#like that magic stone quest you only get after you have all the fragments

[asleepinawell]

nier replicant more like don't ever mention pink moonflower seeds to me again

#nier replicant #nier #tying the gardening stuff to real time was a terrible decision guys #no one wants to stop playing right before the ending and wait for days and save scrum to get some flower seeds for one stupid side quest #so dumb #mp #niermp #loved this game but there's a few things that made me want to throw my console out a window #like that magic stone quest you only get after you have all the fragments #and you gotta go to the top of the lost shrine #where you need to go anyway for the end game #but then you have to go all the way back down and across the map to turn it in #like why couldn't you get that quest earlier #I did not want to grind through that stupid place twice in a row #argh

[animated-moon]

tug of war

pairing: zhongli x gn! reader

warnings: SPOILERS FOR LIYUE’S CHAPTER OF ARCHON QUEST! reader works at bubu pharmacy, not proofread we die like real idiots 🤞🤞 i also made references to some of the liyue npc’s idle dialogues that people made into memes because it was too tempting not to

word count: 1.1k

a/n: i lowkey hate it but i guess we all just have to learn to adapt

☆。*。☆。

The almighty archon Rex Lapis has never lost before. Never once has he given in to the enemy’s demands, no matter who or what was at risk, and never once has he cowered to someone in battle, no matter how strong the enemy.

That was, until you came along.

“Hey! What are you doing out in Jueyun Karst all alone? It’s dangerous, sir!” He turns around, seeing a small frame running towards him. He’d just finished fending off a group of hilichurls, as per the Traveller’s request. He’d gotten a few scratches and part of his neat suit was torn. Sometimes, he forgot that he wasn't the unbeatable Morax anymore.

“Oh? You’re that new hot topic in Liyue, aren’t you?” He nodded, tucking his spear away.

“My name is Zhongli, consultant of the Wangsheng funeral parlour. A pleasure to meet you…” You chirped out your name, and he took a mental note of it. He’s heard your name around before, since you worked part time at Bubu pharmacy. He recalls that Baizhu was pretty fond of you.

“We should patch you up, Mr Zhongli. I happen to have some herbs that can numb the wounds for a bit. Please stay still while I apply them onto your arm,” you said, taking his arm gently as if he were made out of porcelain. He’d barely felt your hands on his skin before you clapped your hands ceremoniously.

“All done. Make sure to be more careful in the future, sir!” Before he could state his thanks, you’d run off, leaving the god speechless and charmed.

“Hey, Li!” Your voice stood out to him amongst the sea of chatter and exclamations. It's always been like this with you. “Wanna play tug of war?” He smiled.

“I’d never say no to a challenge,” A simple reply, like the simple man he now was.

This war between both of you started as a lighthearted game, and Zhongli found himself unwilling to let go of his end of the rope. He looked up at you, a focused gaze as you tried to knock Zhongli off his balance.

Every little motion from you was a tug of the rope, slowly pulling him closer. Even with his build, he found it difficult to pull the rope back to him. It was like his feet were planted to the ground, and his arms were only made of stone.

What is this feeling? He often asked himself, but even the almighty Lord of Geo couldn’t find an answer to his own question. When did he know to feel like this?

“Aren’t the lanterns beautiful?” You asked, taking a bite out of your cheap and tasty chop suey. Zhongli nodded, settling next to you with his grilled tiger fish. It was still hot, and he blew on it gently.

“I’m glad you took time off to hang out with me today, sir! Although you really didn’t have to,” you made a comment, and Zhongli had the smallest smile on his face.

“It’s nothing. Ms Hu let me off early today. Let’s just enjoy the lanterns.” He commented, and you hummed.

The silence was comfortable, and he glanced at you, the light from the floating lanterns reflecting off your face in a magical way. You fluttered your eyes close and clasped your hand over the other, lips moving slightly and allowing your wish to get lost amongst the beautiful lanterns.

What was it you wished about? Zhongli considered asking, but remained quiet.

“Li! Are you just letting me win?” Your voice pulled him back to reality, and he had a wide grin on his face.

“You’ve grown stronger,” he comments, and you laugh softly.

“Feel welcome to bash my ego with your geo arms.” Zhongli laughs at that, putting more strength into trying to secure himself. He wouldn’t fall. Not yet.

“Really?” You asked, eyes almost glittering. Zhongli smiled at you fondly. “They never told us these things in school,” you comment, and he shook his head.

“Not many truths of the past are conserved at all. It’s a pity not many people are as interested in history as you are,” he says, both of you strolling around the Dunyu ruins.

“Oh, do you see that?” He asks, pointing to a crossbow. “That’s-“

“The Guizhong Ballista, right?” You finished his sentence, and Zhongli looked at you, a little surprised. “I remember that you said the God of Dust, Guizhong and Cloud Retainer built it together to protect the citizens of Liyue! The traveller and you had to fix it together last time, since some treasure hoarders destroyed it.

“You remembered that? It was months ago.” Not many people bothered to remember Zhongli’s stories, after all. Not many even saw the true value in them.

“Well, it’s an interesting story, and I should be grateful that you chose to tell it to me,” you replied simply, gazing at the crossbow. Zhongli was a man of a million words, but at that moment, all the words he wanted to say seemed to be caught in his throat.

Zhongli tried again to tug on the rope, his strength not coming to him at all. Your giggles as he inched closer and closer to you was music to his ears, and he couldn’t help but smile again.

“Go! Pull harder while he’s not paying attention! You can do this!” Somewhere in the crowd, Childe could be seen, cheering for you. As he caught Zhongli’s eye, he snickered and mouthed two words to him.

“Down bad.”

“I like you, Zhongli.”

“Huh?” Zhongli made a sound of surprise? You… liked him? Before he let his mind wander, you tossed a pebble across the surface of the water, watching as the water rippled.

For some reason, he couldn’t remember the rest of that day. Did he say it back? How did you respond? What did you say after that?

Did it even happen? Or was it just a fragment of his imagination?

“Mr Zhongli! Go!” Hutao cheered, but Zhongli didn’t hear anything besides the bubble of laughter falling from your lips.

“Yea, I like you,” you repeated, turning to look at him. Before Zhongli could speak, you continued.

“-r passion for history.”

He pouts, tilting his head at you. Were you teasing him? Seeing the frown on his face, you laugh.

“Disappointed?”

“Hardly,” he replies, but turns away from you. Sometimes, Zhongli too could be childish.

“You’d have to say it first, Li,” you say, and Zhongli tilts his head at you again.

“Why is that?”

“I don’t like giving in,” you grin, standing up to leave Zhongli speechless yet again.

“I can never win with you, can I?” He mutters to himself, a wide smile across his face.

That was when your little competition began, he remembers. If he even tried to think that he wasn't interested in you, it’d be a lie. Within a few short months, he had become so enamoured with you that it’d hardly be fair.

Now, as he gave one last tug to his end of the rope, you grinned at him. He remembers every single time your eyes lighted up in delight, or dimmed with disappointment. He remembers every time you’d tugged on the rope, slowly knocking him off the balance he’d always known.

After everything, he finally let go of his end of the rope, falling into your arms which felt like home.

#zhongli #zhongli fluff #zhongli fanfiction #zhongli genshin impact #zhongli x y/n #zhongli x you #genshin impact #genshin impact fluff #genshin impact fanfiction #genshin impact zhongli #genshin #morax genshin impact #genshin morax #rex lapis genshin #🌓.creations

[moviemunchies]

Alright listen up folks: Raya and the Last Dragon is a fantastic animated fantasy film and I’m a bit disappointed that it did not become more of A Thing. Pretty much everything I would have wanted from this movie when watching the trailer is what I got in this movie.

So, here we go:

Raya and the Last Dragon tells the story of Raya in the land of Kumandra. Kumandra had water dragons that made everything great by providing water and helping people. But then these creatures called the Druun invaded, and had this nasty habit of turning humans and dragons into stone. The last dragon, Sisu, used her magic to create the Dragon Gem to banish the Druun. But people’s greed for the gem’s power makes them divide into different feuding tribes living on different sections of the river that runs through Kumandra (which happens to be shaped like a dragon, so they’re named after different parts of the dragon).

Raya’s father, the chieftain of the Heart tribe, holds a meeting to try to get the tribes to work things out. This meeting goes… badly, the Gem gets broken and divided among the tribes, the Druun come back, and six years later the only hope Raya has is to chase after the rumor that Sisu is still out there, and hope that she can recreate the miracle of the Dragon Gem and stop the Druun a second time. Except Sisu isn’t… quite the miracle worker everyone thinks she is.

And so Raya and Sisu go on a quest throughout Kumandra to collect the Dragon Gem fragments while avoiding the Druun, and fighting Namaari, the princess of the Fang tribe, who has a personal vendetta with Raya.

First off--fight scenes in this movie are dope. I do not recall a CGI animated film that had fight scenes as good as what we see in this movie (maybe I have and I just don’t remember). They’re fun to watch, imbued with a unique energy that makes it stand out. Raya’s sword is one of the coolest movie weapons I’ve  seen.

Second: this movie does a wasted fantasy setting really well? Many times when people want to convey a desolate landscape in a fantasy setting, they’re just bare of cities and frightened peasants are everywhere. One of the things we see fairly early on in this film is the places where there are just statues of people turned to stone, and plenty of the dwelling places have just been abandoned because of the invading Druun. We never see any statues get smashed or worn down, but it’s still eerie because you have hundreds of people that are just… gone because they’ve been turned to stone.

The movie’s got well-done and likable characters, good dialogue, and it’s beautiful to look at. There’s also the added plus that, as far as I can tell, it doesn’t have this now-annoying “We’re not like other Disney movies!” thing that has become almost standard in Disney animated films of late.

There is this weird thing about the movie in that it’s very obviously based off of Southeast Asian culture in its design and language. Sisu, for instance, looks like what you’d get if you crossed an East Asian dragon with a naga. Except the voice cast is mostly made up of performers of East Asian descent? It’s a bit weird that for Moana Disney made a point to hire a cast of Pacific Island descent, and Coco has a Hispanic cast. With this film, at best it feels like a bit of a missed opportunity, and at worst it seems as if perhaps the people at Disney doesn’t know the difference.

Mind you, Hollywood is like that sometimes. Hispanic performers of every nationality tend to get cast as every Hispanic nationality. And British actors get cast as Americans and vice versa all the time. Still, representation matters, and it would have been nice to see more accurate representation in the cast. The cast we do have for this movie is very talented though, and I want to emphasize that I don’t mean this as a criticism of the cast that we got. They did a fantastic job.

The pacing for this movie felt a bit too fast at first. There’s the journey for the gem pieces, and the first couple it seems to breeze through. But I understand that having a drawn-out set of sequences for each piece would make the movie much longer than it needed to be, and I can’t say I mind that the Plot moved forward in a way that didn’t sacrifice character development.

Another problem that I think audiences might have with the film is that it’s pretty heavy-handed about its message. The problem of the world and its characters is lack of trust; if people trusted each other instead of assuming everyone else was only out for themselves, they wouldn’t be in this mess. This will be hammered into your skull over and over again by the end of the movie. And I don’t mind so much--we live in a world where much of our conflict is based off of the assumption that the other side wants to murder us and that leads to people taking extreme reactions. And that has disastrous consequences. I think it’s a good message, but I think it could be a bit more nuanced in its delivery. Mind you, it does bring up that it’s not always as easy as just trusting people you don’t like, because that can also lead to disaster. But I get how this might be grating on some viewers.

Overall I think this is a fantastic fantasy film that has a unique design to it and excellent fight scenes. I watched this movie pretty much enjoying every scene. I can’t imagine anyone actually disliking this movie, but I think I’d get why some people might not have as much fun as I did. It’s a great addition to the Disney animated canon, and like I said, I’m a bit bummed that this movie didn’t pick up as much of a following as other entries did.

#Raya and the Last Dragon #Disney #Raya #Sisu #Movie Munchies #reviews

[wyrmmaster]

I started granblue recently on large part because of your posting about it. What happed with Yuel thata got you so upset?

Okay, I’m tempted to point you to some of my other posts but I’m not gonna do that and instead I’ll use this ask as a place to lay everything out, both for my sake and everyone else’s - sorry, this might get long.

Right, so. In the beginning you have Yuel. Unusually for an Erune, she has a massive tail on top of larger than average ears.

Yuel’s a bumpkin, a hyperactive goofball, and generally just all around a nice person. Yuel, bless her heart, is on a quest to discover artifacts that belong to the ancient royal family she serves to return it to glory but is a bit scatterbrained and can’t focus on one thing for too long so really she’s just On an Adventure™. You learn that beneath that ADD is an incredibly perceptive woman that can deduce the exact emotional state of everyone around her and cleverly cheer them up or offer them support without ever seeming to actually go out of her way to do it. She gets people to loosen up and enjoy themselves, even if they’’re miserable.

Later, you have Societte. Like, Yuel, she has a massive tail and larger than average ears.

Her introduction to you is freezing solid a small army of monsters that had you cornered. Societte is grace given physical form but, bless her heart, is shy to the point where even after that display of power she can’t actually talk to you. You guys just patiently interpret her mumbles and slight gestures until you get the gist. Turns out Societte’s the princess of that ancient royal family, and Yuel’s nominal master. You learn that the earlier freezing wasn’t a fluke: beneath that shyness is solid steel. Societte is powerful, brave, and fiercely protective even to her own detriment.

Through Societte, you learn that this ancient family ruled an empire lost to time under a benevolent nine-tailed fox goddess that gave them her power.

They meet in your crew, on your ship.

Yuel discovers that Societte is The Princess™ - this shocks her. She knew that Societte was Important, the local village ojou, but not the level of quasi-religious importance that she actually has. Yuel gets angry that she wasn’t told. They’re old friends, you see. More than that. Even this early on it doesn’t take much reading between the lines to assume they’re actually a romantic item. 

Societte starts sobbing because she wanted to tell Yuel everything, she wanted to go with her when she left the village. But the knowledge that she’s the princess is dangerous. There are a lot of murderous people that are after her, to try and get rich. Some of them murdered her parents while she watched.

Turns out the tails and bigger ears are signs of the lineage, and massive red targets. This has given Societte a complex about her ears and tail, and in some of her homescreen lines she outright asks if they bother you and says she’s doesn’t want them.

So, to protect Yuel, she doesn’t say anything and lets her go far away. Then she leaves the village, to try and find out why all this is happening and to protect them from any more roaming bandits that come after her.

The two reconnect and Yuel gets Societte to calm down and look at her journey through a different lens: Societte’s not guilty of anything, she’s not on her miserable quest out of penance or obligation, the cruel world that’s taken so much from her and made her so scared isn’t all bad. They’re together now, and they’re gonna get to the bottom of this - together, as it should’ve been.

Now, enter Yuel’s 5-star fates.

This story obviously focuses on Yuel, and how she feels about Societte and her own role in the grand scheme of this situation. Yuel loves Societte more than anything, but she’s a bit jealous. Societte as mentioned is grace given physical form. Societte is gorgeous, extremely powerful, and a flawless dancer with natural talent that Yuel will never compare to. 

However, we learn that Yuel is also a princess - and heavily implied to be the real heir over Societte. Remember: the ears and tail are signs of the heritage.

So, Yuel’s found some ancestral weapons of her own. They’re hers, and they give her memories of a dance, and she does it flawlessly - once. This unlocks her true power and massively boosts her magic.

But she can’t do that dance again. Just can’t. Societte tries to teach her, but again, Yuel does’t have her talent. She fails over and over again and gets angry.

That nine-tailed fox goddess doesn’t approve. Thinks Yuel’s a failure, and useless. Unworthy. So she turns that increased power back on Yuel and starts cooking her alive with her own fire.

This is alleviated when Yuel stops trying to follow an ancient dance and just does whatever comes to mind. Channel herself into the dance, yeah? And she ends up with something more special and beautiful than the traditional dance. Ninetails approves, and stops trying to kill her.

Moral: Yuel is special and talented in her own way; not lesser than Societte, if not exactly equal. They set out anew on the journey with the knowledge that both of them have much bigger roles in this than they assumed.

Then you have Societte’s fire version.

This story focuses on Societte’s trauma. She goes back to where her parents were murdered in an attempt to remember the dance they were doing there and do it herself to finish whatever they were trying to accomplish.

We learn that there’s more to this whole thing than there appeared to be - a fragment of Ninetails’ power is sealed in a stone, and it’s pumping out extremely dangerous poison gas. And it’s spreading more each day. This is not the only stone. And the gas will spread from all of them until the world dies.

Turns out Lady Ninetails ain’t so nice. They’re given visions their ancestors - Societte’s foremost among them - using the ritual dances in front of Ninetails, and channeling her power.

Here, Societte finds her true motivation and overcomes her grief. She will do what she must for the people she loves. She’s got to do what she needs to do, to save everyone. The journey continues on a very solemn but no less hopeful note.

Interlude: Summer Yuel.

We see how close the two are. Yuel follows a Societte who’s grown mostly out of her shyness and can apparently go out and meet people, sparking conversation herself. The change in behavior is so marked Yuel’s flabbergasted, and assumes she started dating someone.

 But no, Societte was just doing that to find out where the best vacation spots in the area are and to commission swimwear for the two of them. They enjoy a fun evening with each other and the crew.

The fate episode ends with what amounts to a love confession.

Now, where it could’ve been great but starts to fall apart.

Their first event, Forgiveness and Gratitude.

Enter Kou.

Through him, we learn there were nine royal families, ranked from first to ninth.

We learn that Societte is the scion of the First, and Yuel of the Third.

Turns out that the empire was built around these families sealing an evil Ninetails away and stealing her power to bring about a golden age.

Kou for his part is of the Ninth. This family was mistreated, and basically used as nigh worthless servants by the other eight. In a bid for power, the Ninth betrayed the other eight and sided with Ninetails. The legends about her being a benevolent goddess and the royal families having a shitload of treasure were fabricated by them in order to set bandits after the heirs of the other families as the empire eventually fell apart, so the Ninth would be the only ones left.

Kou was supposed to Ninetails’s vessel so she could return to the world and conquer it. 

But…. Now there’s two better candidates. One of them is super gullible and kind. 

He tricks Societte into throwing herself on the chopping block instead. 

This is important: Ninetails is ecstatic over this. Using Kou was like finding a broken, rusted sword. Getting Societte? The Scion of the First? Finding a fucking chaingun with fifty belts of rounds. She is by far the superior vessel, because again, Societte is just that talented and powerful.

This is solved by Yuel being Yuel, and using her bond with Societte to save her from the possession. Yuel, the freed Societte, and an apologetic Kou work together to defeat the apparition of Ninetails’s power.

That? That’s good. Don’t like how quickly Kou was forgiven, but it’s serviceable.

The bad part? The event is stuffed with onee-chan /ss/ jokes. And people ate it up.

So, we get the event that never should’ve happened.

We get Kou and The Hollow Existence. An event with a character’s name in the damn title.

This event, as you’d guess, focuses on Kou. Turns out the little dude’s actually the FInal Boss for Ninetails. He knows everything, and is inexplicably the most talented and powerful now. He’s the hero. Remember: he’s supposed to be the failure. The spare. The “I’ll take what I can get” for Ninetails. Not so anymore. With zero setup or explanation.

Then we get You. You is a cheap knockoff of Kou, but a Girl This Time, both in and out of story. It’s an actual plot point. You’s being tricked by Ninetails, who’s using her resentment to fuel a revenge streak. Ninetails is gonna use You as a vessel when she’s strong enough. Kou saves her from Ninetails and helps her out of her funk. By himself.

Yuel and Societte’s impact on this event is nonexistent. The major players and main characters don’t do shit but get jobbed and have extremely skeevy shotacon bait moments with Kou. There’s an entire scene dedicated to Yuel intentionally making him uncomfortable by trying to get him in a bath with the two of them.

Yuel goes from emotionally perceptive and kind to a near molester. Societte’s character development is scrapped entirely and it’s like she’s who she was in her first fate episode.

This event quite literally invalidated everything that came before it. Everything was scrapped to make Kou the hero and pander to shotacon fans.

That’s the end of their story.

It’s bullshit.

#gallingsiren

[mistwhisperexpress]

SSO Wishlist

Since it’s nearly Christmas, I feel it’s time to finally post this. It’s just a little list of thing’s I’d love to see in SSO that will hopefully one day be achieved and crossed out here if they ever are. I truly appreciate the hard work that goes into making the game and the time and love that is put into it, this is just some things I hope to see in game one day, and honestly a lot of what I’ve wanted has already been achieved through the years, like dialogue options for us and the ability to have more horses. If anyone has anything they’d like to add on please feel free to do so! It’s always really interesting to see what others look forward to and enjoy most in games <3

Photomode bug returned as an actual feature within the game. I know I probably seem to love this way too much but god this glitch was heavenly and gifs were such a breeze and came out beautifully with this

Updated Us + The ability to change skin tone independently from face shapes/features. Please SSO, my character looks like she has jaundice, which is a sickness you really don’t want to have. I can’t take any photos without her turning obnoxiously yellow, I beg you.

Ability to change your pronouns. While I’m perfectly content as a cis female and prefer playing characters who are girls (and don’t ever connect any character as me because that feels weird and uncomfortable to me), I know that others aren't and that hearing other pronouns given to a character you project as yourself can be so so damaging and I don’t want others to go through that. This is a game, and when you’re playing a game it’s meant to be an escape, and it’s not an escape if that reminder is constantly flung into your face and setting you back so many steps.

ACTUAL RECOGNITION FROM MAIN CHARACTERS/SOUL RIDERS. More on this will be included below the cut so those who don’t want to listen to my rant rambles can just enjoy this and so the story spoilers won't be instantly visible <3

Holiday/Special items with +3 swiftness stats. You’d think the special limited edition items would be the ones they’d want to make better with stats but nOpe, they’re useless outside of looking pretty

Greendale becoming super super lush again. If I can see the sky/house/ocean it needs more tree. It’s magic was that it was so beautifully lush and full, and now it just feels sparse and empty and like it’s missing something. Honestly the grass everywhere is lacking but that’s another issue and probably just me. The new Golden Hills additions are exactly what I wanted to see with Greendale, just a little less lush than what I’d hoped for Greendale, so I know they are able to do this.

Updated updated Arabians. The originals came out on my birthday which still has me super happy since they’re my favorite breed, but I didn’t get to enjoy them until years later because my laptop decided to no longer run the game that day and now the updated ones are on the older models and I don’t want to get any in case more are released since I try and only have one of each horse breed 

More black fingerless gloves and black jeans

More hairstyles or updates of old ones

Home Stable customization. I don't need a house or an apartment or whatever, I just want my stable to look nice and pretty with dark wood and stone for pretty gifs and pictures 

More pets that run or fly alongside you and saddlebags that more easily match tack

Pets chilling in your stable like your horses, maybe in some special corner or something?

The original Bobcat girl race route, it was so much better than the one we currently have and more of a challenge which made it fun and the change happened randomly with no announcement anywhere that I could find

Some of us have spent years playing this game and fetching things and doing everything and doing all the work for absolutely everyone, and Alex during Elizabeth’s funeral quest line and recently Linda with the Light Right quests are the only time it’s felt truly appreciated, like we mattered and not with some selfish disingenuous or hollow feeling behind it. When we were getting out of the rift after being stuck in it and we had to run around collecting those fragments of Lisa’s song I was so excited, I thought maybe Elizabeth was leading us home with remnants of her soul, or that we were collecting and finding something, and then that we were gathering the ties of Lisa’s song and that we’d get partial credit for getting us out, but noooo, it was all Lisa. Thank you Lisa for sitting there and singing a song, while we ran around all over the place getting lost a few times while consoling our friend who just watched her mentor die before her and was already going through a lot. Yes Lisa, it was you who did all the fucking work. Yes, I’m bitter and probably being selfish and entitled with this, and I'm so sorry for that, but when you invest years (and money) into a game you shouldn’t feel like what you spent hours doing, and all the work that’s lead up to it has felt like nothing and like every character around you matters more than you. I feel awful for feeling this way but my god it gets me so angry and I’m so so sorry. The Light Ride seems like it’s a start to fixing this and I adored those quests and what was revealed within it and that it seems like we’re finally important and needed but it’s too soon to tell. Elizabeth also probably did a lot of showing us appreciation and actually recognizing our worth but I really cannot remember because I did those quests years ago so I’m also sorry for that.

#star stable #star stable online #sso #heart thoghts

[phoenix1966sbottom]

Big Bang 2019 Honorable Mentions

So this is going to be the list for this year’s 2019 Big Bang entries that had no explicit sex or mostly bottom!Sam/Jared or equal switching and I’ll label them accordingly! I’ll be updating and reblogging this at the end of each day, give or take. No postings on weekends. Please consider leaving a comment if you read any of these stories, as it is the only payment the author ever receives. And, as always, head the warnings where the story is posted.

June 17th - Homecoming by runedgirl on LiveJournal. Sam/Dean. Wincest AU. Summary:   John Winchester likes to say that his son Sam is the epitome of an Alpha, a chip off the old block. Together they hunt the monsters that killed Sam’s mother and older brother, leaving Sam with only fragmented memories of his lost family. John has taught Sam to mistrust Omegas, who are relegated to the lowest rung of society, stigmatized and marginalized as lacking in both strength and intelligence. That doesn’t stop Sam from falling for a sex worker named Dean, a man as strong and smart as Sam who he’s surprised to find is an Omega – but that’s not the only thing Dean is hiding. There’s a much bigger surprise in store for Sam and the beautiful stranger. (this has switching, but it is more bottom!Dean)

June 18th - Nothing that fits the criteria.

June 19th - Nothing that fits the criteria.

June 20th - Beast Master by junkerin on Ao3. Jared/Jensen. J2 AU. Jensen is a special agent working now for the EPA (Environment Protection Agency) after a dramatic event killed his partner. Now he is investigating a case of illegal toxic waste dumping.Jared is a ranger in Yellow Stone Park. He lives with his dog Sammy up alone in the park and his main social contacts are his friends and colleges Chad and Gen. He discovered that some one is dumping toxic waste in the park (he found several dead animals). Oh and there is the thing that he can talk to animals.The two are now working together to stop the pollution of an untouched nature. As the two walk through Yellow Stone they both discover there is more to each other than what is visible at the first sight. (equal switching)

Keep This Secret by ellerkay on Ao3. Sam/Dean. Wincest.  Sam and Dean travel to the fairy realm hoping to make a deal to get Adam released from the Cage. The price: their shared secret. (no penetrative sex, but Sam comes off as toppy)

June 21st - Like a wave crashing over me by @soy-em on Ao3. Jared/Jensen. J2 AU.  Jensen’s happy with his life. He lives by the sea, spends his days taking photos of the landscape around him and doesn’t really talk to his neighbours. He’s content in the world he’s created for himself. Until Jared shows up on his beach, and for the first time in years, Jensen wants to find a way to overcome his shyness and let someone in. (no penetrative sex)

No posting on weekends. See you on Monday!

June 24th - Nothing that fits the criteria. 

June 25th - Nothing that fits the criteria.

June 26th - The Sceptre and the Stone by zubeneschamali on Ao3. Jared/Jensen. J2 AU. Jared has been making a living as a smuggler while his city and country have been under occupation by the Iron Lord. It's dangerous work, but it keeps his mind off the way things used to be, and how unlikely it is that they can ever go back. Unlikely, that is, until he gets a package to the one man who could change the world—if they don't both get caught first.Prince Jensen has been in hiding for five years, the last of the rightful rulers of his kingdom. The plans he's been painstakingly making for recovering the throne and restoring magic to his people are brought to a head when an uncommonly skilled smuggler delivers him what he most needs. As he puts his plan into motion, though, he's going to have to figure out how to deal with said smuggler—including the way he makes Jensen want things that have nothing to do with regaining his kingdom. (no penetrative sex, dominant!Jensen).

June 27th - First We’ll Take Manhattan by candygramme and spoonlessone on Ao3. Jared/Jensen. J2 AU. Jensen is a fashion designer looking for a model to be the ‘face’ of his line. Enter Jared, an aspiring Broadway actor who hasn't ever modeled, but Jensen believes he's perfect for the part. Jared has no idea what he's getting into. There's glitz and drama. There's the excitement he craves, but there's also heartbreak and misery lurking just under the surface.In the rush to get everything ready for fashion week, things get complicated. Jared joins Adrianne Palicki and Aisha Taylor, his other models, and Jensen, along with his staff, get busy putting outfits together for him. (no penetrative sex)

You’ve Got to be Kitten Me by dugindeep on Ao3. Jared/Jensen. J2 AU. Jensen lives a routine, solitary life with little to no interaction and he likes it just fine. He’d rather not deal with the fuss and rejection of making and keeping connections, so when a stray cat shows up at his apartment building and begs for attention every time they cross paths, Jensen does what he can to ignore it. Of course, that doesn’t last long and he finds himself carving out a space in his world to make it feel at home. Along the road of pet ownership, Jensen meets the very nice and very handsome Dr. Jared Padalecki. The veterinarian's open, warm personality gets to Jensen the same way his new cat has, and Jensen fights against his own hang-ups to get to know him. (warning: no penetrative sex but Jensen wants to bottom)

June 28th - The Road To Come What May by roxymissrose on Ao3. Sam/Dean. Wincest.  A few years back, Dean grabbed his brother and declared to the world, enough! They’d needed to take a breath, and thanks to an unexpected gift from their father, they were able to settle down, act like civilians, at least for a bit. Now, it was time to go back to their only real home, maybe this time for good. What the hell—let some younger, fresher guys handle the world and its problems. Sure, he’d screwed up a lot in the intervening years, but Dean hoped settling down in a new home, and with the promise of normal, he could make it up to Sam. (no penetrative sex)

No posting on weekends. See you on Monday!

July 1st - Nothing that fits the criteria.

July 2nd - Nothing that fits the criteria.

Also, as this Thursday is a national holiday in the U.S., Wendy only has stories scheduled for today and tomorrow  for this week. 

Happy 4th of July to those in the U.S. that celebrate it!

July 8th - Nothing that fits the criteria.

July 9th - Island in the Sun by Mangacat on Ao3. Jared/Jensen. J2 AU.  It’s not your typical meet-cute: Jensen, a nano-cybernetics specialist, saved Jared - mortally injured Afghan war veteran - by replacing and rebuilding several of his limbs and organs with cybernetic nano-technology. After struggling with trauma, the otherness of his body, his new extra-human abilities and a very ambiguous relationship with his saviour, Jared has to go on the run from the US government to keep his life and sanity with only Jensen at his side. Now, still fugitives, they’re trying to carve out a life for themselves without tripping any nets of the military and intelligence, when the greatest threat they’ll be facing actually comes from a wholly unexpected direction… (no penetrative sex - I was very tired reading this, so I do not think there was anything mentioned at all, but be aware this is a sequel to a top!Jared story and I might have missed a reference to past events)

July 10th - The Nobleman and the Sword by winterwolke on LiveJournal. Jared/Jensen. J2 AU.  Every noble gets to choose their Sword. They use them ti fight, empowered by their very own magic. Jared lost his Sword. He couldn't control his magic and accidentally killed his trusted one. He live a reclusive life in a secluded keep, far away form the arduous intrigues the other nobles play to gain power and wealth. He has sworn to never pick a Sword again, no matter how direly his kingdom might need him. But there is a prophey, and Jared doesn't know yet that prophecies somtimes come true. (no sex of any kind)

July 11th - It's Just a Dimension Jump (to the Left) by Disneymagics on Livejournal. Jared/Jensen. J2 AU.  Jensen has had a rough life with all the scars, physical, mental, and emotional, to prove it.  He keeps them all hidden because he learned from an early age what telling the truth will get him, a room in a home for troubled teens and antipsychotic meds.  But no matter what anyone else says, he knows monsters do exisit.  From the time he was fifteen years old, he's been on a quest that has consumed his whole life.  Maybe, when he reaches the end of his quest, he can lead a normal life again.  Maybe, he can even reconnect with his high school sweetheart, Jared.  Nah, that's just a fairy tale and fairy tales don't come true.  Not for Jensen. (no penetrative sex; Jensen-centric)

July 12th - Nothing that fits the criteria.

No posting on weekends. See you on Monday for the last week of stories!

July 15th - Breathless by SamanthaNovak on Ao3. Jared/Jensen. J2 AU.  Jensen is a lonely English professor with an allergy to nuts. Jared is a paramedic haunted by a college tragedy. When the two meet, they're immediately attracted to one another and form a relationship, navigating through busy schedules, Jared's fears brought on by his past, and meeting each others' friends and family. (no penetrative sex)

July 16th - Nothing that fits the criteria.

July 17th - Love Is A Natural Disaster by Alltheshrinks on Ao3. Jared/Jensen. J2 AU. Jared Padalecki, Eagle Scout and science teacher, spends his days in the mountains of a quiet little corner of the state of Washington. It’s an idyllic paradise, the Cascade Mountain Range are some of the most beautiful and some of the deadliest volcanoes in The United States, But Jared is content leading his scouts and being alone.Dr. Jensen Ackles, is one of the leadings volcanologists around, second only to his mentor Dr. Jeffrey Dean Morgan, volcanoes are his passion, his one love. But that wasn’t always the case.When Jared notices all the signs that their active volcano is getting ready to erupt, he calls the USGS, who sends in his former boyfriend and the man he walked out, Jensen, to investigate.Can they put their feelings behind them long enough to save the town, or will everything be destroyed in one catastrophe or the other?  (equal switching)

July 18th - The Stillness of Wind by TwoBoys2Love on Ao3. Jared/Jensen. J2 AU.  Jared is weeks away from his 17 birthday and out publically when he meets his brother's best friend, Jensen Ackles. A summer romance blossoms... but Jensen's life is a lot more complicated than Jared knows and soon there are secrets and untold truths tearing them apart.  (no penetrative sex)

July 19th - The Seven Warriors by crimsonepitaph on Ao3. Jared/Jensen. J2 AU.  Jensen is a normal guy. Not terribly social, but he's fine going at it alone. At least until the afternoon his boss - 6'4, long hair, determined to save the world one software app at a time - calls him in for a meeting. Suddenly, Jensen finds himself inexplicably connected to an ancient legend - the myth of the Seven Warriors - by a mysteriously appearing tattoo. He struggles to figure out what the tattoo, the nuclear bomb exploding in his chest every time he gets close to his boss, and the motley crew of almost-strangers they gather have in common. Maybe that they all change Jensen's life forever... (no penetrative sex)

Please leave comments, support the authors/artists and give Wendy a pat on the back for running this challenge so that we might still have years to come of it!

#big bang 2019 #wincest #wincest au #switching #a/b/o dynamics #bottom!dean #omega!dean #alpha!sam #top!sam #bottom!sam #j2 au #medieval au #high school au #deathfic #mysticism #big bang #fanfic rec

[wheremytwinwatches]

[Where My Twin Watches]: Full Metal Alchemist Brotherhood Episode 28

Last time: We had a “Surprise, you’re shipping my son and my great-granddaughter” scare, unresolved Season 2 issues gave way to a recap episode, and Beard argued with himself. Onwards!

Straight into the Crush Flower/Spare Flower intro this time (still can’t get over young!Armstrong crying GUH), let’s hurry up and get some answers! A fanged skull being used as a candle-holder? Obviously the laboratory of a reputable scientist! So yeah, Gluttony’s just shown Al into Father’s lab (who isn’t in his chair for once, did he actually go fishing?), Al and Shao are just a little freaked out at the interior decoration. Gluttony doesn’t give them time to settle down though, calls out for Father- What. Oh my goodness. Father is Papa Elric? Who would have ever guessed. What a shock.

Episode 28 - “Father” So! Awkward family reunion time! I’m sure that Al has lots of questions. But surprisingly, Father isn’t that happy that Gluttony just opened the door for a Protagonist, Gluttony’s in a heck of a lot of pain. Father targeting his Stone, somehow? A deadman’s switch if any Goths went against him directly? Oh! Jeez, I’d almost forgotten about how Ed, Ling, and Envy were forcing their way out of a Leto-forsaken pocket dimension. Jailbreak! Al’s a little concerned to see a titanic monster burst out of Gluttony, but is distracted by seeing his brother and the freeloading prince alive. Easy with the hugs, Al! After the brothers get their “OML I’M SO GLAD YOU’RE NOT DEAD” out of the way, time to talk with pops. Who… notes their metal limbs/body, and asks if they’re the Elric Brothers? Hold on, what? He doesn’t recognize his own kids? But he saw Ed in Resembool just a while ago, how- Oh. OH! D’oh, it’s so obvious. Dude’s made artificial humans with fragments of his own personality, is that kind of guy really going to do drudge work when he can pass it on to others? And someone who makes “superior beings” out of himself is too vain to just hire common workers, oh no. Why stop at making only seven Goths, when you can make a couple more to keep the place clean? Yup, Uncle asks if they mean von Hohenheim, is surprised (and pleased?) to learn that the guy has children. More confused as to why they call themselves the Elrics, learning that it’s their mother’s name just has him ask where Hohenheim’s been if not with his kids. See, Beard/Father? Even your clones think that you’re being a jerk. Ouch, Ed’s still a bit beat up from the escape (so wait, are Envy, Gluttony, and Ling just hanging out by the wall while this is going on), and Al’s missing his hand. Didn’t Ed bring that back? Let’s go ahead and- uh. Um. Uncle just Transmuted Al’s hand back, and fixed Ed’s arm. And then Ed’s broken ribs as well. Without any Transmutation Circles, no movement, and without drawing on any pre-existing materials. [Ed/Al]: “There isn’t any Equivalent Exchange!” EEC: 10 And with that, Uncle goes from “quirky household help” to “terrifyingly powerful Goth”. Ling points out that he’s obviously not human- [Uncle]: “I would ask who you are, but I honestly don’t care.”

While Ling stands shocked at the utter disrespect, Uncle just walks away and says Gluttony can eat him. Whoa dude, hold on. Maybe the Elrics can argue that if Uncle wants them to be well, he should spare their friend? Nope, Uncle DNGAF about an insect such as What’s-his-name. Ed? Ed buddy, I know that you’re the hotheaded Anime Protagonist, but maybe this is the time for a strategic retreat? Maybe you shouldn’t attack the dude who can do freeform Transmutation, and who has two Goths waiting just off to the side? Or you could Earthbend at him, whatever. Guys? Guys, please think about what you’re doing. Uncle here is a minion of Father, and he’s powerful enough Transmute without EC. You’re facing the Big Bad’s Dragon here, and the show’s barely halfway through. You need to get out of there, now. Envy’s attacking the kids now, and they’re all but ignoring the Titan!Goth to try and hit Uncle, who at most raises a hand to block Al’s attack, then sends Ling flying. This is not a fight you can win, and I can tell Uncle’s patience is running out. He takes one step forward… Uncle takes a single step, and the sheer force of his power radiates through the room, to Scar and May where they face the chimeras, and even out to Beard himself as he apparently is still on his fishing trip. Point is, dude’s strong. Ed and Al snap out of their shock, strike the ground… ok, good, they’ve finally realised they’re outmatched and are surrendering. Or… not? [Ed/Al]: “What’s going on? I can’t Transmute!”

Oooooh Leto. That’s not good. Not only is Uncle ludicrously strong, but they can make an anti-Alchemy field? And one that’s selective, too; Ed and Al have been depowered, but Envy can still smash them into the ground. Envy mocks them as lower life forms, blathering about how humans don’t even understand their own power. (Oooh, sudden thought. If that implies that Alchemy comes from Truth, and we can assume that the Elrics are gonna defeat Truth to get Al’s soul back, is that going to disrupt Alchemy as a whole? Is Amestris going to have to reorganize around not having magic?). Uncle tells Envy to shut up, then says that Ling may be useful after all. Holy crud, the intro was right. That was Ling standing with the Goths? Hoo boy, Lan Fan is not going to be happy when she hears about this. Envy’s expositing that Uncle’s got the Stone in his bloodstream, and can spread it to others to create Human Homunculi. All Ed and Al can do is pound hopelessly at the ground, crying about how they’ve lost their powers and can’t do anything. But wait! Ed has the pistol! But before Ed can/has to use the gun, Ling yells at him to stay out of it. [Ling]: “I came to your land to find a Philosopher’s Stone, and now this guy wants to give me one! I’m not gonna turn this down!” Come on, Ling! You’re going to go through what Bradley did, stay strong! Battle of the mind again, Ling’s floating in a sea of tortured red souls, when ok here’s Father’s Sin. You… you can do it Ling? Ok, ok good! Don’t fight the Sin (assuming Greed, not Lust), but work with it, be unconventional! [Ling]: “I said come! I freely accept you!” [Greed]: “Y’know, people normally reject me.” But Ling is anything but normal. Future Emperor of Xing here (disregarding the whole “making the guy whose job I want immortal” thing, but whatever). Greed at least is amused by Ling’s ambition. And yeah, as much as I applauded the first Greed for acting so Slytherin (views subordinates as possessions, angry that someone would steal from him by harming them), if Ling does end up going Goth then there’s no better way than a quest for power, to provide for his people.

Ling goes into the light… And Greed wakes up. Damnit. So yeah. Ling’s gone, replaced by the new Greed. Ed and Al frantically plead for Ling to remember, to answer them, but no dice. Greed just stands there and smirks at them. Door? Someone else coming to the party? Oh hey, Scar and May! About time you showed up! Ok, ok, let’s get the important stuff out of the way; Shao reunited with May? Check! Scar finally realizing that the Elrics aren’t working with the Goths? Check! May finally seeing Ed, and all her romantic dreams being shattered in a tragic and hilarious fashion? Check! Gluttony points out the Ishvalan, and Uncle lets him loose. Crap, and they don’t have their Alchemy, Scar’s Hand O’ Doom won’t- work?! And May, too? All right, the effect’s worn off! Or not, the Elrics are still depowered. Well, when punching won’t work, try talking. And what better thing to say that tell Scar that the one responsible for the destruction of his people is standing right in front of him? Scar… does not take this revelation calmly. Like, May’s backing away from the fury of Yoki’s servant. And Uncle’s going to have a bit of a mess to clean up after all this is over. Uncle orders Greed to eliminate the outsiders, Ed tries to run interference and talk Ling back into control, and May’s fleeing from Gluttony. Uncle’s in his Investigative mode, ports right behind Scar to ask how he’s still using his Alchemy. Scar goes for the Hand O’ Doom, and Uncle just stands there, and calmly works through the technique. Scar’s freaked. And almost killed, Leto! May pauses for one second at seeing Scar hurt, and gets struck by Gluttony for her concern. Thankfully Al comes in for the save and gets the protesting May outside. Where there are chimera waiting, great. Ok, Scar’s there now but injured, the chimera are still massed, and both Gluttony and Envy are heading directly for them. Al tells Scar to take May and run, since he’s the one who at least will survive facing them. But Scar refuses and grabs his helmet, throws it to make a spark. Big boom! The smoke clears as Al grabs his helmet, only to get grabbed by Envy in turn. Looks like Scar and May escaped in the cover, so Gluttony’s ordered to sniff them down. Thankfully all of Scar’s HOD’s at least disrupted Gluttony’s regeneration ability so he can’t do much more than lay there and smoke. And OH MY LETO I just realized where the Ishvalan and Xings went to. Hopefully it goes better for them than it did for Martel. Greed’s fighting Ed, Ed’s still screaming for Ling to take back control. Knocks Greed down, challenges him about his country and Lan Fan- OH. That right there, Ling not blocking the punch and just glaring at Ed? Maybe it’s false hope, maybe I just don’t want Ling to go the way of Hughes, but I’m getting a message of “dude, stfu and stop trying to blow my cover” from that glare. Please please please let this be a ploy to enter the Goth circle as a spy.

Greed captures Ed and Uncle orders him to be taken upstairs to Wrath. Accusing them of “treason” and throwing in jail, maybe? Ed’s calmed down now, whispers to Al what he’s discovered/hopes for: Ling is still alive. End credits! Hoooooo boy. Lots of stuff this episode, lots of setup. Looking forward to next week, let’s give Uncle a bit of time to tidy up before the Elrics wreck his stuff again.

#wmtw #where my twin watches #full metal alchemist #full metal alchemist brotherhood #fmab #fmab 28

[pi-cat000]

MSA: Ancient-warrior Vivi dabble

(Another section of the Dead Beat Arthur AU)

Summary: Arthur’s dead. Vivi’s angry and the new owner of an ancient monster slaying sword. (angst, character death)

Vivi sits hunched, arms resting on her knees, glaring at the uneven rows of headstones. Tempo isn't a huge town, but it is old, meaning there are several generations worth of people buried in front of her. Arthur is not among them. He'd been cremated. Vivi scowls, picks up a rock, and lobs it at the nearest grave marker. It clatters against the stone, chipping a large chunk off the corner. Now it's broken.  

From atop the small hill, near the entrance to the church and funeral home, her mom's voice drifts down towards her. A member of the Pepper family, the family who owned that odd diner near the highway, is conversing with her in a low tone.  The occasional concerned glance is thrown her way. No prizes for guessing who they're talking about. Vivi chucks another rock. It misses the marker she's aiming for, sailing clear, disappearing in the afternoon sun's glare.

Why the Pepper family had even shown up for the funeral is a question Vivi doesn't have an answer to. It's frustrating because she knows she should have an answer but doesn't. Just another piece of memory hovering just out of reach. This time there is no Arthur to distract her from the gaping hole threating to suck her in. She reaches for a third rock, gripping it tight. If she gives in to the temptation and follows the trail of memories down, it's an express ticket to unconsciousness. Understandably, any encounter with the Pepper family had resulted in a lot of panicked fussing and poor attempts at redirecting her attention on Arthur's part. It had been as amusing as it was frustrating.

Of course, now Arthur's not here to worry and fuss…she misses it. She misses a lot of things. The weird tangents he'd go off on when talking about the van, or his arm, or an interesting titbit of local superstition he'd dug up while they were on a case. Arthur had always been more interested in researching than actual ghost hunting. All those little things- the stuff Arthur liked and didn't like- were doubly apparent in his absence. The spaces Arthur had once occupied are now jarringly empty, and she doesn't know how to fix it. The rock in her fist shatters. She glares, watching it crumble to dust. These last few years had been hard, but they'd always been in it together. They'd gotten better together. Helped each other. Now it's just her. No Mystery. No Arthur. Just a headache and the empty space where things had once been.

A faint blue mist collects around her hands and space where she has crushed the rock. The increased strength, alongside a collection of other weird abilities, is new.  Maybe, she would find the change fascinating or exciting, if it did something else other than reminding her that Arthur wasn’t here to share in the mystery. Too little too late. 

Vivi stands abruptly, stalking off down the hill and out of sight. Around the side, away from the building's entrance, she is alone. In the light of the setting sun, everything shines orange and the aged gravestones cast long shadows.  She concentrates on the palm of her hand, sensing out that strange blue energy, and feeling the odd sense of awareness as she catches the attention of something that isn't fully human. Whoever they are, they'd been watching her this last week, nudging her in a specific direction.

If she indulges and follows their impulse….

The blue mist condenses, cold to the touch, forming the hilt and blade of a wicked-sharp sword. A silver and grey katana, glowing faintly blue, decorated with intricate snowflake patterns, appears in her grip. It glints dangerously in the afternoon sun, reflecting light into her eyes. When she swings it, a second person guides her movements, making them graceful and otherworldly. Expertly, in one flowing arc, she slices the nearest gravestone in two.

Who this other person is doesn't matter because they have very similar goals. Ever since she had awoken alone, - to late discover that, only is her not-really-a-dog-Mystery gone, but her best friend has been murdered - there has been the persistent urge to hunt after them. Some of the urge comes from this mysterious second presence.

Mostly, it's all her. Vivi growls, spinning aggressively, slicing a second gravestone. Thump. The rock slides free, hitting the grass.

"So, which is it?”  The voice comes suddenly from the left.

“The Tree, the dog, or that ghost fucker?"

"Uh. Uncle Lance," She falters, quickly letting the sword disperse, "Didn't see you there." The katana fragments into a collection of crystallised snowflakes, catching and refracting the light before scattering completely. She shifts her attention to the silhouetted form, standing casually, detail washed out from the hash afternoon backlighting. Despite the sun's glare, she sees the shot-gun resting loosely over one shoulder.

"Well, who you getting first?" Lance reiterates gruffly, tapping the gun across his shoulder blade.

She scowls, responding as calmy as possible, "I don't know what you're talking about." Subtly, she tries to wave away the remaining wisps of blue mist and hide any evidence of the sword. It doesn't fool Lance who gives her an unimpressed stare.

"Bullshit."

Vivi winces before shooting the man a stare, declaring, "You can't stop me."

A short laugh.

"Girl. I'm not trying to stop you. Way I see it, you'll be needing a mode of transport," Lance grins, motioning towards to a familiar van parked near the graveyard's entrance. Only, it's not familiar, the logo and most of the orange paint has been buffed off.

"You're giving me his van?"

"Sure. That….and I'm coming with you."

"What?" She starts to object and doesn't get very far.

"You think I'm gonna let one of the most important people in his life go off on a revenge quest alone? He'd never forgive me. I might not have any fancy magic powers, but I got a gun, a brain, and not a lot left to lose. I figure that's enough." Vivi cringes, peering at his half shaded eyes. There're dark, both angry and pained. Well, she does need the van...

"The ghost." Vivi answers Lance's first question, fist clenching, "I’m going after the ghost first. Then the Tree and Mystery."

Note: I have a few versions of revenge-quest-Vivi that have yet to make it online mostly because angry Vivi is not as fun to write at energetic Vivi. This would have been the second plotline from the Dead Beat Arthur AU also know as ‘Lance and Vivi go ghost hunting.’ 

Other stuff in this AU: Dead Beats and Lewis, The Dead Beat-Arthur Thing, and More Dead Beat-Arthur Stuff

#MSA #mystery skulls animated #fanfiction #fanfic #dead beat arthur #vivi yukino #lance kingsmen #character death #ancient warrior vivi #gravestone desecration #coarse language #angst #fic is sad and angsty what else is new #reverge

[ron-inn]

Week 3: Black Smoke

     Kenji doesn’t know the protocol for calling on an ancient god—that was more of Masami’s expertise as one of the village’s senior shugenjas, the magic wielders who could connect to the spirit realm and commune with its inhabitants.  The old legends were super vague on instructions: just travel east until you couldn’t anymore, then two more days to reach the Forbidden Lands; cross the Bridge of Sorrows until you reached the Temple of Ancients; boom, wake up a god.  The legends didn’t go any further, so Kenji just wings it and also lights the candles surrounding the stone altar in the back. He waits for the black smoke to rise up midway to the ceiling before he unsheathes the sword and starts calling out names of power, trying to enunciate them exactly the way Masami did whenever she had to perform the annual Rite of Seals for the village. 

     Then, something responds.

     “Who Is It… That Calls Us… From Our Slumber?” The multitude of voices speaks in a jumbled, echoey collective.  It is neither male nor female, but the deepest instinct inside Kenji knows that this being is very old, very powerful, and very ready to strike him down if he doesn’t explain right now why he marched into its resting place and started waving a mystical sword around, yelling for “the Captive God” and “Dormin the Sky-Render” to wake up.

     “Hi, Kenji here.  Grandson of the grandson of Nakamura the Brilliant and all that.  I’ve also got this ‘Sword that Cuts the Heavens’ that’s supposed to call upon you.  Anyways, I’m here because I want you to help me save this girl,” Kenji answers back.

     “Who?” 

     “Masami.  She was sacrificed for a fate she didn’t deserve, to ‘save Hyuga’ from ‘unimaginable doom and destruction.’”  Kenji snarls sarcastically and has to stop himself from spitting on the floor to show exactly what he thinks of Satsuma’s prophecy.  He continues, “Her spirit was separated from her body but I grabbed her before they could continue the ritual. ’S not right to happen to her.  So now I’m here because I heard you can do the impossible.” 

     He looks over to the stone altar he had gently laid Masami’s small body upon; she was still clothed in those ceremonial white robes. If one could ignore the barely audible rattling breaths and the ice-cold, ghostly pale skin, he could swear it was like she was just sleeping. 

     Kenji looks back and narrows his eyes at whatever’s talking to him from up high. “So, Dorma or Dormin-kami , or whatever fucking kind of god you are, how about you do your magic jumbo shit and tell me how to get her soul back?”

     The voices boom and roll: like thunder, like earthquakes, like the powerful echo of Satsuma’s voice whenever the Guardian Lion God seized control of him in the throes of visions.  “It Is Not That Simple… Our Powers… Have Wasted Away… Since We Were Sealed Here…  Many Of Your Human Lifetimes Ago… You Must Free… The Fragments Of Our Power… From The Shadowed Colossi… Only When… We Are At Our Fullest… Can We Bring Back The Soul… Of The One You So Care For…”

     Those voices then tell him of six massive guardians scattered across this vast land, represented by the mighty stone statues lining the path leading up to the altar.  Every time one was slain, its corresponding statue would shatter and release some of Dormin’s power. Kenji puzzles over some of the descriptions that the voice(s) listed off.  A spirit causing mudslides and quakes? He can probably find it in the mountain range he saw in the distance while crossing the bridge to the temple. A spirit inhabiting the bones of an ancient general?  Shouldn’t be too hard to find a giant walking skeleton. And maybe that spirit of boats and salt is hidden at the bottom of some lake. But a spirit of greed and a spirit of manipulation and illusions?  A spirit still yet pure? Where the hell is he supposed to find those? A small part of him wishes Akane or Toshio were here to help him solve this riddle—they were always the smarter ones—but he crushes that thought as quickly as it forms.  Kenji knows he couldn’t drag anyone else into this taboo the moment he swiped the legendary sword from the village’s shrine.  

     “Hunting, huh?”  Kenji muses as he swings himself up onto his horse and draws out the sword, holding it high above his head for the metal to catch the sunlight as Dormin instructed.  He watches the beam of magic shoot forward from the blade and into the distance, smiling when he sees a pillar of light erupt in response. “Well, that won’t be too bad, I’m pretty good at stabbing, hacking, and making sure things stay down.”

     “Ikuzo, Kiso-chan!”  And with that, they’re charging forward to kill the first guardian.  

     The smoke from their first target doesn’t feel that horrible, just sears down his throat and into his lungs like he’s just inhaled burning coals, just leaves him reeling and dizzy as if he took one of Hatch’s famous haymakers to the temple.  But by the time he watches the black smoke erupt from the fourth guardian’s corpse and rush into his nose and mouth yet again, he’s starting to really hate it.  His chest feels like someone’s ripping open his rib cage, his sore arms are pulsing with new black veins,  and his head is pounding worse than an all-night drinking sesh with his friends and barrels of Ume-Ume’s “special” brew.  He’s also trying to ignore the solid bump that’s starting to sprout from his head.

     “Ack, Kami,” he curses God as he hacks up something thick and dark, leans over to the side to spit the sludge from his mouth as he rides on.  The sleeve he wipes his mouth on is already streaked with black and blood and other nasty things he can’t think about right now. “No wonder why Momoko never let me try smoking,”  Kenji mumbles as he reminisces about all the times the village doctor lectured Jun whenever she caught the guardsman on a break with his ivory pipe and tobacco satchel.

     Two more to go is the only thought that overrides all the aches, pains, and fears in his mind. He urges Kiso to ride faster to the next pillar of light, using the shine emanating from the Sword that Cuts the Heavens to keep them on course. He thinks, Just hold on Masami , I’m almost done.  Then I’ll wake you up, you can scream “ baka” at me all you want and I’ll laugh like before.  You can finally give me that gift you promised me for the Rite of the Silver Moon .

     Kenji doesn’t know how he made back to the Temple after killing the last guardian (he thought for sure he wouldn’t be able to survive when the guardian started crumbling and Kenji hung onto the sword still embedded in the giant’s weak point on its head as they started falling down, down, down).  He sobs when he sees Kiso, limping but still alive after she bucked him off to save him from the fifth demon’s jaws that had ambushed them. He completely ignores the sonorous voices of Dormin, the rumbling delight evident in the chorus as It thanks him for what he’s done. He just keeps resting against Kiso and weeping into her mane, relieved that he didn’t lose his only other companion on this crazy, stupid quest.  

     When he looks up at the sound of horse hooves and rustling armor, there’s a group wearing the colors of his old village, maneuvering around the shattered blocks of stone from fallen titans to approach him at the base of the altar’s steps.  Kenji laughs upon seeing the faces of his friends, now grimly waiting to kill him. There’s Vice-Captain Kohaku (well, probably “Captain" now that Kenji fucking ran from his village and effectively resigned from his position), looking at him with those same stern eyes and disappointed frown on her face.  There’s Hatch—he looks good with that new armor but judging by the way he squirms and shifts atop his horse, Kenji knows the brawler is itching to trade the heavy lacquer plate for the light karate gi he favors.  Toshio is off to the side, looking at him with almost pity in his green eyes, but Kenji knows that he wouldn’t hesitate to nail him with a few of his steel shuriken and rifle bullets.  And there, at the front, the Demon Slayer herself—Kenji begins to bellow with laughter even harder when he sees that it’s his best friend, Akane, leading the group.  

     He wipes away the tears, flings his arms wide open, and grins with that old Kenji flair for dramatics.  “Hey! Nice of you guys to join me at this party, but I don’t recall sending out invitations!” Judging from Kohaku’s and Hatch’s horrified expressions (Akane’s and Toshio’s faces remain impassive as per usual), he must make for quite the sight: torn clothing, bloody and banged up body, arms pitch-black up to the shoulders, a full bone-horn protruding from his forehead, and black smoke swirling around him like some sort of evil aura.   

     “Kenji.”

     At that single word, his smile drops and he watches Akane dismount and walk forward.

     “You know what happens now.  You broke the rules,” she says.

     “Funny, I thought you of all people would have hated being tied down by rules, especially when they hurt people you love.”

     “Satsuma threatened to go after Momoko.  I didn’t have a choice.” Oh, Akane, always straight to the point, especially when it comes to her wife.  Kenji both fumes with wrath and aches with understanding at her words. The pulsing in his arms speeds up and the haze in his mind gets worse as he wants to strike out and beat that calm determination off her face.

     Kenji barks out a bitter laugh.  “Well, guess who didn’t have a choice either!  Oh wait, Masami wants her soul trapped in the spirit realm while her body rots!” Can’t they see? He thinks, That this is what Satsuma and his god wanted?  To convince everyone that her sacrifice was the “only” way to save Hyuga?

     Akane stops a couple of feet away from him, warily watching the sword by his side, calculating as always what her foe will do next.  “She did want this.  You were supposed to respect her choice.”

     “ I was supposed to protect her! ” he roars.  (He doesn’t want to remember the tight-lipped resignation on Masami’s face when Satsuma first marked her for damnation; he doesn’t want to recall the fiery argument they had the night before the ceremony.)  “ That’s the duty of the Captain.”  He looks over at Kohaku, who has stayed oddly silent this whole exchange, and shoots her a lopsided smirk.  “Sorry, Kohaku. I guess that makes me a failure, huh? I hope that you can do better than me now that I’m gone.”

     Kohaku bows her head and murmurs, “I will never be like you.”  At the same time, Hatch cries out one last useless request for Kenji to come back with them with Masami, tears streaming down his face.  Toshio continues to look at him with indescribable emotions swirling in his dark green eyes. Honestly, why didn’t the ninja take the shot?  Kenji knows he made for such an open target when trying not to break down completely in Kiso’s presence. Perhaps Akane held Toshio back. He’s grateful if she did.

     It means she remembers that pact she made with him years ago: when they were young, wild, and oh-so-afraid of their capacity to kill.  Of being alone at the end of the slaughter.

     Kenji turns back at Akane.  Upon his attention, she draws her katana and shifts into Gedan, a basic low stance favored by her Alligator Style for its powerful counter-attacks.  Instinctively, he shifts into Jōdan, an aggressive, overhead stance of the Firefly Style.  They wait. It’s an old routine, as familiar as a lullaby to a child.  He’ll swing downward first, she’ll sidestep and aim a slash to his arm, he’ll pivot to block her sword and force her back with a shove, she’ll leap back to analyze him for openings but he’ll press forward with wild swings that will break her focus and force her to defend. They’ll switch off.  He knows he’s always been stronger and more resilient, but she’s more agile and has the sharpest instincts for finding weak points. They’ve always been equally matched, a constant push-and-pull that has never known an end.

     But this isn’t a training duel in the village fields and this isn’t a battlefield where they stand back-to-back, cutting down whichever enemies foolishly rush them. Now Kenji and Akane face each other to witness which is stronger: their promises to their loved ones or their promises to each other.  Perhaps this was inevitable, for loyalty and bonds built over years to gradually crumble away to dust with each clash of their swords.   

     What a mess.  

     Kenji sighs.  It’s not a dead man’s sigh of regret when the body releases its last gasp for forgiveness and peace.  No, it’s a sigh of tired endurance, of indomitable will; a breath loosed into the air before it rises and condenses into storm clouds that break open and unleash heaven’s wrath.  He smiles. “I’m guessing it makes sense that they brought you out to kill one last demon, but you better be prepared for the fight of your life!  I won’t go down without giving it my all!”

     Akane simply nods.  “Goodbye, old friend.”

     Kenji replies to her unspoken words, “I’m sorry too.” 

     And he thinks, And I’m sorry, Masami. Guess you’ll have to wait a little longer to give me your gift.  I’m sure it’s beautiful, whatever it is.

     And so, what else can he do but to charge forward?

----------------

A03 LINK:

https://archiveofourown.org/works/20848121/chapters/49974308#workskin

#samurai of hyuga #fanfic #submission #sohtober 2019

[teratotherapist]

Setting Sail, Going Home?

A young woman stands on the edge of oblivion. It was some twenty-three years ago she was first given life, so there's no need for the name based shenanigans; her name is ROSE LALONDE. She stands on jagged rim of a slab of meteoric stone, in front of a full scale replica of her childhood home reconstructed from online blueprints. She's about where her mailbox would be, she thinks.

Her lavender eyes scan the darkness of the furthest ring, seeking something. Someone. A glimmer of gilded hope in the deepest night. All that she finds is faraway glimpses of Eldritch outer gods and the light pollution of the strangers' session she's been delving. They were cool enough planets, she thinks, but... well, they weren't exactly made for her, were they? It's times like these she actually pines for the Land of Light and Rain, the whimsical planet she once found distasteful. Pandering, even condescending she thought. But really, maybe it was what she needed all along.

Times like these, she pines for LoLaR, and for its last known keeper; a certain dog-eared young woman, a lifelong friend, confidante, crush. Memories of late night movie streams with the whole friend-group, of even later-night aftermaths with just Jade, in all her frustratingly mysterious yet charming, quirky, brilliant glory. Memories of faltering façades after miserably botched school dances and bullying aggressions, of fretful reassurances from across the globe, of staring at that lovely face in the tiny chat window and wishing it was there before her instead. As irritating as her evasive flightiness could be, she adored the strange island girl, her oldest and deepest friend, her strongest crush.

It was for this girl, plus her next closest friend and the ghost of her cat, that the Seer set forth from the meteor. She left behind a lot - an ectosibling who irked her but for whom she cared, and his awkward sort-of-boyfriend; a pair of mischievous trolls whose infectious cackling gave the crew vigor and groans in competing measure; a concerning and inscrutable but largely defanged clown; a breathtaking alien woman for whom she cared deeply - loved, even. She had thought she'd come with her when she took off into the void. But Rose's rash tone, her planless haste, her stubborn, pigheaded refusal to compromise or wait before setting out gave her pause. She left behind a lot - a crowd of confused friends, a tearful lover, disappearing swiftly into the void as she set off.

She thought it would be quick - a foray out into the ruins of a few lost sessions, a skim through the infinite expanse in search of the golden Prospit ship; they'd waited at their apparently intended location for some few years, after all, with no sign of the new session nor their friends. Had they miscalculated? Had a half-blind psionic's optic blast aimed incorrectly, or been slower than they needed to be? Maybe they just needed to widen their search radius, and who better to quest for a glimmer in the darkness than the Seer of Light? But they hadn't agreed, and just watched as she departed, promising to return soon with new powers, and with friends in tow.

It took longer than expected, and to little avail. For some two years by her reckoning, she'd sought other sessions, always scanning the darkness for that glimmer of gold. Her magical prowess grew, but so did her loneliness, her desperation. When did she stop having fun tearing things apart and collecting lore? When did the solitude of puzzlecrypts and the hubbub of unknown consorts start to emphasize only her loneliness?

She knows she needs to go back. She needs the presence of at least some of her friends, if not all of them, for the sake of her sanity. She knows in her gut that Jade and John are still out there somewhere, but damn if her Sight will give her a clear answer as to where. And worst of all, despite ever attempting to reflect fearlessness and stalwart stoicism, she's afraid. She's afraid that somehow Jade - in her ever-knowing mystery - will know she's turned around. Will think she's abandoning them. That the girl she's loved since she was very young will hate her. She's afraid that upon returning to the meteor, she'll be met with only hostility, no second chances given. An unwelcome burden to her allies.

She turns her Sight to the void once more, opening her third eye, so to speak. The path "homeward" is clear. A long one, one of many months' travel, but a straightforward one. The threads of choice fray upon arrival, but she can pluck through them in time. The path towards Jade, however, is a frayed mess at the start. A thousand glowing strands, bundled and knotted and impossible to trace. There's too many ways one could go about finding her friends, and she can't quite find their destination in a satisfactory manner. Homeward it is, then.

She heads for her rooftop and deploys one of her methods of traversal - a VERDISOLAR SAIL, an alchemized contraption meant to capture the omnipresent glow of the Green Sun, that vast entity that exists, existed, will exist, before the beginning and after the end of its own birth and death. Some said it was gone, but then there was its glow, its raging heat and fiery mass far away, its solar currents. She doesn't pretend to understand it, outside of "something something, infinite timelines calling for infinite destructions and creations."

She clamps the device to her rooftop, heavy electromagnets gripping the metal in the building's framework. The sail unfurls itself, shimmering hexagons and a glimmer of stars that aren't there reflected in its depth. It looks like a radio antenna with a mystical sail at its peak. She angles it just so, catching the solar winds that she internally calls the Pumpkin Tide, in honor of her Green-Sun gardener friend's ill fated gourds. It billows briefly for a moment, then there's the faintest tug of motion, slowly mounting. She guides the meteor slab around, banking onto a new course. One that, she hopes, will lead her to her goal.

As the fragment begins to move under her guidance, Rose brings up Pesterchum and starts a message to one gardenGnostic. The interpreter finds many of these and asks for some specificity as to secondary multiverse handles. Unfortunately, Jade's handle is unknown, if she had one; so all Rose can do is broadcast and hope it reaches the right one somehow. Still, her fingers shake with nerves as she taps in a message.

tentacleTherapist{teratoTherapist} began pestering gardenGnostic {??} at {??:??}

TT: Jade, if you're out there, it's Rose. I... hope you still remember me after all this time.

TT: I don't know what went awry in our voyage, what nebulous powers conspired to keep us from our fated destination

TT: But I've been looking for you.

TT: Near and far, I've been scouring the ruins of broken timelines in search of new powers to find you, always watching out for you.

TT: ...You were right, you know. I should have listened. If I'd conveyed myself differently, been less petulant

TT: Perhaps things would have unfolded differently, perhaps I would be aboard that ship with you and John, or perhaps we'd all be together in some tertiary Earth.

TT: But who's to say? My Sight looks forward, dwelling backward only brings sorrow.

TT: Though... I'm afraid I must divert from my seeker's path, for a time. The bastion of sanity and stability that I am, even I cannot withstand solitude in the Void forever.

TT: That's not to say I'm giving up the hunt.

TT: Your likely first dose of Lalonde earnestness and candor in many moons: I would go to the very ends of time to locate you. I just... need to recuperate, then the search can continue.

TT: It's my deepest hope that maybe this will be pointless and I'll return to the meteor, just to find you and John and everyone else, living it up all in one place. But if that's not the case, well.

TT: I will find you, Lalonde's honor.

TT: If you get this message, do be in touch, okay? My multiversal handle should be included.

TT: Send John, Davesprite, and Nannasprite my regards, and scratch Jaspers under his chin for me, if you could.

TT: And Jade? Do take care of yourself. Don't... Don't forget that you're missed, and you're so, so loved. To whatever degree you want to interpret that.

TT: I hope to see you soon, Jade. With love,

RL

The Seer sits down beside the sail and balls her fists up, rubbing them against her eyes to grind away the bittersweet tears. She's on her way "home", for better or worse, to arrive by year's end.

#long post #solo drabble #solo rp #very long post #sorry its so long

[jahaanofmenaphos]

Art by the awesome @tommieglenn!

Of Gods and Men Summary:

When the gods returned to Gielinor, their minds were only on one thing: the Stone of Jas, a powerful elder artefact in the hands of Sliske, a devious Mahjarrat who stole it for his own ends and entertainment. He claims to want to incite another god wars, but are his ulterior motives more sinister than that? And can the World Guardian, Jahaan, escape from under Sliske’s shadow?

Read the full work here:

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TUMBLR CHAPTER INDEX

QUEST 06: FATE OF THE GODS

QUEST SUMMARY:

The gods have returned to Gielinor, but something is preventing the arrival of Zaros. Jahaan is enlisted by Azzanadra to help bring his god back to their world, a task that would send him into the harshities of the Mahjarrat homeworld: Freneskae…

CHAPTER 3: NIGHTMARE AT THE CRADLE

Seeing as lava was part of Freneskae’s decor as much as grey rocks and sleeping elder gods were, Jahaan wasn’t surprised when the volcano he was climbing down erupted. He figured it was par for the course at this point. A sort of, ‘what more could possibly go wrong?’ cavalier attitude. Such a mindset helped him feel slightly less terrified as the red hot lava flowed down the side of the volcano and magma spew out of the top, pouring down in a large stream of fiery death. Jahaan found himself dodging these alongside the random balls of fire that rained from the sky and the vents in the ground that expelled boiling hot steam.

Freneskae was a lovely place.

The rain became rocks, the sky filled with a choking smoky powder and the air warmed quicker than the bonfires of Menaphos Worker District. Almost as soon as lightning had struck a clifftop, Freneskae became illuminated. In the distance, thick gray smoke billowed upwards, shielding the world with a veil of darkness as the smoke swallowed up the whole sky. The glowing embers lept and twirled in a fiery dance, twinkling like stars in the hot swirling air before cascading downwards like gleeful pyrefiends.

It wasn’t too far into their journey that a strange, towering creature emerged from behind a rock face, lumbering towards Jahaan with bared teeth and too many arms. Its skin was a putrid yellow colour, a purple shell covered in spikes armouring its back. Claws as long as swords ended each arm; it didn’t have legs, but that didn’t stop it from moving at a rather daunting pace in his general direction.

Jahaan cowered back, mouth hung agape. “What… is THAT?!”

“That is a manifestation of Mah’s nightmares,” Zaros explained, his tone too calm for what the situation required. “Just as she dreamed the Mahjarrat into existence, so too her nightmares become sentient, into ‘muspah’. They are very dangerous.”

“Yes, I can see that!” Jahaan snapped back, drawing his swords and crouching into a fighting stance. When the muspah charged, Jahaan swung his sword in fearsome retaliation, and the blade did indeed hit its target, but it seemed to… pass through? The muspah shrugged it off as if he’d hit it with a daisy. Valiantly, Jahaan tried again, and again, until he had to dive out of the way from a crushing attack from one of its many limbs.

“Your blade will do no good here,” Zaros informed, bluntly.

Panting for breath, Jahaan kept up the defensive as he replied, “I should range it?”

“No. It’s only weakness is the Ancient Magicks.”

This… did not feel Jahaan with glee. “Zaros, I don’t even know the regular magicks, let alone the ancient ones!”

“You do not, but I do,” Zaros hinted, and soon enough Jahaan pieced two and two together. Sheathing his swords, he shot out a hand towards the muspah and unleashed a fierce battle cry.

...and nothing happened.

Eyes wide, Jahaan was too startled to properly react to the muspah’s charge and caught a glancing blow that sent him hurtling to the ground.

Coughing down the Freneskaen air didn’t help matters. “I thought that would work!” Jahaan growled, pushing himself to his feet. “Why didn’t it work?!”

“Magic is more than just an action,” Zaros explained, “It is a feeling. You must believe your motions, otherwise nothing will result. Focus. I have provided you with the power. You must channel it yourself.”

Gulping, Jahaan kept as much distance as he could from the muspah as he could while his thoughts raced. Okay, focus. The ancient elements are shadow, smoke, ice and… and blood, that’s it! Right, let’s try ice. I can do this. I can do this…

Then, from behind him, another muspah spawned, shrieking with the wrath of Mah.

Cursing wildly in every tongue he knew, he desperately fought to focus, to not let panic overcome him. 

Just… pretend it’s a fire spell, he internally tried to rationalize. Not that I was ever any good at those, but the feeling should be the same…. right?

Jahaan was all but hurled back like a projectile when the first surge of ice magic shot from his palms and careened into the muspah. If the creature’s painful roars were anything to go by, he’d hit the mark. Then again, he could have just angered it further.

Jahaan didn’t think too much into this before he channeled his next spell. Ice seemed to prove effective, so why fix what isn’t broken? The blast shot from his hands in a haphazard, barely controlled fashion, but it caught the creature’s leg. The weight of magic was something Jahaan wasn’t used to; it weighed more than his sword did by a great deal. Then again, Jahaan reasoned that this was because he hadn’t exactly gotten the hang of controlling his attacks yet.

Deadly precision would be nice, but as long as he hit the damn thing, he was content. Focusing on one muspah at a time seemed like a wise strategy, so Jahaan evaded the second’s charges as he shot small but powerful ice spells into the first muspah. Gently chipping away at it, Jahaan did not relent until finally - thanks to one admittedly accidental strike to the creature’s temple - it fell to the ground.

Feeling the magic pulsing through his veins, Jahaan had never felt so powerful, so alive! He had the power of one of Gielinor’s most powerful deities flowing through him, and it was addictive.

Getting slightly cocky, Jahaan decided to mix things up, channeling a blood spell next, which connected with the second muspah’s chest. Dodging out of the way of an enraged claw, Jahaan was in the perfect position to follow up. He did so, but miscalculated, well, everything.

Caught in the blast zone, the muspah crumpled under the power of the smoke spell, but Jahaan did too, coughing up a lung as he found himself staring up into the dark Freneskaen skies. His face felt like it was on fire, and when he dared move a hand towards his cheek, he noticed that some of the skin had nearly been scorched off. The cloth around his nose and mouth was no more. Fortunately, his armour had protected the rest of him, only slightly charred from the explosion.

“World Guardian,” Zaros called inside his mind.

Jahaan internally groaned, which he didn’t even care if Zaros could hear. “Give me a minute.”

“World Guardian, we have to keep moving. They will be back in greater numbers.”

Peeling himself off the ground, a greater effort than the entirety of the muspah fight, Jahaan reached into his backpack and guzzled down the contents of his waterskin, pausing only to choke now and again. Taking deep breaths just made things worse; he felt his throat tightening at the action, repelling the thick acrid air around him. “I can’t do anything if I can’t breathe. Hold on a second.”

After removing his chestplate, next he took off his shirt, ripping strips out of it. Unfortunately he had nothing to clean the wound on his face, so resorted to just binding it at it was, looking like one of Dr Fenkenstrain’s creatures. Another strip he used to cover his mouth and nose, slightly helping the whole breathing situation.

After putting his chestplate back on, Jahaan blinked out the dust from around his eyes and fought past the dizziness in his head. “Alright, where to?”

All the way down to the bottom of the volcano, that was where to.

Luckily, no more muspah were encountered on their travels. In their place were the occasional earthquakes, leaving Jahaan clinging for dear life onto whatever was around him at the time. Landslides and rockfalls blocked their path on no less than three occasions; clambering over them wasn’t too difficult, but Jahaan’s limbs were already aching just from walking. Cinders and ashes rained down from the sky like violent snow, scorching to the touch. Despite this, Jahaan found himself constantly looking upwards, shielding his face with his arm as best he could so he could look out for incoming lava flows. They were a waiting game - guess what path they were streaming in, pray that you were right, wait for them to pass, then continue.

Freneskae was a lovely place.

Eventually the two of them made it through into the Elder Halls, a large expanse of marble and crystalline rock that looked like it had been untouched for centuries. Glowing wisps of energy were floating around the room, sparkling stars in the dark cavern, all different shapes, colours and sizes. Five tunnels spread out from the centre room.

“There, planted in the ground,” Zaros referenced a small stick jutting out of the stone. “That is the Measure. An Elder Artifact used to measure the anima mundi of a place. With it you can bring forth harvestable wisps to weave a divine simulacrum.”

Jahaan rubbed his temples. “I understood about 20% of that. Just tell me what I need to do in simple, mortal terms, please.”

“Take the Measure, plant it in the ground. Faint wisps surrounding will then become harvestable. Guide them together until they join, like atoms. Continue until you have enough to weave a simulacrum. I will know when that is.”

“Thank you,” Jahaan smiled, thankful for the triumph of simplicity. “Hey, what’s in those tunnels?”

“Explore, should you wish,” Zaros allowed; Jahaan took him up on the offer, walking through into the closest tunnel. Inside it was a floating fragmented sphere, grey and covered in hexagons.

“What is it?” Jahaan enquired, not quite stupid enough to reach out and touch it.

“It is the egg the elder god Jas hatched from,” Zaros explained. “Does it not seem familiar?”

Now that he thought about it, the egg did look hauntingly similar to the Stone itself…

“It can’t be the same one, can it?”

“Not exactly. The one you have encountered is unique, altered to become what it is. This one's purpose was quite simple, and was fulfilled.”

“So this one is…?”

“Debris,” Zaros simply replied. “You will find more in the other chambers.”

And he did. A freezing chamber with a fragmented egg covered in ice, belonging to Wen. A boiling chamber with most of the head radiating from the red-hot egg, belonging to Ful. A chamber with dark brown egg and an earthy smell, belonging to Bik.

The last one was a darker chamber. The egg was black on the outside, looking almost smooth except for a spiral running around it. The spiral looked like some sort of corruption. “Is this...?”

“Mah’s,” Zaros confirmed. “Her’s is the energy you must harvest. When you wish to proceed, World Guardian.”

Unaware that Zaros was even capable of slight passive aggressiveness was news to Jahaan, but he did feel like the deity was ushering him on now. To be fair, he had been dawdling. Still, there was one more question on his mind, and feeling he was holding enough cards, Jahaan felt bold enough to ask it.”

“Why do you want to become an elder god?”

“All in due time,” Zaros repeated.

“No, that time is now,” Jahaan insisted. “If you want a body, I’m your only shot. All I want is to know who I’m really dealing with. You’re inside my mind. You can’t lie.”

There was a long, drawn out pause, and Jahaan felt like he was playing chicken with a cannon. Nevertheless, he held steady to his resolve.

Eventually, Zaros spoke. “The elder gods create a Perfect World - like Gielinor is, like Freneskae was - and then slumber. Then, when the amount of anima mundi of a universe is sufficient, new elder gods hatch from eggs underneath the current Perfect World and proceed to suck the anima of the universe dry to revive themselves, destroying the universe in the process. Then, the cycle begins again.”

Jahaan’s chest became heavy with realisation. “The Great Revision…”

“Yes,” Zaros gravely confirmed.

“But… but that won’t be any time soon, right?”

“I do not know when the elder gods will wake. It could be a millennia. It could be a fortnight. When they do, they will show no mercy.”

Shaking his head, Jahaan exclaimed, “There has to be something we can do about it!”

“Ease, World Guardian,” Zaros tried to calm. “That is why I wish to become an elder god. I want to stall The Great Revision, to reason with the elder gods. I can only do that if I am their peer.”

Shaking his head to try and rattle this supposed logic into place, Jahaan said, “So basically what you’re saying is that, when these new elder gods hatch, the universe is going to be destroyed. But if you became an elder god, you could, what, persuade the elder gods not to allow the eggs to hatch? Convince them to hold off? Is that the long and short of it?”

“Yes,” Zaros replied. “From the innate knowledge Mah has given me, I know that The Great Revision occurs when, in their eyes, they find that the Perfect World they have created has become corrupted. I will convince them that this universe worth sparing; that, in Gielinor, they have created a Perfect World that should be left to thrive. If I do not interfere, The Great Revision could be upon us at any moment.”

“But why didn’t they destroy Freneskae?” Jahaan asked.

“That I do not know for sure,” Zaros conceded. “Mah was too weak to leave Freneskae. Perhaps they did not destroy this world for, in doing so, they would destroy her too. But we cannot dwell upon the universe’s mortality now. We must proceed with the task at hand.”

“Right, right, sorry…” Jahaan exhaled deeply, really wishing he had a drink in front of him right about now.

So, as he was instructed, he planted the Measure into the softer spots between the rocks. The Measure didn’t seem to have a hard time breaking through. When it did, the faint wisps surrounding Jahaan became less ethereal, and he found he could guide them now.

Thus began a rather tedious process of planting the Measure, gathering a handful of wisps together, moving the Measure, and repeat. Only a few wisps became tangible at a time; the orb he was creating began larger and larger, but Zaros didn’t cut him off at any point.

Wiping the sweat from his brow, Jahaan asked, “How many more of these do you need?”

“Not many more,” Zaros answered, much to Jahaan’s relief.

It still took a good ten more minutes of siphoning the energy before Zaros declared, “It is finished. The body is woven. I will depart from your form.”

A little more warning would have been nice, Jahaan thought to himself after he picked himself up off the ground, momentarily falling unconscious at the sudden absence of the deity. Beside him was the ‘body’ he had woven that Zaros had now inhabited. It had a shape akin to a child moulding a person out of clay, round and featureless.

“Now, you must infuse my body with dark energy, creating a dark simulacrum,” Zaros stated.

“How do I do that?”

“Directly above us, on the top of the volcano, are crystal shards of dark and light energy embedded into Mah’s fingertips,” Zaros explained. “You must extract one and insert it into the body.”

Jahaan almost felt like collapsing with frustration. “So hold up, you’re telling me I have to climb BACK UP that volcano, with all the fun hazards that entails, possibly encounter another hoard of muspah, then pluck a piece of Mah out of her sleeping form without her waking?”

“You have come this far, World Guardian,” was all Zaros could say.

Yes, he’d come this far. Jahaan also realised that, without Zaros, he’d probably have to walk back to the World Gate by himself, without Zaros’ guidance or protection. He was stuck between a rock, and a much bigger rock, both of which were plentiful on Freneskae.

So, they trekked back up the mountain again, past the lava flows, the landslides, the lightning strikes and every other natural wonder that the weather bestowed upon them.

"How was Freneskae ever a perfect world?" Jahaan muttered to himself as he crawled over a mount of rocks.

Eventually, Jahaan heaved himself over the final ledge and found himself at the top of the volcano, thankful for the lack of muspah this time around.

“Hurry, World Guardian, before her nightmares attack us.”

Jahaan didn’t need to be persuaded anymore than that. As swiftly yet as quietly as he could, he edged over to Mah’s sleeping form. Crystals of shining blue and dark purple protruded from her fingers. Delicately, Jahaan wrapped his hand around the smallest shard of purple that was close to him, plucking it out with his heart in his throat, expecting to be squashed at any moment.

He didn’t dare look up at her.

Fortunately, the act didn’t seem to have any effect on Mah, and he returned to Zaros with the crystal.

“Perfect, that is exactly what I require,” Zaros’ monotone voice wasn’t great at conveying joy, but Jahaan didn’t let it bother him. Holding it closer to Zaros was enough for the crystal to be engulfed into his body.

Then, the transformation begun.

The body grew, larger and darker, until it was an eight foot silhouette of pure black energy. Limbs sprouted and became more defined; purple crystals took the place of claws and shaped his joints. They also took the place of eyes - eight of them, to be exact. Zaros stretched outwards, quickly growing accustomed to his new form. From seemingly nowhere, purple robes faded into existence and automatically donned themself to Zaros, as did his gold-plated armour that fixed into his shoulders and chest. Zaros’ eyes receded into the back of his hood, once more becoming the faceless deity he was known for being; an armoured mask filled the void.

But before Jahaan could admire his handiwork, Mah began to stir. Her hands clenched into tight fists, and she dragged her oversized head off the volcano top.

“She is waking,” Zaros watched with horror as Mah awoke. His composed and stoic demeanour fell into one of panic. “We have to leave!”

He shot back around to Jahaan. “I need your permission!”

Mah’s face was a contorted mess of rocks, lava spewing from her mouth and out of one of her eyes. One side of her face had two eyes, one seemingly filled with lava, while the other had four eyes of random shapes and sizes, glowing brightly with divine energy.

Jahaan was transfixed as she rose from the volcano top and began to blink her way back to the world of the awake.

Mah lifted a hand, held it high above the two of them, darkening their world like an ash cloud.

Her intentions were clear.

“WORLD GUARDIAN, NOW!” Zaros cried as Mah’s fist descended.

“YES!” Jahaan managed to call out at the last second, allowing Zaros to teleport the two of them away. The millisecond after they did, Mah’s fist struck the ground, denting the rock beneath it. Enraged, Mah raised her head to the sky and roared a terrifying, furious cry, shaking the earth and skies around her with venom and fury.

DISCLAIMER:

As Of Gods and Men is a reimagining, retelling and reworking of the Sixth Age, a LOT of dialogue/characters/plotlines/etc. are pulled right from the game itself, and this belongs to Jagex.

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#zaros #freneskae

[the-twin-trollhunters]

it’s been literal ages since i’ve actively DONE anything with this blog but i really wanna get back into developing this au since i love it a lot,, even if “developing” is more just. writing scattered drabbles and snippits instead of writing through it chronologically so...

if you have questions or prompt ideas or cool thoughts about any particular era, please do let me know, i love talking about this crossover! 

the 5 eras of this crossover:

Era 1: (August 1967- June 1968) Glass Shard Beach/Quartz Shard Cove Era 2: (1968-1982) Stan in Trollmarket/Ford’s research years Era 3: (1982-2012) Wilderness Years Era 4: (2012-2016) Summer 2012 and beyond Era 5: (Spring 2016~) The new trollhunters

(a ton more rando ideas under the cut)

Era 1: (August 1967- June 1968) Glass Shard Beach/Quartz Shard Cove

Big ideas: -Stan finds amulet, discovers underground civilization of trolls alongside Ford -Helps protect Quartz Shard Cove, the troll city below them, over the course of senior year -Major foes are Korsiva (a disgraced ex-general of Gunmar who’s been in hibernation for years) and an east coast branch of the Janus Order -Stan and Ford’s baby nephew (son of their big brother Shermie), Alexander, gets swapped out for a changeling. Chaos ensues. -Carla- Stan’s best friend- is brought into the fold/fights alongside the twins. -That time they recovered a single piece of the Killahead that was unguarded- they learn the changelings are trying to rebuilt it early in this AU. The piece is stowed away for safekeeping in Trollmarket, deep in the catacombs.  -Over time there’s found family themes with Alex the changeling, and he ends up defecting from the Janus Order entirely.. after experiencing all the horror of the Darklands, he just wants the chance to live a good and honest life. Through ancient magic, he finds a way to wipe the evidence of his existence from the Order. -Blinky and Aaarrrgghh pretty much slam adopt on all of these humans. -Stan and Ford’s relationship becomes more and more strained as the year goes on because Stan keeps pushing him away (thinking he’s protecting him by doing so)

Era 2: (1968-1982) Stan in Trollmarket/Ford’s research years

Big ideas: -After Stan is kicked out, he moves with Blinky and Aaarrrgghh back to Trollmarket. -Ford, to college. -Stan becomes really close with Draal during this time. -A lot of Stan’s work during this time is working to maintain peace in the troll world with the continuing threat of Killahead bridge being knowingly rebuilt, and trying to figure out WHERE the bridge pieces are being stored. (Currently it’s being hidden in a place far away from Arcadia.) -Ford still goes to Gravity Falls to research the strange and bizzare, and the Bill Cipher stuff still happens, except in this AU the Nightmare Realm and the Darklands are the same place, just this interdimensional dumping ground that Bill and Gunmar are both trapped within. They’re pretty much both competing to see who can get out first.  -Stan sent to go investigate the going-ons in Gravity Falls bc the trolls sensed an open portal to the Darklands there. He’s pissed and confused to realize it was his brother’s doing. -Ford gets sucked through the portal, along with Stan’s amulet.

Era 3: (1982-2012) Wilderness Years

Big ideas:  -The troll Tribunal forbids Stan from setting foot in any troll settlement in punishment for losing the amulet to Gunmar’s clutches. They’re essentially without a trollhunter for these 30 years. -Stan realizes the truth about Ford, that he was manipulated by an ancient eldritch being. Now feeling insanely guilty for leaving him to the whims of something like that, he begins to rebuild the thrashed portal. It may be ultimate treason to the trollkind he once swore to protect, but his family is forever more important to him than law. -Ford, meanwhile, discovers a shocking fact- the amulet calls his name too, and he can wield the armor and Daylight as well. He travels the multiverse for 30 years, learning more about the amulet and what it means to be a trollhunter along the way... crossing into dimensions where other trollhunters exist, gathering stones to use in it, gaining proficiency at fighting... -Alex- or as he comes to call himself, Lex- grows up, moves to California, falls in love with a human woman, and to his great surprise they’re able to have kids- twins. As far as he knows at that point, they’re essentially fully human- but they all know about his changeling nature. -They raise their kids in Arcadia. Occasionally, Lex does reconnaissance work for the trolls- Blinky and Vendel specifically.

Era 4: (2012-2016) Summer 2012 and beyond

Big ideas: -Lex sends his kids to GF for the summer for Stan to watch, paranoid that the Janus Order discovered what he did to their records and found him again  -Much of the summer is spent trying to uncover their Grunkle’s hidden past (he’s kept all the trollhunting stuff on the down low from family as a result of his disgrace from troll society. only lex knows the full story.) and what’s up with this mysterious journal in the woods. -The journal is p much the same except it has a toooon of troll stuff in it too. Ford’s a nerd. -Wendy is a changeling. Originally she was stationed in Gravity Falls to keep an eye on Stan and make sure he’s not up to no good, but she’s never actually gotten the chance to sneak into his basement to see what he’s working on. His security is too top-notch. When she’s finally a teen in human years she gets a job in the shack so she can get closer to him.  -Honestly I think she also flips. Just, all the changelings eventually flip when they see how great found family and friendships and anything that’s not Gunmar is, okay? XDD -Fiddleford isn’t actually entirely insane- but he’s still not all mentally there. Long story. He lives with his son and actually wears clothes most of the time. -Yknow I’m pretty sure Dipper and Mabel prob catch Wendy shifting between forms and that’s how they esp bond -Also let’s be real the two of them definitely end up exploring the troll civilization under Gravity Falls -the Wham moment where Ford walks out of the portal wearing the Armor of Daylight and everyone’s like :O OOO two trollhunters!!! ! -Weirdmageddon’s weirdness wave activates long dormant changeling genes for Dipper and Mabel, and they shift into troll forms. They’re a unique case of changeling because they are their own familiars. -Post 2012, the full story of what happened with the amulet becomes known to trollkind, and Stan’s ban from underground is lifted. He and Ford together continue trollhunting business, and they’re still a force to be reckoned with, even with their age. -In early 2016, the amulet leaves Stan and Ford, and stops responding to them both. The assumption made is that it senses the two of them are unable to carry out their duty anymore at their age, and has made the choice to move on. (normally a trollhunter just... would die long before they grew old enough for this to be a problem, so...)

Era 5: (Spring 2016~) The new trollhunters

-Dipper and Mabel are both 18, in senior year. They are fully able to shift between forms at whim by now. -Amulet picks Jim. A lot of broad canon strokes remain the same, but the trolls already are aware of the changelings still existing, and of the Killahead bridge’s threat- and have made the appropriate precautions. Tbh I still need to develop more logical divergences this new canon would make in what happens. -But I do know for sure that the changelings have to infiltrate Trollmarket to steal the stone Stan retrieved LOOONG ago in 1968 to even open the Killahead bridge at all.   -And I think Bular’s been out and about for some time trying to sniff out where this piece was being kept. His hunt has only recently brought him back to Arcadia. -Dipper and Mabel accidentally out themselves to Bular during the equivalent of the ep Young Atlas as they try to rescue Jim. This also outs the fact that ONE of their parents must be a changeling to the Janus Order.  -There is a Kidnapping that occurs,,, as Strickler is trying to pry info on where the last piece is from Lex, using Dip and Mab as collateral. Strickler gets the info he wants, sigh. -Through the battle of Killahead that eventually ensues, both Nomura AND Lex are sucked through into the Darklands. Not only does everyone want to rescue Claire’s baby brother, but they want to rescue Lex too. (There’s also some interesting ethics on whether or not they should rescue the REAL baby Alexander Pines afforded the opportunity, too. I’m still not sure if they do or not.) -When Jim goes into the Darklands, Stan and Ford return from their sailing expedition to keep the peace as best they can in Trollmarket/Arcadia. Sans amulet, of course, bc it won’t respond to them anymore but.. it’s something. -They’re there for the remainder of “S2-3.” -Ford ends up trying to defend Jim at the tribunal, but despite his eloquence still fails to convince them of anything. -When the Merlin quest happens, Dipper and Mabel are there as well. They can’t shift forms because of the magic ban, but their addition is enough to help fight off/kill Angor Rot and save Draal. -Ford knows from his journeys through the multiverse what Merlin aims to do (he’s met a future half-troll version of Jim, he Suspects) and is Against It. They fight alone at one point. -Battle stuff... Except the battle goes Fucking Wrong because of some key elements (no Angor Rot to blindside Morgana) and it ends up with the eternal night becoming permanent and some hellish frickin stuff, Morgana murders Merlin, she reconstitutes the shattered fragments of Bill Cipher within Stan’s mind (those two have History and that’s literally a whole nother Story please do ask me about it) and whisks him away in seconds to GF to go break Bill’s full essence free from his stone prison because she wants to p much steal his power for herself. -Ford found a sort of special amulet stone whilst in the multiverse that he’s been keeping all this time in case of emergencies... it allows the bearer to jump backwards in time, but only once. Only thing is, it’s also. in Gravity Falls. Kept safe in Fiddleford’s mansion. -Claire jumps them to GF via shadow staff. -Jim gets the stone and is able to use it like, just before they pretty much all die. He jumps back to RIGHT when Merlin wakes up in the tomb. -He realizes that the only real way he can stop all of this from going to hell completely is by making sure that all the shards of Bill in Stan’s mind are well and truly destroyed forever... and so they do just that. It’s a big dramatic mind demon eternal exorcism, a family/friends effort.

-there’s probably more but I’ve literally been rambling on like a noob. that’s pretty much the highlights. please do ask me questions about events/character relationships/places/timeline stuff/etc etc etc i would love to see them!

#trollhunters #gravity falls #trollhunters au #gravity falls au #a tale of two trollhunters #stanley pines #stanford pines #jim lake jr #dipper pines #mabel pines #etc etc #lots of characters here #text

[mairzymarzipan]

Night of the Full Moon Character Reviews: The Big Bosses(Minus Werewolf)

Hello again

I know I said I’d be talking about the Hunter, Old Mage, Fallen Priest and so on today, but I realized that those characters were actually more interesting in the context of other characters, so I put them off for later.  I decided instead to talk about the main bosses of the game, as it so happens, are the closest people to Red Riding Hood.  Because this game wants to be an ironicy soap opera/anime that way.

When I say Big Bosses, I mean that you always fight one of these characters at the end of the game.  Unless you’re like me and you start all over at the end because you’re bored and tired of all four of them playwise.

Werewolf

Wait, no, never mind.  This is another one of those characters who’s more interesting in the context of different, non-Red Riding Hood Characters.  We’re saving this boi for later.  But, you shouldn’t too surprised, if you read the title.  Instead, I’ll just use this space to talk about a mechanic.

Throughout the game, you can get ‘courage’ and ‘reputation’ points by talking to characters.  Very very generally speaking, you get courage points by doing brave things, and you get reputation points for doing nice things.  You also can get courage points when a character talks shit about the werewolf, and reputation points when a character talks shit about the witch.  So naturally, if you have more courage in the end, you get to fight the wolf, and if you have more reputation, you get to fight the witch.  I guess what they’re going for is only a meanie would fight this doggo?  And the witch is who any empathetic person would hate???

I feel like the latter is not the case, but more on that later.

Witch

“Only your Hope family can lift the dark magic curse.  This is what the priest is most afraid of.  That’s why monsters run wild on full moon nights. First they made your grandmother disappear and then they drew you into the forest...but they never anticipated that you would make it this far.”

By the way, you’re part of a prophecy.  Only someone in your family can lift the curse on the forest.  jsyk

Yeah so, as you see, the Witch’s description does not really tell us much about the witch herself.  This description also pretty unique in that none of the other character descriptions go into the second person like this.  The description also kind of hints that Red dies in the timeline where she fights the witch, so that’s depressing.

Nah, to figure out what the witch is about, you have to delve into the fragments around her. 

So, you actually do encounter the witch earlier in the game.  In the third or sometimes second chapter, she will recruit to find some magic apples she lost.  She makes a mention about suspecting a queen of stealing them.  The apples, I guess, are just lying around on the forest floor, and you bite into each of them bc you’re a dumb lkid.  Each apple changes your stats by a few points and the witch does not at all seem upset that you hand her a bunch of bitten fruit at the end.  In fact, she offers you the choice of two random buffs, so that’s fun.

You’re likely to hear about her way before that, though, depending on who you talk to.  Generally anyone who’s been cursed feels like it’s the witch’s fault.  

But if you choose to fight her(or you might not get a choice in the matter) she accuses you of stealing said apples.  She’ll also talk to you throughout the battle until you defeat her- a trait that only the big bosses and a few of the newer ones have.  Her lines...make her sound pretty unhinged.  She’s speaks of disbelief that you would do such a horrible thing, and threatens you with with her magic, and talks about how misunderstood she is.

When you defeat her, she’s got a really interesting line, tho.

“No!  I don’t want to fight you!  I can’t!”

Huh.

Before I move on, let me talk about this other witch character.

Yep.  That sure is the art style this game is going with.

So this is one of the shopkeepers.  There are four different shops you can find along the way, only two of which have characters you can see in them.  This character is known as the Witch Apothecary...but you can only see that on the outside of her store.  Otherwise she’s just called “Witch”.

The thing is, along the way, characters will talk about the Witch and, they don’t specify that it’s not the one with the white hair.  They just talk about The Witch like she’s the only witch that matters.  So is this woman not really a witch?  A witch wannabe?  Nah, we already have one of those characters.  Could it me that the shopkeepers don’t actually exist in the story of the game?  That would bum me out, bc there’s this lesbian owl I want to be real.

But...I think they’re the same person using shapeshifting.  Or if you want a really wild theory, maybe there are time travel hijinks and she’s the Magic Apprentice grown up.  But I’m going to go ahead with the former.

Anyhoo.  I like the witch.  I’m gonna give her 🍎🍎🍎🍎 four apples

Priest

“They mistakenly thought that on the full moon night they could help the monsters quietly eliminate Little Red Riding Hood and her grandmother.  Once the Hope family was wiped out, the legend of lifting the curse on the Dark Forest would disappear completely.  However, they didn’t expect they would have to go personally and pay such a high price to fight their enemy. When the priest fell, the cursed monsters reverted to their human forms and the Dark Forest was no longer covered by snow all year round, but the church’s blind greed still remains.”

Again, not much is said about the priest himself.  The most interesting thing here is that he apparently is the keystone holding the curse together.  Interesting, because he seems to be letting the witch do all the work for him.  Usually in these stories, you have to kill the person who casts the spell to break the spell, not just their friend.  Is it because he, himself, is a stone?  That is to say, he turns into a statue sometimes.

Why the heck is he having her turn all his enemies into cartoon monsters instead of killing them, anyway?  Don’t tell it’s to make the game family friendly, bc in one of these timelines a child kills another child.  

Honestly, the priest/church just doesn’t make a lot of sense to me.  His big plan is selling everybody from his town as slaves.  Gross.  And the way he accomplishes this is by...making it snow all the time, and turning people into vampires and fire bears?  What?

He is.  A delight to fight.  I’m being sarcastic.  He’s a religious edgelord who likes to go on about how humans are sinners and everyone deserves to be punished.  Also she cheats by turning into stone.  Eh.  

It feels like someone just spun a wheel for of evil traits and just stuck them together haphazardly.  His evil plan is...human trafficking!  His personality is...self righteous!  His means is...tf!  His super power is...turning into a statue!  

He’s the biggest of bads but also not that thought out.  He’s super important to the over-arching plot and yet I have no idea why this guy does what he does.  I’m gonna give him 🗽🗽 two statues.

Mystery Men

idek why this person is called “Mystery Men”.  I’m guessing it’s supposed to be mystery man?  Or mysterious person or something?  I know I haven’t talked about the art much but, I do appreciate how much their face looks like a dog snout and her hood looks like dog ears.  It’s a neat touch.

This description was actually changed.  The new text is longer and more awkwardly worded.  I don’t like it!  And I don’t get why it happened.

But, yeah.  The very last enemy of the game- who you can only reach by playing through at least four times and defeating all three others- is your Grandmother!  Le gasp!

So what exactly went wrong with her?  Oh, nothing, she just has a big wolf growing out of her back(told you the concept was backed up by canon)

Is this her daemon or patronus or something?  I have no idea.  I’ve been calling her a werewolf sometimes, tho, bc she’s better at being a werewolf than the titular werewolf.  Which is to say she can revive instead of just healing.  Her buffs and deck change throughout the fight.  She’s a long battle, fun, except for her ear piercing voice.  She sounds a bit possessed.

I’ll give her 👁️👁️👁️ three big eyes.  She’s a fun battle, but I always mute it.  Also not real big on how the text got changed for the worse.  But she does add some good details to the story.

In Conclusion... 

Grandma’s text tells us a few things.  

1. Not only is the Hope family connected to this prophecy, but family members actually have the power to control the curse.  That leads me to believe that the person who got the curse started was a Hope themself.  

2. The church came along long after the curse was in full swing.  So the priest is not responsible for it.  Whether he’s a Hope himself is not relevant.

We also know these things:

1. The witch is still the one casting all the tf spells, which is part of the curse.

2. There are two timelines were Red has a natural gift for magic

3. In the Little Witch timeline, the Witch is teaching Red magic.  On top of that she’s v patient, which is surprising, for some reason.

4. The Witch seems a little out of touch with reality.  She sends you to find apples, and then yells at you for stealing them.  Almost like she thinks you’re another person.

5. The witch verbally expresses her desire not to fight you when she realizes who you are.

I have to conclude that the Witch is a Hope.  A Hope who’s close enough to have a fondness for Little Red Riding Hood, and is invested in her well being/education.  And yanno, is turns her enemies into pig people because she can.  

She helps you on your quest by giving you one of her own.  But earlier on, she takes on the form of the other witch offer you potions and the like.  She even gives you the first one in each chapter for free.

“My potions can change your appearance!”

Of course she can’t get too close to you.  She can’t reveal that she’s helping you.  Hence putting on a new face when she’s a ‘good’ witch.  One wonders if she’s trying to hide her identity from you, or the people she’s allied with.

Hey can we look at her description again?

Red doesn’t get addressed in the second person in any of the other descriptions.  There is a character who talks about his life in the first person, and we’ll get to him.  But this is odd to me.

What if Red isn’t being addressed here?  What if it’s someone else?  What if it’s the Witch?

What if the Witch was captured and ensnared in the priest’s plot?  What if he messed with her memory?  So then who is she?  Red’s sister?  It seems like she’s been working with the church a lot longer than Grandma’s been missing.  Also Grandma went into the woods on her own accord.  You could say that the grief the church caused her *made* her go out, but it seems weak.

So maybe a Hope in another generation, who lost her grandmother to- either the church or monsters?  Was it this other Grandmother who *started* the curse?

Dude, what if she’s your Mom?

What if instead of killing her the priest did...something...scared her enough to get her to work for him.  And messed with her memory so she couldn’t conceive a way out?  And sort of had her transfer the power of the curse to him so that people had to kill him to break it?

What if he had the Church Doctor scoop her brain out and put it in another lady’s head?  Who knows.

I’m not certain about the witch being your mom.  I think I would like that to be the case because it’s fun, but I’m not quite convinced yet.  I AM certain, tho, that the Witch is a Hope, and she cares about you.  She’s not just this cackling meanie turning people into flowers.  She’s...complicated.  And she needs help just as much as all the trapped monsters.

#mairzy posts #night of the full moon #notfm #the werewolf #the witch #the priest #the mystery men #headcanons #character reviews

[taiblogcomics]

Star-Crossed

Hey there, applewood-smoked bacon jerky. Oh boy, we're getting into the really cool Pony comics now. Let's do this one first, mostly because it's so big. Last week was issue 74, and this week would logically be issue 75. Wow, can you imagine 75 whole issues? That's a milestone for sure, and the comic agrees. That's why the issue is an absolutely huge prestige format book. And being IDW's 20th anniversary, too, that makes it really a milestone to celebrate~

Here's the cover. Well, part of it:

Yeah, this is only the front cover. It's actually a wrap-around cover, with the other characters on the back cover. I chose to put only the front half for a couple reasons. One, because putting the back cover on the left while the logo is on the right just didn't look right. Two, you're still not going to see the back cover when it's on the shelf or in a collection. The front cover is the selling point, so that's what we'll look at. And it's a very nice stained-glass look. Rather than betray the story, the cover opts to just celebrate the main characters for its milestone, and that's respectable~

The comic opens with a long-ago battle with Discord. Princesses Celestia and Luna are in resplendant armour, and joined by Queen Novo of the hippogriffs, the cat queen of the Abyssinians, and even that deer king of the Everfree that I don't remember the name of. Everything's going nuts, and the wonderful combination of Andy Price's art and Discord's magic is a treat to look at. However, when confronted, Discord bleats out that "It's not me this time!", and indeed some other being appears on the horizon. Discord and the five monarchs team up and combine their magic (in a display vaguely reminiscent of the Elements of Harmony) to banish this mysterious intruder. The magic and the creature dissipate. When Celestia then demands an explanation from Discord, he puts them all to sleep, saying he can't let anyone remember what happened here. He leaves them an apology cake as well, which is nice.

Cut over to the present day, where the mane six are out at a bazaar or rummage sale of some kind. Rarity's found some sort of necklace, with a stone that not even she nor Twilight can identify. Rarity offers it to Twilight, since the purple matches with her colour scheme, and that's when things get weird. No sooner is it around Twilight's neck does a mysterious voice boom out "FIND THE REST". A voice only she can hear, no less. After a quick reconvening back at the castle, it seems only Twilight can hear the voice, no matter who wears it. Fluttershy is the voice of reason here, suggesting that maybe wearing jewelry that talks to you in a voice nopony else can hear is a bad idea. But that's when the necklace suddenly starts projecting a map. Not just any map, though: it's a star map.

The star map interacts with the Cutie Map in Twilight's castle, showing a projection of the sky and then several objects falling from said sky and impacting with the map of Equestria. There are also a bunch of space-related shout-outs in the star map, and if you recognise them all, you're a bigger nerd than I. Also, the display of the celestial objects impacting Equestria is one of those two-page spreads you have to turn on its side, which is especially difficult with the stiffer prestige-format cover. Anyway, all that aside, Twilight identifies the celestial objects not making Star Trek references as the Andalusian Constellation, a lost constellation that appeared from the sky centuries ago (gonna go out on a limb and guess probably "a thousand years ago"), and then disappeared just as quickly. The origins of both its appearance and disappearance are one of the greatest mysteries in Equestrian astronomy, so Twilight is eager to solve it.

Now, I should note that every time the necklace starts whispering to Twilight, her eyes go a bit... weird. Wobbly and bright pink. So I'm sorry to tell you that everypony's hopes that this will just be a nice, safe adventure about astronomical research are probably going to be dashed rather spectacularly. And indeed, after the rest of her friends depart to make travel plans, Twilight ends up snapping at Spike for daring too close to the necklace, unleashing one of Andy Price's legendary Scary Character Faces, a fan favourite of this blog that we haven't talked about in some time. Once Spike clears out, it is indeed revealed that something's not quite right here. Twilight is being possessed through the necklace by some sort of malevolent entity, one sharing a silhouette and name with the creature banished in the prologue...

Speaking of said prologue, we get another brief scene of probably a thousand years ago, with the same spooky silhouette rampaging. It seems that Discord could even have been in a relationship with this mysterious Cosmos, and now he's looking to break up with her the only way he can think of: by bringing it before Celestia and making it her problem. Real mature, Discord. Anyway, back in the present, the teams and travel plans have all been... planned. Since it's such a big undertaking (both the quest and the milestone comic), there's gonna be some cameo teamups. Pinkie Pie and Big Macintosh will go to Klugetown. Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Spike are off to the Crystal Empire. Zecora and the Crusaders are headed to Griffonstone, while Fluttershy and Angel Bunny are going to scour the Everfree Forest. And finally Twilight herself will take Applejack with her to Canterlot. And when they each recover the fallen stars, bring them back to Twilight. She literally demands it.

We follow that latter team first. Twilight and Applejack ride the train to Canterlot, and Twilight begins to report that her necklace is detecting where the next nearest star fragment is. Despite AJ's concerns, Twilight leads her to the castle. Without even telling the princesses they're there, they head into a secret basement. This is apparently where Celestia stores all the dangerous things she doesn't want lying around the castle, and there's a few more cameos littered in the backgrounds here. The nature of some of this stuff starts to make Applejack even more suspicious, and when she reaches for the necklace, Cosmos drops the facade of being Twilight and attacks AJ. After a short (but really cool) fight, AJ ends up locked in a cage while Cosmos claims her prize.

Since the Everfree Forest is not too far from Fluttershy's place, she has time to stop at home and prepare there, unlike the rest of the teams. Discord's already visiting, and he tries to tempt Fluttershy off to some fantastical adventure. When she explains she's already on one, to find a fallen star, he suddenly begins to panic--especially when he finds out Twilight's already found one of the others. Rather than the Everfree, he warps the both of them to his realm. To Discord's credit, he then tells her exactly what's going on: Cosmos was a magical being like himself, but much more actively malicious. She was imprisoned in the stars, which fell to Equestria to keep them apart. He found the one in the Everfree and hid it himself, to keep it away from anyone else. Fluttershy is understanding, but reasons with him that perhaps they'd better bring the matter to Celestia.

Discord agrees, and the pair retrieve the star from the Everfree, just to further ensure it doesn't fall into the hands of some villain later on. They then warp to Canterlot--Discord's powers really cut down on travel time--where Celestia is waiting for them. Failing their spot check, Twilight grabs the star from them and tosses it to Luna. Now there's three stars, each possessing one of the princesses with a piece of Cosmos' consciousness. Yes, Twilight, Celestia, and Luna are all speaking in unison and getting flirty with Discord. Half of Cosmos being reunited has begun to bring back enough power to start warping the area around them, and Cosmos begins discussing her new takeover with Discord. Discord, however, declines, having reformed since they were last together. Cosmos is deeply displeased to hear he plans to oppose her. So, to distract him, she zaps Fluttershy with some sort of spell to give him something else to worry about, while Cosmos waits for her remaining fragments to return to her...

First of all, congratulations to My Little Pony for reaching 75 issues! It’s very rare to see a comic book reach such a high number nowadays, especially one based on a licensed property. Everyone who’s worked on this series to get it here should be very proud! I’m pretty sure I said the same sort of sentiment fir the 50th issue, and now it’s even more true~

Now then: here’s yet another villain of ages past come to wreak havoc on modern day Equestria, as they so often do. If it was anyone other than Discord, I’m not sure I’d buy the whole memory spell that he used to make them forget the incident, but Discord’s powers can suspend any disbelief. Either way, Cosmos is scary. I know Nightmare Knights just introduced Eris as another sort of “malevolent counterpart to Discord”, but Cosmos sells it way better in her flashback scenes. Additionally, when you finally get to see her in full glory at the end of the issue, she’s way scarier than a big pink anthro bird. And her being able to take over the princesses so easily is highly chilling. Of course, this is also all helped by Andy Price’s art, which continues to knock it out of the park as always~

Whatever she’s up to, we’ll just have to see if the heroes can handle it next issue. I know I’m looking forward to it, and hopefully another 75 more~

#comics #reviews #My Little Pony Friendship is Magic IDW #Taiblog #Cosmos

[thesswrites]

Dragon Age: The Black City

Recently, I’ve been playing through Dragon Age: Inquisition again. While a review will not be forthcoming except by inference, I can say that countless hours of fetch quests are good for one thing - providing time for contemplation of various plot elements that, perhaps unfortunately, tend to get lost in a narrative being forced to spread itself thin against an open world landscape. Some of this does touch on the Trespasser DLC, and is yet another reason why said DLC should have been core content, given how integral it is to the story as a whole.

Summary (keeping in mind that my personal statute of limitations on spoilers is ‘when the DVD comes out’ for movies, three months for TV shows, books and video games) - we discover at the end of Trespasser that the Fade, previously considered the seat of the Maker among other things, is actually a whole section of world locked away by Fen’harel in order to stop his fellow evanuris (worshipped as gods, but not technically gods) from being asshats. This destroyed his world and basically made a whole mess of everything. Trespasser is probably considered DLC because it appears to set up the next game, despite the fact that it’s integral for comprehension of the plot of this one, because the entire plot of Inquisition involves one of the early magisters trying to go meet the Maker in His Golden City and, according to history, starting the Blights. History tells us that the Blights began because the Maker was punishing those early magisters for their hubris, which among other things turned the Golden City into the Black City.

But Corypheus - albeit not the most reliable narrator in the world - claims that the Golden City was never golden to begin with; that it was black and dark and empty.

There are a few things to note here:

Tevinter has seven Old Gods.

Tevinter Old Gods are ‘sleeping beneath the earth’, getting tainted or already so, before being dug up by darkspawn to become archdemons.

In the Dalish pantheon, the last remaining bastion of worship for those ancient Dalish mages who styled themselves gods, there were nine.

Mythal was already in the material plane, in one form or another, as was Fen’harel.

That leaves seven.

If you start Inquisition with a timeline that includes your Warden participating in or agreeing to the Dark Ritual, Flemeth / Mythal does a similar sort of thing to Kieran as Solas did to her after the end credits, just without the disintegration that we see in his wisdom-spirit friend.

The Dark Ritual, recall, was ostensibly to cleanse the Old God’s soul of the taint without destroying it. What Solas did to his wisdom-spirit friend was to free its essence to return in some other form, that hadn’t seen demonic corruption

Fen’harel basically hated each and every one of his fellow evanuris with the exception of Mythal. He hated most of them because they killed Mythal.

Mythal is a dead evanuris, which arguably makes Flemeth / Mythal a spirit having taken a human shape, like Cole. (Certainly explains the phylactery thing, and why she was never planning to possess Morrigan, and why she could apparently body-swap; it’s possible that she is the actual answer to Dorian’s question to Cole about “Could you change what you look like, if you wanted to?”. Also explains why Flemeth looks human, when you’d think she should look elven. Humans blend in better, after all. Also explains...)

Mythal / Flemeth can turn into a fucking dragon. What is the standard form of an archdemon / Old God?

Fen’harel is a vindictive asshole. Possibly not without reason, but a vindictive asshole all the same, with a very single-minded view of what is right and how to avenge perceived wrongs.

So here’s the theory:

Solas didn’t only orchestrate the opening of the Breach in order to try to return the world to what he thinks it should be. Solas as Fen’harel started the Blight in the first place.

Consider: locking away the evanuris and his entire world was a pretty drastic move, but he keeps talking about it like he had to, but when he says it, he sounds like he did when he was discussing his reasons for seeing the Breach sealed in the first place. It’s the vocal tone that says "This is my problem and while I’ll be damned if I admit to having done it, I’ll handle the consequences”.

Also consider his reaction if you don’t exile the Wardens after Adamant. Sure, they were enslaving ‘spirits’, but that was down to Erimond, and with the fear demon dead, no more false Calling to give them problems. There has got to be another reason that he’s not really big on Wardens. They end Blights, the Wardens. They do it by killing Old Gods. Fen’harel is a man who believes that people should suffer for all eternity for their wrongs, if his policy of “locking them all away from the world forever” is any indication. Not to mention the fact that, as well as ending Blights, Wardens also research them. If, say, there was evidence linking Solas to Fen’harel to the Old Gods to the Blights, it’d be a Warden who’d find it. He’d want those nosy bastards as far away from the Inquisition as possible at that point.

In addition to that, there’s the fact that Corypheus found the so-called Golden City black and tainted already. There were legends, probably put together from old fragments of story and documents left behind by the evanuris, talking about what their world used to look like before Fen’harel brought up the Veil. Solas did say when the Anchor is brought up that Tevinter built a lot of itself on very ancient elven magics, the same way that Orlais built a lot of itself upon ancient elven land. So they hear about this Golden City and they go looking for it. Now, if the Blight kicked in immediately upon the raising of the Veil, whether as a separate curse or a direct result of the Veil, there wouldn’t be any record of that left behind because everyone who would have written about it is far on the other side of the Veil. And dreams don’t necessarily show you the truth, as Solas has proved on a couple of occasions - it’s all about perception, the Fade in dreams. It’s only when you go through physically that you see the truth of it, so while Tevinter Somniari might dream of the Golden City, it’s still only their perceptions, or those of the people whose dreams they’re sharing. But if they didn’t know that, Somniari reports of a Golden City as seen in the dreams of those who expected one ... well. That would just make the experiment to physically cross the Veil more appealing.

So when Corypheus and his ilk cross the Veil, they see the tainted Black City and, unwittingly and probably unknowingly, unleash their own Old Gods into the material plane. They bring the Blight with them but, because they’re tired and sick and have been locked away so much, they find nice cozy places to rest in the Deep Roads and beneath until their ‘new worshippers’ dig them up to wreak havoc.

This also, in a sense, explains red lyrium. You go down deep enough, you encounter the hearts of Titans. Those hearts seem to beat lyrium, and may be the source of the entire world’s lyrium supply (and before you say anything, consider how much blood a human being can lose before falling unconscious, then consider a largely immobile creature the approximate size of a country. Blood is self-regenerating, and there’s plenty to go around). You bring a Blighted evanuris in a really big dragon shape down deep enough ... well, the Blight sings, and so does lyrium. Sometimes when you add one song to another, dissonant unpleasantness is the result. Either way, proximity can equal taint. Hence, red lyrium.

Side note: this may also explain why the dwarves severed themselves from ‘the song of the Stone’ - as a defense mechanism. Obviously doesn’t work with prolonged proximity - Bartrand was proof of that - but if the dwarves just stopped hearing the song of lyrium altogether, that would include at least part of the red lyrium song, and combine that with the distancing of themselves from it by, say, abandoning thaigs that were crawling with darkspawn ... no proximity, no sensitivity to lyrium, not being able to be affected by lyrium easily... It’s the only way you could live down there with a Blight percolating like good coffee and not very quickly become the kind of first wave of harbinger that would destroy the world all on your own.

This doesn’t entirely explain what Solas has to gain from tearing the Veil down again. Maybe he’s entirely fixated on restoring his world to what it should be, but he also might be trying to cover up the massive balls-up caused by the magisters who physically crossed the Veil. The Blights may be almost done owing to five evanuris / Old Gods / whatever, but red lyrium is still a problem. Just tearing the Veil down may not solve the problem entirely, but if there was going to be any indication of how to un-Blight things, it would probably be in the place where the Blight originated, rather than where it just turned up. Maybe he wants to put the status quo back together so that he can rebuild the libraries and all the wisdom, and maybe cleanse the Blight for good. Because, you know ... directly or indirectly his fault it happened in the first place.

This is just one theory, mind, and while I have my reasons for believing that Bioware might not survive to make Dragon Age 4, I accept that this may not be ... shocking twist enough to be the actual answer (because unfortunately, shock value trumps Holmesian deduction way too often these days). Still, this is my logically considered headcanon for why the fuck this bullshit is happening in the first place.

#essay #fan theory #dragon age: inquisition

[aion-rsa]

Dragon Quest Games Ranked

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Even if you’ve never played a Dragon Quest game, you’ve undoubtedly played other titles influenced by the series. Basic JRPG tropes like the overhead view, turn-based combat, and the medieval fantasy setting all got their start with the original Dragon Quest (then called Dragon Warrior in the West).

While many of these game design innovations are attributed to Final Fantasy, which was released in North America first, the Japanese release of Dragon Quest actually beat Final Fantasy by a full year at a time when Square and Enix were still separate companies. In fact, Final Fantasy probably wouldn’t exist if not for the massive success of Dragon Quest.

Since then, the series has seen plenty of ups and downs. While Dragon Quest has always been a huge hit in Japan, the original game sold so poorly in the U.S. that it was given away with subscriptions to Nintendo Power. Unsurprisingly, a couple of games in the long-running series took more than a decade to see English language releases. But with the most recent game receiving widespread critical acclaim, and even a nod in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, the series is finally getting the recognition it deserves around the world.

With 2021 marking the 35th anniversary of the first game’s release, there’s no better time rank the best and worst Dragon Quest games in the main series. Unfortunately, we could not include the Japan-only MMORPG Dragon Quest X in this ranking as its never been released in North America.

10. Dragon Quest II: Luminaries of the Legendary Line

1987

Dragon Quest II improved on the original in almost every way, but these days it’s more so viewed as a stepping stone for what the series would become rather than an essential entry. While the first game only allowed for 1v1 encounters, Luminaries of the Legendary Line introduced three-person parties, encounters with multiple enemies, and deeper combat options. 

But those innovations came at a cost, including nasty difficulty spikes and a high encounter rate. Add in a rather rote story about a prince saving the world, and there’s just not much here to justify a playthrough now, even if the many re-releases have slightly improved the gameplay. 

9. Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies

2009 

While well-received when it was released, time hasn’t been especially kind to Dragon Quest IX. It remains a high point in the series for allowing lots of customization for both the main character and party members, but that feature was tied to the game’s online capabilities, and Nintendo shut down its DS network years ago. If you try to play Dragon Quest IX now, you’re just not getting the full experience.

Square Enix has shown a strong willingness to remake and re-release Dragon Quest games over the years, and given that we’ve already seen remakes of the first eight games, it seems like it’s only a matter of time until we see Sentinels of the Starry Skies return in all of its customization glory.

8. Dragon Quest

1986

There’s a reason why so many indie RPGs are still built on the bones of this classic: the great grandfather of the JRPG genre holds up remarkably well 35 years after its initial release. Dragon Quest still has incredible charm and addictive gameplay, even if it isn’t the deepest title when compared to modern RPGs. 

With only five towns, five dungeons, and 1v1 battles, Dragon Quest is a simple and relatively quick playthrough by today’s standards, but it perfectly scratches that role-playing itch if you don’t have the energy to spend hours tweaking a character and planning strategies in a modern game. 

7. Dragon Quest VII: Fragments of the Forgotten Past

2000

Arriving at the tail end of the PS1 era, Dragon Quest VII was in many ways a culmination of what many still consider to be the genre’s golden age. Opening on a small island that at first seems to be the only landmass left on the planet, Fragments of the Forgotten Past features one of the most interesting stories in the series, and the challenging gameplay mixed with the deep class system gives it plenty of legs. 

But Dragon Quest VII also suffers from a major Achilles’s heel: its monumental length. The game certainly straddles the line of what can be considered too long, with a single playthrough typically taking around 100 hours. You have to really, really like the sometimes meandering story and the gameplay to get through this installment. Still, if you have the time and patience to put into it, Fragments of the Forgotten Past delivers like few other RPGs. 

6. Dragon Quest III: The Seeds of Salvation

1988

Dragon Quest III is the first title in the series that really feels like a typical JRPG. It was the Dragon Quest game that introduced the ability to swap between multiple party members throughout the adventure, as well as quality of life improvements like quick item sorting and the ability to fill all HP with a menu command. 

Best of all, The Seeds of Salvation features a more fully fleshed out plot than the first two games. Yes, you’re still the legendary hero out to save the world, but this time when you think you’ve won, the “real” evil appears, and it turns out there’s a lot more game to play, a then-innovative plot twist that would become an RPG staple for years to come. 

5. Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Revelation

1995

Realms of Revelation is a really solid entry in the series that arrived way too late in the West to get its proper due. Originally released for the SNES in 1995 at the peak of its popularity, the big hook is switching between a “real world” full of typical medieval castles and villages, and a more surreal “dream world” made up of people’s dreams. There’s definitely a strong Link to the Past influence.

Unfortunately, Dragon Quest’s popularity was at a low point in North America at the time of its original release, and we only saw the excellent DS port of Dragon Quest VI in 2011. See? There is some hope we might see Dragon Quest X in other territories, it just might take another decade or so. 

4. Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen

1990

For better or for worse, the Dragon Quest games are notorious for following a pretty strict formula of an unnamed hero gathering a party to venture forth and save the world. Dragon Quest IV was the first game in the series to change things up, and the results are still praised three decades later. Instead of starting off as a hero, the first four chapters see you playing as different party members, before finally meeting up with the protagonist in the fifth chapter. Then you save the world. Okay, so it’s not a huge departure from the other games in the series, but each chapter is really well written.  

Originally released in Japan and North America for the NES, Chapters of the Chosen was also remade for the PlayStation 1. The stateside release of that game was cancelled at the last minute, but a second DS remake featuring a brand new sixth chapter eventually saw a worldwide release in 2008.

3. Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of Cursed King

2004

Journey of the Cursed King is the first game in the Dragon Quest series to feature fully 3D graphics, although the classic gameplay didn’t change much. In fact, you still select attacks in first-person mode. But it does feature one of the better stories in any Dragon Quest game. This time, the nameless hero has to save the king, who has been turned into a troll, and the princess, who has been turned into a white horse. Great characters and the inclusion of voice acting elevate the game above most other Dragon Quest titles, and even most JRPGs of the era.

Thanks to the bright, cel-shaded graphics, Dragon Quest VIII has aged remarkably well for a PS2 game, but the 3DS port, with extra playable characters and new story scenes is arguably the definitive version at this point.

2. Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride

1992

Dragon Quest V is still the pinnacle of storytelling for the franchise. The game starts with the birth of the hero, and then proceeds to follow him through the ups and downs of the next three decades of his life. For the first and only time in the series, you’re even joined on your quest by your two children. Hand of the Heavenly Bride delves into the life of its main character in a way that few other JRPGs ever have. Add in the ability to recruit monsters to your party for the first time, and you’ve got the recipe for a legendary adventure.

While Dragon Quest V was well-received in Japan, it arrived at a time when sales for the series were so poor in North America that Enix closed down its American office, so the SNES version was never officially localized. Thankfully, the DS remake finally saw a worldwide release in 2009. That version has gotten pricier in the last few years, but it’s well worth tracking down for any RPG fan.

1. Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age

2017

Echoes an of an Elusive Age is everything that makes the Dragon Quest series great wrapped in a beautiful HD package. The turn-based combat offers more options than ever; the characters, from the magic-wielding sisters Veronica and Serena, to the flamboyant performer Sylvando, are among the most memorable in the entire series; and the story is incredibly deep and emotional. And just when you think you’re finished, a surprising bit of time travel opens up the final third of the game, which is actually its best act.

The original release of Dragon Quest XI would have topped this list, but with the extras added in the 2019 Definitive Edition, it’s going to be difficult for any future title in the series to approach its greatness. Square Enix also added the ability to play the entire game in a 2D mode similar to the Japan-exclusive 3DS version of the game. There are also secret missions that call back to all 10 previous games in the series. Echoes of an Elusive Age is the absolute pinnacle of the series, and easily one of the best RPGs of all time.

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