A person like the guy with the lilac hair, a person who acted all mysterious meant no good. In Jungkook’s opinion, he could have been more dangerous than the guy with his Computer Science degree and gaze as cold as ice. ‘It’s a competition. We’re better off without her.’

Taehyung’s claim was followed by dead silence. No one could find the right words to say hence no one dared to speak. And it was worse than any lecture Jungkook had ever gotten.

➼ chapter III.

#bts scenarios #red velvet #ssbyme #thriller #code zero #futuristic au

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