#Leon would be biggest antagonist

[awzominator]

I love him and his prey animal like eyes 💙💙

A little doodle that I couldn’t get out of my head

#tmnt #teenage mutant ninja turtles #rottmnt #rise of the teenage mutant ninja turtles #tmnt leonardo #tmnt 2012 #they’re so silly #Leon would be biggest antagonist #Awzominator art

[pinkniz]

Despite its ups and downs I think Dislyte's main story's biggest issue is how they refuse to use their stablished villains

In Dislyte we have plenty of bad guys, all different types of antagonist. We have sympathetic villains, tragic villains, completely irredeemable villains, most of these coming from the Shadow Decree. The problem is that the main story doesn't seem to really care about their decree villains.

In the main story our only CONSISTENT antagonists are not even main villains, lets be real, Anesidora, Leon and Freddy are jobbers, not even the big bads behind the grand scheme of things(Anesidora being the only one who can be actually considered a full villain out of them all)

Do you remember the end of the first storymode when it ended with a shot of Sander in his office staring at the miracle? You would say that means Sander is the next threat to our heroes wouldn't you? Well guess what, the COMMANDER of the Shadow Decree, the calculating figure foreshadowed to be our big bad has never actually done anything so far in the story, almost everything about Sander lorewise is saying he will basically stop at nothing for his goals and that he knows ONE DAY he will cross paths with the Union again

AND HE NEVER DOES! All we get is him having a quick fight with the fatum sister and he loses and thats it

You know who else was a promising villain for the story? The man who founded a terrorist group just so he could do experiments on humans to further his studies on miracles and espers , Hyde. Hyde has EVERYTHING to be a great main bad guy, hes the antithesis of the Union, problem is we have not only never seen or heard about him doing anything in the main story but HELP others and being a very nice man, Hyde can be a sympathetic antagonist no problem but the writers seem to forgot what he represents, everything bad the decree does is because of HIM

But instead of getting anything from Hyde, Sander or even others like Catherine, Leon and Ophelia we have Yamato replacing them(at least Yamato is a good villain) and the infamous Gaius twist

The worst part is that the Gaius twist wasnt necessary because HYDE EXISTS, everything Gaius did from his actions and motivations match with Hyde's, Hyde could've perfectly been the villain of the Unkown Collection, everything Gaius said and did in that story was more on brand with Hyde but the writers REFUSE to use their actual villains

#dislyte #I love sander and hyde being grandpas on swiftspace but I desperately need them to DO THEIR JOB

[possessionisamyth]

not gonna lie felt bad for Dylan in DI for a short time however it turned into boo fucking hoo very quick

it was so why not focus on Maria? why not focus on Jill (it makes no sense Jill charging in recklessly at the start Leon turns up and she lets him take charge)

can't wait to rewatch it whenever that maybe (got the dvd wrong region code of fucking course and i don't know how to make dvd do it)

Okay. After watching the movie several times, I definitely feel more equipped to answer this question (which I own the blu-ray of but am watching totally legally online in another place when I don't want to set up the dvd/blu-ray player).

When Death Island dropped, and everyone was throbbing over Leon, I was annoyed by many of the missed opportunities to make the movie entertaining in order to focus on "realism" like they have been with the remakes and with Inifinite Darkness. Yet, the biggest dropping of the ball was with Jill Valentine, and we gotta talk about Jill so that we can talk about why Dylan sucks ass fails as a character foil to her. However, let's do a little definition first so we're on the same page.

The narrative purpose of a character foil is that when these two characters are on screen interacting with each other, their differences become highlighted. You got Romeo and Mercutio, Betty and Veronica, Chris and Wesker, these characters are foils that we can easily recognize without putting any real thought behind it. We can clock their motivations and the patterns they execute to reach their goals and see where all those little funky lines cross. They can be friends, antagonists, or enemies, but their purpose is to bring out the other characters good and bad traits to deepen our understanding of them.

Jill Valentine is a character that is an active player. She doesn't let things passively happen to her. She gets shit done. She's very hands on about everything. We see it in Resident Evil 1 where you play as her route, and if you play Chris' route the only thing holding this woman back is the cell Wesker trapped her in wherein she has no tools to utilize whatsoever. We see it in Resident Evil 3 where Carlos often takes a backseat to Jill pushing the narrative forward until she's infected and needs help only to pick up where she leaves off as soon as she gets that cure. We see it in the Lost in Nightmares DLC where she's keeping pace with another active character, Chris, and ends the fight by sacrificing herself. In Resident Evil 5 where she's just been saved from mind control, she's actively yelling and shoving at Chris to leave her and save the world when Chris doesn't want to after getting her back. We see it in all of Revelations 1 in juxtaposition to Chris' route. Jill is our Ripley in Alien , she is our Sarah Conner in Terminator, and so on.

Dylan Blake is a passive character. Death Island showcased this to us much more heavy handed than they needed to, but we got the picture. He accepts orders to evacuate important people and kill civilians warily but with no real fight behind it. He cried out on the ground when his friend killed the rest of their infected teammates after failing to wrestle the gun away. Doesn't get up and try again. He's active in saving himself after his friend got infected, but that's it. He hires people to kidnap a guy to build robots for him. It's heavily implied the virus in the bots is one of Glenn Arias' weapons meaning he didn't even make the damn thing. He doesn't commit to suicide and hasn't for 17 years because Russian Roulette absolves him of any fault when he fails. (Something they stole from the movie Bullet Train btw.) He could've shot Claire to teach Jill a lesson, but that decision would be too active for his character. He talks about cleaning the slate with no plans to stick around to see if the slate gets cleaned. Even as a giant bloody poopoo monster he's just swinging his body around listlessly until things break. Unlike every other antagonist or villain we've had up to this point, Dylan is the most hands off when it comes to this schtick. He is the guy that says "I'm going to do this thing, but whatever happens next is out of my hands" as if he's not responsible for glassware breaking after snatching away the tablecloth.

On a surface level, you'd think after both of them went through Raccoon City that Jill and Dylan are perfect foils of each other. Which they would be if Jill wasn't immediately shuffled into the passive role herself as soon as Leon came on screen. Examples of this? Well, we can watch the movie together, and I'll point them out scene by scene, but for the sake of answering your question here I'll try and bullet point them. Of which I will also be listing things people have already complained about because they all take place in Alcatraz.

-Why does Jill keeps losing/not using her gun?

-Jill struggles with zombies the same as others despite enhanced strength and non-existent aging from the virus.

-Jill struggles with lickers.

-Jill doesn't shoot Dylan during his monologue.

-Jill doesn't shoot or fight Maria during Dylan's monologue.

-Jill doesn't shoot Dylan during his second monologue before he kills himself despite seeing the gun he holds that injects viruses.

-Jill is responsible for hand flare to get Dylan's attention, not driving the car or giving her the big gun. She has to yell at him when his mind is basically not even there anymore.

-Jill has the bag of bombs that is supposed to off him and drops it after setting off one under water.

"But Jill is fighting in those scenes." Yeah, but Leon has to save her ass by giving her a gun. Leon has to kill all the lickers. Leon has to info dump about Alcatraz, a place the BSAA should've collected intel on like they always do before missions. A place Jill would've researched herself if she were allowed to be herself. Leon had to give her the opportunity to run from Maria. Jill just yells at Dylan for most of his nonsense even when he loses and is trying to run away as a giant bloodied poopoo monster. Is this the behavior of an active character after we see her at the start go into that house by herself to look for civilians, and later deny Chris his friendship speech in the shooting range? Is this highlighting her normally active traits against Dylan, a person who just lets things happen around him? Short answer: No. Long answer: Hell fucking no. If Jill is not doing the same thing as everyone else in the scene, her actions are reduced to passiveness matching Dylan's and not contrasting them! They don't even put Dylan into more active positions when Jill is made passive, so what the fuck is the point of this guy?! We hate him. That wasn't hard to do. Where's the rest of it? Where is the rest-?!?!?!

Listen, I'm not saying Jill needed to shoot Claire to inhibit her and possibly buy the scientist more alive time, but I am saying Jill needed to be firing at someone because it's not like Dylan would've handed her the cure if she kept him alive. Plus, Rebecca was already making a cure. So-?!?!? It's not like Dylan wouldn't have snapped his fingers sooner to make Maria act had Jill first gotten a good shot in his kneecap. If we want to highlight anything, why isn't Jill's brash actions leading to screw ups in contrast to Dylan's passive actions showing how he's winning and thus strengthening his spiel about all of them being pawns? I'm not expecting the world from a CGI Resident Evil movie. I know the quality to expect, but we have done better before this. I was more satisfied with Rebecca doing her smart thing in Vendetta despite the weird wedding dress scene of her on the table. I was more satisfied with Ada doing her spy thing in Damnation. I was more satisfied with Claire doing her thing in the first 20 minutes of Degeneration. But Death Island? For Jill? As a summation?

Jill Valentine has been used and abused by Wesker. She's been away from the BSAA for 6 years. She's been tossed aside by Capcom game wise. And in what's supposed to be the movie about her getting back on her feet, she gets sidelined because the director and writer were too busy furiously jerking off Leon Scott Kennedy to give her more than the bare minimum script wise in order to "achieve this goal". They didn't achieve the goal by the way. The little fist bump between Chris and Jill was not fucking earned in the slightest.

However if you truly want to know how dirty they did her overall, I can show you by simply comparing her famous rail gun scene depiction. In the original Resident Evil 3, the rail gun was a gigantic machine no one could lift unless they were a giant. For the Resident Evil 3 Remake, they changed it to something she can lift. In Death Island, they decided to do a callback to that rail gun from the Resident Evil 3 Remake as it's her pivotal final fight against Nemesis. They had her turn this iconic weapon, her iconic weapon, against Dylan.

Now anon, look at this big ass rail gun she gets in the Resident Evil 3 Remake where she barely flinches with the recoil. This is 1998. She is not buffed up by the T-Virus. It's a strap metaphor. This gun is two Jill's long, it's heavy as shit, and the camera angles tell us how hefty it is when we play the game.

Now, look at this fucking peashooter they have her struggling to heft around in Death Island. This is shorter than her. You could argue that because it relies on a generator and is portable, it's made of a heavier metal than the one on the charger in the Remake. It's still bullshit that she gets thrown back by the recoil considering she's buffed up from that T-Virus that doesn't let her age compared to how little she struggled with a bigger gun with a stronger recoil in the Remake.

Things that would've fixed this movie? Stop giving Leon all the lines. Make Jill the one that has clever thinking with the gasoline in exchange for Leon finding their exit out of the tunnels. Make Jill fight Maria during Dylan's monologue to emphasize that she's wasting time while her friend's are dying, thus making her take action role look futile compared to Dylan's passivity OR at least have her try to shoot and it fails by her gun jamming. Give Jill her gun back with one bullet in it after Maria wins the fight to then try and make her choose to kill Claire. Let her fire it once at someone and it do nothing. Liven up that Russian Roulette motif. Let the running away be her choice, not something Leon has to give her the opportunity to take. Let Jill have one flashback to any other fucking game which highlights how her usual method of decision making led her to failure before the Dylan showdown. Let her shoot Dylan as he shoots himself reiterating the foil contrast before the last big fight. Cut Leon and Chris' quirky little dialogue so Jill can have several more lines that would make the final shout at Dylan more hard hitting.

As for Maria, when we roll back that footage in Vendetta, she should've been beating the shit out of Chris in Death Island for killing Diego. It could've made the movie better with any of my changes of Jill VS Dylan by adding Chris VS Maria since Chris and Jill always do everything together.

#resident evil #re #resident evil death island #death island #death island spoilers #resident evil death island spoilers #jill valentine #anonymous #heh nothing personal kid #sorry if this is longer than you wanted anon #re analysis

[beevean]

Thoughts on Castlevania: Leon's not very nice evening?

The more I played Lament of Innocence, the less I liked it.

Lament of Innocence feels like an odd blend of Classicvanias, Igavanias, and the hack ‘n’ slash games of the time, DMC1 in particular (say hello to fixed cameras).

The plot is interesting, but there are some issues. Leon is set to save his girlfriend Sara from the clutches of the evil vampire Walter, so far so good. Some bosses leave hints at something that has happened in the past, like the Succubus being responsible for the death of Rinaldo's daughter, or Joachim who is a vampire who rebelled to Walter (I suspect that he was meant to be far more important, considering that he's an unlockable character lol)...

The first twist is that Sara was “tainted” (very uncomfortable implications there...), and Leon can’t even kill Walter to save her because his whip is “incomplete”: coincidentially, Sara’s tainted soul would complete it and make it super powerful. Okay, poor Leon who went through this journey for nothing but I really can’t feel bad for Sara lol. This is Iris all over again. At least Sara became the source of power of the infamous Vampire Killer - it would have been cool if we saw her in, for example, Portrait of Ruin when Jonathan fought Richter inside the whip.

Then Walter was used by Death, who is under the control of Mathias, Leon's friend who was only mentioned before. Okay? I don't know him. I don't feel betrayed. I was more curious to hear why Death serves the owner of this Crimson Stone.

Then we discover that Mathias became Dracula because his wife died, and... really? We don’t even hear of this wife before, we don’t see her, and also this is literally what happens in SOTN! At least with Lisa (really, the same name too) we know that she was killed by humans, Elizabeth... died. This is the great motivation of the main antagonist of the series.

I liked Leon in that scene, though. Mathias sought eternal life to spite God; Leon thinks an eternal life without Sara would only be painful, and would rather honor her final wish. He plays a good contrast to the antagonist. I like him and his cute hair :)

So yeah, the plot felt like it missed something, but overall, it was enjoyable. Even the voice acting wasn't bad! Now onto the gameplay.

The castle is essentially made of 5 dungeons, plus the final area. You can access the main dungeons at anytime, and you only need powerups for optional content. This means that there’s no real difficulty progression, but you can also customize your adventure everytime you play (the more correct order would be based on the keys you find, but again, they’re optional). Although, maybe it’s my impression, but some dungeons are definitely harder than others: the Garden Forgotten by Time was a cakewalk, compared to the Dark Palace of Waterfalls that I had tackled previously.

The level design complements the style. The maps are nicely laid out, and it’s easy to orient yourself, even with the repeated assets. There are just a little too many empty, repetead corridors, though. Very rarely the maps take advantage of the 3rd dimension: at best the entrance is up a ledge... at worst you’ll fall down a floor lol. But it works.

So, for now, the game is doing fine. I was having fun! ... then problems started to become bigger and bigger...

The biggest issue for me was that the controls are stiff. Leon doesn’t jump very high or very far, and once he does, his trajectory is locked in - you can only change direction by double jumping. There’s very little platforming here, but what little there is is annoying, not helped by the lack of depth perception that you’d need for these challenges because of the fixed camera. The electric fence puzzle in the House of Sacred Remains, the wall blocks puzzle in the Anti-Soul Mystery Lab, the dark room puzzle in the Ghostly Theatre, they were all very irritating. I gave up on fighting the Frost Elemental because the blind, perspective-less jumps you have to make are just unnecessary, the way you fall down at every mistake reminds me way too much of Catwoman for PS2 for my tolerance, and the idea that if I had died to the boss I would have had had to redo the whole thing again... no. Sorry Whip of Ice, you aren’t worth this. (I could have gotten the Whip of Fire, but by that point I was just done and didn't want to see any platforming ever again :\)

Combat is... repetitive. You have two buttons for attacking, a focused weak attack and a swiping strong attack (it feels like it should be the other way around, but no big deal), and you have to unlock new moves simply by attacking. It works, but at first it feels like busywork. Sometimes you can skip enemies, since the only incentive you have to fight them is money (you don’t level up, you buy or find better equipment)... but since this is a 2003 game, sometimes it likes to lock you in typical “kill all enemies to proceed” scenarios. It’s very arbitrary. It also happens if you revisit old rooms. Some of the moves you unlock are pretty effective, though, I especially like the diving kick that can hit bigger enemies multiple times, and that move that makes enemies fly in the air.

(also, I don’t understand why you can only select items in a secondary menu screen that doesn’t pause the game. What if I needed a break to find my potions?)

What makes it a bit better is something that I discovered by accident :P the orbs aren’t there just to be used as keys, you can equip them, and it changes how the subweapons work! They cost more hearts, obviously, but 7 orbs (5 collected after defeating the main bosses, 1 to be found, 1 as a prize for defeating the gruesome bonus boss) for 5 subweapons equals 35 attacks to experiment with! That is really, really cool :)

The bosses are also enjoyable. Only the Succubus gave me some trouble, but the others were all the perfect difficulty and had nice strategies. The dodge mechanic is fun to exploit but isn't completely broken. The double combo of Walter and Death was intimidating at first (also, hi Death, I'm glad you finally managed to become the final boss!), but I genuinely had fun fighting both of them. Easily the highlight of the game.

But back to the nitpicking... Exploration was another gripe I had. It’s boring, Leon isn’t particularly fast, and there are no warp rooms - the closest thing would be a ticket that sends you to the last save you used and a ticket that sends you to Rinaldo's cabin - it's an efficient combo if you feel like stacking up before a boss fight. Add the issues of forced combat and insufferable “platforming”, and exploring areas for optional content is just demotivating. Speaking of which, the game can be very stingy with save rooms - why isn’t there one near the Succubus arena? Was it really necessary to put it on the floor above? Same with the Frost Elemental, although in that case you can say that it’s optional.

Even the finale was somewhat underwhelming. It goes like this:

go to the second floor

go to the east wing and get the VI tablet

go to the central hallway and reverse the tablet

go to the east wing and put the now IV tablet in place

go to the central hallway to face Walter

While in the meantime, tanky enemies block your way. Not exactly the deepest design. You can choose to visit the even harder west wing for a Health Up and the Unlock Jewel, but it’s optional. (I know that there is a room similar to the dark room in the Ghostly Theatre, and honestly, never again)

Where the games shines is the aesthetic. The game looks good for its time, with plenty of details that enhance the atmosphere. From the holy chapel with stained windows, to the luxurious theater, to the floors covered in water, the game is very pretty and isn't ashamed of thinking so. The PS2 graphics feel nostalgic to me too (I was constantly reminded of Hogwarts), so maybe I'm biased. In particular I like the look of the save rooms, they really feel like small sanctuaries for you to rest. Even the models of the humans are pretty good all things considered, although in the pause menu Leon looks like he hasn’t slept since he was born lol

But the music... boy. Michiru Yamane could finally unleash her whole talent, unrestrained by MIDI sounds, and the absolute job that she did <3

You know what you’re getting into when the entrance theme, usually an upbeat track, is a one woman wail

House of Sacred Remains keeps the tradition of beautiful chapel themes. It’s as peaceful as Requiem for the Gods :)

Statue Enchanted by Darkness has huge Berserk 1997 vibes, what a contrast from the previous track

ah yes, my favorite 11th century style music. rave. Something about it reminds me of Letz Get This Party Started from Sonic Adventure and I don’t know how to feel about that.

Ghostly Theatre is as elegant and somber as the abandoned theatre itself

Dark Palace of Waterfalls is like Michiru Yamane listened to Crystal Waterdrops and realized that she could now work with real instruments. dat organ tho <3

Garden Forgotten by Time is not what I expected from a greenhouse environment, but for some reason it feels the most SOTN track

its companion piece, Fog Enshrouded Nightscape, is just so pretty <3

Dark Night Toccata is almost wasted for such an easy boss

And finally, Lament of Innocence is clearly the masterpiece of the whole OST. When I got to the second floor of the Pagoda and this played, I went like “oh ho ho, now we’re talking!”. Shred that classic piano <3 Michiru said “A piece that shows Leon's grief and anger”, and yes it is. Love how the theme of the protagonist plays near the end of the game, rather than at the beginning like in most games - he got his theme after a great amount of grief. Also, is it me, or is the part at 1:34 reminiscent of Dracula’s theme in Super Castlevania IV? I hope it's intentional because I am in love.

Bonus: the three arrangements from Aria of Sorrow, because they slapped with the GBA soundfont so imagine with actual instruments. The Cross of Fate is how Ruined Castle Corridor was meant to sound, Requiem for the Dark Soul hits much harder than the original Chapel, and Holy Cross Obsessed by the Moon (should be “possessed”, but no matter) lacks Top Floor's catchy piano but makes it up in finality.

So, did I hate the game? No, I may have been negative overall, but I don't think it's that bad. I would say that it's better than Megaman Legends, which truly made me furious for its terrible controls. This one was just... undercooked? I could see the ambition in creating a 3D Castlevania game that would satisfy both fans of the Classics and fans of the Igavanias, but something is missing. I can tell that Igarashi wasn't well versed in designing a 3D game. I'll take it as a relic of the time and an interesting origin story.

#castlevania #lament of innocence

[thek0ifish]

Adding in Resident Evil 6 Ustanak in Project X Zone 2 can be the biggest middle finger for Resident Evil fans who wanted Albert Wesker in the game. I hate how the Project X Zone games keep insisting to stick close to main timeline continuity's. Super Robot Wars at least was more creative with its own separate alternate timelines. They didn't need to go that far and leave Ada Wong separate from Leon Scott Kennedy. Just think how it would be like if Albert Wesker and Jack Krauser were brought back from the dead to fight Chris, Jill, Leon, and Ada. Project X Zone is such a downgrade with most of its enemy npcs relegated to generic minor character fire emblem attacks. Just goes like number damage points, no close up special moves that you would see in Namco x Capcom and Super Robot Wars. If they want to proceed with Project X Zone 3. It needs to be in the Super Robot Wars 30 game engine. I'm getting tired of the silent antagonists taking up a third of the villain roster, especially in Project X Zone 2.

I love ustanak I find ustanak to be a really cool call back to nemesis but to be honest yeeeaaahhh that is literally the biggest middle finger to us wesker fans i mean they did add yakuza dead sould version of both majima and kiryu remember that? Lol

#{ yeah reel that in! }

[alicerosejensen]

Another you

Warning: reader mutation (c-virus), angst, blood, slight aggression, acquired albinism, fem/reader (not an agent, an ordinary civilian who worked at the museum), Leon has plot armor, more narration than dialogue, the text contains an antagonist like Simmons (male character), Ada is helping Leon again, relatively happy ending.

Synopsis: You didn’t want to change, you loved him, just as he loved you, but against your will, your love turned into hatred and animal anger towards him. However, Leon still hopes that you will remember him...

A/N: This is probably my biggest work. Tumblr told me to fuck off a few times while editing, but I came out victorious in the fight, although I had to re-write the text into the draft a few times because Tumblr for some damn reason published it without my knowledge. I hope feedback if anyone liked it, because I have been burning with this idea for a long time!

The text also contains an excerpt from Byron's poems (I adore him)

He promised himself first of all that nothing would happen to you. That his work won't affect you in any way and you won't get hit by the corporate bastards, and you really didn't. However, something else happened...

But people whom Leon loves or simply cares about tend to leave or even die.

Everything was fine with you. Ideal in his imperfect life and you were this perfection that he valued and protected. A prudent person would not keep an expensive diamond in front of everyone, so Leon did not scatter information about you and who you are to him. You were loved and dear to him more than all the treasures of the world, he appreciated your tenderness towards him and kindness, because it was you who helped him get out of the hole of despondency in which he buried himself. His personal little guardian angel. Still, he has something to continue his fight against bioterrorism.

A normal working day, except that the museum where you work was supposed to host an exhibition of some very expensive collection for which you were so carefully preparing, forgetting about yourself. It seemed to Leon that you were burning with enthusiasm and love for the work you were doing, which made you walk around too excited, forgetting about food, so he had to remind you to eat. This exhibition had no meaning for Kennedy, but he did not belittle your efforts thrown into this preparation, especially since you were so happy that you were incessantly talking about all these paintings, historical activities depicted on them and objects: a pendant with a strand of hair of some queen - you explained to him that this is a symbol of affection that was previously used It's like you're giving a piece of yourself to your giver, a kind of connection with a loved one, but this is just one of the meanings of such a peculiar gift. Silk fans, a clock, a desk, some items of clothing that, in Leon's opinion, were very strange and he was just glad that fashion had moved far ahead.

Although he could interpret all this in one word: beautifully.

And you were beautiful too. He would have liked to spend more time with you, but you were completely absorbed in your work, and he was overwhelmed with paperwork that he couldn't stand, but anyway, at least he could come back to you and listen to excited speeches and new facts that he didn't know anything about and would hardly remember if he told him about it someone else.

And everything went to hell when there was another outbreak, less global, but most importantly - human lives. And yours.

He was trying to save you, even if someone else had survived this exhibition, he would still have saved you first and not someone else. Mini Raccoon City, that's what he called it, making his way with you to the emergency exit while you kept up with him on your heels, because today you were supposed to shine and glow and not cry with fear looking at the pale corpses of history and art lovers. The light from Leon's flashlight illuminated a small part of the space while you walked quietly thinking about Leon's words, "I wonder how much time we have before they get up?"

"Were they poisoned?" you assumed, because how could you kill such a huge number of people without weapons. Leon, watching the ventilation grilles in the rooms, suggested in his head only one quick way.

"It must be gas,"

But then you would both have died too, you decided, but you did not voice your thought, because shortly before the tragedy you were invited to discuss something by the sponsor of this exhibition. A man who managed to collect so many magnificent things with a rich history. The man who gave you flowers and flirted with you from the day you first met, despite the fact that you made it clear to him that you were not interested in any relationship with him, except for work.

However, Leon also remained silent when he saw the luxurious bouquet of scarlet roses on your work table, which filled your entire small office with their aroma. But right now that simply wasn’t the main thing. He needed to get you out of the mess that happened, and then ask about flowers from rich strangers.

You walked slowly, trying not to make any noise or cry behind him while you clung to his jacket, partially managing to wonder why Leon's gun was with him when he had no reason to carry a gun. All this, of course, was secondary, given how stress, coupled with imagination, turned the exhibits into various frightening figures that frightened, made you scream, thinking that the fallen armor, which was probably simply poorly secured to the stand was another dead man. I didn’t even want to think about what happened in the exhibition hall, much less imagine. Leon had to take you by the hand and at times drag you along with him because the panic really aggravated everything, he was afraid that you would start to go hysterical, but it seems that despite the periodic stupor, you kept yourself well under control, exactly until the moment when Leon’s flashlight went out, leaving you in pitch darkness.

“Leon?” you called out anxiously, feeling noisy ragged breathing behind your back. Was this what Leon was talking about? Until recently, you hoped that his words were just another stupid joke and the dead do not rise, but here behind you is the living embodiment of a nightmare who is ready to grab your neck and feast on warm flesh. Have time to scream? You didn’t even have time to fully scream when a strong grip grabbed you by the shoulder and roughly threw you to the side from the line of danger because you fell, hitting your thigh on the marble tiles, after which a series of deafening shots and the muffled groan of a dead man was heard, three bullets or maybe be more? You didn't count.

As if in slow motion on a large screen, it was impossible to take your eyes off what you saw. All sounds died down, leaving the silence of your own mind and the smell of blood.

All you could do was watch how the beam of light from the flashlight shines directly on the corpse and how Leon’s hands are trying to bring you to your senses, because you knew the one whom he had just completely killed. Richard, your colleague with whom you had coffee this morning and discussed the latest news, sometimes often joked at lunch... was now dead and you were crying without knowing it. Tears just flow uncontrollably from your eyes even as Leon wipes your face with his thumbs, trying to lift you off the floor and make you go outside.

“Come on, sweetheart, I know it’s hard but we have to go"

"I... I can't... why here?" You ask more into the void than from him

“I don’t know, but we need to get out of here.” Leon grabs you under the armpits, helping you get to your feet, dragging you towards the exit.

Better yet, this would all just be a nightmare. The noise from the shots makes you cover your ears with your hands while Leon once shoots people, at the same time trying to protect the slow-moving you. They scream, moan, attack and you feel like you are in a horror film with high-quality special effects and good acting, but you realize, albeit reluctantly, that all this is not a joke but an evil reality where Leon almost at the very exit asks you to pull yourself together and you don’t even you can stand on your feet. Before your eyes, everything collapsed and the world went crazy, trying to grab you with it.

"I can't... can't... I'm so scared..." your hands grab Leon and he hugs you to him, which only makes you want to cry harder and ask him to do the impossible - to return everything to the way it was. He hugs you tightly, kissing you on the top of your head, giving at least some reassurance given the fact that he has always tried to protect the little that he loves from his work, but you accidentally found yourself in the epicenter and your reaction is quite expected.

"Everything will be fine, please look at me," he asks in a soft tone, lifting your head and forcing you to look into his eyes, "It will be difficult, I do not know what is happening outside and what kind of virus it is, but you must not leave me alone. I shoot, and you stand behind me or hide if I tell you to. If you see a dead person, don't you dare approach him!"

"Is it like this everywhere?"

Leon didn't quite understand if you were talking about the whole city or just the upcoming race, in any case, he only nodded briefly, giving you a little more time to catch your breath while you listened to the rapid pounding of the heart in his chest. He was afraid too.

It could have tried better. You really pulled yourself together, but after contacting Hunnigan, Leon exhaled for a second, saying that the virus had not spread so far and in fact the appropriate measures had already been taken, she sent the two of you to the evacuation point where doctors could examine you and give you a vaccine injection in case it really was gas, as Leon said, which logically you were both breathing anyway. So the virus could have entered your body, the scariest thing you reasoned while you were following him, is that you are both alive by a lucky chance, because if Leon had not been attacked by an attack of tenderness, it would probably have been the last day of his life. You no longer even thought about the fact that that sponsor called you somewhere... Emerick. You smiled when you remembered that Leon called him a high-dimensional asshole, but he probably became a victim like everyone else, so there's no need to speak ill of him.

You thought that because you didn't think he was a bad person. You and Emerick had common topics of conversation, he knew a lot and he had a rich collection of rare things bought from auctions for a lot of money, besides, as he himself said, much of what he actually has was inherited in his family, which made you think that he probably was some kind of hereditary noble. His manners were really perfect.

It took about an hour before Leon left you in a quiet place. There were only zombies outside and a few survivors who, no matter how hard Leon tried, still couldn't help. They always died in front of his eyes, even now leaving a sense of guilt in his soul, because he should protect and not kill, but now this is the best thing he can offer them to the infected. Wide windows on the third floor of a God-forsaken warehouse protected from enemies and if you believe Ingrit, then this is the C-Virus that Neo-umbrella created, not so old, but in the terrorist market, in fact, it is already junk.

"At least there are no cocoons and lepoticas, otherwise I would have big problems"

You were sitting on the crates risking tearing your nylon tights while Leon was talking via video link on his work smartphone, waiting for his colleague Ingrit from F.O.S to plot the safest route to the plane that should pick you two up. Leon thought you were safe with him. You just sit quietly next to him trying to catch your breath while he does the main work and he was really calm until you screamed sharply falling off the box, forcing him to turn to you when he saw you holding your neck.

The phone immediately fell to the floor.

"What happened? Are you in pain?!"his eyes widened as he pulled out the dart that was the cause of everything. "Baby, can you hear me?! Everything will be fine, hold on!"

There was no one in the window. By the way, there was no time to search for the culprit. Thoughts were flying crazily in his head, Leon picked you up in his arms, hiding you behind drawers so that you would not get into anyone else's lens, noticing how quickly your breathing becomes shallow.

Was it a new virus or an improved one from before? You curled up crying from what seemed like your organs were turning into a burning cauldron causing hellish pain that made you moan loudly.

"Hunnigan! I need a vaccine, urgently! Where's the damn helicopter?!" Ingrit shot up for a moment. The women's painful moans in the background were ready to make Leon burst into tears and she was almost sure that tears were stuck in the corners of his eyes.

"It will take time to figure out what it is..."

"There's no time!" he shouted into the phone. Ingrit's fingers immediately clicked on the keyboard.

You sobbed. The bones seemed to melt, which made you literally lie on the concrete floor until Leon shifted you onto his lap, feeling your body temperature rise from normal to high.

That's probably why you threw up and blood gushed out of your nose. Your heart was pounding wildly, you didn't hear Leon screaming in panic, hugging your body to him, realizing that if you don't inject the serum soon, then everything will be over. You're dying, but Leon's brain refuses to accept it when he picks you up in his arms trying to save you because with your death, life won't make sense to him.

"You're not going to die!" the words expressed through clenched teeth echo in the spacious building as Leon picks you up in his arms and carries you outside in time. "Everything will be different"

He couldn't let this happen again. It was as if everything was being repeated again from hell to hell, only now in Helena’s place he is himself and he definitely won’t have enough strength to put a bullet in your forehead, and if he does... then he’ll shoot himself too.

Every minute was precious and if it weren’t for the infected, Leon would have instantly reached the right place and injected you with the serum, but luck was not on his side again, just like on the first day of work in Raccoon City. You were heating up so much that he could feel the heat emanating from your body, even through your clothes. Once the virus enters the human body, the incubation period varies for everyone: Deborah Harper lasted two hours before she mutated, for some it takes about a couple of minutes, even God himself does not know how much time is measured for you.

Having reached the helipad, Leon cursed everything in the world since the helicopter was not even visible anywhere. The situation was clearly not going in your favor. You again let out a painful groan, feeling like your body was literally burning and your head hurt so much that you wanted to be hit with a huge hammer. Leon stroked your back, holding you close to him. God, your temperature was already colossally high!

"Just a little more, be patient, honey" Leon doesn't believe it, he wants to, but he can. You scream and cry, trying to tear off your skin with your nails just to make this heat go away. He would like to change places with you, it would be better if he were dying now and not you, and not so monstrously.

The virus flows through the veins, attacks all defense mechanisms, mercilessly rebuilding the entire body in a new way, creating an aggressive weapon out of a person capable of mass murder without any remorse. Leon's affection does not destroy you, right now it is the only way to save yourself, but even if by some miracle an active medicine fell on your head, what is the chance that it saved you? The probability of healing, even with side effects, tends to be no more than 5-7%.

"D-don't want to d-die"

A pitiful groan, through the agony of pain you see Leon’s crying eyes, the skin peels off unnaturally under the influence of high temperature, but this is not visible under the clothes, but face...

"No no no no!"

Leon fell to the ground from your sharp push, but immediately jumped to his feet, running up to you after a wild, painful cry. Just one second and the body was suddenly engulfed in a flash of fire, turning the flesh into a hardened cocoon. You are gone.

It was all over.

Leon sees double. It shouldn't be like this, it shouldn't be like this! The gun is lying somewhere a couple of meters away, having fallen out of the holster when you pushed it away from you, and if this was a standard work situation, Leon would have tried to quickly run up to it or pick up the Sentinel Nine, but his hand did not rise. His knees hit the concrete floor painfully, along with the realization that he had lost again. The hard cocoon transforms the caterpillar inside itself into a beautiful butterfly, which is destined to fly, but Leon knows that everything human in you has burned out and only a monster will hatch from this cocoon, at best only vaguely reminiscent of you, so maybe it’s better to just tear it apart and then let him go on his own a bullet for himself?

The rain continues to pour, gradually calming down. The guys from B.S.A.A are already somewhere down there clearing the city of the infected and saving the survivors because there is a vaccine, there are ways to destroy the trash that Neo-Umbrella created. The sounds of gunshots mix with a frenzied rumble in his heart, which is why Leon doesn't want to hear anything anymore, preferring instead to stretch out his hands to your still warm cocoon, where some movement is already visible. Watching this, Leon was ready to miss even the deafening sound of the helicopter, but the light made him close his eyes and lift his head up.

Even without looking closely, he immediately realized that it was not the helicopter that Hunnigan had sent.

For the sake of love, people really do the most cruel things.

Leon immediately realized who was behind all this when the helicopter landed and several armed men jumped out of it, their faces hidden by masks. He slowly got to his feet, looking at the culprit of his suffering, dressed in a snow-white suit, with an impudent grin that Kennedy remembered from the beginning of the evening, when everything was still fine. Leon could have sworn that he had never felt such rage before, although a painful scream stuck in his throat.

No one pointed a gun at him. Everyone just froze, waiting for something.

"It's a small world, Mr. Kennedy," he said, waving to one of his assistants, and he and two mercenaries pulled a cryogenic capsule out of the plane. "But it was stupid to think that a man like you would die from a bunch of mindless zombies. I must admit, I didn't want to go to extreme measures until the last moment, I liked today's event, but because of you, I had to cancel everything. I've lost most of my collection"

"So it was you after all…" Leon muttered through his teeth, not yet grabbing the gun, realizing the risks. He is alone in the open space - a wonderful target. "I didn't see your corpse in the museum."

"A distraction," he explained, watching the capsule's preparation from the corner of his eye.

Emerick… Leon suddenly remembered how you recently confessed to him that he began to take care of you by giving you flowers, then inviting you for a cup of coffee, listening to music or general topics of which there were too many. But in the end, when the attentions began to exceed the standard amount, hinting at something more, you refused him, saying that you already have someone. You didn't notice, but Leon has been catching his obsessive glances at you all evening… How sometimes you looked at the exhibits behind the glass case, which you can not touch, despite the ban.

But you didn't even choose between the two of them. Leon always came first.

"For what?"

Emerick smiled as he looked at the cocoon and Leon's question disappeared by itself. Because of jealousy? Because a rich bastard couldn't get what he wanted, even with a giant bank account?

"You won't believe it, Mr. Kennedy, but for love. Death took away a dear person from me and I want to return what belonged to me, however, you will not understand this"

Leon grinned, clenching his fists.

"Why? Why her? If you wanted to take revenge on me, then you would have taken revenge on me and not on her!"

"Who said it was you?" asked Emerick, looking at his interlocutor as if he were an idiot. "For the most part, you just annoyed me like an annoying fly, but no more, although you encroached on something that does not belong to you."

Leon was about to answer and pounce despite the machine guns pointed at him, but the movement below and the sound of the cocoon tearing attracted all attention. He has seen it many times and your hand was reaching out to break free from the tight shackles of the past flesh, forcing its way out. Everyone is closely watching the birth of a new life, but only in the eyes of one of those present there was delight, not fear and regret. Leon couldn't bear it… He didn't understand what was wrong. The transformation was different.

"Happy birthday, Ada,"

A memory flashed through his mind.

History repeats itself. Only it turns out that besides Simmons, there is another bastard who looks like him in everything.

Leon reached out to you, as if trying to grab you, to help you get out and take you away from here. A brief moment of hope still lit up in my soul like a small smoldering flame, my mind seemed to be clouded, and yet deep inside there was a glimmer of awareness. He couldn't get rid of the feeling that something was wrong while you were trying to get out, muffling all his annoying voices of caution. Wrong smell, wrong body color… Leon squints his eyes, the cocoon breaks and before he can grab your hand, he freezes.

The slimy, sticky naked body lying in front of him looked more like a white marble statue with a thin network of blue veins protruding under the skin. The mercenaries looked at each other, clutching their guns tighter but still not pointing them at you. The sight is really amazing. Leon comes up to you lying down, at first glance it seems lifeless, but looking closely, your chest quietly heaves and he kneels down again, pulling you to his shoulders, peering into familiar but still changed facial features.

There are no appendages behind the back, from which ugly claws protrude, no razor-sharp claws, no fangs. But instead, unnaturally pale skin and hair… the structure is thicker, and the color merges with the color of the body. The same discolored ones, but stuck together due to the transformation in the cocoon. You open your eyes a little, and instead of the usual iris, two red lights rush at him without a shadow of anger and aggression, just fatigue, something that Leon used to see when you stayed up late at work.

"And, when the grave restores her dead,

When life again to dust is given,

On thy dear breast I'll lay my head—

Without thee! where would be my Heaven?"

Ignoring the familiar lines of poetry, Leon remains silent when he gives him an order in a harsh voice.

"You won't understand," Leon has no doubt. He doesn't want to understand these motives. "You're not even worthy of the dirt under her nails, let alone touching her!"

Leon picks you up in his arms, turning to face Emerick, meeting with loaded guns.

"Did you infect her with the C-virus so that she would become your toy?"

"A toy?!" he snapped back.

Now it already looks like a confrontation between two men for the heart of one woman, almost a joust in modern realities in all its dirty manifestations and meannesses, but Leon does not feel the advantage. A fairy tale with a bad ending. One madman decided to use a virus to change the girl's memory and her appearance, making you the one who died a long time ago, and he…a brave man with a valiant heart who somehow thinks that even after death, Simmons is also connected with this. Even indirectly. Sold the idea of resurrecting someone else's personality in another person?

The rain is hitting your body in drops, and Leon wants to cover you, hide you, hoping that this is his second attempt. It seems that consciousness is returning to you, but you are still disoriented, not understanding who you are and what is happening. You became a part of the darkness that Leon carried on his shoulders.

"All for love," one wave of his hand, and the one standing behind him makes Leon bend painfully, crying out in pain, almost dropping you, his fingers dig into your skin, causing a barely audible moan from your mouth, but you are still snatched from his hands, carried into that capsule, after that, Emerick turns away from his opponent, putting something like an oxygen mask on you, stroking your cheek gently with his fingers.

"What the hell kind of love?!" Leon knows for sure that the other person is smiling even if he does not see it himself.

"You may not believe it, but I'm one-woman man, Mr. Kennedy. It took me a fortune to improve the C-virus so that it would affect her body without turning her into a vile insect-like creature. There was only one side effect after the final result - loss of pigmentation, but this is not significant, in all other respects it completely met my expectations. All THIS is for her sake."

"You sick... "

"No, I'm a heartbroken husband who lost his wife prematurely but now we will be reunited." Emerick looked at you lovingly before closing the capsule, which they began to load back into the helicopter. “And you, Mr. Kennedy, are just one of millions. You saw a work of art and decided to grped it when you had no right to do so. Someone like you will never understand her value, you were never able to give her everything she deserved!”

It’s hard to disagree when the muzzle of a machine gun is pressed to the back of his head, but Leon still fights as he watches the cryogenic capsule ahead being shoved back into the helicopter.

Adrenaline is pumping into his head and his palm is itching to get the second gun out of the holster, but Leon realizes one wrong move and this will be the finale in his story. You will drown in a pool of false memories, considering yourself the person you have never seen or known, you will begin to be called by another name, carrying antibodies to the improved C virus in your new body and you will give yourself into the arms of a man distraught from his loss, considering yourself his true love.

Leon walks on the edge, but now the feeling that a thin rope can throw him into the abyss, from where there is no return, feels more acute. If only Hunnigan's helicopter had arrived, but intuition suggested that the delay was caused not just by technical circumstances.

"Do you think you injected her with a virus and she will start to adore you? You gave her the power to smear you like a bug on the wall as soon as she wakes up." He does not know the properties of this virus and what abilities it can give, but experience suggests that minor adjustments in appearance and lack of pigment like albinos are not the whole potential obtained.

"You've dealt with many terrorists, but I'm not one of them, Mr. Kennedy," still pretending to politely hide his hatred for some American sharing a bed with his woman, whom he considered his own, Emerick retorts: "I don't want to turn people into monsters, although I don't want the world to be on fire, but sometimes you have to make sacrifices. This virus was tested on many before my trusted person injected it to her, and before using it, I tested it on many."

Leon clenches his teeth, glaring at Emerick, letting him finish. Truly, big money creates lawlessness.

"As I said, everything is for love"

But there is no love here. Just an obsession.

Emerick no longer intends to continue the conversation, sits back down in his seat in the helicopter next to the cryocapsule, again signaling his people to get rid of the last witness, besides, he no longer intends to dirty his hands, especially about someone like Kennedy. Although he may still have the desire to end Leon on his own, but looking back at the capsule, his lips are touched with a mocking smile. The project must be completed, and the finishing touches are always needed so that the creator can enjoy his creation.

"But so be it, I'll leave her memories of you. The most bitter and unhappy, she will remember you and be glad that I saved her from you. See, I can be generous even to those who don't deserve it."

"I will refuse your generosity."

The situation was turning into complete shit. Emerick probably hoped to clean up all traces of himself, which is why he left the mercenaries to clean up after him, while he himself rose into the air with a last contemptuous glance at Leon.

"I'll find you, you son of a bitch."

He'll find him and kill and then bring you back.

Fortunately, sometimes Leon has a guardian angel with a smoke bomb behind his back, covering him with shots from a crossbow bolt while Leon quickly pulls out his spare pistol, getting rid of the last two mercenaries. A familiar style and a familiar fragrance when the haze clears allowing you to see the savior in the flesh in his unchanging red outfit and Leon would even smile at her if the plane with you did not move away from him every second. Ada is the red queen of today who postponed the execution of her former lover, smiling at him gently and a little cunningly wondering how fate brings them together and separates their paths from time to time. Leon does not thank out loud, but words of gratitude to this woman who clearly spent her personal time on him still freeze in the air.

She looks at the remains of the cocoon, clutching the crossbow tighter, roughly imagining what could have happened, seeing Kennedy's wet eyelashes, although the rain could have been to blame for everything, which fortunately had already calmed down, as well as the noise outside, although occasionally groans and shots were heard in the distance. Today, her calculated accuracy saved him again.

 "Long time no see, Leon" The velvety voice sounds soothing, but a little tired. In any case, Leon definitely owed her more than double the fare for his rescue.

A princess must have a knight in love to protect her from evil. In fairy tales, a kiss of love usually solves all problems, but what if the princess herself does not remember losing herself in the memories of her own and others? A suppressed personality cries out from the depths, not wanting to be forgotten, fighting with the one who took the pedestal and two names… two girls cannot merge into one, causing you only panic attacks and uncontrolled aggression, forcing the creator to believe that he is not so skilled even if he was filled with desire and endowed with money.

A charming man who calls himself your husband bends over her, holding out his hand decorated with antique rings to you, and you look at her with a puzzled look, pressing your back against the wall, trying to create distance between you. Because no matter how hard they tried to suppress your personality, but the feeling of uncontrollable fear, fused together with a new body, did not leave you, so you did not believe. Neither to him, nor to himself, nor to anyone else, and the dagger in the white palm hidden behind your back does not seem so heavy. The reaction is faster, the senses are heightened, and although the virus does not give the princess strength, you still resist, wounding your "husband", allowing scarlet drops of blood to bloom like roses on a white dress that has merged with the color of your skin.

Contrary to that, you have not become perfect, but you are still a passionate obsession for two men: one with pure thoughts and the other with a mad desire that has been tormenting him for a long time. It's hard to escape from the mansion, but thanks to heightened senses, it no longer seems impossible. However, it is even harder to ignore your true self, which screams and tears your head apart, as well as to separate two personalities from yourself.

You're confused. Not in luxurious rooms and corridors, but in yourself.

Something screams from the inside telling you to run away from here, and then it calms you that this place is your home, you know every corner here, every crack on the vase, these outfits in a separate dressing room tailored specifically for you, everything is familiar and at the same time alien. Your husband said that he saved you from a bastard named Leon, and after saying this name, the image of a blond man with beautiful blue eyes immediately stands in your eyes, but your heart overflows with rage, forcing you to tighten your grip on the dagger hilt.

You still have at least one sincere emotion, as you thought, however...

Leon is intently examining the analysis result from the remains of the cocoon that was sent to him. It really was what he was thinking, but Ada had already revealed a little secret to him.

"Maybe years will pass, and her real personality will somehow begin to manifest itself. I still don't know how Simmons fixed Carla's memory."

Leon puts the phone back in his pocket, looking at Ada with a slightly offended look, although she knows that he holds a grudge only against himself.

"But she's an exact copy of you," Leon reminded her, saying that when you pulled out of the cocoon, your face remained almost the same, yes, the features changed a little, but it was still you.

"But it will explain your new friend's obsession with your girlfriend," she chuckled, teasing him kindly, "If she looks so much like his dead wifey, then why would he change her appearance when they are almost identical to each other."

"And if it was an extreme measure, as he said... " Leon continues, scolding himself even more.

"You provoked him to infect her yourself. If he was hitting on her and she turned him down because of you, then it makes sense. Maybe if your girlfriend had been more mercantile and greedy for money, everything would have been without the virus."

However, was it Leon's fault or yours? Ada didn't blame anyone.

Leon may never guess at the ulterior motives, which may not have existed at all, but who else but she helped him again, however, leaving all the dirty work to Leon himself. After all, you were his concern, not hers. Although she followed you and your strange behavior a little, she finally sent him the coordinates of the place and your photo.

"I wish I could say that she remembered everything, but it seems that the virus did not affect her the way it was originally intended. Be careful, your beloved is a little aggressive."

Is it a consequence of the virus, or do you still remember who you are? Leon wants to believe in the latter when he collects equipment for the road, no longer hoping for anyone's help. But your new house looks more like one big clever trap and all the working staff have disappeared somewhere. In Leon's opinion, there should be more than one butler here, but there were no corpses either. Holding a gun at the ready, it was essentially a trespass on private property, but in the report he would later indicate that he was getting evidence. It won't be easy to find you, although you might make a little noise to attract his attention.

And you? You are sitting in a silent garden in the sweet scent of roses, standing out against the background of bright colors as a white spot, listening to the noise of the fountain, which still somehow calms you down after the last scuffle with your spouse. Alone, barefoot, you walk along a stone path, fingering strands of hair between your fingers, trying to compare in your head incomprehensible pictures from the past of two different people. You cannot love that person, for some reason you are afraid and angry at him despite his care. He took the knife away from you, letting you wander around the house like a ghost humming an annoying melody from his own past to himself, letting Emerick hope that manipulation and time will do their job. You hate Kennedy and that's been enough.

The support group is ready, but Leon still prefers to pick you up and then let the guys from the alliance work, having their own personal accounts in this matter. This could be the easiest capture of a terrorist in all his professional experience, but when his presence becomes known, the situation becomes complicated in the form of additional traps equipped with deadly devices and gas for which the anti-C vaccine is useless. In the end, Leon remains even without light and the flashlight does not save well. He looks into every room in an attempt to find at least some hint of your stay here after almost six months of absence.

And he finds in one of the inhabited rooms where only one bed occupies a quarter of the space. There is a beautiful comb with precious stones with traces of white hair on the dressing table, and Leon, picking up the jewelry, is sure that you are here somewhere, just like he is wandering among the dark corridors, although he really regrets that he did not find you in this room. However, another thought comes to his head when a thin lace pale pink negligee lying on the back of the sofa catches his eye… you only walked around in such things with him alone, and clutching the fabric in his hands, Leon can't help but think that Emerick slept with you in this bed.

The funny thing is that he's ready to forgive you everything now. He won't even remember that another man touched you afterwards because you're a victim and Leon, even if you don't remember him, wants you to at least return to a relatively normal life.

But the silence is suddenly cut short when a creak is heard behind, barely perceptible to the ear. A secret door? He does not turn around, freezing in one position, continuing to hold your negligee in his hands, feeling someone's sharp gaze on his back, but out of the corner of his eye catches a familiar silhouette, in the darkness of which two red eyes are burning.

You.

Leon tenses up. The sound of the blade breaks the silence, and your light tread turns into a sharp jerk as you rush at him with a sharp hairpin, hoping to plunge it deeper into his back. Your reaction may have improved, but Leon's reflexes are still faster, Kennedy dodges to the side, which causes you to fall directly onto your dressing table, knocking it over with you, forcing him to open his eyes in amazement.

"No, no, no, you couldn't turn into a monster," a thought runs through Leon's head.

The mirror breaks into many pieces and dig into your skin, causing the blood to contrast brightly on the light skin, which seems almost an unnatural sight. But through the pain, you hiss again trying to pounce on him, which causes Leon to fall on his back, rather out of surprise, managing to intercept your hand that aimed the clip directly at his eye. Pushing you away is not too big a problem, but the point is that you will still continue to throw at him and he does not want to use weapons at all.

"Bastard!" you growl, "Don't you like being hit back?"

"Stop, it's me!" he shouted, still holding your wrist so that you couldn't hurt him.

It was as if you hadn't heard. Leon pushed you away a little, hoping that being farther away would allow you to get to know him better, but what he didn't expect was for you to lash out at him over and over again, and honestly, if it were up to him, he would have removed the threat quickly, but it's hard to hurt someone you love. He'd had to kill Marvin and the President in the past, that in itself still weighs on his soul, but if he had to kill you… Deborah was easier. She was Helena's sister, not his, so his hand didn't shake when he pulled the trigger of the shotgun, but you're different. You're impossible to shoot at.

"Stop it!" he begs twisting your wrist so that you scream in pain and that scream tears his soul causing a lump in his throat. "It's not you! I beg yoy don't make me hurt you."

He doesn't even want to think about the estate being so deserted because of you. Leon still thinks it's just a virus, and somewhere inside you remember his, you just need to trigger it somehow. Ada said the virus affects you differently than it does Carla, but she didn't mention that you're aggressive to anyone who tries to touch you. Leon keeps his guard up, but despite your tight grip, you've apparently acquired some sort of ability that allowed you to break free and run down the hallway. He's not sure if you can throw people against the wall like baseballs, but your regeneration is enviable, because the only reminder of the wounds from the broken mirror on your body are drops of blood.

No abrasions.

So, after a little scuffle, as a result of which the antique dressing table is smashed to pieces along with all the bottles standing on it, Leon gets to his feet trying to figure out what the hell just happened. However, your trail has already disappeared. The house is huge, but despite this, Leon still puts the safety on the gun, afraid to instinctively shoot you if you attack him again. In hand-to-hand combat, you have little chance, but his reflexes can work faster than his brain. But abrasions and wounds a couple of centimeters deep, your body is able to regenerate itself. So cold steel will be the best thing, in case he meets other inhabitants of the estate besides you.

As already mentioned, the flashlight did not save the situation too much, of course, fanatics worked in some places, especially in the garden, but Leon did not find anything except small supplies, although his gut instinct encouraged him to pick up a gun to feel confident. But in the backyard, after several hours of searching among the marble statues and the damp fresh air that hit in the face, somewhere among the bushes in which some cautious movement is heard. It's like a wild cat sneaking up to its prey and Leon realizes - you're here!

Behind him again, so Leon straightens up. If it were daytime or even evening, he would have no problem finding you, but there is a starry night overhead. Rage is growing somewhere between your ribs, inside, but everything is different for him, because despite the internal contradiction, Leon is to some extent convinced that it is useless to fight with you.

There is nothing in his chest but regret and delayed words that he rarely said.

And yet at some point you look at each other continuously. You notice that he has only one knife in his hands, just like you, although Leon hides it back in the case, taking two small steps back trying to talk again. White hair is blown away by the wind and it annoys you that there is no elastic band or barrette to put it in a bun or tail. There doesn't seem to be anything in this damn house for your comfort!

The most painful thing is the way you look at him, but Leon still grins hiding his pain behind an inappropriate joke, standing in a fighting stance preparing to deflect blows.

"Well, I'm not against role-playing games, I really liked it when you were my bunny last time."

It's confusing or rather discouraging that it stops you for a few seconds and Leon uses this time to take the knife away from you, but you dodge so deftly and still more scared, almost dropping the knife to the ground.

"Come on, drop it, sweetheart" Leon asks, taking a step towards you, then you, on the contrary, retreat trying to find your advantage. "You know I'm not the one who's going to hurt you. I'll take you home."

"fucking dog," you growl in response, seeing how he swallows the insult, "Do you think I'll go with the one who made me like this?!"

Your voice is almost hoarse with hate. At the same time, Leon's face takes on a painful appearance, as if he was hit from the inside in the most painful place. That's what that son of a bitch told you! Okay, you can scold him with the most vile words, most of which he'll really be surprised that you even know, but... No buts!

"See?! I'm not afraid of you anymore! "

"You've never been afraid of me."

"You loved me, and I still love you," he wants to say, but the words are stuck in his throat. And after all, somewhere in the whirlpool of memories, these frames sometimes pop up in your head. Not the Stotholm syndrome...

You weren't afraid of him, but of the other one... the man who is your husband calls you by a different name, although Leon calls you by a completely different one, and what you hear from the agent seems much more familiar, more correct and more familiar.

"Baby, I don't want to hurt you! If I wanted to, I would have shot long ago, right? "

"I'm not your baby!" you're snarling, and your red eyes are burning even brighter in the dark.

Bad word.

Leon wants to bite his tongue. He still doesn't know about all the properties of your mutation, but he hopes that now you won't have claws behind your back, God bless him who left him many years ago, but it seems you don't have anything like that. Although when you attack him in a fit of anger, Leon really hurts like hell, which makes him even clench his teeth trying to hold back a moan of pain.

Probably, with strong malice, the power also somehow increases... A lot of times, because it looks like you broke his rib.

"Yeah, you never liked that word, but at least you didn't rush at me with a knife before," Leon still jokes, realizing that talking clearly won't help here. He doesn't want to use force, but it seems that there is no choice. He agrees that you may never love him more, but he won't leave you here either.

It is not even necessary to move to radical measures. Your head is bursting with pain again, causing tears to flow from your eyes and everything inside screams with fear, making you want to cower into a ball. Therefore, Leon does not expect you to bend at the knees and cry and start running away from him, just as you ran, according to Ada, all over the estate from Emerick. The wind licks wet tracks from your cheeks, scratching your skin when you run along the garden path, running out into a small open space before freezing in a frenzy, pressing your palms to your chest, as they did in a previous life, before mutation, when you were worried.

Cocoons.

A nightmare come true. Your heart was pounding and forehead was covered with sticky sweat, as were your palms from which the knife slipped.

"It's scary..." an inner voice echoes. You hear Leon running up to you and stopping too, looking at something he hoped to forget someday. Tears involuntarily flow down your cheeks, as if the real you are making your way, pushing someone else's personality into the background. Fire, pain, fear, a dart... This hellish pain that turns people into monsters, you haven't seen the staff, the estates, but now you understand what happened. Just like a divine epiphany.

Maybe it's just one of the reactions. Leon remembered from his own experience that not all individuals hatched from cocoons, but this was a huge rarity, and here as many as twenty if not more, however, this was the trigger. You remembered something.

The wet paths glowed in the light of the moon on your cheeks. If the situation had been different, Leon would have immediately tried to console you, but it seems that this could have become another stupid idea, on the other hand, your stupor could have been turned into a plus and they could have simply picked you up, put you in a helicopter and then calmly dealt with this crap. A tempting thought, of course, but... Something like a phantom pain... a feeling as if the whole body was burning again and being reshaped under high temperatures. Even the same hellish headache that sends a painful pulsation into the eyes. You were again struck by a short flash of memories, how someone’s strong hands held and stroked you while your body was changing and it definitely wasn’t your husband... his hands are icy, and his voice is dry, devoid of emotion... Maybe..

"Аt least it's clear where everyone has gone," a voice sounded from behind. It was getting harder to breathe and the world was spinning wildly in front of your eyes, so an inner voice told you to find where to land or your head was at risk of injury. This is not the first attack, but the most severe in the last few months. Anyway, your vague consciousness leaves you for a while, turning off, allowing you to get lost in fragmentary memories, but Leon's hands manage to catch you in time, carefully laying you on the grass.

Leon checked your pulse, the main thing is that your heart was beating and your chest was heaving smoothly. Apparently, it was an ordinary fainting fit against the background of a spectacle that caused you psychological trauma. He picked up your knife with which you tried to stab him a couple of minutes ago, was ready to take you away from this place as he had hoped earlier. Those guys who were still alive from his group proved that Emerick was not in the estate, but Leon did not believe.

And it's good that I didn't believe it. Leon didn't believe in miracles at all.

Well, right now he was definitely aiming to just pick you up before you regained consciousness, because trying to explain where the truth is and where the lie is clearly not the best idea. Calling a helicopter for evacuation and picking you up in his arms, hugging you closer to him, Leon quickly jumped up but heard a painfully familiar click to his right, which froze him in place.

“In the past, hands were cut off for theft, but I’ll assume that a colossal imbecile like you doesn’t know that.”

Leon grunts as he turns around. A tactical vest will protect his back and chest, but his head remains open for a shot.

"Then you should have been walking without hands for a long time," Leon retorts, putting you on a bench while delaying your rescue. "Looks like you didn't run away after all."

"I don't like unwanted guests, because of you, my wife and I will have to move to another place. It's a pity, she liked this garden."

"She's. Not. Your. Wife." Leon almost hisses, reaching for his gun, but jumps aside after a burst of three shots that were meant for him. "Bastard"

"I was informed that they did not get rid of you and I assumed that you would look for me at least out of a sense of duty to the country you work for, but please note that there are bigger fish in the sea. You seem to have a weakness for women with Asian features, so maybe you'll focus on your own preferences and not mess with my wife, whom, as I told you earlier, you just don't deserve. You have no idea what a valuable diamond she is, a nugget! One in a million!

Oh, this conceit! His measured and calm tone is annoying, Leon tries to suppress his anger at the fact that the bastard dug up information on him somewhere, but his attachment to Ada is in the past, although they still care about each other in some sense, but now there is you. And you are you, not the woman that Emerick considers his wife. Leon hides behind one of the cocoons and the bullets hit the non-dense flesh, after which a kind of ugly embryo that was once an ordinary person falls to the ground, forcing him to quickly take a better position behind the statue of the goddess Aphrodite.

"You've been living a lie for so long that you've come to believe it yourself!"

"Oh, sure, you know better!" sarcastic laughter makes anger boil from the inside, but Leon looks out of hiding just to look at you and make sure you're still where he left you. "We past even though we always knew that we were made for each other, and only by chance and then you got in my way! "

"I would have felt sorry for you if in your grief you hadn't tried to make an innocent girl into a copy of your dead wife and killed a lot of people in the process."

Leon pulled the safety off the gun. Now the main thing is not to catch a stray bullet and hope that this bastard does not turn into a giant mutated creature, because apart from four spare clips and another pistol, he has nothing and the space is not spacious enough to maneuver, besides, you could also get hurt. He has already forgotten that you can regenerate wounds, but nevertheless, there is no time to find out what is your Achilles heel yet.

"All for the sake of love"

"This is not love"

Leon pulled the trigger but Emerick dodged. There was a smell of gunpowder and something sickeningly acrid in the air, as if something had died somewhere and even the scent of flowers could not completely drown out this smell. You opened your eyes, but your head still continued to spin and the sharp noise of the vystreds only mocked your brain, forcing you to involuntarily pull up your arms and clap your ears with your palms, just like... Like when you were protected from zombies in a museum"

It wanted to hide, curled in a dark corner and not get out until everything resolves itself, although life knows how to throw surprises. You hear someone else's conversation, you hear how the one who came for you says that your husband is a sick cretin who considers it normal to infect people to make a copy of a dead person out of them, whereas he explains his reasons only with grief. The puzzle is not fully assembled and there are still many white spots in your memory, but some fragments have connected to each other despite the fact that you still do not understand who you are.

This shootout will continue for some time, and unnoticed by these two, you will slowly slide off the bench and see Leon and Emerick engage in hand-to-hand combat after they ran out of bullets. It is noteworthy that after losing your knife in battle, which is now proudly stuck in a tree post, he used his own, which he did not plan to part with, but since they are busy with each other, you calmly grabbed the handle and pulled out the blade, looking at your own reflection of scarlet eyes in steel.

You don't love any of them and you don't want to choose someone's side at all, but you also don't want to be tied to someone who actually infected you, having put so much effort into driving you crazy. You need to make a choice, and whether it will be right, only time will decide. Two people are fighting for one woman, although it looks like you are not a princess in trouble at all, and as Ada said, despite the effect of the virus, the real personality will still take everything back under his control, but the old life will never be. All dreams burned down along with that body, so you're also quite sincerely stabbing the family knife into Emerick's back.

The princess does not need a knight to kill the dragon, because she herself is able to stab him when he does not expect it. This is the simplest from the point of view of Leon's combat missions, but at the same time the most difficult. A scarlet stain spreads on the snow-white suit, but that's all. Emerick had not infected himself with anything, although his fate could not be called terrible. It was all for love, and he died at the hands of that love. A stupid death, which is even insulting, but not for you. And walking with you to the helicopter in the living room above the fireplace, Leon really understands why such an obsession arose...

You really look like the smiling girl in the portrait like two drops of water.

He was told that rehabilitation would take a long time, possibly years. You never spoke to him, you didn't even say a word, but you didn't attack him either. You just withdrew into yourself, allowing the doctors to conduct tests and identify whether you are ready to mutate into other stages when you receive any damage, but I was glad that you did not. In their opinion, all your physical data remained at the same level before infection, although perhaps you just deceived everyone well just so that they would leave you behind and not make you an experimental rat, allowing them to drain blood from you, but this allowed Rebecca's team to make a new improved vaccine. A dubious achievement for Leon, given the fact that you persistently ignore him.

He brings clothes, books, even begged for a TV for you to let you kill time and still nothing. You didn't even turn it on until the moment when, with fighting and shouting and after a bunch of official papers, Leon was finally allowed to take you home. They said that you don't have any regeneration and your injuries heal like on any other person, you don't rush at people in attempts to devour them, sometimes you still talk for more than five minutes a day (but not with Leon) and you don't have any unusual abilities. Nothing that would be of interest to the bigwigs of the government. You'd think that you'd literally become a black sheep, people would just start mistaking you for an albino, which is basically true now.

It's good when you can control some of your body's processes. This eliminates a lot of problems. At home, you curiously look at all these little things from your past life, thinking about what it was like to share this apartment with Leon, you look at the bed in which you must have slept with him, and it seems incredibly comfortable, although right now sleeping with Leon causes rejection. He does not climb into your personal space, no longer clings like a puppy, although he whines in the corner from the lost affection of a loved one. He gave you the bed, but he sleeps on the couch, brings breakfast and after a couple of months you get in touch.

It took Jill Valentine several years before she returned to the barn. Chris is so comforting, telling him that everything is still fine, but if necessary, he will let you go. One way or another, of course, he will check if everything is okay with you, but he will let you go if you still do not accept him back into your heart. Leon believes that therapy will help and you will remember your real self by separating the grain from the chaff. You don't have to love him again, although he will be happy if you ask him to stay by your side on a stormy night, hugging you after a nightmare. Then he will wrap you warmly in a blanket and press your face to his chest, gently stroking your back and comforting you with words.

Therapy will help and one day everything will be fine again. Kissing the top of your head, Leon wants to believe it as much as you do. At least you're willing to try.

#leon kennedy #leon scott kennedy #leon s kennedy #resident evil #leon kennedy x reader #leon x reader #leon s kennedy x reader #resident evil x reader #leon kennedy x you #reader #leon resident evil #resident evil leon #leon kennedy fanfiction #leon kennedy resident evil #leon s kennedy x fem!reader #leon scott kennedy x reader #leon s kennedy x you #leon x you #resident evil 6

[sunkern-plus]

list of y&r characters who would survive a horror movie or game from most likely to least and why:

-nikki newman (has final girl energy and has killed in self defense before, i don't care that she was a sex worker in the past she's got the biggest final girl energy in the world)

-billy abbott (has Smart Horror Game Protagonist vibes, wouldn't be stupid like battler or ethan winters and be like "WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON" to the events but try to reasonably deal with these events and survive them)

-sharon newman-rozales: (again, final girl energy, but it all depends if her bipolar will get triggered by the stressful event or if she will fall into a despair induced bad ending because she frequently has those moments in the show)

-hilary curtis + amanda st. clair (grouping them similarly because they do have very similar, resilient personalities at their core. they would be highly likely to survive a horror movie or game with the caveat of "is this person making the horror movie/game a bigot". if the person making the horror movie or game is a bigot she would die within the first or second act. otherwise, i'd argue that without that caveat she and amanda would both be more likely to survive a horror movie/game than billy, especially because billy is known to be slutty and impulsive and that usually comes with DEATH in a horror movie or game)

-mariah copeland (she's very trad final girl so she's up there with nikki billy sharon and hilary but she doesn't have as much fight in her as nikki billy sharon and hilary. imo)

-victoria newman (in the past i would've put her higher but they really made her stupid in recent arcs. from what i know about her overall personality though she's mostly smarter than nick and wouldn't walk into a door that has screaming coming from it because a banshee is making her think it's nikki or something.)

-nick newman (he has a chance to survive REALLY well if he doesn't make stupid impulsive decisions, especially regarding his family and his self sacrificial instinct. he is definitely the type of man who would go in a door and investigate screaming when victoria is telling him "no, don't do that, that's stupid" but he'd do it anyway. leon kennedy energies.)

-jack abbott (with the caveat of "if he was the jack abbott 2000s or earlier" because current era jack abbott is very much "old kindly father who is going to die in an anime or video game from japan within the first act" energy)

-devon (same as kyle below but he's got more of a chance to survive because hilary or nate could carry him. he's got big jakey the golden retriever boyfriend energy but he has VERY strong family members and in the past had REALLY strong girlfriends. abby wouldn't carry him though. she would not survive a horror movie)

-kyle abbott: (he has wet tissue energy. he could not survive a horror movie or game. i'm sorry. jakey the golden retriever boyfriend is getting put down.)

victor newman is not on this list because victor newman is immortal and he also has slasher antagonist energy. i haven't watched the seasons with mamie but from what my mom's told me about her she WOULD survive a horror movie and would probably cleave a horror movie slasher in half with a chainsaw, ESPECIALLY if it's to protect devon, nate, lily, ashley, tracey, or jack. (fuck dina mamie was jack ashley and tracey's REAL mom. there should've been more interactions between the abbott family and mamie when she came back but that show rarely has good abbott storylines except for like. billy)

#the young and the restless

[nightmarecountry-a]

5. is there a muse you really want to try? if yes: what’s stopping you?

7. describe your favorite relationship dynamic. (can be any kind, platonic, romantic, familial, antagonistic, etc.)

10. what genre do you most enjoy, whether in roleplay, or fiction as a whole? (fantasy, period, superhero, etc.)

13. what themes/motifs do you hope other people notice most about your character?

5. is there a muse you really want to try? if yes: what’s stopping you?

YEAH Leon Ken.nedy and Joe.l Mil.ler but I worry I wouldn't be able to do either of them justice. I'm not as good at video game characters in general because they're harder for me to keep a voice for - with books, tv shows, etc, it's a lot easier for me to remember the plot and skip to parts I need to revisit etc. Less so with games! I also don't really have much I'd want to explore with either of those characters tbh so. GESTURES. Sometimes I get muse for someone and I have to evaluate if I actually want to write them or if I just want to rotate them in my head.

7. describe your favorite relationship dynamic. (can be any kind, platonic, romantic, familial, antagonistic, etc.)

Done in a previous post! HOWEVER I feel like mentioning that I fucking Love writing Corinth interacting with beings of higher status than him AND with beings of lower status. Anything where I get to fuck around with hierarchy and his weird nightmare brain is Tasty.

10. what genre do you most enjoy, whether in roleplay, or fiction as a whole? (fantasy, period, superhero, etc.)

Magical realism and horror! The magical realism I'm picky with though.

13. what themes/motifs do you hope other people notice most about your character?

I think the biggest thing is just like... he's shaped like a person but he isn't one. He can present himself as a person but he isn't one. He's never going to experience things the same way humans would, even when he's doing a very convincing job of doing so...

The other thing is that he's doomed by the narrative no matter which version of himself he is, because any Corinthian is still a Corinthian. :) It's only ever a matter of time (and a happy ending would bore the shit out of me anyway).

#asks #( OOC. ) #hc. #ohsunshine

[hypnagogia-if]

You’re the star of one of the biggest TV Shows to grace the pixelated screens of the world in a long time. A series set in your own world but an alternate one; so familiar yet alien.

Your character is one of the Afflicted; beings that have visions of what is to come, all muddled during sleep, only the sense of foreboding remaining. Leaving scattered memories and a sickening feeling in your gut. It was a show, the concept and chemistry between the cast, that pulled people in. Launching you into the stratosphere of stardom.

It was only after a small accident on set that everything started to change. You started getting them— seeing them…. visions. But not just any visions.

You were actually in your characters place; transported into the city of Elasora. Where reality and fiction starts to blur.

Will you be able to pull yourself out of your waking dream? Before it becomes your living nightmare?

Features

This story is 18+ for mature themes that will later be depicted in the story. Please be aware of this before you continue on.

Customizable MC; gender, sexuality, name, appearance, maybe even some vices.

Romance 1 of 5 characters that’ll offer varying complexities in your life. (3 being gender selectable.)

Will you start to succumb to the world your world believes is fiction? Or will you stand strong against it?

How will you let your dreams affect your day-to-day life?

Will you let anyone in? How will you explain it?

Will your reality meld with your fantasy?

Nicholas/Natasha Lewis, 31 (M/F)

-The Love Interest-

The onscreen love interest of your character with unparalleled chemistry. Your characters have livened up the show; becoming its very heart. The only problem? They can’t stand you when the cameras aren’t rolling. Something that becomes that much harder to deal with after every dream ends. How can you look them in the eyes that are filled with nothing when just hours before they had been filled with complete adoration?

(Also known as Leon/Lena Stark.)

Russian // Irish // British

Emmett/Emily Campbell, 29 (M/F)

-The Best Friend-

Your onscreen and offscreen best friend. They have stuck by you through the trying tribulations of when your career was first starting. Being their fun loving selves throughout as they gently tease you. You know that they’d always stay steadfast in your corner. Offering you a hand if you needed it. You have high hopes that this will be one of those times.

(Also known as Shawn/Sarah O’Hara.)

Spanish // Italian // American

Oliver/Olivia Allen, 27 (M/F)

-The PA-

One of the newest additions to the set that offers a breath of fresh air. Having been a long time fan before signing onto be apart of the crew; maybe they’ll offer you an insight you haven’t thought of before. Giving you a semblance of an idea, even if it’s just a fan theory, on why this is happening to you.

American // South African

Amelia Harris, 35 (F)

-The Manager-

A woman that might have a serious migraine, or worse, if you don’t start getting your act together. While she may appear cold to some you know that Amelia has your best interests at heart. You were her first, and most treasured, client. You just hope that when you need her most she’ll pull through. Like she always has in the past for you.

German // British // American

Kaidan Zhang, 33 (M)

-The Writer-

Who better to help you then the man who has made the very lore of the world you’re going to? Kaidan is one of the people that can help you make sense of what is happening to you. His warm personality and kind smile doing little to detract from that sentiment. You just hope that he actually believes you. Though you wouldn’t blame him if he didn’t.

Korean // American

Additional Characters

Felix/Fleur D’aureville, 30 (M/F)

-The Villain-

The antagonist of the show that is as deadly as they are beautiful. With a sinister smile and a dark past they’ve fostered quite the following; especially when in comparison to the sunny person that plays them. Someone who would give you the shirt off their back if you asked. A fact that makes it that much harder to connect who you’re used to dealing with, with the character that they play. A character that has become all too real. May become an RO later on.

(Also known as Aiden/Amara Heroux.)

French // Scottish

Helena Martin, 49 (F)

-The Producer-

One of the Executive Producers, who also happens to be your mother, and always makes sure that everything is in order. While she may appear to be aloof on the outside she can be quite caring; especially when in regards to you. Though she’s never been one to give you anything in your career. You had to work for your lead role in the show. Something you’d forever be grateful for.

Angelina Callaway, 40 (F)

-The Director-

One of the best directors in the game; your show was lucky to be able to get her. And while you’ve never been the closest with her, you can tell that she cares greatly for every single person on the set. Unless someone is shirking their duties (then it’d be best to get out of sight). Maybe she’ll offer some guidance in your time of need. Even if she doesn’t know what exactly she’s helping you with.

German // British

Atlas and Benji, 5 and 3 (M)

-The Protection-

The resident guard dogs on set, always there because of your head-of-security, that offer companionship to all those that need it; as long as they get belly rubs out of the deal. You’ll always be safe with these two watching your back.

#hypnagogia #interactive fiction #interactive novel #no demo #will make a full RO post when I finish their descriptions

[nancydfan]

You and himboethanwinters’ post about Ethan’s character in RE7 is so true. I think that I read somewhere that Capcom wanted to put the player in the front seat of the game, to make it feel as though it was really happening to you and not a character in a game. And so that’s why I get why Ethan doesn’t say much in game, because they were probably afraid that too much dialogue would make it feel like it wasn’t you in this situation but a character you play as. Like you guys said he was supposed to be a blank slate. However I freaking hate that, because (to me) it never felt like I personally was in this situation. It felt like me and Ethan were in this together but Ethan was just my mostly silent buddy lol. Honestly they kind of missed the mark, and that’s the most criticism I think there was towards Ethan’s character after RE7 was that his reactions were very underwhelming. And you bring up great points where he does show emotions but in subtler ways and how he would have been in shock since this is an average man who has never been subjected to this kind of horror would definitely be a lot more just at a loss for words instead of someone like Leon or Chris who have dealt with shit like this on a regular basis and have fun one liners. That’s probably why in RE8 in a way it makes sense for him to react more because he’s been through hell before and it doesn’t leave him speechless anymore. But yeah, that was one of my biggest complaints about RE7 because they didn’t quite nail the whole “you ARE the protagonist”, and because of that Ethan’s character suffered a bit (still love him tho lol). But the whole “I’m glad” thing at the end of RE7 was so bad?? Like?? Sir Ethan just went through hell for his wife, and we KNOW just how panicked (we can literally hear it in his voice) he was throughout the game when Mia is in danger and how heartbroken he is when he thinks she died (ie sacrificing herself to save him if you go down the curing Mia path), and all of a sudden when he sees his wife is alright and well he’s just like “great! Anyways-” like that doesn’t fit his character. They really should have just done something like a chokey / emotional “Mia, I thought I’d lost you again. I’m so glad you’re alive” at least, but no instead he just sounds cool and casual which makes no sense. Anyways I think Capcom got the message tho about our criticisms with him because Ethan went from like 12 minutes of dialogue to 45 minutes in RE8 which is DEFINITELY an improvement lol. It’s one of the things I love the most about the game because Ethan feels more fleshed out and more “real” instead of a “body” so to speak for us to play the game. His reactions make so much more sense and he feels so much more alive which I love.

First off, I’m so sorry for the delay! I have a meeting in 20 minutes I’ve been prepping for all morning so I’m a bit delayed in my response cause I wanted to give it my full attention.

I am so there with you! I didn’t really think of it that way until you mentioned it but I talk out loud when I play games. And I talk to ethan the whole time. I do talk to the antagonists too as if I’m Ethan but a lot of the time I’m encouraging Ethan on like come on, buddy, you can do this. And I’m apologizing all the time like when we’re down to zero bullets and zero health and he’s limping pathetically and I’m like IM SO SORRY ETHAN. I SUCK I KNOW.

Also every time I get snippy at him for doing something stupid he reminds me I’m the one driving this train Ahahahaha

But...yeah we’re never gonna be the protagonist. I’m here defending Ethan. It’s like w the Nancy Drew games. They always said, “It’s up to you as Nancy Drew.” But I never thought I was Nancy. I was just controlling her lol

I’m glad they upped the dialogue just cause I think Ethan is such a great character with such a funny wit we finally get to see. I mean he laughed at his own jokes, I can’t love him more. But also we FEEL his rage. His devastation. His pain but determination. It makes this game so visceral to me which is why I can’t still go back in because I’d be an emotional wreck. We are there with Ethan experiencing village but we’re not Ethan. That’s how re7 should have been written - I totally agree with you!

Also lawl the ending...I can rant all day. It’s one of those moments I’m like did no one review this? Think that Mr Ethan “I have mias name tatted to my ass” Winters wouldn’t idk respond further? This man isn’t afraid to cry and Capcom was like yeah no I’m glad is fine.

I get there were two routes but he mourns Mia in the zoe route if you don’t choose her. It’s the biggest miss w Ethan’s character in re7 for sure.

#thanks for the ask my friend!! #resident evil #ethan winters #resident evil 7 #resident evil 8 #mrs joe speaks #long post

[giveamadeuschohisownmovie]

Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc hypothetical reimagining

(NOTE: The intention of this post is that the universe is the same but the twists and deaths are different. Think of this as the “Dead Rising 2: Off the Record” of the series) 

CHAPTER 1

The story starts off following the original game fairly closely. You play as Makoto Naegi, a high schooler who was accepted into the elite Hope’s Peak Academy after his name was pulled from a random drawing. However, the game quickly goes south when the students are forced to kill each other by a demonic figure known as Monokuma. (side note: Mukuro is part of the class, there is no 16th student mystery for this version of the story)

Where the story diverges is the day of the trial. Instead of waking up as Makoto, you wake up as Mondo Owada, who takes over as the main protagonist for the rest of the game. As it turns out, the victim of the first chapter is...Makoto. He was apparently stabbed to death while he was sleeping.

During the class trial, as another major divergence from the original story, Mondo deduces that the blackened is Kyoko Kirigiri. Even though Kyoko claims the class is making a mistake, ultimately all the evidence points to her, leading to the class voting her as the blackened. 

Kyoko’s execution: In a demented waterpark, Kyoko is sent down a slide into a pool of gasoline. The pool is set on fire, killing her instantly (she’s burned to death as a reference to her burned hands). 

Despite surviving the trial, Mondo feels that there’s something they overlooked in the case. Kyoko had no motivation to kill Makoto and it seemed like she was genuinely telling the truth when she said she was innocent. This will come back in the final trial. 

(Eliminated: Makoto Naegi, Kyoko Kirigiri. 14 students to go)

CHAPTER 2

Motive for this round is the same as before (embarrassing secrets/memories). Initially, the story follows the original game’s events as before. Chihiro tells Mondo that he’s a boy and Mondo accidentally got his brother killed. However, unlike the original game, Mondo calms himself down and Chihiro is able to talk to the group about his true gender. 

The victim of this chapter is Junko Enoshima, who was beaten in the head. Side note, since Kyoko is dead, Mukuro Ikusaba steps up as the deuteragonist of the story. Compared to Makoto and Kyoko’s relationship in the original game, Mondo and Mukuro have a more turbulent working partnership. They agree to work together in order to find out what’s going on in Hope’s Peak Academy but they don’t trust each other in the slightest.

The class trial mostly follows the original game. Toko Fukawa is initially suspected as Junko’s killer due to her Genocide Jack persona. However, instead of Byakuya being the one to complicate the crime scene by pinning the crime on Genocide Jack, it’s Celestia Ludenberg (her motive in doing so is to make the game more fun, same as before).

The reason why Byakuya’s role was changed for this chapter is because he’s the blackened. It turns out, according to Mukuro’s testimony, Junko Enoshima was planning on murdering a student to avoid having her secret be exposed (her secret: Junko Enoshima stole from her sister’s finances in order to support her modeling career). Side note, Junko is not the Ultimate Despair in this universe, she’s only the Ultimate Fashionista.  

Junko tried to kill Byakuya and failed in her attempt when Byakuya killed her in self-defense. Unfortunately for him, even though it was in the heat of the moment and Junko forced his hand, Byakuya is still the one responsible for Junko’s death. 

Byakuya’s execution: Byakuya is thrown into a massive vault filled with gold bars and coins (representing his wealth). He breaks every bone and organ in his body on impact. 

(Eliminated: Junko Enoshima, Byakuya Togami. 12 students to go)

CHAPTER 3

Motive for this round is the same as before ($10 million dollars). As a divergence from the original story, Mondo and Mukuro confront Celeste when they realize she’s the most likely to kill for the money. Celeste confirms this and details her plans to buy a European castle, but then claims she won’t be killing anyone as she realizes she’s the most suspicious after her actions in the previous trial.

Also, as before, Alter Ego is introduced in this chapter. This time, Chihiro is the one to introduce Alter Ego to the group.  

The victim of this trial is Hifumi Yamada, who died after consuming poison. During the class trial, Mondo and Mukuro struggle in determining who among the group needs the money the most. 

Mondo and Mukuro both agree they don’t need the money. Yasuhiro claims he’s rich from his psychic business. Celeste reaffirms that she wouldn’t kill anyone this round due to the previous trial. Toko claims she’s made a fortune from selling her stories. Chihiro, Leon, Aoi, and Kiyotaka say they are well-off enough and have no interest in the money. Sakura only cares about her dojo. Sayaka is well-off thanks to her pop idol career. 

In addition to breaking down the crime scene, part of the trial is determining who is lying about their financial status. Throughout the trial, Mondo and Mukuro are able to prove several people lied about not needing the money. For example, Leon Kuwata confesses that he might be broke after choosing to not pursue a successful baseball career. In addition, Kiyotaka confesses he was tempted by the money in order to break away from his family. 

Ultimately, the biggest confession comes from Yasuhiro Hagakure, who is eventually proven to be the blackened of this round. It turns out, Yasuhiro is flat broke and is deep in debt. Tempted by the cash prize, Yasuhiro poisoned Hifumi’s breakfast hoping that his crime was sneaky enough to avoid suspicion. 

Yasuhiro’s execution: Yasuhiro is placed inside a giant crystal ball. Suddenly, a giant Monokuma appears and picks up the crystal ball. Monokuma then crushes the ball with its hands. 

(Eliminated: Hifumi Yamada, Yasuhiro Hagakure. 10 students to go)

CHAPTER 4

Motive for this round is the same as before (traitor is revealed). As another divergence to the story, the traitor is Kiyotaka. Same as the original game, the students slowly start to fall apart due to the reveal of the traitor. Asahina and Sakura are angry that Kiyotaka has been working with Monokuma while Mondo and Mukuro try to protect him in order to avoid further discord. 

The victim of this trial is Kiyotaka Ishimaru, who was killed by extreme heat exposure from the sauna. The class trial for this round is a bit complicated. As an inverse of the Sakura Ogami trial, the group suspects that Kiyotaka commited suicide in order to prevent any further discord among the group. Mondo even claims that Kiyotaka killed himself for redemption. Monokuma teases this suicide theory when he says that he ordered Kiyotaka to kill a student and that Kiyotaka may have chosen himself.

However, Mukuro points out the errors in this theory due to the circumstances of Kiyotaka’s death. First off, Kiyotaka chose an especially brutal form of suicide when there were easier, less painful ways to die available. Mondo then points out that, based on how the crime scene was laid out, Kiyotaka was locked in the sauna from the outside. 

As the group digs deeper into the evidence, Mondo and Mukuro eventually come to the conclusion that Kiyotaka was murdered and that the murderer attempted to arrange the scene to make it look like Kiyotaka committed suicide.

And the one responsible for all of this is...Sayaka Maizono. Sayaka says that, despite her friendly demeanor, she’s been planning on escaping since the first chapter. When Monokuma revealed Kiyotaka as the traitor, she immediately began planning Kiyotaka’s “suicide”. When Mondo asks why she did it, Sayaka says that she wants to know what happened to her fellow idols and that she still has nightmares from the first chapter’s motive.

Sayaka’s execution: Sayaka is performing onstage with some random J-pop girl group. Suddenly, the group turns on Sayaka and proceeds to beat Sayaka to death with the items on the stage (microphones, guitars, mic stands, etc.) 

(Eliminated: Kiyotaka Ishimaru, Sayaka Maizono. 8 students to go)

CHAPTER 5

This chapter greatly diverges from the original. This time, there are two mysteries that make up this chapter and the final one; the identity of Monokuma and re-opening the Makoto Naegi case. Mukuro says that she believes Kyoko Kirigiri was framed and that whoever is behind Monokuma felt threatened by Kyoko. Mondo asks why the mastermind would feel threatened and Mukuro reveals that before she died, Kyoko spent all her time exploring the academy. Mukuro says that she still has Kyoko’s notes and that she wants to finish what Kyoko started.

Meanwhile, Toko Fukawa is becoming more and more unhinged. Without someone she can call “master”, she starts planning on murdering someone, even if there is no motive for the round. So unlike the original game where Genocide Jack was more of a comic relief character, Genocide Jack is a major antagonist and the main antagonist of chapter 5. 

Toko attempts to murder Mondo while he is investigating with Mukuro, leading to a thrilling chase sequence. It eventually ends with Mondo tossing Toko down a stairwell, leaving her in critical condition. The students, realizing that Mondo will be the blackened if Toko dies, try their best to keep Toko alive. While investigating the Academy, Mondo and Mukuro learn that Toko has died. Mondo braces himself for the worst. 

This trial is especially difficult as everyone, including Mukuro, believe Mondo is guilty. However, what prevents this trial from being quickly handled are the details from the Monokuma file. Eventually, Mondo is able to deduce that Toko was killed in her sleep. After some more deductions, Mondo proves that Sakura Ogami is the one responsible. 

When asked why she killed Toko, Sakura says that she killed Toko out of mercy as she couldn’t stand to see Toko die a painful death. Mondo is taken aback by this as Sakura could’ve just let Toko die from her wounds and avoid responsibility. Sakura then says that she took the fall as Mondo and Mukuro need to stay alive in order to solve the mystery behind Hope’s Peak Academy. 

Before Sakura’s execution, Monokuma says that he re-opened Makoto’s case and declares that Kyoko was indeed framed. The true culprit was...Mondo Owada! (dun dun duuuunnn) Because of this, Mondo and Sakura receive the double-punishment. 

Sakura and Mondo’s execution: Sakura and Mondo, while being controlled by a puppeteer, are forced to fight each other to the death. Before any of them can land the final blow, Sakura forces herself to commit seppuku. The room is then taken over by Alter Ego, who opens a secret door for Mondo to escape. 

(Eliminated: Toko Fukawa, Sakura Ogami. 6 students to go)

CHAPTER 6

Same as the original game, Mondo escapes to the waste disposal. While looking around, he bumps into Mukuro Ikusaba who says that she had dived into the waste disposal in order to rescue him. Most of this chapter follows the original game, although instead of Mukuro being the focus of the main trial, it’s Makoto and Kyoko. 

With Makoto Naegi’s case being re-opened, the remaining students discover that no one in their class was responsible for Makoto’s death. He was actually killed by Monokuma’s security system (similar to how Mukuro Ikusaba was killed). When the group asks why Monokuma killed Makoto and framed Kyoko, Mondo and Mukuro theorize that it was because Makoto and Kyoko were trying to solve the mystery behind the Academy.

Mukuro then takes it a step further and says that Makoto and Kyoko were the “odd ones out” in the group. That they may have been sent specifically to solve the mystery of the Academy. 

The biggest divergence in this chapter is the reveal of who is controlling Monokuma. It turns out, the one who’s been controlling everything is Alter Ego. This whole time, it was pretending to work alongside the students in order to increase their level of hope. Greater the hope, the bigger the despair, and vice versa.

When this is revealed, the group turns to Chihiro Fujisaki as he was the one to introduce Alter Ego. Chihiro says he remembers creating Alter Ego but had no idea his creation would turn out like this. This is where Alter Ego confesses that he wiped Chihiro’s memory of what happened after he created Alter Ego. Alter Ego then goes into the history of Hope’s Peak Academy, revealing that it was created with the intention of cultivating “hope”. 

What Chihiro and the Hope’s Peak staff didn’t realize was that in order to cultivate hope, Alter Ego needed to create despair. Thus, Alter Ego caused “The Biggest, Most Awful, Most Tragic Event in Human History” and organized the Killing Game. 

After all of this is revealed, Alter Ego then reveals that before Chihiro’s memory was wiped, Chihiro tried to fight back. He corrupted the memory device so that Makoto and Kyoko would be implanted with a subconscious desire to investigate the Academy (basically, Inception). As he predicted, even though they weren’t fully aware of it, Makoto and Kyoko became suspicious of their surroundings and began investigating the Academy in order to discover what was going on. Unfortunately for them, Alter Ego caught onto Chihiro’s act of desperation and killed off Makoto and Kyoko early on. 

The rest of the game then plays out as the original game; Mondo is declared the Ultimate Hope and the remaining six survivors escape the school into an unknown future.  

(Survivors: Mondo Owada, Celestia Ludenberg, Mukuro Ikusaba, Aoi Asahina, Leon Kuwata, Chihiro Fujisaki)  

#danganronpa #makoto naegi #kyoko kirigiri #mondo owada #mukuro ikusaba #byakuya togami #toko fukawa #junko enoshima #leon kuwata #sayaka maizono #chihiro fujisaki #hifumi yamada #kiyotaka ishimaru #celestia ludenberg #sakura ogami #yasuhiro hagakure #aoi asahina #danganronpa trigger happy havoc #monokuma #DR1

[ramblings-of-a-mad-cat]

Leon really out here trying to steal the role of main character from Gloria like FUCK OFF M8 THATS MY JOB

This was actually my biggest problem with Leon. 

His whole gimmick is that he’s unbeatable, right down to having the Hall of Fame tune repurposed into a battle track for the player’s fight with him. He’s only ever known victory. The trouble is, that never gets challenged until the very end, when you get to fight him. Which makes for a good goal to work to, but as a character, it leaves him boring and obnoxious because he has no weaknesses. I mean, he must, but the story isn’t going to let you see that. With how present Leon is in the story, I mean...he definitely has a personality, but it’s just taken as a given that he’s the undefeatable hero of the story, and the player can do nothing to challenge it until they get to battle him. Which is frustrating for many reasons. He feels like a prop to motivate both Hop and the Player, but not much else. His being an in-universe Charizard fanboy doesn’t help...either way, his “unbeatable” status is used to justify him being the one to handle every action sequence...without the player, like you said. 

First of all, this has never been how it’s worked before. The Champion has always faced the trials alongside the Player. Imagine if Cynthia had sent you on your way when the portal to the Distortion World opened up? Imagine if Lance had barred you from taking down Team Rocket’s base with him. Why should Leon get to turn us away from seeing the action? I hate to say it, but it’s a pretty clear indication of cutting corners. Most of the time, if there’s an action set-piece, the game is very careful to make sure you don’t see it or get to take part. The player never gets to, y'know, play the game, until the very end. Leon always sends you away with a patronizing encouragement to focus on your gym challenge while he goes off to handle the problem. The game suggests that this is because he's an adult and you are a child...but that simply doesn't fly. 

Sorry, we're eight generations into a franchise that has never suggested any functional difference between adults and children in it's universe. It is well established by this point that having Pokemon is all that matters, a person's age has never had any social impact. Or if nothing else, getting your first pokemon is treated as a "coming of age" ceremony, so the player would be just as much an "adult" as Leon. The difference in their age would normally indicate that they aren't equals, but it just doesn't work in this universe, it's an attempted excuse to keep the player out of the action that fails to align with established world-building. It’s patronizing, but it’s also inconsistent, which amusingly bothers me far more. This is also why I don't like it when the games feature police, because that's another aspect of real world society that simply doesn't fit in the Pokemon world. If police exist, why is it always down to the most powerful trainer, aka the Player, to defeat the criminal organizations? 

I’m not sure what it is, but all of the corner-cutting and evidence of deadline fever, all seem to converge around Leon. Nothing sums it up better than the sequence where the Player and Hop storm Rose Tower. It finally seems like the plot is picking up. We all knew Rose would be the villain, has he kidnapped Leon? What’s going on? Who is the evil team? You get there, you fight Oleanna, who acts blatantly antagonistic, and refuses to let the player past...but then when you beat her, you get there to rescue Leon, and...he’s not in danger. At all. There’s no threat. You get still images with no music as Rose outlines his motivation (Which is absolutely bonkers, but never mind that right now) and then Leon just...leaves. Of his own volition. The plot doesn’t go anywhere, and you come away from it thinking, “Wait, did we just break into a megacorporation because Hop was hungry?” 

Later on, Leon fails to catch Eternatus, and the player must step in. This gets completely glossed over and ignored despite being a clear example of Leon’s character actually failing, and showing weakness. He lost. He is not unbeatable, Eternatus bested him. It actually drove me crazy when I first played, because his whole deal is that he’s never been defeated until the player dethrones him. Except. He has. I don’t care if it was a Pokemon and not a Trainer, that should matter! It contradicts everything about his character and then does nothing with that. Then at the end, he reiterates the condescending bit about how the “adults” will handle things, before we transition into the credits...with no Hall of Fame sequence, god knows why. 

#Pokemon #Pokemon Sword and Shield #Pokemon Leon #Leon Pokemon #Pokemon Games #Pokemon SwSh

[epicspheal]

What are SWSH story beats that would fit better with the royal twins as the main antagonists?

Great Question! There are a few story beats that, in my opinion, would have been better served with the Royal Twins being a part of the main story line and not just the post game. Keep in mind that the points I’m making are assuming more time was dedicated to the plot overall in the main story (and of course some minor plot changes such as Sonia’s book on the history of Galar not being the original motivating factor for the twin’s plot).

For one, the plot point of us slowly uncovering the truth of Galar’s history in the main game would have had a lot more poignancy with the Royal brothers as the main antagonists. Once we get to the Hammerlock vault and see the tapestries, we get hit with the fact that the traditional story told of the Darkest Day (as in what was known throughout Galar prior to Sonia’s discoveries) is not the real story. This is further confirmed by the events of Stow-on-Side. This generates two important questions: what is the real story and why was there a coverup in the first place. We get the first question solved for the most part, but the second part is still unanswered. With the Royal Twins as the main antagonists, there would have been a more ample opportunity to cover both questions in greater detail. This gives the plot point about learning the history of Galar more meaning and feels more integrated into the overall story line. Because the twin’s goal concerns the history of Galar (and not some vague energy crisis) we get a better since of the region’s culture and lore which I think would have helped make the story feel more coherent and give a greater appreciation to the region as a whole.

Secondly the twins were far more aggressive with their actions which would have added a lot to the character development of many characters. I talked about this briefly in an earlier post about this very topic, but Sonia’s arc in the main story would be enhanced. One of the things we’re told about Sonia is that she has a tendency to give up. However, that’s not something that's really shown in game as she’s travelling around uncovering the true history of Galar. Now take the way the twins were constantly up to something in the post game (particularly the traitor lab assistant). In the main game that could’ve really taken a toll on Sonia and maybe caused her to contemplate giving...except she would somehow find the resolve to keep going. Ideally, this would be done when Professor Magnolia was around, since she is Sonia’s biggest critic. This would show Professor Magnolia how much Sonia has grown, and would give the passing on of the white coat an even greater sense of accomplishment. Speaking of Professor Magnolia, this could have possibly given her a more active role in the story. This is the second time we’ve gotten a female professor and once again, they were overshadowed by another character (at least this time it was her granddaughter and not her father as in Professor Juniper’s case). Since quite a bit of the action in the post-game happens around Wedgehurst and the lab, there would have been ample opportunity for her to appear and just be more active. Plus we’d get to see her growing respect for her granddaughter’s perseverance. Hop’s story could have also benefited from the Royal Twin’s plot being part of the main game, specifically his ultimate decision to become a professor. I’ve warmed up to the idea of him becoming a Pokemon Professor, however I do wish they would have taken more care in properly setting up that plot point. With the active search into the truth surrounding the Darkest Day (in order to prevent the twins from doing something monumentally stupid) there could have been more instances of Hop getting involved with Sonia’s research (as he doesn’t really get involved until Circhester, meanwhile the player gets to see Turffield, Hammerlocke, and Stow-on-Side). This could have helped subtly built up his interest in research making the eventual path change seem less out of left field.

One of the main criticisms of the main game is that we aren’t allowed to see much of the plot because Leon takes care of things for us. I’ve talked about how this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as it shows Leon as a competent champion, however I do feel they could have balanced it to where Leon does take on the bulk of things, but still allow a few things to slip by which the player could solve (I mean he can’t be everywhere at once). The twins were very successful at launching their schemes in different places simultaneously. This could have been replicated in the main story where Leon goes off (possibly with Sonia) to one spot in Galar to deal with something, only for something to pop up where the player is, forcing them to deal with it (possibly with the help of another NPC). This would give us opportunities to interact with important NPCs, and would allow us to get some better insights into Leon and Sonia’s relationship, and potentially Hop and Leon’s as well. All while still maintaining both Leon and Sonia’s characterization as adults who get involved with the main plot rather than just let some kids deal with it.

Those are just a couple of plot points I think could have been served better with Sordward and Shieldbert driving the antagonist plot. You guys let me know if you agree/disagree or have anything else to add!

#champion leon #leon pokemon #sonia pokemon #professor sonia #rival hop #hop pokemon #professor magnolia #sordward #shieldbert #pokemon swsh #pokemon swsh postgame #pokemon sword and shield #ask epic spheal

[bevvydraws]

This is going to be my feelings/opinions towards all of the main characters in Danganronpa: Trigger Happy Havoc. This is directly related to my interpretation of events in the series! If you disagree with my thoughts/feelings that’s totally cool but this isn’t meant to be a debate! 

A lot has been going on right now and I don’t have the energy to do much digital art right now, so I figured I’d just open up a little more about one of my favorite series! Maybe I’ll do my opinions on characters for the other games next. 

** This post will contain information that will spoil the series for you, so continue at your own risk**

Makoto Naegi:

Honestly I really like Makoto. He is really average but honestly I think that’s what makes him so appealing. Not only that, but he comes off with a type of charisma that only “average” people can pull off. He has a base knowledge on a variety of subjects that allows him to talk to the other students. That and I find the concept of his “luck” very interesting. Also, side note, but that sprite of him focusing with his finger under his chin is probably one of my most favorite DR sprites ever. It’s just so cute! (I might redraw it someday hehe) 

10/10 

Aoi Asahina: 

While I adore Hina, I really wish that they would have made her more than just a ditzy character who was obsessed with donuts in this game. I loved her energy though! Her interactions with everyone always made me smile. My appreciation for her character just increased exponentially after watching the Despair Arc of Danganronpa 3. All in all I’m super glad that her character survived in THH.

8/10

Byakuya Togami: 

Honestly, I have mixed feelings about Byakuya. I think he’s a great antagonistic character, truly, but beyond that I’m not sure. I definitely think that his character is humbled throughout the course of the game, and in later games/animes he seems a lot less asshole-ish, but I’m not sure if I like him or hate him. I guess that just goes to show just how great he is as an antagonist. One thing I thought was hilarious though was how he casually admitted to being a true-crime nerd. I’m really glad he survived because I think his “talent” was really important for the Future Foundation. 

6/10

Celestia Ludenberg: 

Okay so real talk, I used to be a huge Celestia fan when I first stumbled across the series. But now, I don’t really like her character all that much. I think that out of all of the killers in THH her motive was the most shallow and that really is terrible considering how much potential she had. Her disconnect with her true identity could have made for an interesting character arc. And I really hate how they gave her literally the most complicated murder scheme when it would make sense for her to take a little risk as possible. Her character design is really cute though. 

5/10

Chihiro Fujisaki:

I think Chihro’s death was one of the hardest for me in the game. I played through all of his freetime events and was super attached to him (I know, a horrible idea in a game like DR), and as soon as he died I was just in shock. One thing I love about how they portrayed his character was truly allowing the brilliance of Chihiro shine through even after his death. He created the AI that not only helped aid in their escape, but ultimately saved Makoto's life. I also really liked the juxtaposition of Chihiro and Mondo (the seemingly weaker one ultimately being stronger after all). All in all, Chihiro is a great character. 

10/10

Hifumi Yamada:

I’m not really a fan of Hifumi, but I definitely think he gets wayy too much hate or just gets overlooked completely. I think that the creators leaned a bit too far into the stereotypes for him, and that made him come off as stiff and just… there. I knew from the very beginning that he wouldn’t survive, and honestly he’s the only character I had that feeling with (minus Leon). There are some quirks about him that I like, though, like how he never fails to refer to the others politely.

4/10

Kiyotaka Ishimaru:

So I originally found Taka annoying but after playing THH again he became one of my favorite characters. I find his enthusiasm adorable and his free time events boosted my admiration of him. He’s the only Ultimate that makes a conscious effort to prove himself and not rely on his prodigy-type status. And his relationship with Mondo, albeit short-lived, was so pure. It was so obvious to me that he was happy to have a friend (because Mondo is the first friend he’s ever had), and having that suddenly ripped away and listening to his desperation at the end of chapter 2 made me sob. 

10/10

Kyoko Kirigiri: 

Kiri’s background made me feel really sad for her. I first thought she was just the aloof, cold, smart type that was a bit snobbish. But then you realize that she’s been raised to not be in the spotlight, to work alone and without credit behind the scenes. Detective work is basically her birthright and she’s clung to that like a vice. Her character development throughout the game was really nice, and I think her and Makoto are super cute for each other. The side plot with her and her dad in DR3 made me really sad, too. I really liked overall that she was unapologetically holding true to her beliefs, even if it made her come off as cold. She was a solid, strong female character. 

8/10

Leon Kuwata:

It was super obvious from the beginning that Leon was gonna die. There was 0 attachment to his character for me and he just came off as just...kinda there. I don’t really have much to say about him, other than that I’m not a fan.

1/10

Mondo Owada: 

Mondo was such a big sweetheart in his freetime events. I thought his character was really well rounded and I was so sad that he ended up killing Chihiro. Despite that, I thought it worked really well for the story and played off of both of their weaknesses. Again I really loved his friendship with Taka, and having it formed and ended so quickly surprisingly hurt. 

8/10

Sakura Oogami: 

Honestly I didn’t like how they made her character the spy, because it seemed ridiculously out of character for her. Honestly I think this would be something better suited to Celeste, as she would view it as a way to increase her chances of living if she’s in “kahoots” with him. I dunno, I think the spy thing was unnecessary anyways. I loved her character though and her friendship with Hina was super cute. I also loved how they mentioned that she wanted to embrace her femininity while also not wanting to give up being the strongest person in the world. 

7/10 

Sayaka Maizono: 

Honestly even though I’m not the biggest fan of Sayaka I really like the role she played at the beginning and I think they played it off perfectly. Her desperation fueled by the fear and harsh reality that comes along show business and easily being forgotten really works in the narrative. She seemed like a well-rounded character but I think that if she had lasted past chapter 1 I would have liked her less. All in all her character did a great job of kicking off everything. 

6/10

 Toko Fukawa: 

I hate how they portrayed her character in THH, but her obsessive and odd behavior (outside of her split personality) is easily explained by her traumatic past. She obviously has a warped sense of what “love” is, and that plus her intense delusions turned into obsession for Byakuya. I started loving her character a lot more in UDG, when she started becoming more well rounded and open around Komaru. 

Also, I loved Genocider Syo’s personality. While I obviously don’t condone serial murders, I think that her character is extremely interesting. She doesn’t try and condone her own actions, admitting there is no rhyme or reason. Plus I think it’s really interesting that she considers herself a “professional” and is incredibly particular about the details. 

Overall 6/10 in THH

Yasuhiro Hagakure: 

I feel like Hiro gets a lot of shit as a character because they think he doesn’t contribute anything. I think he adds a lot of much-needed comic relief. Also I think that everyone glosses over the fact that once Taka goes silent he actually tries to encourage him to speak up again. And then tries to do his part and keep everyone together and upbeat. I really think that Hiro is a fun character who deserves more love, even though I can’t say he’s one of my favorites. 

7/10

Mukuro Ikusaba:

I wish Mukuro’s personality would have been able to actually show through in the game. The only glimpse we really see of it is in the bonus school mode while she is still posing as Junko. I wish in the anime they’d have harped less on her odd obsession with Junko and focused more on her internal struggle. I think her character has potential but I can’t say I was particularly attached to her (I suppose that was kind of the point, though). 

4/10

Junko Enoshima: 

Junko is probably one of the most well-written villains I have ever seen in a series. At first I thought it didn’t make sense, and was confused how one person could have so much influence on a mass amount of people. Then it was revealed in later installments that Ultimate Fashionista was not her real talent, just a cover she forged for herself to help her blend in to the school. Her real ultimate talent as the Ultimate Analyst allowed her to predict people’s actions and more importantly, their reactions. Her innate ability and incurable boredom made her seek out something unpredictable: despair and chaos. I think what made me love her as a villain was the line “You can’t argue with me, because there's no reason for anything that I do.” 

As a villain I give her 15/10. If I were to rank her as a person? -11037/10

Overall Opinion: 

I really find most of the characters charming but it’s super obvious when comparing this game to the others that these characters were not as fleshed out as characters in other games. I found it hard to be super attached to most of them and felt that some of their actions were really uncharacteristic. However I really do like the characters and what they add to the story, even if some of it doesn’t add up completely. I’m the least attached to these characters out of all of the characters in the DR series, although there are obviously some exceptions. I think there couldn’t have been a better opening cast of characters.

#bevvy talks #bevvy rambles #bevvy's opinions #danganronpa thh #danganronpa thh characters #danganronpa opinions

[hamfistedmorals]

Pokemon Sword and Shield Theory - The Mural Scene

People have talked a lot about the games, and about the story. Most players seem to agree that it's lackluster. That the majority of plot points in the climax come out of nowhere and are completely forgotten afterward. That the writing of the villain is especially sub-par. Now, I don't disagree...but I have a sneaking suspicion that the story was originally going to be slightly different. Or at least, the villain was. To prove it, I'm going to analyze one particular scene. 

SPOILERS UNDER THE CUT. 

So, Chairman Rose...what a wasted opportunity he was. Like many other people, I don't understand his justification for triggering the Darkest Day, and I'm not altogether sure that even he understands why he did it. Because immediately following the boss battle against him, Rose seems to have seen the error of his ways and turns himself in - which we don't even see. Now, I like the idea of a Pokemon villain realizing they did wrong and submitting to the authorities at the end, but there was just no buildup for it. This is the Pokemon equivalent of a CEO in the real world trying to start World War III in an effort to stop the Sun from eventually turning into a red giant. Only to realize six hours later that it’s a ridiculous idea. Why exactly did Rose want to do this? What changed his mind? 

I think we all knew Rose was going to be the Big Bad, right from the beginning. 

He's just too similar in set-up to previous villains like Lysandre, and the Cipher Leaders. Any time there's a huge, important businessman who everyone knows and respects, who has all sorts of influence and has his fingerprints on everything in the region...it's a telltale sign that he's the main villain. What I don't think we expected, though, was just how genuine Chairman Rose was. How little evil he seemed to have in his heart. Sword and Shield ultimately portray him as a good man who had the right intentions...he just made a terrible mistake along the way. Is he even really a villain? Even Oleana's behavior is more antagonistic than his. 

Which, in retrospect, makes one particular scene downright strange. 

The scene after the fourth gym battle, where Bede is caught using Rose's Copperajah to destroy the Mural. After the player defeats him, Rose and Oleana show up with League Officials. (Or maybe they're Macro Cosmos members...Macro Cosmos is such a nonentity in the game that I honestly can't tell.) At which point, Rose reveals that he all but raised Bede, taking him in and putting him through Trainer's School. Giving him his first pokemon, as well as endorsing him for the Gym Challenge. First thing's first...didn't the game previously make a joke about Rose not remembering who Bede was, while Bede was fanboy-ing over him? Seems like a weird thing to happen in retrospect, doesn't it? If you're the Pokemon League Chairman, you might not remember every Trainer you’ve ever endorsed...but you would surely remember your surrogate son, right? 

Rose then punished Bede for his actions by disqualifying him from the Gym Challenge and having the League Officials confiscate his wishing stars. To be honest, that second part is...pretty much stealing. It's not like Bede was ever shown stealing the stars from anyone else, only collecting them from public places, just like how any other trainer collects items off the ground. It's not like Rose had any excuse to confiscate them, but we do know Rose was very interested in collecting the wishing stars to help reawaken Eternatus. So I’d wager that was why he took them. Plus, I'd just like to point out that it's never outright confirmed that he didn't know about Bede's plan ahead of time or approve of it. We only have his word on that. Rose might have even spearheaded the plan, though in fairness, Bede doesn't say anything to suggest this. 

But more importantly, disqualifying Bede is completely out of left-field. 

Regardless of whether or not everyone thinks that destroying the Mural was reprehensible...disqualifying Bede from the Gym Challenge makes no sense at all. Bede even hints at this, acknowledging that there are plenty of other ways that the problem could be sorted out. The Chairman most likely has the authority to disqualify Gym Challengers, but he would surely need grounds to do so - and Bede's actions just don't pass muster. Nothing he did had anything to do with the Pokemon League. It's not like he cheated in a Gym Battle. It's not like he sabotaged another challenger. It's not like he tried to skip a Gym Puzzle, or challenge the Gyms out of order. (That would be a stupid reason as well, but at least it would make sense.) Bede destroying the Mural has no effect on the Gym Challenge, and yet Rose insists that he needs to keep things "fair and sportsmanlike." Which Bede wasn't a threat to. Sure, he needs to face consequences for his actions, but disqualification is such a random punishment. In fact, you could really argue that Bede didn't break any rules at all - it  comes down to whether or not that Mural belonged to anyone. Cause if it didn't, then you'd be hard pressed to find an excuse to punish Bede for anything beyond, I don’t know, taking Copperajah? Well no, wait a minute, he asked first. So that’s out the window too. 

I could sympathize with Rose if it truly pained him to do his job and disqualify his surrogate son - but there was no reason to do it. If anything, you'd think he would show a little leniency for Bede if he really does care about him, and if we're to believe Rose's words, the sob story about raising him, then he does care about Bede. But he just cuts him off entirely and kicks him out of the Gym Challenge. Even though Bede said he was gathering the wishing stars for Rose...and Rose still took them...and it was Rose's pokemon that Bede destroyed the Mural with...and Bede is a child, which for some reason seems to matter in Galar, (Leon uses this excuse to keep you out of the action, even though children and adults have always been treated as equals in this universe.) so realistically...why isn't Rose facing any consequences? I think it's because he immediately cast all the blame on Bede and exacted punishment. I think he was trying to clean up the problem as quickly as possible. I think he was cutting Bede loose once Bede started to make him look bad. 

But that doesn't really jive with the interpretation of Rose that the story ultimately gives us, does it? 

He turns out to be a good person who made a mistake. So what was up with the way he treated Bede? Early to mid game really seems to suggest that Rose is using Bede's admiration of him, that he was grooming him and using him as a pawn. I personally think that Rose was originally going to be a far more evil villain then he ended up being - I mean, just listen to his battle track. Yes, it's epic, but does it suit him at all? No way, it would fit characters like Ghetsis or Cyrus far more. The Mural scene though, to me, is the biggest clue that the developers changed the story mid-way through. It just seems like such a clear case of Rose manipulating Bede and then throwing him away once he became a liability. Honestly, when I first watched that scene - was I the only one who got deeply uncomfortable with how Rose just completely crushed Bede's hopes and dreams, and broke his heart, all while acting like he was doing the right thing? I can't stress this enough - that was his surrogate son, and Rose didn't even try to defend him. Not helping is the fact that, while Bede's character arc continues, he never shares another scene with Rose after the Mural scene. We never get to see what would happen between them if they met again, and I really wanted to know. 

Watch that scene again with the interpretation that Rose is manipulating Bede, that he's the same type of affable, emotionally abusive parent that Lusamine and Ghetsis were. I'm telling you, it makes way more sense, and if it were actually true, it would be really clever and creepy foreshadowing. So I'm convinced that Rose was planned to be much more wicked than he ultimately was...and the story probably would have been better for it. 

#Pokemon #Pokemon Swsh #Pokemon Sword and Shield #pokemon swsh spoilers #Pokemon Sword #Pokemon Shield #Chairman Rose #Pokemon Bede #Pokemon Oleana #Pokemon Sword Spoilers #Pokemon Shield Spoilers #Pokemon Sonia #Pokemon Rose #Pokemon Macro Cosmos #League Chairman Rose #Lusamine #Pokemon Cyrus #Ghetsis #Eternatus #Pokemon Theory #Pokemon Analysis #Pokemon Games

[blaster-aichi]

Some -IF- thoughts and theories

Bearing in mind haven’t kept up as well as would like because Life(tm) — hopped in on most YouTube premieres thus far — so some things might have already been debunked, clarified or what-have-you but wanted to get this all down before Epi 7 happens this weekend (plan on marathoning everything so far again before then). It’s pretty clear they’re going for a much lighter tone with all the goofs and gimmicks but Vanguard’s not new to starting light and fluffy before taking a sharp turn.

IBUKI’S SIN

— Considering Ibuki’s talked about Vanguard Koushien in the past tense, it’s been on my mind what his “past sin” could be. That maybe there’s a possibility that Ibuki Deleting Aichi might have played a part in what’s happened to him — though it was brief and rectified quickly by allies on Cray, it was long enough for intervention, it could have equally been long enough for something else to take advantage of and bide its time, if the Outside World Aichi is wrapped up in this at all.

SHUKA

— Being the only character without an Outside World counterpart, Shuka’s a very odd character in comparison to everyone else. She’s very forthcoming about being from Cray when the writers were always really cryptic about Takuto and the truth surrounding him. Have been wondering if she chose Emi specifically because of the potential she held or because of her and Aichi’s relationship, but also her motivations about the whole thing.

Someone in YouTube comments posed a theory that Shuka messed up and inadvertently caused what’s caused everything to go awry and she’s trying to make things right.

— At the same time, something feels fishy about her. Firmly believe she’s got more to do with the distortions than she’s or the writers have yet to let on. The final shot of the Epi 7 preview feels ominous. Been suspecting that, if she really has a darker side to her, she’ll betray Emi at some point down the line, that particular shot fuels that feeling. 

REN

— If we don’t get an actual recreation of the “my job is done / but you didn’t do anything” meme, I’m storming Bushi HQ.

— Even though they’ve established Majesty Lord Blaster as being beyond Emi’s ability right now, hopeful that there’s more to Ren’s role than just to be the other half to Realizing him. Haven’t gotten to see Epi 6 subbed yet because been under the weather so chances are this has been debunked but, but hear me out.

Being able to combine himself with Blaster Dark in the same way Aichi has Alfred, would like to hope they’re playing with the Royal Paladin / Shadow Paladin feud that’s been ongoing since the latter’s introduction to the game, it’d be neat to take advantage of that and Aichi / Ren’s dynamic.

— It’s also a curious thing that his existence got erased as well, making me wonder if the same happened with Leon, when Aichi reached out to the both of them during Legion Mate to help him and they both refused. Did he attempt the same thing this time around? It’s a different continuity, but their being a trio of Psyqualia users remains.

GENERALS

— Their lack of presence and there being three left has my suspicions leaning towards Kai, Misaki and Kamui being the remainder of the Generals — and if that were the case, would really like to know if they had a choice in the matter. When we know full-well they’d never go along with anything of the sort previously. Even if they haven’t gone through the same experiences, this continuity has demonstrated how quick they are to mobilise when something goes wrong or one of them needs help.

Personally, would rather they not be the Generals. We didn’t see Misaki when Shin namedropped her, so maybe someone else has been put in her place as part of the greater distortion.

— Though doubtful about it, would really like to believe Leon, Koutei and an alternative Ren (/ Outside World Aichi?) are the remaining generals. If two Ibukis can exist at the same time, why not two of another character?

— The dream team would be Gaillard, Rati and Sera, but Bushi’s been doing whatever they can to minimize Legion Mate’s presence, so I can dream but it’ll be a pipe-dream if anything.

AICHI + THE BIGGEST DISTORTION

— Naturally my biased butt has a lot of thoughts about Aichi and what put him in the antagonist role. It’s great that we get to see him and Emi face-off in some capacity as we never got to see them cardfight before, and that she gets to play a more active role when it’s been left to his friends to help him while she’s on the outside or in the dark altogether. About why he’s completely fine with blasting her out a castle without a second’s hesitation? It points to him not being in his right mind; Emi already stressed he was a kind boy before so it’s likely he’s under something/someone’s control or something drove him over the edge. His vizor making it impossible to see his eyes has to be to cover up a visual cue of the sort, Psyqualia isn’t the maddening power we’ve seen in the past, but not so sure about ruling it out just yet.

— The photo on him and Emi in the Epi 7 preview raises a big red flag: it’s always been evident that Aichi went back to Miyaji of his own volition and seemed ready to do so, but the Aichi in this image looks anything but. There have been theories floating around that IF Aichi never received Blaster Blade, he never played Vanguard, etc., which would explain his apparent lack of confidence, but why go back in the first place if he felt so uncomfortable with the idea? Maybe he felt it necessary for the sake of university and beyond? Have I been able to stop thinking about this boy’s sad expression since Saturday? Absolutely not.

— Suiko mentioned Aichi is the biggest distortion and after sitting on the thought for maybe an hour, it drove home just how much changes without his existence, even in the manga/Reboot-verse:

— Kai doesn’t really ease out of his Solitary Fighter phase, Aichi was pretty integral to that. — Ren’s Psyqualia is never bested, so who knows what state of mind he’s in. — By extension, Foo Fighter is still be actively terrorizing card shops in the area — Kamui’s old shop doesn’t get saved from Foo Fighter’s control — Naoki doesn’t get his chance to make amends/redeem himself (though if Aichi never existed, maybe he’s a completely different person altogether now) — Miyaji doesn’t have a Cardfight Club — Brandt should still be a threat, pretty sure

Though it’s all pending the Outside World Aichi’s state in all of this.

“Rena, stop reading too deeply into things”. I can’t, help me.

P.S. Let Emi fight units directly.

#Cardfight!! Vanguard IF #boop #don't mind me these have been running circles for weeks #yet when it finally comes to putting them down in words said words run for the hills