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barbwritesstuff · 2 years

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I posted 1,568 times in 2021

1122 posts created (72%)

446 posts reblogged (28%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 0.4 posts.

I added 42 tags in 2021

#rec list - 6 posts

#fanart - 6 posts

#youtube - 6 posts

#oc - 6 posts

#crying wolf - 5 posts

#update - 4 posts

#i will update when the moon is full - 3 posts

#for the sergi fanclub - 2 posts

#vampires - 2 posts

#not werewolves - 2 posts

Longest Tag: 76 characters

#i guess i should actually spend some time trying to figure out how tags work

My Top Posts in 2021

Happy New Moon!

I hope you enjoy this dark, spooky night. I'm spending it locked away in my cabin, working on the update. It's going to be a steamy one!

Thanks for all the fun asks you guys have sent me over the last month.

Unfortunately, I am (due to a series of bad life choices on my part) poor, so if you have any spare change, and if you've enjoyed Blood Moon, I'd really appreciate it if you could send it my way.

But, if you can't, that's perfectly fine too. I really appreciate all the people who have been sending me spelling mistakes, typos, and bugs. It might not seem like much, but you're really helping Blood Moon become a better game, and I am so grateful for that.

265 notes • Posted 2021-12-03 21:02:36 GMT

Happy Full Moon!

The update is live. You can read it here: Blood Moon Demo.

288 notes • Posted 2021-08-22 11:23:59 GMT

Happy full moon!

The update is live! You can check it out here.

A lot has happened to me this month. The biggest of those things is I have moved. I’m not in South Korea anymore, I’m in New Zealand.

I’m still getting used to saying kia ora instead of annyeonghaseyo, but I’m happy to be this little bit closer to home.

A side effect of me being so close to the dateline though is that the full moon might happen on a different date for me than for you. So, I’m sorry if this update feels late. I (as I always do) waited until I saw the moon before posting. It's beautiful here. I hope it's beautiful where you are too.

But, now, onto the serious stuff.

This update is a little different. I’ve been trying to figure out ways to make the final chapters as good as they can be without overwhelming myself. I’ve also been trying to find a way to give the ROs from Pack B a little more screen time. Part of this process has unfortunately involved removing some segments of the story, and changing existing ones. In particular, I have changed a lot in Chapter Nine. Hopefully, when you read it, you’ll understand why.

It’s also not finished. I’m in the middle of this editing process, so it’s a bit messy, and there are bits that may not quite make sense. I’ll try my best to have those cleaned up by next month.

Thanks as always for all your support. You guys are honestly incredible. I’m sorry if this update wasn’t what you were hoping for. I know it’s not Chapter 11 or 12, but hopefully by editing and tightening up other chapters those final chapters will be really good when they do come out. 💙

314 notes • Posted 2021-10-21 09:20:02 GMT

410 notes • Posted 2021-09-13 14:28:56 GMT

Okay so totally random thought: Werewolves that behave like stereotypical vampires! Living in an old castle, wearing either old style clothing or well tailored suits, talking about history like they lived during it... turns out they are just all massive history nerds who like dressing up.

Hunter: "Ah-ha! I've got you now! Take this!" *rips down the curtains*

Werewolf: *blinks*

Hunter: *blinks*

Werewolf: "Why did you just ruin my drapes?"

Hunter: "You're not burning up?"

Werewolf: "Oh... you thought I was vampire. Ah. I see. You just tried to kill me."

Hunter: "Wait... so... you're not a vampire?"

Werewolf: "No." *takes off glasses*

Hunter: "But... the castle."

Werewolf: "I've spent years paying off the mortgage." *undoes his cufflinks*

Hunter: "What about all the bats?"

Werewolf: "Yes... we've been having a bit of a problem with them this year." *takes off his fancy tailored waist coat*

Hunter: "And the bottles of blood?!"

Werewolf: "My boy, it's Shiraz." *pulls out his belt*

Hunter: "So... I was wrong. You're human?"

Werewolf: "Well..." *eyes start to glow gold* "I wouldn't say that."

518 notes • Posted 2021-09-26 13:13:57 GMT

Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review →

#my 2021 tumblr year in review #your tumblr year in review

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alkhale · 4 years

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Typetober Day 12: locked here for forever

pls don’t kill me, I wanted to do the whole new chapter but i’m not totally done with changing some things up at the end and I’m on a time crunch because i’ve got crap to finish for school and two more essays to vomit out (hahaha, but good thing i can type a lot, right!?! ;-;) please take these meager offerings of the teaser for the next chapter instead

Story: Locked Here for Forever (Blurb of Chapter 3)

Fandom: One Piece, Modern AU, Memos Modern AU

Pairing: Dark!Sabo/Oc/Dark!Ace (Rated NSFW but this blurb is okay)

(locked here for forever)

Hoku cradled the mug of hot tea in her hands, watching the murky red color swirl as steam wafted up. There was a faintly sweet smell to it, noting something different from just apples. Herbal?

Sabo had told her there was already a pot steeped for her if she wanted it, some nice brand from some place she forgot the name of he was starting to like apparently.

She thumbed the bits of graphite still staining the curve of her hand. She watched it smear under her thumb, graying her skin. It was a familiar look, the same way Hoku liked to feel the hard, chipped and flaky feel of paint still lingering on her skin. A bit of slow music was coming from the stereo behind her, filling the silence for her comfort. Ace’s taste? It seemed they had remotes to control all sorts of different parts of the apartment. Luxury places like this do it differently. She hadn’t seen a single normal light switch since walking through their door.

Hoku sat alone beside the dining table in Ace and Sabo’s luxurious apartment, the sleek, shiny material she didn’t know the name of showing her unreadable expression right back at her. The high ceilings and sheer size of the nicely decorated, well furnished apartment made the feeling feel much more powerful. Sitting here beside this table, Hoku felt a bit small

But she didn’t really know how to admit that she was glad to have a second to herself either. Do I really need it? I’m fine, right? She felt fine. Ace and Sabo had offered to come out and see her off if she had to leave right away, but she’d ushered them on, telling them they could go… clean up and shower or whatever they might need.

She’d wait.

“Wait in the dining room for us then,” Sabo had said, smiling warmly at her, exactly the same way he smiled at her in the cafe.“Or the living room if you want to make yourself comfortable. We’ll be finished in just a bit, alright?”

It’d been a bit hard to keep her eyes focused on him when Hotaru was still in the room as Sabo adjusted his robe, tying it off at his waist. Hoku remembered the surge of uncertainty rising up in her chest as she gently held the drawing between her fingers, not knowing whether or not she should say something to Hotaru or just keep her mouth shut. If this had been a normal shoot or session, she’d have thanked the models and started up small talk if the mood struck, but this wasn’t exactly… a conventional shoot.

Hotaru had been wrapped up in the thick duvet, sitting on the corner of the bed and looking away from them as she scrolled through her phone. The slender curve of her neck, pointedly turned away from the three of them, had pushed Hoku to decide she probably should just keep her mouth shut. But she’s the one who wants this, right? Maybe she wasn’t expecting… no, no, Sabo said she knew I’d be female… she’s probably more comfortable with that… maybe it’s just awkward?

Hoku could understand that. She tried to rationalize it. Of course it’d be a little awkward. This wasn’t exactly an everyday request for a portrait of a beloved pet or family member. Hoku was just working, after all, there wasn’t any reason for them to talk beyond that.

Still though. Hoku glanced Hotaru’s way, unable to help herself. She doesn’t seem very happy that I’m here.

“Hoku?”

Hoku jumped, turning quickly back to Sabo. He’d smiled back at her, easy and polite as he gestured for her to move toward the other side of the room—on her way to the door. “I suppose we can talk more in a second. Ace and I won’t take long.”

“Unless you want to join!” Ace had shouted from somewhere down the hall with a chortling snicker. Sabo rolled his eyes and Hoku snorted, carefully rolling up the drawing she’d finished and handing it to Sabo.

“Here,” Hoku had handed Sabo the drawing. “We can talk more after. Let me know if she has any questions.”

Sabo has smiled, eyes crinkled at the corners, full of warmth and appreciation. It’d made Hoku suddenly think there wasn’t any reason for her to think of anything else after all.

(She was just helping out.)

A bit of sweat rolled down the side of her neck now. Hoku reached up and rubbed it away, smoothing out a little crick in her neck while she was at it. Her hair was pulled back into that messy ponytail, a few stray strands sticking out. A small bag of her supplies sat beside her on the table top, drawing her attention.

That hadn’t been so bad. She just needed to not think about it. Yeah, that’s just about it, right? To not put much more thought in the aftermath—it was done with now, and it was nothing more than a commissioned job. This was definitely different from anything Hoku had done before, but it was a good chance to experience something new. Step outside her comfort zone a little to find something new about herself. This is nothing but a good opportunity.

Hoku glanced back to her pencils.

She imagined her hand sliding across the paper to the sound of breathy moans. To the quiet sound of skin sliding against skin. Of—

“Sabo. Sabo, please—”

“We should give her a hand.”

“Did you like that—”

“Do you like it?”

Hoku jumped, knees smashing into the underside of the table. The very same tea almost sloshed out as well had she not moved her hands to try and scoop it back into the cup. She almost screamed, but only managed a startled, wheezing gasp instead.

Sabo looked horribly apologetic, pressing fingertips to his lips in a wince at her reaction.

Tea. Hoku’s mind automatically supplied, maybe for her sake. Tea. He’s talking about the tea.

“Good,” Hoku said intelligently. “Tea. Tea good.”

Ace broke out into a guffaw behind Sabo. The other brother quirked a brow at Hoku, looking hopelessly amused. Water dripped down the ends of their tangled locks, rolling across Sabo’s neck and disappearing into the line of his robe.

Hoku offered them a bit of a constipated smile.

Bonus:

“You ever think about getting laid?”

Law stared at his soup as though the liquid had just parted its lips and asked him the question itself.

He stared at it longer, for good measure, making sure he wasn’t seeing things after running an almost 72-hour shift non-stop dealing with both a nasty, unfortunate pile-up and some crazed stalker lashing out at his victim in a near fatal stab wound.

Law slowly turned his head to look at the young woman beside him. Hoku didn’t even blink, calmly moving her spoon through her own soup—she wasn’t much of a soup person, save for a few different dishes, but Hoku was usually always willing to try anything once, and she was even more willing to cave and eat something if it was for the sake of the other person.

She didn’t even look that tired, despite how late into the night it was beginning to be—and sporadic as Hoku’s schedule was, she always tended to get a little tired around this time before ignoring it in favor of work if she had any.

No, wait, aside from that—Hoku had just asked him a question. Not the soup. Hoku.

Law pinched the bridge of his nose for a second, rubbing the tired lines under his eyes before he refocused on her, brows furrowed and lip curling downwards in—in something.

“Do I what?”

Maybe he’d heard wrong.

“Sex,” Hoku said again, changing the vocabulary up a bit. “You ever think about it sometimes?”

Law stared at her for what might have very well been more than ten minutes to his frying, failing brain. He opened his mouth, closed it, jaw setting to the side as he tried to focus on Hoku’s face and make sure he wasn’t seeing double—make sure he hadn’t actually been gassed by one of the new anesthesiologists.

“What?” Law said, because no, it seemed the 72-hour shift had killed a bit of his cognitive process off after all.

Hoku brought the spicy beef broth to her lips, taking a long slurp.

(more to come soon! ty for your patience!)

#typetober #memos #locked here for forever #lhff #hoku #ace #sabo #memos au #trafalgar law #law #alktypetober #HoBo #ace and hoku had a cute one but i can't remember the tag rn

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cienie-isengardu · 3 years

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The Development of Law and Zoro relationship: Wano, Luffy & Zoro Means Troubles…

<Part I: Before Meeting>> <<Part II: Sabaody Archipelago, The First Meeting>> <<Part III: Punk Hazard: The Alliance (A)__(B)>> <<Part IV: Dressrosa, The Breaking Point (The Plan Failed)__ (Saving Law)__(Protecting Law)__ (Birdcage, Pica and Doflamingo)__ (Aftermath)>> <<Part V: Zou, The Kindred Spirits (Traveling Together)__(Searching for Nakama)__ (Reunion)__ (Ninja-Pirate-Mink-Samurai Alliance)__(The Last Moments before War)>> Part VI: Wano, Against Emperors (The Untold Journey)__(Luffy & Zoro Means Troubles…)__(...and Law Is Not Happy About That)

Somehow the alliance got into Wano without enemy notice. There, Kinemon separated his allies into smaller teams, all with their own task at hand. Surprising, during the little flashback of that moment (chapter 909), Law was not seen when the samurai explained situation to Straw Hats:

Kinemon warned Straw Hats they “must pass yourselves off as locals and quietly, quietly go about your duties”. He gave pirates an individual roles:

➣ Zoro, as ronin, Usopp as street salesman and Robin, as geisha, were supposed to infiltrate capital and gather either informations or allies there

➣ Franky, as an apprentice, worked under carpenter who built Kaido’s mansion, in hopes to gain plans of enemy fortress, so the alliance could learn its arrangement before the raid.

➣ Law and Heart Pirates (as far as we were shown at that moment) stayed with samurais in the ruins of the Oden Castle in Kuri region and were stealing food and water from the enemy.

Chapter 918 notes Law was aware about Zoro’s role, however when and how he was informed is not clear. The lack of one of alliance leaders during the meeting between Kinemon and Straw Hats raises questions such as why Trafalgar wasn’t present and did samurai decide to keep knowledge about Zoro, Robin, Franky and Usopp and their tasks to themselves? On one hand, it makes sense. Secrecy was important to secure their plan as best as possible - a matter that will play a bigger role in the upcoming chapters; the less people knew what Straw Hats would be doing, the better chance to avoid information leak. But at the same time, if Law was informed about at least Zoro’s job, why not let him take part in the meeting? Unless he did learn about Zoro’s task after Pirate Hunter became an infamous wanted man, but about that more in a moment.

We may only wonder why Kinemon decided to keep Heart Pirates with himself, instead of sending them straight away undercover like Straw Hats. There are few reasons that could have influenced his decision:

➣ Law’s powers were useful for stealth and stealing.

➣ The two Supernovas serving Kaido - Hawkins Basil and X-Drake - actually came from North Blue, the same as Trafalgar. How well they knew each other is up to debate, but since all three went to the Grand Line at the same time, it makes sense they at least had some basic knowledge about each other. Which may be a reason why Law stayed with Kinemon instead of playing a similar role to Zoro.

➣ Another possibility is that Straw Hats could be simply better at pretending to be locals and/or had needed skills. In case of Zoro, the little details presented in manga and SBS suggest he grew up influenced by samurai culture due to his (still not explored) connection to the Shimetsuki clan.

Unfortunately, Zoro - working under the name of Zorojuurou - couldn’t continue his mission, because he killed a corrupt magistrate and most likely other samurais present at that time, thus became an outlaw. Since the knowledge about “murderous ronin” was spread in the whole country, it may explain why (how) Law learned about Zoro’s secret mission.

Wandering through the wasteland, Zoro met Luffy who finally arrived in Wano.

Luffy barely got to Kaido’s country and he already befriended a local little girl, Tama, who due to poisoned water, fell ill. Straw Hat decided to take her to the nearest village, to seek help. On his way, he met Zoro who at the same time just saved Tsuru (another native person) from bad guys. Soon after that both got into a fight with Basil Hawkins and the Beast Pirates.

Once they managed to run away from pursuit and got into the relatively safe Okobore Town, Straw Hats were noticed by Bepo, Sachi and Penguin, who observed the area from a nearby mountain on which Oden Castle was built.The mentioned Heart Pirates were worried that Straw Hats could start some troubles (chapter 913).

In the end, Heart Pirates decided to not interfere… at least until they saw that Zoro and Luffy were heading into Bakura Town controlled by Kaido’s men and immediately notified Law (chapter 914).

↪ Law was chilling out lying on the ground. It seems he likes resting (or maybe napping?) in his free time, what was already seen before time-skip, when Trafalgar lied on Polar Tang’s deck, using Bepo as a pillow. Maybe Law has problems with irregular sleep (or lack therefore) and/or using Ope Ope no Mi exhausted him so much that, like Zoro, he needs to regenerate his energy by napping/lying down?

↪ The same as Zoro, Law was surprised by Luffy’s presence in Wano but the similarity ends there. Zoro was delighted when he met Luffy and although he passed on the Kinemon’s warning, he wasn’t much bothered by how they together caused new trouble for the alliance. In contrast, Law wasn’t happy at all. He literally switched from chilling out into full stress/angry mode in less than a few seconds.

↪ Law immediately and correctly assumed Luffy was going to wreck the havoc. It seems the previous experiences gained in Dressrosa have already borne fruit: Luffy and Zoro together, in enemy land, were bad news.

↪ The most surprising thing about Law’s reaction is how he called both Luffy and Zoro as “those idiots”. Mainly because at first he was solely angry at Luffy and the prospect of him ruining the plan and then included Zoro as the potential danger. Which in perspective wasn't an irrational reaction and again, Dressrosa proved these two can’t be trusted with following any plan or common sense. Yet at the same time this sharp reaction gives the vibe that Law was for some reason angry at Roronoa (about that more soon). What contrasts with the good relationship they had during the previous arc.

Law wanted to minimize potential damage done by Luffy and Zoro but was delayed by Bepo, who suddenly felt sick due to eating fish from a poisoned river (chapter 916).

↪ Law here was fully aware of poisoned food and water, he even warned his crew about it. Surprising, Zoro didn’t have any idea about the ecological situation of Wano and both men spent the same amount of time in this country. Either Zoro did not listen to the warning of others OR that matter comes after he left Kinemon’s hideout. In case of latter, it may suggest there was little to no contact between Zoro and other members of the alliance once he became a wanted man. To be fair, Kinemon himself got sick after eating poisoned food, so the revelation about poison could not be known before Straw Hats went undercover.

↪ Another little detail, Bepo felt sick after eating poisoned fish. Zoro, who ate poisoned meat most likely for days, got only some stomach ache, but nothing to stop him from fighting. Law’s tolerance for such poison is unknown, mainly because Ope Ope no Mi would help him remove the toxin from body and, in contrast to Zoro and Bepo, he has knowledge and common sense to not eat poisoned things.

↪ Also, apparently Law has a soft spot for Bepo, the only animal crewmember - another trait he shares with Zoro who himself has a soft spot for Chopper. Trafalgar let Bepo’s sickness delay him when the situation was dire, knowing full well leaving Luffy and Zoro unsupervised for too long was asking for big trouble.

Once his crew member noted that Basil Hawkins was heading to Bakura Town and there already was a fire, Law was pretty shocked by the disturbing change of events.

Despite the pledging of Bepo(?) to not leave him behind, Law finally rushed into town. He didn’t have a clue what was really happening there but attacked the just arrived Hawkins in order to eliminate the threat. As in, eliminate anyone who could recognize him or Straw Hats (chapter 917).

➽ Law actually tried to be sneaky and covered his head with special headgear/straw hat to hide his identity. What suggests he was aware that Basil may recognize him and Straw Hat Supernovas. At the same time, Law is, well, really bad at playing undercover. On Dressrosa he wore jacked with CORAZON on his back alluding to late Donquixote Rosinante but that fight was personal matter and most likely wanted Doffy to know what the fight was all about. In Wano, he didn’t have that excuse; the fight with Kaido wasn’t his personal quest for vendetta. And yet Law’s idea of hiding his own identity was wearing a kimono with his Jolly Roger on it. Very smart. What may support the theory why Kinemon kept him with himself rather than sending undercover. Law is just bad at this gig and thinking more about it, I don’t remember any time when Trafalgar even bothered to try speak like people of Wano - something that Zoro and Luffy actually have adopted to some extent.

To take down another Supernova, Law needed using Ope Ope no Mi. The characteristic power and tattoos very soon betrayed his true identity. Law planned to take down Basil, so the man couldn’t report to Kaido about the Heart-Straw Hat pirate alliance. At the same time, Law put faith in Roronoa who knew the plan that he “wouldn’t be stupid enough to let Holdem get crushed” (chapter 918). What implies that despite referring to Zoro as the “idiot” and general pessimistic attitude, Law still assumed Zoro’s presence would be enough to stop Luffy before the worst could happen.

➽ Once again, Law was addressing Zoro as “Roronoa”,instead by his name. Which departs from information published in SBS vol. 72 explaining what Law calls the various members of Straw Hat crew. Back then, Zoro and Nami were the only two allies he called by first name instead of surname or nickname:

In the case of Nami (whose surname was never revealed), it makes sense to use her given name yet Zoro was the only one male ally Law addressed in such a way. Even Luffy, who from a narrative standpoint is the closest person to Trafalgar, is constantly called Straw Hat-ya. Why the special approach to Zoro and why change it right now? The most likely reason for the switch of speaking pattern was Law’s anger (but about that more in next chapter). Anyway, an interesting detail, how Law’s way to call Zoro is related to his mood and/or stress level.

➽ Law proved to be good tactician, but at the same it seems he always assume the worst scenario to happen. Which I guess is one of the main reasons Trafalgar is always so stressed? In contrast, Zoro usually takes bad news calmly - he doesn’t like them, but he has a habit of leaving things to luck/fate instead of overthinking all possible solutions and outcomes. The difference in planning (or lack therefore) could make Zoro and Law clash with each other albeit so far, we saw little to nothing in that regard.

Sadly for Law, Zoro did not stop Luffy from beating Holdem. He wasn’t happy that Luffy did it, but didn’t regret it either. Law, on other hand, was angry and/or stressed by the situation, especially when Basil admitted he already met Straw Hats.

➽ Again, Law thought about Luffy and Zoro as “those idiots”. To be fair, he had a good reason to be angry because of course, Straw Hats wrecked havoc that was reported to Jack - the Beast Pirate responsible for poisoning Mink on Zou - and in result, exposed alliance presence in Wano.

The fight between Law and Basil was then unexpectedly stopped by a speeding cart of stolen food. Stolen by no one other than Zoro and befriended samurai Kiku. Roronoa was nice enough to call the fighting men to get out of their way… once again, Law was shocked by the turn of events.

The fight between Law and Hawkins was stopped; Law didn’t manage to eliminate the enemy nor prevent information leakage about alliance presence in Wano. He almost was run over by a speeding cart with stolen food (another “crime” against Orochi & Kaido, which Straw Hats committed in his absence). No wonder why Law was so pissed of at Zoro.

About that more in next chapter: ...and Law Is Not Happy About That

#one piece #roronoa zoro #trafalgar law #monkey d. luffy #strawhats #The development of Law’s relationship with Zoro #zoro & law #law & zoro #wano arc #i was sad that zoro and law were (again) separated #but it is nice to see law thinking about zoro #even if just to call him and luffy an idiots XD #i hate tumblr limit that doesn't allow me to write a proper long chapter #oh well somehow i will manage... maybe #zoro and luffy can't be trusted with following plan #law seems to be better than them but alas he is bad at hiding his true self as well #i mean the jolly roger on kimono? really?

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quazartranslates · 3 years

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Welcome to the Nightmare Game - CH72

**This is an edited machine translation. For more information, please [click here]**

[<<< Previous Chapter | Table of Contents | Next Chapter >>>]

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Chapter 72: Seed of Slaughter (XI)

[Qi Leren. Witchcraft Sacrifice. The survival time was 13 days.]

Like falling into a freezer, Qi Leren was cold and motionless as he looked at the inscription on the tombstone. Everything around him was far away, just like being blocked by an invisible barrier: the sound of the waves, the bright moonlight, the clear wine… everything was far away. He was like a living person buried in the ground, watching the soil cover his body a little bit, and from then on, he would be accompanied by darkness and insects, and eventually gradually decay in the unknown.

He was unwilling. He urged the frozen body to move forward, and more and more of the dead were exposed to him.

[Qi Leren. Witchcraft Sacrifice. The survival time was 13 days.]

-If the arrangement of tombstones was according to the time of the death of all people, then the nearest to Lu Youxin was the one who survived for 13 days died of trying his luck and killing himself, and these two died of dragon's breath.

[Qi Leren. Witchcraft Sacrifice. The survival time was 13 days.]

-that one died with a dagger when he was chased by a hungry wolf.

[Qi Leren. Witchcraft Sacrifice. The survival time was 13 days.]

-that one died in an explosion that killed the giant.

Qi Leren, who had lost his mind, was still moving forward. There were all unfamiliar names here. He had to walk a long way before he could meet the tombstone he left in the Novice Village.

"Enough, Qi Leren!" Chen Baiqi's voice sounded behind Qi Leren.

Qi Leren stood among rows and rows of tombstones arranged like theater seats, and the moonlight left his shadow on the ground, overlapping with the shadows of countless tombstones, as if entangled between life and death, but the moonlight blurred the boundaries.

Was he still alive? Was he already dead? How could he prove that he was still alive?

With memory? But memory was just a brain wave. In the face of all kinds of incredible forces in this Nightmare World, even fabricating a memory was very simple, let alone transplanting a memory.

Was he really alive?

Was he still alive?

Chen Baiqi came to his side, took his arm and walked back into the deeper part of the island.

Along the path full of moonlight, treading weeds and insects, they walked deeper and deeper. Qi Leren didn't know where Chen Baiqi was going, but didn't want to know. His soul seemed to be left in front of his tombstone, and he was just a walking corpse.

Through the dense forest, his eyes were suddenly enlightened.

They were standing on a high solitary cliff, and the sea under the moonlight was just over the edge. So quiet, so vast, silvery white scales of moonlight beating on the water, together with the starlight and the sea, constituting a suffocatingly beautiful night.

Chen Baiqi sat down on a strange rock on the sea cliff, covered her lighter with her hand, lit herself a cigarette, and lit another one for Qi Leren.

This time, Qi Leren didn't refuse.

The two people sat on the cliff, listening to the crash of the tide lapping on the cliff, and the sound of Qi Leren coughing while smoking, and they said nothing to each other.

"Now I know why Ning Zhou specifically told me not to bring you here before he left." Chen Baiqi finished smoking a cigarette and crushed the cigarette butt beneath her shoe. "Unfortunately, when I don't collect money, I’m a really uncooperative person."

"What else did he say?" Qi Leren asked hoarsely.

"A lot, I’ve never heard so many words from him, but it is probably because he was drunk." Chen Baiqi laughed lowly. "After all, I brought a whole box of good wine to see him. I'm afraid he’ll be eager to kill me when he wakes up."

Qi Leren looked up at Chen Baiqi. She sat on the stone with her legs crossed and lit a cigarette for herself.

"I don't think he believed that he could fall in love with someone who doesn't belong to this world in such a short time," Chen Baiqi said.

"What do you mean?" Qi Leren's heart thumped, and a sense of foreboding, which he had always been unwilling to ponder, welled up in his mind.

Chen Baiqi raised a slender eyebrow: "I thought you’d discovered it, didn't you?"

Don't belong to this world... Qi Leren's mind suddenly saw a face similar to Ning Zhou's, the blonde woman praying under the cross in the Barrier of the Holy Spirit, who has a pair of eyes identical to Ning Zhou's.

"Ning Zhou is like my sister, but should be said to be more special than her. Her parents are players from the real world, but Ning Zhou... his mother was an NPC."

Chen Baiqi's voice seemed to come from outside. He heard every word she said, but suddenly he couldn't understand them.

"Calculate Ning Zhou's age. His father should be the first player to enter this game, but he died very early. After his mother died, he was sent to the Vatican and was deeply influenced by the Holy See. Ning Zhou also told me that when he was 18 years old, he would perform tasks like ordinary players. Three years ago, when he was 18 years old, he had the same number of survival days as us and needed to perform mandatory tasks every month."

The cigarette butt in Qi Leren's hand had almost burned out, but he didn't notice it at all.

"This time when he received the Witchcraft Sacrifice task, it was a complete accident. He had just come back from Neverland recently. He met a gangster who was chasing several girls and killed them. Unfortunately, he failed to save the two girls. Instead, because of the demon mark on their hands, he triggered the task at this time. Even more coincidentally, you also received this task from another dead NPC.

"In fact, he didn't care much about you at the beginning. In terms of personality, Ning Zhou was born not to like being close to people. It's hard to imagine that he took the initiative to approach someone. At the beginning, he saved you from being attacked by wolves by a bonfire, which was completely convenient. Helping those in need is also the precept of the Holy See." When Chen Baiqi spoke, she suddenly smiled lightly. "But after he got drunk even more, he admitted it. He thought it was cute when you pretended to be calm and tried to talk to him."

-"I... my name is Qi Leren, what's your name?" Memories suddenly changed from gray to new, like a roll of black and white film, suddenly with sound and color. Qi Leren clearly remembered that by the warm bonfire, he felt uneasy and stopped talking, and finally built up the courage to ask her name.

"Later, in the underground cave, you were chased by the bone dragon, and he took you to escape. At that time, you looked scared, red eyes, and trembling when you spoke, but stubbornly wanted to protect him, even not afraid of death. I ‘m afraid that Ning Zhou has never seen anyone work so hard for him in so many years. After that, you died from the dragon's breath and were almost frozen to death by the frozen underground lake. After he rescued you, he looked at you, who was soaked and shivering. He swore to himself that he would protect you."

-"Thank you in short, tell me your name when the time comes!" At that time, he had hurriedly run for his life, and his lungs were in pain. He kept his voice down and did not dare to cough, so his eyes were red. He knew that he wouldn’t die, and he had a great chance to survive with skilled help, so he was brave.

"In the last underground palace, Ning Zhou used up the relics left by his mother. Yes, that's the pendant. That thing is no ordinary item, he shouldn't have used it, but at that time it was a close call, and you were in grave danger again, so he didn’t hesitate to use it, even if... You found the only chance in the Barrier of the Holy Spirit, but it was really a monster... "Chen Baiqi looked out at the calm sea in the moonlight, and her voice seemed to have died. "Later when he was drunk, Ning Zhou wouldn’t continue, but I already know. To personally kill a lover who was willing to pay her life for him, how much pain must he have been in at the time... "

-"Ning Zhou, I have a way, maybe we can all live." At that time, the excited Qi Leren even said the most cruel words to Ning Zhou with a smile, "It's very simple: kill me."

Qi Leren dropped to sit on the stone and covered his face with his hand. This short experience had turned into a prank of fate in his eyes, but in Ning Zhou's eyes? This was totally an irreparable tragedy.

"Do you know? After the mission, before coming to see you, Ning Zhou went somewhere, " Chen Baiqi said slowly.

"Where?" He clearly knew he should stop asking, but Qi Leren still felt the words leave his mouth.

Chen Baiqi answered the unneeded question: "He went to buy something."

Qi Leren's finger moved stiffly, and he knew something vaguely, but it was too unbelievable.

Chen Baiqi didn't say any more. She smoked a cigarette. The smell of tobacco made her relaxed and calm. She stood up, facing the sea, and murmured, "This is fate. People who are obviously impossible come to love each other because of various coincidences, but unfortunately in the end... It’s still impossible."

Qi Leren was silent.

"In Ning Zhou’s world, I'm afraid he never thought about homosexuality. After all, he lived in the Vatican since he was very young, obeyed the precepts, abided by the canon, and had a firm belief. He was the kind of man whose heart won't exceed the moment. When he fell in love, he would propose marriage, and his first night would be reserved for his wedding night. Most importantly, the Vatican in this world is not of the modern religion in the world where we once lived. It is old-fashioned and conservative. All love between the same sex is wrong, immoral and even sinful.

"If one day, he loves you more than everything, maybe he will leave the Vatican. But he will need to abandon his faith and give up everything he once regarded as life... Is this love more painful, or is death more painful?"

The salty sea breeze blew on his face and stole away the heat from one’s body. While listening to all this, Qi Leren had been very calm. He stood up from the stone and whispered: "I understand..."

Chen Baiqi turned around and handed him a bottle in her hand: "Take it."

"I don't have to drown my sorrows in wine," Qi Leren made a joke stiffly, but it was so difficult to raise the corners of his mouth.

"It's not wine, it's holy water from the Holy See. Maybe you can use it later," Chen Baiqi shrugged her shoulders. "I'm going to see some old friends first. We'll meet at the shore in an hour."

Qi Leren's hand holding the bottle froze. How did Chen Baiqi know that he needed holy water to suppress the seed?

Seeing that Chen Baiqi had left, he ignored caution and asked loudly, "Why did you give me this?"

Chen Baiqi waved backwards at him: "It's from Ning Zhou. Let me give it to you. Keep it. Maybe it’ll come in handy in the future."

Chen Baiqi's figure had disappeared under the steps. Qi Leren shook the bottle, and the crystal clear transparent liquid glowed faintly in the moonlight. Just looking at it made him feel calm. If it was Ning Zhou... Could he know? After all, he saw him at the courthouse.

Qi Leren didn't want to think any more, so he put away the holy water and went down.

This time, he no longer panicked over those tombstones, which he could not verify or control. Even if he was really dead, this one was still alive now. He could act, think and be as happy and sad as before. He didn't want to struggle with more problems.

Down the stairs, there were neat tombstones on both sides of the steps, which were as neat as a procession.

The order of tombstones should be arranged according to the time of death, not according to the order of tasks. Qi Leren stopped at Lu Youxin's tombstone, walked backwards one row, and then went in. He saw Ye Xia, which turned out to be her real name and she had lived for more than 1,500 days.

One step further, the place illuminated by the flashlight held the name Qi Leren.

Three tombstones in a row, all of them him.

He had died by Ning Zhou’s hand.

Qi Leren’s feet stopped, an emotion that couldn't be said to be sad or relieved seeping out slowly from the depths of his soul. After Chen Baiqi said Ning Zhou had bought something, he guessed vaguely, but it was still unbelievable, but now he saw it with his own eyes, and he finally had to believe it.

He could almost imagine Ning Zhou's mood when he found his tombstone. Perhaps for him, the Qi Leren he loved has stayed in the underground palace forever, and was killed by his own hands three times.

They hadn't had the time to start, and the love he hadn't said yet stayed there forever. He could only leave proof of his love at the tombstone and give it to the "her".

Qi Leren stepped forward and squatted down at his grave.

[Qi Leren. Witchcraft Sacrifice. The survival time was 13 days.]

An open box was placed upright in front of the tombstone, and a ring lay quietly inside.

The ring is inlaid with a blue gem, which shone in the moonlight.

As beautiful as Ning Zhou's eyes.

-----

The author has something to say:

PS: Although love is beautiful when it stops at this moment, the story should continue.

PPS: After going through such small twists and turns as a homicidal maniac, captured, undercover, robbed, frightened, and proposed marriage to (failed), our protagonist had a relaxed and happy rest time. After eating this sweet (or poisonous) sugar, we can open a relaxing copy (being a real mother) after this incredibly sour and refreshing feeling.

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Editor’s Note: I recommend going back and taking a look at chapter 62 again if you’d like a knife you probably didn’t fully notice before.

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[<<< Previous Chapter | Table of Contents | Next Chapter >>>]

#Welcome to the Nightmare Game #欢迎来到噩梦游戏 #danmei

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liusaidh-writing · 3 years

Text

Call it True - Chapter One

Claire and Jamie are neighbors - though they’ve never met. Claire, infatuated with her Scot upstairs, is more than a little certain that it’ll never happen. Is she wrong?

Prefer to read at AO3?

Hope you all enjoy this...I really wish I could say I’d update on a regular day weekly, but as of right now I don’t get much time to write. So please be patient!

**I’d like to thank (profusely) @faithperry46 for being my life-saver/beta reader. I wouldn’t/couldn’t have done this without your help!**

Here we go...

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Claire chuckled to herself, hearing the vacuum come on downstairs again. Every morning, without fail, the older lady who lived downstairs turned it on...to hoover her back patio. Living on the first floor, she was granted a small back garden - one Claire was envious of. Though she didn't think she'd do much but sweep her patio with a broom.

Claire pushed open her kitchen window and held her breath, wondering if he'd be here at his window today. Claire figured this was her favorite way to start her days: a small chat with her mysterious, yet lovely -and stupidly handsome,- neighbor, Jamie.

Claire hid a grin when she spotted his curly auburn hair.

"Poor woman. Shall we buy her a broom for Christmas?" He joked, greeting Claire with his unassuming smile. He gave her a wink - if it

could be called that, seeing as he couldn't wink correctly but instead closed both eyes in a humorous attempt.

Claire smiled properly this time, calling to him as she rested her elbows on the window sill.

"She's going to break that thing soon enough. I'll get the dustpan if you'll get the broom?" she offered with a laugh. It was only May, but who was Claire to say it was too early to start Christmas shopping? Especially if she could do it with Jamie.

"It's a deal. We can present it to her together." Jamie smiled at her, and Claire as per usual, panicked, swatted her face with her hands while mumbling something about a bug before excusing herself.

"I've got to run just now, but we can work out the details later. See you soon!"

She shut her window as she heard him respond with a friendly 'Have a good day, Claire!'

She didn't truly need to be anywhere for another half hour - her shift at the hospital started an hour from now, but she just couldn't talk to him for long. She'd get all flustered, and was terrified she'd say something completely stupid and ruin what they had. Claire had never met the man in the flesh, but she was completely enamored with him...or his face rather, since that was all she could see from her window.

She loved his stupid wink, his big smile that nearly met his slanted eyes as he greeted her when they saw one another. She had no idea if he lived alone, but she was certain that someone that handsome had to have a girlfriend at the very least. Or a boyfriend, perhaps. He certainly had no need of anything more from her than a quick morning chat... or else it would've happened already - that's what she told herself six months into their weird connection. Her erratic schedule at the hospital kept her from seeing him every morning and explained why they'd never met in person.

Their relationship never ventured much further than chatting about their mutual source of amusement: their elderly neighbor with the hoovering obsession. They chatted here and there about happenings in their respective days: 'You got a haircut!' She'd say, noticing his hair was slightly shorter. He'd nod, pretend to preen, and run his hands through his hair with a laugh.

He had no idea what that did to Claire. She was sure her cheeks went pink whenever he was even slightly flirty. She'd lose the ability to concentrate, to speak, so she'd excuse herself in some clumsy way and go about her day with him swimming around in her imagination. She'd fantasize about knocking on his door, asking him for coffee, laughing over a shared joke that didn't have to do with their neighbor, Jamie kissing her dumb as his hands roamed her back for her bra strap...

Sometimes she got carried away.

---

Claire got to work, noticing that her favorite co-worker, Lesley, was already there. Claire saw Lesley's toddler's car seat in the back, knowing it hadn't been a fun morning at her house. Lesley had a two-year-old son named Harry who Claire enjoyed, but Lesley's ex-husband Frank wasn't always in a helpful mood. So, this morning -like a lot of mornings,- the two-year-old was brought to the hospital child care center instead of staying home with his father.

Claire sighed, shaking her head on Lesley’s behalf. Claire remembered when she’d gotten married to Frank and when she’d had her son - Lesley had thought she had it all. "But look," Claire thought, "it all fell apart at her feet shortly after it began."

"I’m better off by myself. Only me to worry about.” It was her mantra of sorts, and Claire had convinced herself it was true.

She got to her floor, put her stuff in her locker, and slowly shuffled to her station as she wondered what her day would bring. Lesley was there, as expected, riffling through some files as she smiled at Claire in greeting. Lesley was slightly shorter than Claire, with medium-length blonde hair Claire was sure wasn’t entirely natural. Lesley’s down-to-earth demeanor and penchant for keeping Claire grounded in reality was, unbeknownst to Claire, her saving grace during the work day, and though Lesley had had a rough go of it with Frank, she remained, for the most part upbeat - something Claire struggled with at times. Always there to lend an ear, Lesley was invaluable to Claire, and she was happy to return the favor whenever possible.

“Here you go, Lady.” Lesley said as she handed Claire a bright red folder with a name Claire couldn’t read on the side. “New admittance - a 72-year-old woman had a stroke and is in for observation.”

Claire worked on the cardiac floor and enjoyed it... for the most part. The majority of her patients were older men and women, and she found them easy to talk to. She knew she could offer them some comfort and help during their stay.

Grabbing the folder, she headed to her first room and started her day.

---

Claire’s lunch left much to be desired - leftover Chinese food that had Lesley crinkling her nose.

“How old is that, Claire?”

“I'm not sure. A few days…”

“It doesn’t smell right.”

Claire watched as Lesley’s mouth formed a frown. Lesley had her own lunch - a fresh salad with grilled chicken and cashews.

“We can’t all be chefs, Lesley,” Claire said as she took a bite of her Kung Pao chicken. She made a face, struggling to swallow. Perhaps she should’ve thrown it out - but it was all she’d had to bring today.

“You live alone, Claire - you can cook all you want! I have to make my lunches once Harry has gone down for the night. After folding all of the laundry and scarfing down what’s left of dinner.” Lesley took a bite of her salad and chewed slowly as Claire shook her head.

“I don’t know how you do it,” she said quietly, pushing her fried rice around with her fork. “I could cook, I suppose,” she continued, thinking about the ingredients in her refrigerator. Those consisted of a block of parmesan cheese, a bottle of orange juice, and a small pint of milk. “I could make...well, not much at the moment, but…” Claire, wanting to change the subject from her nonexistent domesticity, decided to bring up Jamie.

“I think he must have a girlfriend,” Claire said, deciding to throw her lunch out and buy some peanut butter crackers from the vending machine. As she fished for some coins in her purse, she continued. “I mean, he’s gorgeous...surely he’s taken. You know I have no luck, Lesley.”

“Well, Claire,” Lesley began, sounding unsure about her next statement. “Do you...try?”

Grabbing her crackers from the slot at the bottom of the vending machine, Claire whirled around, brows knitted and mouth in a scowl.

“I do try,” she said, opening the crackers and stuffing one in her mouth. “I just figure he’s not worth my time,” she mumbled, spraying crumbs over her shirt. She brushed them off, shrugging.

Lesley rolled her eyes, then set them on Claire, giving her a pitying, yet frustrated look. “You don’t know anything, Jon Snow.”

“It’s ‘You know nothing…’” Claire corrected, ignoring her comment. “Look how it worked out with Frank. You’re not exactly a great example of romance gone right.” Claire felt somewhat guilty when she saw Lesley’s face fall for a second, but the conversation was cut short by the clock. Time to get back to work.

“Just give it a go, Claire - the worst that could happen is that he is involved with someone else. You don’t know unless you ask.” Lesley gave her parting advice before they headed out of the lunchroom.

Claire believed that the idea of knocking on his door and asking him about his relationship status was a little too much to ask of her. She’d talked to him - flirted even, and still...nothing. Nothing good could come of her asking him out, she decided. Only mortal embarrassment, and the unfortunate circumstance of having to live under someone who’d turned her down. No, thank you.

Claire managed to push down all her thoughts about Jamie and get through her shift, and was relieved to plop down on the bus seat that would take her home.

Getting home, she eyed Jamie’s door, craning her neck in the stairwell to get a glimpse of the bright red door identical to her own, except he lived at 3C, she at 2C.

"No sign of life," she sighed, hitching her purse and bag higher up her shoulder as she made her way to her flat. Her phone buzzed as she went in, tossing her bags on the entry table and reaching to dig into the depths of her purse for the offending object. She didn’t want to answer it, but she saw it was Lesley, so she swiped up, putting it to her ear with some trepidation.

"Please don’t ask me to babysit. Please, please," she begged silently as she heard Lesley begin to talk. She didn’t not like Harry. He was an adorable child and didn’t cause much trouble when he was here, but she had been looking forward to a much-needed day off work, and babysitting a toddler hadn’t been at the top of her agenda.

"…so anyway, I know it’s your day off,” Lesley said, and Claire groaned inwardly, covering the phone with her left hand. “But I’m just stuck, and I thought...maybe you’d help me out?”

Claire gave a pained smile, even though Lesley couldn’t see her, rubbing her hand through her hair as she sighed.

“Sure, Lesley, you know I will. It’s no trouble. Just drop him by in the morning.”

Claire hung up, trying not to feel irritated by the prospect of watching a two-year-old all day. She had no plans, really, except to vegetate in front of the television, devouring Netflix true crime shows. But it sounded so good. Pizza delivery, maybe pull out her untouched bottle of whisky from some Christmas past...

"Oh well, she thought, I’ll just get through it. I’ll have another day off eventually." She thought. It then registered that she was due to work some night shifts coming up. "Oh... fun," she groaned to her empty apartment.

Claire glanced at her ceiling when she heard footsteps upstairs. Jamie was home. What was he doing tonight, she wondered. Was his girlfriend over? Did he have a date, or was he, too, looking at an evening of solitary drinking?

Claire nearly jumped out of her skin when her doorbell rang. She shuffled to the door, warily looking through the peephole. She wasn’t in the mood for visitors.

Puzzled, she saw a young teenager standing there holding a plastic bag, marked with a local restaurant’s logo. He wore a bright red hat, had more zits than craters on the moon, and he bore a scowl. Slowly, Claire opened the door, knowing she hadn’t ordered anything.

“Did you order this, lady?” the kid spat, holding the bag out to her, desperate to unload his delivery and get out of there.

“Er...no...What’s the address?”

“I don’t know, It’s smudged. I’m just...working my way around.” The kid shrugged, still holding out the bag.

“Well...I didn’t order it. Sorry. Try upstairs. Above me, perhaps? I know my neighbor just got home.”

The kid sighed, drawing the bag away from Claire. He didn’t say anything, but slowly turned around and, swinging the bag around in a wide arc, growled as he started to make his way up the stairway. Claire waited at her door, hearing the delivery attempt upstairs.

Hearing Jamie’s voice, she put her face in her palm, frustrated with herself. She could’ve made that delivery. She could’ve been standing in front of him now, complete with food. They could’ve eaten dinner together, watched a movie, somehow become entangled on his bed…

Shut up, Beauchamp!

She grabbed her phone, dialed to order a pizza, and slumped on the couch, resigned to her fate as a spinster, alone in front of Murder by Numbers for yet another evening. She folded her arms, brows knit, imagining Jamie upstairs with the girl he definitely had over. Why couldn’t she be hopelessly in love with someone at work, someone she saw every day? Someone she’d seen the bottom half of? That would make it easier. She always imagined Jamie as being about her height, but she could tell just from what she’d seen of his arms that he worked out. When he wore the sleeveless t-shirts, she always marveled at his biceps and had recurring dreams about them draped around her waist.

She also knew he was a Scot, a transplant from somewhere north. She wondered if he ever wore a kilt because she figured she’d pay good money to see it. Oh, she was pathetic, she knew, but she didn’t care when she was alone in her thoughts. She wondered if it would do her good to get a cat. Perhaps then she wouldn’t do so much daydreaming. Surely it wasn’t healthy.

#outlander #outlander fic #outlander fanfiction #writing #lord help me #i will try to post more at least weekly...#i'm excited about this one though #i even have it all planned out!#that's never happened...ever #enjoy!#feedback welcome

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bexterbex · 4 years

Text

A Soul to Mend His Own | Ch. 72

This is the part where I reiterate if you see something in the tags/warnings you don't like, please just leave the story.

Warning, PLEASE CHECK TAGS IF YOU SEE SOMETHING YOU DON’T WANT TO READ THEN DON’T READ. | Tag lists are closed | INBOX OPEN

Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Will tag as I go along, Will update tags, Slow Burn, Influenced by Star Trek and other Sci-Fi themes, References to We Happy Few, Tons of References and quotes to George Orwells 1984 see if you can find them all, The First Order is the new Big Brother, but who is really surprised, Blatant Nazi Symbolism, Interrogation Themes, Eventual Smut, Eventual Romance, Really just drawn out Slow Burn, Don’t repost without permission, Torture themes, Suggestive Themes, Execution themes, Disturbing Themes, Implied/Referenced Abuse, Verbal Abuse, Controlling Kylo Ren, Physical Abuse, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Kylo Ren is Not Nice, Kylo Ren Has Issues, Supreme Leader Kylo Ren, Possessive Kylo Ren, A character shamelessly based on Zelda

A Kylo Ren x Modern! Reader in a soulmate au with canon divergence. —————————————SLOWBURN————————————–

He is already the Supreme leader, searching the universe to find you, his Empress. Your name on his wrist has been the only constant in his life, while you have doubts about his existence and his acceptance of you. He isn’t in the database and why did the name Kylo Ren cover Ben Solo?

MASTERLIST

Chapter 72: Ink and Lies

You woke up with a pressure behind your ear and a hand between your legs. The last few mornings since you’ve been crowned Empress, since your wedding, Kylo has woken you up by fingering you and playing with your clit. Basically giving you an orgasm to start the day, not that you were complaining at all. You also tried to happily return the favor, but it was much easier to do some sort of handjob, wrist match name attention mix to get him off since he has really too big for your hands to handle properly. But that is what your mornings consisted of.

You and Kylo had done some work over the last few days but not much, you weren’t going to be able to get a proper honeymoon in the middle of a war, but your love nest was enough. Today was the first day that Kylo would be leaving the ship. The Alazmac apparently had something for him, something of Vader’s that they wanted to give you both as a wedding present. You weren’t exactly happy that he was leaving the ship, as you had wanted him close, he was right in the sense that him guarding you made you feel safer.

In the last few days, you had seen very little of your staff outside a few visits from your ladies-in-waiting and Mitaka, who relayed important messages. Hux was bearing the brunt of the responsibility of the First Order at the moment, not unlike before you were in the picture, but you felt bad.

In the couple of hours that Kylo was gone, you and your ladies-in-waiting did some rehabilitation work. Your body in many ways had taken a beating and you needed to be restored to some sort of functional state.

Eyeing you up and down, scanning over the many, many love marks. “You know you look like you’ve been attacked by a pack of wild dogs,” commented Adlez.

This caused a snort of laughter at the comparison, “If only you knew the truth.” Especially with your new nickname for Kylo. You didn’t mind the beast, especially in bed. But after the last few days, it would be nice to be able to feel the lower half of your body finally.

“Maybe you need to put him on a leash, hmm? Some obedience training? It’s worked wonders on his knights. And the pack of dogs they are.” Again it felt like Adlez was full of surprises. She’s hinted at her sleeping around with the knights, teaching them ‘manners.’

You tried to play off the smirk that was on your face. “All of them or just Cardo?” You knew the rowdy Knight of Ren had a soft spot for her. So much so that Kylo asked you about it.

“All of them.” She shrugged, “But Cardo has been a special boy.” The images that popped into your head were rather... scaring. You were just grateful that you did not have to witness them in real life.

Your face flushed with embarrassment, “Oh my god, didn’t need to know that, but good for you.” You really didn’t, she had her private life, and you had yours.

“You should ask the Supreme Leader about their wedding gift for you two.” Some rather terrifying possibilities jumped around in your head. You almost didn’t want to know, especially if he hasn’t shown it to you yet.

“Do I want to know?” You probably didn’t, but you might be able to get an answer out of her, eventually. “Well, it might just help with that obedience bit. He is their leader, their alpha and now you are their alpha too. Teach him some new tricks.” And the dog imagery was back, you wonder just how much she knows. But for now you wanted to drop the subject all together.

They ended up filling the tub with bacta for you to soak, Kylo had expressed the discomfort about you going to the med bay for treatment. And since none of your ‘injuries’ were severe or life-threatening it was a long bath in gross bacta gel for you. Adlez told you to submerge yourself but that meant Kylo’s favorite love bites would be healed too and you weren’t about to do that, you wanted to wear a few of them with pride.

By the time you got out, you felt renewed again. The only bruises left were those high up on your neck, along your jaw, and of course the one behind your ear. Still marked up for him, still owned, but it wasn’t like you needed it because you had your wedding ring and you doubt there is any place in the galaxy that doesn’t know your face now. You were his and were proud to display his conquest marks. You also haven’t worn any proper clothes in the last few days, if you were just with Kylo you were either naked or wearing just a robe, but if you were meeting with someone you wore a wrap dress. Which seemed to be Kylo’s favorite type of garment on you because he could easily untie you and have access to whatever he wanted.

After Adlez and Olivia-Rose made you human again you had a meeting with your staff and Hux. They seemed to eye your condition carefully. Not really knowing how Kylo had left you, since you had really only been meeting with Mitaka and your ladies-in-waiting.

“What are my most pressing matters?” You knew you did not have much time to be talking with them Kylo would be back soon, and your rehabilitation treatments took a bit longer than you initially expected. Adlez insisted on you being repaired from head to toe with face masks, hair removal, and the works.

“You still need to meet with Senator Apolin about your education,” said Mitaka. Your thoughts went back to the dinner, and how he treated you. Acting as if you were some idiot girl that tricked her way into Kylo’s bed with the intent to rule the galaxy.

A thought popped into your head, you had new privileges now. “Do I or does being Empress now negate that?”

Hux cleared his throat, “I would say that it negates it. He technically has no right to question you now, I suggest a letter versus a call.” He seemed to have your back in many ways, especially when it came to dealing with Pryde and his friends. You wondered just how much he hated the man.

“Right,” you turned to Lieutenant Amala Graven. “Can you write up something about it? Something along the lines that since he, unfortunately, did not set up a date prior to me becoming Empress that he now is not in the position to review my education?” This made you feel happy, knowing that an old man like him wouldn’t be getting his way this time, and that you had tricked him into thinking he had some power over you.

She pushed up her glasses before she began taking notes, very diligent in her work. “Yes. Would you like it to be formal or semi-formal?”

“Formal, but as much hidden sass as you can put in it. Also, let him know that it was unfortunate that he couldn’t attend the wedding.” You were glad he didn’t. You were honestly surprised you were able to handle Pryde being there, but then again, you didn’t know he was there until after the wedding and consummation of your vows were over.

“But we did not extend him an invitation m’lady,” said Mitaka you could hear the worry in his voice. You don’t know if it was because the invitation was ‘forgotten’ or if it was because you were possibly going to piss off a powerful ally.

You thought for a moment. Even if he wasn’t invited he still had an expectation to uphold his duty. “Has he sent a gift?” You were sure you knew the answer, one of the rooms that shared your chamber’s hallway was cleared out just to hold all of them, some of them still arriving.

Hux answered for the captain. “No, he has not.” You could see the wheels turning in his mind, you knew he agreed with you and what you were about to do.

You looked between both of them, holding your ground. “Then my point still stands. Shall we move on to the next topic?”

Before you could move on Kylo entered the room and ordered everyone out. He was holding something in his hand that you could not see. He chose not to remove his helmet before speaking to you. The chilling sound of his distorted voice haunting you to the bone. “I must leave.”

Waves of confusion washed over you, with their freezing cold waters. “Leave be you just got back? Where are you going?” Your mind was racing a million miles a minute. You were supposed to be relatively safe now, that other danger was not supposed to happen for a while, or at least that’s what you thought.

“I have something left to do.” The black voids of his visor peering into you, this was no guard dog at the moment, this was something else. You could feel something was wrong.

“But why must you go? Can’t you take me with you?” You didn’t understand what was going on, because he wasn’t explaining anything.

He stepped closer to you, but with his helmet on, like that it didn’t feel sweet it felt threatening. “No, I must go alone. It would be best for you to return to your home planet.” So he was shipping you back to your home planet, to do away with you?

“What’s going on? You’re scaring me.” You wanted answers, answers that he never seemed to give you.

You felt them again, inside your mind. You felt the black tendrils forcing themselves to wrap around your brain, stretching, familiarizing themselves with their new home once more.

His voice taking a whole new, unfamiliar tone of harshness with the mask. His hand with an extended finger outstretched towards you, “You will not fight me. You will do as I say when I say it. You will go home to your planet while complete what I must do. Do you understand?” You were being talked down to, like a child but all you could do is nod. Your body involuntarily doing what he asked, were as the small rational part of your brain was struggling to survive. She was losing the battle.

“I will have a ship and the knights escort you back to Earth. Where you will wait for my return.” So that was it, you were a princess being locked away in some tower before your prince in black armor decides to return to you. No more fairytale for you, just the cold harshness of reality.

He then left you alone, standing there unable to move as the tears fell down your face and the black inky blob in your brain took over. It forced you to sit down while you began to sob, awful ugly tears. All of your hard work was for nothing, as he crushed your dreams in a second.

Your spark, your flame of rationality was loosing against the downpour of black water that was Kylo in your mind. You blacked out, or you thought you did. When you woke up, you found yourself on board the Steadfast in your old cold and bright chambers. Adlez, Olivia-Rose, and Mitaka were there with you. The black ink creature receding back into the corners of your skull.

You took hold of yourself again. “Where am I?” You knew where you were technically, but your brain wasn’t clicking. How did you get here? You don’t remember a thing.

Adlez had a look of confusion on her face. “You’re onboard the Steadfast , m’lady. We transferred here three days ago. You’ve been with us the whole time.”

You tried to cool your features as panic set in. “Why am I here?” Something was wrong, something was majorly wrong. Why didn’t you remember any of it? The lack of memories for the last few days was terrifying.

“We were to bring you to Earth, the Supreme Leader said that you wanted to visit your family. So that’s why we are headed there. Are you alright m’lady?” Mitaka’s voice was full of concern. You could tell he was able to sense something was wrong and if he could, then Adlez knew something was.

Just as the word No was going to come out of your mouth you felt the black ink creature take hold of your head. “Yes, I’m fine. I just spaced out for a moment that’s all. I think I need to go lie down and rest for a while.” Your body then took you up the stairs, automatically, without your consent. As your head hit the pillow all you saw was darkness, but you heard a voice. His voice. Kylo’s voice.

‘I need to protect you. Let me protect you.’

‘Why are you doing this? You’re hurting me Kylo. You know this!’ The doctor told you as much. He was going to smother the life out of you, for what? You didn’t know.

‘I am protecting you. I do not know what this purpose is yet, therefore you must be protected.’

‘You’re killing me, Kylo. Your killing the part of me that makes me, me!’ You were internally screaming at him now. Crying and begging for him to stop, but the black tendrils only held you tighter.

‘Man serves the interest of no creature except himself, I must do what I need to do to protect you.’ You don’t know what scares you more, the fact that he was doing this or the fact that the voice that he was choosing to speak to you in your mind was that of the mask. He wasn’t even using his own natural voice, this was devoid of emotion.

‘Please… don’t do this.’ You could feel the grasp you had on yourself quickly slipping away. You were losing any control you had and terrifying didn’t even begin to describe it.

‘You are mine.’ While before you thought the mask made him devoid of emotion, this came out as a snarl. The monster was rearing his ugly head in full form.

When you awoke it was like you were staring out of windows, except they were your eyes. You could not move yourself. You could not move your own body. No, he was doing it. You were trapped inside your own mind, watching how the outside world spoke to ‘you’ without it being you.

You realized you were surrounded by dying embers in your own mind, with black rain attempting to wash them away. You were trapped. And your captor was on the other side of the galaxy, claiming to be protecting you, or at least the you that wasn’t you. A man who claimed to love you, but in fact he failed to understand you. The beast, the monster had taken over him, taken over you. But there was no exit that you could see around you, no exit to this nightmare you were about to be forced to witness.

A/N: I even bolded some of the tags you should be concerned with in this chapter.

#kylo ren #kylo ren imagine #a soul to mend his own #kylo ren x reader #kylo x reader #kylo x you #star wars #first order #star wars imagine #Star wars soulmate au #sw first order imagine #star wars first order

108 notes · View notes

acidproofnotebook · 3 years

Text

OPM Chapter 84, Update 125

As first published online

Translator: u/Mynthence

Title Page: In order to remain solitary, instead of in solitude.

Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5

Movements that are a perfect blend of attack and defense.

Even though it’s the same Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist the difference in degrees of completion are plainly evident.

The result is obvious.

Page 6

Fuu!!

Page 7 Page 8 Page 9

grab

Bwoh!?

Page 10

Ubuh!!

Page 11

Wh…what’s…with…

This flashy assault, it’s not like the damn geezer at all…

Page 12

N…not good…

My consciousness is fad…

No….I’m gonna die…

…….tsk!!!

Gwah!

Page 13

What’s with those weird movements

where did you learn them?

Like a beast

Not yet!

Page 14

If I can use the heroes that are unconscious as hostages, there’s still a chance!!

I won’t let you

Ugah

Page 15 Page 16

Bang!

I’ve taken care of all the monsters that came out of the hole

All that’s left is Garou

Page 17

There’s still some monster-like reactions but

Beep beep…

For some reason I can’t ascertain the exact number and location…

Will going through that hole take us to the Monster Association’s base?

The guys from the Monster Association…were they wiped out?

They’re useless…!!!

Page 18

I thought we brought enough forces to capture Garou alive but…

Demon Cyborg…to think that he would be this strong

Silver Fang is here too. With this there’s no chance to take him away…

But if I go back empty-handed after expending all these troops, I might be the next one to be eaten by Orochi…

Page 19

Garou will just have to break through this situation with his own power…

…but it’s hopeless…

Should I start thinking about how to live after leaving the Monster Association…?

Hey brother…if it was you…

Would you still be able to stand up with his level of injuries?

…if I was 60 years younger I could try

…probably

Alright! Just a little bit more!!!

Let’s finish this before the other heroes show up, Bang!

Indeed

Page 20

Gugi…

My arms aren’t working properly anymore…

That geezer Bang, going after his former number one disciple when he’s been weakened…how vicious is he?

Page 21

Not to mention that the geezer that’s beating me up with him is Bomb, the master of the Whirlwind Iron Cutting Fist

For the leaders of the martial arts world to come at me two-on-one, do they have no shame or care for their reputations?

Even if I pretend to beg for my life to these guys, I’m sure the Demon Cyborg won’t let me go

In other words, in order to overcome this extremely critical situation, I need to kill all three of them

Page 22

That’s impossible.

Know the pain of my “number one disciple” Charanko

Garou!!

Page 23

Let’s play Hero!

Garou. You’ll play too, right?

Let’s play, let’s play.

Okay

Page 24

Introductory music

Justice Man has arrived!

Justice Man Kick

Ouch!

Hey

Page 25

That’s dangerous

What?

I feel bad for him

………………

Then you should play the part of the Monster

Justice Man Cross Chop

Woah

Why did you dodge

S, sorry Tacchan

I scratched up my hand

You’re the Monster. Why can’t you read the mood?

Hold Garou down

Okay

Page 26

Justice Man Kick!

I’ve defeated the Monster, Garou Poop Man~

What’s this, is it the thing they call a flashback?

This is a fairly private memory I’d prefer to not remember

This should be…Right…Tacchan…the popular kid in my class…

Page 27

Eh? What? Why are the boys fighting?

Did anyone call the teacher?

Garou’s going wild

Garou got mad, even though we were just playing

I can’t…stand it anymore…

What’s with him?

Tacchan

Fight me!

Huh? What are you saying?

It’s just Hero

Page 28 I don’t want to be the Monster anymore! It’s not fun! Fight me, and if I win, you have to promise that you won’t bother me anymore!

Sabuchin, Yochan, hold Garou down

That’s not fair…stop…let me go! I…

Ugh

Damnit!!

Woah, he’s snapped! Call the teacher

Tacchan, run away

Hold him down! Hold him down!

What’s going on?

Perfect timing. You guys help out too.

He got carried away because Taachan’s too nice

Gross

I heard Garou got pissed off at Taachan while they were playing Hero. (lol)

Seriously? What’s he thinking?

Poor Taachan

Page 29

Taachan would easily get carried away

Taachan was good at sports

Taachan liked bullying weak people

Taachan was popular with the girls

Taachan was a disgusting guy

Taachan was popular

I was the gloomy guy who was always alone

I didn’t have any friends

I hated popular people

Why did you go wild?

Teacher, Taachan always

I heard you got mad while playing Hero. Is that true?

They always make me be the Monster

You can’t even tell the difference between make-believe and reality!?

That’s not it. Everyone says it’s my fault because Taachan is popular…

You’re the one who went crazy! How will you take responsibility if the windows get broken!

NO!

Page 30

It’s not that I hate being the Monster.

Is it that I didn’t like Taachan being the Hero?

No that’s not it

I was sensing a crushing sense of unfairness through the Hero game. A game designed in a way that would let the popular kid who was loved by everyone to one-sidedly beat up the weak kid that no one liked.

You did something bad, so go apologize.

I’m calling your parents too

This wasn’t just bullying. The game that faithfully reproduced the children’s TV shows was accepted by the public. You’re free to play any role that you want in this game, but the role of the Hero requires the approval of all those who are playing, so naturally I never had a chance to play that part. And of course, a scenario where the Monster wins doesn’t exist to begin with, so I have to always lose.

Page 31

What’s Justice! What’s Evil! In the end, I get killed because of the majority! I can’t accept that! It’s unfair!

I can’t explain the reason very well but I’m angry!

I just want to let them know!

I want them to experience a weakling’s attack!

I want to deny the positions of good and evil!

Page 32

He’s going to fall

This is the end

Page 33

Like I’d let myself be finished off in a place like this!

Page 34 Page 35

What?

Page 36

Oh!

Page 37 Page 38

What’s with that power…

from that broken body!?

Page 39

Give it up Garou!

If you keep on going… You’ll really die!!!

Bang, above you!

Page 40 Page 41

Woah!?

Page 42

A monster!?

So there were still some left!!!

Page 43

Genos!

Bang, you saw his appearance just now!

He’s a monster now! He even has companions!

It’s okay if I shoot Garou down with him, right?

Page 44

Did you hear that!!?

I’ll take Garou away from here

You can crush everyone on the ground right now!

I leave the rest to you!!

???

Page 45

Rasen Shoukyaku Hou (Spiral Incineration Cannon)

Page 46

Elder Centipede!

Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50

What was that!?

Page 51 Page 52

Disaster Level: Dragon Giant Mysterious Insect Elder Centipede

Page 53

W…what….

Is this a living being !!?

Oh no!!!

We need to protect them!

Page 54

Here we go

Page 55 Page 56

So this is the source of the reaction from before…

It’s not that I couldn’t pinpoint its location…it was too big!

Page 57

To think that it could take a direct hit from the cannon and have no injuries

This is going to be a tough opponent…

That centipede is…

Page 58

What do you think you’re doing, butting in like that!

Just let Elder Centipede take care of things here

He is a great calamity that swallows up everything

I’m fascinated by that unstoppable destructive power

You’re not thorough enough Hero Hunter

Once you defeat an opponent, you need to make sure you finish them off

It seems that all those heroes lying down over there are still alive

Page 59

Well…don’t worry

Elder Centipede will end everything

Stop interfering!

Let me down right now!

Those are my prey!

Hey, quit struggling

Damnit! Go back!

I won’t forgive you!

Hahaha…why are you so mad.

It’s your fault for not finishing the job.

Also…it’s convenient that we can erase two S-class here.

For the Monster Association, S-class heroes are the biggest threat

Page 60

You also directly experienced it

…..

In any fight there’s something called compatibility

According to our adviser Gyoro Gyoro

Out of all the heroes there are only four who can stand up against the Elder Centipede

Page 61

The peerless one wielding the strongest psychic ability “Tornado of Terror”

The one whose hidden military strength can’t be grasped by even the Hero Association “Metal Knight”

Page 62

The strongest man on earth “King”

And…the top hero that pushed Elder Centipede to the brink of death two years ago

“Blast”

Page 63

They say that Elder Centipede decided to cooperate with the Monster Association in order to get its revenge on Blast

It’s eager to pull Blast, who doesn’t come to the forefront, back onto the battlefield.

But…Unfortunately, those two don’t have the ability to break through this current situation.

Silver Fang is without equal in regards to his strength in hand-to-hand combat, but that only applies to opponents that are of a size that can be affected by martial arts.

Demon Cyborg’s abilities are outstanding but

He shouldn’t be equipped with any weapons that can take on a giant insect beast

And his firepower can’t go beyond the capabilities of his weapons

That’s his limit

Page 64

They will definitely be destroyed

Here it comes!!!

Page 65 Page 66

shine

Page 67

Whirl Wind

Water Stream

Page 68

Todoroki Kuuretsu Ken (Roaring Sky Splitting Fist)

Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72

What is that move

We have a special move that takes advantage of the opponent’s openings

We’re counting on you to distract it

It broken that super hard shell into pieces…!?

This is

The pinnacle of skill

Page 73

Not yet Not yet Not yet Not yet Not yet Not yet Not yet Not yet

Page 74 Page 75

Oh….

Goaaaahhhh

Guh

Page 76

Oww…

We let down our guard

But it was effective

The shockwave is circulating throughout its body

Blow up into pieces you monster

It’s a super move that can only be pulled off once by geezers like us

I’m glad it hit

Thank you Genos

Page 77

It’s finished

Page 78

Hm?

Page 79

Seriously?

Page 80

This guy molted…!!!

And didn’t it get bigger than before!?

No way!

Page 81

We can’t beat this thing…!

If we have to protect the unconscious heroes at the same time…

What should we do!? Bang!

Even if we back off, it would probably come after us and…

It’s all residential areas outside of Forest Park…

If we leave, it’ll affect the civilians…

Page 82

Bang

I’ll fight it

I’ll hold off that centipede as long as I can so

Take the injured and escape

Page 83

Genos

Are you saying that you’ll fight that thing on your own?

I can’t agree with that…

You don’t need to push yourself. You know that you can’t win

You young ones have still have a future

Genos

Just don’t overdo it

Page 84

Is that…

Really okay?

Page 85

There’s no way

Page 86

That’s okay

Page 87 Page 88 Page 89

There’s no way!

Cannons don’t work on it!

Page 90

This guy

And the guy from yesterday

Page 91

And Garou

Are all part of the Monster Association

This fight

Is unavoidable

Page 92 Page 93 Page 94

Dual Blade Rush

That’s what it means to fight against them

Page 95

I’m participating in this fight

Grind into pieces

Page 96

If you say that’s being reckless

Crack

Uh…

Page 97

Genos!!!

At this rate

I…

Page 98

Won’t be able to stay in the fight

Page 99 Page 100

Jet Drive Arrow

Page 101

Uooohhhh!!!

Page 102 Page 103

Ugoah

He went into its mouth

Oh no…

Page 104

Digestive juices

I’ll completely melt you in a few seconds

You’re the one that’s going to melt

Page 105

Chou Rasen Shoukyaku Hou (Super Spiral Incineration Cannon)

Page 106 Page 107

…….!!!

He did it!!

Clank

…..

Page 108

Crack crack

Page 109

Crack crack

Crack

grin

Again…

I…

Can’t win…

Can’t protect…

Page 110

We’re getting out of here

sizzle

Brother! Grab those guys and run!!

It’s useless

What’s wrong?

Are you disgusted that you ended up being partially responsible for slaughtering those heroes?

Page 111

That’s not it!

I’m just disappointed by this ending!!!

I…want to defeat them with my own power!

By doing so, I become the symbol of fear…!!

That’s the meaning behind the hero hunting!!!

The symbol of fear? You? Hahaha…

If you were to go back now, you would only end up getting stomped on together with the heroes.

Right now you don’t have the strength to go against Elder Centipede or the officers of the Monster Association.

Page 112

Guh…

Just…you wait…and see…

What should I do…

Page 113

What is it that I lack…!?

Are there still more guys like that?

In front of guys like that…

Am I only able to suck on my thumb while watching them…?

Bang! This isn’t good. If we keep going

We’ll exit the Forest Park!

Page 114

Also…I can’t run for very long while carrying this many people

How old do you think I am

Do or die…

Brother

Page 115

I’m going to go all out for the last time in my life

Page 116

Elder Centipede~!!!

Hey! You pest!!!!!

I’ve brought the “Blast” that you’ve been looking for!!!!!

Page 117

That voice is…King!!?

Blast!?

What…!

!!!?

Look!!

Its movements have stopped

And it’s turned around

Page 118

Blast…?

Yes…that’s right! The opponent that beat you up and made you run away while peeing your pants….the hero Blast!!

If you want to fight against Blast again, come over here!

What’s wrong? Are you so scared that you can’t move!? You’re spineless!!! Hey, if you’re going to shit yourself, do it at home!

A weak little bug like you should go back underground and suck on your mom’s tits!!!

Page 119

King made it to the location in City S where Elder Centipede reappeared!!!

That’s good! King should be able to do something about this situation…

Yes…there are still several heroes in that area

And when I told him that they might become casualties from any fighting nearby

He told me “Give me any information that might provoke Elder Centipede”

He undoubtedly plans on luring the enemy to where he is and fighting it one-on-one

Page 120

When Blast severely wounded it, it escaped and ran away underground

I hope we can defeat it this time…

It was top secret information, but I relayed the information detailing the monster and Blast’s connection to him

Also, I told him that if the battle were to be prolonged or if they were to change locations, the damage to the surrounding areas would be tremendous

And what how did he respond?

Just one word: “Understood”…

Together with the reverberations of the King Engine

Page 121

Draw the enemy this way so there aren’t any more casualties…

If the enemy is wounded, finish it off before it escapes underground…

Finish it as quickly as possible…

Any attacks should be contained within a limited range…and no attacks that might knock the centipede into the residential areas…

That’s all

Page 122

…..

…tama?

Page 123

Saitama~!!!?

It’s going to hit

Page 124 Page 125 Page 126

Ser

Page 127 Page 128

ious

Page 129

Pun

Page 130 Page 131

Page 132 Page 133 Oh

Page 134

Is that you, Genos?

Page 135

So you were here.

Just like King said

Yeah…and it looks like we came just in the nick of time

Good thing we came

Oh…?

Saitama…you look kind of refreshed

What happened?

I kind of feel like I let off a lot of steam

Page 136

I had a lot of stress built up because you kept beating me in those games

So he was still pissed off

Well…I wanted to teach you that your way of fighting with only one style of attack isn’t good…

Saitama-sensei, I wish to ask you a question

What is it?

What do you think I am lacking?

Isn’t it power?

Page 137

….!!!!

Thank you very much!

Ahhhhhhhh….That’s no good…

You probably shouldn’t use Saitama as a point of reference, Genos…

Sensei’s fights show me the path that I should take

The symbol of strength

That is what I should aim for…

I will also reach that place

Page 138

Garou…so you finally passed out

Rest well

We’ll reach Orochi soon

#OPM #manga #manga chapters #translation #chapter 84 #long #transcript

2 notes · View notes

fmasecretsanta2020 · 4 years

Photo

Interest Check Questions Answered!

Mods Tas, Waddi, and Flour have reviewed your interest check responses, adjusted our rules and schedule, and are ready to respond to all your questions about the event. To begin, we’ve pulled quite a few questions from your interest check responses and are publicly answering them below the cut.

Want to learn more about out the 2020 FMA Secret Santa? Check out our FAQ, rules and schedule.

Have a questions about this event? Don’t be shy! We’d love to respond. Send us a tumblr ask!

‘Tis almost the season! Sign-ups open on Monday, October 19, 2020!

I’m new in all of this, so I’d like to know what’s the purpose of the check-in dates. What do we have to do in those?

The first check-in is just to make sure that you are still interested in participating and are ok with your assignment. We understand that real life can get in the way sometimes. We ask that people let us know as soon as possible if they think they need to pull out. The second check-in is to ask when the gift will be posted. The reason for this is that last year we had several dropouts who confirmed they were going to make a gift at check-ins but did not post a gift. The second check-in will allow us to assign to pinch-hitter sooner.

-Mod Waddi

Maybe the second check-in is too close to the posting time? If a pinch-hitter is needed.

Thanks for your thoughts, anon. The second check-in is a little late, and we will adjust our schedule to give you five days between the second check-in and the posting period. However, we are keeping it at a later date for a pretty good reason.

Unfortunately, we assigned most of our pinch-hitters at the end of the posting period last year. We had several dropouts who confirmed with us at our midpoint check-ins but did not post a gift. To avoid that this year, we’re having two check-ins, and at the second check-in, we will ask you when you plan to post. We understand that some people need less time than others to complete a gift, but everyone should have started and have an ETA for completion five days before the posting period. A late second check-in might help us make sure everyone receives a gift on time!

-Mod Flour

Could you perhapse have multiple days for assignments incase someone has a personal issue with someone they are supposed to make content for and can let you know?

We certainly understand where you’re coming from with this suggestion. Unfortunately, since we give people 72 hours to respond to each moderator contact (and we will be asking our participants to confirm that they accept their assignment), separate assignment days would have to take place over (possibly) weeks—6 days at least for 2 assignments, 9 days for 3 assignments, 12 days for 4 assignments, etc.—if we waited for each wave of participants to accept before moving on to the next. We feel that this approach would significantly cut into the creation period. Additionally, the sign-up application will provide a space where you can list people that you do not want to receive a gift from or make a gift for. We encourage everyone to be honest on their application, and if someone is uncomfortable with the person they are assigned, contact a moderator sooner rather than later.

-Mod Flour

what about art styles that don't really do clean lineart but do include colors/complexity/etc, or multiple sketchier drawings/comic strip type things?

Thank you for this feedback. As writers, we appreciate you pointing this out. We will do our best to take this into account.

-Mod Waddi

A minimum of 8 gifs could be a lot if it's an edited gifset. I can see it being okay for a slightly colour-changed gifset with a filter over it, but for more creative gifs it can be way too much.

Thank you for this helpful feedback! This is exactly the kind of thing we want to hear. Admittedly, all three moderators are writers. We do our best to make good rules, but sometimes we don’t take all the variables into account. We’ll lower the minimum from 8 to 4.

-Mod Flour

I tend to write a lot when I get excited; would it be a problem if I write more than 1k?

Not a problem at all! We totally understand this excitement and allow our Secret Santas to produce at or above the required minimum for their specific type of gift. When creating these gifts, please take into consideration your assigned person’s likes and dislikes.

Two things to keep in mind:

1) Please consider the number of days for creation (a maximum of 47 days). Assignments will go out on November 15, with two check-ins occurring on December 1 and December 15. All gifts must be 100% complete before posting between December 21, 2020 and January 1, 2021.

2) If you decide to produce your gift above the required minimum, please do not expect your Secret Santa to do the same. As long as they meet the minimum requirement, it is considered a complete gift.

-Mod Tas

I think they're mostly fine, although, would ships that have them meet when one is a minor and the other an adult, but they're currently both adults be allowed? I understand that this exchange is a way to build bridges in the fandom, but I'm not sure if that's going to work if one of the most popular ships is completely excluded.

Yes, as long as you portray both characters as adults when including romantic or sexual content in your gift, you are free to ship whoever you’d like to (besides incest) no matter when they met. Our rules prohibit major/minor sexual or romantic relationships—minor meaning 17 years old and under and major meaning 18 years old or older. As long as you’re not including sexual or romantic tones that take place when one character is a minor within your otherwise adult/adult ship gift, we’re good. Keep it all non-sexual and non-romantic until both characters are adults.

(As an aside, some people may remember that this exchange had an additional exception for major/minor shipping for small age gap relationships last year; however, no one took advantage of that exception, and it complicated the rules quite a bit. Therefore, we decided to draw a hard line and leave it at that. There’s no judgment there; we’re just trying to craft rules that work for most people.)

Please also keep in mind that we also allow alternate universes and canon-divergent situations in this exchange. A hallmark of fandom is being free to imagine! We feel it would be almost impossible (and unfair to the differing, though equally valid points of view in the FMA fandom) to set ages for every character and then to enforce such a restrictive rule.

-Mod Flour

I think the exchange should allow M and E works, and to create/receive them you have to be 18+—but in order to not pressure minors to self-identity, have the question of whether they're over 18 be optional. (So it's basically, "If you're interested in NSFW and meet the age requirement, check this box.") And unless I misread the definition of pedophilia, it seems to exclude kid/kid relationships. Which I don't personally enjoy, but I know some people like kidfic or "through the years" fics, which are pretty harmless IMO as long as they're not physical/sexual.

We hear you anon. My fellow moderators and I have had many conversations about the rating of this event. We think it’s best to stick to a blanket PG-13 rating. However, there is a footnote that you might be interested in:

This Fullmetal Alchemist Secret Santa Gift Exchange takes no stance regarding “Mature” or “Explicit” content added to the original Secret Santa offering. Please post additional content separately from the Secret Santa offering (separate reblog, post, or additional chapter). Such additions or continuations are at the discretion of the gift giver.

The second part of your comment requires a more in-depth analysis. While there are some restrictions, kid/kid ships are not completely excluded. We exclude sexual interest, sexual attraction, or sexual relationships between any character and another character who is 13 years old or younger. We don’t have many shipping exclusions for characters who are 14-17 years old as long as they are shipped to other 14-17 year old characters.

Specifically, our rules prohibit pedophilia (which we define as a sexual interest, sexual attraction, or sexual relationship by any character to a character who is 13 years old or younger) and major/minor sexual or romantic relationships. While we regret that the pedophilia definition is overbroad, in that it can define someone under 16 years old as a pedophile, subdividing the rules further would make them even more complicated. To grasp the intent of both the pedophilia rule and the major/minor exclusion as it affects kidfics, look to our wording, particularly the part where we say sexual interest, sexual attraction, or sexual relationship.

To wit, sexual can be defined as, “relating to the instincts, physiological processes, and activities connected with physical attraction or intimate physical contact between individuals.” For example, if an 8 year old and a 9 year old hold hands and walk down the street having thoughts about how special they are to each other, we would not consider this sexual. If that same 8 year old and 9 year old hold hands and think about wanting to act intimately while jaunting down the street, we would consider that sexual. Innocent physical contact alone wouldn’t break the rule; it’s a character’s intent that matters most here.

Therefore, a participant can make a through-the-years work with a prepubescent setting included so long as any kid/kid shipping is not sexual in nature. To the extent that these rules may appear to allow romantic relationships between minors of all ages, all I have to say is that it wouldn’t be PG-13 to have a 9 year old with a romantic, albeit non-sexual, interest in a 16 year old (or vice versa). I haven’t run across a a lot of media with older minors being romantically linked to younger minors in the fandom, so I’m hopeful that we don’t need to be too worried.

Oh my, that was long. I hope that helps explain our rules a little better.

-Mod Flour

Just a question: out of curiosity, will this event be having a discord server or some other way for the members to talk to each other?

There will be no discord server for this event. Several reasons include:

1) Secret Santa identities should remain anonymous until posting dates. No participant should be able to figure out who their Secret Santa is,

2) we want to avoid conversations which may allude to a participant’s specific gift,

3) after a long consideration, the moderators have decided that this year’s event will be conducted via Tumblr platform only. All participants will need to have a Tumblr account in order to be contacted via the chat.

-Mod Tas

there are a lot of options for the type of gift that can be created-- can the person being gifted ask to have a specific gift (ex: art only)? thank you

Yes, the person being gifted can request for a specific gift. However, the sign up form will also ask for a backup gift type that the participant is willing to receive. The mods, to the best of our abilities, will match up a participant with a Secret Santa who will be able to produce said gift.

Assignments will go out on or after November 15, 2020. Should you have any concerns with the person assigned to you--their gift requests or otherwise, please contact one of the mods as soon as possible.

-Mod Tas

Will there be an option (if ships are allowed) to opt out of ships of adult/minor characters over the age of 13?

The sign up form will ask your likes and dislikes (i.e. favorite pairing or preferred genre), including what kind of gifts you are not and are willing to receive. If you prefer to opt out of a specific type of pairing, please note it during sign up.

Based on the rules of FMA Secret Santa 2020, “Media containing, suggesting, or portraying incest,* pedophilia**, or minor/major sexual or romantic relationships*** is prohibited.” The age of majority is defined as 18 years old.

Adult & minor relationships, which are non-sexual, non-romantic, and bear no indication that it would become such, are allowed. We are also allowing alternative universes, which may include characters depicted as younger or older than their canonical age. If a fanfic or a fanart depicts canonically minor characters as adults, they will need to explicitly state this.

-Mod Tas

If you are looking for other moderators to help facilitate, I'd be interested in filling out an application.

Oh, thank you! This is a really kind offer. We decided earlier this year not to run formal moderator applications, and we are unsure if we need any other moderators at this time. However, we may review this. If you’re interested in helping out, just message @waddiwasiwitch or @flourchildwrites on tumblr, and we’ll go from there.

-Mod Flour

I haven't participated in this before so I don't know if tvis is already a thing, but I think that during sign ups you should have the chance to write a list of topics, characters, and ships that you would rather not do for the exchange, because there's a difference between respecting ships from a distance and having to draw your notp.

Yes, an option for specifying likes and dislikes will be available in the sign up form. This is the case for both what gift you will create and receive. We will be matching people whose interests align, and we will take likes and dislikes into account. The more information provided in the form, the easier our job will be.

-Mod Waddi

Manga edits/colorings okay?

Yes, that's a wonderful gift! In fact, we're going to add manga edits/colorings to the category of gifts available by a recipient’s request or suggestion just to keep the idea at the forefront. If a participant requests a manga edit/coloring or if they say they are flexible on their application and you indicate you'd like to make one on your application, we'll do our best to send you their way during matching!

-Mod Flour

Are sculptures ok with this?

That is a very interesting question. As this gift exchange is entirely digital and doesn't involve physical gifts, we are unsure what that would look like. Us mods were talking about it, and we were wondering if it would be possible to show us an example of what a gift like that would look like. Please get in touch with either myself @waddiwasiwitch or mod @flourchildwrites by Tumblr message. We would need to know more to answer your question. When a gift is unusual, it means we need participants who will be open to such a gift too.

-Mod Waddi

#fma #fullmetal alchemist #gift exchange #secret santa #fmasecretsanta2020

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prowlingthunder · 4 years

Text

WIP Meme 10/20/2020

Tagged by: @mandakatt

Look at what you've done. How dare you. I'm not even sure this is all of them. I think some are hidden in gdocs yet. Argh.

Tagging: @egodominustuus @thelostknee @linwyrms-lair @gracethescribbler @skywalking-across-the-galaxy @khantoelessar @zpansven

Read the list under the cut.

1: A Child of Blood

2: Eileen - Birds of a Feather

3: BtVS - Lupercalia - Xander - Wolfthreat - WIP

4: BtVS - PT Alexander Harris Auroresbrother - Denguards - LUPERCALIA - WIP

5: Buffy the Witcher

6: SynthSil - Ascendent Ab Inferis (Lux Aeterna AU)

7: Boys in Blue

8: Butterfingers the Deathclaw

9: Piper - (Lupercalia)

10: Sil/Jack

11: CM - Lupercalia WIP - Red

12: CM - Lupercalia WIP -

13: AC/FFXV - Des and Noct swap places - ffxv Halloween bang

14: Trigun x Outlaw Star

15: Gargoyles x Ronin Warriors

16: Power Rangers x Ronin Warriors

17: Ronin Warriors x Outlaw Star

18: Rurouni Kenshin x Yu Yu Hakusho

19: Dragons Breath -- DAO&RW

20: Farcry 5 / What Became of Edith Finch - Eddie

21: Farcry 5 / What Became of Edith Finch - Jake

22: Gundam Wing - With Daemons WIP

23: GW Pacific Rim

24: GW&IA&FFX - Auron - Roulette - Unlikely

25: Hobbit/RW - Bilbo -

26: House Ronin Warriors

27: RK-Xmen = Dragon Teeth

28: RW-PJ

29: RWSG1

30: SG1/JOS - Third - In a God's Bedroom

31: ST/RW

32: SW/GW - Brothers and Sisters [clonefic]

33: Thor-x-Ronin Warriors

34: Noctis (Final Fantasy XV) / Levi (Attack on Titan) - Hunting [Noctis in AoT]

35: Hiei (Yu Yu Hakusho) / Prowls (Exalted) - Stars [Prowls adopts Fire Demon baby]

36: Noctis (Final Fantasy XV) / Ezio (Assassin’s Creed) - Family [Assassins in FFXV]

37: Kuwabara (Yu Yu Hakusho) / Anakin Skywalker (Star Wars) - Honor [Kuwabara unfucks SW]

38: Kuwabara (Yu Yu Hakusho) / Dex-Star - Love [Kuwabara adopts a Red Lantern Cat]

39: Voltron/Escaflowne

40: When the Night Comes/Arcana crossover

41: YYH/Naruto - Kurama - Foxkids

42: CSI NY - Lupercalia WIP -

43: Dark Matter - Hiro - [Lupercalia] - WIP

44: Every Warden Ever - WIP -

45: Nelaros and F!Tabris as wardens

46: Salazar - Crowbar Fic

47: Carslile/Sil - Highschool

48: Joan rambles

49: Junior - (Best laid plans)

50: Junior - Outsider

51: Junior - The G.O.A.T.

52: Junior rambles

53: MacCready - Big Town Blues

54: MacCready - Radstorm

55: Nora - Line-dried Laundry (Lupercalia)

56: Pandora -

57: Pandora - Lupercalia Fic - [Inside Pandora's Box]

58: Pandora rambles

59: Russian Roulette - Silas deathfic

60: Sil/X6 rambles

61: Silas - Demon Summoner AU - A Leaf in the Wind

62: Silas King - Snow Angels (Papawolf!Renigald)

63: Silas King - Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (Operation: Rescue Quinn kidfic)

64: Silas rambles

65: Winter Animals (papa!Artem)

66: Y7 - All the Things I Didn't Say

67: Ambulo

68: Contritum Coronam

69: to abstain from doing harm

70: A General Gift

71: ABO nicias&caleb/nicola

72: An Army - Prompto & Ignis - Blood and Water

73: Andali misc

74: Ardyn - (Triplets verse)

75: Cathedral of You fanfiction

76: Cor -

77: Cor - Dawnfire - WIP

78: Dave - [Scourgeverse]

79: FFXV Glaive Lupercalia

80: FFXV Prompto Lupercalia

81: Galahdian Noctis au

82: give a brother wings

83: Halloween '19 d2

84: Halloween '19 d3

85: Halloween '19 d4

86: Halloween '19 d5

87: Halloween '19 d7

88: Noct raises Ardyn

89: Nyx -

90: Prompto - Terrible Things

91: Sealions - Cor - The Dance

92: snowchild (Lupercalia wolfProm fic)

93: The Feral Coeurl of Galahd (Galahdian!Cor fic)

94: Transplant Fic Box

95: Vipers Victim

96: what fire burns

97: IA - Kasmir!Oliver Briggs - WIP

98: IA - Nebrija x Arzu - Family - WIP

99: David and kids

100: David and Bridget, Combat Skills

101: David vs Simon Fight

102: Bridget tending David

103: Music *http://youtu.be/G2ZKKXCuaYc?t=9m46s

104: Seduction

105: Wish

106: Destiny

107: xerxes

108: Giayl - Wolflords (Lupercalia)

109: LotRO - Aegliraan - Caran Dagra - WIP

110: Lupercalia - Shepard - Star-light, Star-bright

111: ME - OC - Blood And Water

112: Black Cats and Broken Mirrors Chapter 5

113: Itachi - Step Two

114: The Hardest Part - Chapter One - Alone

115: 100+ Words list

116: Bioshock - Big Daddy - ABO verse

117: Character Roulette 2

118: Life of Redemption

119: A lover's homecoming

120: The Dreaming Cord

121: Logan - (This is what it's like) - WIP

122: Outlander - Kainan - (wolf fur and dragon teeth)

123: SPCH - drabble

124: Thor - All The Little Children [Lupercalia]

125: Thor - Lupercalia WIP - Frigga -

126: WoW - Livieva - Puppy At Heart

127: Haruko - Genji lives path

128: McHanzo Timetravel Shenanigans

129: Overwatch - Yuuma - Nest of Vipers - Big Bang

130: Stan/Haruko

131: Stanfic

132: Taijo Aitai tinyfic

133: Yuuma Op

134: Mia - Lupercalia fic - The Chosen Ones ch2

135: RW - Lupercalia - Arago & Hariel - Blood and Ashes - WIP

136: Ryou - Coal Dust - GIFT - WIP

137: Seiji - Kagome, Kagome

138: Seiji & Cale - Quadrature Pt2 - GIFT - WIP

139: Yulie WIP

140: Dinner

141: Bamboo

142: Travel

143: Sting

144: City

145: Noise

146: Titan

147: Oddyseus

148: Hera

149: Archangel

150: Centaur

151: Gorgon

152: Rainforest

153: Music

154: Groot

155: Plagues

156: Courage

157: Rage

158: Belief

159: Joy

160: Horoscope

161: Family

162: Obligation

163: Friend

164: Loneliness

165: Anakin - - timetravel fic tcw/ep7

166: Anakin / Rey - A Pocket Full of Sand (Reincarnation Fic)

167: Eurynome - Monsters in the Dark

168: Eurynome - Supernova?

169: Jeeri -

170: Shmi Skywalker - Son of Sands [Aniwolf]

171: Snowdrops

172: Star Wars AU Fics

173: StarWars - WIP

174: Trials and Shenanigans (Bits and Pieces)

175: We Shouldn't Be Friends

176: SG1 - Sam - - WIP

177: SG1 - Sam&Jack - - WIP

178: SAO - Yui - SAOFest - Marching Band

179: SAO - Yui - SAOFest - What Big Sisters Are For

180: SAO w Jaegers - Silica - WIP

181: Series: Bad Plan

182: Arrow&RW - Oliver - - WIP

183: Cye - Homecoming (Multiverse)

184: Papa!Cye

185: little shadows far reaching

186: Untitled document

187: Voltron - Keith -

188: Geralt - Witchwolves [Lupercalia]

189: Hell Hath No Fury

190: Chapter 3

191: Adventures of Maiwen Tanet

192: Art of Living

193: Asclepius

194: Bloodlines

195: Bondsiblings

196: Cats Cradle

197: Smoke Song

198: Darkness Watching

199: Desert Sands

200: Dragon's Cross

201: Dragonkin

202: Fractured

203: Hydra

204: Lyric Book

205: Poetry Book

206: Red Moon Kisses

207: Rupert's Drop

208: Feyborn

209: Superheros

210: Wonderland

211: A Mother's Love

212: Harry Potter and the Light of the Moon

213: Minor Troubles

214: Roses In Stained Glass

215: Even God Can't Save You Now

216: Mirrors Edge -

217: Our Secrets

218: Mica Sands

219: SG1/RW

220: They Call Them Ghosts

221: We All Bleed

222: In A House Of Brittle Bones

223: With A Crash of Thunder

224: Digital Shards [YGO/Digimon]

225: God Save The Queen

226: Fractured Light

227: AtlA/RW

228: NatM/YGO

229: SG1/StS

230: Van Helsing/Helsing

231: GW/Avatar

232: GW/JOH

233: Saving You

234: Firefly/Outlaw Star

235: GW/RW Reincarnation Is A Bitch

236: Escaflowne/RW

237: Mending Of Hearts Hope/Noel

238: The engines of iron Cindy/MTProm

239: Weaver's Undoing

240: A Nomad's surprise

241: A Soldier For Sale

242: Heir of Spring

243: The Ghosts of Haven

244: Master's Vengence gladio/prom d/s bdsm

245: The Unfortunate Ice Cream

246: The Perfect Hustle

247: The Adventure of Odie, the One Eyed Sock Puppet

248: Angels in the Attic

249: Mending the Sun

250: Numb to the Stars

251: Traitor of Heaven - ffx/ffvii

252: Isle of Iron

253: Irreverence

254: the empty tower

255: Bravery In Eternity

256: Changeling's Duel

257: Gilded Dispair

258: Wolfwan return of shark

259: Clonewolf O66

260: Time of the Wolf Lupercalia AU

261: Time of the Wolf Lupercalia snippets

262: Going Down (Cpt. America lupercalia)

263: wake up cpt+girls

264: Lokison

265: Uncle of Mine

266: The Things Wolfsisters Do

267: Howling

268: Shield Sisters

269: starhunter lupercalia

#memes #wip meme #writing meme #meme #fanfiction #ofic

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mobius-prime · 4 years

Text

151. Sonic the Hedgehog #85

The Big Payback

Writer: Karl Bollers Pencils: Ron Lim Colors: Frank Gagliardo

So Eggman is quite peeved that Sonic stopped his plans to destroy Station Square via ancient water monster. However, he has a plan to get back at Sonic - and as with many of his previous plans, it involves a robotic duplicate of his archnemesis…

Sonic and the Freedom Fighters are in Station Square, which is in the midst of trying to clean up the mess left by the attack, being thanked and awarded by the mayor for saving their city. Suddenly, the ceremony is interrupted by the appearance of Silver Sonic II, which is significantly smaller in size than its original counterpart.

Sonic leads his robotic nemesis on a wild goose chase across the city to draw fire away from the innocents at the ceremony. Big snags Silver Sonic II's leg with his fishing rod, and Tails tries to attack it while it's stuck, but he gets knocked aside into Big as the mecha breaks free and continues its pursuit of its quarry. Sonic and it finally crash through a window into the ground level of a building that's been structurally compromised by the flood, something Silver Sonic II uses to its advantage.

The building falls on top of them both, and Eggman, watching from his base, cackles, knowing that Silver Sonic II is sturdy enough to survive such an impact. The Freedom Fighters desperately dig into the rubble only to find a hole in the ground beneath it, indicating that Sonic dug his way to safety through the ground. As he pops back out and continues to fight the robot, Nicole, Sally and Nate try to discern its potential weaknesses.

Damn, if Eggman somehow found an infinite power supply, why did he waste it on one measly little robot? You'd think he'd insert that into an Ultimate Annihilator Mk. II or something and get to work erasing existence. Sonic is shaken free from Silver Sonic II midair, and when Tails catches him, Silver Sonic II straight up jettisons his own foot into Tails' head as payback. Sonic becomes enraged at seeing his friend knocked out by the long-range kick, and this gives him enough strength to deal the final blow against his foe.

What indeed? Eggman certainly doesn't seem too fazed by Silver Sonic II's loss, as he installed a homing beacon in it for this very possibility, and intends to simply wait until the Freedom Fighters leave the city unattended and then waltz in to fix up his robot and get to conquerin'. However, the Freedom Fighters certainly don't seem too worried, leaving the city after saying goodbye to Big, who's heading back to the Mysterious Cat Country with Froggy in tow, and they hop in their aircraft only for it to immediately begin to careen out of control.

Sally orders Sonic and Tails to do some reconnaissance for signs of life nearby (why, I have no idea - they crashed like not even a mile from Station Square from the looks of it), and shoots Amy down when she tries to ask to go along. Nate, inspecting the damage, finds it to be the result of sabotage, and while he worries about who may have done it (the idea that it may have been, you know, Eggman, or the robot they were just fighting, doesn't seem to cross his mind), Eggman himself waltzes straight into the city like he didn't just try to murder everyone in it. Somehow he doesn't get immediately arrested on the street, and instead he finds his robot as planned - only Silver Sonic II is already repaired, and has been reprogrammed by Nate to serve as Station Square's loyal protector from now on! That's actually some damn good thinking on his part. Amusingly, Eggman races out with his former creation on his heels while shouting that "Payback is such a glitch!" which is maybe the closest this comic has come to actually swearing so far.

Home & Back

Writer: Karl Bollers Pencils/Colors: Diamond Rose Studios

The art in this issue is really bizarre, for some reason - it's credited in its entirety to "Diamond Rose Studios," without elaborating on who actually worked on what, and the art style, particularly the shading, is pretty noticeably different from the style of other artists for the comic. If anything, it comes across much more like amateur work you might find on DeviantArt rather than official art for a licensed video game comic. But hey, it's not bad art, so no real problem here. Oh, and Rotor's finally back! It's been so long since we've seen him… *checks back* twenty-four issues, in fact! We unfortunately find him now in a nasty predicament - his bathysphere is taking on water fast, and he's not having any success radioing for help. He thinks back on how his last few months have been - shortly after he left to find his family, he indeed found them safe and sound with the help of the Arctic Freedom Fighters.

This issue seems to take place just shortly after Eggman's return, because Rotor recounts how just recently his family all fell under the mind control spell again, once more trying to kill him and forcing him to run for his life in his bathysphere, which was then damaged, leaving him stranded in his current predicament. Honestly, I have to point out right now that the timeline of these early eras is aaaall over the place. Issues are constantly throwing out random amounts of time, claiming that X amount of months have passed between this event and that event, only to claim a different amount of time between similar events over here and there. I mean, I got the initial impression that Robotnik had only died a maximum of maybe five months before Eggman's arrival, and yet here Rotor is claiming it had been nearly a year? Then on top of that he apparently spent months hanging out with his family in the North Sea, easily making it over a year since Robotnik's death - and yet the timeline of StH#72 and beyond clearly indicates that mere days passed in between his leaving and Eggman's return, yet here he is, claiming to have spent months with his family unmarred by any negative circumstances. Even if you argue that maybe the mind control was a delayed effect and only started back up right around now during the Chaos fiasco, the early issues of this era seem to indicate that not more than a few weeks have passed between Eggman's arrival and the Sonic Adventure adaption - this is his first evil world domination plot since his return, after all. What I'm saying is that the amounts of time that various issues claim have passed between most of these key events just don't line up with each other at all, so you really have to take any character's claim of months or years between events with a gigantic grain of salt. I don't know why they didn't put more effort into maintaining a consistent "schedule" if you will of events, if only for consistency's sake, but then again this bothers me probably more than most, just because I have a strong need for narrative consistency in my own stories. It's just another one of those odd plot holes that we kind of have to ignore to get anywhere.

Rotor, having finished with his chronologically-impossible recounting of previous events, realizes that the water leaking into his bathysphere is coming entirely too close to a mass of live wires, and makes the decision to abandon ship, preferring to risk a long swim back to the surface.

Well, at least these friendly fellas have got his back. Hopefully we'll see more of him back with the main Freedom Fighter chapter soon, because having him head off to find his family honestly felt like an excuse to just get rid of him as a character for a while, and I resent that, because Rotor is a big chubby bro and we deserve to see more of him being a badass sweetheart.

#nala reads archie sonic preboot #archie sonic #archie sonic preboot #sonic the hedgehog #sth 85 #writer: karl bollers #pencils: ron lim #pencils: diamond rose studios #colors: frank gagliardo #colors: diamond rose studios

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honeypiehotchner · 5 years

Text

Trust -- part twelve

There’s a lot of hate for Mary but I really enjoyed her character? So she won’t be a HUGE part of this story, but she will be here. Hence this chapter. Sorry not sorry if anyone dislikes her lol.

Warnings: Angst. So sorry. Reader and Sherlock are having a bit of a moment. Oopsies. And that bad idea the reader has is toward the end, but vaguely. It’ll be explained (and acted upon) in the next chapter. Fun times!

Despite many, many, many protests made by Sherlock, John still manages to drag the consulting detective out of the flat to have dinner with you and Mary one evening.

The pout on Sherlock’s face is enough to make you snicker, and this time, you don’t muffle it. Not even as Sherlock turns to glare at you, because that look is almost ten times funnier to you. And you catch him when he moves to hide the smirk stretching across his lips. Sherlock can’t help it. Something about the sound of your laughter brings this light feeling to his lungs.

John takes the first taxi since he has to pick up Mary on the way, leaving you to take the next with Sherlock. The latter wonders for a moment how much John would be angry with him if he turned and went back inside the flat, but one look at you squashes that option.

Despite what he wants to tell John, or you, or himself, Sherlock is worried for your safety. And for that reason alone – well, the case itself being a close second – Sherlock stays by you on the sidewalk.

He hails a taxi for you both, getting one quicker than you ever would have. You climb into the backseat, scooting all the way to the window. Sherlock sits on the opposite side, practically hugging the door as he tells the driver where to take you both.

“Have you found anything else?” You ask, trying to start some sort of small talk. Silence is Sherlock’s strong suit, and you know that, but you’ve had enough deafening silence from him to last you three years. And it’s only been three days since he last spoke to you. And he’s been at the lab for nearly all 72 of those hours.

“No.”

“Hm,” you nod. “What have you found?”

“Nothing.”

“Have you been experimenting?”

“Yes.”

“What for?”

“Other cases.”

“Ooh, anything exciting?”

He turns his head to look at you. “Why, are you going to tell my brother?”

“I haven’t spoken with your brother since he forced me to have tea with him,” you scoff, frustrated that Sherlock would even assume that of you. Why would he even assume that of you?

“Oh.”

Trying to connect some dots, you ask, “Are you mad at me?”

Sherlock reels back, that question being the last he’d ever expected to come from you. “Why would you think that?” He blurts.

“I dunno,” you shrug, glancing toward the front. “You haven’t spoken to me in three days.”

“Don’t take my silence personally, Y/N.”

“But you’ve spoken to John, Ms. Hudson, probably Molly,” you list their names without knowing your real reasoning. Probably to get a rise out of him, like you do everything else.

“Are you jealous?”

Sherlock’s question comes as a surprise both to you and him. Jealousy isn’t exactly a word you were aware of Sherlock knowing the true meaning of. Turning the question on you instead of himself like John did is what surprises Sherlock the most.

Still, you answer. “I don’t think jealous is the right word, but,” You pause, looking over at him, but he’s staring straight ahead. “We played games and talked for a while and then suddenly you stopped talking. I don’t know.”

“I said don’t take it personally.”

“Right,” you nod, turning to look out your window. “Forget I said anything. I’m sorry, really. It was a silly thing to bring up.” And you mean that truthfully.

You should know better. He’s Sherlock Holmes. He goes silent for days, weeks sometimes. He thinks like a machine and visits his mind palace so often that it might as well be an actual, physical palace that he travels to, probably the size of Buckingham Palace itself. His silence isn’t personal to anyone but himself. He is an individual in every sense of the word.

And it’s silly of you to even begin to think anything otherwise.

You don’t see it because you’re too busy doing some thinking of your own, but Sherlock looks over at you. And he looks. For the longest time. Eyebrows furrowed, studying your expression. Your behavior suggests you’re upset with him. But you told him to forget it, that it was silly, suggesting that you understand you shouldn’t take his silence personally. At least, that’s what your wording suggests. Your tone suggests something else entirely, something he isn’t able to read.

When he sees your head begin to turn ever so slightly, he turns his own to stare ahead.

You ignore the feeling. Like his silence, you shouldn’t take his staring personally, either. Nothing he does should you take personally because he is not thinking of you. He doesn’t think of any other human being other than himself, and that is a fact you are going to have to grasp.

It was silly of you, really, to even suggest to yourself that he might think of you. He thinks of the case, and that is all. Nothing outside of that.

Nothing like Tony. You think most of what you’re feeling is the immense longing for having Tony here with you, and you’ve got to stop that. He isn’t coming back, and you are going to have to accept that and move on. Trying to fill that void with someone like Sherlock Holmes is only going to hurt you further, and right now, you don’t think you can take anything else. You’re damaged enough as it is. You need to focus on keeping yourself under control and ignore whatever it is you were sensing from Sherlock.

Because obviously nothing is there. Sherlock Holmes doesn’t have friends.

You nearly scoff aloud at the absurdity of your thought process, scolding yourself for it taking this long for you to come to this conclusion. You suppose because you found John, who is half your brother, half your blood – you suppose you thought this situation would be different. And maybe it is. You know John sees you as a sister, and you see him as a brother – whatever that means, because you are still trying to figure that out.

But you’re beginning to realize your connection to Sherlock Holmes needs and has to mirror that of your connection with your mother.

You’re a house guest. Nothing less, nothing more.

That is all.

~~~

Mary is exactly as you imagined she’d be. Kind face, bright smile, and a bubbly, feisty personality to match. Her dry wit is a perfect companion to John’s because hers is much like yours – it’s obvious you both use your humor to irritate John.

“Did he tell you I thought you were a stripper?”

“Y/N!”

You ignore John, leaning across the table toward Mary. “I swore you were. And then he told me you were a nurse.”

“Oh, unfortunately,” she scrunches her face in amusement. She nudges John with her elbow, trying to get him to stop looking so stiff. “I like her.”

“See, John?” You give him a look. “I told you not to worry.”

“Was he worrying?”

“He worries all the time,” you frown. “I told him I thought you were lovely.”

“And a stripper,” she chuckles, raising her eyebrows.

“Lucky guess,” you smirk, ignoring the heated glare you’re getting from John. You see the amusement behind it. “Where did you and John meet?”

She gives John an exasperated look. “Have you really not told her anything about me?”

“I didn’t get a chance to tell her anything before she figured it out.”

“Oh, what gave him away?”

“He was dressing too nice,” you shrug.

Mary grins again, nodding. “I like her. I really like her.”

“I’m glad,” John smiles, giving you a look of amusement and please stop it.

“What about you, Sherlock?” Mary asks suddenly, turning her head to the detective sitting next to you, who has been entirely silent this whole night. He’s been silent since your little conversation in the cab, actually, but per his request, you’re not taking his silence personally, so instead, you focus heavily on the wine still sitting untouched in your glass.

“Just experimenting,” he replies flatly, keeping his hands in his lap.

“For three days straight.” You wish you could blame the alcohol for your words, but you can’t. There’s nothing else to blame besides your stupid…frustration? Yes, dammit, you’re frustrated. No matter how stupid it is, you’re frustrated. Probably more with yourself at this point, but regardless, you’re frustrated.

John’s head snaps to you when he hears your tone, his eyebrows furrowing. Sherlock inhales deeply, electing to ignore your comment.

Mary moves on after noticing the tension. “Solved any cases?”

“Seven,” Sherlock smiles.

You nearly roll your eyes. He’s solved seven, but he can’t solve The Congregation. At this point, you’re better off trying to find Gidon yourself.

Your eyes widen at the idea. And why you had never thought of it before.

You quickly compose yourself, not wanting to let anything else on – and because you genuinely would like to enjoy this dinner. Which is why you begin to drink the wine in front of you.

“Anything interesting?”

“Mm, no,” Sherlock finally places his hands on the table, only to clasp them together. “All of them remarkably boring.”

“Pity,” you mutter, swirling the wine before downing it.

“Are you alright?” John mouths.

You nod, placing the glass down gently. Sherlock eyes you suspiciously but averts his eyes when he sees John watching him with a weird look, like he’s slowing putting some pieces together.

Gidon, you think. Where would a man like Gidon Dietrichson hide? Most likely in plain sight. He’s probably been watching your every move, which doesn’t surprise you. You’re used to someone watching you, after all the trouble you used to get into. And you’re positive Mycroft is silently watching you all, anyway. But where would a man like Gidon be?

“Y/N?”

You blink, turning your head to see John looking at you. “What?”

“What are you eating?”

It’s then you notice the waiter standing at the end of the table. “Oh,” you chuckle. “Whatever he’s having,” you motion to Sherlock.

“It has tomatoes,” Sherlock replies rather matter-of-factly.

You give him a heated glare before giving the waiter a smile. “Then I’ll have it without tomatoes.” Handing the menu off to the waiter, you glance at your empty glass. “And more wine, please.”

John tilts his head at you, still not fully grasping the reason behind your attitude. All he can think of is that Sherlock might’ve said something to you, but he knows you better than that. You’d just as quickly slap Sherlock before you let his words get to you.

And yet here you are.

“Y/N, I actually have a favor to ask of you,” Mary changes the subject, giving you a smile. “It’s about the wedding.”

“Wedding!” You grin, glad she finally brought it up. “I was waiting for you to mention it.”

“Really?”

“Well, you’re wearing the ring now,” you nod down at her hand. “Congratulations,” you turn to John, “and thank God you finally asked.”

“He asked last night,” Mary gushes.

“Finally!” You laugh. “What favor do you need?”

She shares an excited look with John before turning back to you. “I would like you to help plan the wedding.”

You raise your eyebrows at the odd request, but you still smile. “I’d be happy to! But I’ll warn you, I’ve never planned a wedding in my life.”

“Oh, me either,” she waves your worry away. “But there’s something else, apart from planning.”

Your eyebrows raise even more.

She lets out a small sigh, remembering what John’s told her about your past. “I’d like you to be part of it – in it, actually.” She pauses. “I’d like you to be my maid of honor.”

You blink, inhaling sharply to say something, but nothing comes out. “What’s—I’m sorry, what’s a maid of honor again?”

And much to your surprise, she doesn’t laugh. You expect her to, and even if she did, it would’ve been fine. You know it’s a silly thing to not know much about.

“We can talk about details later, I swear,” Mary promises. “I just wanted to ask you now.”

“Okay,” you laugh. “Good, because I am clueless.”

“And that’s alright,” she nods. “We’ll figure it out together.”

“Okay,” you smile. You imagine you’ll never be used to anyone saying they’ll figure something out together with you, but you’re going to have to get used to it.

And you’re going to have to ask Mary why the hell she wants you to be her maid of honor, but that can wait. Like you said, you want to enjoy this dinner. And you plan to. John’s concerned looks and Sherlock’s pouting face be damned.

~~~

John returns home from dropping Mary off at her place, entering the flat just minutes after you and Sherlock parted ways at the door. Despite the awkward dinner, Sherlock still rode in the same cab with you, albeit in silence, but he still rode with you.

But the second you walked inside the flat, he went up the stairs, and you went through your door without saying a word.

John knocks on your door, but after received a quiet, “It’s open,” he lets himself inside. He finds you in your kitchen, making tea in silence.

That alone tells him something is really wrong.

Knowing you hate it when he tries to beat around the bush, he decides to just ask his question, “Are you and Sherlock…fighting?”

“Why would we be fighting?” You answer John while still staring down at your tea.

“I don’t know,” John breathes, stuffing his hands in his pockets. “Dinner just seemed a bit…tense.”

“Oh, we had a conversation in the cab on the way there.”

“Oh,” he nods. “What was it about?”

“It was really stupid,” you shake your head, picking up your mug and turning to look at John. “I tried to make some small talk, but I guess he’s too preoccupied, with cases and all.” You sip your tea, wanting John to join in at any moment, but he doesn’t. He just listens to you with this sad look on his face. “I guess I just thought we were friends, so I had to remind myself Sherlock Holmes doesn’t have friends,” you chuckle darkly. “Which is okay,” you immediately clarify, not wanting John to think you’re upset, because really, you’re not anymore. “I get it. I used to be the exact same way – still am, really. So no hard feelings.”

Your older brother eyes you suspiciously. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah,” you nod, offering a smile. “I’m sure. I think I just miss Tony a lot more than I thought I would, and I was trying to – I don’t know what I was trying to do. But hey, I don’t have time to worry about that anyway. I’ve got a wedding to help plan now.”

John smiles at your newfound enthusiasm. He hopes it’s something that will stay. “Well, I’m glad you’re excited about it.”

“Aren’t you excited?”

“Of course, I’m excited,” he replies. “But the planning is…not really my thing.”

“Oh, come on. It’s your wedding, too. We’re gonna make you make some decisions.”

“Yes, I’m sure you will.”

You smirk around your mug, crossing one ankle over the other as John turns to head for the door, not wanting to keep you too late because it’s obvious you want to get some sleep. Before he can make it all the way out, though, you call out again.

“Hey Johnny?”

“Yes?”

“Thank you.”

He tilts his head. “What for?”

You shrug. “Everything.”

He chuckles, still confused. “Alright.”

“If I hadn’t met you that day, I don’t know where I’d be right now,” you reply truthfully. “And while that one upstairs can be a pain in my ass,” you snicker, not caring if Sherlock is eavesdropping or not, “I’m still grateful. I mean, I’m gonna be in a wedding. My mom instilled into my brain so much when I was younger that weddings were a waste of time. And now I’m planning yours,” you shake your head in disbelief. “And I’m getting to witness a really happy couple be married. That’s something I’ve never seen.” You blame the wine from dinner for making you this emotional, and the late hour. “I dunno. I just feel good.”

“Is this the wine talking?”

“Probably,” you laugh. “But I mean it.”

Without hesitating, John walks back over to you, and you set your cup down in preparation, knowing he’s about to give you one of his infamous big brother hugs. And he does.

He wraps his arms around you tightly, sighing when you return the gesture, hugging him just as tight.

“I know you mean it. Thank you.”

“Of course,” you smile. “But hey, keep an eye out for Sherlock, alright? He seemed a little bothered by the idea.”

“Of what? Me getting married?”

“Yeah,” you frown. “I don’t know why.”

“Okay,” John nods. “Thanks for letting me know.”

“No problem,” you shake your head, suddenly feeling stupid upon remembering the fact. That could very well be what has Sherlock acting so strange. His behavior has nothing to do with you at all, and you were making a fool of yourself for being upset by it.

You sigh heavily as John leaves, shutting the door and leaving you alone – both physically and mentally.

You feel like a complete ass, now, for snapping at Sherlock the way you did. You know he probably couldn’t care less, but you care, and your frustration was unwarranted. He’s Sherlock Holmes. He goes silent. He’s allowed to. He doesn’t owe you anything, and vice versa.

You collapse on your bed with a groan. What has gotten into you, acting the way you were? You were behaving like a child, no doubt. Now all you can do is accept it, maybe apologize if Sherlock will even let you, but that’s debatable. He probably doesn’t even want one.

In order to distract yourself, you focus on something else.

Yes, your thought at dinner.

If Sherlock can’t solve this case, you might as well try. Besides, Gidon isn’t after Sherlock. He’s after you. Now the problem comes when trying to find where exactly Gidon is hiding.

He can’t be hiding very far, since you know for a fact that he was watching Tony and Allen before he killed them. And he drugged them days prior. You could be drugged now, for all you know, but that’s unlikely. Regardless, how could he have drugged them?

It could’ve been anywhere, but it would’ve had to be somewhere where they were vulnerable, even if for a few moments.

A café, possibly? Gidon posing as a waiter or a chef. That wouldn’t be hard to do, and slipping something into their food or drink would be easier than anything. But they would have to frequent the establishment – which actually doesn’t seem like a far reach. They were both traveling from out of town, naturally they’d find a café they like and stick to it for the time being – it’s typical tourist behavior.

And typical Tony and Allen behavior.

You shove that thought away, focusing now on yourself. If they were tourists – not really, but for the sake of your deductions – that is how they would behave. But you aren’t a tourist, not really. A fugitive maybe describes your status more or less. But you’ve been here in this flat for two months now, which is long enough that you’ve felt yourself beginning to call it home. It doesn’t feel like a home, but that’s not the point – nothing has ever felt like a home to you. The point is, you’ve settled down here for the time being. And you don’t frequent cafés.

So, naturally, Gidon’s approach would have to be different. Because his target is different from the last.

You frequent the record store down the street, and you do frequent one café, but mostly as takeaway, not sitting down. Granted, that might not matter. But it matters when John is normally the one who grabs the food. How would Gidon know for sure which one is yours? You never order the same thing, and he wouldn’t want to drug the wrong person. He’s not like that. He has a specific target, a specific order to things.

You press your hands over your eyes, annoyed that this is a lot more complicated than you expected. But Gidon is a complicated man, you suppose. More complicated than Sherlock Holmes, that’s for sure. Gidon is borderline ridiculous.

Steering yourself back to Gidon, you think harder.

And that is when it dawns on you.

The Y/N that Gidon knew was an addict. A fierce addict with no money to her name. An addict doing underground work to get the money needed to fuel her addiction.

That is how you met him, after all. You were an addict, he always had a fix. He thought you were there to do work for him, but it was the exact opposite. He thought you were nothing more than an addict with nowhere to go, so you found refuge in The Congregation.

So where would you be most vulnerable? Exactly in the same place he found you. Like an addict.

Your eyes shoot open at the realization, your face scrunching up in a frown.

You don’t like this idea. You don’t like this idea at all. But then again, you never like any of your ideas. It was, in fact, your idea to get involved with The Congregation in the first place. It was Mycroft who sealed the deal when he mentioned a number. This is no different. The deal is sealed by the prospect of finding the man who killed Tony and Allen.

You roll onto your side, deciding to literally sleep on the idea. If you haven’t come up with a better one by morning, then…well, that’s that.

But you are absolutely, most definitely, not telling your brother about this.

#sherlock #Trust #sherlock holmes #sherlock x reader #sherlock holmes x reader #john watson #mary morstan #sibling!reader #half-sibling!reader #angst

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writingvampires · 4 years

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A Different Cinematic Monster: The Cult of Midsommar

Maybe I’m writing this article because Midsommar (2019) is one of my favorite films of 2019 or maybe I was traumatized by the film and need to put the nightmares it gave me onto page. From the trauma Dani (Florence Pugh) experiences in the opening minutes to the trauma induced on the viewer over the course of roughly two and a half hours, Midsommar never shies away from causing severe discomfort. The monsters at the heart of the film are the traditions of the Swedish society the American travelers are subjected to as they try to maintain sanity amidst what may be a murderous cult.

Dani’s mental health has been negatively impacted by the suicide of her sister and death of her parents. Her boyfriend Christian (Jack Reynor) is the textbook definition of a toxic boyfriend and may know this himself, but he still fears leaving Dani alone in her emotionally vulnerable state. Christian decides to tag along with his friends Josh (William Jackson Harper), Pelle (Vilhelm Blomgren), and Mark (Will Poulter) to a ritualistic festival in Sweden. They’re in college so of course they’re largely in it for drugs and the chance of having sex with international women. Christian and his friends allow Dani to join them out of pity and Midsommar kicks things off from here. The first section of the film does a great job of setting up the characters and developing a sense of dread within the viewer.

A traumatized young woman accompanying her emotionally abusive boyfriend and his college friends on a drug-filled trip to a ritualistic festival just sounds like a recipe for disaster. Writer/director Ari Aster is highly aware of this and utilizes this with his cinematic choices. As the group of college students arrive to Sweden, the camera flips upside down and stays there long enough for one to wonder: what have these people gotten themselves into?

At the Midsommar celebration in Sweden, tradition runs king. (major spoilers follow) Can the elderly die a more peaceful death than falling to their demise over a cliff before having their head smashed in to ensure the deed is done? Nobody questions it because it is simply an accepted tradition to the Swedish while the Americans are justifiably horrified. Why is a physically-deformed person who doesn’t speak making sacred texts for them? Without any reasoning or explanation for why these traditions are honored, they become even more haunting.

Upon subsequent viewings of Midsommar, it becomes even more apparent that Pelle is a monster in his own way. He invites Christian, Dani, Josh, and Mark to the Swedish festival with little warning of what they are about to experience. Pelle never really commits any acts of violence on screen, but his complicity is just as harmful. Josh (William Jackson Harper) is somewhat complicit as well since he knew more about the ceremonies than Mark and Christian. Sure Josh has a pretty valid reason to lie to his friends (his senior thesis), but subjecting your friends to a suicide ritual is pretty irredeemable.

The suicide ritual is one of the most disturbing parts of the entire film. This scene was so disturbing that I watched it through my eyes during a re-watch. Having the elderly die in such horrific fashion reminds me of an episode of the 1990’s sitcom Dinosaurs, although this episode was a lot more comedic in tone (coincidentally, the age the elderly fall to their death is also 72 in Dinosaurs). In this episode, the elderly are thrown off a cliff instead of jumping themselves. Unlike Midsommar, Dinosaurs has a moral compass in the character of Robbie who questions this strange practice.

Another troublesome practice by the Swedish people at the festival is their liberal use of psychoactive drugs. We are fully exposed to their abuse of these drugs through the cult’s treatment of Christian. Eventually he’s drugged into a state of complete immobility after he’s forced into impregnating a young woman. Dani becomes so under the influence that she begins to enjoy dancing around in a circle for hours in the hot sun. Josh, Connie (Ellora Torchia), and Simon (Archie Madekwe) seem to escape completely falling victim to the drugs, but meet violent demises as the cult uses them for sacrificial purposes. In the end, the cult lets their intentions be known: join us or else.

Unfortunately for the American college students, the trip to the Midsommar festival is doomed from the start. If Pelle had been honest with his friends about the true nature of the ceremonies, they may have cancelled the trip all together. I have seen a few opinion pieces online suggesting that Pelle knew Dani would become the May Queen all along. I certainly can believe this and I’m sure another watch will make this more evident.

A lot of horror films have characters that make consistently questionable decisions. In Midsommar, a lot of the characters’ decisions actually make sense. Josh meets his demise because of his dedication to writing a compelling senior thesis. Connie and Simon react like normal human beings to the suicide ritual and decide to leave. The viewer knows the couple’s vocal reactions may be their downfall, but any sane person would probably react in the same way.

Even Christian and Mark, the film’s two most unlikable characters aren’t tossed into the “let’s make these characters a**holes so the audience doesn’t care when they die” trope all too common in horror films. Christian is shown to be too dissociated from the drugs to make any rational decisions and Mark acts like a dumb, horny college student so his immaturity becomes comic relief from the film’s anxiety-inducing horror.

As I watched Midsommar for the first time, very rarely was I scared in the same way a mainstream film like It: Chapter Two can scare me. However, as I walked home and began thinking about what I just saw, the horror of the film began to settle. Eventually, I fell asleep in the later hours of the night, but the damage was already done. I felt like the American travelers who were subjected to this terrifying cult. The only difference is that I got out alive.

Monster Rating: 10/10

The Monster: The Swedish cult in Midsommar is a terrifying force. What gives it a 10/10 for me is the fact that it’s almost impossible to stop. People like Josh who wish to expose all of the cult’s secrets (whether for personal or professional reasons) are killed. Since the cult remains secluded, people like Josh would be scarce and the cult would have few problems remaining the terrible force that they are. For these reasons, Midsommar is one of the most frightening films of 2019.

What did you think of Midsommar? Let us know in the comments below!

#Midsommar #Movie Review #Mike C. Wilson

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