#apparently they’ve been in 'development hell' for a while...

[lulu2992]

As someone who’s played the entire BioShock series, “Oh?!”

#unsurprisingly it feels VERY bioshock #I mean it’s ken levine #I already want to analyze everything we see here #in search for what? I have no idea #but there probably are secrets to find #judas #judas game #ghost story games #also maybe I should add #state of play #in case people blocked the tag to avoid spoilers #I didn’t watch it by the way I just saw that ghost story posted the trailer too #but the video on their channel is age-restricted #will this be better than bioshock 4? #will bioshock 4 even be a thing? #apparently they’ve been in 'development hell' for a while...

[stuffingprize]

Why ship Agon & Yoichi? It’s not just because they’re both devious geniuses who get each other somewhat—making them compatible enough that they don’t need explicit instruction from each other. It’s also that they have a long history filled with changing dynamics & drama. And because, by & large, Yoichi has a tremendous influence over Agon’s choices throughout the story. For a prideful & super talented villain like Agon, I think that’s quite deep!

~~Part 1~~

AGON KONGO’S EARLY DAYS - Aww man it sure is hard to be so talented

Agon is a boy with an ability that cannot be trained - his Godspeed reaction time. On top of that, he is quick to take up any physically & mentally arduous activity, has great looks, & is naturally strong as hell. And he achieves it all without much effort~ 

His early days were therefore filled with praise, admiration & envy from everyone around him, including with the one significant relationship during this moment: his twin brother, Unsui. 

Too smart for his own good, Unsui resigns himself quite early on, taking the loss as “an average athlete” and tries only to improve Agon’s prospects rather than his own.

Unsui: Then all my effort will have paid off.

Agon: Shut up. That's my plan anyway.

For Agon Kongo during this time, he probably felt there wasn’t anyone he could call an equal.. 

~

YOICHI HIRUMA’S EARLY DAYS - I’m going to that fun place now

Yoichi Hiruma as a child feels bored and understimulated. Bright but devious by nature, he one day decides to shake up his humdrum by sneaking into an American Army base at age 10, where he spends his days honing his skills in provocation and intimidation while playing poker with men much older than him. 

It is quite apparent that lying and coercion were natural skills to him.

This is also the place where picks the habit of carrying guns, speak in foul English, & learns all about American football. By the time Yoichi enters middle school, he goes through quite a transformation of looks:

Though at first, Yoichi does not consider himself suitable to playing the game himself, there is no denying he is immensely attracted to the strategic angle of it, spending hours drafting formations in his spare time.

For Yoichi Hiruma during this time, perhaps he only dreams of one day commanding a team with players of his own choosing..

~

AND THEN THEY MEET …wait, who, what, when, where, how??

So how did these two terrors meet? Unfortunately we’re not shown. It is unclear when or how they meet, but we know that it happens before Yoichi decides to play football in Middle School. 

Here’s a headcanon: The “book of threats” was likely an idea Yoichi developed long before, just never had a big enough reason to make one yet. Until he needed to. Until he found something he really wanted to pursue with a lot of obstacles in the way: American football (the man already had used cell phone collection boxes placed around..)

Thanks to a series of events in which Ryokan convinces him to play the game, Yoichi sets out to make his infamous book of threats. For that, he calls on an acquaintance for help! That acquaintance was none other than Agon.

↑This is seriously their earliest known on-screen interaction & we’re presented with this dynamic about them: Yoichi calls, Agon fetches. I know Yoichi isn’t one for pleasantries, but he doesn’t even introduce much context, he just points & Agon goes.

SO WHAT WE KNOW:

They meet somewhere during middle school.

They meet outside of school (no shared school)

Coincidentally Agon also goes through a transformation of looks.

Look, look.. I think it’s quite telling that out of ALL places Agon could’ve been during this very early interaction, he’s at a HAIR SALON. Like, he really really could’ve been doing anything else, or be literally anywhere else. But here we are:

The last one, he says… so they’ve already been at this!

Just IMAGINE! From the moment they meet, however or wherever that was, Agon & Yoichi clearly vibe well enough to exchange contact information & then… Agon forgoes his natural blond hair in exchange for dark dreads.

What could it be? He already wore sunglasses, is liked well & is superbly popular. But perhaps upon meeting this young man with pierced ears & bleached hair, Agon got the idea that he wanted a more intimidating look as well?

Why not? Afterall, he becomes Hiruma’s on-demand thug.

Yoichi influences Agon: +1 point! (Agon gets dreads)

And so, for the next two to three years, Yoichi & Agon apparently spend HOURS running around doing this stuff:

Agon beats people for money, Yoichi gets the blackmail. 

Ahhh yes bonding through filming naked dudes, errr.. Blackmailing, I mean. Hah? Totally normal

Yoichi influences Agon: +1 point! (Agon as Yoichi’s thug)

If their acquaintanceship formed before Ryokan meddled into Yoichi’s life, then Yoichi has a longer history with Agon than with his friends from Maou. Outside of family relationships, theirs is one of the longest-standing relationships in the series. And with long histories come moments of drama. With Ryokan Kurita in the picture, things begin to go sour.

~

I was never your friend but I thought you were mine.. a.k.a. AGON’S JEALOUSY OF RYOKAN KURITA

One of the strongest proof for me that a proud man like Agon is in fact very desperately thirsty for Yoichi’s attention is the evidence showing that he views Ryokan as an obstacle. Ryokan.. whom he would openly say is miles beneath him in terms of talent, looks, brains.. You get the picture.

It’s not “I’m glad I kicked you & your loser friends.” Was perhaps Agon expecting or hoping Yoichi would choose to drop Ryokan & still apply for Shinryuji himself? Afterall, there wasn’t anything stopping Yoichi from doing so except friendship.

These are instances where Agon isn’t insulting Yoichi. His beef is with the people Yoichi chooses to associate himself with, most prominently Ryokan & later Sena (more on Sena in part 2!!)

But why the antagonism toward Ryokan specifically? Wasn’t Gen (Musashi) also around? If Agon Kongo were a genius of interpersonal relationships, he might've figured it out. Because the truth is no one in this story changed Yoichi more than Ryokan.

Ryokan is the reason Yoichi starts playing football & why we get to the Deimon Devil Bats & the story of underdog Eyeshield 21. And while we have evidence that Unsui also plays football in middle school, that doesn’t mean Agon had any interest in it. An interaction from Riko’s interview gives us a hint:

Which suggests that when Agon found Yoichi suddenly immersed in the sport, it was something that must’ve surprised him. Meanwhile Yoichi’s comment suggests Agon followed the same “stunt” afterwards.

In fact, for Agon, the decision happened here:

Was it a mere coincidence that Agon was at this particular scene? Maybe he & Yoichi had plans to meet up later but Agon happened to arrive earlier by chance. Or maybe Agon was here on purpose..

Genius Agon who is feared, admired, & envied by all.... who is good at any sport, who has the looks & talent to potentially get anyone he wants, being put aside by someone he kinda somewhat valued..

I mean, given the time they spent together, it’s reasonable to assume Agon enjoyed hanging out with Yoichi. So this scene where Yoichi is having fun with people who have nothing to do with him, Ryokan in a Shinryuji Uniform especially, must've affected his sense of security on a subconscious level. We aren’t shown any other source of antagonism for his messing up with Yoichi's plans. The thing is, deep down, Yoichi is the closest he could consider an equal. Not like he knew it at the time.

Also, while the panel above paints Agon in a clearly antagonistic light, the original magazine run of that panel was actually juicier:

Really, it wouldn’t be far-fetched to interpret this as anger, envy, maybe even betrayal.

Yoichi influences Agon: +2 points! (Agon enters Shinryuji High School. Agon joins a football team)

And so, Agon sets out to destroy what he saw that day so badly that he really decides to attend an all-boys high school despite being a giant womanizer. And when Yoichi confronts him to try to remedy his dick move, Agon decides to cut him off as well, effectively ruining whatever sort of friendship they had.

Alas, their version of a breakup... I've also talked about Yoichi's choice of outfit in this post, heheh!

ALL TO PLAY A SPORT HE DOESN'T EVEN LIKE!! Now that's some serious malevolent & jealous-driven commitment!

→Continue to Part 2→

Where I explore Agon's disinterest in Football when it doesn't involve Yoichi, his newfound beef with Sena, Deimon vs Shinryuji & beyond~

#Eyeshield 21 #Yoichi Hiruma #Agon Kongo #agohiru #es21 #osu post #yoiago

[justplainmels]

When do you think Jack/Sam fell in love? Before they admitted feelings in season 4. What season and or episode do you think? 🥰

When did Jack and Sam fall in love?

Just kidding. Well mostly. There was obviously immediate attraction on both sides starting from that first meeting in the briefing room. That attraction turned into a crush which turned into some feelings which developed over time into love. However, I think both were in love long before they realized it. I also think this happens at different times for each of them.

Short answer:

Sam fell first. It was a gradual thing (see my "watching Sam fall in love one head duck and smile at a time" gif sets) so it's hard to pick an exact episode. Definitely by Out of Mind/Into the Fire but she didn’t realized it/admitted it to herself until A Hundred Days.

Jack fell harder and faster but refused to realize it because he thought Sam was unobtainable and deserved better. I'd say he started having feelings more than a crush around Jolinar and finally realized he loved her sometime after POV (maybe around Netu).

Ok now the longer (much longer) answer below the cut!

Jack was a goner even if he didn’t know it from the moment Sam challenged him to an arm wrestle. He developed a crush pretty quickly and definitely had thoughts about things…

Cue the adorable flirting and looks. Jack likes to make Sam smile and their unspoken communication is a love language in and of itself. There are too many instances to point out but you can check out my gif sets for some examples.

I’d say his crush starts to develop into actual feelings probably around the time of Jolinar. He stops calling her “Sam” after Serpent’s Song to try and create some sort of emotional distance. We all know how that didn’t work and “Carter” became just as much a term of endearment, but it at least provided the illusion of a purely professional relationship.

He’s content with the small stolen moments because he thinks she’s unobtainable and frankly deserves better. She’s a young, brilliant, gorgeous badass while he’s just...Jack.

I think this changes after POV. Yes, he still thinks she’s way out of his league, but this is the second alternate reality they’ve encountered where they’ve ended up together and not just together but engaged/married. Those other Jacks apparently did something right that convinced their Sams to say yes and they couldn’t have been too much different than him, could they? He allows himself to dwell in the possibility, but he still questions if this Sam—his Sam—could feel the same way.

They go to hell and back to save Dad and then comes A Hundred Days. I hate that it’s never addressed on screen, but I like to believe that somewhere between Shades of Grey and Crystal Skull, Jack gets the full picture of the lengths Sam went to when he was stranded. How could he not admit to himself that he loves this woman who literally defied the laws of physics to save him. And maybe, just maybe, she feels the same way—which brings us to Nemesis and the first invitation to go fishing.

Ok let’s take a step back a moment and get caught up with Sam.

She also develops a crush early on as she learns that there’s more to Jack under the rough exterior. You know that she’s read his file and no doubt she had some preconceptions evident by the way she came guns a blazing during the first briefing. However, the more she's around him, the more she realizes that he is as gentle with what/who he cares about as he is dangerous to those who dare threaten what he cares about. He loves and protects with the same fierceness.

Also c’mon how can you not fall in love with a man who’s as good with kids and dogs as Jack.

I do think Sam fell first but he’s still her CO and it’s not like she can do anything about it, so she avoids facing it. I can’t pinpoint down a specific episode because I think it was definitely a gradual thing which made it easier to bury. But in my opinion, she’s definitely in love by Out of Mind/Into the Fire. (Even if she wasn’t defying orders, she goes straight to find him even though as far as she knows he’s a Goa’uld!) She wouldn’t admit it to herself at this point and maybe didn’t even realize it. Regardless, there’s no running away from it in A Hundred Days.

She’s understandably hurt at the end of that episode and then of course comes Shades of Grey. Sam’s face when Jack tells her that he hasn’t been acting like himself since he met her…and then later he elects to go back to the planet she just spent every waking moment for 3+ months trying to bring him home from…🥺. Even though she knows he was playing a role, I can only imagine that a part of her is left to wonder how much of it might be true.

Ok that brings us back to Nemesis. By this point, both have realized that they love the other person. Jack thinks Sam might feel the same way. They’ve mostly patched things up post-Shades of Grey (enough to work together at least), but Sam still has some doubts.

Now imagine Jack trying to work up the nerve to ask her to come to his cabin with him. He stops to check on Daniel in the infirmary first and throws out the idea—maybe she’ll go if Daniel goes. When it’s obvious Daniel better listen to the Doc, he heads out. Entering the elevator, his finger hovers over the buttons until finally he pushes “19” and finds himself shielding his eyes from the sparks as he enters her lab.

Invitation is offered. However, she doesn’t catch on. Gah why am I so bad at this? he thinks.

She hesitates. He quickly brushes it off trying to save face. Maybe he read too much into it. Must. Escape. Now.

Jack is actually really kind of bummed. If you look closely when he’s leaving her lab, he has this little quirk with his mouth thinking “well that didn’t go as planned.” Sam was genuinely surprised. She kicks herself for hesitating and making him think she’s completely opposed to the idea so she runs after him.

You can feel the emotions in their looks in the hallway. He makes one final attempt. She really wants to say yes but just can’t seem to take the final step. Then he gets beamed away, they save the world, and now fast forward to Small Victories.

Ok…now SOMETHING happened on P4X-234. How much exactly idk but something happened on that planet and there’s a very noticeable shift. Just look at how comfortable and flirty they are compared to the scene in Nemesis.

No hesitancy from Sam. No disappointment from Jack. No feelings of potential regret or uncertainty. Just flirty looks and smiles.

At the very least, they’ve acknowledged that they like each other more than they’re supposed to. They’ve just saved the world for like the third time, but who’s counting—Teal’c that’s who—and now have to wait out a return home. Eventually, Jack realizes that it may not be Minnesota, but he kind of got his vacation with Sam where there are no doohickeys or end of the world crises to distract her. It’s just them and their oh-so-knowing observant Jaffa friend who occasionally makes himself scarce.

It’s nice and peaceful on the planet where they can just enjoy each other’s company away from the reminders of the war they’re fighting. They’re surprised that it comes easy and natural. At some point they have a conversation of sorts about how one day when the world doesn’t need saving from bugs and snakes, that maybe life could look a lot like this. They go home with the hope and promise of some day in their hearts and for now that is enough.

Then Anise arrives with those damn armbands and we have the point of no return. They're faced with fact that some day may never come. I know D&C is where we get as close to a verbal love confession from Jack, but if you ask me—which you sort of did—they had already confessed their love to each other on opposite sides of that force field. For two people whose non-verbal communication means everything, those looks say everything.

How Sam ever decided to listen to her concussed self that this man doesn’t have feelings for her is beyond me but that’s a rant for another day.

This turned out a lot longer than I intended, but I just love talking about these two. Thanks for the ask! 😊

#stargate sg1 #stargate #sam x jack #jack/sam #jack o’neill #samantha carter #never ending otp #this got long #oopsie #sorry if this was more than you bargained for #i’ve thought a lot about it #but not in the context of actively watching episodes #i want to pay more attention to this in my next rewatch #i’d love to hear others’ thoughts! #mels answers #*sam/jack

[spinningbuster98]

 Castlevania (NES) Part 1

Good Eeeeeeveniiiiiing...

Anyone who knows the story of this game raise your hand!

If you answer “It’s Simon Belmont VS Dracula” you only get half a cookie

If you answer “It’s a big homage to classic horror” you also only get half a cookie!

Yeah sure this game’s story is fundementally basic as was usual for games at the time and the early days of the series were indeed big on homaging classic Hammer Horror flicks

But I honestly find both descriptions to not do the game justice

Nowadays you often get people who say that “8-bit games have no story”, and while often these kinds of folks say this because they’ve never actually played said games other times these kinds of assertions actually come from long time fans, sometimes by people who even grew up with these kinds of games since they came out!

And I think the main reason, outside of the fact that these games often didn’t really have any on-screen narrative, is that manuals back then failed to properly convey tha game’s lore and story...or rather the overseas manuals

If you think that Classic Castlevania games have very little to no story and were little more than an excuse for the developers to cram in a bunch of old horror monsters then you’re only half right and you get to sit in the same corner as the same people who say that Classic Sonic games had no story

But I can’t fully blame people: the International manual for this game really tells you nothing about what’s going on here, mostly just making a bunch of horror-themed puns

Now the original Japanese Manual on the other hand... talk about night and day!

Not only is it way more stylized it also:

1) Gives you some general context as to how Dracula resurrected and how it’s a recurring event while also establishing that Dracula gets regularily resurrected by evil people who wish for destruction

2) Establishes Simon as the last heir to a family of vampire hunters who have been battling the count for a long time, even mentioning a certain Christopher: who is that? Apparently Simon’s ancestor who put Dracula in his grave last time. Did they have to mention this? No it wasn’t necessary but it helps sell the idea that this is a war that’s been going on for some time and that Simon has some big shoes to fill. Not to mention that we will see Christopher in a future travesty game

3) It even mentions how the Belmonts’ whip isn’t just any ordinary whip nor is it just some generic “Magic Whip”, it has “mysterious powers”. Hmmm intriguing...I wonder what its origins are...?

This is all stuff that future games will not only reference but also build upon: how many games feature Belmonts talking about how its their destiny to defeat Dracula? How many games will focus on the Whip’s otherworldly abilities? Dracula’s line from SOTN about how “he was called here by humans who wished to pay him tribute”? The one that’s been memed to Hell? That idea was already present all the way back to the very first game!

I’m not saying that the developers already had a clear vision of how the series would turn out as a whole, hell no! But evidently they did have A narrative vision, as limited in scope as it was given the limitations they were dealing with, so I think that boiling this down to simply “Haha 8 bit sprites on the screen!” or “It was just a love latter to old Hammer Movies, nothing more. Unlike those future games that added a needless story ugh!” (though future games will definitely have plenty of narrative hiccups make no mistake I have my share of issues) is pretty disrespectful

#youtube #akumajou dracula #my gameplay

[evita-shelby]

National Anthem

Chapter 12

Cw: miscarriage, prophetic nightmares, death, mention of kinks, some sex, angst

To those who playes 2 truths 1 lie, so sorry lol

Taglist: @thegreatdragonfruta @zablife

Jack’s smoked through tomorrow’s cigarettes trying to make sense of it. Rosie dreamt of doctors performing a lobotomy that apparently killed her, Junior dreamt he’d be shot in the head as he rode in a parade.

Laurie used to have nightmares of dying in mud and rain until he died in a trench in France in 1914. His sister Katie had dreams of coughing and choking on her own blood. Their mother once said their father had cursed blood, and that was why he got killed when he was a boy.

The gangster remembered all those times his enemies cursed his name and now wonders if curses can be passed on to children. He should talk to his wife about this, she knew more about this bullshit anyways.

“Tell me what?” speak of the devil. Wearing her velvet robe and braving the cold just to see what’s bothering him. They should be in bed, his witch trying to keep warm cuddling with him and thinking about the bungalow in Florida and that hammock in the backyard.

“Junior dreamt he died.” He could lie, he’s done it before, but he’d also like to sleep in his own bed instead of the couch tonight. Besides Eva would kill him for not telling her about this new development.

“Well, he did get pretty sick, there were times I thought he wouldn’t survive it.” She admits joining him on the freezing porch. He’s banned from smoking indoors because his witch couldn’t stand the smell when she was pregnant and now the habit stuck.

“Not that, he says he saw himself as an adult waving at a crowd and being shot in the head.” Jack takes one last drag of his cigarette before handing it to his wife. Eva only smokes when shit’s too dire to take on without one or in the wonderful occasions where she came from uninterrupted sex. Too bad it’s the former.

“When I see death happen, it usually doesn’t. You didn’t die that day in your office, the neighbor’s kid didn’t get hit by a car and I have yet to die.” This was more of a reminder than an actual explanation for this. Apparently, she can only predict a real death if it’s coming for people she doesn’t like or knows well.

“You can teach him and Joey how to shoot when they’re old enough if it eases your mind.” But it isn’t a real guarantee that this applied to the kids. She admitted she was scared about losing him that day, held him tightly that night and those after as if he might die.

Fucking hell, he never thought he’d have to deal with this shit when he decided Eva was gonna be his wife that day.

“Do you regret it?” she asks fearing he might. Evie’s mind reading has become so normal to him he’s no longer surprised his witch catches on to his thoughts like that. Makes it easier to unburden himself with her, doesn’t even have to voice it half the time.

“I never have and never will, sweetheart.” Jack is a man with few regrets, he never does anything unless he wants to and when he doesn’t, he sticks with it to the bitter end. Choosing her would never be one of them.

By May Junior’s nightmares are almost forgotten. Everything goes so well it is scaring her.

They have a house in New York now, a lovely mansion too big for them with servants catering to their every whim and armed men loyal to them. Jack’s success had merited such a move and after Junior’s nightmare, he was loath to leave them behind now.

Luca Changretta was gearing for a war overseas while Jack laid out the framework for their takeover from right under his nose. Even his Family were considering killing him to prevent the White Hand from taking their place.

They were making strides in society, all the must have invites, rubbing elbows with the right people and teaching people not to fuck with them. They’ve just returned from Calvin Coolidge’s inauguration after rubbing it in their competitor’s face.

John D. Hertz had been the unlikely bastard to learn that last year. He wanted protection from the Checker Taxis and his other enemies and would’ve gotten it if his words about her hadn’t pissed off Jack. Something that had caused an attack on the company stocks with the help of their connections.

Now it was the turn of the men who owned the rights to a western movie Eva foresaw making it big.

It had started with a movie house that refused to let Eva into their establishment on their first few dates as man and wife, then the entire chain out of spite and now Jack was aiming for Hollywood after securing New England and most of the East Coast.

She hasn’t rewarded him for this achievement yet, and because nothing else has managed to get her to shake off the unsettling images, Eva decides to wake him early on his day off. He won’t mind, loves it when she makes use of his morning wood for their mutual pleasure.

Would erase the nightmare from her mind along with her refusal to have another baby so soon after Kitty. He loves breeding her, loves seeing her fat and needy and loves its when her tits are full of milk.

He's a dirty bastard, anything and everything will find its way into the blessed times they can have fantastic uninterrupted sex. The new house lets them do that more often. Sometimes they’ll lock themselves in that room far away from the family wing made just for their sexual escapades and go at it like unhinged demons.

“Nightmares again?” As expected, Jack is very amenable to a good fuck before breakfast. Their three older children were at school and Kitty was sleeping like an angel, gave her the perfect opportunity to forget what haunted her dreams.

“I want to forget them.” She admits it in between kisses knowing he won’t say no. “Help me forget them, Jack.”

“As you wish, sweetheart.”

It is to no one’s surprise that Eva finds herself pregnant by Father’s Day. She is not happy about it, there is a terribly bad feeling about this pregnancy. Eva blames it on her vanity and loss of figure, not wanting to burden him with what she saw in her reading that day.

She won’t tell him the cards say they won’t be born.

Not all pregnancies agree with her.

Though not as bad as Rosie’s, this one is one of the bad ones. The doctor hasn’t put her on bedrest ---even if he did, she’d ignore it--- but you could tell something wasn’t right by the way she carried herself.

There’s something she’s not telling him, something his witch believes he can’t tell from looking at her. Been married for six years on the dot, Jack wagers he knows her better than anyone now.

“What’s wrong, Evie?” he asks, cornering her in her powder room as she got ready for their anniversary dinner tonight.

“Fucking department store didn’t have my color again.” She grumbles after applying lipstick a shade brighter than she likes. Evie likes to make herself up like a vamp, with dark burgundy lips and darker eyes to sell the whole mystical beauty look she has.

“Eva.” He warns against her lying and gets to the point. “I know there’s something you’re not telling me. Something about the girls we’re having.”

“Nothing’s wrong, just pregnancy fucking me up. Now hurry up, we’ll be late for the reservations.” Half true.

She’s weepy and tired all the time. Her sex drive going from wanting to kick him off the bed if he breathes in her direction to seeking him out in his office as if he hadn’t fucked her before he left. Still got five months to go, a lot could happen between here and January.

The nursery is half decorated, she’d put off ordering a crib for the twins and acted as if she were tempting fate this time around.

“I tell you everything, Eva, why won’t you do the same?” he asks her as they head downstairs, she turns to give him a look for guilt tripping her about it and in the next second she missteps and falls the rest of the way down.

Jack’s too beside himself to leave her side. The fall hadn’t been too severe, no bones were broken, no lasting head injury nor internal bleeding. The babies hadn’t made it as she fell on her stomach enough times to kill the poor things.

She hadn’t been told yet, the doctors had suggested he be the one to break the news to her after seeing Eva’s medical history. Jack has no idea how he’s going to confirm that her heavy bleeding is because they lost their unborn daughters.

Two tiny little things that barely looked human inside the doctor’s receptacle. Rosie had dolls that small, he thinks as he looks away from the babies they hadn’t even considered names for yet.

“I didn’t see them in the cards, they were never going to be born.” His wife finally tells him what she was hiding for four months. Just because the cards said nine babies didn’t mean all of them would live, she explains, and he listened to what she had resigned herself to as they mourn their dead babies.

His triumph over the Black Hand on January 1926 finds him smoking in the veranda after Eva tells him she wants to try again because the cards say they’ll have a baby boy next year.

#evacore #eva nelson #jack nelson x oc #jack nelson x eva smith #national anthem fic #cw: miscarriage #cw: death

[xb-squaredx]

The Bittersweet Taste of Bayonetta 3

PlatinumGames is among my favorite developers out there. Rising from the ashes of Capcom’s Clover studio, they are on my short list of developers that make amazing games that really resonate with me. Their games are quirky, often mechanically deep and a bit unwieldy. They’ve managed to carve out a cult following over the years, and by far their most infamous series has been the stylish action of Bayonetta. In 2017 Bayonetta 3 was announced but as the years passed with no news, many grew nervous. Platinum’s output since then has been quite inconsistent, and earlier this year they released Babylon’s Fall, a game that didn’t crash and burn so much as spontaneously combust before it ever got off the ground. There’s this cautious air around Bayonetta 3’s release; it isn’t enough to just be a good game in its own right, but many feel that Platinum’s future rides on it succeeding. In the weeks before the game released, the game became the catalyst for a discussion on properly compensating voice talent. Bayonetta’s original voice, Hellena Taylor, called for a boycott, claiming she wasn’t offered a fair wage, though later information would imply she was omitting information to make her case look better. Regardless, the air around Bayonetta 3 wasn’t all that positive and I’m sorry to say that, after having gone through the game, I find it didn’t come out the other side smelling like roses. Bayonetta 3 is a very interesting game to talk about, for a variety of reasons both quite positive…and unfortunately very negative. One of my most anticipated games of this year, it has given me some mixed feelings and leaves a bittersweet taste in my mouth.

ENTER THE BAYO VERSE

After two games where Bayonetta has taken on the legions of heaven and hell and taken on a few gods, there’s really only so much the series can do to raise the stakes. The game opens with the introduction of our main threat: Singularity. A being so strong it threatens not just the universe, but the entire multiverse. As Singularity consumes one unlucky world, a young woman named Viola just barely escapes, traveling to another universe and enlisting the help of Bayonetta to stop Singularity and save all of reality before there’s nothing left. There’s definitely a more dire tone to a lot of the game, as we can see firsthand the destruction of Singularity’s forces, with Bayonetta and company being pushed to the limit to save the day. Of course, there’s still plenty of fun, campy moments throughout, like impromptu dance offs, a demonic concert (complete with glow sticks!) and more than a fair share of tasteful nudity and the sensual style that has made the series infamous. The opening prologue level certainly hits a lot of the same beats from past entries; Bayonetta’s living it up in town, something goes wrong, Enzo is made a fool, and she beats up some basic enemies while taking her clothes off and eventually showing off some fantastic new guns. Viola serves as a pretty interesting foil to Bayonetta at the start as well; despite putting on a cool front, she’s clumsy and goofy, frequently at odds with Bayonetta as she struts about with all of the confidence of a seasoned Umbran Witch. With the titular witch taking on a bit of a mentor role, it’s a decent starting point for another adventure. The promise of interacting with different variations of our heroine as they jump from world to world also just seems rife with possibilities. That said, this strong start can’t quite hide the game’s frequent rough edges in the presentation.

As the Switch gets on in years, the lacking quality of its hardware only becomes more apparent, with even Nintendo’s own first party offerings often having to make sacrifices to run on what is ostensibily an outdated smartphone. The Bayonetta series has never really been a graphical showcase, though there’s aspects of 3 that definitely feel more than a bit dated, even going back to the original game’s release during the seventh console generation. NPC character models look and animate quite stiffly and environments are often extremely empty and lacking in high-quality textures. Sadly the game’s performance follows suit, being a bit of a downgrade from even the previous entry on the Wii U. The game targets 60 FPS but often is somewhere closer to the 40s or 50s, with occasional dips below that in more hectic moments. Now, I’ll be the first to admit I’m not the most sensitive to this stuff and it never really impacted my gameplay, at least to a degree I was consciously aware of it, but it is a shame the game can’t give more consistent results.

(source: Eurogamer )

I do find the game is smooth enough most of the time, and it’s clear Platinum brought their A-game when it came to the overall presentation despite all of this. Cutscenes are still directed with that manic energy that makes Platinum’s titles such a joy to experience. Bayonetta herself, and most of her enemies, are animated extremely well, with tons of personality oozing out of many attacks and even idle animations. The menus are a bit sleeker than past entries and generally things are as seamless and smooth as could be when getting into and out of combat encounters. There’s a lot less of the stop-motion cutscenes in this game as well, which helps the overall story feel a bit more high budget and consistent. Music is also pretty consistently great. From the eerie, ethereal music often accompanying Singularity’s minions, to the peppy battle themes accompanying Bayonetta and Viola’s various scraps, there’s a lot to like. One of the real highlights would be “Fertile Rondo,” an operatic jam that doubles as a huge reference to The Fifth Element.  

Voice acting also remains generally strong throughout, with returning actors like Yuri Lowenthal, Grey DeLisle, and Dave Fennoy feeling right at home with Luka, Jeanne and Rodin respectively. I have to really credit the amount of charm Anna Brisbin gives to Viola, and overall the character made a good impression on me. Of course, this also means I have to touch on the controversy with Bayonetta’s voice change. Taylor’s take on the character was great, and regardless of who replaced her, it was always going to be a bit awkward, but Jennifer Hale is a pretty good get in that case. A veteran in voice over, Hale’s credits are numerous and should honestly speak for themselves, and I would say she nails this take on Bayonetta, to the point it almost feels like she’s always played the character. There are points she sounds almost uncannily like Taylor, though admittedly it isn’t always consistent. But overall, she embodies the sass and style associated with the character and makes the transition about as flawless as could be hoped for overall.

I have…more things to say regarding the overall story, but we can save that for later. Instead, there is still an underlying action game under all this, so I’d better get to talking about that.

SIZE ISN’T EVERYTHING (BUT IT HELPS)

There’s been a fair bit of escalation throughout the Bayonetta series from game to game. The first title mostly focused on Bayonetta herself beating up hordes of angels, with only occasionally summoning limbs of demons for her Wicked Weave finishing strikes, and often a fun QTE at the end of major encounters to finish off bosses that teased more of the demon. Then in the sequel, Infernal Climax took center stage, where for a brief time ALL of Bayonetta’s attacks summoned demons, and at one point you were even directly controlling the demon Madama Butterfly for part of a boss encounter. But the threat in Bayonetta 3 is so great that summoning the whole demon is both frequent and required to even hope to win. In a bit of a twist on things, the main villainous faction are man-made homunculi, and since they aren’t angelic in nature Bayonetta’s summons have no real desire to help out in battle. Thus, she invokes the Demon Slave ritual to take direct control over them, allowing players to control the demons in real-time. There’s definitely some stipulations though; Demon Slave constantly drains Bayonetta’s magic meter and once emptied you’ll have to wait for it to fill to a certain amount to summon them again. Demons can also eventually turn on Bayonetta and go on a rampage if attacked enough, and perhaps worst of all, Bayonetta is stationary while players are in control of demons, meaning players need to learn the proper time and place to invoke it. Players can equip up to three demons at a time and freely switch between them in combat, in many ways allowing demons to serve as additional weapons to Bayo’s arsenal. Admittedly, some of the demons are a bit unwieldy and require practice to use efficiently, and some are a bit situational, but all of them bring something unique to the table and further expands Bayonetta’s combat options.

One facet I really enjoyed about the game is the Demon Masquerade system. Depending on the weapon equipped, at points Bayonetta can take on a form similar to the demon said weapon is based on, which can drastically change her mobility. With her default guns, Colour My World, she takes on Madama Butterfly’s visage and gains the ability to slowly hover through the air on her wings, while with Gomorrah’s weapon, the massive G-Pillar, she takes on a more feral stance and hops about, with a fast air dash to help her cross gaps quickly. Players also use skill trees for each weapon to unlock more moves in her arsenal that also have her transform to perform them, like powerful crowd-clearing attacks, or the near-universal gap-closer moves that have her home in on the nearest enemy. Demons also have a similar skill tree to enhance their own movesets, and by filling out both you gain one final upgrade that fleshes out each moveset. It’s a bit different from being able to buy moves in Rodin’s shop, but it works well enough as incentive to keep fighting and trying out different weapons.

On that note, Bayonetta 3 has some of the best weapon variety in the entire series, if not THE best. While this game does away with the ability to set weapons on both your hands and feet, thereby reducing the amount of interesting weapon combinations and synergies, this change allowed them to go all-in on some out-there weapons that wouldn’t have worked otherwise. One of my favorites is Abracadabra, a combination of a top hat and cane that allows Bayonetta to moonlight as a magician, allowing her to summon various projectiles out of her hat at random, as well as utilize powerful electric blasts. Or there’s Tartarus, a slow but powerful weapon consisting of thick, stone doors that can plow through enemy attacks, but when opened can summon a variety of weapons, including some powerful gatling guns that rip through targets. I could go on, because there are TONS of weapons in this game with their own quirks and uses, all with their own demon that has their OWN intricacies. Many demons are often large beasts, like the dinosaur-esque Gomorrah, or Baal, a giant toad, but there’s more than a few unique demons like Wartrain Gouon which…is a train. And when you summon it, you have to draw the train tracks and hit attack buttons along the route before the train barrels on through and slams past all in its wake. The sheer options available is amazing, to the point that it’s a tad disappointing you can only have two weapon sets at any time. That said, while weapon variety is great, enemy variety leaves a bit to be desired.

Most of the homunculi enemies suffer from one of two major issues: they have samey designs that keep them from standing out and feeling distinct, or they’re giant enemies that are basically designed purely for demons to rip through their inflated health pools. If you’re someone who ends up hating using demons in combat and would rather ignore it, then have fun chipping away at these damage sponges! Of all of them, the Virga enemy might be the least fun to fight in the game. Basically a giant Wiggler enemy from the Super Mario series, it never stops moving or attacking and often has no reactions to any attacks done to it, making it difficult to get through the fight unscathed. That’s on top of the camera frequently clipping into it and making it almost impossible to see. Really, the camera might be the greatest enemy in the game. Not only does this game employ a “soft-lock” and force Bayonetta to attack whichever enemy has triggered it, but the “hard lock-on” often forces the camera to make strange, sweeping movements, and it isn’t long before that lock-on is broken and you’re forced to do lock-on again. On top of that, enemies break the series tradition of mostly not attacking when off-screen, and won’t hesitate to take potshots at you with little warning. With the combat areas in general much larger to accommodate the demons and large enemies, this can also mean it’s quite easy to lose track of some smaller enemies and be forced to whirl the camera around frantically to find them. After the previous two games had such a tight camera by comparison, this is a bit of a downgrade unfortunately.

Generally, when Bayonetta’s core combat is allowed to shine and it all clicks, it works amazingly well, but sadly there’s even more things inserted into the game in the name of variety that often bogs the entire experience down a bit.

NEW KID ON THE BLOCK

While Bayonetta’s flashy combat is the star of the show for the most part, at various points in the story players will engage with different gameplay styles and different playable characters. This is really nothing new with most games from Platinum, as they love to sneak in schmup sections and setpieces to change things up, though I find that in the case with THIS game…they don’t often land and come across as annoying padding.  There’s multiple instances throughout the game where Bayonetta will ride atop a demon, or players just get to command it directly, which are far more sluggish and unresponsive than in normal gameplay, Demon Slave or otherwise. A good example would be a timed platforming section as you ride atop the flaming spider Phantasmaraneae that is noticeably slower and less agile than when it is used in Demon Slave combos, OR the much faster, responsive Demon Masquerade version of it, complete with an awkward camera that’s often far too close. But then we go bigger with more climactic battles culminating in Bayonetta invoking the Deadly Sin ritual, offering up her own heart to empower demons and allowing them to go even further beyond their original powers. I wouldn’t say these sections are all-together bad, but the variety frequently goes against what I came here for in the first place. I want to play Bayonetta 3 for high-octane action, not weird rail shooters or slow kaiju fighting games and DEFINITELY not rhythm games, but you’re forced to play these if you want to advance through the game. This series is a more arcade-like action title that really tries to get you to replay levels and get better scores, and these sequences are kind of a drag to do again. Had they been their own self-contained chapter, I wouldn’t mind as much, but they’re often at the end of already long chapters and really bring down replays. That said, this game now saves your highest score for each separate Verse of a chapter, and you can pick specific “checkpoints” in a chapter to minimize replays, so it doesn’t sting as much as it could.

That said, it doesn’t stop there. Throughout the game you can play as both Jeanne and newcomer Viola, but sadly there’s a lot to be desired there. In Jeanne’s case, you play through short 2D side-scrolling segments with a focus on stealth as she seeks out a scientist to assist in defeating Singularity. So you have a series that prides itself on cool, kick-ass characters and suddenly force them to hide in vents and do stealth kills to the cannon fodder grunts? Feels more than a bit out of place. Again, these aren’t really BAD…but they’re not that fun and take away from the very first time Jeanne has been playable during the main story, as she’s usually relegated to being an unlockable moveset clone of Bayonetta after you beat the game.

Viola though is where my real disappointments lie. We’ve had different playable characters before, but they’re either near identical to Bayoentta in gameplay (Jeanne and Rosa), or restricted to a separate mode (Rodin and Balder), so Viola being an out-and-out NEW character that’s playable during the main story SHOULD be really interesting but she instead feels half-baked. Armed with a katana, some throwing darts in lieu of a gun, and the demon Cheshire as a familiar, Viola on paper seems like a fun enough alternative to Bayonetta. She’s got some fun, flashy sword combos, and in an interesting twist, when she summons Cheshire to help, she’s free to continue moving around and attacking because Cheshire isn’t under direct player control. It gives her a completely different bareknuckle moveset and feels satisfying on its own. But unfortunately, it becomes clear this game was not designed with her in mind. The bigger enemies are clearly made for the Demon Slave summons to tear through, but Cheshire just doesn’t cut it. He’s often slow and at times actively lofts about and smokes on his pipe rather than attack, leaving Viola to fend for herself. Some friend. Adding to this, Viola’s moveset is decently fleshed out…but it’s still just ONE weapon compared to the plethora of other weapons Bayonetta can mess with. She lacks variety and feels really stale after a bit. With so many weapons in this game, surely they could have spared at least ONE for Viola. But the worst aspect has to be how she activates Witch Time, a core mechanic in these games. Bayonetta dodges attacks to activate it, slowing down time and letting her go to town on the defenseless enemies as a result. Viola meanwhile must parry incoming attacks by blocking, which brings to mind Metal Gear Rising Revengeance, another Platinum title. A couple problems here though: most enemies don’t seem balanced for the parry at all. They either do huge, sweeping attacks that either miss Viola completely, or have ridiculously tight timings to even land the parry in the first place. It’s WAY less forgiving than Bayonetta’s dodge and one optional challenge mission involving you only being able to damage enemies while in Witch Time nearly had me tearing my hair out. Playing as Viola frequently feels like trying to jam a square peg into a round hole. Maybe that’s the reason she’s only playable in three of the game’s chapters, falling behind even Jeanne’s side-scrolling missions in frequency. She feels like a last-minute inclusion, despite playing such a big part in the story.

IN CONCLUSION (kind of)

With all I’ve said up until now, I have qualms with some aspects of the core gameplay but I largely had a blast. When the game just lets you focus on fighting, the game is fun and dynamic, with TONS of satisfying tools to learn and master. The game’s larger levels allowed for more downtime as I searched out optional missions or collectibles, and I largely appreciated the change in scope. Some levels left a bit to be desired, feeling more like large boxes than real places, but there are times when the game really shines. The levels taking place in an alternate Egypt are what I wish the entire rest of the game was like. Huge, sprawling locations with tons of secrets tucked away, what felt like small dungeons with some quick puzzles and interesting combat encounters, and probably the best of the Deadly Sin gameplay change ups. I largely enjoyed Bayonetta 3 as an action game, with spectacle that few other series can match. Despite some rough edges in performance and visuals, and some annoying setpieces, it is clear Platinum gave it their all to make a game that attempted to surpass the high expectations of fans. The music goes HARD at times, the story has some real standout moments that I loved, and in a lot of respects this might be the most fun game in the series when you factor it all in. This feels like not just an evolution of the Bayonetta series, but Platinum continuing to tweak and iterate on ideas found in their other titles. The DNA of many of their games exist within this one, serving as a bombastic, content-rich entry that in many ways was well worth the near five-year wait from the initial reveal.

With all that said however, the game’s ending left me extremely conflicted on the entire product, and I want to go into that, but also I’d rather not spoil it for people that might want to go into it themselves. I’ve put my concluding thoughts here ahead of a spoiler-filled section on this ending for that reason. So, overall despite some rough edges, Bayonetta 3 is a high-quality title that stands up with some of Platinum’s greatest….as long as you just completely ignore a terrible ending that feels like they’re trying to torch the franchise and run away.

THE ENDING: MESSY, RUSHED AND UNEXPLAINED

PlatiumGames isn’t really known for their storytelling; they make really fun, goofy action games, and barely anyone really talks about those games’ narrative. So, for anyone that hears Bayonetta 3’s story is bad, it makes sense to think “Well, who cares about story in a Platinum game anyway?” In general, a lot of video games place gameplay over story, so is it really that big of a deal if Bayonetta 3’s story falls flat as long as the gameplay is good? For a lot of people, I’m sure that is enough and I can understand them brushing off complaints. But that isn’t enough for me. Just because this is an action game, I don’t think the story should be half-baked. Plenty of action games, not just from Platinum, manage to strike a better balance, and despite the shortcomings of the previous games in the series, I like the world and characters Platinum have created here. Which is why the ending stung as hard as it did, as it feels almost vindictive towards all that came before, and if that wasn’t the intention, they really botched the execution.

Bayonetta 3 has a lot of great ideas for a fun story, or even a great one. But the problem is that Platinum tried to shove too much into one game, and as a result almost every plot point and bit of narrative potential is wasted. Multiple important details that make the story comprehensible are locked away in character bios that most players aren’t likely to dig through and read. Certain elements of the endgame feel unearned, and the game’s tone changes so often the whiplash is constant and jarring. So, let’s delve into those points one at a time.

I’ll start with the tone. Most of Platinum’s work are over-the-top and not really meant to be taken too seriously. They employ humor throughout the vast majority of their work, they aren’t afraid to blatantly homage things they think are cool and to me they’re at their best when they just have fun with their premise and setting. Bayonetta 3 has a lot of these moments for sure, but they attempt to blend it together with a darker, more dramatic turn and it just does not work at all. The prologue chapter has the entirety of New York flooded, as Singularity begins his assault. The death count alone in this chapter easily eclipses the other two games. Even Enzo, the plucky comic relief, is reduced to tears as his family has seemingly been killed. So when Bayonetta and Rodin are just quipping back and forth it really feels misplaced. Did this game want to be serious, or just as irreverent as past titles? They needed to pick a lane and stick with it. Honestly, I don’t think being more serious fits either Platinum or the Bayonetta series, and if they did want to try to branch out, I think they overcompensated.

(Bayonetta without a confident smirk on her face is just...wrong!)

Bayonetta, much like her predecessor Dante from the Devil May Cry series, is a power fantasy. She’s sexy, she’s powerful, she’s always in control. The draw of these games is seeing her mop the floor with celestial beings without breaking a sweat. So when this game tries to up the ante and establish higher stakes, they really struggle with doing so in a way that feels organic. The game opens with one universe’s Bayonetta being killed by Singularity, which works as a demonstration of the threat he poses. The problem is that this keeps happening throughout the game; every single alternate Bayonetta we encounter gets about five minutes of screentime before being unceremoniously killed in a cutscene where they become uncharacteristically incompetent. No one in this game ever looks behind them. So there’s drama here and the stakes are higher than they’ve ever been, but that comes at the cost of Bayonetta as a character looking less powerful and capable. This dark tone and constant death toll also just kind of spoils all of the fun a multiverse tale like this could have had.

When promotional materials made it clear this was a multiverse story, I was looking forward to all of these various character interactions…so imagine my surprise when there’s not much done with that premise at all. For all of the infinite possibilities that come with bringing a multiverse into your story, all Platinum could seemingly think up was “What if Bayonetta lived in another country?” There’s flashes of interesting elements that never get fleshed out on-screen at all. The Tokyo Bayonetta is a delinquent while the Egyptian Bayonetta is a princess with Jeanne as both her bodyguard and her superior in combat. I did enjoy the Paris Bayonetta sections though. Working with her mother Rosa, they’re a pair of thieves with that world’s Enzo chasing after them as a cop, like Lupin III’s Zenigata. But I wanted MORE of that! The Chinese Bayonetta is a war general who apparently lost her eye in an interesting story…the game has no interest in telling us that story though! They had an opportunity to really shake things up; what if we had a world where Enzo was the one with the magic powers, or one where Bayonetta was a Lumen Sage instead of an Umbran Witch? I also find it odd that while we do get to see some alternate Jeannes and Enzos, we only get one alternate Luka and zero alternate Violas, when having more could have made some interesting contrasts. I could forgive a curbed roster if they did much with them, but the bulk of the game just has us hopping from universe to universe, taking every alternate Bayonetta’s demons and weapons for our own and promptly forgetting about them. The Egyptian Bayonetta has a character arc concerning her lacking confidence and overreliance on Jeanne squeezed into two chapters of the game when that could have been fleshed out over the course of the game instead. With our “prime” Bayonetta serving as a mentor to Viola, it could have been interesting to see multiple Bayonettas attempt to give Viola advice, to showcase how different these alternative selves were, but alas, there was just no time apparently.

Further adding to the missed potential, there is the entire concept of fairies introduced into the series with this game. Now, if they wanted to introduce a new faction I have no real objections. Bayonetta’s already fought angels and demons, and spends the entire game fighting these strange man-made homunculi, so beating up some fae folk isn’t really that big of a stretch…except the game barely touches on them at all. After two games without them being mentioned, suddenly Luka is revealed to be part fairy, and this influence is then retconned to be the reason he became a journalist. Despite the fact that the first game made it clear he was obsessed with “the truth” because he watched his father being torn apart by angels he couldn’t even see so uh…that doesn’t really fit. If this is meant to merely tease them being fleshed out more in a sequel, this really wasn’t the place to do it.

I can’t talk about Luka without touching on the controversial romance subplot with him and Bayonetta. Now, this is controversial for a number of reasons. For one, while Bayonetta did flirt with Luka a fair bit in the first game, they barely interacted at all in the second game or this game for that matter. The chemistry just wasn’t really given time to develop. That’s not even getting into the backlash from the series’ gay fans. Over the years a lot of queer folk have kind of “claimed” Bayonetta as a series, mostly from the game’s constant campy tone, combined with a lot of romantic subtext with Bayonetta and Jeanne. But the backlash goes beyond just a ship they liked not being made canon, but moreso this strange subtext applied to Bayonetta and Luka’s relationship in this game that many feel is at best “bi erasure” and at worst downright homophobic or heteronormative. At various points, Singularity calls Bayonetta “Arch-Eve” and Luka “Arch-Adam” so there’s this idea that they’re like…a universal constant and are destined to be together? This coupled with Jeanne not really getting to do much in this game is viewed as a slap in the face by some fans. I don’t really believe Platinum was intentionally going against their gay fans here, and I do think some fans took their own headcanons a bit too far. I’ve heard some even try to claim that there just was no way straight people could get anything out of the series and uh…yeah I don’t really see that point at all. For my own two cents, I just think this romance was really rushed and should have been fleshed out more throughout the series. Or just have Bayonetta, Jeanne and Luka in one big happy threesome, I don’t know.

All of these rushed plot points and dashed potential end up getting twisted up into a very long, grueling final boss fight where…things just kind of happen suddenly, without any explanation before or after. All of the killed Bayonettas (and Jeannes) are revived…and then disappear again, the game being unclear on if they’re still gone for good or were saved. Two more Bayonettas, each clad in the first and second game’s designs respectively, appear to help out in the final battle, but they also vanish without a trace randomly. Then the final blow is dealt to Singularity and a vortex opens up in the sky at the EXACT moment Bayonetta loses control of her demonic summon. This is all a contrived situation purely to force Luka to save an unconscious Viola as she’s pulled into said vortex, thereby allowing Gomorrah to kill Bayonetta definitively. Luka cradles Bayonetta’s soul as they are both dragged into hell, all while Viola cries out for her mother and father and pounds the ground in frustration. Cue credits. Oh, except for the part where Viola suddenly fights…Dark Eve. A character that isn’t explained in-game at all and is only fleshed out in the character bios that update after the game is beaten. By somehow fighting off this uh…dark amalgamation of all of the other dead Bayonettas…somehow this means Viola has proven she has what it takes to take on the mantle of Bayonetta. We get another stinger where we see she is taking on jobs from Rodin, with the game seemingly setting up that any future Bayonetta games will have her in the starring role. Cue dance party ending!

Where do I begin here? The game’s inability to confirm anything really muddies the waters here and makes the ending come across as more somber than I think was intended. New York seems fine in this stinger, and Enzo’s family is seemingly alive and well…but what of the other worlds? If they’re all back to normal…why isn’t Viola with her real mother and father? On that note, why did the game wait until the exact last second to confirm something most fans guessed before the game even came out? I feel that dragging out Viola’s parentage until the very end of the game did nothing for the story, especially seeing how little Viola really factored into the story at all. Then there’s the ending with her as the new protagonist. The game sets this up as an optimistic passing of the torch but…I just don’t think it’s earned at all. Throughout the entire game Viola is showcased as being a bit of a joke. She never gets to actually defeat anything of real significance, and even in the final battle with Singularity she’s batted away and becomes a liability at the end. Sure, she defeats Dark Eve, but the sudden appearance of this random character the game barely tried setting up undoes any amount of triumph the moment should give the audience. I like Viola, but she isn’t ready to headline this series.

In the time since the game’s release, series creator Hideki Kamiya has commented on the backlash, stating that Platinum hadn’t been as clear with some things as they should have been, and that Bayonetta 4 would address these concerns and criticisms. Of course, there’s the question of if PlatinumGames as a studio will even exist long enough for another game to come out, but assuming that it does happen, I suppose there is a chance they could smooth this all out. Maybe we see that Bayonetta and Luka are living it up in hell, and all of the other universes are fine and dandy. Maybe Jeanne is still around and can help out Viola as she comes into her own. That’s a lot of maybes though, and there’s no guarantee THAT game wouldn’t just drop the ball in its ending too.

A lot of the issues I levy at this game could also apply to the other two games. All three games feature villains with no actual substance to them, with no motives for why they do what they do; they exist to be a big boss fight to cap off an action game. All three games don’t really explain everything as well as they could, with the first two having time-travel nonsense wrapped up in the narrative. I wouldn’t call the stories for the first two games good, and going into this game I didn’t really have high hopes on a good narrative, but I assumed there would at least be a fun one. I think that’s the biggest problem here; the fun is gone. Bayonetta 3 tries to raise the stakes but in the process, it lost a lot of what made the first two games so compelling for people. Yet they try to carry on like everything is fine, with a dance party ending filled to the brim with characters that are, as far as this narrative tells us, dead, and we’re left with a character we barely know headlining the series as everything else fans have come to love about the franchise is long gone. It feels like Platinum saw the ending to Devil May Cry 5 and thought “Hey we can do that too!” except they completely misunderstood why that game’s ending worked as well as it does.

Not to go into it too much, but Devil May Cry as a sister series to Bayonetta has already done the passing of the torch thing, with Dante eventually letting the younger Nero take over. What I think Platinum missed here is that it took Capcom TWO games to fully allow Nero to graduate to the main protagonist role, and even then, I feel like the massive gap between the two games is what allowed fans who previously disliked Nero to eventually cool down and come to accept him. Adding to all this, Nero was at least playable for half of Devil May Cry 4 and roughly half of Devil May Cry 5, whereas Viola gets barely three levels to herself in Bayonetta 3. Even though both Bayonetta 3 and Devil May Cry 5 end with the previous protagonists in Hell, Dante doesn’t seem all that bothered by it and the narrative allows enough wiggle room to bring him back with little trouble. In Bayonetta’s case, her end seems far more permanent. Despite some similarities, the contexts differ dramatically.

I think I’ve gone on long enough here. I really want to stress I didn’t expect to come out of this game feeling as down about it as I did. I heard people not liking the ending, and assumed they were just jaded Bayo/Jeanne shippers…but I couldn’t have been more wrong. It’s frustrating, as in some respects I feel like Platinum can and HAS done better. For as silly as it was, The Wonderful 101 had real heart to it, and I think to this day that is the best story Hideki Kamiya has ever written. While Bayonetta 2 didn’t have the best narrative, I think it was an improvement over the first, and humanized Bayonetta a fair bit. My criticisms stem from my desire to see Platinum succeed. I am without a doubt in their corner and want to be excited for their games, and in recent years it’s been hard to be a fan. Astral Chain was pretty interesting, if a bit wonky at points (and also didn’t have the best story), but from 2020 onwards Platinum felt like a shell of their former selves. Using a Kickstarter to port a barely-touched “remaster” of The Wonderful 101, releasing self-published titles like World of Demons on the Apple Arcade and nowhere else, or the ridiculously overpriced schmup that is Sol Cresta. 2022 opened with the disastrous launch of Babylon’s Fall, and now this game, despite delivering on the action, had to stumble so hard at the very end. When they first started their company, co-founder of PlatinumGames, Tatsuya Minami stated that they chose to be named after platinum because “platinum never loses its luster,” and that was their motto for making games. But as 2022 draws to a close, their shine has dulled, and I’m having a hard time coming to terms with that.

Ultimately, that’s just my take on things. I value story a lot, as you can probably tell, so a bad ending for me matters a whole lot more than a lot of Platinum’s audience I’m sure. As I’ve mentioned before, Bayonetta 3 is still a high-quality title when it comes to stylish action, with plenty of fun setpieces, tons of weapons and tools to master, and a presentation that is constrained only by its hardware. I wouldn’t for a second label Bayonetta 3 as a bad game. It’s great, in fact, and one I would recommend to others…I just wish I didn’t have to attach an asterisk to the end of that recommendation. Despite it all, I’m glad this game finally came to fruition and I desperately hope Platinum can regain some of their luster in the years to come.

Until next time.

-B

#Bayonetta 3 #Bayonetta #viola #jeanne #platinumgames #platinum #action game #character action #nintendo switch #bayonutters #review #spoilers #devil may cry 5

[zanyzensblog]

Changed

https://archiveofourown.org/works/46073200

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/14214902/1/Changed

HEAVY SPOILERS FOR RESIDENT EVIL 4 REMAKE DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVEN”T FINISHED!

I REPEAT HEAVY SPOILERS

Disclaimer: I do not own Resident Evil or anything associated with it or anything else that may be quoted or referred to herein. Spoilers for the new Resident Evil 4 remake. There’s been a bit of discourse over whether or not Leon and Ada still have the hots for each other or not. And while its considerably more subtle in the remake, I am of the opinion, that oh yeah they are still down bad. Here’s a fic to explain my point of view on it. Delving into Ada’s thoughts on things is difficult but I think the way I’ve done it makes sense. Hopefully its more elaborated on when the Separate Ways DLC comes out (because they’ve practically confirmed that one right? Only a matter of time. Right? Please? Yes Capcom?) so without further ado, please read, review and enjoy!

  Changed.

             Damn, he’s late.

           Ada Wong silently observed the village from the height of a nearby tree, one hand holding onto her grapple gun and the other holding a scope to observe any hint of Sera’s whereabouts. At this rate she was going to have to actively investigate the village and the surrounding area for him. Something that she was loathe to do, after all, only a fool would put themselves in the middle of an entire village of nigh unkillable monsters. As the now charbroiled policeman could attest to.

           Poor bastard, she thought sadly.

           Her radio rang.

Speaking of bloodthirsty…

She put her scope away and answered her radio.

“Any updates on our contact?”

“Still nothing. He must have been found out.”

Her employer made a soft growl in his throat.

“Then it falls to you to locate the Amber. I assume you have a plan?”

She couldn’t help but smirk a little. “These parasites are able to follow simple tasks but aren’t capable of any higher thinking. Every time the church bell rings they drop everything to go inside. Mass just needs to start a little early today.”

That seemed to please him.

“Good. Before I go, there’s been a new development, the president has apparently sent a single agent to locate his daughter. He may be arriving there as we speak.”

“Just one?” She had honestly been expecting to have to evade or neutralize an entire special ops team. That made things far simpler and perhaps explained why the policeman had been here.

“Any intel on the unlucky agent?”

           “Not yet,” his calm voice betraying a barely perceptible note of annoyance. “They’ve been surprisingly vigilant against leaks since the abduction. But it changes little, if the villagers don’t neutralize him, it falls to you to do it. We don’t need any more complications or delays. Understood?”

           “Perfectly,” she switched off and pocketed the radio. She was just about to lower herself when the sounds of utter bedlam erupted from the village. A cacophony of screams, gunfire and what sounded like a chainsaw? It could only be the agent.

           She grabbed her scope again and peered through.

           What the hell kind of idiot would actually try to singlehandedly…

           Her breath caught for a moment and her heart skipped a beat as she caught a glimpse of a handsome face she hadn’t seen in 6 years since that horrible night in Raccoon City.

           “Leon?”

           Leon S. Kennedy was currently singlehandedly taking on a horde of essentially zombified villagers and doing a damn good job of it too.

           She had kept tabs on him of course, anyone who could survive Raccoon City was someone to keep in mind. She knew he had been tapped by the US Government for extra training and deadly missions involving B.O.W.’s. But she never expected that he’d be sent here of all places.

           Clearly the training and missions had paid off though as he dispatched villager after villager with an efficiency and skill that made the gifted rookie cop she had met all those years ago look like an amateur by comparison.

           Despite that though, there were simply too many, it’d only be a matter of time before he was overwhelmed. But if he could hold out for long enough…

           She looked back towards the belltower, the horde was focused on Leon which left it almost completely unguarded. But it also left the road to the lake unguarded too…the simplest thing would be to take advantage of the distraction and leave Le..the agent to his fate and continue her mission.

           But then again…the agent in question is undoubtably skilled. If anyone could survive whatever this forgotten hellhole of the world could throw at them it’d be him. And he’s here for the president’s daughter not the Amber, so as long as he didn’t learn about its existence, their two objectives were not necessarily at odds. He could keep the cult’s eyes on him while she’d be more free than ever to move about the background to complete her own mission. So logically, saving his life here was the actual smart move.

           Are you telling yourself that or are you just rehearsing for what you’ll have to tell your employer because you could never just let him die?

           She ignored the treasonous line of thinking that seemed to pop up whenever Leon at the forefront of her thoughts and hit the trigger to lower herself to the ground.

           “All these years later and I still have to save your ass Leon.”

           For the sake of the mission, not anything else.

           Oh of course, for the mission the treasonous voice replied smugly.

             “And I do have something else I need to get too,” Luis Serra said thoughtfully.

           She frowned. “Don’t try to make any new adjustments to our deal Luis. It won’t end well for any of us.”

           The Spaniard grinned and opened his arms. “Come now where’s the trust Ada?”

           She kept her face pointedly neutral as I stared him down. Not in the mood for anymore games. It’d been hard enough to shadow Leon undetected and save him from that giant preacher (that’s another one he owed her) but now she could tell this unscrupulous researcher was about to introduce a new complication.

           “Right, not so big on trust. Alright I’ll level with you si? There’s a seniorita who’s been brought to this village. She’s been infected with a plaga.”

           “And this concerns you how?”

           “It concerns me, because the eggs only just hatched. So there’s still a chance to save her. She just needs more time. I can give her time by finding the antigen’s I also took that inhibit the parasite’s growth. I get those, I get the Amber and we all fly our merry way out of this hellhole.”

           Ada contemplated this in silence for a moment. Ultimately concluding that this would be both a complication and a delay her employer would not tolerate. But perhaps she could still persuade Luis to abandon this foolish quest.

           “The deal was, the Amber for transport for you out of here. Besides, you said that the antigens just inhibit the parasite’s growth. They don’t stop it right?”

           Luis grimaced. “Well, yes but still if we could get her to a hospital I could help them remove the damn thing.”

           “My employer will not accept this. Come on Luis, do the smart thing. Don’t stick your neck out for a lost cause.”

           Something seemed to change in the man as she said those words. He looked in the direction of the lake, towards the barely peaking tower of the windmill and stared for a few moments completely lost in thought. What he was thinking about she couldn’t say, she was about to speak up again but he turned back to Ada with a new steel in his eyes.

           “Then you can tell your employer to go to hell. Because that’s the only place he’ll be able to get his damn sample.”

Ada was a little taken aback at that. Where was the cutthroat Umbrella golden boy researcher she had read up on? Yet again something she wasn’t expecting from a scientist.

“Now listen, I’ll grab my antigens, grab the Amber, grab my new amigos and we’ll all get out of here. Your happy, your employer is happy, I’m happy, everyone is happy. Doesn’t sound like a bad thing to strive for no?”

She could tell by his eyes that he wasn’t going to change his mind. She had seen eyes similar to that only once before 6 years ago…

Still though, “Fine, how about this, you go get your antigens and you give me the location of the Amber?”

He grinned mockingly, “Oh sorry, Ada, the idea of you taking the sample and just leaving us seems to be making remembering where I put it a bit of a slight uhhh problema.”

“Now where’s the trust?” she huffed in annoyance. This could be a pain in the ass to explain to her employer. She briefly thought about just beating the information out of him but that would likely prove a waste of time and he’d probably just lie. He had the one card she needed and he knew it.

She crossed her arms and nodded.

“Fine, we’ll play it your way. But don’t even think about adding any more surprises or it’ll be both our heads.”

“Si, but hey, what’s life if you don’t live a bit dangerously eh?” He turned around to start walking away.

“One question though,” she put her hand on his shoulder and blurted out the first question in her mind before she could think better of it. “I took you for a pragmatist, why risk everything like this?”

He didn’t turn around, just looked up at the sky. “I’m beginning to think, that perhaps, being too practical might be rather crazy. And seeing life as it is and not as it should be, well that might be even crazier.” He chuckled a little, “sorry, got that from a story I read. The real reason? It just makes me feel better.”

Then he was off.

Despite herself, Ada had to admit she kinda liked the guy. She hoped he didn’t get himself killed. Certainly not before he could get the Amber.

Her radio rang.

“Great,” she pressed the button and answered.

“Report.”

“I’ve finally made contact with Luis. He didn’t have the Amber on him though, he’s on his way to retrieve it now but not to worry, I won’t be losing track of him again.”

She smirked as she checked the signal from the tracker she had placed on him.

“Hmm, good to hear. There’s a new development though, the agent the president sent? We’ve identified him as Leon Kennedy. Another Raccoon City leftover.”

Ada debated internally for a moment what acting surprised would get her, but in the circles that she moved in, ironically enough, sometimes honesty was the best policy. Well, a certain amount of honesty anyway.

“I’m aware. I saw him enter the village not too long after our last check in.”

“And you haven’t seen fit to eliminate him because?”

“He’s been surprisingly useful. The cult has been up in arms looking for him. Leaving me free to move around without much issue. If it wasn’t for him, its doubtful I would have found Luis in time.”

No sound came from the radio but she could swear she felt her employer’s eyes narrow on the other end.

“I don’t like it. If he learns about the Amber, he’s likely to destroy it.”

“But as long he doesn’t know and he’s focused on the president’s daughter, he won’t be an problem. Besides, according to Luis she seems to have been infected with a parasite. I doubt she’ll be an issue long.”

“She’s infected? Interesting...”

Ada worried she let the wrong thing slip for a moment.

“Very well, your priority is still the Amber. But barring that, perhaps we could make use of her as well. Keep them under observation, but understand that Kennedy is an attack dog. If he gets in our way, you will put him down. And once you’ve retrieved the Amber if you have the opportunity you’ll take the shot. Understood?”

“Not to worry, I’ll keep him on just the right amount of leash until the time comes.”

“Hmm see that you do.”

The radio went silent.

So much for Luis’ good intentions, she thought surprisingly disappointed. If the villagers or the parasite didn’t get the girl, her employer might. There was nothing for Leon here and killing him would be…difficult. Only play she felt she could make right now was to make contact with Leon and see if he’d back off. Because even if Luis managed to find the antigens and the Amber and they all got out, her employer would not allow Leon Kennedy to survive.

Plus side, shouldn’t be too hard to convince Leon, it’s been 6 years, surely that painfully earnest rookie cop had learned when to call it quits and leave well enough alone. He’d have developed an actual survival instinct right?

Lying to yourself now Ada? You know that’s the one person you’re bad at it with.

She pulled out her pistol and checked her ammo. Making sure to keep her mask of indifference in place as she made her way to the castle. It helped distract her from how much she was looking forward to talking with him again.

 “You can stop right there, Leon.” She held the gun to his back but made sure to keep her finger off the trigger. “Wouldn’t want me to use this, would you?”

He dropped his weapon and put his hands up as she closed in.

“Well after 6 years that is one hell of a greeting. Ada.”

Huh, she wasn’t expecting him to be so…calm about her reappearance. No “I can’t believe you’re alive” or “how did you survive?” Curious.  As far as she knew he had thought she fell to her death back in the N.E.S.T. had he suspected she had survived all this time?

“You don’t seem surprised,” she noticed him subtly shifting his weight to prepare to move. Was he actually going to try…

“Interesting.”

Leon moved as if that word were a starter gun almost too fast for her to follow he whipped around and grabbed her gun hand. What followed next would have looked like more of a flurry of frantic blows and dodges rather than what it was. A mixture of dance and chess game to find out who would come out on top. She kicked upwards , he caught the kick, she brought the leg down and used the momentum to spin around and bring her gun to bear. He blocked and grabbed her gun hand then the next thing she knew his knife was a scant few inches from her throat.

Check.

“Try using knives next time. Better for close encounters.”

Ada felt a slight heat to her cheeks and her heart rate spiked. And it had nothing to do with their impromptu sparring session and only a little to do with the knife at her throat.

It was the first time in 6 years she got to see Leon this close. Most of his boyish looks were gone, replaced by a hard stare and sharper angles. Traces were still there to be sure around the eyes haunted as they were but there was a bit of danger in his features now and it surprisingly suited him.

She let her surprise fade into an impressed smile. “Not a bad move. Very smooth.”

“So who are you working for this time?” he asked, eyes unblinking and intense.

“Oh Leon, you know I don’t work and tell.” And what are you going to do about that? What can you do? She finished with a sultry smile equally unblinking.

Checkmate.

For a single heartbeat, she felt that treasonous voice in her head want to lean in and kiss him. And in that moment, she was certain he was thinking the same thing.

They blinked at the same time and the moment passed. They put away both their weapons. Leon sheathed his knife as he turned away and she remembered what she came here to do.

“Leave the girl. She’s lost no matter what.”

She started walking past him slowly, not unlike a predatory cat circling another hunter.

“You walk away now and who knows? Maybe you’ll live to meet me again.”

She was past him now heading towards the open window.

“And then I might get you that ‘greeting’ you were looking for.”

“You think I’m gonna give up that easy?”

And there it was. Confirmation that despite everything that had happened to him, despite the seeming hard edges and world class skills gained from going through one hellish ordeal after another, he was still Leon S. Kennedy, rookie cop trying desperately to save just one person from the jaws of hell itself. A trait that was the single most infuriating thing about this man.

So infuriating it was almost endearing.

Her head dropped as she let out a sigh. Silently kicking herself for expecting anything different.

She turned around to look at him.

“Right,” she contemplated a moment. For all her capacity to plan ahead somehow the idea of him not wanting to walk away didn’t really seem like a possibility until now.

But this was the hand she was being dealt, she could find a way to play it.

“How about we continue this discussion another time?”

He let out an amused huff as he turned away and picked up his gun. By the time he turned back around she was already gone.

Despite the new potential complications, she couldn’t help but think that it had been nice to see him.

             “Damn.”

           “Looking for something?” She smiled as she dangled the boat key from her fingers.

           “How about I give you a lift handsome.”

           Leon chuckled and nodded. “Ok.”

           The ride was going to take awhile, so she decided to engage in a little small talk. Namely, asking what had happened to his charming Spanish friend. That may have been not the right topic because he turned away and rested his cheek on his hand.

           “He didn’t make it. My former C.O. Krauser killed him.”

           Oh. She thought. That was a damn shame. She would have liked to have seen him go free from this. She had figured his new chivalrous streak would get him killed, but still that was unfortunate.

           It was also unfortunate that that meant Saddler likely had the Amber in his possession and that he also had one of the worlds foremost special operatives on his side. One she’d guess who was now host to one of those superior plaga parasites. In essence a real life super soldier. That could be a problem. Not an insurmountable one but one she’d rather not engage in a direct fight with if she could avoid it.

           After that, most of the trip was spent in silence. Not awkward but…somehow tense. Leon just kept starring at the sea and brooding. She had to admit though, he was kinda cute when he was broody.

           He would occasionally look like he was going to say something but then thought better of it. Then try again a few minutes later only to internally talk himself out of it. It was irritatingly adorable.

           Eventually her own curiosity got the better of her and she wanted to know what was going on in his head. Besides, he couldn’t afford distractions where he was going.

           “You look like you’ve got something to say,” she tried to keep my demeanor neutral. It’d be better that way for both of them she reasoned.

           “I’ve got something to ask you. But I don’t think I’ll get a straight answer.”

           She gave a small shrug neither confirming nor denying. He was probably right but he wasn’t going to get anything unless he asked. The sea was clear so she glanced over at him expectantly.

           “Raccoon City. You know after the incident. The world changed.”

           She thought back to that day herself, in some ways, yes he was right. But in others she felt the world hadn’t changed that much. There has always been influential and powerful people trying to get their hands on some shiny new thing they thought would give them even more power and influence. Especially over any rivals of theirs. These B.O.W.’s were just the newest thing in a long line of such trinkets.

           Granted, far more obviously destructive and horrific than say new formulas for highly addictive opiates to sell to the masses or new ways to gather personal data or prototype weapon blueprints. But even so.

           He continued. “You try to save one person; a hundred others die. I guess I changed too.”

           No amount of a lifetime of emotional control and knowing how to manipulate her reactions could have stopped Ada from smiling and giving a full out laugh at the absurdity of that statement.

           “You? Leon S. Kennedy?” she quickly put face back into neutral. Surprised at herself he had elicited such an honest reaction from her. Confounding man. She turned towards him. “You haven’t changed. You just think you have.”

           He turned away noncommittedly as he saw we were coming up on the island.

           “So here’s my question…” he turned back to look at her in the eyes and for that moment he looked so much more like that cute boyish cop she had met over half a decade ago.

           “Have you changed Ada? Or are you just trying to use me again?”

           She kept her expression utterly impassive as she returned his gaze. There wouldn’t have been a professional card shark or conman in the world able to read her with this face on.

             “What do you think?” Then she turned away and gave a slight smirk almost to say the question was ridiculous to even contemplate.

           “We’re here.”

           She pulled the boat next to the cliffside, stood up and fired her grapple gun. She looked back down at Leon.

           “Don’t think too hard handsome. See you later.”

           With that she pulled the trigger and ascended, leaving Leon to get the careening boat back under control.

           Once she was up the cliffside she let the mask fall and couldn’t help but give another small scoff. Changed? Her? Of course she was still the same just as he was. And he knew that. If he didn’t then he wasn’t just naïve but dangerously stupid.

           Sure, she found him attractive hell in a way she liked him and perhaps she saved his life when it wasn’t always necessarily the most advantageous thing to do. She didn’t actively wish him harm but he made for an incredibly useful asset when properly controlled and motivated.

           But her mission was always the priority, she was a mercenary, a spy. And she’d been doing something like this almost from the moment she could talk. Its who she was. You do the job, you rub elbows with rich megalomaniacs and you get paid. What they do with your skills or whatever you’ve procured for them is not your concern. Besides even she didn’t do it someone else would, someone maybe with far fewer scruples than she had. So best to just do the job and not ask questions. Made things simpler. To think anything otherwise…well you have the new chivalrous and late Luis Serra as an example of that thinking.

           *Brnnng*

           And speaking of megalomaniacs…

           She answered the radio again.

           “Luis Serra is dead. But I know where the Amber is. It’s in possession of Saddler but I’m closing in on it.”

           “I see. And your mutt?”

           “Still active. Still being a good boy. The girl is also with Saddler, so it may be advantageous to have them fight it out.”

           “Then deliver the final blow when there’s only one left standing. Well done. But understand this, if you fail in your mission, the consequences will be…severe for you. Are we clear?”

           “Crystal. I’ll contact you again soon regarding extraction options and possibly some heavy ordinance.”

           She hung up again.

           That was one of the many more prominent downsides of working for megalomaniacs, if they didn’t get what they wanted they’d just threaten to kill you. Come to think of it, the only real positive thing about working for megalomaniacs was they paid well enough to offset all the other numerous downsides.

           She checked her weapons and set off again.

           Ignoring the voice that kept asking her the real reason why that question had bothered her so much?

             Dammit, so close.

           Saddler was right there. But so was Leon and the girl. The latter two of which were clearly in the final stages of the parasite fully manifesting. Saddler was able to control Leon’s body, making him halt dead in his tracks.

           If I could just get closer…

           She could grab the sample and maybe save the two of them. But there wasn’t enough time for both, only one or the other. She could just let the infestation take place, strike while Saddler celebrated, the sample was the priority…the sample…

           Leon convulsed as Saddler’s words seemed to speed up the plaga’s growth within him, his skin seeming about to burst.

           “Exult all! And let it be so!”

           The screams are what decided it for her and next thing she knew she was spraying rounds from her SMG to kill the cultists and stun Saddler.

           That seemed to break the spell as Leon fell forward and supported himself on the alter.

           “LEON!” he looked back in a slight daze.

           “GO!” she opened fire on Saddler again as Leon picked up the girl from the alter as she emptied the entire clip into Saddler.

           When the gun ran dry and she tossed it and drew her pistol, Saddler seemed to have recovered from his initial surprise and glared at her. With a frustrated growl his body seemed to writhe subtly before he suddenly had a fistful of bullets in his hand that he dropped contemptuously.

           Deciding to ignore her he made to pursue Leon.

           Like hell that’s gonna happen.

           She shot the chain off one of the statues and cut off the passage that Leon escaped through. With even just a bit of luck he’d make it to Luis’ lab before it was too late.

           Of course, now she was in this situation, how the hell would she get out of it?

             She groaned as she barely returned to consciousness, her vision swimming in front of her as a face began to form in front of her.

           “Leon?” she whispered.

           Her vision settled just enough to see it was not a handsome face in front of her but a face out of nightmares with almost glowing blue eyes and wearing a most displeased frown.

           “Ah, our new guest awakens.”

           Memory began to crystalize, there was a fight in the alter room, she had put up one hell of a fight, killing dozens of cultists and those damn giant bug things alike, even brought down entire sections of the roof to do it but Saddler had managed to get her with a lucky blow to the head. It was then that she realized her arms were bound. Damn, of course this is what she gets for trying to play nice.

           Saddler continued. “I had suspected there were other players about. Trying to claim our most Holy Body for themselves instead of sharing it with the world as it is meant to be. But fret not, for they too shall receive salvation when the time comes.

Bound, weaponless, and feeling her consciousness slipping again. This was bad, quite possibly end of the line bad. So all things considered, she may as well take a moment to gloat. “You’re too late. Leon and the girl are probably cured by now. And without the parasites in them, they’ll be 100 miles away as soon as possible. You’ve lost.”

Instead of anger or rage though, he laughed. “Ahhh but young miss Wong, you are mistaken about one thing. While it is true that their voices, so close to joining our choir have gone silent, I felt Mr. Kennedy’s thoughts as though they were my own for a time. I know you from his thoughts of you. Such an…impassioned but perplexing bond you two share. So much pain but yet he has so much faith in one as duplicitous as you. And such yearning! I think we both know that while you’re still a guest here, he will not leave this island. And while he’s here, so too will the girl be. You’ve merely delayed the inevitable ascension of our Holy Body.”

She felt herself being lifted up as unconsciousness quickly began to claim her again and it grew harder to think properly. She wanted to say no way would Leon, who’d gone through hell and back to save the other girl go out of his way to save someone who used him not just once but twice. He’d be a damn fool to do so.

But of course, he was her damn fool and she knew with the certainty the sky was blue and gravity existed that he would come for her.

Because he was her Leon…

 She awoke after being dropped from a height. A very rude interruption of a well needed nap. Then she heard gunfire and the adrenaline helped put her brain back into gear. She saw Saddler chocking Leon with a tentacled arm. Bullets didn’t really work, so time for something else. She fired her grapple gun and swung towards the mad monk. Landing a kick with enough force to shatter a normal man’s ribcage.

Of course, that only managed to stun him a little and make him let go of Leon. She turned and drew her weapon, glancing at Leon who looked right back at her. Something passed between the two of them and he drew his weapon and side by side they began pelting Saddler with round after round of bullets.

Unfortunately, that only seemed to make him angry…

 Leon lay on the ground exhausted after finishing off Saddler. The small vial of the Amber sample right next to him. He made to reach for it but she stopped next to him and picked it up first.

“Ada. What the hell are you doing?”

“Nothing personal Leon. Luis and I had an arrangement.”

She walked past him towards the edge of the rig.

“Don’t worry, I’ll take good care of it.

The helicopter rose up in front of her at the at the correct height where she could easily   just step into it.

“Rides here.”

Before she stepped in though she felt compelled to turn around and offer him something.

“You coming?”

She wasn’t really sure why shy she made that offer. Maybe part of her thought Leon would just follow after her like a loyal puppy, maybe she thought they made a good team and that she genuinely trusted him to have her back. Or maybe she just wasn’t quite ready to leave him just yet.

Whatever the case Leon looked away for a moment with small laugh before turning back to her.

His eyes betrayed exhaustion and maybe a little sadness but there was a peace to them too that she hadn’t really ever seen in them before.

“I think we both know this, is where we go our separate ways,” he finished with small wry smile.

For a man who seemed to go out of his way to make things difficult on himself , it was almost strange to see such an easy acceptance from him. For all the short time they had spent together he understood her, about as well as anyone could and he knew himself now too. Enough to know that both of them weren’t going to be riding off into the sunset together. Not this time.

I’ll be damned, maybe he’s changed a bit after all. He’s grown up.

And he was right. She turned away to conceal a slightly sad wry smile of her own.

“I see.”

She stepped into the copter which began rising just as explosions began to go off along the island.

But she did have one last treat for him. Complete with a little lucky charm.

“Better get a move on,” she called out as she tossed him the keys to her backup transportation safely docked under the island which he caught easily. Even from this distance she could see the amusement on his face at the charm on the key.

She sat down in the seat and put the headset on, still watching him him as the helicopter pulled away.

“Until next time, Leon...”

A few minutes later, she held up the Amber to her eyes as though trying to glean some more information from it. Some new bit of information that could settle the feeling of unease that had settled over her.

All centered around the little bauble and how much trouble it had been to get ahold of the damn thing.

It seemed to be the nature of the job these days, some small almost innocuous little bauble worth millions to the right people. A bauble that was more destructive than it had any right to be for something so delicate looking. Something that could perhaps, quite literally, change the course of history.

For a moment, a crazy thought flitted through her mind, an impulse to chuck it out the window and see what would happen then. Just make this whole mess of the past few days add up to nothing. It was an amusing thought.

But she was a professional and she had a job to finish. She carefully tucked the Amber into a padded case for safer transfer. Once it was secured she clicked on her headset.

“Patch me through.”

The pilot hit a few buttons on his console before giving a thumbs up for successful patch.

“I’ve obtained the Amber.”

Miles away, Albert Wesker sat in front of a computer displaying what he’d call the blueprints of the future.

“Excellent.”

But the unease in her mind wouldn’t leave her. Something about the past couple of days, between Luis going far above and beyond for two strangers he didn’t know and Leon, well of course, being Leon had started to make her wonder about somethings.

With these thoughts in mind, she committed the cardinal sin of mercenary work.

“Just one question, what are you planning to do with this?”

Predictably, the response she got was less than cordial.

“I do not pay you to ask questions,” Wesker said with a restrained snarl. “All you need to know is that a new dawn is breaking. A hundred will give their lives so that just one may live. I am expediting that change.”

She turned back towards the case.

“So…we’re talking millions of casualties.”

“Billions,” Wesker stated smugly.

Well, what do you know. There is another upside to dealing with megalomaniacs. They have no idea when they should shut up.

And it was then that she made her choice.

“How ambitious,” were the last words she said to Albert Wesker. She pulled off her headset and pulled out her pistol, moving behind the pilot she aimed at his head and pulled the hammer down.

“We’re changing course. Now.”

The pilot didn’t say anything other than a slight nod to her demands and quickly changed course.

This was definitely not the smartest play. Entire graveyards had been filled by those who had gotten in Wesker and Umbrellas way. Of all the enemies to make in the world they were quite possibly the biggest ones anyone could make.

But…she just couldn’t let them get their way. Not this time.

She was almost incredulous at herself and the action she was taking.

She had never been a monster by any means, in fact she had always done what she could to minimize collateral damage, even actually help some people here and there as long as it didn’t distract from her missions. She had figured out a long time ago that the wealthy and powerful would always have a use for people like her. And it was better to work with them and minimize what damage you could than to do something as foolhardy as taking a direct stand against them. That’d only get you squashed like a bug. Besides, if you didn’t do the job, they’d just get someone else who would. And that someone could be a lot less discerning.

It was just the way of the world and that wasn’t changing anytime soon. So best to be pragmatic about it. At least, that’s how she had lived her life so far.

But…something Luis had said seemed to stand out to her. Something about to be too practical was insanity and to see the world as it is and not as it should be was even more insane. Paraphrasing some parts of Don Quixote if she was not mistaken. Maybe there was a little bit of truth to that. Not much, but a little.

Of course, reality was never one to back down in the face of idealism. Not for long at least. There were still plenty of practicalities she would have to sort out. The first and foremost of course what to do with the Amber? Leon would certainly destroy it. But there were already plenty of B.O.W.’s out in the world already. Taking this one out was unlikely to make any real difference. And besides, there were plenty of other potential buyers who, while likely not having pockets nearly as deep as Umbrella’s, would still pay a fortune for this sample. And their…ambitions would likely be far less lofty than Wesker’s.

Perhaps with this sample they could begin to balance out Umbrella’s power. Find a way to counter them.

It was worth considering.

Before she began to make new plans she took a moment to stop and really consider what she was doing. She almost wanted to laugh. 6 years ago, despite her not wanting to cause undue damage during a mission, she wouldn’t have thought twice about actually giving the G-Virus sample to Umbrella. It had been just another job even with all the horror that she’d seen on that day. Now though?

She looked down at the ocean and the lone jet ski speeding its way back to the mainland and remembered a rookie cop from 6 years ago who had looked her in the eyes and all but dared her to shoot him. And being so unshakably confident that she wouldn’t be able to it. And for once, she really couldn’t.

I guess this answers your question, Leon.

She turned back to the empty sea and sky ahead of her as the helicopter flew her to a new destination.

#re4r #re4r spoilers #leon ada #leon x ada #aeon #resident evil #resident evil 4 #resident evil 4 remake

[sugareey-makes-stuff]

8, 9, 14 and 17 for the AO3 wrapped please :)

Hiyaaa! You've got it! :D Something tells me this is going to be a rambly fic rec list, so brace yourself! 8. Pairing you read the most for? For the first half of the year, I was creating things and reading at the same time, for multiple ships and multiple fandoms. I was reading everything for common ships and rare pairs, tbh. 📗 From my January TBR list, I’m reccing Licurici by louisfake | @lou-isfake (HP- Harry/Charlie/Draco, E, 133,092) because it’s amazing! I binged this in 2 nights, and it was so worth it! The world-building is phenomenal, and Charlie’s character is so well developed...I love how we see more than just a Weasley and a Dragonologist. He’s a person who’s complicated, has all the feels, and oh hey, he just happens to love the hell out two handsome blokes. A gorgeous read, and make sure to have tissues nearby because you’re going to need it! And I will always rec this fic again and again. You’re welcome. ANDDD, OKAY. From September up to now, I’ve been binging everything Sterek (pretty such every day), because that’s what happens when one is introduced and sucked into Teen Wolf. I quickly fell head over heels for them (it only took one fic ;D), and they’ve been a comfort ship for me ever since. 📗 It seems wasted now by DaaroMoltor (TW- Sterek, T, 48,618) is one of the first fics I read that made me want to explore this ship more. This is a deep slow burn where apparently Derek and Stiles suck at using their words and don’t know how to talk to each other, and the feelings that come up from so misunderstandings kinda just pull at the heart. (I think it’s very obvious now that all my fav fics seem to be angsty and make people cry, oops). I’d say Kelly Clarkson’s lyrics, “What doesn't kill you makes you stronger,” 1000% sums up what this fic is about, with Stiles trying to prove his worth to the pack, and of course I’m on board with anything that explores him being a Spark. Also, maggggic. 📗 Here’s one more rec: Blue Rocket by snarkatthemoon | @snarkatthemoon (TW: Sterek, E, 43,948) is a fic I couldn’t stop thinking about for dayyyys! There are so many things I can probably ramble on about from this fic, but Derek’s PoV is soooo on point, given his complex character, fears and expectations. The world-building is so well-thought out, the chemistry that Derek and Stiles have together is 🔥🔥🔥 and man, there are just soooo many layers to peel back. It’s gorgeous, heartbreaking, and yayy for Magical, Drummer AND Tattooed Stiles! Whoops, I guess that was a really loaded answer! 9. Favorite rare pair you read works for this year? What can I say? Perciver is always on my radar, so I’m always looking for new works to dive right into! They’re a ship I can come back to again and again, and ramble on about for infinity. I will totally talk read and talk everything Perciver in a heartbeat. 📘 A fav back from February is two cannot keep a secret by happynotdignified (HP- Perciver, T, 11,409). This story digs right into different PoVs of the Weasley family with each family member finding out that Percy and Oliver are dating. It’s bittersweet, and there are a lot of feels through conversations, letters and yeahh. Loosely follows the canon timeline while filling in some gaps, but gods, it’s so interesting to see how and what Percy’s family discover about him and Oliver and how that changes what they thought they knew about him, and how wrong they were. In terms of character development, we see how strong Percy and Oliver are as individuals and as a pair through different lenses. Love this to pieces, and it’s such a cool take on things. 14. Favorite AU you read this year? 📙 quite like us by alarainai (HP- Jegulus- T, 67,315) was such a fun read because that was how I was introduced to Jegulus and the awesomeness of text fic! Also, eagerly awaiting each update was super exciting when this was still a WIP. And this is probably the one exception I’ll make for fluff because holy crap, what a slow burn this is, but also, wrong number AUs always leads to great things, right? I have so much appreciation for Regulus’ snark and humour, and well, James is so gone for him, it’s not even funny. ♥️ 17. Did you leave any comments that had to be in more than one part? I usually like to keep things all in one comment just for ease. But if I need to ramble or break down all the things I appreciate in a work, I totally will. In general, if screaming and emojis can get my point across, that works too. :P Omg, just from the recs above, that’s already a lot of words read?! I have no idea what my actual wc for all of 2022 is (500k? Maybe more?), but I know it’s far more than what I read in 2020 and 2021 combined. 😅 Thanks for the asks!

___ Have more reader q's? Ask me via AO3 Wrapped [Reader Edition]!

#asked and answered #ao3 wrapped #sterek #perciver #jegulus #charlie/harry/draco #ask meme #fanfic #about me #hp fanfic #teen wolf fanfiction #fic recs #rec lists

[marypsue]

for the WIP ask meme, trust that i'm exercising great control in picking only three. i would be so honoured to hear about: 1) circus luna draft 2 2) groundhog day but it's halloween and every time bob newby dies it get faster 3) relativity falls but it’s stranger things. :-) <3

Hello friend! It took me entirely too long to answer this because in between you sending it and me answering it, holiday happened. Whoops. 

1) circus luna draft 2

This is an original fiction project that’s near and dear to my heart, that’s been trapped in the writer equivalent of development hell for over a decade now. It’s almost entirely unrecognisable now from what it started out as, save for the very basics: it’s a Kids On Bikes story where the primary antagonist is an evil, supernatural circus. 

The current elevator pitch for Circus Luna is ‘Stephen King’s IT meets Karyn Kusama and Diablo Cody’s Jennifer’s Body’. The main cast of characters, over the years, has morphed into a group of five friends, who face the circus once as teenagers and then have to face it again as adults, when they’ve all come to doubt what it was they experienced when they were young. I’ve talked a little more about the premise and the characters here and here. There’s also an inspiration tag on my blog, here.

I won’t share a sample, because I’m hoping to publish this professionally someday in the (far distant) future and apparently that can become a Problem if parts that end up in the final draft have already been posted somewhere. But I can promise that it includes: 

growing up queer in a small rural town in the early aughts!

the seductive appeal and selective memory of nostalgia!

emo hair!

the power of cultural narratives to impact our personal lives!

star-crossed, tragic romance!

Halloween vibes!

the painful, difficult, but ultimately rewarding experience of growing up, and how to mourn the things that are naturally and inevitably lost along the way! 

Goffs Vs. Prepz!

the corrosive nature of fear!

having crushes on all your friends!

trains!

BUGSSSSSSSSSS

and, perhaps most importantly: 

the Power of Friendship (and My Chemical Romance)!

2) groundhog day but it's halloween and every time bob newby dies it get faster

This is Exactly What It Says On The Tin! It’s a oneshot in three chapters set during season 2 of Stranger Things, wherein Bob Newby gets trapped in a time loop and somehow has to solve the overarching mystery of s2 using only the information everybody has up to the point where he dies, if he wants to save the people he loves and also himself. And also, he and Joyce and Hopper are all going to get to kiss. 

I don’t know how much of an audience there is out there for Bob Newby-POV adult-monster-hunting-trio fic out there, but hey, I’ve written weirder shit. 

Because I can, here’s a sample:

...

Jim throws the breaker and then hovers while Bob taps through the series of commands and prompts to unlock each of the doors in turn, pacing and scanning the hulking shapes of the boiler and whatever other equipment is stored down here, with the machine gun held at the ready and a scowl on his face. Finally, Bob has to abandon his task to say something. “Would you please pick a spot and stand there? You’re making me nervous.”

“You’re not already nervous?” Jim cracks, with something Bob thinks is trying to become a smile. But he does stop pacing. “Jesus. Forgot. This must all be old hat for you by now.”

“Yeah. But you never really get used to it,” Bob says, turning back to the glowing black screen. Beside him, Jim gives a little huff that might almost be a laugh.

“Got that right.”

They’re both quiet, for a few minutes after that, the only sound in the room the rattle of Bob’s fingers over the keys.

“That’s the exit doors back online,” he says, coming to the end of the string of commands. “Joyce and the kids should start heading out.”

Jim nods. But he doesn’t immediately pass the information along. “You really don’t think we’re gonna get out of here alive. Do you.”

Bob looks at the computer screen to avoid having to look at Jim’s face. “Well, hope springs eternal.” He lets out a long breath, and decides he can afford to offer Jim a little of that hope. “I’ve never had you here with me before. And I’m sure you’re a much better shot than I am.”

Jim’s quiet, for a long moment. When he does speak, it’s into the walkie-talkie. “Newby says to start moving out. Exit doors are online.”

Bob takes that as his cue, and for a few minutes more, the only thing he thinks about is the screen and the keyboard in front of him, turning on sprinklers and setting off alarms to draw the monsters away from Joyce and the kids, based on the directions the doc relays via walkie-talkie. It’s like some kind of video game, trying to control the movement of a bunch of distant characters through a maze full of enemies without getting them killed. Just with impossibly real stakes.

Bob can’t keep the thought from forming in his head, though. “Why are you here? We both want to get Joyce and the kids out of here safe, I’m sure they could use your marksmanship more than I can.”

Jim shrugs, shoulders tight, the smallest possible gesture. “Told you. I know Nancy Wheeler can handle herself. And if you got eaten on the way down here, we’d all be fucked.”

They’re pretty well fucked anyway. And Bob doesn’t get much time alone with Jim like this, not late enough in a loop that he’s earned a little trust. Maybe it’s that. Maybe it’s knowing that, if and when they do loop, Jim won’t remember anything about this conversation. Or maybe it’s just a combination of masochism and morbid curiosity that makes Bob say it. “You’re in love with Joyce, aren’t you.”

Jim whirls to face him, wide-eyed, startled, like he’s just been goosed. He doesn’t say anything, at first, just stares.

When he finally does speak, it sounds strangled. “I’m not enough of a prick to let you get killed just so I’d have a shot at your girl, if that’s what you’re asking.”

“Obviously you’re not, or you wouldn’t be here,” Bob points out. “I’m just – trying to figure it out. What I got myself into. What’s going on between you two.”

Jim cracks a humourless grin, at that. “Some puzzles I guess even the Brain can’t solve.”

He turns his back to Bob again, watching the door. Bob thinks the conversation’s over until Jim says, quietly, “You’re good for her. She deserves something, somebody like you in her life. Stable. Sane. Normal.”

“Not so much of any of those anymore, apparently,” Bob half-jokes, half to himself.

Jim goes on like he hasn’t heard. Maybe he hasn’t. “Joyce hasn’t had a lot of good things come her way. I don’t wanna fuck this one up for her.”

“She might want you to,” Bob offers.

Jim looks a little stunned. He doesn’t say anything else.

He doesn’t have time to, either. The strange screeching, rattling cries of the monsters rise from the stairwell, echoing eerily through the metal of the vents and pipes overhead. It sounds like a lot of them. And they’re coming down fast.

Jim doesn’t take his eyes or the machine gun off of the open doorway to the little room they’re in as he barks, “Give me good news, Newby!”

“All the doors are open,” Bob says, turning to look in his direction. “Think you can buy me one more minute to open the front gate for them, too?”

Jim’s face isn’t visible, his back still turned to Bob, but his voice is grim. “I can try.”

3) relativity falls but it’s stranger things

Yet another WIP that’s near and dear to my heart and taking forever to finish! This seems to be a theme. 

This one was inspired by (as you may be able to tell from the file name) the Gravity Falls Relativity Falls AU, where people swapped the ages of the Stan twins and the Mystery Twins, and also various side characters and antagonists. This fic is a Stranger Things season 1 AU where the teens are in the roles of the adults, the adults are in the roles of the kids, and the kids are in the roles of the teens. Nancy’s the Chief of Police with a broken family and a broken heart, Mike’s the loner who gets thrown together with a classmate by the disappearance of a kid, and Karen is the plucky twelve-year-old determined to find her missing friend. 

I’m stuck in the Dreaded Middle at the moment, because shaking up the roles shook up the plot, and I didn’t plan ahead for how to resolve it quite enough. There’s a reason outlining has become my best friend. 

There are a number of samples in my sample tag, but also, since you asked so nicely: 

...

The girl’s eyebrows crumple together and she makes a soft, wordless little noise as Mike and Will lower her carefully down, spread out along the length of the couch. Like it hurts. She’s already bled through the blue strips of bandage that used to be Mike’s t-shirt. Not for the first time, Mike wonders what the hell he thinks he’s doing.

“I’ll – I’ll check on the water,” he says, dropping the girl’s heavy black Doc Marten boots on the arm of the couch. He doesn’t wait for Will to answer, just makes his escape across the room to the kitchen sink. His ears are burning, and he has no idea why.

The taps at the sink refuse to turn, at first. When they finally do, it’s with an ominous creak, and then a slow and rising rumble that makes the faucet shake before it abruptly spits out a clot of slime and rust. The water that comes burbling out after it is brown and freezing cold.

“I forgot,” Mike says, as he rejoins Will by the couch. “This place is on a well. The tapwater might not be any better than the rainwater. Actually, it might be worse. But there were some clean dishtowels in the drawer,” he finishes, offering up the stack, along with the cereal bowl he’d filled with brownish water. “And I think there are still some towels in boxes in the bathroom, so we could dry her off -”

Will, Mike notices, has a smile like a sunbeam. Somehow it makes Mike even more embarrassed of his babbling. “That’s great. Do you think your mom or her uncle would’ve kept any antiseptic and bandages around?”

Mike spends the next – he doesn’t know how long, starting up the cabin’s generator to get the lights on, lighting the cast-iron stove in the corner, running and fetching and washing and applying pressure under Will’s quiet but certain direction. He’s a little amazed by this side of Will. Mike mostly only knows the Will Byers he sees at school or when he has to pick Karen up or drop her off at Joyce’s. The Will Byers with his nose always in a sketchbook or a novel, who lets the bullies push him around with an air of silent exasperation, who rarely if ever talks back or raises his hand in class. Seeing him this confident, this focused, is new. He really seems like he’s in his element.

Mike wonders briefly how Will learned so much about medicine and first aid, and then feels stupid. Of course. He knows Will works, has worked at just about every odd job around town since he was old enough to start. He knows Will was a lifeguard last summer. And – it’s just Will and his dad and his sister, and Will’s dad works odd hours, with the paper, and long ones, at the general store. Will probably cooks, too. And does laundry, and all the other stuff Mike’s dad has somebody come in to take care of.

That thought makes Mike feel incredibly – something. Maybe guilty, though he’s not sure why. He’s got bigger things to worry about right now, though, so he shoves it to the back of his mind.

The girl frowns, and whines, and at one point throws an arm out and smacks Mike hard across the chest, but she doesn’t wake up. Mike presses the inside of one wrist against her damp, pale forehead, under her close-shorn fringe of hair, and starts. “She’s burning up!”

Will glances up from the wound in her side. “Fever’s a bad sign. Can you get a couple of cloths and run them under cold water? One for her forehead, one for the back of her neck.”

Mike comes back with three cloths, and another cereal bowl full of icy wellwater. There’s just something fundamentally – grubby about the girl, now that he’s up close and personal, like she’s been camping for weeks without a proper bath. Mike tells himself it’s important to get her cleaned up to keep her wound from getting infected. But mostly, there’s just not a lot else he can do, other than putting his finger where Will tells him to to hold bandages in place while Will ties them off.

And Mike just thinks that, if it was him who was hurt and hiding out and unconscious at the mercy of a couple of strangers, he’d at least want somebody to clean the smudge of dirt off his chin. And the dried blood from the crevices around his nose. And maybe wipe off some of the black eyeshadow that the rain had melted down his cheeks.

The girl’s face is narrow and sharp, her cheekbones high, the bow of her lips sweet, her lashes dark against her cheeks. When her face screws up in pain, Mike gives one extra, unnecessary brush of the cloth over that cheek, as gently as he can. He doesn’t dare touch her with his bare hands, without the excuse and barrier of the cloth in between them. But he wants to do something to comfort her.

Without the makeup, without the scowl, she looks – so much younger. Almost delicate, despite the hair and the boots and the leather jacket and the tattoo. Almost vulnerable –

The girl’s eyes snap open, and fix on Mike’s.

Mike’s not sure what happens next. One second, he’s kneeling beside the girl, carefully washing grime off her face. The next, his back is smashing into the wall across the room. There’s an ominous rattle, and the mounted deer head high on the wall goes crashing to the floor between his feet. He raises a hand to his spinning, aching head, and tries to focus, to figure out what just happened.

The girl is wedged up against the far arm of the couch, knees tucked tight against her chest like she’s trying to make herself as small as possible. One arm’s flung out in front of her with the palm facing Will and her fingers all splayed, like she’s directing traffic. There’s a bead of blood inching down from her nose, but she doesn’t move to wipe it away. Her eyes are big and furious and scared and flicking back and forth between Mike and Will. If she was a cat, Mike thinks, her back would be up and her ears would be flat against her head.

Her voice is clear and sharp as she demands, “Where am I?”

Will’s got both hands in the air, like the girl had pulled a gun on him. The bowl of water Mike had brought him – which is a pinkish brown now, Mike notices, with a lurch in his stomach – is splashed all over the floor by Will’s knees, slowly soaking into his jeans, but he doesn’t so much as shift away from the slowly-spreading puddle.

“It’s okay,” Mike says, wincing as he starts to straighten up. He’s not sure why the look Will shoots him is so frightened, but then, he’s also not sure how he ended up on the other side of the room. Maybe the girl’s some kind of ninja assassin or something. She doesn’t look strong enough to throw Mike across the room, but – Mike knows maybe better than anybody how appearances can be deceiving.

The girl’s attention snaps to Mike as well, and she whips her arm around so that the palm is facing him instead of Will. Mike stops trying to get up, raising one hand instead in surrender. “It’s all right, okay? We’re not gonna hurt you. And we’re way out in the woods here, nobody’s gonna find you.” He glances down at the girl’s side, where fresh red is starting to seep through the bandages Will had so carefully wrapped. “You should probably lie back down, it looks like you’re opening that back up -”

“I’m leaving,” the girl says. Somehow, she makes it sound like a threat.

“Okay,” Mike says, as she unfolds herself from the couch and takes one uncertain step forward. “Nobody’s stopping you. You don’t have to, though. You’ve got a fever. And a bullet wound. You can stay here until you feel better, Will and I won’t tell -”

“I,” the girl repeats, wobbling and nearly crashing back down onto the couch, “am leaving.”

Will meets Mike’s eyes with a panicked look. Mike’s sure Will can see as clearly as he can that the girl isn’t going to make it more than two more steps before she falls over. But neither of them, Mike thinks, knows what to do about it.

“Who’s after you?” Mike asks. Maybe, if he can keep the girl talking –

She fixes him with a glare. And then flops back, heavily, onto the couch. She looks briefly surprised and indignant, like her own legs have betrayed her, and pushes herself back to her feet, even though she looks even wobblier than before.

“Mike,” Will says, low and urgent and frightened.

“What? You want to know too, right? If they’re the same people who took Joyce -”

“Mike,” Will repeats, with a warning flicker of his eyes in the girl’s direction.

Mike’s getting the feeling he’s missed something. “What?”

“It might be a bad idea to piss her off,” Will hisses at him, still with that pleading, scared look.

Mike pushes himself to his feet. “Yeah, well, murdering bank robber or not, I don’t think she’s in much shape to -”

He doesn’t get the rest of the sentence out. Because the girl glares, and waves a hand. And Mike’s back smashes into the wall again and stays there.

Mike kicks, and struggles, and gasps. But none of it does anything. It’s like there’s a gigantic, invisible hand pressed flat against his chest, squeezing the air out of him, pinning him in place. The girl’s glower turns to a slow, small smile, which is somehow just as ominous, her dark eyes never leaving his.

She lifts her hand a little higher. Mike can feel his windbreaker drag against the wall behind him as his feet leave the ground.

And then the girl’s eyes roll back and she collapses gracelessly backwards across the couch. The invisible hand holding Mike pinned abruptly vanishes, and he drops, hits his feet wrong, and winds up on the floor on his hands and knees, inches from putting an eye out on one of the deer head’s antlers.

For a frozen moment, nobody moves.

“Oh,” Mike says, finally, straightening up with care.

“Yeah,” Will agrees.

They both turn to look at the unconscious girl.

“Well,” Mike says, for lack of anything intelligent to say, “that might be why somebody’s after her.”

...

[ask me about a WIP!]

#chatter #the theme song for circus luna is mcr's 'kill all your friends' #stranger things ageswap au tag #circus luna #this is mary's fic tag #i don't thiiiiink I've shared any of these yet

[hasarjunadoneanythingwrong]

The Lovecraft gods in fgo are just convenient plot devices while at the same time being some of the dumbest servants to exist. Abby as a foreigner? That kind of works I guess. My main gripe with the Lovecraft gods is how the entire fucking foreigner class is reserved for them and their hosts/avatars/toys. Imo Arc and others should have been foreigners. Also, on a sidenote/rant continuation, why is Space Ishtar the only servant in the game with an anti-star noble phantasm.

100% agree w the foreign class being primarily dedicated to the lovecraft gods being dumb as hell btw. Ik voyager’s og class was meant to also be voyager but making him a foreigner was literally one of the smartest things they’ve ever done in that regards. I’d also agree on arceuid but I also think moon cancer works really well for her and I’m of the opinion bb of all people does not deserve to have that class all to herself. Foreigner really should be for any concept that is ‘extraterrestrial/foreign’ in nature, which would give them a lot more room to play with- you could class gods, concepts, theories under it and not fuckin. Have to make it the tentacle plothole class

Dumbest thing about sefar (besides the fact that she’s immune to and can absorb every attack that isn’t purely physical/represents a concept/has any sort of intelligence or technique behind it but was defeated by Excalibur which is?? A beam of light??? That was developed to represent a specific concept??And also apparently no one tried doing something like that to her previously??) is the fact that using her as an excuse for the gods being shadows of themselves doesn’t even make sense on a lot of timelines bc she apparently came to earth ~12,000bc. If this is accurate to the phh timeline as it is to the extella ones then she arrived in earth before humans domesticated goats. Forget destroying gods civilization had barely started then?? Humans 100% existed and had started societies, but the ones that the writers are thinking of-Greece, Japan, China, were mostly populated by hunter-gather tribes who were still developing things like agriculture and domesticating various animals. The oldest Egyptian dynasty was in 3100 BCE! Mesopotamia was also first recorded around 3100 bce, how the hell is she defeating gods from societies that don’t even exist yet? How is this supposed to work??

And even if we ignore this plothole and just assume that she showed up around when Atlantis was destroyed in phh like they mention in lb5, (which according to the guy who invented it, Plato, was 9,000 years before his time-forget that Greek society didn’t exist then) that would still put her arrival at around 9400 bce, it would STILL be way too early for any of the classical gods the writers were thinking of to have shown up (unless they actually went into the Old old dieties) because AGAIN it was still Paleolithic societies in a lot of places-ameratsu or her early equivalent might potentially be possible as an opponent but Zeus? Even Mesopotamian gods? It is very unlikely!

It would be far more accurate if they just wrote sefar as a general busted op threat to budding civilizations that needs to be overcome by actual humans if they wanted to keep the timeline where it was :// there’s already plenty of (both good and bad) reasons why gods didn’t get involved in every single conflict and they could’ve created a better one.

#this is where you realize I’m a nerd #my asks

[spellbook-gayboy]

Cape-Watch Monthly Bulletin- February 2023

Hey, y’all! I’m your host, Christina Cabello, bringing you more of the biggest superhero news of the month with the Cape-Watch Monthly Bulletin! February has brought many new developments for our favourite heroes, and we have some of the biggest stories of the month waiting for you below the cut!

Visitors from Far Beyond!

Our first story on the list is quite the shocker! Earlier this month, in the aftermath of their victory against the Walking Dread, the Guardians of the Globe received a visit from quite the strange group of visitors. They were a team of both humanoid and non-humanoid aliens, who claimed to be heroes from the distant future called ‘The Guardians of the Cosmos’, apparently the best superheroes of the 31st Century. Little is known of the nature of their visit to the present, but the Guardians of the Globe accompanied them, and haven’t been since. 

Their absence naturally has caused some problems. After all, when the world’s premier superhero team suddenly vanishes off the face of the Earth, it tends to give the many supervillains of the world some ideas. Luckily, the recently assembled team of Breakthrough has been able to pick up much of the Guardians’ slack, dealing with all manner of supervillain threats over the two-week period that the Guardians were absent for. As stated by Breakthrough team leader Frontline, ‘it’s been a hell of a time for the team. We’ve been darting from country to country almost every day, and we’re completely worn down! Still, it gave us all a chance to test our mettle as a team and as individuals. Now that the Guardians are back, we’ll be taking some much needed R&R, but rest assured that Breakthrough will be back soon!’

While much of the group that approached the Guardians currently remains unknown to the public, several pieces of information managed to escape the media blackout and circulated through social media: as it turns out, this is not the first time that this mysterious group has been sighted. The first recorded instance that matches the description of the group goes all the way back to the summer of 1947 in Roswell, New Mexico. For the readers who aren’t aware of what this means, the ‘Roswell Incident’ is believed to be a precursor event to the infamous 1952 Wilmington Invasion, the first time that Earth became the target of a full-blown alien invasion. The account came from a local journalist dealing with the events in Roswell, who on one night described ‘a strange yellow bubble hovering in the air’ outside his apartment, from which he claims emerged ‘a whole host of strange and unknown creatures, some more humanoid with distinguishable limbs and organs, and others that defy description.’ 

Well, let’s hope that the next sighting doesn’t make me do research that’s quite as nightmare-inducing. 

Hold Your Loved Ones Close

Now, considering that it is indeed the month of February, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention possibly the biggest celebrations of the month, Valentine’s Day. As well as its obvious global recognition, the celebration has also found a special place in the hearts of the world’s many superhero communities, a short respite from the many stressful and potentially catastrophic days that most heroes face. It also provides an opportunity for them to renew their commitments to others, forge new relationships, and look back on those they’ve lost, and this year has been no exception, with many showing their affection for those they hold close. 

As they usually do, Capes Incorporated waded in on the hype around the day, taking to Twitter to show off the many happy couples among their employees, including the newest addition Magic Man, who also happens to be the only visibly LGBTQ+ member on the US branch’s staff. As you might imagine, Twitter responded by clowning on the thread. Another notable example is the Guardians of the Globe’s entire line-up, which consists of at least two non-heterosexual romances (Shrinking Rae and Dupli-Kate’s relationship and Rex Splode’s relationship with solo hero Invincible), as well as whatever the hell is going on between Shapesmith and Fifth Force. Finally, we also have what many have called ‘the world’s most famous queerplatonic relationship’ between the Argentinian heroes Devastador and Lob del Valle, who spent the day showcasing the many ways that they choose to celebrate their rather unique partnership. 

Finally, one last example of someone who has found love in the superhero community is... me! That’s right, dear viewers, I am now the proud girlfriend of one of America’s finest! While I can’t say anymore in order to keep the both of us safe (or about as safe as a superhero and a superhero journalist can be), just know that she is the absolute light of my life, and that I wouldn’t trade her for the world! 

The New(er) Guy

While on this subject, the Guardians of the Globe also welcomed yet another new member to their line-up this month with the relatively new American superhero Bulletproof. This announcement actually proved quite confusing to many both inside and outside of the superhero community of America, mainly due to the decision to pick such a new starter. In fact, Bulletproof’s career thus far is still much shorter than the last notable newcomer, Kid Omni-Man, who began last August. The only explanation for this new choice of member came from Guardians team leader The Immortal, who had this to say:

‘Of course, I understand why this decision might shock some people. For decades, the Guardians of the Globe has been associated with the cream of the crop, the best that Earth has to offer, far from a starter team. But as someone who all too well what the original aims of the Guardians were, I know the importance of nurturing new figures as well as developing the existing roster. I think that Bulletproof has a lot of untapped potential, and that the Guardians is the perfect place for him to really grow as a hero!”

In accordance with his short career, Bulletproof’s media presence has also been sparse and uninteresting up to this point, mostly tourist shots and pictures of some homemade pieces of very suggestive artwork. For now, he doesn’t seem to match the often larger-than-life reputation of his peers, but that can easily change with enough time. I wish him luck, especially with how difficult life as a Guardian can be. 

Trouble on the Tides

Our final story for the month is actually quite peculiar. Last week, while on an apparent mission off the coast of Chile, the superhero team known as Fight Force mysteriously vanished without a trace. The team of supers was last spotted somewhere in the vicinity of the city of La Serena, where they were documented by locals responding to a distress call from a cargo ship. What is most concerning is that despite how routine a situation like this should be, it still resulted in the disappearance of all five members. The government liaison to the superhero community, Peter Schlottman, gave this statement in response to the news:

‘While an event like this is certainly unusual and does arouse a great deal of suspicion regarding the wellbeing of Fight Force’s members, the American people can rest assured knowing that whatever may happen next, they can trust in the abilities of Fight Force. They are some of the United States’ finest heroes, and I have every confidence that they will be back in the public eye soon enough.’

Most of the time, I’d take his word for it, but a few anonymous sources close to Fight Force have suggested otherwise. If what they say is to be believed, then the situation may be much more dire: when they disappeared, Fight Force was apparently investigating the appearance of a strange tropical storm that had was holding the cargo ship in place, something which shouldn’t be meteorogically possible according to all known laws of physics and weather. Whatever turns out to be true, here’s to hoping that Fight Force makes it out alright. 

And that’s all for this month, folks! Once again, I’d like to give a big thank you to all our subscribers and donors, who keep the lights on around here! This has been your host, Christina Cabello, telling you to stay safe, stay hydrated, and tune in next month for more of the biggest superhero stories around!

#invincible #invincible oc #christina cabello #cape-watch

[thevindicativevordan]

You’ve pretty much summed up all my feelings with Young Justice. Back when season 1 ended I put it above the old DCAU, hell it is still one of my favorite shows, but that first time skip practically ruined the show for me, and they just keep doing them. It is so annoying how some people in the fandom justify it as “gIViNg uS CHarCteR dEVloPMeNT”. What!? We skip over some of the best character development! I’d much rather *see* Robin become nightwing than be told about. I’d rather see Artemis and Wally’s relationship develop or what happened between Connor and Megan between S1 and S2 instead of being told about it. Still, I spent years wanting the show back after the cancellation. Wally was my favorite character and “killing” him off for being too slow after a whole season of serving no narrative purpose but being Artemis’s worried boyfriend, annoyed me immensely. To say nothing of the Darkseid plot they set up at the time. Two seasons later and they’ve barely even touched on that. All that doesn’t even get into the drop in writing and animation quality. During my rewatch, going from old YJ to new really gave me some insane whiplash. I don’t want the show cancelled or anything, but my excitement for what was once a favorite show has all but evaporated now. Do you think their is any real hope for a return to greatness?

Confuses me when I see people describe "massive status quo shifts happening off-screen in between seasons" as character development. I too was also peeved at WALLY WEST of all characters dying because he was too slow, should've killed Barry instead as befitting the obvious CoIE parallels. Unfortunately I don't see the show rising above the level it has been for S4, which is about the same level as S2 for me (aside from the animation quality another thing that I sadly don't see changing given Zaslav is more likely to cancel the show rather than raise the budget). Weisman apparently has said that he doesn't see YJ as a show "about" the legacy heroes, instead it's a DCU show with the legacies as the POV characters. Personally I think that's just him wanting to do a bunch of spin off series but not getting the approval to make them, so he just crams all of his ideas into the one show he's got. Clearly he's got ideas for the entire DCU, but they're at odds with the audience S1 and S2 cultivated who are primarily here for the S1 cast, not to see Weisman play with every corner of the DCU. In short the problem is Weisman wants to be a worldbuilder and tell an epic story about the centuries long struggle between Savage and Darkseid whereas the audience wants to focus on the lives of the S1 cast. That tug of war between priorities is what hurts the show.

Only big chance I see for a change is when/if the show survives long enough for Jon and Damian's generation to become the legacies to the legacies. Jon becoming Superboy and Damian becoming Robin while Conner becomes Superman and Dick becomes Batman, Kaldur mentoring Artur or Andy, Bart maybe mentoring his own father and aunt (God the Flashes are weird), etc. You could return to a S1 setup where we focus mainly on this new group doing their own spin on the mantles. At some point Weisman is going to need to get people to care about people other than the original crew if he's serious about continuing the show for long. Sooner or later you're going to run out of plot for that group, Zatanna is pretty much done since all she had was her father being trapped by Fate and now that's resolved, so you need to get people to embrace a new generation of heroes to follow. The Jon/Damian generation could be that opportunity if executed well. Otherwise people are going to dip once their favorites start getting sidelined, I know I'm out once Conner is done unless there's another Super to replace him.

#young justice #dc animation

[wizardlyghost]

- ahhh, the pieces fall into place. i think i expressed confusion a while ago about the COMMONWEALTH not seeming like it has its shit together enough to be establishing organisations like the INSTITUTE, and then later about MASSACHUSETS being known as the COMMONWEALTH pre-war. hearing the INSTITUTE outright called the COMMONWEALTH INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY though... i think the INSTITUTE might be the in-universe equivalent of M.I.T.?

     - a quick google says yes, M.I.T. does in fact stand for MASSACHUSETS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY. i couldn’t remember which american state starting with “m” it was in, was half convinced it was missouri.

- this makes all hells of sense. so, the theory so far:

     - a bunch of SUPERGENIUS TECH STUDENTS survived ARMAGEDDON somehow, possibly with VAULT-TEC’s aid (from what i know about the kinds of always-been-the-smartest-person-in-the-room kids that often end up in schools this prestigious, VAULT-TEC would have found this place a fertile ground for cultivating mad scientists with no regard for ethical limitations.).

     - they somehow managed to survive ~150 years underground, possibly utilising early model SYNTHS as slave labour

          - (not sure about this bit, as it would make the timeline of SYNTH development make very little sense - LITERAL BARE BONES SYNTHS were apparently all the rage even after KELLOGG went bald, and have in no more than a few decades been upgraded to SHOP WINDOW MANNEQUIN and BIO-CYLON/ALTAIRAN/YEERK(?) models, so unless the SYNTHS stayed at their most basic form for 150-190 years they couldn’t have been the cornerstone of the INSTITUTE’s survival, at least in the early days.)

     - at some point within the living memory of at least some DIAMOND CITY residents (i forget exactly how long ago), the INSTITUTE started sending SYNTHS out into the world for some reason.

- this means there possibly is actually a physical door into the place, as they were getting the SYNTHS out somehow, and the BROTHERHOOD is only now showing up to investigate signs of teleportation. or maybe the BROTHERHOOD under MAXSON’s predecessor was just lazy idk.

     - a little while after that, NICK was dumped in the wasteland.

     - a little while after that (but i think before NICK got to DIAMOND CITY) there was that thing with the SYNTH making a scene at TAKAHASHI’s. if i remember correctly, PIPER wrote that “only the oldest of us remember” or something, so this was a while ago.

     - an indeterminate while after that, KELLOGG and co kidnapped BABY SHAUN and killed HOWARD-TODD. notably, all the INSTITUTE flunkies present were fully geared up in hazmat suits - maybe in their time underground they’ve developed an allergy to the outside world?

     - a while after that, i woke up and started going john wick on their asses.

- idk, i’m still missing a lot of pieces of the puzzle, but i think i’ve got at least one or two of the corners in their right places.

#FALLOUT 4: THE RESURRECTION OF OSHA #fallout 4

[jeremy-ken-anderson]

Programs grabbing programs

Dogs and cats living together, mass hysteria.

Probably one of the biggest cutoff points for would-be programmers is when they need classes they’ve written to call other classes they’ve written.

At times it can seem like it’s just a matter of confidence, because if you’ve used the keyword new you’ve been calling classes. In a way this is nothing new.

But it gets more into the Clockmaker’s Dilemma, a phenomenon I described in board game design years ago: Imagine you’re making a clock, and it has all these interlocking pieces that each have to be a certain size relative to each other in order to work properly. But at present, no piece of the clock exists. You’re going to have to grind every cog into its starting shape before you construct the entire working clock. What size do you make your first cog?

The honest answer in game design is “whatever-the-hell size you want, don’t get hung up on it, you can change it later.” The same advice holds in programming, but - for me at least - in programming it’s even easier because the clock in the metaphor is closer to an actual clock, in that it has actual objectives as far as what it should be able to do once you’re done making it. (With some game development I feel like I’m not making a clock so much as some unknown Dr-Seussian device and, after each device is constructed to the point where it doesn’t fall apart on its own I have to operate it and ask, “Okay, was that fun?” while suppressing concerns about the amount of work it will take to reshape said device - getting an honest answer is realy important!)

I suppose once I’ve got the time to hop back into Unity I’ll get to do both of these at once again.

Anyway, on top of the Clockmaker’s Dilemma there’s just this layer of conceptualizing that can land outside of people’s comfort zone if they haven’t had to do it before. The idea of “I’ve made a tool blueprint. Now this other tool needs to use the blueprint to craft that first tool in order to do its work. I need to tell the computer both which tool I made and what I want it to do in order to avoid confusion each time I use it” can all be kind of abstract, and on top of that this is one of the places where if you have bad habits you’ll really start to feel, alas, the consequences of your own actions. If you’re used to naming classes simply and haven’t been bothering to name them comprehensibly you’ll get

tool x = new tool(i); x.do(y.op());

instead of, like,

smoothieMachineSwitch powerSwitch = new smoothieMachineSwitch(amps); powerSwitch.flip(safetyShutoff.isClear());

The top one is arcane gibberish. The bottom one, just because of the names of things, you can comprehend most of what it’s for and what it’s doing just by reading the variables. You’re setting up the power switch for a smoothie machine and apparently it’ll flip depending on whether the safety shutoff is clear.

Being able to conceptualize what’s happening within the tools is important to making sure you’re using them properly, so that if something goes wrong you know whether you built the tool wrong or incorrectly used the tool you built.

#programming

[buckyownsmylife]

plagiarism and bullying

I am not sure how much readers of this community know about what’s been happening, but I know pretty much anyone who writes has been going through hell the last couple of months because of authors who have grown too big for their own heads - and have effectively managed to poison the entire community with their behavior, which is precisely what I feared.

And I am sick of it.

I am sick of what can only be described as psychological and emotional harrassment, done privately so people feel isolated and scared to post anything.

I am sick of people thinking they own tropes, alternate universes, clichés, pairings, characters, even GENERAL PLOT POINTS that no one can possibly possess and take ownership of.

I am sick of these same people being the ones who can’t see an idea being thrown in front of them before attaching themselves to it until the original author is forced to pull back on something they’ve been working on because this other person who they considered a friend posted it before (oh yeah. I know all about those of you who are calling out people as plagiarists while stealing WIPs from your friends).

So let me give it to you straight - and this is coming from someone who is actually a victim of plagiarism myself.

Every time one of you points a finger at someone else and shames them privately or even attacks them publicly for writing a story that has the same generic set-up (Steve finds your fanfiction, Bucky loses himself to the Winter Soldier, reader needs to be rescued by one of the supersoldiers) you’re doing all of the people in this community a disfavor, by 1. making everyone scared of publishing anything, because the entitlement for the littlelest things seems vindicated now and 2. you’re taking away from actual instances of plagiarism and authors who are having their entire works stolen.

Think of it this way: can I feel entitled to the concept of sex pollen? only one bed? in vino veritas? why can I feel entitled to this concept that I apparently came up with but that can be rewritten in a thousand different ways?

If someone else can take that generic summary and run with it in a way that’s their own, YOU WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO TRADEMARK IT. It ISN’T an instance of intellectual property and it most definitely isn’t plagiarism.

You all have common sense. Use it. It’s one thing to copy an entire premise of a series, keep the same AU and character and change the lines of dialogue. It’s an entire different thing to create your own stepfather Bucky series, or mobster Steve series, or Alpha all of Chris’ characters (here, have one of “my own” ideas), with your own premise, your own ideas for each chapter and the other details of their relationship with the reader.

Or are you telling me from now on, there can be no more alpha!Bucky’s heat taking over him suddenly, Steve and Reader have to share a bed on a mission, stories with reader, charles and lee as a pairing or any other unusual one? Is that what we really want? To be the only suppliers of a certain trope, pairing or au? Can you see how your ego is affecting the entire fanfiction community hee on tumblr? Why authors are giving up on providing their fictional universes to welcome us into after a lousy day?

If your work inspired someone else’s, there’s a simple way to resolve it: reach out to the writer, confirm it was actually inspired by yours and ask them to give you credit. Credit is the actual solution for works that have been inspired by other works, but not bullying, not threats, not forcing someone to delete their own versions of a story we’re all actually sharing because bottom-line? We are all stealing Marvel’s characters and placing them on Shakespeare’s plot lines and the only thing we can do about it is add our porn and our own personal interpretations, imagination and developments.

And that means, of course: writers, if your story was inspired by someone else’s, please give them the proper credit. As I’m sure you’re aware, we are very quick to identify when something is similar to our creations, and it’s a fucking awful feeling. It’s what created this whole witch hunt over plagiarism in the first place, but while in 8/10 cases it isn’t actually plagiarism, it fucking sucks and it could have been easily prevented when it was just a matter of recognizing you aren’t the seventh wonder of the universe and actually got the inspiration to write that story from someone else.

In the same way, DON’T STEAL PEOPLE’S IDEAS WHEN THEY TALK ABOUT THEM. And no, THAT’S NOT PLAGIARISM either, it’s just common decency. They might even be okay with you writing the same idea, but it’s always nice to let them know and give them credit. Especially if it’s someone you consider a friend, but even more so if it’s something you saw as a snippet of a WIP on your timeline (as a general rule, I wouldn’t work on anything I thought intriguing only after I saw someone else was writing it).

And finally, still keeping that other point in mind: you don’t have the right to stop someone from working on something similar to what you’re writing. Can you imagine how many people are writing, at this exact moment, stories with the same premise? Of course, once it’s out, there’s a high chance the projects will be completely different, since each writer made it their own. I am willing to bet most of them didn’t copy from one another, they just happened to be interested in the same things - which is often the case here, prevented you aren’t an asshole that does what I described in the last paragraph.

I don’t know about you guys, but I am excited to read more stories about magical boading schools and I definitely hope J.K. Rowling won’t stop me from getting that.

Similarly, I beg you. You want to write your mafia!andy series? Please, do. The world needs your story. Just make sure it truly is your story that you’re telling.

tl;dr: plagiarism is a real issue, but never an excuse to bully people and traumatize them from writing. Writers, learn the difference between plagiarism and inspiration. If you do think it’s actual plagiarism you’re working with, please follow the following steps:

Before accusing anyone from plagiarism:

1. Actually talk to them without threatening or manipulating them so you can understand what happened and let them know how you feel. 80% of the times they’ll apologize and give you credit for it. 

2. Unless you’re the reincarnation of William Shakespeare (and so being, you have the rights to all of the tropes and plot twists created in modern literature. go you!) - and prevented the “plagiarism” isn’t so obviously truly plagiarism, that it can be proven with two screenshots placed side by side - talk to someone unbiased who will tell you if what you think was stolen was actually stolen. There’s a good chance you’re being delusional and thinking the entire world is aware of your stories and looking forward to take advantage of your hard work on them.

A good rule of thumb? Don’t do to others what you don’t wish would be done to you, and make sure to apply that rule to the way you approach the situation and treat the person you were so quick to consider a villain. I’ve yet to see (in this community, since I got here) a situation where the writer accused of plagiarism when confronted has been anything other than kind and remorseful, ready to remedy the situation once it’s been brought to their attention.

If you’re so certain of being right, there’s literally no reason to be aggressive to someone who’s not treating you rudely.

#eyre rants #i am signing off for the foreseeable future

[astaroth1357]

The Brothers Have Been Multiplied!!!

Lucifer

Look. In his day-to-day life, Lucifer has always had to struggle with being one of, if not the only, capable person in the room. His brothers don't always try to help him and even if they do their help may just make things worse…

So this should be a dream come true right? Not only does he have competent help, they'll all also himself! Who better to trust his more difficult tasks to, right? Right??

Well… wrong. Unfortunately for as much as Lucifer is, there is one thing Lucifer and his clones just aren't… Good minions.

Complain as he might about his brothers, they know who's in charge. As it turns out five Lucifers in a room can only screw in a lightbulb after they agree on who's giving the orders and being the "original" means nothing at all!

Poor MC gets saddled with mediating the most confusing squabbles in their life between Lucifer, Lucifer, Lucifer, Lucifer, and OG Lucifer (the name dubbed to him by Levi)

So aside from this being a trainwreck for anyone not named Diavolo (who's thrilled to have so many Lucifers to talk to!), it's also a headache for himself too!

The next week is spent with Lucifer literally arguing with himself over who's doing what while the brothers all cower in their rooms to keep from incurring their wrath… Five angry Lucifers is a sentence for certain death, somebody hide Mammon…

Mammon

Lucifer's worst nightmare has been realized… Not only does he live in a world with one Mammon, now there's five! Five!!! Five Mammons!! The world isn't ready for this, no one is!

Of course, a pack of Mammons absolutely get into as much trouble as you think they would. The moment he realized there was more of him, the secondborn was already scheming up what kind of ploys he could pull off with five of himself...

Barbatos is upping the Castle security as we speak...

To his credit, you can't say that the Mammon-squad doesn't have hustle either. It may be either a blessing or a curse to go to five different stores and see a Mammon working there all at the same time, depending on your preference.

(Unfortunately for the brother and anyone with pickpocket-able wallets, it's mostly a curse).

Honestly, the biggest downside for poor MC is that they're all. so. clingy!!

If the MC wants even a minute to themselves, they'll be swatting away Mammon's like a swarm of mosquitos! Better learn an invisibility spell quick, or else their greedy companions will never, ever leave…

Leviathan 

Holy cow, it's a gamer's dream come true!! Screw underwhelming AI and goodbye unreliable party members, he has all the team he needs right here!! They should go national or even pro!!!

Ah yes, Levi was truly elated for like, a couple days over this development. Why shouldn't he be? Having a whole herd of himself was a blast!

They're all great at gaming, they like the same things, they dislike the same stuff, and (most importantly) he's not any better or worse than any one of them! There’s nothing to get jealous over, right?

Well slap a big fat wrong on that because there's one thing to always get jealous over and their name is MC!

MC could come home from class one day to find five Levi's all wanting them to do five different things and NO THEY'RE NOT SHARING-

Unfortunately for Levi, the poor guy is so prone to jealousy that he can't even cope with it when he's jealous of himself…

It is at least a little entertaining to watch a pile of otakus fight themselves, it's kind of like watching a deadly game of high-stakes LARP-ing. Just less imaginary spells and more giant sea monsters popping out of nowhere… Someone grab some sponges…

Satan

Which is more likely to rule the world, one Solomon or five Satans...?

Having five Satans around is kind of terrifying… Just one can scheme up a storm and cause a lot of damage so add on four others and you got a recipe for a bad time… 

If you're Lucifer, anyway.

In truth, the band of Satans are all about as independent as their original counterpart, so they don't often do things together as a group.

This can create a lot of deja vu scenarios where the MC will swear they've already passed by a Satan in the hallway… like three times.

Unfortunately they also get the urge for affection around the same time, so the MC may go a whole day without seeing them then suddenly get surrounded by needy and bickering Satans at all sides...

When the pack does work together, however, they're a well-oiled machine. Capable, logical, practical: basically everything the Lucfier-squad wish they could be without all the pesky pride in the way!

… until someone ticks them off and they become their own angry mob, but hey, still better than a pack of Mammons.

Asmodeus 

… We all know an orgy is happening right? Like, it may not be the first thing he thinks of, but it's on the list. He'd never pass up the chance to selfcest when possible. Never.

That being said, the Asmos actually get sick of each other surprisingly quickly… Only a few days in and they'll be squabbling like crazy!

Why you might ask? Well not for any particular character flaw or anything - it actually boils down to the clothes… and makeup… and face… and attitude... and-

Basically, how in Diavolo's Hell is he supposed to stand out as the world's most singularly beautiful creature if there are FOUR OTHERS that keep stealing his style?? It's a nightmare!!

It didn't take long for the Asmos to start trying to find their own, completely distinct identities like Goth Asmo, Sporty Asmo, Hipster Asmo, etc… All claiming to be WAY better than the original, of course.

As entertaining as it may be to see a bunch of Asmos go through an identity crisis, he wants them GONE and he wants them gone NOW!! He's blowing up Solomon's phone every hour of the day until it gets fixed so better sit tight for a while…

Beelzebub 

You know, this is actually one of those, "Worst Case Scenarios" that Lucifer and Dia drew up shortly after they had their Fall: what does one do with five Beels exactly...?

You can't possibly feed them all, at least not all at once… and letting any one get too hungry is asking for trouble.

Do you let them run through the city streets and chomp up its citizens like a game of Pacman? Scatter them to other realms and hope that they don't do a ton of damage? Pit them against each other in "There-Can-Only-Be-One"-style gladiatorial combat?? 

Well… there isn't really a good solution. Food is still a finite resource but the Beels TRY to be understanding and TRY not to push their luck at mealtime...

It has varying degrees of success, but hey, it's sweet that they're even trying...

Aside from the ever-present threat of being eaten out of House and realm, everybody kind of likes having so many Beels around. They're easy-going and helpful, which generally makes life easier for everyone and like… it's Beel. Who doesn't like hanging out with Beel?

The Beels even get along with each other so they regularly go to the gym and games together. Though it’s not super sportsmanly to switch out Beels between quarters in fangol, it's not technically against any rules either so the past few games have gone very well! (It's he'll, who even reads the rulebook anyway?)

Belphegor 

It actually took a little while to notice that there were even two Belphies, let alone five…

MC would walk into a room and see a Belphie sleeping on the couch. Perfectly normal.

Then, they'd go into another a few minutes later to see Belphie napping a chair… A little off, but still okay.

Well sure, but in the next room he's also apparently on the floor too and….

Wait a minute.

Turns out five Belphies is either a breeze to deal with or absolute hell and there's no in between.

If they're all asleep, things are fine. Just artfully pile them on top of each other like dead bodies in a stealth game and move on.

If they're awake, then there's just way too much Belphie! And they play off each other in just the worse ways… The Anti-Lucifer League has never been so active, much to his brother's dismay...

This can be mitigated slightly by pawning a few off on Beel (who is more than happy to mind his duplicated twin) but that solution doesn't work forever… 

Moreover, the MC can't sleep anywhere without them all gravitating towards them so even the shortest nap results in waking up under a dogpile of cow-men… It's a wonder they don't suffocate...

#obey me #obey me shall we date #shall-we-date-obey-me #obey me lucifer #obey me mammon #obey me leviathan #obey me satan #obey me asmodeus #obey me beelzebub #obey me belphegor #obey me headcanons