#tried bracers but they're so uncomfortable

[thefandomwritersblog]

Ghost of the Ten

Horizon: Forbidden West

Hekarro x Fem! Old One OC

Action/Adventure/Romance/Hurt/Comfort

Chapter 8

Part 2: Ghost of the Ten

~~

"The eyes tell me more than words could ever say" - Unknown

~~

As dawn broke and the birds began their chorus, Hekarro still found himself awake, focused on the sky that displayed itself through the broken ceiling. Voices carried through the hallways, soft and near incomprehensible, but he couldn't bring himself to find enjoyment for another day ahead. Not when the night had been sleepless once more, filled with whispers and shadows that brought him no peaceful rest.

He desired nothing more than to remain in the comfort of his bed, surrounded by the sheltering emerald canopy and basking in the soft light of dawn. Total exhaustion had settled over him, weighing heavily on every bone until it ached with weariness. Hekarro tried to reason that another few hours of sleep couldn't hurt, and he was certain that Dekka would gladly watch over the Grove in his place. But his commitment to responsibility brushed away the languidness of sleep. With a ragged yawn, Hekarro eased himself upright and to the edge of the bed. He hovered there for a moment before summoning the motivation to rise and ready himself for the day ahead.

The start of Hekarro's day took him to his usual morning haunt on the arena overlook. As he adjusted the laces of his bracers, his gaze was drawn downward to the Oseram workers below. He watched in admiration and awe as the sun crested over the horizon, bathing everything in a golden sheen. He had to acknowledge the ingenuity of the Oseram; they brought their own kind of life and vibrancy to all their endeavors, including Petra's repairs to the arena. There was something beautiful in seeing the determination of the workers, and in knowing that each stride they took brought them one step closer to fulfilling their goals. It was truly a testament to their vision, resilience and capacity for innovation.

A momentary flicker of movement grabbed Hekarro's eye, and he turned to the soldiers stationed near the Maw entry. Three men and two women in heavy armor stared at the Oseram gruffly, exchanging harsh whispers as they stood guard on either side of the open gate.

Hekarro slipped away from the overlook to the Maw with a quiet, displeased grumble. The guards snapped to attention at his approach, exchanging anxious glances between each other. His icy stare settled on them and the silence was heavy, making them shift uncomfortably on their feet.

"Anything to report?"

A Desert Clan woman shook her head, "Nothing out of the ordinary, Chief Hekarro."

She shrank beneath his gaze as he hummed softly, "So why am I seeing five guards with their eyes on the Oseram like they're expecting them to do something wrong?"

Hekarro stared at the guards, waiting for them to answer, but was met with only silence. He shook his head in disappointment and said,

"It's clear that you have nothing else better to do. I suggest you find Marshal Ivvira and do a patrol of the Grove borders. It might give you some perspective. You're dismissed."

With a wave of his hand, Hekarro dismissed the five guards and watched them scatter through the Maw. Satisfied with their departure, he turned his attention to the Oseram workers once again. Despite the guards' presence, they had kept focused on their task. Hekarro imagined that it must have been difficult to ignore their watchful eyes. However, something told him that their diligence had more to do with their own pride and dedication than anything else.

He took note of how they worked in teams; one group would haul away debris while another began to mark the walls and parapets for future work. Their coordination was impressive; no energy was wasted as they quickly transitioned from task to task without missing a beat. He could only imagine Petra's pride in her people and their accomplishments thus far despite the odds stacked against them.

The tranquility of his contemplations was suddenly broken by his name, called out in alarm. His heart leapt into his throat as Kotallo scrambled up the ramp, his face twisted with distress. A chilling dread crept over him, each concern more terrifying than the next. Was there another cave collapse? Had something sinister emerged from the bowels of the facility? Was the Old One on the brink of death with nothing they could do to save her...?

Kotallo turned without a single word, the unspoken tension between them so thick it felt like a tangible force. They ran back towards the underground tunnels, where they were enveloped by oppressive darkness, their feet pounding against the damp stone beneath them with an almost frantic urgency.

"She's awake." Kotallo said once he was sure they were alone, ducking in through the threshold to the facility, "Before I left to find you, Beta and Aloy were trying to get her to relax; she was in complete hysterics."

All was silent when they finally stepped into the dimly lit antechamber. Beta lingered close to the Old One's side. Aloy stood against the wall, her hands clasped tightly in front of her, watching them with a mixture of fear and anticipation.

Hekarro turned to look at Aloy, his voice soft and gentle. "Did you manage to talk to her?"

"She was in a complete panic," she explained quietly with a shake of her head. "Beta gave her a small dose of the sedative to get her to calm down. I also figured you'd want to be here too."

Hekarro quietly trailed Aloy to the Old One, his gaze fixated on her tightly knitted brows as she slumbered with unease. He gradually made his way around the small cot until he arrived at the foot of the bed, and gave a slight nod when Beta directed her glance towards him. The young girl gingerly reached out and touched the woman's shoulder,

"Are you still with us?"

The Old One stirred with a groan, opening her eyes to gaze the ceiling. Her face twisted with irritation, as if her frustration had been reignited from the realization that she was still without sight. Hekarro studied her as the air thickened, her sightless stare darting around the chamber as if desperately attempting to locate them. Eventually, whether deliberately or unintentionally, the storm of her ocean blue eyes drifted towards him at the foot of her bed.

"What now," she hissed between clenched teeth, "Looking to pump more drugs into me?"

Beta shifted uneasily on her knees, "Not unless you give me a reason to." She replied diplomatically, "I just...wanted to ask you some questions, that's all. Is that okay?"

The Old One refused to answer Beta, her gaze hardening and lifting towards the ceiling in clear defiance. Hekarro saw her jaw shift ever so slightly, the hand beneath the blanket tensing and relaxing as a hush fell over them. Beta shared a helpless look at him, momentarily confounded, until he cautiously encircled the bed to settle opposite her. The Old One's sightless gaze darted his way, as if she could detect him somewhere in the obscurity of her vision.

He found himself entranced by the fierce tempest of her stare. A maelstrom of azure and slate beckoned him in, threatening to engulf him in their fury.

"I know you're very scared," he murmured, "but we cannot help you if you don't let us."

The Old One almost sneered at him, her lips quivering with distrust. "And why should I trust you?" she spat.

Hekarro laughed lightly, a sound that carried throughout the room as if it were its own entity. His chuckle earned him a blink of dumbstruck surprise from the Old One. "You would be a fool to trust someone you can't see."

She regarded him warily before she returned her gaze to the ceiling and said, "Then I guess we're at a crossroads here."

"We don't have to be." He replied calmly. His response surprised her. She wrinkled her nose, scoffed under her breath, blinking as she regarded the silence as it stretched on. Hekarro couldn't help but akin this exchange to a fierce duel between two warriors; each move carefully planned, an agitated dance where they sought to outwit one another. He was no fool; he had been well aware that the sedative Beta had administered to the Old One had worn off much earlier than expected.

The room was frozen, holding its breath in anticipation until finally—

"My name is Victoria," The Old One said, "but that's all I'm willing to tell you right now."

Everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief, and despite the fact that she couldn't see it, Hekarro smiled at her. "As you say, Victoria."

He glanced at Aloy as she took Beta away from the side of The Old One—Victoria. They moved aside to exchange low whispers while Kotallo, who had lingered near the door, gave him a nod. Hekarro eventually returned his focus to Victoria. With a sudden flicker, her eyes locked with his, and he once more found himself enraptured in the tempestuous sea of emotion that lay within.

It was surreal to sit in the presence of this woman. She was a living, breathing remnant of mankind's past. A piece of their history given a voice, and yet he still couldn't decide if she was a blessing given by their ancestors or an ill omen of events to come.

"Where am I?"

"What do you remember?" He asked softly; a question that earned him an irritated scoff.

"I think I reserve the right to ask some of my own questions here."

His mouth curved in amusement at her caustic humor, "A trade then." He offered her, "A question for a question. Does that sound fair."

She let out an unamused noise low in her throat, her sightless eyes focusing on him for a moment before she muttered, "Yeah, alright. I'll give ya an easy one: what's your name?"

"Hekarro."

His answer certainly gave her pause for thought before she suddenly blurted out, "What kind of name is that?"

Hekarro shook his head, a smile playing on his lips. "I believe it is my turn for a question," he reminded her. She responded with an exasperated huff and a nod, evidently annoyed that he wasn't willing to entertain her outburst.

It was evident that Victoria was easily agitated, liable to become upset by the slightest inconvenience. He wanted to understand her, but he wasn't sure what to think of it. On one hand, her forthrightness could do more harm than good. Still, he couldn't forget that she was blind and being questioned by strangers. He could hardly fault her for being so cold in such an unsettling situation. He'd likely act the same way if put in her position.

"What's the last thing your remember?" He asked eventually.

"That's the third time you asked that question, why do you want to know so much?"

He remained silent as he curiously observed her expression, waiting for the response he wanted. She shot him an annoyed look before she glanced away, muttering under her breath as if trying to convince herself of something. Hekarro thought she was done with him until she eventually spoke up.

"I remember...talking to Colonel Faraday. She was taking me off the frontlines. We got into an argument, and then I blacked out."

Hekarro squinted at her, mouth turning down as he hummed in thought. She was not lying to him – but she wasn’t being completely truthful either. Before he could try to pick apart her answer, however, she nodded towards Aloy and Beta-both still whispering to each other nearby.

"Who's the peanut gallery?"

He hesitated, trying to grasp the meaning of her question before delicately responding.

"They are two sisters, beta and Aloy, and my Marshal Kotallo. They have all been seeing to your care."

Hekarro could tell the instant when her patience had been stretched to its breaking point. An ugly sneer crossed her features, and the maelstrom in her eyes festered into a raging hurricane.

"Look, if you're just gonna sit here and fuck with me, you can leave!" She snapped, "How stupid do you think I am to believe names like that? Are you serious?"

He studied her intently. Felt the tightness in his chest as he tried to remain composed, the heat of anger rising in him, but he searched for a way to quell it with understanding and empathy.

"I assure you, they are all genuine names." He spoke calmly, yet his response only seemed to incite her ire further. "Is Anne Faraday your mother?"

Her words evaporated in the air as a wave of volcanic fury erupted across her face, illuminating every feature with blazing indignation.

"Why do you care?"

The searing wrath that simmered in the room was almost palpable, emanating from Victoria like a rolling tide. The silence of the room stretched on, all eyes turned to Victoria as she seethed. Finally, fueled by her rage, the Old One pushed herself up to sit, turning her burning eyes towards him. The hues of slate and sapphire in their depths swallowed him whole, dragging him into an unforgiving maelstrom of her anger and fear.

"Who are you really? Did the Colonel put you up to this?"

The room erupted in chaos as Beta flew across the space between her and the cot with lightning speed. Clutched in her hand was another syringe, ready to be injected into Victoria's arm. But as she went in for the grab, Victoria retaliated with a sharp smack that caught Beta off guard.

"Don't you dare touch me! Answer my question!"

Aloy and Kotallo moved to intervene, but Hekarro restrained them with a single, commanding gesture. There was no point in panic. Forcing Victoria to do as they wanted would not make her more favorable towards them. Sure that he had the obedience of the room, he turned a careful gaze to the seething Old One at his side.

"I would rather avoid having to sedate you again, Victoria." He said evenly, doing his best to remain cool and calm, "Please--"

"No!" The room froze, watched as Victoria snarled, "I'm done playing games; it's my turn to ask the questions. Who are you? Where exactly am I? And where is Colonel Faraday?!"

Her demands thundered through the small room with an unbreakable ferocity. It was a tone he knew well -- the same steel-like authority of his commanders, forbidding and unbending.

In that moment, it was clear to all what needed to be done - Victoria had to be told the difficult truth. Yet, the question remained on who had the heart to take that burden.

"Our names aren't a lie, Victoria." Aloy slowly stepped closer to the bed where the Old one turned her sightless gaze to her. "My name is Aloy, and... right now we're in an abandoned facility beneath the Mojave Memorial Museum."

"And the Colonel?"

An eternity of dread seemed to pass as Hekarro's gaze bored into Victoria. Her rage boiled over until it slowly dissipated like smoke, replaced by a sense of creeping terror.

"Where is my mother?"

"We..." Aloy hesitated, "found you. In a cryostasis chamber assigned to Anne Faraday."

The room filled with an oppressive silence as Victoria tried to comprehend the words spoken. Her knuckles turned white as her fists clenched tightly in her lap and her chest rose and fell as she struggled to breathe. Hekarro caught a brief glimmer of tears behind her eyes, shimmering in the dim light, before she fought for composure against the wave of despair that threatened to consume her.

“How long?” she asked, her voice barely a whisper. She screamed when no one answered her, "How long?!"

"Almost a thousand years."

A single utterance, so innocent in its simplicity, yet heavy with the understanding of a dark truth. Hekarro saw it in her eyes—the sudden awareness and dread that what she had feared was real. Despair manifested itself into her visage, and terror blazed from her unblinking gaze. He could offer no comfort but sitting there, watching as Victoria’s world shattered around her.

And her scream, the rage and anguish in it's very core, ripped his soul asunder.

#horizon forbidden west #hfw #hfw fanfic #horizon forbidden west fanfiction #hekarro #chief hekarro #my writing #ghost of the ten

[kozidraws]

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#i just want to hurry up and be fantastic at my job #because it's a hybrid office/work from home #and I just want days where i can rest my legs #but it will take 6 months apparently #🤏 close to buying a cane next month #tried bracers but they're so uncomfortable #gah #kozi rambles

[shizukateal]

In light of the Tokyo Mew Mew reboot being revealed, what do you think of the new designs? (Personally, I'm a huge fan! I love the triangle trimming, it adds a lot.)

Oh, we have visual confirmation? Let's see-

Oh umhnsnojnernjvrkslfsd.

Sorry, anon, I disagree. Most of these choices are downgrades.

Like, ok, I guess this is my fault because most of the time I bring them up as negative examples, but the truth is that I always thought that the original Tokyo Mew Mew Costumes where pretty much perfect shape-wise. That's kind of part of my mild frustration with them: individually, the outfits are so good that to solve their main problem -the fact that they are all monochrome and thus look un-cohesive and loud when put together- you'd need to do some extreme changes to even add neutral colors, like white. And guess what? THIS DOESN'T EVEN FIX THAT. Instead now the chokers have ribbons in them. WHY? The originals were perfectly fine and iconic, these neck ribbons are a lot more generic by comparison and are a lot more distracting, and the ones on the leg bracers are worse!

Ok, that merits some elaboration. I should probably make a separate post about this but long story short, the thing with ribbons, frills/lace and tails is that they are eye-catching so everything about them -shape, color, placement- has to be very carefully balanced. The leg ribbons not only pull the eye towards the leg because they're big, they also dangle, and that movement competes with the other looser parts of the design, which is especially problematic for this team which has mostly athletic ways to move thanks to their powers. The neck ribbons technically make sense because they all wear corsets and that's a tried and tested combination in playboy bunny-girl costumes which are the trunk of this team's style, but guess what? NONE of the girls are playboy bunnies!!! No, not even Mew Berry!!!! ALL of them have other stuff going on in their costumes that competes with these ribbons! "But Zakuro/Reneé is skimpy-" Zakuro is not skimpy in a way that allows for this cutesy bullshit!!! She is a bad bitch who uses a goddamn whip, which btw she should be allowed to show off all the time instead of being forced to carry the hilt alone. Oh god, the pendants have been replaced with boring hearts as well which was the one thing they all shared in the same shape and color and was UNIQUE TO THE FRANCHISE, it's like they're trying to piss me off.

And again, sorry anon, you are completely entitled to your tastes, but I hate the triangular lace trimming. It's pointy, looks uncomfortable, it distracts the eye, it makes the outfits harder to draw, and like every other bad choice in this reboot it takes away from the slickness of the original designs. It also doesn't make sense??? I mean, for Ichigo it does because her fruit is a strawberry, but like... they had fur lining... because they are furries. I don't understand why they needed to be changed into this.

It's too late now, but I guess I'll get into the specifics:

Mew Ichigo:

Ok, the one good choice the reboot does is keep her hair red. Yes, the cotton candy bob is very cute and fluffy, whatever you say, but between the inside of the ears and the eyes and the rest of her clothes it was always a bit too much. And like I said, the lace trimming almost works for her theme, but putting it below the skirt is pointless, because HER TOP ALREADY ENDS IN LEAVES OVER THE BALLOONED SKIRT GIVING THE SHAPE OF A STRAWBERRY. The skirt is also rounder now btw, and I don't it works as well because between the height at which its placed and the leaves it kinda bulks up her stomach, although that just may be the position she's in in this picture, but in any case it doesn't fit her movement. Heavy ballooned skirts work better for girls who bounce or glide/fly, not girls who backflip and land on 4 legs. (A post about how magical girl mobility affects the outfits will now begin process to explain this further) For some reason they also decided to give her boots white laces which match with absolutely nothing and oh??? They took away the ribbon in her glove??? Probably because they realized it would compete with her new neck ribbon????? You know, I have an idea guys, what if... and hear me out on this one... you just leave the chockers as they were????? I see that all the girls have the hearts in their gloves now, does that mean that they all activate their attacks the same way she did??? That seems arbitrary to me but, hey, if you want to go through all these twists and turns go off I guess...

Mew Mint

I always liked Mint's outfit because of how extremely simple but effective it is. She is sprite-like, dainty, ephemeral yet pointy, so her mini-dress is extremely simple, and the way it form-fits to her leaving the skirt with minimal movement brings more attention to the way her body moves when she does ballet, which is why her transformation sequence is my favorite. Her short boots are also a stroke of genius, allowing her to stand on pointe and make her ballet moves comfortably without loosing practicality, so her gloves were made to match that style. All of the new accessories on this reboot take away from that, even the laces on her boots, but especially the hair. No idea why they needed to change that, her look is already iconic and passes the silhouette test, but while I'm certainly not against ballerina characters with loose hair, the fact is that it does take away from conveying to us that she has that ability.

Mew Lettuce:

(Tumblr doesn't allow more than 10 images per post, which is bullshit so here's the link to her wiki page to see her original outfit)

Lettuce was always the worst dressed on the team, even though it wasn't because any of her choices were bad on their own. Her outfit was fine, shape wise, but it hardly ever felt like it fit her personality, which wasn't helped by the fact that out of all the Mew Mew's she's the one with the least specific way of moving. Her early 2000's hair looked stiff and too big for her braid, the ribbons symbolizing her antennae were always an odd choice, and she had the same problem as Ichigo in that her hair and eye color were too bright and made her look especially like an eyesore. So, does she look better with this redesign? Eh... yeah, I guess, but I still can't quite abide by calling this fully competent. Her skirt does wear the triangular lace trim better than the rest, but that doesn't mean I have to like it in the gloves and sleeves, or in the leg bracer, and with the new laces on the boots it takes away from the idea that Lettuce is the water-type of the team. I do like the ribbon behind her hair, but guess what?? Say it with me: it competes with the ribbon in front of it, and since they're allowing her to keep her 2 braids this time, it doesn't even look like it connects to anything!!!! But hey, congrats to her for getting the most out of this.

Mew Pudding:

Whyyyyyyy would you give Pudding a skirt?? What in the hell did they think was wrong with her short? SHE'S THE ACROBATIC MARTIAL ARTIST, IT'S PRACTICAL AND CUTE!!! This fucking reboot, I swear, it thinks ALL the girls were somehow too tomboyish and now it's forcing them to be more femenine with all these... unnecessary ribbons, her braids are longer and that doesn't look good, she's not allowed to wear her fur gloves which looked comfier, nor her baggy leg-warmers, no siree, non of that mildly tomboyish bullshit that shed light on her interests and abilities, only form fitting socks over flats and fucking laces and ribbons everywhere and you know what why don't we add ponytails that distract even more from the ear tufts just in case?

Mew Zakuro:

Ok look. I get why you would make Zakuro wear something underneath her shorts but why did it need to be this weird, pointy, uncomfortable-looking triangle... biker shorts?? Like... yeah, ok, Zakuro is sexualized, not gonna deny that, not gonna pretend like there isn't something to discuss there, but like... THIS DOESN'T EVEN FIX THAT! Fuck, if anything it almost makes it worst because her short in the reboot is tinier than the original and the ribbons actually infantilize the look! WHY does she need ribbons in her hair? Why change her bracelets for the pointy wrist-gloves??? I also don't quite dig the straighter, longer hair, taking away the pointiness makes her look less fierce and more traditionally beautiful in Japanese tastes. I get that she's a model, but goddamn it, she was never the "proper", lady-like, older sister type, she is THE MYSTERIOUS LONER OF THE GROUP.

I just... I don't get it dude. I mean yeah, I complained about the original designs before, but I don't get why make this changes in particular. Who saw these girls and told the designer "yeah we need them to be more femme"? Girls LOVE the original outfits, they are incredibly popular in cosplay and fanart!!!

#magical girl fashion #tokyo mew mew #mew ichigo #mew mint #mew lettuce #mew pudding #mew zakuro #ichigo momomiya #mint aizawa #lettuce midorikawa #purin fong #zakuro fujiwara #ask