Symbol for no talking
Don't you know who I am?
2015.06.21 23:34 hurbraa Don't you know who I am?
This is a place for instances of people not realizing who they're talking to is who they're talking about. Pool's closed, but we're still open!
2020.03.15 23:34 Silver_Surfer93 Wallstreetbetsnew
Welcome to the new WallStreetBets! This is not just about the YOLO. This is about winning.
2015.05.12 00:45 thatsupervillain Anime huh
Relatable screenshots from anime and manga. Post who you are behind the keyboard. All posts must be titled anime_irl.
2024.05.22 02:26 Narutouzamaki78 My personal experience with dettachment
Hello everyone, I'm here not as the mind, not as the soul but just as me. Please know that I am not speaking from a place of judgment nor do I mean to discourage anyone from continuing their practice and meditation. I don't want to mince words here either so I'll get straight to the point. Ever since the beginning of this semester I had been trying my best to stay dettached from my peers since I'm a psych major and I struggle with ADHD and rejection sensitve dysphoria (RSD). For those of you who do not know Psych is a predominantly female major and RSD is a very difficult thing to deal with especially when you're surrounded by attractive females. I had problems with oversharing and getting attached too easily which quickly lead to my suffering time and time again. This time while using a mushroom coffee which helped me stay focus and memory I was able to refrain from becoming attached to my team mates for my research paper, however I soon learned recently that while trying to detach from my mind and negative thoughts that come with it I inadvertently started to detach from love itself. I had a "clear mind" for some time and I was getting closer and closer to Buddhism as I read more about it and practiced dettachment from my desires.
Now, just yesterday I realized that I couldn't feel anything really. I felt like love and empathy had disappeared and my efforts to be non-self or a soul was just creating what I now call a "luminescent alter-ego". This ignorance was becoming my undoing and now after making that realization I hope that others can also realize that nothing other than love is important. What I mean by this is that love should ALWAYS come first and then whatever else you learn from nonduality or whichever Spiritual philosophy should come after. You are not the mind, you are not soley the spirit, and you are most certainly not soley the body. You can choose whatever you identify with but in truth you have to be all of these things together to be a human being. You will gain nothing if there is no balance between these things and being a body does not mean the same thing as being a pleasure seeking animal. Being the mind doeos not mean being a selfish egotistical maniac or calous person. These are not equivocal. As long as there is classifications then it will never be the true way.
Love is the only thing that cannot truly ever be classified or measured so it can never be separate from YOU. This is because truly we as human beings are LOVE. That is why you see the heart chakra symbol (hexagram) repeat in all different sorts of religions like Judaism, Christianity, and the same hand gestures or mudras in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Chrisitanity. You are that which you are. "I am that I am". L-O-V-E. The mind cannot tell the truth because it only sees itself as what it believes itself to be, the heart does not need to believe if you have faith in yourself as a loving entity and a spiritual being that shares that love with others. What is the point of all these efforts to quiet the mind and be non-self if you get hurt in the process? Nothing good will come of it. It may hurt and it may be painful but it is true that love conquers over all. I believe it was U.G. Krishnamutri that was talking about how both the West and the East are just as equally mistaken. Nothing can truly be stated other that what you intepret it as. What I think he means by this is that there are no conclusions. Only your own experience and understanding from within can show you the truth. That truth comes from your own inner wisdom and love.
submitted by
Narutouzamaki78 to
nonduality [link] [comments]
2024.05.22 02:10 OreoJehi So how are we feeling Kaeya mains? I think we all know it never been was a coincidence at this point. [+and an UNRELATED THEORY post]
| For newcomers who doesnt know what I'm talking about: Here's two posts for context. Im going to be honest. Im feeling dreading sick for Kaeya rn (pls help đ„č). I opened this app cuz I wanted to giddily share a nothing-post, a theory that you probably had read it before but I haven't thought of it and it was making me too giddily-excited that I wanted to share. Only to see this post. I couldn't help it but express my dreading feelings here, so pls let me piggyback this post to also share my theory thoughts. But really, Im feeling it really bad rn, the chills, the dread. It has never stopped and it gets worse over time, starting from the beginning, ngl it feels super unlucky to be a Kaeyamain. Anyone here feels similarly if not the same? (And fyi, it's not affecting me in real life scale, I know how to separate irl and fiction so please, just dont; you could say it's another form of entertainment?). If you're not up for a theory you can freely skip it and talk about deathflags! Anw, I'll start abt that theory right now with this: Kaeya: Oh, you can't tell? My family's lived in Mondstadt for generations. [I got bored sitting around at home, and decided to set off on a journey to expand my horizons.] Hyperborea, Natlantian, Remuria & Khaun-Arya. Dont the word being hyphenated and Arya capitalized are being too specific? Arya reminds me of Mond's ost "Dream Aria". Khaun-Aria? Credit to u/Sun_ele155 for telling me for that Aria means wind in latin and Khaenriah possibly being a translation of "traitor of wind" (Im sorry for the unsolicited tag so pls feel free to tell me if you dont like that đ) I think you're already getting a clear picture but let me add more "pieces". The Abyss Order stole a statue of Barbatos and hung it upside down. Doesn't it signifies their hate against this god? Out of all the other statues of 7? Kaeya was specifically sent to Dawn Winery, with his dad looking back to him with hatred and hope. These are what I currently have to support this theory (+other Mondstadt ominous signs. Im curious if the Dadaupa battle is related to this). But Im sure I could dig more and Im currently doing that. It's just that this I seriously, seriously, want to share this realization to y'all even if I havent have yet all the pieces: Haven't you realized it yet? What if Khaenriah were former Mondstadtians! Maybe during in the early ages where Mondstadt is in its lowest point, possibly the slavery period, where their god has immensely disappointed them. Believing that Barbatos has abandoned them. So they branched out, traveled far and formed a new kingdom? In the first Chasm Interlude, a Dain Quest, Dain stated that the ruins there were much more older than their ex-kingdom. hah So how about this, what if these ex-Mondstatians discovered and successfully studied the civilization's technology of this ruins and migrated underground with it? Or how about these former Mondstatians migrating with the already formed kingdom underground, fully taking it over? You know, I wonder how did the Crimson Moon Dynasty end? (Ofc, ex-Mondstatians overtaking the Crimson Moon Dynasty is still just a possibility; it could had started way before!) Imagine that, Kaeya is a fully Mondstadtian nobility! (Well, half). It's such a game-changing fascinating thought isnt it? Let me share this tidbit I think is relevant: â[...] The Temple of Silence was originally founded by the ruling elite of the day. Traditionally, such organizations are bound by a strict and ancient code of nobility.â (Cyno SQ2 spoilers) Now I think they want get back to their roots and rule it again, and using it for revenge against Celestia. You know, I dont know why I never thought and realized of this before, Khaenrians being ex-former-Mondstadtians, despite the obvious "pieces" being right there-. I only remember being confused by Kaeya's line âMy family has lived in Mondstadt for generationsâ. But I guess playing through the new update made me "see" it. Whoever said or thought that Kaeya was involved in a ceremony, and/or that's how he got his " truth-seekinghidden eye ability", I think we nailed it. A possibility of course. A doubt. Just do remind if we take this SQ as an allegory(feels like most SQs I played are), there highly could be littered with red-herrings or that it's not a total representation (I mean, obviously. Im still leaning onto the "opposites in each cycles" theory but Im still trying to prove that). âââ Separate comments: If we assume that the cycle "Hyperborea" occured in Snezhnaya (the word relates to extreme north, look it up) and "Natlantian" for Natlan, try to think of civilizations that were both destroyed and its people cursed, representing each of our present nations. Outside of the unified civilizations ofc (with Trifecta symbols), post-Primordial One/Celestia rule. ALSO NOTE THAT WE ARE STILL HALF-WAY OF THE KHAUN-ARYA CYCLE (sorry for the caps, I just lately discovered this one). What happened in Khaenriah was only the beginning Do you know, during the Remuria ruling era, there were two "nations" that were involved to something, and no, Im not talking abt Fontaine for the other one. Cassiodor's former tribe (it's a group of people, it counts right?), was destroyed and its people âenslavedâ by Remuria (hmm, doesnt it overlap with ex-mond theory too?). Him defecting to Remuria and being, *ahem*, close friends with Boethius being the reason of escaping that fate. In the end, Remuria still had gotten itself destroyed. Tbh I still need to look deeply more onto this but this is what I currently have. Okay now, to this final part is an afterthought of the post and I don't have the explanation for it(meaning proof). It was an instantaneous thought. And I quickly forgot what urged me that thought, the reasons why. Sorry, but I have(and want) to write this here for the record: I couldn't help but feel that, in the same way we experience and progress through the storyline in the game, this samsara cycles shenanigans, civilizations being destroyed, first started in Mondstadt. And we are now back in a full circle. submitted by OreoJehi to KaeyaMains [link] [comments] |
2024.05.22 01:34 Pitiful_gamer ćȘăăăăăŻăăăŻ:ăźăŁăłăă©ăŒăźăŹăŒăăŁăąăł (Cursed Technique: Gambler's Guardians)
ćȘăăăăăŻăăăŻ:ăźăŁăłăă©ăŒăźăŹăŒăăŁăąăł (Cursed Technique: Gambler's Guardians)
The
Gambler's Guardians CT is a shikigami technique that employs the use of chance and a deck of cards to summon guardians to combat opponents. The user cannot choose which shikigami is summoned as the medium between summoning these shikigami is a deck of cards that the user always has. The user may withhold these cards to be used as a later date or to lead to the use of the user's DE.
Drawbacks Of Gambler's Guardians
- Due to its unpredictability, you may not draw the right card for the situation or even be unable to summon a shikigami at all.
- It's a very risky, yet powerful technique as the cards must physically be drawn for the shikigami to be summoned.
- All the shikigami's main weakness is fire as they will become a pile of ash in a matter of seconds [as this is the main and almost only weakness for all the shikigami, it will not be repeated and only shikigami specific weaknesses will be mentioned going forward].
ćȘăăăéć
·:ăăŹă€ă€ăŒăźéæ (Cursed Tool: Player's Ambition)
The
Player's Ambition Cursed Tool is a tool that is created directly from the user's CE. It is tied to the user's CE and can always be created again by the user whenever it is destroyed. The cards in this deck are extremely durable as if made of a titanium alloy while still retaining its flexibility. These cards can be very useful for other Sorcerers as the deck always has a full suit of cards [that never repeat until all have been used once] that can cause a lot of damage. As for the user, these cards serve as both the medium and a powerful offensive tool for combat. However, just like modern decks, two jokers have been placed. These two jokers are required for the user to activate their DE, if the user does not have a DE then these two jokers are used as diversions to trick or further damage opponents. When the shikigami is summoned, the card drops to the card and expands to the required size for the shikigami to exit the card as if it's a portal. Both the size and the body of the shikigami depends on how quickly it exits the card.
ăźăŁăłăă©ăŒăźăŹăŒăăŁăąăł:ăšăŒăč (Gambler's Guardians: Ace)
The
Ace shikigami is a shikigami that helps smooth the flow of the user's CE and increase the user's CE output. The shikigami is in the form of a large skinny robed figure that bears the symbol of the card that is drawn [A spade for the
Ace Of Spades, a heart for the
Ace Of Hearts and so on].
Aceis quite physically powerful and smart as it will get very creative with its attack and almost never do something in the literal sense. The
Ace is extremely lanky and has arms that almost drag on the ground on the floor. The boost from this shikigami lasts for a varying amount of time depending on which Ace is drawn. The
Ace takes advantage of its long arms and powerful enhancement boosting abilities to quickly attack in swiping strikes from a distance.
Ace is the manifestation of the user's grief and regret of indulging in their addiction as they have lost the love and warmth of those who were close, yet pushed away.
ăźăŁăłăă©ăŒăźăŹăŒăăŁăąăł:ăčăăŒăăźăšăŒăč (Gambler's Guardians: Ace Of Spades)
The
Spades variation of the
Ace shikigami can be seen as the more base version of the
Ace as it still retains all regular details aforementioned, but with the added detail of skin as white as snow and hands the size of a shovelâs blade. The enhancement ability aforementioned is not changed much as it still can enhance the flow of CE in the user and boost the overall strength of itself. Although it can now enhance the durability of different objects to the level of a titanium alloy.
Gambler's Guardians: Ace Of Hearts
The
Hearts variation of
Ace sees some very drastic changes when compared to the
Spade variation. The
Ace Of Hearts can be seen with the same snow white skin, but this time it seems to have brought red outlines where its nonexistent veins should be. These âveinsâ are visible all along its body. The
Ace Of Hearts no longer smooths the flow of the user's CE, but instead is able to reverse some damages to both it and the user. The
Ace Of Hearts takes advantage of this healing factor with its higher amount of agility, but this healing factor and agility come with the loss of strength. The
Ace Of Hearts is much weaker and not suited for close hand to hand combat, but instead will use debris from the fight to throw at the opponents while at points jumping towards the user to heal them. The
Ace Of Hearts is able to climb up buildings extremely quickly and is another very useful part of the user's chance filled arsenal.
Gambler's Guardians: Ace Of Diamonds
The
Ace Of Diamonds is the more defensive variation and it will always put its life at bay to keep its master safe. It is much more bulky than its previous variations and uses this bulky-ness to shield the user with its body. The
Ace Of Diamonds has the same snow white skin and the same blood red âveinsâ, but with the added factor of its major difference in size when compared to the other variations. The
Ace Of Diamonds is also the most physically powerful variation as it can throw things like cars with ease, possibly even buses if it tried. This variation of
Ace can reinforce its own skin to that of diamonds, at the cost of being unable to apply any boosts to others.
Gambler's Guardians: Ace Of Clubs
The
Ace Of Clubs is the much more offensive variation of
Ace as it trades away some of its high durability to gain more agility and muscle strength. Combining this increase in agility and muscle strength with its newfound aggressiveness and large hood, it can quickly apply large amounts of pressure onto anything as it mercilessly attacks the target. The
Ace Of Clubs will also use it's surroundings heavily to apply further pressure, whether that be from grabbing and throwing the target into something, or picking up something and using it as a weapon.
Gamblerâs Guardians: Two
These shikigami mainly focus on supporting the user as all of their variations focus on buffing their capabilities in some form, whether that be applying a protective CE shield over the user or simply healing the user. However, these shikigami are very weak and require something to protect them or else little value will be gained from summoning them. The shikigami almost look like [biblically accurate] angels about the size of a bike, the only difference is that they are made purely of the card they were summoned with, hence why their durability is so low and can very easily be shut down.
Gambler's Guardians: Two Of Spades
The
Two Of Spades variation is [just like
Ace Of Spades] the base variation of
Two. The
Two Of Spades summons two smaller shikigami that both can apply barriers of CE onto objects or even people. These barriers are not the strongest and can barely survive a single hit from something such as a grade 2 and above, but they can allow for some defense especially as it can tank at least a single hit which can potentially save the user's life.
Gambler's Guardians: Two Of Hearts
The
Two Of Hearts variation allows the shikigami to be able to reverse damage to anything, but not the position [ex. If a wall was knocked down and shattered, these shikigami can reverse the damage it sustained to an extent, but not being it back to its upright position unless they somehow lift it back up] to a certain extent. No, these shikigami can
NOT reverse death, the worst injury they can reverse on a human being or animal is a broken bone [unless the bone is completely shattered]. Anything more can potentially cause more pain for the user while killing the shikigami in the process.
Gambler's Guardians: Two Of Diamonds
The
Two Of Diamonds variation can apply a much more durable shield than
Two Of Spades, at the cost of its own speed and tapping into the user's CE reserves. This allows for a much stronger shield that can repair itself as long as the userâs CE reserves are full. These shields can survive multiple hits from a semi-grade 1 and potentially a few hits from a grade 1 sorcerer or curse. However, if the shikigami attempts to keep up the shield for too long, it will overload itself and burn up in a flash of CE. The CE used to summon these shikigami will be returned if this happens.
Gambler's Guardians: Two Of Clubs
The
Two Of Clubs is the fastest variation of
Two, but at the cost of its own durability. These shikigami often will apply a shield onto itself [rather than the user] and fly into a target to cause physical damage, taking advantage of its shield and speed. However, because it is so weak durability wise, so are its shields. Its shields cannot survive more than 2 hits from most sources without shattering. Even though these shields are weak, the shattering effect that happens when they break can potentially harm others [this includes the user].
Gambler's Guardians: Three
Three is a trio of shikigami that look similarly to the finger bearer cursed spirit, but
Three are pure white with either black or red accents depending on which card was used to summon them and the symbol of the card on its back. They are also smaller than the finger bearer, reaching a height of about 4â4.
Three is more so focused on being a supporting attacker to overwhelm an opponent, rather than taking the attention off of the user [with the exception of
Three Of Clubs].
Three is very much average in all ways, but makes up for it with its speed, being able to quickly overwhelm a target.
Gambler's Guardians: Three Of Spades
The
Three Of Spades is very fast and can even sneak up on opponents as it is able to dig its claws into objects and hold itself on ceilings or walls.
Three Of Spades is very overwhelming as it takes advantage of its speed and strength to even break through walls to catch an opponent off guard, but will ultimately choose to protect the user even if it means death. Most of the time,
Three Of Spades will stick closely to the user, but in a hidden position where they cannot be easily noticed while even hiding their own CE to an extent.
Gambler's Guardians: Three Of Hearts
The
Three Of Hearts shikigami is the same looking shikigami, the only difference is that one of them specializes in physical attacks, one specializes in psychological confusion, and the last specializes in attacking the soul. The one that specializes in physical attacks is slightly above average in strength, speed and durability, but can grow claws on both its hands and feet to attempt to cause bleeding. The one that specializes in psychological confusion can release a gas that, if inhaled, will cause the victim to have hallucinations that could go from minor to severe depending on how much of the gas is inhaled. Finally, the one that specializes in attacking the soul is below average in physical strength and durability, but makes up for it with its speed and ability to cause irreversible damage.
Gambler's Guardians: Three Of Diamonds
The
Three Of Diamonds are much more durable and physically powerful and the form they take represents that. They have a lot more visible muscle on them and the accents are less tattoos and actually are an unknown metallic material that is highly durable. This armour does not cover its whole body, but it does allow protection on the shikigami's arms, legs, and partially their chest. The armour is on these parts as it is a physical attacker rather than using some other ranged attack. The
Three Of Diamonds are also a bit bigger than that of the rest of the variations of
Three, reaching a height of 4â11.
Gambler's Guardians: Three Of Clubs
The
Three Of Clubs variation can all merge together, forming a much larger and stronger shikigami, reaching the height of 5â8. Each summoned shikigami has a different part of the
Clubs symbol on their back, when the three parts decide to form or the user tells them to merge, they become the powerful shikigami as mentioned before with the finished symbol of
Clubs. More info on this combination will be stated below, for now information on
Three Of Clubs will be talked about. The
Three Of Clubs focuses more on hard hitting attacks, rather than stealthy ambushes. It loses its stealth, but instead it has a new merging gimmick and slightly increased strength and durability when compared to
Three Of Spades.
Gambler's Guardians: Three Of A Kind
The
Three Of A Kind shikigami is the result of when all three shikigami of
Three Of Clubs merge together. The
Three Of A Kind is very powerful and uses the same fighting style that the user does with the added benefits of a massive strength, durability and speed boost. The
Three Of A Kind can apply a lot of pressure and can even revert back into the three separate shikigami it was before on command to dodge a potential hit from an enemy. However, the longer the shikigami are in this merged form, the weaker they will get as they have a time limit that is represented by the tattoo of the clubs on its back slowly fading from the top of the clubs down. It does slowly regenerate while not in the merged state and when it isn't even summoned. Trying to push past this state can allow a few extra seconds of strength, but ultimately will end with this shikigami to burn up in a flash of CE and the card used to summon it will be burned from the deck.
Gambler's Guardians: Four
Gambler's Guardians: Four Of Spades
Gambler's Guardians: Four Of Hearts
Gambler's Guardians: Four Of Diamonds
Gambler's Guardians: Four Of Clubs
Gambler's Guardians: Five
Gambler's Guardians: Five Of Spades
Gambler's Guardians: Five Of Hearts
Gambler's Guardians: Five Of Diamonds
Gambler's Guardians: Five Of Clubs
Gambler's Guardians: Six
Gambler's Guardians: Six Of Spades
Gambler's Guardians: Six Of Hearts
Gambler's Guardians: Six Of Diamonds
Gambler's Guardians: Six Of Clubs
Gambler's Guardians: Seven
Gambler's Guardians: Seven Of Spades
Gambler's Guardians: Seven Of Hearts
Gambler's Guardians: Seven Of Diamonds
Gambler's Guardians: Seven Of Clubs
Gambler's Guardians: Eight
Gambler's Guardians: Eight Of Spades
Gambler's Guardians: Eight Of Hearts
Gambler's Guardians: Eight Of Diamonds
Gambler's Guardians: Eight Of Clubs
Gambler's Guardians: Nine
Gambler's Guardians: Nine Of Spades
Gambler's Guardians: Nine Of Hearts
Gambler's Guardians: Nine Of Diamonds
Gambler's Guardians: Nine Of Clubs
Gambler's Guardians: Ten
Gambler's Guardians: Ten Of Spades
Gambler's Guardians: Ten Of Hearts
Gambler's Guardians: Ten Of Diamonds
Gambler's Guardians: Ten Of Clubs
Gambler's Guardians: Jack
Gambler's Guardians: Jack Of Spades
Gambler's Guardians: Jack Of Hearts
Gambler's Guardians: Jack Of Diamonds
Gambler's Guardians: Jack Of Clubs
Gambler's Guardians: Queen
Gambler's Guardians: Queen Of Spades
Gambler's Guardians: Queen Of Hearts
Gambler's Guardians: Queen Of Diamonds
Gambler's Guardians: Queen Of Clubs
Gambler's Guardians: King
Gambler's Guardians: King Of Spades
Gambler's Guardians: King Of Hearts
Gambler's Guardians: King Of Diamonds
Gambler's Guardians: King Of Clubs
Extension Technique: Full House
This Extension Technique allows the user to overload their cards with CE, allowing the capabilities of the shikigami to be heightened [ex. More durability, faster, stronger, special gimmicks have a stronger influence, ect], but burning the card after being used. When this happens, the card is less likely to be pulled again or even just not even to be pulled from that deck ever again, forcing the user to attempt to artificially create another deck they can use from their CE.
Domain Expansion: Joker's Last Cabaret
When this DE is activated, both the user and the opponents will be placed in the midst of a casino filled with different cards flying everywhere extremely fast [fast enough to cut the skin on a human being]. As soon as one of these cards draws blood and they land flat on a surface [face down], the corresponding shikigami of that card will be summoned with the person the card had hit as their target. These shikigami will not target any other person until the original target is felled. Once that target is defeated the shikigami will explode into a flurry of cards, allowing for more shikigami to be summoned. The user can concentrate CE to slightly direct the cards into a target, but then these cards that were directed turn into blank cards that have no other use than as a physical weapon rather than an intermediary. The
Joker cards will burn up after this DE is summoned, meaning this DE can never be used again unless the user can focus enough CE onto another set of
Joker cards.
submitted by
Pitiful_gamer to
CTsandbox [link] [comments]
2024.05.22 01:13 adamAlexanderGreen Young Avengers will be a Entanglement Movie
Young Avengers film formed by Kamala Khan & Lead by Kate Bishop, will bring together the Young Avengers via Quantum Entanglement.
First seen in The Marvels, where they are Entangled by thier light based powers. connection to Kree based teleportation devices such as the Bangles and the Infinity Stones themselves. Quantum entanglement key element is transportation. Transportation will be the key to the Film, as it is a theme of the Multiverse Saga in general.
The Movie will see Kamala once again being in an entanglement scenario, where a Time traveling Nathinel Richards arrives in Kateâs Pad and warns the teens about Kangâs invasion onto the multiverse. As he was searching for the Avengers in other timelines, but his Armors Temporal pad malfunction after a Kang Fight and lead him to Kamala & Kateâs timeline.
Ironlad is also a teenager, but feels like Kamala isnât ready for the responsibilities to help save his world. Ironlad attempts to time jump to another universe but actually transports Kamala and Kate to San Francisco in the same timeline. In need to fix his temp pad, he asks where is Tony Stark. Kamala informs him that he died in Endgame. Kate tells him that her parents own a Security company and both of thier partners are Avengers. The girls reach for thier phones, but they left them back in New York. Kamala goes asking people to borrow thier iPhones so she can call Carol Danvers. But Hawkeye and Carol donât answer. Kate tells them they can try to go find Scott Lang. IronLad is arrogant and doesnât need the kids help to find a hero, Kamala grabs him before he can fly off. To test thier power he begins a fight with them in the middle of the city.
Kate quickly hits him with a emp arrow, but IronLad advanced armor reboots itself. Kamala uses her newly improved Embiggen powers to protect civilians and stall IronLad. Kate uses several trick arrows in coordination with Kamala and they manage to remove his helmet. (The actor that played Harley Keener Ironman 3) reveals his face, and stops fighting once Antman intervenes. Kate, Kamala, & Cassie meet for the first time at Scott Langâs lab as they interrogate Ironlad about the validity to his warnings about Kang.
Scott is traumatized that he didnât actually defeat Kang, and tells the kids that he will buy them a flight back home and to let the adults handle this situation. Kamala ask Cassie whatâs it like to have a superhero dad. Even tho herâs is human, Kamala thinks her family is as much of heroes as the Avengers. Cassie & Kate realize their favorite color is purple. Ironlad gets bored of the bonding, and doesnât think Antman is up to the challenge of helping him. He begins to start his temp pad, but realizes that high quantum frequencies are being detected by his armor. Ironlad demands Scott use his science to help rebuild his pad. For Quantum is the basis to his tech as well. Antman tries to reason with him, but ironlad describes the eradication on his world. Antman and Ironlad begin to fight for access to the basement of his home. Cassie and Scott shrink, while Kamala & Kate try to fight and reason with him. The team crashes into the basement, where ironlad races to the focal point of quantum in the room. Picking up the device that sent the Pym family into the Quantum realm in Quantumania. Ironladâs nanotech absorbs the device and the temp pad starts to activate. Scott gets serious and starts to enlarge, but Ironlad blasts him back upstairs. The kids all shift and are transported to Westview New Jersey.
They all start having a screaming match, as Cassie is furious that he shot her dad. Kamala tries to calm the team down, but itâs Kate Bishop who makes everyone shut up with a puzzle arrow. This arrow expand an entire acre of land with Purple lasers. She explains itâs a game, that you have to work together or youâll burn. Cassie laughs and shrinks, ironlad armor is tough enough to not be phased, Kamala has to actually maneuver around to escape the maze of lasers. Kate shows her reflexes and experience by doing flips and evading the laser beams.They all laugh realizing Cassie and Ironlad cheat. As tension dwindles, ironlad explains why he is so serious. That in his future he is a genius prodigy, and learn about the existence of the multiverse in a dream as a kid. Then a week ago Kang invaded his world and eradicated a majority of human life, and took away knowledge and education rights to the slaves of his world. The teens tell thier experience during the blip and how it took away thier own youth, and thatâs why the Avengers are an important symbol of hope for them. Kamala starts to fangirl about Carol, Hawkeye, and Ironman⊠but is stop by Agatha.
Agatha says she saw the kids in her crystal ball, and is aware of the Kang Situation. Using magic to transport them into her suburban home. IronLad is confused why a witch is helping them. Cassie & Kate both keep thier guards up, but hear her out. Agatha tells them that they are on a childrenâs Crusade, but she can help them all get back home. Ironlad interjects, he needs heros that are competent and ready for war. Agatha uses magic to upgrade thier outfit, then tells them her step son should be home from school soon. Ironlad is tired of waiting as the girls continue to bond and learn more about their abilities. He doubts Billy/Wiccan is as powerful as Agatha claims, and ask why wonât she just use her magic to fight Kang. Agatha says thatâs not her role. Billy enters awkwardly, wondering why all these teens are in his house. Kamala ask just how powerful is he, and he simply says he can do whatever he wants.
IronLad test him, and fires a rocket. Wiccan makes it turn into a headband. Picking it up and wearing it, he repeats he can do whatever he wants. Agatha, ask what exactly is Ironlads plan to stop Kang since his Quantum enhanced temp pad can teleport but still canât take him home. Ironlad says he just needs more power, and rushes Wiccan. Sending his armor to liquidity and consume the sorcerer. Wiccan force pushes back and as they struggle for control, the temp pad activates and sends the group to a new Location; Kahmer Tajh.
Agatha makes fun of the monastery architecture and compares it to her home. Only Kamala & Agatha know this is the home of the sorcerer supreme. Wiccan and Ironlad argue over the consent of letting him suck his energy. And the girls grow more wary of how much they can trust ironlad. Agatha tells them they can find power in teamwork, and disappears into the castle. Kate & Kamala breaks the team into groups. To find Wong or other sorcerers that can help thier fight against the Kang invasion. Wiccan follow where Agatha went. Kate & Cassie search the for more weapons and gear. Kamala and ironlad find Wong & America Chavez.
The 2nd half of the movie has the group coming to face thier teenage fears, as the castle has a horror hex. Ironlad is too afraid to time jump, as memories from his home being overran by Kang haunts him. Wiccan and Agatha are immune to castles spells, as they are magical in tune, however they canât use thier magic to its fullest extent due to the runes places around the Thaj that prohibits forbidden spells. Wong meets Kamala and tells the young avengers that he didnât put the horror hex on. There is a Skrull sorcerer in the castle doing this. Kate finds an Asgardian bow and arrows, and takes it for âemergencyâ. Cassie tells her she is a criminal too, and jokes she spent a day in Jail. Ironlad finds the skrull sorcerer, under stress from the truama spell he is getting beat in the fight. But Wiccan arrives and they team up to defeat him. With a massive display of science meets magic, the young avengers put thier animosity behind them and regroup with Kamala and Wong. Wong is then impaled by a spear by Agatha. Wongâs skin turns Green and itâs revealed he is a skrull too.
America Chavez is distraught, and prepares to fight all the young avengers as she donât know who to trust. Kamala relates to her humanity, and proves she is just a kid too. She tells her to help them fight off the other skrulls that may be in the castle. Agatha and Wiccan use thier magic sight to determine who is a skrull and who is a real sorcerer. The young Avengers fight off the skrulls, and learn America Chavez can travel the multiverse freely. IronLad sends his armor around her, but she punches and the star impact sends them to Baltimore, USA. The result sends all the heroâs and the Skrulls they were fighting as well.
Inside the Bradley home, Eli is playing video games when the heroâs instantly appear in his house. This sequence is shot from his perspective, as if itâs a home invasion. He runs for his granfathers room, to get his gun. But the safe is only full of a vials of Serum. A skrull breaks into the room and swings an axe at him. He ducks, and drinks the serum. He takes a diluted version of the serum as a hormone and steroid boost, but he never drank the original source of his grandfather saved juiced. He punches the Skrull so hard that his guts explode. Eli runs into the living room ready to box, but seeâs the young avengers beating up the Skrulls. Shrugging his shoulders he jumps in and helps.
The team seeâs how Brutal he fights and Ironlad likes him. Kamala says they canât just recruit every teen they see, but looks closer and realizes she seen him on tv. He is the grandson of the first black super soldier, revealed in Captain America Brave new world where they were wrongfully accused of a terrorist attack at the White House. He explains that he has actually been taking his grandfatherâs serum and synthesizing it for a hormone steroid supplement. But today he drank the original source out of fear for his life. Making him 10x stronger than he has ever been on the drug. Agatha has a funny donât donât drugs PSA, as the kids formulate a way on how to repay Eli for his housing damages. We learn his grandfather is still on trail, and he lives alone. Kate gets everyon back on focus and tells them maybe they canât help ironlad. They have destroyed homes & Castles today and she needs to get back home to feed her dog Lucky. Kate makes a PowerPoint presentation on how to get ironlad out of their lives, and get Captain Marvel. Ironlad becomes more interested in Carol after Kamala keeps hyping her up to be the strongest avenger of all. Wiccan & Agatha use magic to fix the house as the heroâs finally contact Fury and the whereabouts of Captain Marvel. Fury asks why the hell didnât she just call him to begin with. Kamala didnât want to get in trouble for stealing the intel about all these characters
The final act has Kamala & Kate using each heroâs best quality to get Ironlad back to his world, and deflate the Kang dictator in his timeline. Kamala nicknames them Team Red & Team Blue after Captain America & Ironman and Team Purple after Hawkeye since he Donât get much love.
Team Red; Ms. Marvel, America Team Blue; Wiccan, Eli, Team Purple; Kate Bishop, Cassie, Agatha
America Chavez punches 2 Star portals, one to ironlads homeworld and another to the location fury tells them Carol is. They all wear a harness rope that Kate gives them so they donât get lost in the multiverse jump. America isnât sure she can send so may people at once into a diffrent timeline, but Cassie uses her quantum shrinking disk and ironladâs tech to help keep them from all turning fall off and turning into spaghetti.
While they are preparing, Kamala meets Carol in a New York park and catches up. Ironlad watches them from behind the portal and says this must be what itâs like to have a true friend. Kamala tells Carol that if she keeps asking her for support then she wouldnât be a hero. Carol gives her the 2nd Bangel and tells her just let her know if she needs backup. Ironlad is still hesitant that going into the fight against Kang with a bangel isnât gonna do much. Kamala tells them she isnât a normal human, she is inhuman.
And the team all suit up as the prepare to Jump into the Star. IronLad suddenly laughs and fires his rockets around the building. Knocking out America and collapsing the roof, and shoves Kamala into the future with him.
Itâs assume all the young avengers and Agatha are crushed under debris. The perspective changes to Eli who has to save all the heroâs bleeding out or stuck. Eli saves them By bear crawling and dragging them out of the fires. America uses her last strength to send the heros into the future
Kamala fights IronLad alone in a future hala. Ironlad reveals that he is the Kang variant, and his master plan was to go to a past timeline where both bangles existed. These weapons of mass destruction are his way of fighting off other Kangâs tryin to conquer his conquered timeline, following the events of Loki. Due the branching timelines, not even the tva knew he was a variant of Kang since his biological DNA is that of a Reed Richards. Kamala is losing the fight, as Ironlad has one of the bangles and can temporarily stop time. He continues to toy with Kamala and steals her other bangle. Mocking her for playing hero, he kicks her off a platform and into a pit of terrain crystals. Kamala uses the last of her will to let out a furry of punches, cracking the crystals around her and filling the battlefield with mist. Kamala goes through terrgenises, turning into stone. Ironlad fires a missle at her, but ironlad blocks it with a shield formed by Wiccan
Kate Bishop arrives saying Young Avengers Assemble, all the Young Avngers exit America portal. Kate then says that ones for Kamala, and Cassie grows and begins the final fight. The team hold off the firepower of ironlad while Kamalas scales break off. Ironlad can combat Wiccanâs magic with the bangles, and uses time stop techniques to stay ahead of the gang. Kate shoots Cassieâs shrinking disk onto one of the bangles, crushing ironlads left arm. Wiccan uses kamalaâs satchel scarf to drag ironlad like a whip. Eli uses his magic shield to block the repulsor blast, and Kate uses the Asgardian bow to pierce his Armor. Cassie uppercuts and shrinks rapidly as the team closes in to fight close quarters. Ironlad makes an energy shield then blows back them all, Kamala is awake and grabs his wrist from far away. Realizing she donât have light energy anymore, but can stretch her body like Reed Richards. She slams him like hulk did in the original Avengers. Nathinel monoluges about how there will be more conquerors just like history. Tva agents appears, Mobius enters telling the heros thanks for fixing this slight anomaly they better return home or they will all be prune in seconds. IronLad vaporizes and the timeline is erased as the heros return home
The movie ends with Kamala having a to explain to the khan family the events of the film and who all her new friends are. They all are ready to return to thier respected homes, when fury enters and says he heard there was a secret invasion. A running joke about how fury is now last to know anything
Post credit 1: Jessica jones is taking on a private investigator case when she spots a teen couple in an alleyway. She comments that they must be runaways, she zooms in and itâs Cloak and Dagger. They teleport away
Post credit 2: on another planet the Skrull Queen is talking about the failed relations of Kree following Captain Marvel restarting the Hala Sun. The humans are no longer allies after the declaration of war against all allies the President made. She says maybe itâs time we fight back son; and the camera pans to Hulkling
The Young Avengers will return in Avengerâs Secrt Wars
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2024.05.22 00:59 123999123999 Please stop spreading misinformation about HyunA's boyfriend, Yong Junhyung
[TW for mention of SA]
Making this post because lots of people are still actively spreading misinformation and lies about Hyuna's boyfriend, Junhyung, and it's harmful in many ways, because as opposed to what many people think and tell, the investigation concluded that
Junhyung never shared SA videos or received SA videos, or hidden camera videos, or sex-tapes, and that he was never part of the JJY group chats. Jong Joonyoung (JJY)'s group chats in which hidden camera videos were shared without the consent of the girls (molka) and the Burning Sun scandal are two different things, but JJY's group chat was discovered through the Burning Sun investigation (2019). If you want to learn about it, the BBC has just released a documentary on Burning Sun, JJY & the molka chatrooms are also adressed in it.
(You can already note that JJY & Junhyung's names are pretty close, therefore lots of people mistaked them when the news of his relationship with Hyuna came out in January. There were enough people to clarify that and make it clear that JJY â Junhyung though, but not so many know what was actually Junhyung's part and are therefore still spreading misleading information.) When SBS's '8'O'Clock News' news first shared screenshots of messages JJY and other idols had exchanged in the chatrooms, Junhyung's message was added and edited, which made it seem like he was part of the groupchats when
he wasn't.
In 2015, he was sent one video by JJY (1-1) that was not a sex-tape but a video of a girl taken in a pub in which he (JJY) was touching her (or she was touching him) (
no nudity or intercourse in the video), the video was
made with her consent but was not sent with her consent. This is the video he's talking about in his statement about leaving Highlight, and the video he made crude comments about.
There are no other videos. (see first line of the table:
kbs court documents translation*, he is not mentioned again
*original article link)
He later on received a message from JJY that was something like
"I got caught sending the video", to which Junhyung replied
"You got caught by her? (the girl from the video)
" (that's the message that was edited by SBS that made it seem like he was part of the groupchats), and didn't report him.
I'm adding a part of a comment of another redditor that went through the case's files, as it sums up things well:
"[...] The video in question was of JJY engaged in making out with a woman in a bar and that she put her hand on a "certain part of his anatomy". The police transcript went on to say that the video was taken with the woman's knowledge and consent, but she did not consent to having it shared. There was no nudity or intercourse shown in the video. I don't know if Yong Junhyung knew it was sent without the woman's consent. The transcript did not reveal what the text of the messages about the video said, however Yong Junhyung has said he feels embarrassed and ashamed about what he said in response to receiving this video. So no doubt it was something douchy, but not necessarily worse than what you would expect guys texting about such a video would be. There is no evidence in the transcripts to suggest that Yong Junhyung knew that women were being [SA'd] or that illegal videos were being made and shared. The video he received was not exactly something you could take to the police as its not illegal to make out in a bar." He did not go to jail and wasn't sentenced, he was called in as a witness and fully cooparated with the police, left his group to atone and protect Highlight from the backlash.
Also Junhyung is NOT the guy (Choi Jong Bum) that abused and blackmailed Goo Hara back in 2018/2019. Junhyung and Hara dated for about 2 years in 2011, anyone claiming he abused her is making things up (according to official sources, Junhyung was a
supportive boyfriend who helped Hara through some hard times, and
the two ended things amicably and decided to remain friends).
I've seen people on Twitter, on Reddit, on Youtube, in Hyuna's comments section, call him a rapist, saying he was involved in 'non-consensual gang bangs', watched 'SA videos of young girls', is a 'sex traffickant', 'sex criminal' or that he admitted "watching SA videos", and to what we know by the investigation that was led, that is NOT TRUE.
That's for the actual facts, please do not spread misinformation and don't buy in everything you read.
It's ok not to support their relationship but spreading lies or misinformation is not. more sources:
Statement from Around Us Ent. before Junhyung left HIGHLIGHT (before clarification):
"Hello, this is Around Us Ent. We are writing in regards to the news of the reveal of singer Jung Joon Youngâs KakaoTalk chatroom, which was reported on SBSâs â8 OâClock Newsâ on March 11, 2019. We are aware that people are saying that Highlight member Yong Junhyung is the âSinger Yongâ that is shown in the contents of the conversation from the group chatroom with illegal hidden camera footage that was revealed on the news. Yong Junhyung has no connection to the filming or sharing of illegal videos. Also, Yong Junhyung has never been in a chatroom where Jung Joon Youngâs illegal hidden camera videos were shared. In addition to that, we have confirmed that he has never been in any group chatroom at all with Jung Joon Young. We directly confirmed with Yong Junhyung after the news report and found out that conversation that was shared in the news was originally the content of a one-on-one conversation between Jung Joon Young and Yong Junhyung. Previously in 2016 [actually 2015 but Around Us Ent. didn't have this information at the moment, cf Junhyung's declaration coming after]
when Jung Joon Young was having a hard time due to a personal matter, Yong Junhyung asked him what was happening. Jung Joon Young replied âI got caught taking a video and sending it [the message included symbols for laughter],â and [Yong Junhyung] asked in return, âYou mean you were caught by the woman?â In regards to the simulated group chatroom screenshot that was shared in the news, we plan to verify with SBS News about the authenticity. [...]" referring to the fact that in the screenshots first shared by SBS, it made it seem like he was part of the chatroom
Junhyung's declaration when leaving Highlight: "Hello, this is Yong Jun-hyung. First, I sincerely apologize to the members and all fans who have had a hard time because of me these past few days. After the SBS 8 o'clock news on the 11th, I received a call from the company to check the facts. At that time, I didn't understand the point well and only conveyed that I wasn't in [the] group chat. Therefore, the company, taking my side, officially stated that the report was not accurate, but it was based on the wrong information I provided. In the process of preparing the official statement with the company, I mentioned that the incident was in 2016 because the conversation with Jung Joon-young wasn't saved in my KakaoTalk, so I couldn't accurately check the date at that time. I apologize for adding to everyone's confusion on this as well. Regarding the KakaoTalk content from late 2015 reported in the news, the conversation with Jung Joon-young was after we drank together the previous day. He told me about an incident (being caught sharing illegal video recording), and I replied, "You got caught by the girl?" I did not receive that video at that time, but I did receive one on a different occasion. In addition, I had inappropriate conversations regarding it. All these actions were extremely immoral, and I was foolish. I failed to recognize this as a crime and illegal behavior, and was complacent about it, and I regret not firmly stopping it. Yesterday, I went for a reference person investigation related to this issue. I spoke truthfully about everything I knew and cooperated with the investigation. While receiving the witness interview, I saw exactly what conversations I had in the past, and I felt indescribably ashamed and [horrified/regretful]. I have never engaged in illegal acts like taking or spreading hidden camera videos. Since the end of 2016, my relationship with Jung Joon-young was just occasionally asking about each other's well-being. However, knowing about it, I thought and acted too easily and carelessly, being an onlooker to this serious issue that could've led to more victims. I'm truly sorry for betraying the trust of the members and fans who believed in me, failing to reciprocate the love given to me. I realize the severity of this matter, and I do not want any further harm to be done to my fans and members who must have been disappointed because of me, so I will leave the group Highlight as of March 14, 2019. I will live while reflecting on myself again and again. I apologize sincerely once again." (edited for typo/better wording)
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2024.05.22 00:44 Kidlike101 (long dream) I dreamt a full story, character arcs and all.
In the dream we "fell" into a weird city. By we I mean me and a few family members including my grandparents.
.
Anyway the city is exceptionally clean and the people there very religious with regular sermons.
.
Now I instinctively hated it because everyone was smiling all the time and had this "be like everyone else" attitude. It was a bit creepy.
.
Over time I got to know a few people there well enough to get invited to a wedding. Here's the odd part, for how religious they were the bride was practically naked! I tried to hint that the dress might not be appropriate for a church wedding but got laughed at since it was a TRADITIONAL wedding dress... it was a slip of see-through fabric with beading covering her privates...
.
Then the brides entourage came in and yeah they confirmed it was a lovely traditional dress. Also why was I dressed like that? Clearly that was too much and the bride's aunt tried to take my bra off to match everyone. (one of us, one of us, one of us).
.
When I refused she took of her own bra and offered to swap since it's smaller so will cover less. I managed to escape to the bathroom promising to practically strip in private.
.
Well, not the bathroom, turned out to be a broom closet / storage area. but at least the crazy people were on the other side, thought I might be able to wait it out.
.
Looking around the storage area I found something odd. There was "old" tech here. By that I mean from our day but the whole city was practically amish that I though we got teleported to the past. I found one device I didn't recognize so when the coast was clear I got out in the open and tried it out.
.
It caused me to shoot through the sky. No literally up through the cloudish part only to discover this wasn't the sky, it was the waters surface. The whole city was under water but since we could breath and move normally we didn't notice! It explained why the sky never had a gradient, it was all one solid color depending on the time of day.
.
On the "sky" two things were notable. First, two groups of golems were fighting and throwing rocks at each other. Rock golems (yellow-orange so maybe sand rock) & slab golems (grey rocks, very smooth). The debris fell to the city blew as gods judgement when it hit someone!
.
Also here was another city. This one was old and basically a ruin over grown with vegetation. Looking through it I found a few people who were far more normal and reasonable.
.
Going back a few time I was convinced something went wrong with our civilization, the city above was clearly one from our time now in ruins while the one underwater was more recently built. The ones living below had such a strong herd mentality that my own family was starting to get compliant and integrate. I tried to talk them into visiting the city in the sky, to see that this is all under water but they weren't interested, especially grandma that was feeling comfortable that grandpa was back in this world (died in 2012). Also wouldn't it be dangerous with the fighting golems? Solve that first then we'll see.
.
Going up I asked the golems why they were fighting... it turned out that was because the sand golem leader had boobs and the slabs saw that as obscene... yeah really... I had them talk it over because the debris was hurting the people below.
.
The sand golem shrugged and said they weren't people, just ants. When I asked about the people in the sky city they said "you don't know already?". As for who I was, well, they were going to talk to the slabs now so if I wanted an answer keep sailing towards the light in distance.
.
This part I didn't mention, during my trips to the sky city I started to notice odd things. Yes it was a modern one now in ruins, yes it was full of plants so it was weird that the people that lived here acted and talked so civilized. But also another thing, witch symbols. Those were everywhere. Shrubs that were cut in the form of a witch's hat or pointy boots, statues of witches, magic symbols carved into the trees... etc. it was like a halloween set up in an ancient ruin. I kept trying to overlook it because the underwater city preached against witchcraft and heresy, clearly those were the nut jobs so anything they say should be disregarded... right? Also the people in the sky city were so normal & reasonable that no way they'd really be the bad guys. The undewater city had to be ignorant, that was totally it.
.
The day I confronted the golems however was the day I found out the truth. While exploring the ruin I came across the communal kitchen. It was just a bunch of old fridges with forged food. One of them however contained a bag of blood. The girl showing me around said "Oh goody, there is one left" and snatched it from my hands sucking it up like capri sun. "Sorry but this is for our coven, Blood is how us witches get our knowledge and stay young after all. Can't share that without a price." Which is when it hit me that everyone here, while talking like an adult, looked so young and ageless. Also that they didn't know that me, and probably my family, would be considered food in a place like this, they thought I was a visiting witch hence the civility.
.
The golem's words hit me hard. Yes, I knew. I just didn't want to acknowledge it because it meant I can't stay here. At the same time I didn't want to go back to the underwater city.
That only left sailing away into the unknown. My family refused to join, they were staying in the underwater city so... just me... Sailing into the light. Took awhile stuck between the two worlds, but in the end I made my own raft and set sail towards the light in the distance.
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2024.05.22 00:03 Stormcoming7 [M4F] Searching for a Dragon's Lair [Dragon Speaker] [Knight Listener] [Slow Burn, I Think] [Deception] [Protective] [Treasure] [Could Be Prequel, Could Be Standalone] [Far Too Long]
Intro: For your distinguished service to the crown, youâve been assigned the difficult and dangerous job of slaying a dragon purported to have slaughtered a village on the outskirts of the kingdom. Itâs a job you should be able to handle, and youâre not too scared⊠now, if only the whole thing felt less
wrong⊠Summary: Listener meets a new acquaintance who befriends her, and offers to guide her where she needs to go. They face a danger together, and she learns that he is not what he seems.
Go ahead and monetize, it's fine. Word count is about 3800.
If you fill this or plan to fill this, please notify me. Please don't make edits without asking first. TWs: Running deception, combat, discussion of mass murder (dragon burning places to the ground), possessiveness, forced sleep
Line breaks represent the listener talking or space where no one talks and should be short pauses, words within {brackets} represent the speakerâs tone or sfx. At ellipses, the speaker trails off, and at dashes, he is either cut off abruptly by the listener or by himself.
Authorâs Note: And also the flipped version, for the draconic gentlemen out there!
If you want to read this somewhere other than Reddit, it's also
here.
F4M version
here.
{internal monologue} {disgusted} Ugh, those damn livestock merchants charge more every time. Gouging bastards,
{rationalization} but I
do need them to stay silent. If the town finds out how much food I have to purchase every month, itâll only end badly. Besides, itâs not like even
this much bribery makes a dent in my hoard. I should really just be glad I havenât met any merchants with integrity, that wouldnât end well. Good thing itâs a vanishingly rare trait these daysâŠ
{annoyance} wait, no, thatâs
not a good thing, what am I saying? Itâs sad⊠but it does make my life easier. Well,
thatâs a hell of a conundrum.
{sigh} {bored} Not one I havenât dealt with before, though. Have this conversation with myself every time. Oh, well. What matters is the foodâll be delivered soon, I donât have to go into hibernation, and the merchants wonât talk. Anything else I wanted to do before heading home? Hmm⊠I think I wanted to stop at the spice merchant, see how much-
{interest} HELlo. Who is
that? {curiosity} What would a knight be doing here? I mean, I suppose the goblin raids have been getting more brazen, but the town guards seem to have it handled, I havenât even needed to get involved yet. I
guess she could be here about that, but it doesnât feel right. Maybe sheâs just passing through? Well, best way to find out is to go talk to-
{quiet} Oh, damn. Thatâs- oh,
damn. Fuck, sheâs hot.
{forced calm} Okay, composure. You are an all-powerful dragon. You will not be thrown off your game by one mortal, no matter how shiny her armor is. And itâs
only her armor youâll be looking at, right? Right. Ignore that beautiful face, you just need to find out what sheâs doing here, not-
{suspicious} Wait. Whoâs she talking to?
{upset} The
spice merchant? And heâs
BLUSHING? Uh-uh. No. Not gonna fly.
{out loud} {sickly sweet} Hiiiii, hello! Itâs me again, Iâm here to pick up some- Oh? Whoâs this? A new friend?
Oh, Iâm sorry, I didnât realize you were having a conversation. Please, continue. I can wait.
{cough} Oh, no, donât mind me, just looking at⊠cumin. My, this smells awfully strong.
So sorry to barge in again, uh, I would like to buy
these. Are you leaving? Well, it was lovely to meet you.
{internal monologue} Okay, let me just finish up here, and I can go talk to her.
{pleased} Hah!
Look frustrated, spice sleazeball. Serves you right.
{confused} Wait, do I know your name? Have I ever asked your name? Eh, doesnât matter right now, I donât need to know
everyone in the village.
{disgust} Especially not someone who flirts with-
{confusion} Wait, what am I doing? I donât have any claim over some random knight, why am I acting like this?
{frustrated noise} Figure out internal dilemma later, find human now. Whereâd she go?
Agh! Curse this mortal formâs short legs, I canât see- wait! Shiny!
{out loud} Hey! Hey! Wait up!
{out of breath} Whew⊠Thought I was gonna⊠gonna lose you⊠for a minute.
Thanks. Only need⊠a few secondsâŠ
{composed} Hi. Iâm Typhon*.* Sorry to chase after you like that, but I realized I didnât catch your name?
Oh, thatâs a
lovely name. It suits you.
{pleased} Oh, flatterer.
{internal monologue} Sheâs
smooth, isnât she? I was expecting all armor, no brain. I understand why the spice merchant was blushing now, I guess.
{out loud} I just wanted to ask you⊠uh, I wanted to ask you what you were doing at the spice merchantâs? Usually passers-through donât stop there when they can get their salt cheaper elsewhere.
Oh, thatâs interesting! I didnât know you could find that here.
Oh, no, I donât spend very much time there. I mostly go in, buy what I need for my next few weeks of meals, and leave. Other places to be. More important places.
{laugh} Well. You certainly know the way to a manâs heart.
{internal monologue} A knight with both manners and a sense of humor⊠whoâd have thought?
{out loud} Wonderful. So, what brings you to Wylgrith? Itâs not a large settlement by any means, and well out of the way of⊠everything, really. What reason would a mighty royal knight have for stopping by? Were you sent to handle the goblins that-
{stunned} âŠSay what now?
The
dragon? You were sent to kill the DRAGON?
Can you⊠not?
{off-balance} I mean- uh- Well, I donât see why you
would, do I? After all, the dragon hasnât been seen or heard from in years, right? And even before that he didnât harm any humans for decades. He-
I- uhhh⊠I guess Iâm guessing heâs a âhe?â I did see him once, flying overhead, though, and he looked like a boy dragon. Kind of stocky.
I⊠suppose âitâ works as well, yeah.
{quiet, sad} A little hurtful, thoughâŠ
{back on track} Nothing, nothing. So, why are you killing the dragon, again? I donât thinkâŠ
it⊠has even harmed a human in living memory.
{sputtering} What? No it didnât!
I- I think I would
know if it burned down a village. I mean, this place is still standing, right?
A
different- Well, Iâm sure he wouldnât have done anything like-
{quickly} No, no, I donât know. Itâs not like Iâve
met the thing, right? But it hasnât burned down
this village, so why would-
{tentative} Oh. They said that?
Right to the king?
Right in the middle of court, where everyone could hear it?
{sad} I guess that settles that, then. The dragon needs to die.
{internal monologue} Damn. What a waste of such a beautiful knight. Thereâs no chance she could possibly beat me on her own, so sheâs going to end up- wait, on her own?
{out loud} {confused} And the king sent
you? Alone, I mean? No army, or squad of knights, or cadre of mages? Why would he do that?
{awed} Oh. Oh, that is a
very magic sword.
Well, no, I havenât. But- but you can just
tell, canât you? Itâs
glowing! And itâs covered in some kind of weird letters, those have to be magical, right?
{internal monologue} {hesitant} Okay. Thatâs somewhat worrying. Even with all the useless sigils and that pointless glow siphoning its energy, I can
feel the power rippling off that thing. Where did she ever find- No, that doesnât matter. Could it level the playing field? Give her a chance? Hard to tell, I think, my senses in this form arenât as-
{out loud} Iâm sorry, what? I was distracted. Uh- itâs a
very pretty sword.
{taken aback} Thatâs- thatâs a good name for it. Very dangerous-sounding.
{internal monologue}{stressed} ARE YOU KIDDING ME? FANGBANE? SHE FOUND FANGBANE? HOW IN THE-
{forced composure} no, Iâm calm, Iâm calm, itâs fine. Itâs not worrying at all that she has the most dangerous dragon-slaying sword ever forged. Wow, this
very quickly went from âI donât want to fight her, I donât want to kill herâ to âI donât want to fight her, I donât want to die.â Okay, time to nip this in the bud.
{out loud} Wow, itâs done that much? I never wouldâve guessed that, it looks
much too fancy for that. So⊠you can actually kill the dragon?
{hesitant} Youâre right, I suppose. If it burned a village, it does deserve that. Well⊠*{resolve}*Do you know how to find its lair?
No, itâs not. If it was, everyone would be constantly in there robbing the hoard, wouldnât we? Everyone knows that the lair is
somewhere on the mountain, but no one knows where.
{triumph} Yes. Except me. And Iâll guide you there.
{reasonable} We already agreed, right? If it burned down a village, killed that many people, it needs to be put down. I want to help with that, and besides, you need someone to take you there. Youâll never find it on your own, so you canât be too choosy about who you bring, can you?
I like hiking, and the mountain isnât dangerous if youâve known what you were doing since you were a child. I found it once, but I ran immediately, because I didnât want to risk angering the dragon. I
think I can find it again, but itâll be a long trip. Three days at minimum.
{internal monologue} {satisfied} Perfect. A few days wandering in the forest should discourage her, maybe I can even convince her I didnât burn any village.
{confused} Why would she have been toldâŠ
{moving on} Doesnât matter right now. What matters is getting her off my trail, and maybe getting to know her in the meantimeâŠ
{upset} No! Stop that! Bad Typhon! Sheâs literally trying to kill you. She is
not a prospective mate, she isnât even another dragon!
{sigh} {wistful} She is gorgeous, though, especially when the light catches her armor like that⊠No! Stop!
{out loud} {serious} We should set out soon, then. Do you have enough provisions for the trip?
Good, good. No time to waste, come on.
Youâre hunting a dragon. A
dragon. Donât you think it might be wise to move before he- it catches wind of your presence?
Letâs go, then.
{some indicator of a time skip} {amused} What, donât tell me youâre getting tired? Weâve only been hiking for a couple hours today, arenât you supposed to be a big, strong knight?
You could take off the armor, if itâs that hot.
{concession} All right, your decision. And I suppose wearing the armor
was helpful when the tangler tree tried to grab you. Fine, weâll stop for a bit.
How much is left in your waterskin?
Good, good. Mineâs pretty full, I havenât felt thirsty in a while.
No, weâre definitely going in the right direction.
{grasping at straws} I recognize⊠uh, that rock! Yeah. See how it kinda looks like a bear, if you tilt your head?
Really? Well, I see it. Anyway, I remember seeing that before. Weâre about a dayâs walk away from the lair, Iâm almost certain.
You know, you never asked why I decided to hike in a random direction for three days.
{internal monologue} {pleased} I have such a good story for it, too. Itâll leave you crying, and then maybe I can-
{out loud} {taken aback} You do?
What? Youâre a royal knight, one of the most honored positions in the land. Why would
you feel the need to escape?
{internal monologue} What? What was that? There for a second and then gone, was that⊠a crack in the charming exterior?
{out loud} No, no, I understand the feeling. I just⊠didnât expect it from this quarter. Is something wrong at court? Are you-
{inner monologue} {protective} Oh⊠Oh her eyes⊠So sad⊠What did they do to you, my knight?
{out loud} Please, anything you can-
{confused} What? Whatâs wrong?
No, Iâm not going to shush, weâre talking, and-
{muffled} Mmph! MMMMPH!
{inner monologue} {angy} This presumptuous human dares lay her hand on ME? I donât care what might be inside her, Iâm going to make it
outside- {considering} Wait. Whatâs that noise?
That doesnât sound like- oh. Oh, those are goblins. And she wanted me to be quiet, and now they heard us, and- oops. Why did I not sense them coming? Goblins wouldnât know stealth if it snuck up behind them and ripped their legs off, I shouldâve heard them from
miles away. This doesnât make any sense⊠Oh, well. I suppose it doesnât matter, in the grand scheme of things. Just a few more goblins to kill. If sheâd just let go of me⊠wait, but I donât want to reveal myself. That makes this much more difficult. Can I kill all these green idiots in my human form?
{concerned} Oh, wow, thatâs⊠a worrying amount. Where are they all coming from? All right, I
think I can take- wait, what? Human? What are you doing?
{out loud} Why are you getting in front of me? That is
far too many goblins for any human to handle, we need to run!
{internal monologue} {flustered} Wha? What does she mean by that? And why does she have to be this lovely as she says it? Thatâs unfair!
{out loud} No- you canât-
{internal monologue} {upset} Oh, the stupid, brave, self-sacrificial idiot! Sheâs gonna get herself killed if I donât help her- wait, what?
{taken aback} Sheâs- oh, wow, thatâs quite impressive. Thatâs- wow. Iâve never seen a human fight like that.
{confused} Huh? Whyâs she looking back⊠Is she
angry? What?
Sheâs yelling
something⊠She wants me to run? Wha-
{realization} OHHHHH- She thinks Iâm in danger, and sheâs trying to protect me! She wants to-
{touched} aw. Thatâs the sweetest thing⊠My heart-
{serious} I need to keep this knight alive. {realization} Oh! I have to pretend to be running, yes. I canât help her here, much as I want to. Besides, it looks like she has it handled. Those goblins arenât laying a claw on her, somehow. Guess it
was a good decision to wear the armor.
{planning} Iâll come back for her later, and she can be happy that she kept me safe, and maybe I can use that to find out whatâs wrong with her, oh, looks like sheâs just about finished with those-
{shock} wut.
What is that.
Thatâs a- thatâs a freaking hellhound! What in the Low Realms is a hellhound doing here?
{protective} Okay, no, unacceptable. I am
not risking my treasure-
{concerned} the human. The human! Why did I just think of her as- never mind, time for that later.
{whoosh sfx} {roar} {desperate} Oh no, please donât let me be too lateâŠ
{out loud} {furious} Stay away from my human!
{crunch sfx} {triumph} Hah. Thatâll teach you.
Did you get the last of the goblins, lady kni-
{wary} What are you doing.
Put that sword down, please, Iâm not your enemy.
Okay, no, no, calm down, thereâs no need to get worked up.
This isnât helping anything, can we just talk?
{upset} OW! All right, this has gone far enough
{magically resonant} Sleep. {sigh} {fading out} What am I going to do with you?
{some indicator of a time skip} {cordial} Good morning, lady knight. As promised, I brought you to my lair.
Oh, yes, you must be confused.
{whoosh sfx} There, is that better?
{resigned} Yes. It was me the whole time.
No, it wasnât. If it had been a game, you would be dead right now. Instead youâre alive, unharmed, even unrestrained, in the middle of my hoard.
Or didnât you notice?
{amused} Yes, I thought that might get your attention. Being surrounded by enough gold to fill a palace ten times over generally does the trick where humans are involved, or so I am informed.
{annoyed} Fangbane? The sword that slew more of my kind in two years than any other managed in thousands? You want it
back? Tch, no, but I wouldâve if I could. That butcherâs blade shouldâve been melted down long ago. Alas, it was impervious even to
my fire.
I thought that was clear: no, you canât have it back. You can have another sword, even a magic one, but not that
atrocity forged in steel.
{considering} That would seem to be the question of the hour, yes. âWhat are you doing here.â Well⊠why donât you tell me? You were sent to kill me, that much is clear. But much more isnât. I would like⊠an explanation.
{annoyed} Oh, come on. Youâve been interacting with me for days now. Do I really seem like the type of person who burns down villages at random? That excuse is worthless⊠andâŠ
{suspicious} I think we both know it. You were sent here for some other reason. What was it? Tell me, before I grow cross.
Oh, I believe they didnât tell you. But, though I think you like to pretend otherwise, dumb is one thing you are
not. You know more than youâre saying, so answer me. Please.
Why does the king want me dead? {stunned} Thatâs- thatâs
it? Of all the petty, arrogant, stupid- Iâm not even going to bother trying with that.
{snort} And humans use
dragons as symbols of greed.
{explaining something obvious} Yes. Because I
like gold, its color, its luster. And because I enjoy living comfortably.
{disgust} Not just⊠to have more than others.
Even if you donât want to concede the difference, surely it does not escape you that I
earned all of this, not just killed its old owner and stole it.
{offended} Of course I did! The very idea of taking something unearnedâŠ
ugh.
{considering} You really know so little of my kindâŠ
All of this, though⊠brings us back to you. You were sent here, presumably because youâre the kingdomâs best knight, the one with the highest chance of victory. You werenât given any backup because thereâs only one Fangbane. And you were fed a lie about me slaughtering innocents to make the job go down easier, but something in you knew that it
was a lie. Tell me, am I hitting the mark with these?
So, my question becomes⊠why didnât you? You had me at the point of your blade, and with a sword like that and skills like yours, you couldâve done it. If you wanted me dead, I would be, draconic magic and might notwithstanding. Instead, all I have is a scratch on my snout-
{venomous} yes, that is the scar on my nose. Injuries
do carry over, thank you
so much for noticing.
{curious} And now youâre sorry. I donât think I understand you at all, no matter how hard I try. Please, answer me. I want to.
Wha-
{sigh} {exasperated} Well, if you were so certain it was a lie, why come here in the first place? If you felt you were given unjust orders, you couldâve just left the kingdom. Plenty of other places need knights, and thereâs always work to be found as a sellsword. You risked much to gain⊠nothing, as best as I can see.
{dangerous} He⊠he what?
The king threatened toâŠ
{cold} No. No, that is
unacceptable. No one threatens my human.
Yes, my human. I-
{sigh} {warmer} I believe an explanation is in order. You see, I finally figured out what Iâve been feeling these past few days. At first, I thought it might be love, and, well, I suppose it is, of a kind: hoarding instinct. I feel hoarding instinct when I look at you. I saw you for the first time, and something in me just knew. You are the most precious treasure in this entire cavern, and I need to protect and keep you until the end of time, like the work of art you are.
{worried} Ohh, thatâs not a good expression. Did I say something wrong? Come on too strong? I promise, living here wonât be bad at all, itâs quite a comfortable lair, whether Iâm in human form or dragon. I maintain a good relationship with the villagers, too, so we can even go down to Wylgrith on day trips, as long as you donât try to leave. You understand the importance of that, I trust.
{calming} No, no, donât get all worked up. Thereâs no need to do something weâll both regret.
Please, calm down. Weâre both rational people, letâs discuss this as such.
{harder} Human, I donât want to put you to sleep again. Donât make me.
{pleased} Good, thatâs much better. Now, what are your objections?
Mhm, mhmâŠ
{logical} Well, in point of fact, no, you donât have a home anymore. If you go back without proof of my demise, the king will have you executed, will he not?
As I thought. So thereâs nowhere
else for you to be. As to your next point, of course I wonât keep you as a pet, youâre a sentient human. You have your own free will, thoughts, ideas, desires, the whole package. You would never be a pet. You will be my
treasure. Very different thing, and it means I will want to keep you close, keep you safe, and stare at your radiance for as long as draconically possible.
{considering} Well, no, I havenât heard of this. A living part of a dragonâs hoard? I believe itâs unprecedented, since nothing but gold lasts forever. Nevertheless, weâll figure something out, we can make it work. And this doesnât reflect strangely on me, you neednât worry. I am one of the eldest dragons of this age, the young are used to my⊠peculiarities by now.
{pleased} Ah, yes, I wondered when we would get to that point. No, as a matter of fact, the king will
not be sending other knights, or mages, or armies after me. I will not be killed like that, and you will not be reclaimed by them. And do you wish to know why?
{colder than ice} Because I am going to burn this kingdom to the ground. {amused} Naturally. I could overlook the attempt on my life - it brought me the most precious treasure I have ever known, after all, - I could forgive the use of Fangbane, since now I can make sure it never harms one of my kind again, I could even somewhat tolerate the blatant lies spread about me as flimsy justification.
{angry} What I can
not accept, however, is what they have done to you. Threats on your life, on your body, on those you protect, promises of execution, forcing you to stain your soul against your will⊠no. No one is permitted to harm my human and live. This will, I admit, be something of a first for dragonkind, actually killing humans instead of protecting them is practically unheard of. I may even face repercussions from my kind for this. I find it hard to care, though, these ones are only getting what they deserve, for their actions or their complacence.
Now youâre getting upset again.
{soothing} Donât worry, this isnât a sign of my outlook changing. I still have no desire to harm humans, and the village is perfectly safe.
We were communicating so well a second ago, if we could return to that, I would be grateful.
I promise you, this shouting and carrying on is nothing but counterproductive.
{tired} Lady knight, if you are not capable of being objective, I will be forced to- oh, forget it.
{magically resonant} Sleep. {gentle} {slowly fading out} I truly am sorry to do this to you, but I canât have you fighting me on this. I donât want you to be upset at me, treasure, so, by the time you wake, the cause of this contention will be gone.
Shh, shh. Itâs okay. Itâs just a simple sleep spell, youâll wake up comfortable and well-rested.
There. It will all be fixed before you awaken. Donât worry, my treasure, nothing will ever harm you again.
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2024.05.22 00:02 Stormcoming7 [F4M] Searching for a Dragon's Lair [Dragon Speaker] [Knight Listener] [Slow Burn, I Think] [Deception] [Protective] [Treasure] [Could Be Prequel, Could Be Standalone] [Far Too Long]
Intro: For your distinguished service to the crown, youâve been assigned the difficult and dangerous job of slaying a dragon purported to have slaughtered a village on the outskirts of the kingdom. Itâs a job you should be able to handle, and youâre not too scared⊠now, if only the whole thing felt less
wrong⊠Summary: Listener meets a new acquaintance who befriends him, and offers to guide him where he needs to go. They face a danger together, and he learns that she is not what she seems.
Go ahead and monetize, it's fine. Word count is about 3800.
If you fill this or plan to fill this, please notify me. Please don't make edits without asking first. TWs: Running deception, combat, discussion of mass murder (dragon burning places to the ground), possessiveness, forced sleep
Line breaks represent the listener talking or space where no one talks and should be short pauses, words within {brackets} represent the speakerâs tone or sfx. At ellipses, the speaker trails off, and at dashes, she is either cut off abruptly by the listener or by herself.
Authorâs Note: God, this took way too long to write. A couple months, if you count when I had the idea and when I wrote the first few sentences. Well, itâs here now, and I hope itâs not too disappointing. Prequel series go!
If you want to read this somewhere other than Reddit, it's also
here.
M4F Version
here.
{internal monologue} {disgusted} Ugh, those damn livestock merchants charge more every time. Gouging bastards,
{rationalization} but I
do need them to stay silent. If the town finds out how much food I have to purchase every month, itâll only end badly. Besides, itâs not like even
this much bribery makes a dent in my hoard. I should really just be glad I havenât met any merchants with integrity, that wouldnât end well. Good thing itâs a vanishingly rare trait these daysâŠ
{annoyance} wait, no, thatâs
not a good thing, what am I saying? Itâs sad⊠but it does make my life easier. Well,
thatâs a hell of a conundrum.
{sigh} {bored} Not one I havenât dealt with before, though. Have this conversation with myself every time. Oh, well. What matters is the foodâll be delivered soon, I donât have to go into hibernation, and the merchants wonât talk. Anything else I wanted to do before heading home? Hmm⊠I think I wanted to stop at the spice merchant, see how much-
{interest} HELlo. Who is
that? {curiosity} What would a knight be doing here? I mean, I suppose the goblin raids have been getting more brazen, but the town guards seem to have it handled, I havenât even needed to get involved yet. I
guess he could be here about that, but it doesnât feel right. Maybe heâs just passing through? Well, best way to find out is to go talk to-
{quiet} Oh, damn. Thatâs- oh,
damn. Fuck, heâs hot.
{forced calm} Okay, composure. You are an all-powerful dragon. You will not be thrown off your game by one mortal, no matter how shiny his armor is. And itâs
only his armor youâll be looking at, right? Right. Ignore that beautiful face, you just need to find out what heâs doing here, not-
{suspicious} Wait. Whoâs he talking to?
{upset} The
spice merchant? And sheâs
BLUSHING? Uh-uh. No. Not gonna fly.
{out loud} {sickly sweet} Hiiiii, hello! Itâs me again, Iâm here to pick up some- Oh? Whoâs this? A new friend?
Oh, Iâm sorry, I didnât realize you were having a conversation. Please, continue. I can wait.
{cough} Oh, no, donât mind me, just looking at⊠cumin. My, this smells awfully strong.
So sorry to barge in again, uh, I would like to buy
these. Are you leaving? Well, it was lovely to meet you.
{internal monologue} Okay, let me just finish up here, and I can go talk to him.
{pleased} Hah!
Look frustrated, spice skank. Serves you right.
{confused} Wait, do I know your name? Have I ever asked your name? Eh, doesnât matter right now, I donât need to know
everyone in the village.
{disgust} Especially not someone who flirts with-
{confusion} Wait, what am I doing? I donât have any claim over some random knight, why am I acting like this?
{frustrated noise} Figure out internal dilemma later, find human now. Whereâd he go?
Agh! Curse this mortal formâs short legs, I canât see- wait! Shiny!
{out loud} Hey! Hey! Wait up!
{out of breath} Whew⊠Thought I was gonna⊠gonna lose you⊠for a minute.
Thanks. Only need⊠a few secondsâŠ
{composed} Hi. Iâm Tiamat*.* Sorry to chase after you like that, but I realized I didnât catch your name?
Oh, thatâs a
lovely name. It suits you.
{pleased} Oh, flatterer.
{internal monologue} Heâs
smooth, isnât he? I was expecting all muscle, no brain. I understand why the spice merchant was blushing now, I guess.
{out loud} I just wanted to ask you⊠uh, I wanted to ask you what you were doing at the spice merchantâs? Usually passers-through donât stop there when they can get their salt cheaper elsewhere.
Oh, thatâs interesting! I didnât know you could find that here.
Oh, no, I donât spend very much time there. I mostly go in, buy what I need for my next few weeks of meals, and leave. Other places to be. More important places.
{laugh} Well. You certainly know the way to a womanâs heart.
{internal monologue} A knight with both manners and a sense of humor⊠whoâd have thought?
{out loud} Wonderful. So, what brings you to Wylgrith? Itâs not a large settlement by any means, and well out of the way of⊠everything, really. What reason would a mighty royal knight have for stopping by? Were you sent to handle the goblins that-
{stunned} âŠSay what now?
The
dragon? You were sent to kill the DRAGON?
Can you⊠not?
{off-balance} I mean- uh- Well, I donât see why you
would, do I? After all, the dragon hasnât been seen or heard from in years, right? And even before that she didnât harm any humans for decades. She-
I- uhhh⊠I guess Iâm guessing sheâs a âshe?â I did see her once, flying overhead, though, and she looked like a girl dragon. Kind of slender.
I⊠suppose âitâ works as well, yeah.
{quiet, sad} A little hurtful, thoughâŠ
{back on track} Nothing, nothing. So, why are you killing the dragon, again? I donât thinkâŠ
it⊠has even harmed a human in living memory.
{sputtering} What? No it didnât!
I- I think I would
know if it burned down a village. I mean, this place is still standing, right?
A
different- Well, Iâm sure she wouldnât have done anything like-
{quickly} No, no, I donât know. Itâs not like Iâve
met the thing, right? But it hasnât burned down
this village, so why would-
{tentative} Oh. They said that?
Right to the king?
Right in the middle of court, where everyone could hear it?
{sad} I guess that settles that, then. The dragon needs to die.
{internal monologue} Damn. What a waste of such a handsome knight. Thereâs no chance he could possibly beat me on his own, so heâs going to end up- wait, on his own?
{out loud} {confused} And the king sent
you? Alone, I mean? No army, or squad of knights, or cadre of mages? Why would he do that?
{awed} Oh. Oh, that is a
very magic sword.
Well, no, I havenât. But- but you can just
tell, canât you? Itâs
glowing! And itâs covered in some kind of weird letters, those have to be magical, right?
{internal monologue} {hesitant} Okay. Thatâs somewhat worrying. Even with all the useless sigils and that pointless glow siphoning its energy, I can
feel the power rippling off that thing. Where did he ever find- No, that doesnât matter. Could it level the playing field? Give him a chance? Hard to tell, I think, my senses in this form arenât as-
{out loud} Iâm sorry, what? I was distracted. Uh- itâs a
very pretty sword.
{taken aback} Thatâs- thatâs a good name for it. Very dangerous-sounding.
{internal monologue}{stressed} ARE YOU KIDDING ME? FANGBANE? HE FOUND FANGBANE? HOW IN THE-
{forced composure} no, Iâm calm, Iâm calm, itâs fine. Itâs not worrying at all that he has the most dangerous dragon-slaying sword ever forged. Wow, this
very quickly went from âI donât want to fight him, I donât want to kill himâ to âI donât want to fight him, I donât want to die.â Okay, time to nip this in the bud.
{out loud} Wow, itâs done that much? I never wouldâve guessed that, it looks
much too fancy for that. So⊠you can actually kill the dragon?
{hesitant} Youâre right, I suppose. If it burned a village, it does deserve that. Well⊠*{resolve}*Do you know how to find its lair?
No, itâs not. If it was, everyone would be constantly in there robbing the hoard, wouldnât we? Everyone knows that the lair is
somewhere on the mountain, but no one knows where.
{triumph} Yes. Except me. And Iâll guide you there.
{reasonable} We already agreed, right? If it burned down a village, killed that many people, it needs to be put down. I want to help with that, and besides, you need someone to take you there. Youâll never find it on your own, so you canât be too choosy about who you bring, can you?
I like hiking, and the mountain isnât dangerous if youâve known what you were doing since you were a child. I found it once, but I ran immediately, because I didnât want to risk angering the dragon. I
think I can find it again, but itâll be a long trip. Three days at minimum.
{internal monologue} {satisfied} Perfect. A few days wandering in the forest should discourage him, maybe I can even convince him I didnât burn any village.
{confused} Why would he have been toldâŠ
{moving on} Doesnât matter right now. What matters is getting him off my trail, and maybe getting to know him in the meantimeâŠ
{upset} No! Stop that! Bad Tiamat! Heâs literally trying to kill you. He is
not a prospective mate, he isnât even another dragon!
{sigh} {wistful} He is handsome, though, especially when the light catches his armor like that⊠No! Stop!
{out loud} {serious} We should set out soon, then. Do you have enough provisions for the trip?
Good, good. No time to waste, come on.
Youâre hunting a dragon. A
dragon. Donât you think it might be wise to move before she- it catches wind of your presence?
Letâs go, then.
{some indicator of a time skip} {amused} What, donât tell me youâre getting tired? Weâve only been hiking for a couple hours today, arenât you supposed to be a big, strong knight?
You could take off the armor, if itâs that hot.
{concession} All right, your decision. And I suppose wearing the armor
was helpful when the tangler tree tried to grab you. Fine, weâll stop for a bit.
How much is left in your waterskin?
Good, good. Mineâs pretty full, I havenât felt thirsty in a while.
No, weâre definitely going in the right direction.
{grasping at straws} I recognize⊠uh, that rock! Yeah. See how it kinda looks like a bear, if you tilt your head?
Really? Well, I see it. Anyway, I remember seeing that before. Weâre about a dayâs walk away from the lair, Iâm almost certain.
You know, you never asked why I decided to hike in a random direction for three days.
{internal monologue} {pleased} I have such a good story for it, too. Itâll leave you crying, and then maybe I can-
{out loud} {taken aback} You do?
What? Youâre a royal knight, one of the most honored positions in the land. Why would
you feel the need to escape?
{internal monologue} What? What was that? There for a second and then gone, was that⊠a crack in the charming exterior?
{out loud} No, no, I understand the feeling. I just⊠didnât expect it from this quarter. Is something wrong at court? Are you-
{inner monologue} {protective} Oh⊠Oh his eyes⊠So sad⊠What did they do to you, my knight?
{out loud} Please, anything you can-
{confused} What? Whatâs wrong?
No, Iâm not going to shush, weâre talking, and-
{muffled} Mmph! MMMMPH!
{inner monologue} {angy} This presumptuous human dares lay his hand on ME? I donât care what might be inside him, Iâm going to make it
outside- {considering} Wait. Whatâs that noise?
That doesnât sound like- oh. Oh, those are goblins. And he wanted me to be quiet, and now they heard us, and- oops. Why did I not sense them coming? Goblins wouldnât know stealth if it snuck up behind them and ripped their legs off, I shouldâve heard them from
miles away. This doesnât make any sense⊠Oh, well. I suppose it doesnât matter, in the grand scheme of things. Just a few more goblins to kill. If heâd just let go of me⊠wait, but I donât want to reveal myself. That makes this much more difficult. Can I kill all these green idiots in my human form?
{concerned} Oh, wow, thatâs⊠a worrying amount. Where are they all coming from? All right, I
think I can take- wait, what? Human? What are you doing?
{out loud} Why are you getting in front of me? That is
far too many goblins for any human to handle, we need to run!
{internal monologue} {flustered} Wha? What does he mean by that? And why does he have to be this handsome as he says it? Thatâs unfair!
{out loud} No- you canât-
{internal monologue} {upset} Oh, the stupid, brave, self-sacrificial idiot! Heâs gonna get himself killed if I donât help him- wait, what?
{taken aback} Heâs- oh, wow, thatâs quite impressive. Thatâs- wow. Iâve never seen a human fight like that.
{confused} Huh? Whyâs he looking back⊠Is he
angry? What?
Heâs yelling
something⊠He wants me to run? Wha-
{realization} OHHHHH- He thinks Iâm in danger, and heâs trying to protect me! He wants to-
{touched} aw. Thatâs the sweetest thing⊠My heart-
{serious} I need to keep this knight alive. {realization} Oh! I have to pretend to be running, yes. I canât help him here, much as I want to. Besides, it looks like he has it handled. Those goblins arenât laying a claw on him, somehow. Guess it
was a good decision to wear the armor.
{planning} Iâll come back for him later, and he can be happy that he kept me safe, and maybe I can use that to find out whatâs wrong with him, oh, looks like heâs just about finished with those-
{shock} wut.
What is that.
Thatâs a- thatâs a freaking hellhound! What in the Low Realms is a hellhound doing here?
{protective} Okay, no, unacceptable. I am
not risking my treasure-
{concerned} the human. The human! Why did I just think of him as- never mind, time for that later.
{whoosh sfx} {roar} {desperate} Oh no, please donât let me be too lateâŠ
{out loud} {furious} Stay away from my human!
{crunch sfx} {triumph} Hah. Thatâll teach you.
Did you get the last of the goblins, sir kni-
{wary} What are you doing.
Put that sword down, please, Iâm not your enemy.
Okay, no, no, calm down, thereâs no need to get worked up.
This isnât helping anything, can we just talk?
{upset} OW! All right, this has gone far enough
{magically resonant} Sleep. {sigh} {fading out} What am I going to do with you?
{some indicator of a time skip} {cordial} Good morning, sir knight. As promised, I brought you to my lair.
Oh, yes, you must be confused.
{whoosh sfx} There, is that better?
{resigned} Yes. It was me the whole time.
No, it wasnât. If it had been a game, you would be dead right now. Instead youâre alive, unharmed, even unrestrained, in the middle of my hoard.
Or didnât you notice?
{amused} Yes, I thought that might get your attention. Being surrounded by enough gold to fill a palace ten times over generally does the trick where humans are involved, or so I am informed.
{annoyed} Fangbane? The sword that slew more of my kind in two years than any other managed in thousands? You want it
back? Tch, no, but I wouldâve if I could. That butcherâs blade shouldâve been melted down long ago. Alas, it was impervious even to
my fire.
I thought that was clear: no, you canât have it back. You can have another sword, even a magic one, but not that
atrocity forged in steel.
{considering} That would seem to be the question of the hour, yes. âWhat are you doing here.â Well⊠why donât you tell me? You were sent to kill me, that much is clear. But much more isnât. I would like⊠an explanation.
{annoyed} Oh, come on. Youâve been interacting with me for days now. Do I really seem like the type of person who burns down villages at random? That excuse is worthless⊠andâŠ
{suspicious} I think we both know it. You were sent here for some other reason. What was it? Tell me, before I grow cross.
Oh, I believe they didnât tell you. But, though I think you like to pretend otherwise, dumb is one thing you are
not. You know more than youâre saying, so answer me. Please.
Why does the king want me dead? {stunned} Thatâs- thatâs
it? Of all the petty, arrogant, stupid- Iâm not even going to bother trying with that.
{snort} And humans use
dragons as symbols of greed.
{explaining something obvious} Yes. Because I
like gold, its color, its luster. And because I enjoy living comfortably.
{disgust} Not just⊠to have more than others.
Even if you donât want to concede the difference, surely it does not escape you that I
earned all of this, not just killed its old owner and stole it.
{offended} Of course I did! The very idea of taking something unearnedâŠ
ugh.
{considering} You really know so little of my kindâŠ
All of this, though⊠brings us back to you. You were sent here, presumably because youâre the kingdomâs best knight, the one with the highest chance of victory. You werenât given any backup because thereâs only one Fangbane. And you were fed a lie about me slaughtering innocents to make the job go down easier, but something in you knew that it
was a lie. Tell me, am I hitting the mark with these?
So, my question becomes⊠why didnât you? You had me at the point of your blade, and with a sword like that and skills like yours, you couldâve done it. If you wanted me dead, I would be, draconic magic and might notwithstanding. Instead, all I have is a scratch on my snout-
{venomous} yes, that is the scar on my nose. Injuries
do carry over, thank you
so much for noticing.
{curious} And now youâre sorry. I donât think I understand you at all, no matter how hard I try. Please, answer me. I want to.
Wha-
{sigh} {exasperated} Well, if you were so certain it was a lie, why come here in the first place? If you felt you were given unjust orders, you couldâve just left the kingdom. Plenty of other places need knights, and thereâs always work to be found as a sellsword. You risked much to gain⊠nothing, as best as I can see.
{dangerous} He⊠he what?
The king threatened toâŠ
{cold} No. No, that is
unacceptable. No one threatens my human.
Yes, my human. I-
{sigh} {warmer} I believe an explanation is in order. You see, I finally figured out what Iâve been feeling these past few days. At first, I thought it might be love, and, well, I suppose it is, of a kind: hoarding instinct. I feel hoarding instinct when I look at you. I saw you for the first time, and something in me just knew. You are the most precious treasure in this entire cavern, and I need to protect and keep you until the end of time, like the work of art you are.
{worried} Ohh, thatâs not a good expression. Did I say something wrong? Come on too strong? I promise, living here wonât be bad at all, itâs quite a comfortable lair, whether Iâm in human form or dragon. I maintain a good relationship with the villagers, too, so we can even go down to Wylgrith on day trips, as long as you donât try to leave. You understand the importance of that, I trust.
{calming} No, no, donât get all worked up. Thereâs no need to do something weâll both regret.
Please, calm down. Weâre both rational people, letâs discuss this as such.
{harder} Human, I donât want to put you to sleep again. Donât make me.
{pleased} Good, thatâs much better. Now, what are your objections?
Mhm, mhmâŠ
{logical} Well, in point of fact, no, you donât have a home anymore. If you go back without proof of my demise, the king will have you executed, will he not?
As I thought. So thereâs nowhere
else for you to be. As to your next point, of course I wonât keep you as a pet, youâre a sentient human. You have your own free will, thoughts, ideas, desires, the whole package. You would never be a pet. You will be my
treasure. Very different thing, and it means I will want to keep you close, keep you safe, and stare at your radiance for as long as draconically possible.
{considering} Well, no, I havenât heard of this. A living part of a dragonâs hoard? I believe itâs unprecedented, since nothing but gold lasts forever. Nevertheless, weâll figure something out, we can make it work. And this doesnât reflect strangely on me, you neednât worry. I am one of the eldest dragons of this age, the young are used to my⊠peculiarities by now.
{pleased} Ah, yes, I wondered when we would get to that point. No, as a matter of fact, the king will
not be sending other knights, or mages, or armies after me. I will not be killed like that, and you will not be reclaimed by them. And do you wish to know why?
{colder than ice} Because I am going to burn this kingdom to the ground.{amused} Naturally. I could overlook the attempt on my life - it brought me the most precious treasure I have ever known, after all, - I could forgive the use of Fangbane, since now I can make sure it never harms one of my kind again, I could even somewhat tolerate the blatant lies spread about me as flimsy justification.
{angry} What I can
not accept, however, is what they have done to you. Threats on your life, on your body, on those you protect, promises of execution, forcing you to stain your soul against your will⊠no. No one is permitted to harm my human and live. This will, I admit, be something of a first for dragonkind, actually killing humans instead of protecting them is practically unheard of. I may even face repercussions from my kind for this. I find it hard to care, though, these ones are only getting what they deserve, for their actions or their complacence.
Now youâre getting upset again.
{soothing} Donât worry, this isnât a sign of my outlook changing. I still have no desire to harm humans, and the village is perfectly safe.
We were communicating so well a second ago, if we could return to that, I would be grateful.
I promise you, this shouting and carrying on is nothing but counterproductive.
{tired} Sir knight, if you are not capable of being objective, I will be forced to- oh, forget it.
{magically resonant} Sleep. {gentle} {slowly fading out} I truly am sorry to do this to you, but I canât have you fighting me on this. I donât want you to be upset at me, treasure, so, by the time you wake, the cause of this contention will be gone.
Shh, shh. Itâs okay. Itâs just a simple sleep spell, youâll wake up comfortable and well-rested.
There. It will all be fixed before you awaken. Donât worry, my treasure, nothing will ever harm you again.
submitted by
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2024.05.21 23:56 Stormcoming7 [M4F] Searching for a Dragon's Lair [Dragon Speaker] [Knight Listener] [Slow Burn, I Think] [Deception] [Protective] [Treasure] [Could Be Prequel, Could Be Standalone] [Far Too Long]
Intro: For your distinguished service to the crown, youâve been assigned the difficult and dangerous job of slaying a dragon purported to have slaughtered a village on the outskirts of the kingdom. Itâs a job you should be able to handle, and youâre not too scared⊠now, if only the whole thing felt less
wrong⊠Summary: Listener meets a new acquaintance who befriends her, and offers to guide her where she needs to go. They face a danger together, and she learns that he is not what he seems.
Go ahead and monetize, it's fine. Word count is about 3800.
If you fill this or plan to fill this, please notify me. Please don't make edits without asking first. TWs: Running deception, combat, discussion of mass murder (dragon burning places to the ground), possessiveness, forced sleep
Line breaks represent the listener talking or space where no one talks and should be short pauses, words within {brackets} represent the speakerâs tone or sfx. At ellipses, the speaker trails off, and at dashes, he is either cut off abruptly by the listener or by himself.
Authorâs Note: And also the flipped version, for the draconic gentlemen out there!
If you want to read this somewhere other than Reddit, it's also
here.
F4M version
here.
{internal monologue} {disgusted} Ugh, those damn livestock merchants charge more every time. Gouging bastards,
{rationalization} but I
do need them to stay silent. If the town finds out how much food I have to purchase every month, itâll only end badly. Besides, itâs not like even
this much bribery makes a dent in my hoard. I should really just be glad I havenât met any merchants with integrity, that wouldnât end well. Good thing itâs a vanishingly rare trait these daysâŠ
{annoyance} wait, no, thatâs
not a good thing, what am I saying? Itâs sad⊠but it does make my life easier. Well,
thatâs a hell of a conundrum.
{sigh} {bored} Not one I havenât dealt with before, though. Have this conversation with myself every time. Oh, well. What matters is the foodâll be delivered soon, I donât have to go into hibernation, and the merchants wonât talk. Anything else I wanted to do before heading home? Hmm⊠I think I wanted to stop at the spice merchant, see how much-
{interest} HELlo. Who is
that? {curiosity} What would a knight be doing here? I mean, I suppose the goblin raids have been getting more brazen, but the town guards seem to have it handled, I havenât even needed to get involved yet. I
guess she could be here about that, but it doesnât feel right. Maybe sheâs just passing through? Well, best way to find out is to go talk to-
{quiet} Oh, damn. Thatâs- oh,
damn. Fuck, sheâs hot.
{forced calm} Okay, composure. You are an all-powerful dragon. You will not be thrown off your game by one mortal, no matter how shiny her armor is. And itâs
only her armor youâll be looking at, right? Right. Ignore that beautiful face, you just need to find out what sheâs doing here, not-
{suspicious} Wait. Whoâs she talking to?
{upset} The
spice merchant? And heâs
BLUSHING? Uh-uh. No. Not gonna fly.
{out loud} {sickly sweet} Hiiiii, hello! Itâs me again, Iâm here to pick up some- Oh? Whoâs this? A new friend?
Oh, Iâm sorry, I didnât realize you were having a conversation. Please, continue. I can wait.
{cough} Oh, no, donât mind me, just looking at⊠cumin. My, this smells awfully strong.
So sorry to barge in again, uh, I would like to buy
these. Are you leaving? Well, it was lovely to meet you.
{internal monologue} Okay, let me just finish up here, and I can go talk to her.
{pleased} Hah!
Look frustrated, spice sleazeball. Serves you right.
{confused} Wait, do I know your name? Have I ever asked your name? Eh, doesnât matter right now, I donât need to know
everyone in the village.
{disgust} Especially not someone who flirts with-
{confusion} Wait, what am I doing? I donât have any claim over some random knight, why am I acting like this?
{frustrated noise} Figure out internal dilemma later, find human now. Whereâd she go?
Agh! Curse this mortal formâs short legs, I canât see- wait! Shiny!
{out loud} Hey! Hey! Wait up!
{out of breath} Whew⊠Thought I was gonna⊠gonna lose you⊠for a minute.
Thanks. Only need⊠a few secondsâŠ
{composed} Hi. Iâm Typhon
. Sorry to chase after you like that, but I realized I didnât catch your name?
Oh, thatâs a
lovely name. It suits you.
{pleased} Oh, flatterer.
{internal monologue} Sheâs
smooth, isnât she? I was expecting all armor, no brain. I understand why the spice merchant was blushing now, I guess.
{out loud} I just wanted to ask you⊠uh, I wanted to ask you what you were doing at the spice merchantâs? Usually passers-through donât stop there when they can get their salt cheaper elsewhere.
Oh, thatâs interesting! I didnât know you could find that here.
Oh, no, I donât spend very much time there. I mostly go in, buy what I need for my next few weeks of meals, and leave. Other places to be. More important places.
{laugh} Well. You certainly know the way to a manâs heart.
{internal monologue} A knight with both manners and a sense of humor⊠whoâd have thought?
{out loud} Wonderful. So, what brings you to Wylgrith? Itâs not a large settlement by any means, and well out of the way of⊠everything, really. What reason would a mighty royal knight have for stopping by? Were you sent to handle the goblins that-
{stunned} âŠSay what now?
The
dragon? You were sent to kill the DRAGON?
Can you⊠not?
{off-balance} I mean- uh- Well, I donât see why you
would, do I? After all, the dragon hasnât been seen or heard from in years, right? And even before that he didnât harm any humans for decades. He-
I- uhhh⊠I guess Iâm guessing heâs a âhe?â I did see him once, flying overhead, though, and he looked like a boy dragon. Kind of stocky.
I⊠suppose âitâ works as well, yeah.
{quiet, sad} A little hurtful, thoughâŠ
{back on track} Nothing, nothing. So, why are you killing the dragon, again? I donât thinkâŠ
it⊠has even harmed a human in living memory.
{sputtering} What? No it didnât!
I- I think I would
know if it burned down a village. I mean, this place is still standing, right?
A
different- Well, Iâm sure he wouldnât have done anything like-
{quickly} No, no, I donât know. Itâs not like Iâve
met the thing, right? But it hasnât burned down
this village, so why would-
{tentative} Oh. They said that?
Right to the king?
Right in the middle of court, where everyone could hear it?
{sad} I guess that settles that, then. The dragon needs to die.
{internal monologue} Damn. What a waste of such a beautiful knight. Thereâs no chance she could possibly beat me on her own, so sheâs going to end up- wait, on her own?
{out loud} {confused} And the king sent
you? Alone, I mean? No army, or squad of knights, or cadre of mages? Why would he do that?
{awed} Oh. Oh, that is a
very magic sword.
Well, no, I havenât. But- but you can just
tell, canât you? Itâs
glowing! And itâs covered in some kind of weird letters, those have to be magical, right?
{internal monologue} {hesitant} Okay. Thatâs somewhat worrying. Even with all the useless sigils and that pointless glow siphoning its energy, I can
feel the power rippling off that thing. Where did she ever find- No, that doesnât matter. Could it level the playing field? Give her a chance? Hard to tell, I think, my senses in this form arenât as-
{out loud} Iâm sorry, what? I was distracted. Uh- itâs a
very pretty sword.
{taken aback} Thatâs- thatâs a good name for it. Very dangerous-sounding.
{internal monologue}{stressed} ARE YOU KIDDING ME? FANGBANE? SHE FOUND FANGBANE? HOW IN THE-
{forced composure} no, Iâm calm, Iâm calm, itâs fine. Itâs not worrying at all that she has the most dangerous dragon-slaying sword ever forged. Wow, this
very quickly went from âI donât want to fight her, I donât want to kill herâ to âI donât want to fight her, I donât want to die.â Okay, time to nip this in the bud.
{out loud} Wow, itâs done that much? I never wouldâve guessed that, it looks
much too fancy for that. So⊠you can actually kill the dragon?
{hesitant} Youâre right, I suppose. If it burned a village, it does deserve that. WellâŠ
{resolve}Do you know how to find its lair?
No, itâs not. If it was, everyone would be constantly in there robbing the hoard, wouldnât we? Everyone knows that the lair is
somewhere on the mountain, but no one knows where.
{triumph} Yes. Except me. And Iâll guide you there.
{reasonable} We already agreed, right? If it burned down a village, killed that many people, it needs to be put down. I want to help with that, and besides, you need someone to take you there. Youâll never find it on your own, so you canât be too choosy about who you bring, can you?
I like hiking, and the mountain isnât dangerous if youâve known what you were doing since you were a child. I found it once, but I ran immediately, because I didnât want to risk angering the dragon. I
think I can find it again, but itâll be a long trip. Three days at minimum.
{internal monologue} {satisfied} Perfect. A few days wandering in the forest should discourage her, maybe I can even convince her I didnât burn any village.
{confused} Why would she have been toldâŠ
{moving on} Doesnât matter right now. What matters is getting her off my trail, and maybe getting to know her in the meantimeâŠ
{upset} No! Stop that! Bad Typhon! Sheâs literally trying to kill you. She is
not a prospective mate, she isnât even another dragon!
{sigh} {wistful} She is gorgeous, though, especially when the light catches her armor like that⊠No! Stop!
{out loud} {serious} We should set out soon, then. Do you have enough provisions for the trip?
Good, good. No time to waste, come on.
Youâre hunting a dragon. A
dragon. Donât you think it might be wise to move before he- it catches wind of your presence?
Letâs go, then.
{some indicator of a time skip} {amused} What, donât tell me youâre getting tired? Weâve only been hiking for a couple hours today, arenât you supposed to be a big, strong knight?
You could take off the armor, if itâs that hot.
{concession} All right, your decision. And I suppose wearing the armor
was helpful when the tangler tree tried to grab you. Fine, weâll stop for a bit.
How much is left in your waterskin?
Good, good. Mineâs pretty full, I havenât felt thirsty in a while.
No, weâre definitely going in the right direction.
{grasping at straws} I recognize⊠uh, that rock! Yeah. See how it kinda looks like a bear, if you tilt your head?
Really? Well, I see it. Anyway, I remember seeing that before. Weâre about a dayâs walk away from the lair, Iâm almost certain.
You know, you never asked why I decided to hike in a random direction for three days.
{internal monologue} {pleased} I have such a good story for it, too. Itâll leave you crying, and then maybe I can-
{out loud} {taken aback} You do?
What? Youâre a royal knight, one of the most honored positions in the land. Why would
you feel the need to escape?
{internal monologue} What? What was that? There for a second and then gone, was that⊠a crack in the charming exterior?
{out loud} No, no, I understand the feeling. I just⊠didnât expect it from this quarter. Is something wrong at court? Are you-
{inner monologue} {protective} Oh⊠Oh her eyes⊠So sad⊠What did they do to you, my knight?
{out loud} Please, anything you can-
{confused} What? Whatâs wrong?
No, Iâm not going to shush, weâre talking, and-
{muffled} Mmph! MMMMPH!
{inner monologue} {angy} This presumptuous human dares lay her hand on ME? I donât care what might be inside her, Iâm going to make it
outside- {considering} Wait. Whatâs that noise?
That doesnât sound like- oh. Oh, those are goblins. And she wanted me to be quiet, and now they heard us, and- oops. Why did I not sense them coming? Goblins wouldnât know stealth if it snuck up behind them and ripped their legs off, I shouldâve heard them from
miles away. This doesnât make any sense⊠Oh, well. I suppose it doesnât matter, in the grand scheme of things. Just a few more goblins to kill. If sheâd just let go of me⊠wait, but I donât want to reveal myself. That makes this much more difficult. Can I kill all these green idiots in my human form?
{concerned} Oh, wow, thatâs⊠a worrying amount. Where are they all coming from? All right, I
think I can take- wait, what? Human? What are you doing?
{out loud} Why are you getting in front of me? That is
far too many goblins for any human to handle, we need to run!
{internal monologue} {flustered} Wha? What does she mean by that? And why does she have to be this lovely as she says it? Thatâs unfair!
{out loud} No- you canât-
{internal monologue} {upset} Oh, the stupid, brave, self-sacrificial idiot! Sheâs gonna get herself killed if I donât help her- wait, what?
{taken aback} Sheâs- oh, wow, thatâs quite impressive. Thatâs- wow. Iâve never seen a human fight like that.
{confused} Huh? Whyâs she looking back⊠Is she
angry? What?
Sheâs yelling
something⊠She wants me to run? Wha-
{realization} OHHHHH- She thinks Iâm in danger, and sheâs trying to protect me! She wants to-
{touched} aw. Thatâs the sweetest thing⊠My heart-
{serious} I need to keep this knight alive. {realization} Oh! I have to pretend to be running, yes. I canât help her here, much as I want to. Besides, it looks like she has it handled. Those goblins arenât laying a claw on her, somehow. Guess it
was a good decision to wear the armor.
{planning} Iâll come back for her later, and she can be happy that she kept me safe, and maybe I can use that to find out whatâs wrong with her, oh, looks like sheâs just about finished with those-
{shock} wut.
What is that.
Thatâs a- thatâs a freaking hellhound! What in the Low Realms is a hellhound doing here?
{protective} Okay, no, unacceptable. I am
not risking my treasure-
{concerned} the human. The human! Why did I just think of her as- never mind, time for that later.
{whoosh sfx} {roar} {desperate} Oh no, please donât let me be too lateâŠ
{out loud} {furious} Stay away from my human!
{crunch sfx} {triumph} Hah. Thatâll teach you.
Did you get the last of the goblins, lady kni-
{wary} What are you doing.
Put that sword down, please, Iâm not your enemy.
Okay, no, no, calm down, thereâs no need to get worked up.
This isnât helping anything, can we just talk?
{upset} OW! All right, this has gone far enough
{magically resonant} Sleep. {sigh} {fading out} What am I going to do with you?
{some indicator of a time skip} {cordial} Good morning, lady knight. As promised, I brought you to my lair.
Oh, yes, you must be confused.
{whoosh sfx} There, is that better?
{resigned} Yes. It was me the whole time.
No, it wasnât. If it had been a game, you would be dead right now. Instead youâre alive, unharmed, even unrestrained, in the middle of my hoard.
Or didnât you notice?
{amused} Yes, I thought that might get your attention. Being surrounded by enough gold to fill a palace ten times over generally does the trick where humans are involved, or so I am informed.
{annoyed} Fangbane? The sword that slew more of my kind in two years than any other managed in thousands? You want it
back? Tch, no, but I wouldâve if I could. That butcherâs blade shouldâve been melted down long ago. Alas, it was impervious even to
my fire.
I thought that was clear: no, you canât have it back. You can have another sword, even a magic one, but not that
atrocity forged in steel.
{considering} That would seem to be the question of the hour, yes. âWhat are you doing here.â Well⊠why donât you tell me? You were sent to kill me, that much is clear. But much more isnât. I would like⊠an explanation.
{annoyed} Oh, come on. Youâve been interacting with me for days now. Do I really seem like the type of person who burns down villages at random? That excuse is worthless⊠andâŠ
{suspicious} I think we both know it. You were sent here for some other reason. What was it? Tell me, before I grow cross.
Oh, I believe they didnât tell you. But, though I think you like to pretend otherwise, dumb is one thing you are
not. You know more than youâre saying, so answer me. Please.
Why does the king want me dead? {stunned} Thatâs- thatâs
it? Of all the petty, arrogant, stupid- Iâm not even going to bother trying with that.
{snort} And humans use
dragons as symbols of greed.
{explaining something obvious} Yes. Because I
like gold, its color, its luster. And because I enjoy living comfortably.
{disgust} Not just⊠to have more than others.
Even if you donât want to concede the difference, surely it does not escape you that I
earned all of this, not just killed its old owner and stole it.
{offended} Of course I did! The very idea of taking something unearnedâŠ
ugh.
{considering} You really know so little of my kindâŠ
All of this, though⊠brings us back to you. You were sent here, presumably because youâre the kingdomâs best knight, the one with the highest chance of victory. You werenât given any backup because thereâs only one Fangbane. And you were fed a lie about me slaughtering innocents to make the job go down easier, but something in you knew that it
was a lie. Tell me, am I hitting the mark with these?
So, my question becomes⊠why didnât you? You had me at the point of your blade, and with a sword like that and skills like yours, you couldâve done it. If you wanted me dead, I would be, draconic magic and might notwithstanding. Instead, all I have is a scratch on my snout-
{venomous} yes, that is the scar on my nose. Injuries
do carry over, thank you
so much for noticing.
{curious} And now youâre sorry. I donât think I understand you at all, no matter how hard I try. Please, answer me. I want to.
Wha-
{sigh} {exasperated} Well, if you were so certain it was a lie, why come here in the first place? If you felt you were given unjust orders, you couldâve just left the kingdom. Plenty of other places need knights, and thereâs always work to be found as a sellsword. You risked much to gain⊠nothing, as best as I can see.
{dangerous} He⊠he what?
The king threatened toâŠ
{cold} No. No, that is
unacceptable. No one threatens my human.
Yes, my human. I-
{sigh} {warmer} I believe an explanation is in order. You see, I finally figured out what Iâve been feeling these past few days. At first, I thought it might be love, and, well, I suppose it is, of a kind: hoarding instinct. I feel hoarding instinct when I look at you. I saw you for the first time, and something in me just knew. You are the most precious treasure in this entire cavern, and I need to protect and keep you until the end of time, like the work of art you are.
{worried} Ohh, thatâs not a good expression. Did I say something wrong? Come on too strong? I promise, living here wonât be bad at all, itâs quite a comfortable lair, whether Iâm in human form or dragon. I maintain a good relationship with the villagers, too, so we can even go down to Wylgrith on day trips, as long as you donât try to leave. You understand the importance of that, I trust.
{calming} No, no, donât get all worked up. Thereâs no need to do something weâll both regret.
Please, calm down. Weâre both rational people, letâs discuss this as such.
{harder} Human, I donât want to put you to sleep again. Donât make me.
{pleased} Good, thatâs much better. Now, what are your objections?
Mhm, mhmâŠ
{logical} Well, in point of fact, no, you donât have a home anymore. If you go back without proof of my demise, the king will have you executed, will he not?
As I thought. So thereâs nowhere
else for you to be. As to your next point, of course I wonât keep you as a pet, youâre a sentient human. You have your own free will, thoughts, ideas, desires, the whole package. You would never be a pet. You will be my
treasure. Very different thing, and it means I will want to keep you close, keep you safe, and stare at your radiance for as long as draconically possible.
{considering} Well, no, I havenât heard of this. A living part of a dragonâs hoard? I believe itâs unprecedented, since nothing but gold lasts forever. Nevertheless, weâll figure something out, we can make it work. And this doesnât reflect strangely on me, you neednât worry. I am one of the eldest dragons of this age, the young are used to my⊠peculiarities by now.
{pleased} Ah, yes, I wondered when we would get to that point. No, as a matter of fact, the king will
not be sending other knights, or mages, or armies after me. I will not be killed like that, and you will not be reclaimed by them. And do you wish to know why?
{colder than ice} Because I am going to burn this kingdom to the ground. {amused} Naturally. I could overlook the attempt on my life - it brought me the most precious treasure I have ever known, after all, - I could forgive the use of Fangbane, since now I can make sure it never harms one of my kind again, I could even somewhat tolerate the blatant lies spread about me as flimsy justification.
{angry} What I can
not accept, however, is what they have done to you. Threats on your life, on your body, on those you protect, promises of execution, forcing you to stain your soul against your will⊠no. No one is permitted to harm my human and live. This will, I admit, be something of a first for dragonkind, actually killing humans instead of protecting them is practically unheard of. I may even face repercussions from my kind for this. I find it hard to care, though, these ones are only getting what they deserve, for their actions or their complacence.
Now youâre getting upset again.
{soothing} Donât worry, this isnât a sign of my outlook changing. I still have no desire to harm humans, and the village is perfectly safe.
We were communicating so well a second ago, if we could return to that, I would be grateful.
I promise you, this shouting and carrying on is nothing but counterproductive.
{tired} Lady knight, if you are not capable of being objective, I will be forced to- oh, forget it.
{magically resonant} Sleep. {gentle} {slowly fading out} I truly am sorry to do this to you, but I canât have you fighting me on this. I donât want you to be upset at me, treasure, so, by the time you wake, the cause of this contention will be gone.
Shh, shh. Itâs okay. Itâs just a simple sleep spell, youâll wake up comfortable and well-rested.
There. It will all be fixed before you awaken. Donât worry, my treasure, nothing will ever harm you again.
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2024.05.21 23:52 Stormcoming7 [F4M] Searching for a Dragon's Lair [Dragon Speaker] [Knight Listener] [Slow Burn, I Think] [Deception] [Protective] [Treasure] [Could Be Prequel, Could Be Standalone] [Far Too Long]
Intro: For your distinguished service to the crown, youâve been assigned the difficult and dangerous job of slaying a dragon purported to have slaughtered a village on the outskirts of the kingdom. Itâs a job you should be able to handle, and youâre not too scared⊠now, if only the whole thing felt less
wrong⊠Summary: Listener meets a new acquaintance who befriends him, and offers to guide him where he needs to go. They face a danger together, and he learns that she is not what she seems.
Go ahead and monetize, it's fine. Word count is about 3800.
If you fill this or plan to fill this, please notify me. Please don't make edits without asking first. TWs: Running deception, combat, discussion of mass murder (dragon burning places to the ground), possessiveness, forced sleep
Line breaks represent the listener talking or space where no one talks and should be short pauses, words within {brackets} represent the speakerâs tone or sfx. At ellipses, the speaker trails off, and at dashes, she is either cut off abruptly by the listener or by herself.
Authorâs Note: God, this took way too long to write. A couple months, if you count when I had the idea and when I wrote the first few sentences. Well, itâs here now, and I hope itâs not too disappointing. Prequel series go!
If you want to read this somewhere other than Reddit, it's also
here.
M4F Version
here.
{internal monologue} {disgusted} Ugh, those damn livestock merchants charge more every time. Gouging bastards,
{rationalization} but I
do need them to stay silent. If the town finds out how much food I have to purchase every month, itâll only end badly. Besides, itâs not like even
this much bribery makes a dent in my hoard. I should really just be glad I havenât met any merchants with integrity, that wouldnât end well. Good thing itâs a vanishingly rare trait these daysâŠ
{annoyance} wait, no, thatâs
not a good thing, what am I saying? Itâs sad⊠but it does make my life easier. Well,
thatâs a hell of a conundrum.
{sigh} {bored} Not one I havenât dealt with before, though. Have this conversation with myself every time. Oh, well. What matters is the foodâll be delivered soon, I donât have to go into hibernation, and the merchants wonât talk. Anything else I wanted to do before heading home? Hmm⊠I think I wanted to stop at the spice merchant, see how much-
{interest} HELlo. Who is
that? {curiosity} What would a knight be doing here? I mean, I suppose the goblin raids have been getting more brazen, but the town guards seem to have it handled, I havenât even needed to get involved yet. I
guess he could be here about that, but it doesnât feel right. Maybe heâs just passing through? Well, best way to find out is to go talk to-
{quiet} Oh, damn. Thatâs- oh,
damn. Fuck, heâs hot.
{forced calm} Okay, composure. You are an all-powerful dragon. You will not be thrown off your game by one mortal, no matter how shiny his armor is. And itâs
only his armor youâll be looking at, right? Right. Ignore that beautiful face, you just need to find out what heâs doing here, not-
{suspicious} Wait. Whoâs he talking to?
{upset} The
spice merchant? And sheâs
BLUSHING? Uh-uh. No. Not gonna fly.
{out loud} {sickly sweet} Hiiiii, hello! Itâs me again, Iâm here to pick up some- Oh? Whoâs this? A new friend?
Oh, Iâm sorry, I didnât realize you were having a conversation. Please, continue. I can wait.
{cough} Oh, no, donât mind me, just looking at⊠cumin. My, this smells awfully strong.
So sorry to barge in again, uh, I would like to buy
these. Are you leaving? Well, it was lovely to meet you.
{internal monologue} Okay, let me just finish up here, and I can go talk to him.
{pleased} Hah!
Look frustrated, spice skank. Serves you right.
{confused} Wait, do I know your name? Have I ever asked your name? Eh, doesnât matter right now, I donât need to know
everyone in the village.
{disgust} Especially not someone who flirts with-
{confusion} Wait, what am I doing? I donât have any claim over some random knight, why am I acting like this?
{frustrated noise} Figure out internal dilemma later, find human now. Whereâd he go?
Agh! Curse this mortal formâs short legs, I canât see- wait! Shiny!
{out loud} Hey! Hey! Wait up!
{out of breath} Whew⊠Thought I was gonna⊠gonna lose you⊠for a minute.
Thanks. Only need⊠a few secondsâŠ
{composed} Hi. Iâm Tiamat*.* Sorry to chase after you like that, but I realized I didnât catch your name?
Oh, thatâs a
lovely name. It suits you.
{pleased} Oh, flatterer.
{internal monologue} Heâs
smooth, isnât he? I was expecting all muscle, no brain. I understand why the spice merchant was blushing now, I guess.
{out loud} I just wanted to ask you⊠uh, I wanted to ask you what you were doing at the spice merchantâs? Usually passers-through donât stop there when they can get their salt cheaper elsewhere.
Oh, thatâs interesting! I didnât know you could find that here.
Oh, no, I donât spend very much time there. I mostly go in, buy what I need for my next few weeks of meals, and leave. Other places to be. More important places.
{laugh} Well. You certainly know the way to a womanâs heart.
{internal monologue} A knight with both manners and a sense of humor⊠whoâd have thought?
{out loud} Wonderful. So, what brings you to Wylgrith? Itâs not a large settlement by any means, and well out of the way of⊠everything, really. What reason would a mighty royal knight have for stopping by? Were you sent to handle the goblins that-
{stunned} âŠSay what now?
The
dragon? You were sent to kill the DRAGON?
Can you⊠not?
{off-balance} I mean- uh- Well, I donât see why you
would, do I? After all, the dragon hasnât been seen or heard from in years, right? And even before that she didnât harm any humans for decades. She-
I- uhhh⊠I guess Iâm guessing sheâs a âshe?â I did see her once, flying overhead, though, and she looked like a girl dragon. Kind of slender.
I⊠suppose âitâ works as well, yeah.
{quiet, sad} A little hurtful, thoughâŠ
{back on track} Nothing, nothing. So, why are you killing the dragon, again? I donât thinkâŠ
it⊠has even harmed a human in living memory.
{sputtering} What? No it didnât!
I- I think I would
know if it burned down a village. I mean, this place is still standing, right?
A
different- Well, Iâm sure she wouldnât have done anything like-
{quickly} No, no, I donât know. Itâs not like Iâve
met the thing, right? But it hasnât burned down
this village, so why would-
{tentative} Oh. They said that?
Right to the king?
Right in the middle of court, where everyone could hear it?
{sad} I guess that settles that, then. The dragon needs to die.
{internal monologue} Damn. What a waste of such a handsome knight. Thereâs no chance he could possibly beat me on his own, so heâs going to end up- wait, on his own?
{out loud} {confused} And the king sent
you? Alone, I mean? No army, or squad of knights, or cadre of mages? Why would he do that?
{awed} Oh. Oh, that is a
very magic sword.
Well, no, I havenât. But- but you can just
tell, canât you? Itâs
glowing! And itâs covered in some kind of weird letters, those have to be magical, right?
{internal monologue} {hesitant} Okay. Thatâs somewhat worrying. Even with all the useless sigils and that pointless glow siphoning its energy, I can
feel the power rippling off that thing. Where did he ever find- No, that doesnât matter. Could it level the playing field? Give him a chance? Hard to tell, I think, my senses in this form arenât as-
{out loud} Iâm sorry, what? I was distracted. Uh- itâs a
very pretty sword.
{taken aback} Thatâs- thatâs a good name for it. Very dangerous-sounding.
{internal monologue}{stressed} ARE YOU KIDDING ME? FANGBANE? HE FOUND FANGBANE? HOW IN THE-
{forced composure} no, Iâm calm, Iâm calm, itâs fine. Itâs not worrying at all that he has the most dangerous dragon-slaying sword ever forged. Wow, this
very quickly went from âI donât want to fight him, I donât want to kill himâ to âI donât want to fight him, I donât want to die.â Okay, time to nip this in the bud.
{out loud} Wow, itâs done that much? I never wouldâve guessed that, it looks
much too fancy for that. So⊠you can actually kill the dragon?
{hesitant} Youâre right, I suppose. If it burned a village, it does deserve that. Well⊠*{resolve}*Do you know how to find its lair?
No, itâs not. If it was, everyone would be constantly in there robbing the hoard, wouldnât we? Everyone knows that the lair is
somewhere on the mountain, but no one knows where.
{triumph} Yes. Except me. And Iâll guide you there.
{reasonable} We already agreed, right? If it burned down a village, killed that many people, it needs to be put down. I want to help with that, and besides, you need someone to take you there. Youâll never find it on your own, so you canât be too choosy about who you bring, can you?
I like hiking, and the mountain isnât dangerous if youâve known what you were doing since you were a child. I found it once, but I ran immediately, because I didnât want to risk angering the dragon. I
think I can find it again, but itâll be a long trip. Three days at minimum.
{internal monologue} {satisfied} Perfect. A few days wandering in the forest should discourage him, maybe I can even convince him I didnât burn any village.
{confused} Why would he have been toldâŠ
{moving on} Doesnât matter right now. What matters is getting him off my trail, and maybe getting to know him in the meantimeâŠ
{upset} No! Stop that! Bad Tiamat! Heâs literally trying to kill you. He is
not a prospective mate, he isnât even another dragon!
{sigh} {wistful} He is handsome, though, especially when the light catches his armor like that⊠No! Stop!
{out loud} {serious} We should set out soon, then. Do you have enough provisions for the trip?
Good, good. No time to waste, come on.
Youâre hunting a dragon. A
dragon. Donât you think it might be wise to move before she- it catches wind of your presence?
Letâs go, then.
{some indicator of a time skip} {amused} What, donât tell me youâre getting tired? Weâve only been hiking for a couple hours today, arenât you supposed to be a big, strong knight?
You could take off the armor, if itâs that hot.
{concession} All right, your decision. And I suppose wearing the armor
was helpful when the tangler tree tried to grab you. Fine, weâll stop for a bit.
How much is left in your waterskin?
Good, good. Mineâs pretty full, I havenât felt thirsty in a while.
No, weâre definitely going in the right direction.
{grasping at straws} I recognize⊠uh, that rock! Yeah. See how it kinda looks like a bear, if you tilt your head?
Really? Well, I see it. Anyway, I remember seeing that before. Weâre about a dayâs walk away from the lair, Iâm almost certain.
You know, you never asked why I decided to hike in a random direction for three days.
{internal monologue} {pleased} I have such a good story for it, too. Itâll leave you crying, and then maybe I can-
{out loud} {taken aback} You do?
What? Youâre a royal knight, one of the most honored positions in the land. Why would
you feel the need to escape?
{internal monologue} What? What was that? There for a second and then gone, was that⊠a crack in the charming exterior?
{out loud} No, no, I understand the feeling. I just⊠didnât expect it from this quarter. Is something wrong at court? Are you-
{inner monologue} {protective} Oh⊠Oh his eyes⊠So sad⊠What did they do to you, my knight?
{out loud} Please, anything you can-
{confused} What? Whatâs wrong?
No, Iâm not going to shush, weâre talking, and-
{muffled} Mmph! MMMMPH!
{inner monologue} {angy} This presumptuous human dares lay his hand on ME? I donât care what might be inside him, Iâm going to make it
outside- {considering} Wait. Whatâs that noise?
That doesnât sound like- oh. Oh, those are goblins. And he wanted me to be quiet, and now they heard us, and- oops. Why did I not sense them coming? Goblins wouldnât know stealth if it snuck up behind them and ripped their legs off, I shouldâve heard them from
miles away. This doesnât make any sense⊠Oh, well. I suppose it doesnât matter, in the grand scheme of things. Just a few more goblins to kill. If heâd just let go of me⊠wait, but I donât want to reveal myself. That makes this much more difficult. Can I kill all these green idiots in my human form?
{concerned} Oh, wow, thatâs⊠a worrying amount. Where are they all coming from? All right, I
think I can take- wait, what? Human? What are you doing?
{out loud} Why are you getting in front of me? That is
far too many goblins for any human to handle, we need to run!
{internal monologue} {flustered} Wha? What does he mean by that? And why does he have to be this handsome as he says it? Thatâs unfair!
{out loud} No- you canât-
{internal monologue} {upset} Oh, the stupid, brave, self-sacrificial idiot! Heâs gonna get himself killed if I donât help him- wait, what?
{taken aback} Heâs- oh, wow, thatâs quite impressive. Thatâs- wow. Iâve never seen a human fight like that.
{confused} Huh? Whyâs he looking back⊠Is he
angry? What?
Heâs yelling
something⊠He wants me to run? Wha-
{realization} OHHHHH- He thinks Iâm in danger, and heâs trying to protect me! He wants to-
{touched} aw. Thatâs the sweetest thing⊠My heart-
{serious} I need to keep this knight alive. {realization} Oh! I have to pretend to be running, yes. I canât help him here, much as I want to. Besides, it looks like he has it handled. Those goblins arenât laying a claw on him, somehow. Guess it
was a good decision to wear the armor.
{planning} Iâll come back for him later, and he can be happy that he kept me safe, and maybe I can use that to find out whatâs wrong with him, oh, looks like heâs just about finished with those-
{shock} wut.
What is that.
Thatâs a- thatâs a freaking hellhound! What in the Low Realms is a hellhound doing here?
{protective} Okay, no, unacceptable. I am
not risking my treasure-
{concerned} the human. The human! Why did I just think of him as- never mind, time for that later.
{whoosh sfx} {roar} {desperate} Oh no, please donât let me be too lateâŠ
{out loud} {furious} Stay away from my human!
{crunch sfx} {triumph} Hah. Thatâll teach you.
Did you get the last of the goblins, sir kni-
{wary} What are you doing.
Put that sword down, please, Iâm not your enemy.
Okay, no, no, calm down, thereâs no need to get worked up.
This isnât helping anything, can we just talk?
{upset} OW! All right, this has gone far enough
{magically resonant} Sleep. {sigh} {fading out} What am I going to do with you?
{some indicator of a time skip} {cordial} Good morning, sir knight. As promised, I brought you to my lair.
Oh, yes, you must be confused.
{whoosh sfx} There, is that better?
{resigned} Yes. It was me the whole time.
No, it wasnât. If it had been a game, you would be dead right now. Instead youâre alive, unharmed, even unrestrained, in the middle of my hoard.
Or didnât you notice?
{amused} Yes, I thought that might get your attention. Being surrounded by enough gold to fill a palace ten times over generally does the trick where humans are involved, or so I am informed.
{annoyed} Fangbane? The sword that slew more of my kind in two years than any other managed in thousands? You want it
back? Tch, no, but I wouldâve if I could. That butcherâs blade shouldâve been melted down long ago. Alas, it was impervious even to
my fire.
I thought that was clear: no, you canât have it back. You can have another sword, even a magic one, but not that
atrocity forged in steel.
{considering} That would seem to be the question of the hour, yes. âWhat are you doing here.â Well⊠why donât you tell me? You were sent to kill me, that much is clear. But much more isnât. I would like⊠an explanation.
{annoyed} Oh, come on. Youâve been interacting with me for days now. Do I really seem like the type of person who burns down villages at random? That excuse is worthless⊠andâŠ
{suspicious} I think we both know it. You were sent here for some other reason. What was it? Tell me, before I grow cross.
Oh, I believe they didnât tell you. But, though I think you like to pretend otherwise, dumb is one thing you are
not. You know more than youâre saying, so answer me. Please.
Why does the king want me dead? {stunned} Thatâs- thatâs
it? Of all the petty, arrogant, stupid- Iâm not even going to bother trying with that.
{snort} And humans use
dragons as symbols of greed.
{explaining something obvious} Yes. Because I
like gold, its color, its luster. And because I enjoy living comfortably.
{disgust} Not just⊠to have more than others.
Even if you donât want to concede the difference, surely it does not escape you that I
earned all of this, not just killed its old owner and stole it.
{offended} Of course I did! The very idea of taking something unearnedâŠ
ugh.
{considering} You really know so little of my kindâŠ
All of this, though⊠brings us back to you. You were sent here, presumably because youâre the kingdomâs best knight, the one with the highest chance of victory. You werenât given any backup because thereâs only one Fangbane. And you were fed a lie about me slaughtering innocents to make the job go down easier, but something in you knew that it
was a lie. Tell me, am I hitting the mark with these?
So, my question becomes⊠why didnât you? You had me at the point of your blade, and with a sword like that and skills like yours, you couldâve done it. If you wanted me dead, I would be, draconic magic and might notwithstanding. Instead, all I have is a scratch on my snout-
{venomous} yes, that is the scar on my nose. Injuries
do carry over, thank you
so much for noticing.
{curious} And now youâre sorry. I donât think I understand you at all, no matter how hard I try. Please, answer me. I want to.
Wha-
{sigh} {exasperated} Well, if you were so certain it was a lie, why come here in the first place? If you felt you were given unjust orders, you couldâve just left the kingdom. Plenty of other places need knights, and thereâs always work to be found as a sellsword. You risked much to gain⊠nothing, as best as I can see.
{dangerous} He⊠he what?
The king threatened toâŠ
{cold} No. No, that is
unacceptable. No one threatens my human.
Yes, my human. I-
{sigh} {warmer} I believe an explanation is in order. You see, I finally figured out what Iâve been feeling these past few days. At first, I thought it might be love, and, well, I suppose it is, of a kind: hoarding instinct. I feel hoarding instinct when I look at you. I saw you for the first time, and something in me just knew. You are the most precious treasure in this entire cavern, and I need to protect and keep you until the end of time, like the work of art you are.
{worried} Ohh, thatâs not a good expression. Did I say something wrong? Come on too strong? I promise, living here wonât be bad at all, itâs quite a comfortable lair, whether Iâm in human form or dragon. I maintain a good relationship with the villagers, too, so we can even go down to Wylgrith on day trips, as long as you donât try to leave. You understand the importance of that, I trust.
{calming} No, no, donât get all worked up. Thereâs no need to do something weâll both regret.
Please, calm down. Weâre both rational people, letâs discuss this as such.
{harder} Human, I donât want to put you to sleep again. Donât make me.
{pleased} Good, thatâs much better. Now, what are your objections?
Mhm, mhmâŠ
{logical} Well, in point of fact, no, you donât have a home anymore. If you go back without proof of my demise, the king will have you executed, will he not?
As I thought. So thereâs nowhere
else for you to be. As to your next point, of course I wonât keep you as a pet, youâre a sentient human. You have your own free will, thoughts, ideas, desires, the whole package. You would never be a pet. You will be my
treasure. Very different thing, and it means I will want to keep you close, keep you safe, and stare at your radiance for as long as draconically possible.
{considering} Well, no, I havenât heard of this. A living part of a dragonâs hoard? I believe itâs unprecedented, since nothing but gold lasts forever. Nevertheless, weâll figure something out, we can make it work. And this doesnât reflect strangely on me, you neednât worry. I am one of the eldest dragons of this age, the young are used to my⊠peculiarities by now.
{pleased} Ah, yes, I wondered when we would get to that point. No, as a matter of fact, the king will
not be sending other knights, or mages, or armies after me. I will not be killed like that, and you will not be reclaimed by them. And do you wish to know why?
{colder than ice} Because I am going to burn this kingdom to the ground.{amused} Naturally. I could overlook the attempt on my life - it brought me the most precious treasure I have ever known, after all, - I could forgive the use of Fangbane, since now I can make sure it never harms one of my kind again, I could even somewhat tolerate the blatant lies spread about me as flimsy justification.
{angry} What I can
not accept, however, is what they have done to you. Threats on your life, on your body, on those you protect, promises of execution, forcing you to stain your soul against your will⊠no. No one is permitted to harm my human and live. This will, I admit, be something of a first for dragonkind, actually killing humans instead of protecting them is practically unheard of. I may even face repercussions from my kind for this. I find it hard to care, though, these ones are only getting what they deserve, for their actions or their complacence.
Now youâre getting upset again.
{soothing} Donât worry, this isnât a sign of my outlook changing. I still have no desire to harm humans, and the village is perfectly safe.
We were communicating so well a second ago, if we could return to that, I would be grateful.
I promise you, this shouting and carrying on is nothing but counterproductive.
{tired} Sir knight, if you are not capable of being objective, I will be forced to- oh, forget it.
{magically resonant} Sleep. {gentle} {slowly fading out} I truly am sorry to do this to you, but I canât have you fighting me on this. I donât want you to be upset at me, treasure, so, by the time you wake, the cause of this contention will be gone.
Shh, shh. Itâs okay. Itâs just a simple sleep spell, youâll wake up comfortable and well-rested.
There. It will all be fixed before you awaken. Donât worry, my treasure, nothing will ever harm you again.
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2024.05.21 23:30 M0nt3C4rL05 How I think a Superman horror movie could work (DC Elseworlds fan pitch)
As much as the title seems VERY peculiar (Superman? Horror? Gtfo), I had this idea in my head about it. It might be bad because it's a horror movie take on a character that is far from horrifying, but fuck it.
Just for the heck of it, this story is set in canon to Matt Reeves's Batman universe. But here goes:
The events of this movie happen a few months after the events of "The Batman". Bruce Wayne has held a fundraiser to help rebuild the destroyed dam and reinforce it. He decided to earn Gotham's trust and try to control the narrative behind what Riddler said about Martha Wayne. This, however, isn't as big a news as the fact that Bruce decided to show himself to the world. Perry White from "The Daily Planet" sends his top reporter, Lois Lane, who is slightly jaded in personality, but she puts the story above all else, willing to do anything for a story, even bending the law. Perry does, however, send an intern reporter, Clark Kent, with her, so she could "show him the ropes". Cut to the fundraiser. Lois and Clark hang around at the fundraiser, socialising, getting quotes and stories, etc. That's when Lois eventually crosses paths with the man himself: Bruce Wayne. Lois gets not just an eerie vibe from him, the cologne reminds her of fear. She feels her heart rate rising, her pupils start dilating, she starts sweating when around Bruce, but she pushes that fear away and decides to continue on. They chat each other up and hit it off. Eventually, Bruce offers her to join him in a nightcap and charms her enough with the promise of a much more in-depth interview, just the two of them. Lois accepts and Clark is sent home. During this interview, one thing leads to another, and Lois ends up having sex with Bruce and spending the night with him.
Lois is woken up by Alfred and served breakfast, being informed Bruce has left for Wayne Enterprises. Lois decides to leave and reaches the Daily Planet, where after turning the report in to Perry, heads to the roof for a quick smoke. That's where she sees a man waiting for her, floating in the air. He has blue eyes, he looks straightened and confident, and has straightened hair, with a widow's peak. He's also wearing a blue suit with a weird S on his symbol and a cape. He's floating in the air, petting a stray cat, while giving a warm smile to Lois. Lois is genuinely confused and, weirdly, intimidated by the aura he gives out. Almost like he has the power of a god. She thinks, "Is there yet another freak on this planet? First the monster from Gotham, and now...whoever, no. Whatever, this is?". She has to get a story out of him. She shakes her head out of disbelief, but just like that...he's gone. As if he was never there.
Over the next few days, Lois goes around town, thinking about that man and, at every turn, he's there. Sometimes looking at her from the sky. Sometimes floating, helping a few schoolchildren pass the street. Despite the good she sees him doing, she suspects the man of having an agenda. She starts coining the name: Superman. She tries to ask Perry to give her permission to write a piece on this "Superman", but Perry doesn't let her, claiming no one even knows who this Superman is, and it might all be a hoax. Clark is concerned for Lois and her obsession with this "Superman" and tries to help Lois with her story. Lois starts to suspect Clark of being this "Superman" character she sees throughout Metropolis due to the sheer facial resemblance, even having mental breakdowns over Clark being Superman or not, constantly feeling afraid whether he'll show up or not. Eventually, at night, she sees Superman outside her house and for the first time, he speaks. Using a calm, softer, near deep and melodic voice to talk to Lois Lane. She asks "What do I call you?" to which he replies, "I'm just someone who wants to help around. But I like the name you gave me. Superman. I like it!" She feels nervous, but braves that feeling by getting closer and standing on her tiptoes, kissing Superman.
Throughout the movie, we see more of Lois and Clark trying to figure out the Superman mystery together, getting close enough, but Lois starts to feel even more frustrated, and through seeing Clark, she keeps on thinking he's Superman and even goes through mental episodes. The final scene is Lois standing at the edge of the roof of the Daily Planet, with Clark tearfully pleading her not to jump, but Lois, now fully convinced Clark is Superman, tearfully says "Clark, I know your secret. There's no need to deny it. I know you'll jump and save me. It's okay". She kisses him hard then backs up, closes her eyes, and jumps. Clark tries to reach for her hand, but is a split second too late.
Lois feels herself falling, only for her to gradually slow down. She opens her eyes, only to see Superman again, carrying her in his arms. She kisses him again, and tearfully says "You came." Superman just keeps on smiling, although slightly eerily. "There was no need to be scared of me, Lois. There never was." Lois reaches up to cup his cheek in her hand, but her hand fazes through. She tries again, and again, and again, before realising. "...I'm sorry, Clark." she mutters.
We cut to police sirens, and a silhouette walking over to the body: Batman. He was specially called through the police department via the GCPD, as officers were afraid just going to the body. He slowly walks over: Lois Lane died upon impact when she jumped off the building. Perry was right. "Superman" was a hoax. She hallucinated Superman the whole time. Why? the "cologne" Bruce wore? An unadulterated, raw sample of a gas. "Bruce Wayne" was also just another man posing to be rich, except... he looked very similar to Bruce. Batman checks the body, takes a sample of it, and deduces that she was drugged the night of the fundraiser he held. He simply says to Alfred (listening in via an upgraded cowl) "Whoever did this doesn't want any materialistic things. Given she was drugged in Gotham and did this to herself in another place entirely, our mutual friend wants to undo my work before it even starts." This sets up the sequel for "The Batman Part II"
What do you guys think of this pitch?
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2024.05.21 23:18 MoonHermit The Greatest BokuBen Secret
Hello, everyone. How are you doing?
Around the time of the announcement of Bokuben' multiple routes, specifically the time around the 3rd route, I've been elaborating a way to reveal the what I believe to be the greatest secret this manga holds. No, it's not who is best girl, or the one true route, or how the girls' stories have parallels with certain fairy tale characters. It's actually the greatest achievement when it comes to hidden aspects that I've ever seen a manga pull off, done in such a way that pretty much nobody has talked about it, to my limited knowledge.
The greatest secret contained in this manga is how every single one of its elements has some parallel to the
TAROT. No other manga I've read contains so much inspiration hidden in plain sight as this one.
Number of volumes, symbolism, character traits and interactions, plot progression, route themes, character birthdays, years it was serialized in (2017 to 2021), pretty much everything can be linked in some way to the Tarot. It's so beautiful I laughed like never before when I connected the dots. The hint was the Rizu color page during her route, showing the moon, and her route being the 18th volume. From there, my overthinking brain went into overdrive, and I had an epiphany. For example, did you know the hamster on the cover of volume 9 is named HAMI-chan, which is a reference to HAAMITO (Hermit), the 9th arcana, which is represented by Sawako, whose birthday is on August 3rd (8 = HA, 3 = MI)? That kind of connection is everywhere. Like, volume covers, we have:
- Fumino = Magician, Justice, Sun
- Rizu = High Priestess, Temperance, Moon
- Uruka = Empress, Strength, Devil (also the headmaster, with his "horn" hairs, who coincidentally has a chapter on vol 15), Star
- Mafuyu = Hierophant, Hanged Man, World
- Asumi = Chariot, Death, Judgment
- Sawako = Hermit
- Multiple = Lovers
- School = Tower
How about the first 22-23 chapters? Each one has some relation to the major arcana, in order.
Also, so many small elements on each cover relating to its respective arcana, like the stuff characters are holding (Fumino on vol 1, Rizu on vol 2, etc). The first (Star) and last (World) routes being depicted on the cover of volume 10 (Wheel), possessing a symbolic connection to the "mermaid" when it comes to the Tarot and alchemy, Alchemy itself having the Rizu and Sawako duo represent it (Rizu = psychology, Sawako = chemistry), Nariyuki (Fool) only appearing in person starting from the 4th volume cover, volume 7 (Chariot) having a scooter, and so, so much more.
Don't think the minor arcana were forgotten, either. Each route has some relation to it (Fumino = Pentacles, Rizu = Cups, Asumi = Swords/Scalpels?, Uruka = Wands/Brooms?, Mafuyu = little bit of each), and there are nods on vol 14 (Rizu with a golden ball, representing a pentacle, Fumino's minor arcana) and vol 11 (Fumino holding a cup, Rizu's minor arcana) to them as well.
Unfortunately, due to personal circumstances, I probably won't be able to finish compiling everything I've gathered into a cohesive file like "Of Ribbons and Lies", so I leave here the notes I did write down. At the very least, I wanted to be the one who tells everybody about the thing that brought me the greatest joy in my life.
Finally, if there's one thing I could ask for, it'd be for Rizu's birthday to be revealed as the same as mine, February 6th. Not only does it relate to her Tarot aspect, it's also the day the first chapter officially came out.
Cheers to everybody! Enjoy!
Peace out.
Notes:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Biav9sbouzziCM7fqA03gMoYhnwuVy0v/view?usp=sharing https://drive.google.com/file/d/1CgGQw5fU88bXbs6_Tf2JTU_lK5JmPAxC/view?usp=sharing submitted by
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2024.05.21 23:09 THE_BATTS After leaving my school, I realized how messed up it was
So, I live in a small polish conservative village, and went to a public school there. If you ever experienced it, you know how it is. If you're in any way different, everyone will know, and everyone will judge you. And I'm a non-binary pan person. I didn't come out in school back then, but I didn't hide I support LGBTQ+. The day I said it people started yelling I'm mentally ill and crazy. But that wasn't the worst thing that happened.
I'm a very hyperactive person, who often talks about their fixations and I sometimes act⊠kinda extra. Of course, people made fun of that. I was bullied since fifth grade. People threw trash at me, threatened me, called me slurs and beat me up. And the school didn't do A THING, until my mom went there and personally yelled at all of them for allowing this behavior. Also, my school's extremely pathological.
People literally beat each other up in halls, and teachers don't react because, and I quote, "we want kids to learn how to settle their differences on their own". One of the teachers CONSTANTLY ignored my personal space and hugged me, even after my mom told her to stop. Another teacher's dream schools was one where "kids were chained to the desks and you could electrocute them". The only reason he's still teaching is that our principal's afraid of him. The only teacher that reacts is extremely hated by parents, because she "blows up small issues" (one of them being a girl accusing a boy of assaulting her). My mom proposed changing schools but I denied, since my only two friends were there. But last year I snapped.
We had a new maths teacher, and she was a total sweetheart. Bit everyone else, especially one boy, hated her. Mostly because she actually reacted when things happened. They threw trash at her, called her slurs, and even showed her inappropriate symbols. Again, the principal didn't do anythinh except giving us one short talk. One day few boys from my school barricaded the entrance to our class so she couldn't get in. She was clearly annoyed and didn't enjoy it, so I wanted to dismantle it. Everyone yelled at me to not do it, but I did it anyway. The next day everyone (except my two friends and one boy) ganged up on me and started yelling that I'm stupid and they were just playing.
Few days later our principal finally took some action. She told us to tell us how it went, and you know what? The guy's that made the barricade and yelled the most, said they were the ones to dismantle it. Only one guy confessed. He got detention. It was on religion, and everyone started yelling at each other. I was on the verge of a panick attack, and the teacher lighted an incense. After this stuff I decided to change schools. And what happened a month after only supported my decision.
We were in math class, and the guy literally threatened the teacher with a lighter. She yelled at him and told him to hide it immediately. He just put it in his pocket. On break, he and his buddies were alone on the hall. But I was there. They were trying to light stuff on fire. And they managed. A paper decoration. They threw it in the trash, and that's when his younger sister walked in. She put the fire out and ran off. I assumed she told the teacher. I told my mom what happened after school. She immediately called the school. Apparently they had no idea what happened. They didn't do anything for another two weeks. My mom stopped sending me to school, since I was scared for my life. The thing that frustrated me happened few weeks after, when I already changed school.
Apparently the boy got a curator and the cops are involved. And people are blaming ME for everything. They said it's my fault he has a curator and that if not me, the school wouldn't get closed (as if it wasn't falling apart). People call me crazy there. I sometimes still have doubts I did the right thingâŠ
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2024.05.21 22:44 Ok-Log297 Is Severance the retelling of the story of Joshua???
I think a lot of Severance is really explained by how episode 2 opens. I've noticed this before, but kept forgetting to dive into it. But last night I put on episode 2 to fall asleep to, heard it again, and decided to look into it today.
So iMark shows up for work at the beginning of Ep 2 on his first full day as MDR supervisor. He's looking at the list of his new duties, he's doing all the office prep stuff, and the whole time they're playing "Joshua Fit the Battle of Jericho" as the music.
I truly believe there are no mistakes in this show. Everything has a reason.
So as I'm falling asleep last night, all I'm hearing is the music, I'm singing along in my head and thinking about being in second grade and performing this song with my class for one of the pagents, and then thinking, once again, "
why this song?"
Some background: the Battle of Jericho itself, is where they marched around the city once a day for six days, blowing their ram horns (goat reference), and on the 7th day they marched around seven times, blowing their horns until the walls crumbled and they took the city. All fine and well. But... then I started thinking, "ok, but of all the songs they could use as Mark is setting up the office, WHY that song?"
More background: Joshua was the right hand/second behind Moses. He was with Moses when God gave Moses the commandments, but not when Moses wrote them down. Then Joshua was one of the 12 spies Moses sent into Canaan to see if they could settle there, and they were all asked to keep a good tone to the reports. The job of the spies was to map the land, see what the other settlements were doing, figure out if they could be taken over, and report back on the general state of what they had (agriculture, forestry, other resources, etc). When the spies returned, 10 gave mixed or negative reports, with only Joshua and Caleb giving glowing one. Because of this, only Joshua and Caleb were promised spots in the Promised Land. After Moses died, God appointed Joshua as his successor. Joshua then started leading them into Canaan to find places to settle, and the first battle that happened was the Battle of Jericho.
So... what if Petey is our Moses, and Mark is our Joshua? And Because Mark would have been with Petey as they wandered around, they learned what the floor was like, but then Petey wrote and left the "commandments" (aka the Map) when Mark wasn't there.
So now Mark is in charge. And though Petey/Moses is alive on the outside, and giving oMark some direction before he dies (about spying!), iMark is now his full successor inside. He was appointed by the Board/Cobel (the "god" in Severance, who, by the way, iMark never heard the voice of). At this point in time, for the innies, Petey is as good as dead. And, as an aside, there ARE 12 spies, because once they decide to join with O&D, there are 12 of them! (4 in MDR + 8 total in O&D) I double checked in the scene and have a picture.
So, the questions...
- What is the battle of Jericho?
- The next is the first battle of Ai, which they lose. What is it?
- The first battle of Ai is lost because one of them looted JerJericho for their own personal gain, which they weren't supposed to do, and beyraybetrayed the group. So who is the betrayer here? Who gets "paid off" by the company?
- What will be the successful battle for Ai? (Season 2 or 3?)
I just think with all the religious stuff with Kier, Cobel, etc., and the song, "mapping the land" and the innies trying to figure out what's going on and them spying... it's too similar.
To answer some of the questions:
- I believe the Battle of Jericho is the innies breaching the MDR locked wall that gets installed. By the time it's installed, Petey is truly dead, so both oMark and iMark are his successor in the Moses/Joshua parallel. It's only at this point the battle could happen.
The MDE takes place, and Helly picks defiant jazz. That can symbolize the horns being played around the city walls. IIRC, the way iMark is dancing is even like a little marching step move. After Milchick leaves, the innie gang leaves MDR with Graner's keycard. The walls of Jericho have, indeed, come tumbling down! They then go and make a tentative deal to join forces with O&D, creating the full 12 spies.
- The battle at Ai, that they lose the first time, could be them waking up in the final episode and it being thwarted. It's not clear (yet) what/how much they accomplished. TBD
- The reason the first battle at Ai is unsuccessful is because someone betrayed the group at Jericho by looting. So, if this analogy holds, did someone decide to take a payoff of some sort after the first overtime contingency test in episode 9? Maybe to stay out of the breakroom? I'm not pointing fingers, but Milchick was offering a lot of new incentives to Dylan, so I guess we'll have to see?
- If the 1st battle of Ai was the OTC in ep 9, then the second would have to be some sort of repeat. But in Joshua's story, the second time he goes with a small contingency and confronts the leaders, I believe (who think it'll be easy to take them down). Meanwhile, the city is lost and 12,000 perish. So... are they going to wake again but have a much better plan this time???
Some additional thoughts:
âą I can see iIrv, when he puts the egg in the Kier book, being one of the spies being fed up with "the word of God" and broken promises.
âą When iMark takes Helly on her "mental health walk" she eventually agrees to help clean up the map. And when they're with the big O&D group, they talk about trying to find out what else is going on down there, exploring, and mapping. This was the job of the 12 spies that Moses sent into Canaan.
âą Even if you think about Petey, he looks old. Like older than he should, given what we could guess his age is. And he's wandering alone, lost in his own desert (the greenhouses) for awhile.
Also, he loves the robe. After Mark takes him in, we basically only see Petey in that robe from that point forward. It just reminds me of how many different biblical stories we re-enacted in various school plays, and the boys were always in their dads' bathrobes when they played any biblical characters.
We don't know a lot about Petey's real backstory, but when he leaves Mark's house after Cobel breaks in, he goes into one of his fugue states where he can't tell the difference between reality and being on the severed floor. He's holding the map he drew, and thinks he's following that as he walks across the bridge and into town. As though he is wandering, again, in his own mind desert. And Moses wandered, alone, then died on a mountain while looking over the Promised Land. Petey, after wandering alone, walks out of the convenience store, sees Mark in the distance, and collapses. So does Mark represent, in some way, the idea of the promised land (uncovering what Lumen is
really up to on the severed floor) to Petey?
(My whole point there is that Petey really does fit the idea of being the Moses in this dissection of the story, lol)
TL;DR: could Petey be Moses, Mark be Joshua, and the whole show ultimately be about trying to lead the innies and their outies to their promised land (aka the truth of what's really happening on the severed floor)?
Anyway... it seems to fit. And I can't think of another reason to choose that song, out of any song they could have picked, to play during that scene. It was the real transfer of power, when iMark truly became the new leader, taking over even the mundane tasks of leadership in this culture that signaled, to them, that iPetey was gone.
Sure, it could be a stretch. But I'd love to hear anyone's thoughts, especially anyone who might be able to dissect the biblical stories better! đ
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2024.05.21 22:40 Still_Performance_39 An Introduction to Terran Zoology - Chapter 37
Credit to
u/SpacePaladin15 for the NOP Universe.
Hey, I hope everyone's doing well!
Today we return to the namesake of this fic, an actual lesson about animals. This one focuses on Koalas! One of Australia's most recognisable critters. I hope you enjoy.
It's hardly worth mentioning, seeing as I'm an infrequent poster at the best of times, but I'll not have another chapter out for a few weeks due to limited free time and devoting most of my writing time to an upcoming ficnapping. Be sure to look out for that!
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Memory transcription subject: Rysel, Venlil Environmental Researcher Date [Standardised human time]: 8th September 2136 âKoalas!â
Bernardâs energised voice boomed through the air as the classroom's monitor flickered into life, images of this paws lecture topic popping up one after the other until the entire screen was filled with a collage of furry quadrupeds.
Squee! Iâll never get tired of this, itâs all so cool! As usual the sight of something new stirred immediate discussion, hushed murmurs swelling into vibrant discourse in little more than a heartbeat. Most of the class swiftly huddled together into small herds to bounce ideas around while the rest opted to stick to the solace of their own thoughts as they took in the display.
Iâd be quite happy in either situation, though seeing as Sandi had already sunk into deep concentration and Kailo had peeled off to talk with Ennerif and Solenk, it seemed the decision had been made for me on this occasion. Wasting no more time on idle inspection of the people around me, I focused my full attention forward, eager to form first impressions before the lesson began in earnest.
Now then, time to make some educated guesses. What traits does this animal have? I wonder if Iâll get any right this paw? Professional assumptions went paw-in-paw with the lectures, examining and coming up with hypotheses about the specimens was only natural. Recently however, Iâd started to make a little game of it to make things even more interesting than usual. A veritable bonfire of ideas had been set ablaze within me, fueled by my newfound knowledge of Earthen wildlife. Every flash and spark of the flame was a fresh theory I could try to apply to the lectures. It was an invigorating exercise that further stoked my unceasing wonderment.
So far Iâd only done this once during the previous class and, to my disappointment, Iâd not done too well.
I was right when I guessed that chickens were omnivores, but wrong in my assumption that they could fly. And that red thing on their head, the um⊠what was it called? The comb! Yes, the comb. I thought that was to attract mates, but it regulates body heat instead. Itâs fascinating. Oh! Stars damn it Iâm rambling! I bapped my tail against my leg, the soft thud being just enough to snap me back from my runaway thoughts before I went completely wall-eyed. I was becoming more and more accustomed to getting lost in my own head while remaining conscious of the fact; it was happening so frequently now that it was pretty much impossible not to. Now I was able to pull myself back to the world around me without having to rely on someone else shaking me out of it. Most of the time anyway.
Sandi still keeps an eye on me, and Kailo even decided to help out once without being too snide about it. Anyway where was I? Oh yeah, Koalas. Glancing at the furred animals, two things immediately stood out. Firstly, their eyes were in a more central position on their face. And second, all the images showed them being on or close to trees. There were other noteworthy observations of course, such as the Koalaâs prominent nose and rounded features, but they fell to the wayside as I honed in on these points first.
Hmmm⊠ok. I already know to discount the idea that theyâre predators just from eye position, so letâs get that thought out of here. Maybe omnivorous? Herbivore? Agh no, I canât just guess that for the sake of guessing, thatâs the same problem! Hrm, itâs tough making these assumptions now that everything I thought I knew has been turned on its head. Nevermind, Iâll focus on the other thing. All the trees make me think theyâre arboreal, that seems to be a reasonable assumption. I wonder what else they- Clearing his throat, Bernard broke my concentration, his call for attention silencing the murmuring conversation and redirecting everyone's focus to the lecturer's podium.
His gaze panned across the room as he waited for everyone to settle, a beaming smile lighting up his face, âAs ever Iâm delighted to see you all get so into the subject matter from the get go. Iâm looking forward to hearing what you were discussing should you wish to share. For now though, how about we get started, hm?â
A chorus of merry bleats rang out from across the audience, ears and tails flicking happily in agreement. Bernard's grin grew in tandem with the class's fervour, clasping his hands together enthusiastically as he launched into the lesson, âExcellent! Then letâs get started.â
The pictures on screen dissolved away until only one remained, enlarging to cover the entire monitor with the fluffy grey face of a Koala peacefully reclining in the crook of a tree.
âAh, there we are,â Bernardâs baritone timbre drifted through the room as he looked up at the image, his own tone reflecting the relaxed attitude of the animal on screen, âHe looks so comfortable doesnât he? Perfectly at peace with the world, not too surprising considering they sleep almost 20 hours a day. A full paw!â
A wave of beeps and gasps rippled through the herd, punctuated by a single yawn-dressed comment from Rova, âA full paw? Hwuuu⊠jealous.â
Her drowsy remark elicited several whistling giggles from the herd, Bernard's own jovial chortle joining them as he turned to face her, âLate evening Rova?â
I twisted a little in my seat, panning an eye in Rovaâs direction just in time to see her bleary eyes bulge open and her ears shoot up, now intensely aware of the fact she hadnât been as quiet as she thought she had.
Sitting up abruptly, she hastily tapped down errant tufts of wool thatâd flared in surprise as she composed herself, though her nervousness at becoming the centre of the class's attention was still plain for all to hear, âUh- I um⊠achem, a little bit yes, um- âŠsorry. Lokki dragged me out to a movie viewing in the rec centre. It went on pretty late.â
A melodramatic bray from the other side of the room drew everyone's ears away from Rova to the now
aghast Lokki, paw splayed across his chest in faux indignation, â
Dragged you? Well excuse me for trying to broaden your horizons with human movies. Thatâll be the list time I-
âŠAhaaaaâŠâ
Lokkiâs theatrics were cut short by a heavy yawn of his own, a swell of whistling laughter rolling through the herd as vibrant bloom lit up his snout, a sight that elicited a particularly amused bleat from Rova.
Turning away from the duo I looked back at Bernard, pleased to see that he was chuckling along with us. Behaviour like Lokkiâs would never have been tolerated in my school and university days but, in stark contrast, Bernard revelled in it, the liveliness of his students fueling his own bombastic style of teaching. It was a pleasant change of pace having a teacher who let us all be ourselves in class; provided we werenât
too disruptive to the lesson plan.
Speaking of which. His laughter still rumbling through the air, Bernard clapped his hands to pull everyone's focus back to him, âOk, ok, letâs get back to it then shall we? Rova. Lokki. Hopefully the two of you can stay awake long enough until you can grab yourselves a coffee.â
As the class settled down and the last few giggling beeps petered out, Benard pointed a hand to the screen, âSo, the Koala. Letâs start simple shall we? They are herbivorous marsupials native to the eastern and southern coasts of Australia. Easily recognised the world over, they are a well known and beloved symbol of their homeland, along with other animals such as the Kangaroo and the Emu. The former of which you might remember from one of our earlier lectures.â
Indeed I did remember, along with how angry Bernard had gotten after some speh-head had derided the Yotul after he explained how he held specific disdain for such attitudes.
Uuuggghh⊠I never want to see him angry again. So chilling. I shook my ears in an effort to dismiss the unpleasant memory, panning my eyes back to the monitor to try and distract myself by inspecting the Koalaâs physical appearance once more. Thankfully, by some Star's blessed intervention, Bernard had the exact same idea.
âKoalaâs are rather squat in stature, ranging around sixty to eighty-five centimetres in length and weighing little more than fifteen to sixteen kilograms at their full size. As you can see, the fur of this fellow before you is a lovely silvery grey, but their fur can also sport a chocolaty brown hue as well. Arguably the most distinctive part of their appearance is their head, being rather large for their body size and having rounded ears, a large nose, and a pair of small eyes. These are often brown but variations do occur.â
It didnât slip past my notice that Bernard didnât bother to point out that the Koalaâs eyes were forward facing. I didnât think heâd simply forgotten, so perhaps he just felt it wasnât necessary given that heâd already stated it was herbivorous. Either way, no one stuck up a paw or tail to question him.
âNow this will hardly be surprising considering how long they sleep, but Koalaâs are largely sedentary and itâs rather easy to see why when you have a look into the contents of their diet.â
With the press of a button the Koala on screen was replaced by images of vibrant green vegetation. Soaring trees and flowering shrubbery weaved together across landscape framed pictures pulled admiring trills from the herd, the diversity of the plant life being shown standing as a reminder that it wasnât only animal life that flourished on Earth.
After giving everyone the chance to take in the picturesque scenes, Bernard casually hammered that point home, âThis is eucalyptus or, more accurately, a choice selection of more than 700 plants belonging to the eucalyptus genus, though the Koala itself favours 30 of them in particular.â
700!? Stars⊠Realising that my ears had drooped in my momentary awe, I twisted them back to tune into the lesson, only for them to splay out in shock at the next words to come out of Bernard's mouth.
âThe leaves of these plants are the primary food source of the Koala and there are a couple things worth mentioning when talking about these plants. For starters they do not have much nutritional or caloric value, leading to the Koalaâs low-energy lifestyle. Additionally, they contain toxic compounds.â
A shiver instantly ran through the herd, ears flicking rapidly in confusion and alarm followed by a few quizzical whispers. It didnât take long for someone to decide to give a proper voice to the murmuring.
âExcuse me Doctor. Did we hear that right? Their diet is made up of toxic flora?â Vlekâs grumbling incredulity cut through the herd's mutterings with ease. Until Kailoâs recent change of heart, the fifty something rotation old blonde Venlil had been a close second in terms of scepticism. Mercifully his rebuttals had always been relevant questions as opposed to ranting diatribes, so he at least remained on topic if nothing else.
Bernard nodded in confirmation, smiling back at Vlek while absentmindedly twirling the end of his moustache, âYou heard me right, they do indeed consume plants that are toxic. Just not to
them.â
Any worry or uncertainty still clinging to the herd was swept away by the provision of the glaringly obvious answer, leaving me chuckling inwardly at the oversight.
Ah of course! The plant might be poisonous but theyâll have evolved to deal with that. Stars⊠Iâm so used to expecting the unexpected with Earth that I didnât even consider the simplest solution. âI see, thank you Doctor,â Vlek replied, a tinge of interest still audible in his tone, âI assume theyâve developed some adaptation to become immune to the harmful effects?â
The question immediately evoked a smirk from our teacher, but he hurriedly suppressed it while bobbing his head, âThey have indeed. There are several factors that aid in their digestion of eucalyptus leaves without succumbing to the plant's baleful properties. The first is a part of the intestinal tract called the cecum. It contains a microbiome that allows the Koala to digest the eucalyptus. Coupled with this is an enzyme in the Koalaâs liver that helps them break down the toxins. They are also capable of sniffing out the plants with the least amount of toxins, ensuring that they ingest as little as possible.â
Pausing for a breath Bernard looked back at the screen before turning to face us, another grin curling at the edges of his mouth as he continued with his explanation, âThis is mostly for adult Koalaâs, because while their young also possess these same adaptations, they donât just go straight to munching through foliage right after being born. No, they need a little help making that jump and getting a stomach full of all that good gut bacteria. Itâs nothing bad, but those of a sensitive stomach may wish to prepare themselves for this next part.â
Bernardâs assurances did little to assuage the concern that his warning had foisted upon us. Having been exposed to so much of the weirdness Earth had to offer everyone always ended up on edge whenever Bernard gave advice like this, even if he did say it in jest.
What strange nonsense thing do Koala pups do then? Judging by the way heâs acting it probably isnât something as simple as drinking milk from the mother. Hmmm⊠âSo,â Bernard began, snapping us from our pensive stupor, âYoung Koalaâs, known as joeys, have a gestation period of thirty-five days on average, which is approximately forty-two paws. Once born they travel from the birth canal to a pouch in their mother so that they can continue to develop and grow. In the pouch the joey finds and latches onto one of two teats and these provide the newborn with a steady stream of nourishing milk. It spends the next six to seven months growing in the pouch, its eyes, ears, and fur all developing as time goes on.â
Okay, interesting. But this is exactly how I thought itâd go. Whatâs different? The unexpected normalcy of the Koalaâs birth and growth cycle had calmed everyone's nerves, only to be replaced with an air of suspicion as we waited with rapt attention for Bernard to drop the other claw and upend our expectations like he always did.
Not wanting to keep us in further suspense he forged ahead, the tempo of his voice picking up as the smile started to crease his face once more, âNow to make the switch from milk to eucalyptus, the mother also feeds the joey a substance called pap. It comes from the cecum I mentioned earlier, and contains all the gut bacteria required to help the young Koala in making the switch to eucalyptus.â
He stopped and looked around, searching us for a reaction to what I felt was a rather bland statement of fact. What was it he was saying without actually saying? Koala pups drink milk to mature and then include this pap substance so that they can start eating plants. I donât see what-
The cecum is part of the intestine. I blinked.
I blinked again, the intrusive interruption scouring my brain clean of any other thought bar the one itâd just implanted itself in the forefront of my mind.
Oh stars. They- âThey eat their own poop!?â
The shocked bleat shattered the peace of the room to reveal that most if not all of us had come to the same tail curling conclusion. As the hall filled with unrestrained vocalisations of disgust, an âUghâ over here and a âBleghâ over there, Bernardâs own bellowing laughter joined the throng of voices.
â
Ha! Everytime!
Each and every time. Clearly it doesnât matter if my students are Human or Venlil. Whenever someone learns about the Koalaâs dietary development the reaction is the same!â
Pleased with himself beyond reason, Bernard chuckled away while the rest of us grappled with this ghastly reality. While there were plenty of animals that feasted on things that ranged from simply unappealing all the way to the stomach churningly grotesque, Iâd never heard of an animal that actively consumed the excrement of its own species.
Benefits aside, the prospect of having to do that to survive to adulthood sent a shiver of revulsion down my spine.
Ewww⊠Stars, I hope I forget this feeling by 2nd meal. Theyâre serving sturen and magamroot stew later. I was really looking forward to it. With the herds mood beginning to temper Bernard tapped the podiums controls, removing the verdant collage of eucalyptus to display several similar yet distinct environments, still chortling merrily to himself in the process, âOk then, with that little foray into their diet complete, why donât we look at their habitat in more detail? As you might imagine given their diet and arboreal nature, Koalaâs live in forested regions, and can be found in tropical and temperate zones. About a century ago they were classed as a vulnerable species, however efforts were made to turn this around and increase their numbers. Sadly the largest factor in their decline was human activity, as the fertile lands that gave rise to their bountiful forests were coveted farm land for our settlements.â
It was strange to hear Bernard so matter of factly admit to humanity's negative impacts on other species. Heâd alluded to such things in the past but always with an air of caution, carefully pawing the line between honestly answering a question while not painting humanity as uncaring and destructive. AKA, the âpredatorsâ weâd all initially expected them to be.
Perhaps his comfort in making such admissions was a reflection of the class's comfort with him, for no one so much as batted an ear. Even Kailo, who I wouldâve expected to jump at the chance to use this as a prime example of predatory danger, only flicked an ear in stern yet silent concern.
A cough from Bernard drew my attention back, a new picture on screen that showed a forest from a bird's-eye view. Drawn across the image were around a dozen ringed areas, some bordering one another while others overlapped to some degree. It took me a moment, but I soon recognised that what I was looking at was a map, the rings representing what I assumed to be territories. And it didnât take much effort to guess who each one belonged to.
âFrom habitats we move onto behaviours, so letâs start with territories. Koalaâs are solitary animals. Yes, despite being herbivores. Considering theyâre only awake for roughly four hours of the day I can hardly blame them. Lots to do and not a lot of time to do it. Jokes aside, once they mature they are quite independent, carving out a little slice of land for themselves, as displayed in this example, called a Home Range. That is not to say they go it alone and leave everything else behind however. Rather, as shown in the map behind me, they live in their own space while still being part of a larger social group.â
With another press of his pad the picture was updated to show one of two symbols in each segment, along with a key to the side of the map displayed in helpful Venlang. A quick glance told me that the symbols were representing whether the territory belonged to a male or female of the species.
âAs you can see there is quite a bit of overlap between different Koalaâs territories. It is in these areas that most of the socialising takes place between neighbours. The trees in these locations represent the few areas where intrusion across territories is acceptable for the sake of social interaction. Outside of that the Koalaâs stick to their own territories for the most part, with the exceptions of Koalaâs who are passing through, attempting to become part of the social group themselves, or dominant males who sometimes go off into another Koalaâs range. But how do they know where one range begins and another range ends you might ask? Well, this brings us onto the next part of the lecture. How do Koalaâs communicate?â
Wiping away the map from the monitor, Bernard loaded up a video of a Koala sitting in a tree and pressed play. Head held high, the Koalaâs body shook as it belted out a reverberating call into the wilderness that could only be described as a garbled combination of a car engine failing to turn over mixed with the hiccups of someone with a particularly sore throat.
Thatâs how they sound? Oof that must be rough on the lungs. I clearly wasnât the only one to share such a thought, because I clocked Sandi tracing a paw along her neck as the noise went on, ears fluttering in discomfort at the noise.
Bernard himself cleared his own throat as the video came to an end, minimising it and replacing it with another image of a tree with a Koala rubbing up against the bark, âI think theyâve got me beat on whoâs got the deeper voice!â
His joke garnered several amused beeps, a rare reaction that caused a beaming smile to shine across his face at lighting speed, âOh youâre too kind. Iâll be here all week. Now where were we? Oh yes! Communication. As youâve just heard, Koalaâs are capable of loud low pitched bellows that can carry over vast distances. These express everything from âHello Iâm over hereâ to âThis is my turf, stay awayâ. Bellowing is more common in the males than the females, opting for shouting matches as opposed to outright fights when it comes to asserting dominance. Other vocal expressions include grunts, wails, and snarls if theyâre acting particularly angsty. Mother and joey pairs also communicate through gentle clicking, squeaking, and murmuring sounds. And thereâs one more thing worth mentioning. Something they have in common with Humans and Venlil when it comes to emoting.â
Really? They do something we do? Curious, I pressed myself against the desk, straining as close as I could to once more scrutinise the Koalaâs features. Not a lot stood out to me at first, the grey marsupial not sharing many similarities with a Venlil that I could identify.
Ok think. We show emotion with our ears, tails, and our wool on occasion. They donât have tails so itâs obviously not that. Wool standing on end is more a reaction than a conscious expression. So it must be the ears then. To my quiet satisfaction, my hunch was soon validated by Bernard, âAs well as their vocalisations, Koalaâs are very emotive through their facial features. Just like humans, they use their mouths and lips to show how they feel, but these tend more towards the aggressive side of the scale than what you might see on a human. Regarding yourselves however, Koalaâs utilise their ears in tandem with their mouth movements when showing strong emotion.â
I was delighted to hear that my assumption was correct, a little happy flick twisting out through my tail and bapping against my chair with a muted thump against the plastic.
Hehe yes! Got one right! âNow then, we are getting close to lunchtime so Iâll finish this segment off with something I think youâll find particularly interesting. Diplomacy.â
Perplexed mutterings followed in the wake of the bizarre inclusion to the lecture, my own thoughts being dominated by bewilderment as I tried and failed to make sense of how the two could possibly be related.
Why would Koalaâs, or any animal for that matter, be linked to diplomacy? Hmmm... I could understand dispatching exterminators to deal with a predator issue as a show of goodwill, that at least includes animals, but Humans arenât like that so I think I can safely scratch that off the list. Maybe the humans who live in that region benefited from Koalaâs in some way. Could they have gotten something from them? But what? Hopefully not what the pups get from their mothers. Agh no! Begone awful intrusive thoughts. Blegh! I donât need that in my head. As I wrestled with the short-lived revulsion inflicted upon me by my Star's damned subconscious, Bernard placed a new image on screen, one that was decidedly different from all that had preceded it.
On screen were more than a couple dozen pictures of humans. Some were pictured alone while others congregated in large groups while cameras surrounded them from all angles. Across all the images, I noted two common themes. First of all, a solid majority of the humans were wearing formal wear similar to what Iâd seen worn by UN representatives on TV. If the gaggle of journalists in the background of the photos didnât already confirm my suspicions, then it was this similarity which made me conclude they were all people of some importance. Likely politicians judging from context clues.
Secondly, each of the individuals was interacting with a Koala in some form. Some cradled one against their chests while others were feeding it eucalyptus leaves or pellets of some kind. One of the assumed politicians had become an impromptu bed for a snoozing bundle of fur, a gleeful smile spread across their face as they lovingly gazed down at the sleeping Koala in their lap.
As I continued to stare at the assorted photos something clicked into place, a sudden spark flickering into life. A burgeoning light of comprehension that flared and swelled with every wide-eyed breath I took. Some things still escaped me, things I hoped would soon be explained, but in staring at all of the humans happy smiling faces, I was struck with an instant of pure understanding.
If someone, say a Nevok for instance, offered to gift me a creature that was common to them but which might exotic and breathtaking to a Venlil, how could my feelings not be swayed? How could I walk away from that encounter and not have grown closer to them as a result?
âKoala diplomacy,â Bernard waved his hand up at the monitor, a slight reverence in his tone, âMy favourite kind of soft power diplomacy. Where political leaders take photo ops with Koalaâs and, on occasion, the Australian government loans Koalaâs to other nations for a time to bolster positive relations. It certainly helps that Koalaâs are a beloved animal worldwide, drawing large crowds and revenue for countries fortunate enough to host the adorable critters.â
The truly alien concept predictably sparked instant discussion in the herd, two polar opposite schools of thought swiftly cementing themselves as the most popular opinions. Simultaneously, I heard one voice trill excitedly while another scoffed at what they clearly saw as a ridiculous and offensive notion.
â
Squee! Thatâd be so cool! Iâd love to get the chance to see a Liri from Coila. Remember the Rainbow Boa? Think of that shimmering effect and colour but put it on a bird!
Ah! Iâve only heard their song on video. Itâd be a treat to hear it in person!â
Ooo! Iâve read about them! Iâd love to get up close to one. â
Loaning. As if animals are property to be hoarded and traded?
Pugh! Another predatory trait the humans donât want to acknowledge for what it is.â
Ugh, typical. Jump right to the worst possible option. However, despite my dismissal of their disparaging fumings, an uncomfortable thought pressed upon my mind. While it was plain to see how much humans cared for the Koala, it didnât change the fact that humans did keep animals as property just as the scornful herd member had said.
This begged a rather important, disquieting question. Aside from keeping some animals as cattle, a stomach tightening minefield I had no desire to step a claw onto right now, how else did humans
keep other creatures. And how did they treat them?
Before I was fully conscious of doing it my paw was in the air, the question primed on my tongue.
Noticing my elevated paw Bernard pointed at me, smiling warmly, âYes Rysel? Whatâs on your mind?â
Sorry Bernard. I hope this oneâs not too awkward for you to answer. Flicking my ear in appreciation, and waiting for everyone to settle enough so that I could be heard, I voiced my concerns as neutrally as possible, âThank you Doctor. I uh, just had a thought. We know that humans keep certain animals forâŠ
particular reasons, and we know why. From how youâve spoken about Koalaâs I think it's fair to say that the same cannot be said for them. However, this makes me wonder, what other reasons do humans have for keeping animals and how do you treat them?â
A flash of surprise blinked across Bernard's eyes but vanished so quickly that it felt like Iâd imagined it. Had he not expected such a question? Maybe he was just shocked that itâd been me whoâd ended up asking it?
Stars, am I so predictable that no one expects me to ask difficult questions? Unfortunately, a quick glance at my deskmates seemed to prove that to be the case, as both Sandi and Kailo were looking at me with differing degrees of astonishment flapping in their ears.
Well speh. âA very good point Rysel, certainly one thatâs worth raising. Yet another example of you all anticipating what I have to say before I can bring it up myself.â Bernard tapped the podium, switching off the monitor before returning his focus to me, âWe wonât be needing that. Iâve nothing prepared that I can show you and weâre heading to lunch in a few minutes anyway. Still, thatâs plenty of time to give you a bit of an answer.â
A bit? What does he mean just a bit? Made even more curious by Bernard's preempted admission that he wasnât going to fully answer my query, I dialled both my ears on him, fixing him with an inquisitive stare as he started to explain with a tone that was noticeably more nonchalant than any of his previous explanations.
âSo, animals in captivity for reasons other than what you already know. Honestly I would love to delve into other reasons regarding why we keep animals. However, I have a lesson plan in the works that I hope to share with you all in the not too distant future. Some of it touches upon this very topic and Iâd quite like to bundle it all together. That said, I can tell you how animals in captivity are treated. In short, the answer is very well. There are a mountain of laws both on private and public interests that govern the standards and ethical treatment of animals, and breaches of these laws are quite severe even for relatively minor infractions.â
While Iâd be lying if I said I wasnât disappointed by the vague answer to what was really the bulk of my question, I was at least satisfied by Bernardâs assurances that animals in captivity, such as the Koala, were well looked after. Considering the barely subdued grumbling coming from some corners of the audience it was clear that several of the herd didnât believe Bernard outright, but I trusted him to be honest. Additionally, the mention of an upcoming lecture focused on humans keeping animals caused quite the buzz.
I felt a mix of excitement and trepidation at exploring the topic further. Heâd pretty much confirmed we wouldnât be talking about cattle farms, for which I was relieved, but that still left a huge amount of uncertainty in what was to come.
Humans keeping animals as cattle was a forgone conclusion. As horrifying as that reality was, it was one I could understand from a detached and strictly clinical point of view. Being predators they ate meat and therefore they kept cattle. But the concept of keeping animals for any other reason baffled me.
What could be the purpose? The diplomacy thing makes sense now that I have context, but what other reasons could they have. The class's discussions were interrupted by the recognisable ring of the break bell, the shift in attention eliciting a change in conversation from confused hypotheses to peppy conversation on how everyone was planning to spend their break and what they had in mind for 2nd meal.
âWell I can see everyoneâs excited for lunch, and who am I to disappoint,â chuckling Bernard waved us all up from our seats, pocketing his pad from the podium and heading to open the classroom door for us, âEnjoy your break, get a good rest along with a hearty meal, and Iâll see you all back here at the usual time.â
As everyone else filed out I stayed behind, waving at Sandi and Kailo as they left, and pawing over to Bernard once he and I were the only ones left in the room.
Ears folded down and with an apologetic tinge in my voice I greeted him as I sidled up to him, âHey Bernard, I uh⊠sorry if that last question was unexpected.â
Chortling in reply, Bernard waved a hand through the air in a sign Iâd come to understand meant ânot a problemâ.
âNo need to apologise Rysel. It was a good question and most certainly not a problem.â
Heh, called it. I sighed, allowing tension I didnât realise Iâd been holding to relax itself from my shoulders, âPhew, thatâs a relief. Iâm glad. Iâm curious to hear what this new lesson is youâve got in store for us by the way.â
Bernard wagged a finger at me, throwing up his eyebrows in mock amazement, âOh are you now? Well Iâm afraid youâll have to remain curious for the time being. Itâs going to be quite the surprise if all goes to plan. ButâŠâ
He trailed off, glancing at me before looking to the door like he was making sure no one else was around.
Wait, is he going to tell me? Oh please yes let me know now! Stopping myself from jumping on the spot in excited anticipation, and trying my damndest to stop my tail from wagging in equal measure, I stared up at Bernard as he stewed in his thoughts before turning back to face me.
âI canât tell you the specifics, but Iâm working with Alejandro and Tolim to get something together. A trip thatâs not a trip as it were. And when it happens, Iâm going to need a few of the more
accepting members of the class to lend me a hand. Iâm hoping you and a couple others will be able to help with that?â
A trip thatâs not a trip? What does that mean? Agh who cares about that right now! Bernardâs relying on me to help out! Still trying not to keep myself from bouncing around with pup like glee I swished my tail and nodded my head in joint agreement, happy to help with whatever Bernard had in store for us, âOf course! Anything you need Iâll be there to lend a paw. You can count on me!â
A broad warm smile lit up Bernard's face, a hand patting me on the shoulder in appreciation, âThank you Rysel. I knew I could rely on you but it still warms my heart to hear it. And, as thanks for this and for the many times youâve shown your support, the surprise includes a little something special I think youâd appreciate the most.â
If my earlier enthusiasm had been at a nine, then the implication of a supposed gift sent it rocketing all the way to a hundred in a heartbeat.
âWaitâŠ
WHAT!? What do you mean? What are you doing?â
As impossible as it seemed, Bernard's grin grew even wider as I almost lost myself in wool shaking exhilaration, âCall it my own form of Koala diplomacy. But Iâm afraid thatâs all I can say for now. Wouldnât want to ruin the surprise even for you!â
âOh you ass!â Whistling jovially I bapped my tail against Bernardâs leg in fake indignation, evoking a barking bellowing laugh from the man himself.
Still laughing, the two of us departed the class and made for the canteen, my rumbling stomach leading me on while my mind spun with fantastical thoughts as to what Bernard had prepared for us.
And what specifically he had in store for me.
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2024.05.21 22:25 Silver_liver The Ashtapadan Chapter 21. Seeing TWO handsome men at the lecture? Gentry's not learning anything today!
chapters 1&2 chapter 3 chapter 4 chapter 5 chapter 6 chapter 7 chapter 8 chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Chapter 13 Chapter 14 Chapter 15 Chapter 16 Chapter 17 Chapter 18 Chapter 19 Chapter 20 The lecture was supposed to be on Rationality 101, apparently not for Newcomers only. Serene was there to have her back but G was having a hard time focusing.
The boring black uniform more fitting for a hotel receptionist defaced the godlike beauty standing in front of a huge screen. Gentry couldnât believe her eyes: this was the man she had her hands on a little while ago?
No, it couldnât be.
It had been just an avatar, too perfect in its unblemished visage, too pure for this world. Yet the man whose face she remembered as if it was etched on the back of her eyelids, who sheâd been constantly thinking about, who her hands itched to snatch, was standing right there, in the flesh.
Back in the dreamy simulated world she caught herself thinking that a trim waist like this couldnât anatomically work on a human, yet here he was: a towering spread of fit shoulders perfectly balanced above the flexible whip of his midsection. The light-grey eyes that betrayed every movement of his pupils were as real as the ones that reflected the mock moon during her test. Below them lay the sharp slope of the cheekbones one could cut themselves on.
The only thing a bit different, apart from the outfit choice, was the young godâs hair. In the simulation, it was flowing and probably too long to be practical. This personâs mane was much shorter and fell down his neck in a neat ponytail, tastefully tamed with a single hairpin.
She had to get her hands on this treasure.
He was making last minute preparations for the lecture, looking through the papers on the desk, dark strands framing his face, light grey eyes sharp in careful concentration.
Professor Q, huh.
He said this was his name, and so did the note on the lecture hall door.
She was sure it was the man who had melted in her arms making the most delicious sounds a male throat could produce.
Had he recognised her?
Unlikely.
At the time of the simulation session, she didnât have a camera that could pick up her facial features but just to be on the safe side, she decided to go by âGâ in his class. There were bound to be lots of people with a name starting with a G, right? What would be the odds it was this particular newcomer that Q had tested that would end up in his class?
The man finally lifted his eyes at the audience and a gentle smile momentarily graced his features before disappearing as if he didnât see someone heâd expected to.
The holoboard on the wall behind him obediently lit up following his nonchalant gesture. Gentry found it annoying that one needed a pair of special glasses to see all the augmented reality stuff and really navigate the city but again, with Sereenâs help she had more or less gotten used to it in the couple of days she had to deal with the necessities like settling down, getting food and finding her way around Ashtapada.
Still, could they use a piece of chalk or, at least, a marker to write on the board? No need to show off your Fully Automated Luxury Space Communism tech just to write a couple of notes on the board!
On second thought, high-tech-crazy or not, if this city brought up men like this one, she would definitely do her best to stay here to⊠reap the benefits!
They took a desk next to a huge clear floor-to-ceiling window that overlooked the winter garden.
âProfessor Q seems a little distracted today,â Sereen said, swiftly tapping a couple of buttons on Gâs wrist to show her how to confirm that she was attending the lecture. âHeâs usually much more chatty and friendly. I wonder what got into him.â
âIs he?â Gentry responded with an artificial air of indifference. âI just hope heâs more open to a discussion than that Poe guy.â
âHe is! And Professor Poe isnât that bad,â Sereen reprimanded before chuckling a little â since his little secret became known to students, he became known as Holopoe. âJust wait and see, itâs gonna be a blast. Qâs lectures are always very engaging.â
It proved to be utter bullshit.
After fiddling with the symbols on the interactive screen for ten minutes into the class, students getting more and more agitated behind his back, the lecturer seemed to give up. Turning back to the audience, he absentmindedly nodded to a couple of people in the lecture hall and sighed with a painfully fake smile.
âFor todayâs class, we are going to need to read a certain extract from a book,â he said, tone apologetic for some reason, but it solidified Gâs conviction that she already knew this person. âIâve just sent it to each of your wristcomms. Weâll have some quiet time and read it by ourselves, alright?â
âReading from the comm?â Sereen mumbled to herself. âCouldnât he just print them out?â
The rest of the studentsâ grumbles showed that they shared her disappointment. Q could only hopelessly smile again before returning to his work on the board.
Reading from the little semi-transparent screens was indeed torture. Quickly giving up on trying to awkwardly use gestures for scrolling through the text, she looked out of the window to entertain herself with the garden outside. From the modest height they were sitting at, the people below were quite discernible, partly hidden by the greenery, spread here and there in small groups and pairs. Gentry longed to be there, too. What was the use of being here with the most attractive person in the whole world if the only thing she could see was his back?
Well, the back didnât look half bad, if she was honest, and what was below also pleased the eye.
But still. It would soon bore even the most easily entertained.
Her gaze fell to a small clearing where a lone male figure was sitting, writing something in a notebook. By the looks of it, the notebook was a real paper-made thing without the bells and whistles usual for Ashtapada. The next thing G noticed was a pair of slender legs, barefoot, stretched to dip the toes into the clear water of the artificial stream.
God bless the urban designers of this place!
The figure lifted the head and in an inconceivably graceful motion, swung the long blond bangs away from the face.
G straightened her back. Was it... Ok, maybe Q was the most handsome man sheâd seen in her life but this... This was the younger boy sheâd noticed a couple of days back, the one in a plaid skirt, shamelessly flirting with everyone within reach. Today, he wasnât wearing one but the blue jeans hugging his thighs, rolled up almost to the knees, presented a picture just as tantalizing. Even with the hair was a completely different colour, even though the half-up, half-down style kept his face hidden, she was absolutely certain it was the same person.
Just you wait, young beauty, as soon as this âlectureâ was over, your princess in shining armour was coming to pick you up!
Suddenly snapping out of the dull weariness, she turned on the auglasses S helped her obtain earlier and tapped away on her comm screen.
What a chance to give the local text sharing feature a go!
âThe garden is pretty, but with a blossom like you, it is truly breathtaking. I wonder if anyone has picked this sweet flower or if anyone dares to,â she typed a cheesy note and folded the message into a neat 3D figurine of an origami paper crane with her fingers in the air.
Was S watching? Screw it, even if she was, she couldnât read the message with her glasses off, right?
Carefully aiming the device at the lone figure, she launched the crane downwards, and it fluttered like a weightless butterfly in spirals, through the glass and right into the young manâs lap, not disturbing the notebook pages. He started at first at the intrusion but then turned his own glasses on and unfolded the message. A shy smile appeared on his plump lips, and he looked flattered, turning his head around to see if the sender was in sight. Catching no one, he typed something below the initial message and deftly folded it back into a crane that, to Gâs surprise, flew directly at her, in uneven spirals along the wall. The man traced it with a smile, propping himself back on his arms, his whole slim body and face on full display now.
God, was he good-looking.
Easily passing the physical border of the glass again, the crane crashed into Gentryâs wristcomm, dutifully delivering the message and betraying her tactical position at the same time. An amused kind of surprise showed on the young manâs face and he waved at her to show that she had been exposed. She waved back, trying to look nonchalant but probably failing miserably.
Very smooth, G, way to go.
The message read, âIs a flower only good for looking at? Not this one.â
Oooh, this boy was playing with fire!
âHey, G,â Sereen nudged. âHave you finished reading?â
âMm? Oh, yeah.â Gentry lied easily. She had skimmed the first couple of paragraphs and was sure sheâd be able to come up with something if asked.
âDone everybody?â the deep gentle voice called from the holoboard and Gâs attention snapped back to the dignified face.
The class murmured affirmatively.
âIâm sorry todayâs lecture isnât as fun as usual,â he admitted. âI must say Iâm still unsure how to approach such complex topic as this one. But with your help, I hope weâll figure it out.â
Everyone seemed to perk up.
âYou just read an extract on paradoxes,â Q went on. âAnd you might be wondering why we are raising a philosophical topic on a rational thinking course.â
âThere you go,â Sereen whispered. âHeâs back to normal!â
G humphed. This did seem interesting. Was it a good idea to read the extract after all?
Q continued, âIn the text, you might have encountered the definition of a paradox. Would anyone explain it with their own words?â
A raised hand and the lecturerâs nod brought some courageous soul to their feet.
âItâs when you start with the correct premises, use consistent logic but wind up with an impossible conclusion,â they said. âThere are three types: falsidical, veridical and antimony-type, which are...â
âCorrect,â Q smiled and nodded the person back down. It was a smile worth starting a thousand wars over.
âNow thereâs a reason why I asked you to read about them. Why do you think people have been fascinated with paradoxes for such a long time?â
S raised her hand and received a kind invitation.
âI might be wrong,â she said. âBut it seems that they point at the limitations of our thinking, things that seem rational but in fact arenât. We feel that with our all-conquering logic we can solve any puzzle but itâs not always the case. Right?â
âThis is very insightful,â the teacher confirmed. âIt is believed by many that whatâs rational is true and therefore what rationality cannot explain must be false.â
âI definitely know someone who would die on that hill,â Gentry grumbled under her breath.
âIâm sorry?â Q asked. âIs there something you wanted to add... sorry, I donât know your name?â
Still half mad with professor Poe, Gentry stood up. âItâs G, Iâm a Newcomer. I was saying how a human mind can fool itself into thinking it knows what it looks at as long as it makes sense. But in reality, itâs not there, like the sky.â
That was the only thing she remembered from that last lecture! She felt the tips of her ears heat up but the kind and considering look on Qâs face showed her gamble paid off.
âThese are very insightful observations, G, why donât we try exploring them together?â â he waived her to sit down and turned back to the class â âFive minutes to discuss how paradoxes might reveal the weaknesses of rational thinking. Send your answers to the board when youâre done.â
âWhoa, daring as usual,â Sereen smiled. âI knew youâd enjoy his class.â
âNow, consider these two questions,â Q said to another student who stood up at his hand wave. âIf an unstoppable force meets an indestructible object, what is going to happen?â
The person seemed to contemplate it for a while and the teacher didnât rush him.
âIsnât it one of those which are impossible to solve because the existence of the one automatically disproves the existence of the other?â
Q nodded, âCorrect. The second one about the barber in a small town is of the same sort. Sereen?â
S stood up too, âThe one that shaves all and only men that donât shave themselves?â
âYes,â he confirmed. âAt first, a premise like this seems perfectly reasonable, doesnât it?â
âIt does,â S responded, somewhat rashly. âBut itâs clear that a barber like this cannot exist.â
âWait, really?â Gentry whispered as Q nodded in satisfaction and urged her friend to go on.
âYes, if we ask ourselves if this barber shaves himself. If he doesnât, then he is part of the group which he does shave that do not shave themselves, but if he is in this group, then he does shave himself which makes it impossible for him to be this barber by definition.â
While the rest of the class was catching up with the logic, Qâs smile got only wider, more inviting.
âWhat does it tell us about the nature of the premise then?â he asked.
âThat although it seems that it sounds logical on the surface, it is in fact nonsense and we donât even need to hear the rest of the riddle to discard it completely,â S concluded.
The man chuckled.
âWell, I wouldnât be that brash, to be honest, but on balance, youâre right,â he said. âIf you stay after the lecture, I might recommend a couple of books on the topic. Your Newcomer friend is welcome to stay, too.â
G put up the best of the aloof fronts, âIâd be happy to, Professor.â
âQ is fine,â he smiled again and went on addressing the rest of the class that immediately exploded into a heated discussion.
***
âBasically, what I think weâre supposed to learn from this,â S concluded after a while, standing up so that everyone could hear her. âIs that before applying rationality, we have to make sure that all the premises we are dealing with are in fact realistic. Otherwise, there is no way rational thinking will help us.â
âExcellently put, as always,â Q applauded. âIâd love to see if everyone agrees or has something else to add to the discussion but our time is up. Feel free to write me a letter with your reflections on the topic.â
As interesting as the class was, the urge to leave the premises as soon as the teacher dismissed everyone seemed to be universal and applicable even to the Ashtapadans.
âI have to go now,â Sereen said. âText you later, ok?â And with a reciprocal nod to Q, disappeared in the doors, joining the rest of the students.
Sadly, she couldnât recall what they were talking about after the lecture, nor what titles Professor recommended for some home reading. She just hoped she didnât make a fool of herself.
What Gentry did remember though was that after Q left as well and she came up to the panoramic window, Sereen and the mysterious flower boy were leaving the garden together. And it was hard not to notice that her new friend took off her wristcomm before they took off, and hid it in the tall grass.
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2024.05.21 21:37 Ltnumbnutsthesecond Why don't I feel happy now that I no longer have school soon now that I'm graduating.
As a forward, I get some folks here don't miss school
But for me, this feels... Weird almost like a "be careful what you wish for" moment.
I always disliked getting up early, doin work, some bossy teachers, subpar food. I was always like "man I can't wait for it all to end"
Now it's practically here, in a small baseball field length away.
I feel sad that I'd never experience school to end
I've been used to school for 13 years and I can't imagine life without it
No more seeing friends, no more seeib teachers, no more projects, no more your old folks talking about your grades, no more movie parties
Maybe I don't miss school literally but symbolically, as if me leaving school is a sign of me leaving a chapter, a era in my life.
I got what I wanted, and I hate it.
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2024.05.21 21:22 Arbrand We Joined a Cult as a Joke [Part 1]
I sat in our dark bedroom, the computer screen glaring with a harsh, white light. A banner flashed before my eyes: âSeek wisdom by understanding yourself.â
âChloe, check this out,â I called over my shoulder to my girlfriend playing The Sims on her laptop.
She glanced up, her brow furrowing in confusion before giving me a bemused look. âWhat the hell are you looking at?â she asked.
âItâs some cult,â I replied, unable to hide my fascination. âI fell down a rabbit hole and found this local place downtown. It's a derivative of Aleister Crowley and Golden Dawn bullshit.â I pointed to the Google Street View image of a dilapidated storefront in an ethnic shopping center.
She smirked, a hint of amusement in her eyes. âI never pegged you as the religious type.â
âCheck this out,â I continued, clicking through the site. âThey have some photos.â
We spent some time going through the albums celebrating various solstices. Most were taken in an odd room with black and white checkered floors, adorned with Egyptian pseudo-artifacts, bathed in the glow of red and purple lights that transformed the scene into a surreal dreamscape.
The people certainly had an alternative vibe. Tattoos were plentiful, but other than that they looked like they came from all different walks of life. Many of them looked like they had their fair share of bullying in high school - no shortage of that. But most of them looked relatively normal aside from the occasional piercing.
One photograph in particular caught my eye. A woman, sitting in a bright red room, sat on an altar, holding a staff in her right hand, wearing nothing. A man was kneeled before her, his arms tied behind him, rope anchored to the ceiling. They were sliding a knife down his back, a small trickle of blood dripping to the floor.
âDamn,â Chloe started. âSheâs butt-ass naked.â
âYou wanna go?â I asked. âTheyâre having a get together tonight.â
âYou know what, fuck it. Why not? Itâs not like weâre doing anything.â she replied.
âGood,â I smiled, standing up. âBecause I already ordered an Uber.â
She sighed before opening a drawer and pulling out a small pipe. âIâll go, but i'm not going sober.â
It was a cold, shitty Seattle winter night. We got dropped off in the parking lot and spent a few minutes looking for the storefront. We finally found it next to a dog groomer and Pho restaurant with some pun for the name I canât seem to remember.
We entered the shop, which consisted of two narrow isles separated by wood shelves barely big enough for me to fit down. We spent some time looking at the various items, my attention diverting to a vial of elk blood. I remember wondering if they were even allowed to sell this without some type of medical certification they definitely did not have while Chloe shuffled through a bowl of mix and match crystals.
âCan I help you?â I heard a woman say from the back as she emerged from a beaded curtain. She was a short, overweight woman wearing what I could only describe as a sports bra and hula skirt.
âHi, uh,â I stuttered. âIâm George and this is Chloe. Weâre here for the⊠winter solstice celebration?â
âOh, goodie! Newcomers!â she said with an out of place, overjoyed expression as she clapped her hands. Chloe and I laughed nervously.
âThe door is in the back, but you can come through here just this time.â she said with a smile, arm holding the beaded curtain open.
We walked through a dark hallway, somehow more cramped than the shop, into a rather large room. A gaggle of people were huddled in the back, which Chloe and I quietly shuffled into.
A bearded man paraded around the room, white robes and red headdress cascading into a cloak, knuckles adorned with several large rings gripping a spear, held vertically in front of him. Behind him, another bald man, white robes and yellow cloak, followed behind, white sleeves crossed over his chest.
I glanced at Chloeâs bloodshot eyes, THC clearly flowing through her system. I gave her a knowing look, as if to say Having fun yet? She returned a slow smile.
Without warning, the entire crowd clapped their hands together over their heads as a woman in blue robes walked past, waving a censure leaking white smoke. We awkwardly followed to match the group.
The blue curtains on the back wall opened to reveal an older Asian woman sitting perched on the altar I saw in the photos, again, completely naked. And before you ask, no. She wasnât attractive. Itâs never the ones you hope it is. The red robed man kneeled down and softly kissed her knees.
I glanced back at Chloe. Her smile was so big I was afraid she was going to laugh at any moment. I pinched her on the side and whispered into her ear âDo. Not. Fucking. Laughâ. Honestly, I think I just made it worse. Her face turned beet red as she bit her cheeks.
The ritual went on for another half hour or so. They mustâve said âDo what thou wilt shall be the whole of the lawâ at least a dozen times.
We were getting kind of bored and were ready to leave before the woman in the blue robes wandered in with a caged chicken.
"No fucking way" I thought. Surely enough, the man in the yellow robes held the chicken high in the air, before slitting its throat and draining blood into a large metallic basin. The man winced as the chicken flailed violently, scratching up his arms, before eventually succumbing to blood loss.
One by one, each person there stood between a white and black pillar saying love and intention in Greek before eating a piece of something, taking a sip of blood, and saying âThere is no part of me that is not of the Gods.â
Chloe and I hung back, and politely declined when our turn came. Once all was said and done, they busted out some alcohol and started celebrating. We slipped out into the street, bursting out laughing. After we finally collected ourselves, Chloe whipped out her phone and showed me she took dozens of pictures of the ritual.
We laughed our asses off the entire way home. First thing she did was open her laptop and post the pictures on Twitter, tagging the lodge with the caption âme and the boys chilling right nowâ.
We returned to the usual rhythm of our lives. I went to work, conducting meetings and answering emails, while Chloe went back to her classes. A few days later, Chloe checked her Twitter and saw that she had gained a few thousand likes. The whole ordeal became a running joke between us.
I would eat fruit snacks and sip on my soda, saying, âThere is no part of me that is not of the Godsâ. A few weeks later, we had mostly forgotten about it, except for the occasional recounting as a funny story to regale our friends.
One night while Chloe and I were spending our evening the usual way with me on the computer and her on her laptop, I felt her furiously tap my shoulder while staring wide eyed at the window. Confused, I took my headphones off and walked over, pulling back the curtain to reveal 6 people standing in black robes and animal masks watching us from the hillside.
âWhat do we do, should I call the cops?â Chloe whimpered.
âNo, theyâre just a bunch of larpers. Theyâre not going to do shit! Just trying to scare us.â I said angrily as I closed the blinds and hopped back on my computer.
Chloe sat there for a few minutes in a tense pose with her arms folded together. She went to double check the door was locked, before we continued our night as normal.
The next day I got a text from Chloe frantically telling me to come home immediately. When I arrived, there was a squad car parked outside our building. I ran up the stairs to see two officers standing by Chloe in the doorway. I nearly shouted asking what was going on. They lead me inside to show me a massive black symbol drawn on our wall, a six-pointed star made from one continuous line.
We finished our police report and they told us theyâd get back to us if they find anything. Iâve been robbed often enough to know that means theyâre going to forget about this before theyâve even gotten back into their squad car.
Furious, I stormed over to the shop and banged on the window. The hula skirt woman came over and cracked the door open just enough for me to see one of her eyes.
âWhat the fuck do you think your little posse is doing!?â I screamed at her. âBreaking into my apartment like that!? You all are fucking psychos!â
âI havenât any idea what youâre talking aboutâ, she said with a sly grin.
âOh, yeah?â I said pointing a finger in her face. âIf anyone tries any shit like that again Iâm going to burn your goddamn shop to the ground, do you hear me?â
She looked at the ground, clearly nervous. I have never blown up at a stranger like this but I could tell my threats were working.
After a moment of silence I stormed off again, back towards home.
âYou meddle with forces you do not understand!â she called out from the shop.
I picked up a glass bottle from the sidewalk and chucked it, smashing against her shop window, forcing her to close the door and disappear into the shadows. Iâm not particularly proud of how I behaved in this moment, but unless youâve had someone break into your home and draw shit on the walls, hold on to your judgment.
The next few days passed without so much as a peep from them. Chloe and I began to relax, convincing ourselves that the cult had been scared off. Life seemed to be returning to normal, and the unsettling incident became just another story.
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2024.05.21 21:22 Erwinblackthorn OPC: City in the Clouds by JB Williams
Todayâs one page challenge is for The City in the Clouds by J.B. Williams. Finally, a requested challenge, rather than the usual cycle of me finding a story and the person being triggered that I did so. At 234 pages and a whopping price tag of $20.99 for a paperback, itâs a wonder why it looks untouched. Flip some burgers for an hour to pay for this⊠whatever it is. I was told the editor is good, so letâs see how he gummed up the works.
The rules of the one page challenge are simple: I go through the first page of the book(about 300 words or 3 paragraphs) and say where the average reader would stop. These reviews are short, sweet, and to the point (unlike most of these books). The main things we look for are things like tension, a hint at the plot existing, good feng shui, a feeling like the blurb is accurate, a lack of obfuscation, and the story fulfilling its role as a story. As we go along, Iâll explain why readers love or hate certain elements and weâll see what straws break the camelâs back.
The title, The City in the Clouds, makes me think of fantasy, but itâs meant to be sci-fi. Clouds symbolize knowledge beyond our reach or something like daydreaming, treated as water in air(mystery in knowledge). Saying the title this way makes it seem like the focus is the city itself, which would be cool if it was something like a dystopian or utopian story. Maybe a tech noir or detective story, but⊠itâs not. This story is actually about a woman, and itâs a comedy, completely conflicting with the genre in two ways.
I didnât want to say this but Huston⊠weâre already having problems.
The ebook cover is a drawing of curly haired woman staring at the camera like sheâs constipated, while the paperback version is of an anime girl holding a gun and looking like she has diarrhea. Both versions have her in a suit, with a giant gas planet behind her. Both have similar fonts for the title and name, but the ebook version is so blurred and darkened that it reads like a secret message; the physical version being slightly less blurry. If I saw this on a shelf, I wouldnât recognize this as a book or know what it was called. I find it strange because the back of the book is very clear, given a blue box for clarity, and has a sun with a red sky that would have made more sense than these frumpy women.
I guess the title and name are made illegible because weâre supposed to zoom our eyes straight to the blurb:
Robin Alia Brook is considered a loser. She works at customer service for one of the largest companies in humanity's interstellar empire, gets stood up on dates, and accidentally kills people. Then when her ex-online boyfriend gives her the winning vacation lottery ticket to the famed habitat, The City of Clouds, she reluctantly accepts it.
Upon arrival, she is greeted by the massive, beautiful gas giant Bellona, and all the glamour and prospects of expansion for the famous habitat. And it is the beginning of a celebration, too! For the election of the new habitat captain! But the celebration and vacation are ruined when pirates attack, seeking the captain's riches.
They are ruthless, they are bloodthirsty, and they won't stop until they get what they want. Unfortunately for the pirates, Robin is really good at accidentally killing people, and with her is a rag tag team of a pilot recruit, an egotistical journalist, a veteran photographer, and the captain himself.
It will be a long battle for The City of Clouds, and the outcome is unknown, but one thing is certain... This is the worst vacation ever.
Slight grammar issues here and there, but most wouldnât notice that âex-online boyfriendâ would mean the boyfriend was online and not anymore. The delivery is a little bouncy, almost appropriate, but doesnât give much tone from how much info it tries to cram in. Something I noticed is that very little sci-fi is mentioned, with the only thing giving a sci-fi vibe being the idea of traveling to another planet. If this was a vacation to an island, very little would change from how itâs described. Like the title and name on the cover, a lot of what makes this book a book is hidden from us, in plain sight.
At this point, the average reader would probably not give it a shot, unless the idea of pirates and an ironic Die Hard premise is their cup of tea.
No prologue, no maps, no glossary, just a simple chapter 1 to greet us. Ok, Iâm liking this already. I know this is a small thing, but the simplicity of just starting a story is a blessing that should be the norm, and isnât. I havenât read a single word and this is already the best OPC so far. Yes, itâs that easy.
Donât ruin the experience with all your fancy try-hard nonsense and the reader will be in hog heaven.
We are told the planet, sector, system, and date. Very effective in establishing the sci-fi element in this single aside, which also lets us know itâs 400 years in the future. The planet is named Andromeda, which is a well known galaxy, so if this is in that galaxy, I assume itâs going for a âNew York, New Yorkâ type of gag. The editor did a good job, with the first page establishing a scene in a restaurant. What he messed up on was⊠everything thatâs not the scene itself, which makes up 90% of the words.
The protagonist, Robin Alia Brook has her day off described as âshot in the faceâ, being delivered in present tense and this has it come out awkwardly. I say this because the second sentence is past tense, then it shifts back to present, back to past. This is why people stick with past tense to avoid the headache, and present tense is now used as a hipster novelty to act as if things are more important because theyâre happening as theyâre written. Most readers just find it as a distraction and it causes something niche to become more niche in the process. The first paragraph ends with us being told that sheâs in a restaurant that is 500 feet under the sea, of a planet called Andromeda.
She is to be dining, but she is NOT dining because her date didnât show. Cue the audience gasping, because this is a travesty. The part that really kills this opening is the sentence âShe is currently obtaining nutrients through Poseidon's generous supply of free lemons water and cheesy garlic biscuits.â This was the perfect chance for worldbuilding, to express something futuristic and fresh. Instead, it tied itself to Earth, talked about mundane food like lemon water, and it didnât use any of these for a punchline.
This is meant to be a comedy, but is absent of comedy. We donât need a bunch of humor in the first paragraph, but we do expect a comedy to present a tone that can lead to humor occurring. Every scene for a comedy is a setup for gags and punchlines. Much like horror, the scene is built around the mood, which is brought to a peak around half way. The introduction of a comedy book is going to hold a joke in relation to the entire book.
I believe the blurb when it says this Robin character can kill things by accident, because this book dies right after sheâs introduced, around the second paragraph. The third paragraph changes the subject to be about other people in the restaurant, acting as a distraction that leads to infodumps of Robinâs outfit and such. I understand that the âjokeâ is that this woman is stood up on her date and we are to feel her anguish, but the reader shouldnât be suffering through the opening this soon. Starting here is either far too late or far too soon. If anything, this is something I expect in chapter 2 or something we hear about as sheâs on her way to Bellona.
A good way to put it is that this scene is a non-sequitur done in order to give fashion statements, with the important exposition ignored for window dressing.
The average reader needs tension to get sunk into a sci-fi story, because this is a planet we donât know about with a character weâve never seen before. What is the point of having this restaurant so deep underwater? There is a city underwater? She has a job, but where does she work? At the Krusty Krab?
Non-sequitur is a distraction that removes us from the scene and the plot to explain things that donât serve a purpose to either. If I changed the first sentence to only hold what was part of the scene, it would be the characters name and nothing more. To strengthen an opening like this, we would have to set it up for a punchline, reinforce the sardonic tone, and tie the scene with the situation. The first sentence would go like:
Five hundred feet below the seaâs surface, Robin could not stop drinking.
This will give the impression that sheâs getting drunk, while attaching her drinking to the sea outside, giving the impression that sheâs drowning. But even then, I wouldnât start here, I would begin with a comedic amount of assurance that sheâs going to have her date show up, then the next scene is her waiting with this. That, or I would have her doing the walk of shame, allowing the plot to begin sooner when she gets her golden ticket, which would be like:
The ocean floor outside was slowly swallowed by darkness as the elevator pod took Robin away from Poseidon.
Here, we have a moment for her to think back to the situation, and the word âdarknessâ gives hint to her current feeling about the restaurant. This is a setup for the punchline that follows, already skipping the failed date and able to move forward to the poster she sees in the elevator. Movies tend to do this type of exposition with the main character telling the situation to another person, who is helpless to escape. That can add more humor and make the main character express their personality quirks. The goal is for less opening to be used up for non-sequitur and to focus it on moving forward in relation to the plot.
For a story like this, the rejection comes from a lack of being straightforward. We can always fix up a sentence and how it sounds, but this doesnât mean much when the bones are disjointed. Thankfully, for this one, a lot of readers are used to openings like this from online serials, so there is hope that a lot of it will get a pass. Itâs that first hump that it has to get over in order to shine. Sadly, for little Robin, that hump was not achieved, so her journey through the city in the cloud might as well not exist.
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2024.05.21 21:08 ReasonFighter Layton, UT tEmpLe open house. These are my impressions.
For context, I've been a faithful Mormon believer all of my life until the age of 45+. I live in Layton since 2003. I stopped attending in 2013, and my children (minors at the time) happily stopped attending too. I formally resigned in 2017. Haven't put a foot in a Mormon building of any kind in more than a decade. Haven't attended a Mormon tEmpLe in at least 15 years.
A week ago my youngest daughter, now a young adult who just finished her semester in AZ, came to spend a week with me before going to the East coast to spend summer with her mother. While I've answered all her questions about Mormonism whenever she has asked throughout the years, she doesn't remember much about it because the whole family stopped attending shortly after she was baptized. She was instantly curious when I mentioned the new monstrosity built in our hometown. Knowing it is still in its "open house" period I offered to go and visit it.
- We had to park at one of several designated parking lots several blocks away from the actual building. A shuttle picked the small crowd gathered there and took us to the disproportionate structure.
- The tour was procedural. Guides (which were Mormon volunteers of all ages, almost all of them looked hopelessly bored) were stationed all along the route inside the building's corridors to direct visitors in the approved directions.
- Short speeches were read or recited in certain parts. Known tropes were repeated (like the mirrors symbolizing eTeRnItY, etc). Something that resembled a Mormon testimony was said at one of the sealing rooms by a couple using the expected baby fundie voice (my daughter looked obliquely at me during that part with a cringe expression in her face).
- Many paintings on the walls representing a white Jesus talking, blessing, embracing, carrying, etc ethnic people, which is an obvious effort at ingratiating after more than a century of institutionalized racism.
Once the shuttle left us at our original parking lot and we were free from earshot, I asked my daughter what her impressions were. She thought for a few seconds and said "It was like a rich person bragging. Just showing off luxury." Then we engaged in a very refreshing conversation about the Mormon motivations for such a extravagant (and inexcusable) opulence, etc.
On my part, visiting a Mormon tEmpLe after a 15+ year hiatus allowed me to perceive it with fresh eyes, heart, mind; and (more importantly) with richer criteria. My impression is this: it felt like a one inch deep attempt at sacredness; a superficial attempt to display the image of spirituality through expensive materialism. There was no substance within those walls. No history, no content, no god, no love. Just expensive marble and expensive wood and expensive carpet. It was... an empty building.
Any Catholic cathedral, any museum, any library has so much more substance, content, essence, meaning than the ostentatious building we visited last week.
This is my report.
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2024.05.21 20:56 thinkingstranger May 19, 2024
Delivering the commencement address to the graduating seniors at Morehouse College today, President Joe Biden addressed the nation. After thanking the mothers, fathers, grandmothers, grandfathers, and all the people who helped the graduates get to the chairs in front of the stage, Biden recalled Morehouseâs history. The school was founded in 1867 by civil rights leader Reverend William Jefferson White with the help of two other Baptist ministers, the Reverend Richard C. Coulter and the Reverend Edmund Turney, to educate formerly enslaved men. They believed âeducation would be the great equalizer from slavery to freedom,â Biden said, and they created an institution that would make the term âMorehouse manâ continue to stand as a symbol of excellence 157 years later. Then Biden turned to a speech that centered on faith. Churches talk a lot about Jesus being buried on Friday and rising from the dead on Sunday, he said, âbut we donât talk enough about Saturday, when⊠his disciples felt all hope was lost. In our lives and the lives of the nation, we have those Saturdaysâto bear witness the day before glory, seeing peopleâs pain and not looking away. But what work is done on Saturday to move pain to purpose? How can faith get a man, get a nation through what was to come?â Itâs a truism that anything that happens before we are born is equidistant from our personal experience, mixing the recent past and the ancient past together in a similar vaguely imagined âbeforeâ time. Most of todayâs college graduates were not born until about 2002 and likely did not pay a great deal of attention to politics until about five years ago. Biden took the opportunity to explain to them what it meant to live through the 1960s. He noted that he was the first in his family to graduate from college, paid for with loans. He fell in love, got a law degree, got married and took a job at a âfancy law firm.â But his world changed when an assassin murdered the Reverend Dr. Martin Luther Kingâa Morehouse manâand the segregated city of Wilmington, Delaware, erupted with fires, looting, fights, and occasional gunfire. For nine months, the National Guard patrolled the city in combat gear, âthe longest stretch in any American city since the Civil War,â Biden recalled. âDr. Kingâs legacy had a profound impact on me and my generation, whether youâre Black or white,â Biden explained. He left the law firm to become first a public defender and then a county councilman, âworking to change our stateâs politics to embrace the cause of civil rights.â The Democratic Party had historically championed white supremacy, but that alignment was in the process of changing as Democrats had swung behind civil rights and the 1965 Voting Rights Act. Biden and his cohort hoped to turn the Delaware Democratic Party toward the new focus on civil rights, he said. In 1972, Biden ran for the Senate and wonâŠbarely, in a state Republican president Richard Nixon won with 60% of the vote. Biden recalled how, newly elected and hiring staff in Washington, D.C., he got the call telling him that his wife and daughter had been killed in a car accident and that his two sons were gravely injured. The pain of that day hit again 43 years later, he said, when his son Beau died of cancer after living for a year next to a burn pit in Iraq. And he talked of meeting First Lady Jill Biden, âwho healed the family in all the broken places. Our family became my redemption,â he said. His focus on family and community offered a strong contrast to the Republican emphasis on individualism. âOn this walk of life...you come to understand that we donât know where or what fate will bring you or when,â Biden said. âBut we also know we donât walk alone. When youâve been a beneficiary of the compassion of your family, your friends, even strangers, you know how much the compassion matters,â he said. âIâve learned there is no easy optimism, but by faithâby faith, we can find redemption.â For the graduates, Biden noted, four years ago âfelt like one of those Saturdays. The pandemic robbed you of so much. Some of you lost loved onesâmothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, whoâŠarenât able to be here to celebrate with you todayâŠ. You missed your high school graduation. You started college just as George Floyd was murdered and there was a reckoning on race. âItâs natural to wonder if democracy you hear about actually works for you. âWhat is democracy if Black men are being killed in the street? âWhat is democracy if a trail of broken promises still leave[s]âŠBlack communities behind? âWhat is democracy if you have to be 10 times better than anyone else to get a fair shot? âAnd most of all, what does it mean, as weâve heard before, to be a Black man who loves his country even if it doesnât love him back in equal measure?â The crowd applauded. Biden explained that across the Oval Office from his seat behind the Resolute Desk are busts of Dr. King and Senator Robert Kennedy, challenging Biden: âAre we living up to what we say we are as a nation, to end racism and poverty, to deliver jobs and justice, to restore our leadership in the world?â He wears a rosary on his wrist made of Beauâs rosary as a reminder that faith asks us âto hold on to hope, to move heaven and earth to make better days.â â[T]hatâs my commitment to you,â he said. â[T]o show you democracy, democracy, democracy is still the way.â Biden pledged to âcall out the poison of white supremacyâ and noted that he âstood upâŠwith George Floydâs family to help create a country where you donât need to have that talk with your son or grandson as they get pulled over.â The administration is investing in Black communities and reconnecting neighborhoods cut apart by highways decades ago. It has reduced Black child poverty to the lowest rate in history. It is removing lead pipes across the nation to provide clean drinking water to everyone, and investing in high-speed internet to bring all households into the modern era. The administration is creating opportunities, Biden said, bringing âgood-paying jobsâŠ; capital to start small businesses and loans to buy homes; health insurance, [prescription] drugs, housing thatâs more affordable and accessible.â Biden reminded the audience that he had joined workers on a picket line. To applause, he noted that when the Supreme Court blocked his attempt to relieve student debt, he found two other ways to do it. He noted the administrationâs historic investment in historically black colleges and universities. âWeâre opening doors so you can walk into a life of generational wealth, to be providers and leaders for your families and communities. Today, record numbers of Black Americans have jobs, health insurance, and more [wealth] than ever.â Then Biden directly addressed the student protests over the Israeli governmentâs strikes on Gaza. At Morehouse today, one graduate stood with his back to Biden and his fist raised during the presidentâs speech, and the class valedictorian, DeAngelo Jeremiah Fletcher, who spoke before the president, wore a picture of a Palestinian flag on his mortarboard and called for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza, at which Biden applauded. âIn a democracy, we debate and dissent about Americaâs role in the world,â Biden said. âI want to say this very clearly. I support peaceful, nonviolent protest. Your voices should be heard, and I promise you I hear them.â âWhatâs happening in GazaâŠis heartbreaking,â he said, with â[i]nnocent Palestinians caught in the middleâ of a fight between Hamas and Israel. He reminded them that he has called âfor an immediate ceasefireâŠto stop the fighting [and] bring the hostages home.â His administration has been working for a deal, as well as to get more aid into Gaza and to rebuild it. Crucially, he added, there is more at stake than âjust one ceasefire.â He wants âto build a lasting, durable peace. Because the question isâŠ: What after? What after Hamas? What happens then? What happens in Gaza? What rights do the Palestinian people have?â To applause, he said, âIâm working to make sure we finally get a two-state solutionâthe only solutionâfor two people to live in peace, security, and dignity.â âThis is one of the hardest, most complicated problems in the world,â he said. âI know it angered and frustrates many of you, including my family. But most of all, I know it breaks your heart. It breaks mine as well. Leadership is about fighting through the most intractable problems. Itâs about challenging anger, frustration, and heartbreak to find a solution. Itâs about doing what you believe is right, even when itâs hard and lonely. Youâre all future leaders, every one of you graduating todayâŠ. Youâll face complicated, tough moments. In these moments, youâll listen to others, but youâll have to decide, guided by knowledge, conviction, principle, and your own moral compass.â Turning back to the United States, Biden urged the graduates to examine âwhat happens to you and your family when old ghosts in new garments seize power, extremists come for the freedoms you thought belonged to you and everyone.â He noted attacks on equality in America, and that extremist forces were peddling âa fiction, a caricature [of] what being a man is aboutâtough talk, abusing power, bigotry. Their idea of being a man is toxic.â âBut thatâs not you,â he continued. âItâs not us. You all know and demonstrate what it really means to be a man. Being a man is about the strength of respect and dignity. Itâs about showing up because itâs too late if you have to ask. Itâs about giving hate no safe harbor and leaving no one behind and defending freedoms. Itâs about standing up to the abuse of power, whether physical, economic, or psychological.â To applause, he added: âItâs about knowing faith without works is dead.â âThe strength and wisdom of faith endures,â Biden said. âAnd I hopeâmy hope for you isâmy challenge to you is that you still keep the faith so long as you can.â âTogether, weâre capable of building a democracy worthy of our dreamsâŠa bigger, brighter future that proves the American Dream is big enough for everyone to succeed.â âClass of 2024, four years ago, it felt probably like Saturday,â Biden concluded. âFour years later, you made it to Sunday, to commencement, to the beginning. And with faith and determination, you can push the sun above the horizon once moreâŠ.â âGod bless you all,â he said. âWeâre expecting a lot from you.â â Notes: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/speeches-remarks/2024/05/19/remarks-by-president-biden-at-the-morehouse-college-class-of-2024-commencement-address-atlanta-ga/https://www.inquirer.com/news/a/wilmington-del-riots-occupation-martin-luther-king-jr-national-guard-20181207.htmlhttps://www.reuters.com/world/us/morehouse-graduation-thanks-god-woke-class-2024-2024-05-19/
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2024.05.21 20:27 Accurate_Goose_1057 Weird Thoughts about The Watchman and The Thunder Skin.
To Repeat something I talked about in the Discord Server:
There seems to be some interesting connections between The Watchman and The Thunderskin so much so that I think The Watchman was somehow involved with the flaying of and Ascension of The Thunderskin.
In Apollo and Marsyas we know that Marsyas is The Thunderskin and Cybele is The Red Grail, so the question is which Hour is Apollo in this story? Apollo as a deity is associated with art, craftsmanship civilization, reason and medicine as well as being associated with light and later the Sun. Apollo was also one of the deities the Romans gave the epithet Invictus to. The Watchman is associated with the reason, craftsmanship and light since his Principal is Lantern, and he is also one of the Hours venerated by the Church of the Unconquered Sun.
Due to his role in the formation of the pact between Yew, Grail, and Axe, The Thunderskin is the only male Hour that the Sisterhood gives reverence to. And yet as The Rose of Waznei shows us there was at one point a heretical offshoot of The Sisterhood who were devoted to The Watchman. Out of all the possible Hours for a branch of a religious order like The Sisterhood to choose from why The Door in the Eye? Is it because like The Thunderskin it/he was involved with the pact that brought an end to The Lithomachy?
The Watchman is one of the Hours most associated with Janus who we know has some sort of connection with St. Januarius. St. Januarius' blood is represented in game by both the Amethyst Ampoule and January Sanguinary, which both have the Heart and Knock Principles. The Cultsim description of the True Blood/ January Sanguinary says that The Thunderskin protected St. Januarius, who being a "Saint" was probably among the figures revered by The Sisterhood who honor The Thunderskin. The presence of the Knock Principle may seem out of place/ unrelated since it is not held by either The Thunderskin or The Watchman, but remember it was Janus who gave Cardea/ The Horned-Axe aka one of the key Knock Hours, the Hawthorne. Additionally it is the Axe who was appeased with the sacrifice of The Thunderskin who ascended through The Peacock Doo Vak who was at one point one of the Axe's Names.
I also think there is something going on with The Watchman's nature as "Amber" and the The Ring-Yew's connection to the Nectar Power and her honey and sap symbolism. Nectar was once called Blood, and we offered up our Blood to the low-red sun who is probably the Egg Unhatching, the God-From-Stone that The Watchman usurped.
Blood is also associated with The Red Grail who has some interesting alchemical themes through to her Names, The Pine Knight and The Sage Knight. The Pine Knight is almost certainly The Thunderskin but we don't know much about The Sage Knight. However, I think it's telling that the figure who resides in The Lodge of The Sage Knight currently is Teresa, a potential candidate for The Watchman's Pilgrimage, one who is also connected to Janus. Thus I think that The Watchman was, in addition to being the Unwise Mortal who learned the alchemical arts of The Flint, was also Known as The Sage Knight and served The Red Grail. Blood, Nectar and Light....... brings to mind Ys and Cross.................
That's the gist of the evidence I have for this speculation currently other than some additional speculation about a connection between The Watchman and Vak given the fact that The Peacock Door looks like both a Vagina and and Eye and The Watchman is also named The Door in the Eye. But the idea that a yonic symbol can also be an eye is a little bit of a stretch unless you're familiar with the writings of Georges Bataille even though I have no doubt in my mind that AK does have some knowledge on his work.
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