Zaralla1 OC's and headcanons ✧. ┊
Hi! Welcome! I'm Zara and this is where I keep my fan-OC, OOC and OC profiles, as well as their art and stories! Thanks for dropping by!
About
Hi there! I go by Zaralla1 in online spaces, but you can also call me Vanja. I draw whenever it's possible, and I mostly do it for my own fun. I love anything Soulsborne related, and I love characters with sharp teeth! My gallery includes mostly OC & multifandom work, and lately I've been a lot into gachas which reflects on my current OC's & fan-OC's. Right now I'm trying to focus on a large webcomic project featuring my characters, but they will be featured on a different website.
*OC's/fan OC’s are written so they can pair up with my favorite characters. Sometimes they borrow elements from the universe they are in so they can feel more believable. Canon characters are “ocified”, which is indicated by their slightly different design to help distinguish them from canon representation (To help against possible confusion!)
OC BoundariesDo's ✔️
| Artworks are welcome! as long as no genAI is used anywhere in the process! | Kinning is okay! | It's okay to draw your OC's together with mine! Just make sure its platonic! |
|---|---|---|
| Writing fanfics/AU/stories is okay if you ask me permission! | Headcanons are okay! | Doubles are okay! I don't mind interacting with them! |
Dont's ❌
| Do not use my characters in roleplays! | Do not use my characters on genAI sites (chatbot AI's, etc.) | No shipping! I ship my characters with my irl partner's characters only! |
|---|---|---|
| Do not write/draw NSFW stuff about my characters. If you do, keep it private. |
Characters
⋘ 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑑𝑎𝑡𝑎... ⋙
Full name ┊ Wesley Neha
Age ┊ 23 yr. old
Voice claim ┊ Paul Amos (as Jacob Frye) or Yuma Uchida (as Kaveh)
Gender/Pronouns ┊ (Trans) Male / he,him
Height/weight ┊ 180 cm (5'9'') / 74 kg (163lbs)
Occupation ┊ Babylonian Corpse Retrieval ✞, commander of group "Achilles" (Clean-up crew) or the "Graveyard shift"
Job activities ┊ Giving final rites, Basic forensics, Gathering evidence, Analyzing and documenting scenes, Collaborating with other teams, Faking deaths of people, Corpse disposal, Construct body repairs etc.
Birthday ┊ 8th of October (Happiness at work day)
Favorite time/weather ┊ Morning twilight, Cloudy spring days
Favorite activity ┊ Coming up with outfits for his mechanoids, making sure they are fashionably synchronized, Singing
Favorite foods ┊ Pasta bolognese, Green pasta, Truffles, Pizza, French toast, Milkshakes, Small orange juice carton, Banana split, Rice & nut pudding
His emoji ┊ 🦊
Ship name ┊ RolWes 🦝🦊
Ship dynamic ┊ Enemies > Friends > LoversCharacter alignment ┊ Chaotic Good
Nicknames, titles and aliases ┊ Wes, Wessie, Gravedigger, Ginger Fox, Archie, Ascendant Magnet, Dirt-boy (Nickname given by Vera), Gravekeeper, Pippi Longstocking (Also given by Vera), Roland's squire
Likes ┊ Putting corpses back together (to him it's like legos), Taking care of people in conservation areas, Vodka, Roland (loves him), Ember (his old construct), His mechanoids, Quoting his favorite movies, Musicals and singing along, Dirty jokes, Horror movies, His exoskeleton, Betting (When he loses he says "Welp, can't take money to the grave anyway"), His trusty shovel he named "The Jackrabbit", Stripe patterns, Retro vinyl records, Telenovelas, Visual novels, Costume making & crochetting, Gardening (Plants are the only "living" things he's allowed to be in charge of), Detective shows & Murder mysteries, Board games & tabletop games, Roleplaying, Berry picking (in conservation areas), Collecting figurines & giving them away, He admires the Gray Raven team, His standard gun, Coordinating attacks, Showing off the capabilities of his exoskeleton, Bragging, Chewing on things, Teasing others, Being teased, Cute mascots, Doing makeup for others, Alcohol, Theme parks, Ferris Wheels, Government conspiracy theories, History books, Lucille and her dog, Bridget (they work together often), Karenina (he is a bit scared of her), Vera (he thinks she is very cool), Cryptids, Camping, Urbex, Standing up for himself (it makes his heart pound nicely)Dislikes ┊ Ghosts, Being accused that he is stealing from corpses, Being called "Achilles" because he thinks it's ironic, Being bullied, People who judge others' professions, Doing favors for the Purifying force (Feels like its going to bite him back one day), Kurono, Nikola, Vonnegut, Leaving people behind, Being made to wait, Surprise "missions" from Philippa (She always gets him in trouble, then he makes it out by a hairs length), Breaking promises, Retrieving corpses from places that are difficult to reach, Terrifying unmapped areas, Tight corridors, Lockdowns & too many authorizations, Dealing with paperwork, Crawling through vents, Being separated from his mechanoids, Needing to temporarily 'kill' his mechanoids when they become compromised by the punishing virus
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✧Some character quotes✧- "As you wish ♡"- "You have wonderful nails, miss Bambinata!"- "Oh, finally! A normal person!" (approaches Roland)- "I forgot to introduce myself, right? Sorry about that"- "Argh! this is just like in the "Lone survivor" when the last guy takes a stand against his enemies in the forest!"- "Ola, ola! Time to play!" (orders his mechanoids to attack)- "Ahh I was always a little... you know"- "She's a right old bossy-boots isn't she?" (talking about Vanessa)︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶
✧Fun facts ✎. . . . . . . .He never forgets to say his 'thank you' even if he is in a rush.Because of his job, he often carries corpse parts in his bag and even his pockets if he's running out of space. If you randomly went to do a pat-down search you'd probably be freaked out.Due to Earth's saturation with the virus, his mechanoids occasionally go berserk. He has to put them down for his own safety, then later tries to repair them using his knowledge from assembling corpses because he can't request maintenance so often (There is a disparity between the quality of his mechanoids and the times he can have them repaired in Babylonia).He isn't shy of criticizing Roland. Even though he's just a human, he will "tell it how it is" to the Ascendant, straight into his face. Sometimes Roland will pretend to be extra serious/pissed off just to see if Wes will back down (He doesn't) and it's something he respects about him.Roland keeps putting beautifully penned handwritten letters into corpses because he knows Wesley will find them.Roland offered to rename his mechanoids. Wes didn't accept.
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Positive traits 🔹 & Negative traits 🔸
| ✓ Good-natured and caring | ✘ Emotionally immature which often gets him misunderstood |
|---|---|
| ✓ Likes helping people and wants them to know they're valued | ✘ Becomes irresponsible when prioritizing his desires first |
| ✓ Good at taking care of himself (And others) on Earth | ✘ Can be rude and standoffish. Will be annoying on purpose |
| ✓ Talkative and curious | ✘ Bad with setting boundaries |
| ✓ Warm and accomodating. He will share anything he owns | ✘ Passive-aggressive and holds grudges |
| ✓ Quietly works in the background to help people get along | ✘ Very forgetful and easily believes nonsense (conspiracy theorist) |
| ✓ Not squeamish at all and minds his own business | ✘ Loses himself in others (mirrors the desires of others and loses sight of his own) |
✧Extra info ✎. . . . . . . .- His job includes collecting dog tags and memory modules from fallen constructs (Also cataloguing and identifying their bodyparts), salvaging usable equipment, occasional sabotage, basic forensics, reconstruction, retrieving serum from fallen squads back to Babylonia and recovering or destroying Science Council’s technology so it doesn’t fall into their competitor’s hands. He also assists the Purifying Force, helping them dispose of evidence or fake deaths of people that Babylonia wants to hide.- Often seen as a shady individual because of the nature of his work, which leads to him being isolated and ridiculed. He follows wherever death goes and his job itself is also seen as quite inelegant.- Self-conscious about his hands so he constantly wears gloves. They’re always cold and sweaty, and that makes him feel unclean especially since he works with corpses. No matter how often he washes them, he feels like people will still see him as gross.- His job is mostly 'safe' since he is dispatched to mission areas after operations have already been concluded. He is also given a highly-powered exoskeleton that he loves to wear. He also really loves his mechanoids, even though he’s forced to kill them from time to time due to punishing infection.- Despite all the negative baggage, Wes did learn to like his job. After the treatment people give him, he almost prefers working with corpses. He also likes his job because he knows it’s safe. He has no desire to risk his life for unnecessary reasons and seeing in how many different ways other commandants and constructs have died only improved his sense of self-preservation. Each corpse he finds is like a hint for keeping himself out of harm's way.- He is friendly with: Karenina, Bridget, Bianca, Gray Ravens (All of them), Bambinata, Kamui, Teddy- The gun he uses has a very high calibre (It's a massive magnum revolver. Thank god for his exoskeleton that helps stabilize the recoil), so when he puts his own mechanoids down he has to buy completely new components to replace old ones. Luckily, Karenina helps him by selling off scrap or surplus parts that the Engineering force no longer needs. This is all done off the records.- The gore that comes with his work doesn’t bother him and he can ignore most of it. While restoring bodies, he will often have a severed bodypart on his table and remain completely unfazed even if he knew the person when they were still alive. Sometimes he even watches cooking videos on his phone to pass time while working. He is somewhat superstitious though, which doesn't bode well for him considering his profession (He's actually scared of ghosts). This paranoia started with his M.I.N.D. beacon damage.- Talking to himself is one of the methods of stabilizing his damaged brain implant. By hearing any voice, including his own, Wes can stay grounded without getting lost in flashes of random moments and memories brought on by the Punishing virus. When he doesn’t talk, his state gets progressively worse. Since his dated mechanoids often make for poor conversational partners, he also struck up a habit of talking to corpses while he’s taking them apart.- Over time, It has proven impossible to become the person he once used to be. Even though Wesley wants people to be able to rely on him, his condition always set him back and reminds him that his current job is all he can manage. That is why he considers being called “Achilles” (Even though it’s his original squad’s name) as equally derogatory as calling him a ‘fake commandant’.- Even though he was ‘forgiven’ for his mistake with Ember, it sure doesn’t feel that way. This developed a capricious nature in Wes and it’s why he prefers spending time on Earth as opposed to the starship, even though it’s safer there.
Wesley's story
Team leader of a clean-up crew that takes orders primarily from the Babylonian government, and frequently acts as their informant. Wes hails from the Nighter ship as a stowaway with his mother, where homelessness and overpopulation forced them to commit petty acts of crime to survive. Their relationship became a lot more abusive as Wes grew older, and he eventually snuck into Babylonia's cargo ship during a time of their cooperation with Kowloong. Since Babylonia also wanted to spy on their ally, they gave Wesley a few missions as "a test". Since he succeeded and showed a lot of potential (and was still a child) they decided to fulfill their promise to him and took him to the sky fortress. This is where they trained him to become a field commandant. He started a bit late because he was older than the other kids, but he worked hard because he felt obligated to Babylonia and started doing missions early. It took him years to finally graduate as a F.O.S. commandant and become responsible for his own team.Unfortunately, he could only be a commandant for 3 months, before one of his constructs malfunctioned fatally and became infected with the punishing (Ember). This happened after he was betrayed by a group of raiders who wanted to kill him and dismantle his constructs for "usable parts". To make matters worse, this construct encountered an Ascendant who shared his power with her. Wesley almost lost his life while trying to maintain a connection with her while she slowly transformed into one of them. In the end she left with the other Ascendant, and Wesley's M.I.N.D. beacon became permanently tainted. It was one of the shortest careers in Babylonia. Luckily for him, he has been useful to Babylonia since childhood, and it was their choice to take him in, so they decided not to completely abandon him. Instead of leaving him to scramble for survival with a damaged M.I.N.D. beacon and a completely ruined reputation, Hassen authorized the formation of a new squad under the name of his old one. The once-promising Achilles was resurrected as a corpse retrieval squad. This is where Wes is now.
⋘ 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑑𝑎𝑡𝑎... ⋙
Full name ┊ R̸͑̀̾̑ ̸̛̆͂͗O̴̊̃̍̂ ̷͛̒̂͝L̸͆̽͆ ̷̋͑͗A N ̎̌D̴͗͊͂̃
Age ┊ U҉N҉K҉N҉O҉W҉N҉ (??)
Voice claim ┊ (His canon Voice Actors)
Gender/Pronouns ┊ (Doesn't care) Male / he,him
Height/weight ┊ 178 cm (5'8'') / 90 kg (198lbs)
Occupation ┊ Ascendant Enforcer
Job activities ┊ Intimidation, Strategizing and infiltration, Pinpointing enemy weakspots, Spying, Supervision, Abduction, Obtaining information, House chores
Birthday ┊ 2nd of May
Favorite time/weather ┊ Early morning, before the sun comes up
Favorite activity ┊ Teasing others, Pretending he is imprisoned, Seeing what choices others make
Favorite foods ┊ Fish, Spicy ramen, Tortillas, Shrimps, Chicken burgers, Anything with coconuts in it, Chocolate milk, Spaghetti, Pancakes
His emoji ┊ 🦝
Ship name ┊ RolWes 🦝🦊
Ship dynamic ┊ Enemies > Friends > LoversCharacter alignment ┊ Neutral Evil
Nicknames, titles and aliases ┊ Roro, Ascendant, Rolmo, Ratface, "The Jester", Creepy Nerd (given by Camu)
Likes ┊ Making plush toys, Wesley, Luna, Talking (a lot), Being a wallflower, making exagerrated moves and gestures, Cooking, Kamui/Camu, Badly photoshopping and editing photos, Using archaic words, Gloating, Collecting junk (has a bunch of stuff like bottlecaps and clasps), Explosives, "Acting like a good construct", Acting out movie scenes, Shocking people, Giving people freedom of choice and seeing what they choose, Fighting (but not too much), When someone remembers conversations with him, When someone fulfills or remembers a promise they made, Old movies & classics, Reading books, When someone thanks him, Sweets/candies, Talking in riddles, Giving names to things, Being asked questions, People who have strong will and a clear goal, Rock-paper-scissors, Causing drama, Seeing people show him different expressions, Watching corrupted carry out their old programming, Talking to inanimate objects, Staring at people, Hacking terminals and changing people's passwords, For some reason he likes taking blame for things he didn't do just to see where it goesDislikes ┊Nanami (more like he is afraid of her), Vera (actually afraid of her), Sand, Getting wet, Getting dirt in his cogs, Being taunted, Being ignored, Being bored, Excessive violence, Being made to do things he knows are pointless, "Puppet masters", Pushovers, Reality shows, generative AI, People who like to dig into the problems of others, People who try to psychoanalyze others, Fanatics, People who can't hold promises, People who are ungrateful, People who are pushy, Hipocrisy, People who respond by "not really responding", People who don't have (any) sense of humor, Ass-kissers and yes-men, Smalltalk, Wasting time, Risking dissapointment, Clingy people, Having a feeling like he is in a "loop", Having to betray people he actually likes, Being given too many gifts, Being told to do boring things
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✧Some character quotes✧- "Hola, amigo!"- "What an interesting question. A fine question indeed, miss." (He is trying to talk his way out)- "You didn't sound so cocky the last time when you were under my boot!"- "What a player, this one" (He's getting blackmailed)- „Greetings, sire“ (Bows ridiculously)- (Commenting the Gray Raven team) "My, what perfect little foot soldiers. I want to barf."- "Wesleeey! I am at your service today. At. Your. Service~♡„︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶
✧Fun facts ✎. . . . . . . .The joints in his hip are misaligned, so he walks with a shamble.Once laid in front of Alpha's motorbike because she wouldn't take him along to a certain place.He loves giving names to things, but is really bad with coming up with names on the spot.He trains himself by thinking of worst possible scenarios so he doesn't get caught off guard.Roland can be very indecisive. Often comes up with „schrodinger's lies“. What is true and what isn't is something he decides independently of context where the „lie“ is happening. That is why, sometimes with Roland, words no longer have their original meaning because he is still deciding how he feels about what he's saying.
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Positive traits 🔹 & Negative traits 🔸
| ✓ Has a strong sense of duty and loyalty | ✘ Harsh and dissociated |
|---|---|
| ✓ When he sets his mind to something only death can take him down | ✘ Lies a lot, easily bored |
| ✓ Practical and clever. He is the Ascendant's "fixer" | ✘ Dangerously violent individual |
| ✓ Adheres to his own sense of honor | ✘ Scared and selfish |
| ✓ He never runs out of things to say and is a playful conversationalist | ✘ Never asks for support |
| ✓ Skillful infiltrator who is very good at spying | ✘ Often overthinks and spirals into negativity |
| ✓ Very strong will of his own | ✘ Self-loathing |
Roland's story
Roland is a dutiful and loyal „knight“ who serves Luna in a world where no knights exist. He started out his life in an amusement park which he was sold to by his own parents, and there he was forced to hurt his only friend for the amusement of others, until the day he realized that he was also played for a fool. He was finally freed when the Punishing Outbreak occured, but only because the people in charge there left him to die. He even ended up as a test subject for some rogue scientists instead of being saved... And then ended up being abandoned all the same. One bad day was worse than the others, and he thought about ending his life. But then he was saved by Luna who helped him become an “Ascendant” instead. Besides saving him, miss Luna was also the first real person that didn’t have a reason to lie to him or betray him. Then, he gave himself a goal to follow her and fulfil her wishes. He hopes that among the Ascendants, at least she can live a normal life, and this is what he strives for.Some time later, Roland still continued to talk to himself a lot, which was something he used to do since childhood. He abstained from approaching any people because of the traumatizing experience with his first friend. He felt as though people getting close to him would just result with them getting hurt. Soon though, he would hear about a bizarre commandant named “Wesley” who preferred the company of mechanoids to that of other people. It reminded him a bit of his situation at the amusement park, and he thought it was odd that someone could enjoy such a thing. Still, it sounded pretty interesting so he decided to cautiously come near. He ended up wanting to know “what sort of person” this stranger would see once they got to know him. They continued to spend more time together, until Roland started to loosen up. He first developed empathy for Wes, and then for himself. Their exchanges continued until their friendship grew into affection... After so many years of wanting “nothing for himself”, Roland realized he wanted this person to stay by his side.
⋘ 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑑𝑎𝑡𝑎... ⋙
Full name ┊ Eryk Thorne
Age ┊ Appears to be 20 years old
Voice claim ┊ Henry Lloyd-Hughes (as Alidoro)
Gender/Pronouns ┊ Male / he,him
Height/weight ┊ 175 cm (5'8'') / ?? kg (Body composition changed due to fusing with a Threnodian)
Occupation ┊ Black Shores Bloom Bearer
Birthday ┊ ??
Favorite time/weather ┊ Being inside during heavy downpours, Winter
Favorite activity ┊ Trying out different lives by living through people's dreams in the Somnoire, Delivering packages for Lollo Logistics (He likes flying to new places), Fighting powerful opponents, Training with Calcharo
Favorite foods ┊ Ramen, Sweet & Sour Pork, Crushed Candy, Roasted lamb, Dried meats, Echoes, TD's, Any food that Brant prepares
His emoji ┊ 🖤
Ship name ┊ BrantRover, EryBrant 🖤⚓
Ship dynamic ┊ Begrudging allies > LoversCharacter alignment ┊ Neutral Good
Nicknames, titles and aliases ┊Little brother, "Bro", Erika's Twin, Ery, Threnodian symbiote, Smug Brat
Likes ┊Exploring Sonoro Spheres, Lazing off like a cat, Being told sweet words, Complaining, Teasing his sister, Crows, Brant (Loves him), Visiting people's dreams in the Somnoire, Thinks TD's are cool, Protecting his sister, Collecting unique weapons, Chatting with Aalto, Sneaking off to waste time with Zani, Getting in trouble with his sister, Being relied on, Participating in heists and "fun stuff", Gossip, Trying out inventions & new weapons, Chasing criminals (Loves scaring them), Being asked to help with secret plans, Getting tied up, Flying around and delivering things, Wall run challenges, Witnessing drama, Getting dressed up & made pretty by somebody, Fighting, Fooling people with his sister, Communicating with echoes by emitting frequencies instead of using his words (He calls it "Telepathy". It's not), Keeps trying to make pizza levitate into his mouth (It doesn't work), Advertising the Black Shores in his own unique way (Tries to bully them into joining like Camellya, until his sister stops him), Devouring excess dreams in the Somnoire, Reading every edition of Wutherium Geographic so he knows what place to visit nextDislikes ┊ Threnodians, Sentinels, Hospitals, Research labs, When someone tries to tap into his Frequencies, He is jealous of his sister's stable relationship with Jiyan, He dislikes that Jiyan is trying to make her less of a troublemaker, When someone keeps trying to sell something to him, Explaining things, Being followed, Listening to lectures, When his sister promises -his- help to someone, When his sister talks to him like he's a kid because he's immature, When his sister takes away his weapons, Being ordered around, Mad scientists, Ovathrax's whispers, When he has to resist urges from the Threnodian, Brain fog, The "Original", Being forced to live out his destiny, When others are forced to live out their destiny
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✧Some character quotes✧- "More gifts? Haha, spoil me!" (When Mortefi brings new weapons for Eryk to try)- "You don't have to worry about me. I can crush a few thugs." (Overconfident in his Threnodian abilities)- "You weren't listening" - "What? I have all the details in here" (He taps his forehead. His sister starts shaking his shoulders with frustration)- "Haha, what's this, my birthday?" (He grins widely at the sight of TD's amassing to fight him) "The more the better!"- „You make a boring playmate. I'll see you later." (Flies off after feeling unfulfilled by a fight)- "Oh, that guy doesn't know he's about to get a face full of ME!"︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶
✧Fun facts ✎. . . . . . . .Overconfident in his strength, but he wasn't always like this. Before he got fused with the Threnodian, his personality used to be a lot more timid. The current change in his character has to do with Ovathrax taking over parts of his brain.Since he is fused with the Threnodian Ovathrax, he feels a constant desire to fight or taunt others into taking him on.Got his face rearranged by Yuanwu. The context is that he was overcome by his Threnodian side and started attacking the Midnight Rangers until the wholesome gym leader stopped him dead in his tracks. He had to have a minor surgery following this incident.When he can, he tries to improve the dreams of others when he visits in the Somnoire. If he sees that someone is having a nightmare or an unpleasant dream, he tries to use his authority to make it a little nicer. He helps people reconcile their regrets, or he "devours" the monsters that chase them. This is how he met Scar. He lost because he wasn't allowed to use the Threnodian's power inside the Somnoire.
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Positive traits 🔹 & Negative traits 🔸
| ✓ Very brave and loyal | ✘ Feisty, Narcissistic |
|---|---|
| ✓ Protector of the weak | ✘ Keeps ending up in fights |
| ✓ Very dependable | ✘ Never does 'exactly' what he's asked |
| ✓ Empathetic | ✘ Irresponsible |
| ✓ Wants others around him to feel good | ✘ Things fly out of his mouth without thinking, Likes to taunt |
| ✓ Never asks for payment when he has to fight someone. He says the "brawl itself is the pay" | ✘ You have to constantly remind him of his responsibilities |
| ✓ Likes to entertain those around him | ✘ Very impatient |
Eryk's story
Eryk's origin is traumatic. He was reconstructed from the memories of a dying person, created using extreme methods involving Remnant energy and Fractsidus tech. His body was assembled on the go while everything collapsed under an ongoing Lament which left him with permanent physical degradation. But luckily, his savior managed to send him to another timeline. While still disoriented from arriving to a new world, he met a person who looked exactly like him. It was the girl Rover, who was the designated protagonist (Also a clone...) for this timeline. But her personality was much different from his. She was a lot more selfish and she ended up using him to get out of trouble, and they banded together by accident.At first they were just pretending to be siblings, but they realized that they worked quite well together (Because surprise, surprise, they were the same person). The two of them started acting like a real brother and sister, and Erika even gave him a name because he couldn't remember his own. Unfortunately, Eryk's health condition dropped to an irreversible point. It all ended with Erika fusing him with a remnant of the Threnodian „Ovathrax“ by using her special Rover abilities which she wasn't even aware of. This would lead to a tense relationship with the City of Jinzhou, but Erika and her brother were allowed to stay because of her exemplar performance when helping Jiyan fight against the real Ovathrax. While living in the wild, Eryk trained with Calcharo to master his inhuman side. Then the siblings got scouted by the Black Shores who essentially adopted them, and they were sent to their first, real, mission together in Rinascita. And that's where Eryk fell in love with a local revolutionary who wants to exploit his Threnodian side.
LATER
⋘ 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑑𝑎𝑡𝑎... ⋙
Full name ┊ Regill Hains
Age ┊ 27 yr. old
Voice claim ┊ Elliot Christensen-Yule (as Shadow in PoE)
Gender/Pronouns ┊ (AFAB) Nonbinary / he, any, they
Height/weight ┊ 164 cm (5'5'') / 60 kg (132 lbs)
Occupation ┊ Page, Confessor (failed), Briefly a member of Mohg's Dynasty, Bandit and then a wanderer, Wants to become a retainer of a worthy Elden Lord- in the end, he didn't find a "worthy" Lord, but he found someone he wanted to make happy
Job activities ┊ Scouting, Information gathering, Copying manuscripts, Helping slay dragons, Trying to look busy so Queelign doesn't smack him
Birthday ┊ 23rd of April
Favorite time/weather ┊ Windy sunny days, Finding new picturesque places to laze about on his own
Favorite activity ┊ Playing his flute, Telling stories, Banditry alongside roads travelled by other Tarnished, Studying Blackflame scrolls, Studying anything that has something to do with a goddess of Sin from beyond Lands Between, Lazing about in canopies or playing his flute on nice looking meadows
Favorite foods ┊ Dragon Hearts, Rowa berries (Yes he actually steals food from his horse), dried fruit
His emoji ┊ 🐀
Ship name ┊ RegiNye 🐀☀️
Ship dynamic ┊ Forced proximity, Monster romanceCharacter alignment ┊ True Neutral
Nicknames, titles and aliases ┊ Buckethead Regill, Reggie
Likes ┊ Blackflame, Nye, his scimitar & naginata, Messmer, Patches, cats, collecting pieces of lore, recording history, expensive loot, Basilisks, cheating, pretending to be polite, playing cards with Patches, likes characters who are friendly, likes characters who forgive & forget easily, whistling (he is capable of imitating bird song!), Zorayas, Iji, Kale and the merchants, really loves Nokron cityDislikes ┊ Mohg's Dynasty, his first master, The Golden Order, filth, violence, doesn't like fighting for no reason, hates feeling scared, Dung Eater, rooms with no windows, being followed around, loud noises, sleeping, Frenzy, the Volcano Manor recusants (he's pretty scared of them)︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶
✧Some character quotes✧- "Eheh, why... I knew you could handle it! ...That's why I left them to you."- "You haven't figured it out, have you? I just can't resist messing with you."- "(cringes) Ugh, it's kinda making me emotional."- "Hello-hello, is anyone home? (taps a hollowed warrior's helmet) No?"- "He's thick as boots, but nobody is as adorable as him."- "I'd bet my boots you do."- "Ohh ohh? What do we have here?"- "I don't care how you look at me. Hipocrisy is the privilege of those who can survive. I've stolen other things, too."︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶
✧Fun facts ✎. . . . . . . .Regill often tries to pass off as a merchant or a traveller. He will offer a huge discount if he starts feeling nervous. At one point, he left an entire haul of treasure after the Tarnished he was speaking with grew wary of him and started asking where is his "donkey" 😨 (as soon as Regill bolted, leaving all his treasure behind- the person felt pretty lucky 😗🎵~)Regill loves the Nokron city and its surrounding regions, he often slinks into the depths beneath Limgrave to watch "the stars". The main reason why Limgrave is his favorite area is also because of what's under it.Regill became a bandit out of a need to scramble and survive. Eventually, he learned that he actually preferred this way of life. For a time, felt what it was to be "happy". Regill knows he's a good-for-nothing rascal and he lets his travel companions know that if push comes to shove, he will likely abandon them to their fate (and he expects them to do the same). He feels happier and comfortable when he's surrounded with characters who pursue their own goals.When playing games, Regill cheats so much that it becomes an entirely different game. For an example, while playing cards with Patches, both keep calling each other out and exaggerating their indignation. It's all in good fun though, because as soon as the game is done they're back to being friends 🤝🤝
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Positive traits 🔹 & Negative traits 🔸
| ✓ Very resourceful and clever | ✘ Cheats in every game he plays, will pretend to be offended if you catch him |
|---|---|
| ✓ Skillful user of Blackflame | ✘ Enjoys robbing and stealing |
| ✓ You can always count on him to save himself | ✘ Will abandon his comrades to their fate if something dangerous happens |
| ✓ Cool tempered, it's very difficult to make him angry | ✘ Complacent and a coward |
| ✓ Sweet talker | ✘ Lies a lot |
| ✓ Surprisingly good at cheering people up | ✘ He is not above cowering, or licking someone's boots if it means they will have mercy on him |
| ✓ Curious and likes learning new things | ✘ Easily bored, might betray you if working together stops being exciting |
Regill's story
Regill was always a crass character with the typical bearings of a bandit, even while he lived as a servant in his Master's lavish home in Leyndell. His earliest memories are of him being a Page after his Master saved him from a life on the streets. Though Regill wasn't „saved“ as much as he was „bought“- his lord only choosing beautiful servants to walk side by side with them. He submitted to this position, never lacking food, rest, or interesting books to read. To him, the concepts of right and wrong were always just drummed up noise. But nonetheless, Regill never truly „liked it“. He hated this boring life and worked up a desire to become a royal archivist in the Golden Order, earning enough rank and runes to buy himself out of his Master's service. But while researching the topic of Outer Gods, Regill becomes interested in „Sin“, so much that he briefly even forgot his goal. Ironically, the research of this topic causes the Order to lose interest in him, and Regill loses his chance to buy his freedom. Even worse, he is sent to work on the fringes of the kingdom as a „Confessor“ and even after fulfilling his duty, he'd simply be returned to his master to continue working as a Page. Regill thought it was tedious to go there, but he also thought it was tedious to try rebelling. He would spend several months working as a Confessor... smirking at the irony fate brought down on him.Then one day, the camp where he rested alongside troops of the Golden Order got raided overnight- by none other than the dark invaders who serve the Lord of Blood. Soon, every member of the camp found themself tied together and lined up like cattle, while their new „owners“ determined how they will be sacrificed. Driven to desperate limits by fear, Regill threw himself at the feet of the nobles, kissing them and begging them to be put into service rather than killed. Bemused, they put a kriss into his trembling hands, with clear intentions. They wanted to judge his willingness to aid the Mohg Dynasty. Nobody could say who was more terrified on that day. The victims whose blood flowed, or the frightened Regill reflected in their eyes. Ever since then, he was a member of the cult. There was a strength to sticking together with them, and as long as somebody else was sacrificed- that was another day added to his life. As he became used to this twisted daily existence, Regill found himself with enough spare time to resume his studies on „Sin“, and this time, in the tombs in Limgrave he found Blackflame- it almost felt like a reward for all the loathsome decisions he made in life. He even became complacent with feeling shame. But Regill couldn't help but feel like the world was poking fun of him. The thing he was searching for all this time, was already there. "Sin" became his companion and his destiny.
⋘ 𝑙𝑜𝑎𝑑𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑑𝑎𝑡𝑎... ⋙
Full name ┊ Segment 113, Balthazar (Zaro)
Age ┊ Over 300 years old
Voice claim ┊Pip Torrens, voice of "Varre" from Elden Ring
Gender/Pronouns ┊ Male / he,him
Height/weight ┊ 250 cm (8'2'') / 180 kg (396 lbs)
Occupation ┊ Dottore Segment in charge of investigating the Irminsul
Job activities ┊ Creating new artificial species, Irminsul memory dives, Irminsul scraping & analysis, “Garden” expansion and maintenance, species culling, researching connection between Fate and dreams, Human dreams research, Teyvat biology research, Research of the Teyvat planar realm
Birthday ┊ Doesn't know, he doesn't even count his segment years he is just broadly aware of them
Favorite time/weather ┊ Clear and sunny, noon
Favorite activity ┊ Teasing others by messing with their perception of the real world, resting upside-down, working on "The Garden", resource collection
Favorite foods ┊ Honey, Collected sap from the Divine Tree, Irminsul sap, Blood, Strong alcohols, Poisons & toxic brews, Irminsul-based creatures, Monsters, Salads, Rotting fruit, Sweet cake
His emoji ┊🦗
Ship name ┊ Zarotto🦗🔪
Ship dynamic ┊ Enemies > LoversCharacter alignment ┊ Neutral Evil
Nicknames, titles and aliases ┊ Dark Fey, Lord of Locusts, Fey Prime, Imperator Fey, Achaterosom and Sidhe Fae
Likes ┊ His Garden, his lab, watching humans go about their day, smelling blooming gardens, light sources, climbing things, heat, rare artifacts and baubles, precious curios, talking to his imprisoned Aranara, gorging himself, receiving compliments, being called “master” or “excellency”, ordering people around, coming up with creative insults, coming up with pet names, rhyming things, doing maintenance on his Garden, teleporting around, teasing people, when someone listens to him complain, being offered the food that he likes (You can literally gift him poison and he will love it), tempting people, working alone, using his abilities to sow confusion, instilling fake memories, Sumeru’s lush jungles, turning people into furniture, watching people eat foodDislikes ┊ Glass doors, closed windows, walking (He’s not used to pretending to be human & his body feels very heavy in his true form), rolled up newspapers, water, anything that kills bugs (it can’t kill him, but it makes him deeply disturbed), when he accidently destroys something because of his big body, being spied on, being hunted, having neighbours or visitors, when someone tries to be his friend, when he isn’t being listened to, feeling responsible, when someone tries to find out his “precious secrets”, Prime, physical touch makes him shiver, seas and rivers, combat & fighting
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✧Some character quotes✧- "Don't fret, my pet."- "Ke ke ke... don't worry your little head, my ssssweet." (Pinches your cheek with his clawed hand)- "...Eating poisoned fruit and getting lost where you don't belong? What a naughty child!"- "Kssss.... lookss like you weren't a worthlesss sskunk after all!"- "I'm sssssorry." (He hissed nonchalantly) "I helped myself to your thingssss, ke ke ke-"- „What is this nonssssense that I am looking at, exactly? And who are you? SSSSSPEAK!"- „Hmmm. You don't look like much.“︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶
✧Fun facts ✎. . . . . . . .He really loves poisonous and rotten food. If he invites you to a tea party, make sure your desserts aren’t poisoned (You’re out of luck if it’s rotten though, that’s the whole menu). It’s not that he wants to kill you, he literally just gave you the same food he’s having. He rarely spares a thought for others so unfortunate events often happen to his guests.His inner voice also speaks with a hiss.His pincers often move subconsciously, constantly tittering and twitching while he talks or rests in monster form. His sharp teeth are venomous, too.He is very annoyed with the constraints of human beings. Especially because he has to adhere to them when he dons his “glamour” to go trading with humans. He’d feel most comfortable standing on the side wall or the ceiling but instead he has to fit in and “crawl on the ground” like everyone else.Zaro doesn’t faint normally. Instead, he curls up like a dead insect and it becomes impossible to interact with him until he has regained his composure. He looks the same way when he sleeps (His legs are stiff and curled up, he looks really dead).
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Positive traits 🔹 & Negative traits 🔸
| ✓ Pragmatic and insatiably curious | ✘ Dangerously violent, can't control his urges because of his mutation |
|---|---|
| ✓ Self-reliant | ✘ Projects his problems on others |
| ✓ Interested in helping others break free from negative relationships | ✘ Has rigid expectations |
| ✓ Has a vast array of special abilities | ✘ Doesn't want to get close to anyone |
| ✓ His extra limbs make him a decent surgeon | ✘ Extremely gluttonous |
| ✓ Can be negotiated with. If he gets to have his way, he'll let you go | ✘ Kidnaps travellers for his experiments or fools them into doing his bidding |
| ✓ Cautious and observant | ✘ Very inconsiderate |
Zaro's story
Zaro is one of the earliest Segments ever made by Dottore. He was created during the „Segment trials“, using prototype blueprints and procedures that could be pushed to the extremes because of an already low success rate. Dottore was still developing clone technology and it was a chance to glean as much knowledge as possible without wasting precious resources. One of those „mistakes“ was Balthazar. But unlike the other test subjects, he was functional and useful enough to be kept alive. Balthazar's body was highly prone to mutation from the start so he had to learn a habit of administering suppresants to keep himself sane and in human shape. Seeing what happened to the others, Balthazar became depressed and grew to hate his creator. When it was finally possible for him to perform his own research (He was sent to study the Irminsul in Sumeru), he used his abilities and the World Tree to create a special planar realm to hide and broke all contact.He stopped taking his medicine, hoping that all the mutations would kill him and put an end to his story. Unfortunately, they didn't and he simply became stuck as a monster. His transformation made him even less willing to go outside, and he fell into the danger of starving to death. His hunger grew along his cumbersome body and he experienced extreme hunger pains. Then he created one of his first accomplishments, the „Glamour“ that lets him seemingly resemble a normal human being, more or less. Since then he kept visiting human settlements to trade and listen to them. He spent 300 years living like this, until he finally perfected the Garden. It was no longer just a hiding place, but also a decent research hub. Ironically, he still carries out his maker's directive simply because he can't resist his curiosity. This new resident gave rise to many rumours in Sumeru. Especially the ones about a mad scientist, and travelers who keep going missing.
Stories
Archive
Archive
Diary of Balthazar: Discarded Monster 🦋
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's (Dottore Segments) from Genshin Impact!
Fairies are too often depicted as idealized humans with very little changes to their anatomy. What if there was a fairy that leaned more to an insect than a human? What if we had to deal with a monstrous trickster?More than a hundred years ago, Dottore sought to scrutinize the Irminsul’s secrets. An opportunity presented itself when he met the Kabukimono and whose betrayal led him into cooperation with the Fatui. The boy joined his grand project as ‘Scaramouche’, and experiment after experiment, he became well acquainted with the qualities of his body. This brought forth an excellent idea: creating segments that are just as smart and capable as him.Using branches of the Irminsul as raw material, he would make doubles that can conduct their own research. The things that constrain life would no longer apply to him, at least not as much. Their unique perspectives would help him along his goal of elevating humans to the level of gods. But the problem was, he still lacked the lost art. Puppet-making was a Khaenriah technology that was sunk in the abyss far beyond his reach. Instead he had to rely on Scaramouche as the foundational blueprint. There was a lot of potential and a lot to refine. The process proved to be perilous, and Dottore decided not to squander his best materials on early prototype segments. Instead, he decided to use the opportunity to its fullest. This was just going to be another experiment.The results were many corpses and artificial horrors. Dottore ended up orchestrating his own birth and death for hundreds of times. Each success was a marvel, but not enough by his standards. One of them was a radical attempt at researching Ley lines and dreams. He created an abominable segment by the name of “Balthazar” who couldn’t seem to stop mutating. But there was a lot of value in his unique body, so he was allowed to continue existing. Since then, Dottore perfected his segments which makes Balthazar almost a living relic.--“Balthazar” or “Zaro” was made to draw elemental energies from the ley lines, and knows more about Irminsul than any other segment. He is a partially bionic fey. Not to be mistaken with fairies who live in Snezhnaya, this creature was more like something out of a storybook.Zaro can absorb and regulate the harmful elemental energies inside him, which is enabled by his unstable genetic structure. Because he was made with the purpose of studying the Irminsul, his body is under constant psionic charge, making his temperament volatile and prone to anger. Sometimes when too much energy courses through his body, his emotions become impassioned and euphoric. His anger is powerful enough to alter the appearance of his Domain (His main research lab) or outside weather. His servants fear him as they tend to get eaten. It became very hard to keep Zaro's sanity in this combined form.The bionic implants in his body used to help him prevent his own mutation (“used to” being the operative word). It was a fight against his unstable genetic structure. But, he purposefully neglected administering the anti-mutagens (He was depressed) and this eventually transformed him into what he is now. His mind went half-way into primal form, and his brilliance became muddled. This is why some of his experiments sometimes straight up make no sense, or lead nowhere. Since Zaro's own cognition was damaged by the mutation, he must consciously fight to keep his urges from overpowering his thought processes.Every week he has to submerge himself into elemental energies and undergo a form of "cryosleep". This is done to preserve all data he acquired, and while unconscious he's unable to defend himself. For that reason his chambers are well-hidden beneath a tapestry of dreams. Sometimes, while he sleeps, Aranara gather around and watch him.Zaro feels a stronger connection to his past than most other segments. Mostly because memories and feelings flow freely across the fabric of time inside the World Tree. For him this is a very complicated and personal experience. A long time ago, the original Dottore used to personify a force of nature. He was rejected by his own kind and by humans alike. Although this happened hundreds of years ago, because of Irminsul's unique relationship with memories, he feels the wounds of rejection as if they were fresh from yesterday. He hopes to find comfort and consolation in his achievements while making sense of the world and his place in it.Dottore wanted to create an artificial fairy, but what he truly created is a monster.--The apparent age of his body (or rather what is left of it after mutation went through) is approximately 25, even though his real age is closer to 300. He inherited a clear arcane affinity from his precursor model, and bears the code name "Achaterosom" which is how Dottore Prime refers to him. His great likeness to the World Tree lets him influence the perception of living beings (something that Dottore has perfected since). This is why Zaro can project a human-like appearance into the minds of other segments and those who perceive him.However, despite that he’s one of the least human segments, Zaro still possesses human qualities. The strongest ones are self awareness and jealousy. His bestial nature made those traits even more pronounced. Because of his make, he is extremely aware of the “otherness” that all Dottore segments must deal with. For that reason he even considered using his abilities to make himself invisible. But instead he settled on a glamour(A spell used by fairies to blend in with humans).It’s an illusion made possible by a powerful connection to the Irminsul. But, the illusion isn't perfect- Because of mutation, Zaro lost some of his cognitive capacity. He can't help but sometimes think like an insect, and he cannot fully focus on „being human“. That is why even his illusion bears visible insect characteristics, and when he walks, he can't help but tiptoe- pretending to walk like a human is hard since his legs in his true form just don't work that way.This human form has a flamboyant style that borders on tacky. His fangs stick out on the left side of his mouth, his insect chitin is disguised as „black armor“ on his arms, and his body fur appears as a "wearable fur coat". His antennae are still visible, and he towers at 250 cm height, far above most other segments and normal humans (His huge height is an inspiration I took from Lady Dimitrescu, because I really enjoy the idea of Zaro needing to squeeze through doors or being able to pick up other segments and carry them). While having the glamour spell on, Zaro's voice sounds fruity and slightly coarse. And in his true form, it's a grating scowl and when he’s upset, he hisses with irritation, and his voice has a growing trill. It's possible to feel the ominous droning vibrations go through your body.The idea of his glamour is look more friendly and relatable, but he’s often frightening instead. His teeth are sharp and venomous, and he does actually consider eating some of his allies at first.--... It also doesn’t help that he really likes walking upside down. When he rests in his home, he's mostly resting on the ceiling. Since he is an insect by a good part, Zaro also cannot resist wonderfully smelling gardens. He's keen on flowers, and a part of him really wants to stick his face into them regardless of how much it blows his cover.
His habits also give him away. Zaro can't shake the habit of rubbing his hands together while in human disguise (like cleaning his forelegs and antennae) nor can he resist instinctively wanting to climb things, like walls, tables, and rooftops. He also can't resist street lights... or lamps. His nature tells him to stand near light sources. And his movements also tend to be very fast and abrupt. For example, instead of normally turning his head to see you, his head would snap in your direction. His rapid movement means that he basically jolts from one gesture to another.When startled, he may behave exactly like a disturbed grasshopper. He’ll leap off into a wall, or fall on his back. He has no sense of direction while freaking out, and this makes him freak out even more.He also prefers entering houses through windows (Because of his superhuman abilities, two story buildings are no challenge at all), and he hates glass doors. Being around them makes him feel... inferior (Insert flashback of Zaro repeatedly ramming into the door as he's trying to leave a meeting) and "bugs hit the glass because they do not have the intellectual capacity to realize they are hitting an obstacle and should attempt to pass another way".Zaro is sometimes ignorant of the effect of his otherworldly abilities towards humans he wants to interact with, ignoring the laws of his world and theirs. This sometimes results in „guests“ being trapped for seven years in his realm when they all thought they were simply visiting.--
There are many baubles and rare artifacts in his Domain. He’s very fond of them, even if he doesn’t use them. He may offer them in exchange for something valuable, or as a gift for sealing deals with him. He still has his prickly personality, and is hard to get along with, but you may be able to buy some time to talk to him if you get him rare kinds of tea. Zaro also loves recieving porcelain as gifts (He is very much like a swamp hag). When he isn’t overwhelmed, he has a fruity personality and he likes to speak in a condescending tone. He manages to pull that off while sounding like he's doting on you at the same time. He speaks in a honeyed way, often saying things like „Ohh,yes“ or „Mm, yes“. His manner of speech is reminiscient of a fey who invites travelers into their house and gifts them suspicious sweets. His voice is full of subtle voice cracks. He speaks like a doting grandmother. When he laughs, he sometimes shrieks in a high-pitched, raspy laugh that may sound startling.He also has this quirk where he calls everything heroic and adorable, no matter how much it tries to kill him: „Ah you're so adorable when you're angry like that“ or „I'm going to make you cute and adorable“ before turning you into an abominable monster.His appetite is monstrous, it’s obscene how much he will eat. At one point when he hung out with another segment, he arranged for a massive table to be filled with food and delights from all across Teyvat. The table was positively stacked with food and desserts. But while talking and chit-chatting his guest, Zaro ended up eating everything by himself, including one of his courtiers.Over time he accumulated a number of fearsome titles: Dark Fey, Lord of Locusts, Fey Prime, Imperator Fey, Achaterosom or Sidhe Fae.He moved into Sumeru and drove out many of the original Aranara. He often imprisons them in cages and uses them as a source of light across his laboratories. In some cases, he even uses their life energy to power his experiments. He is also known to try and influence outsiders to do his bidding. Folk tales used to say that Fairies carry away souls of those unfortunate to meet them, and in the case of this mad scientist, that is definitely true. Travelers, musicians and adventurers snatched away never to be seen. They must entertain Zaro to avoid becoming his food, food for his minions or spare parts for his experiments. He is a mad scientist after all.In his Domain, he has a bunch of "courtiers" who serve him, either as ‘servants to a lord’ (What Zaro deems himself to be) or lab assistants. They are exclusively his former test subjects and are monsters themselves. They refer to him as "lord", "master" or "excellency". Zaro is very fond of insulting them in creative ways (It's an inspiration of fairies being rude). He'd call them blithering fools, cackanded dimwits, oafish vermin, feckless dolts and so on. Also, he’s often possessed by an instinct to make things rhyme.The name of his secret domain (and main lab) is Feywild Fane. In other instances, it is sometimes refered to by other characters as "The Garden". It's a carefully crafted interplanar realm, a place where Zaro can perform his experiments or hide from danger. This place is an intricate tapestry of dreams, crafted by Zaro using the World Tree in the way only he knows how. Here he can effortlessly swim through the air, ignoring gravity and his cumbersome body. The residents of the Garden are typically dangerous, depending on which layer of the plane you are exploring. The deeper you go into the Garden, the more dangerous it gets. Like Zaro, they are also monsters- and they very much share his gluttony. You chance to run into awakened plants, treants in the canopy or fey hounds, and each encounter may well end up being your last.--His powers include putting living beings to sleep with certain sound frequencies, or by using the dust from his wings. He can trick people into making dangerous deals with him and place illusions into the minds of mortals. As an elemental being, Zaro has a fair grip over natural forces. He can freeze water around you or shroud you in mist and send you back home.One of his abilities include teleportation. Whenever he is in an environment rich with ley line energy, Zaro can harness his special affinity and teleport around. Popping up behind your back while talking with you is his favorite thing to do. His other ability is to "curse" a person into being affected with whatever he drinks or eats. So, he can sip down on powerful alcohols and it will be the other who becomes drunk. He can also change the appearance of objects at will, and he sometimes uses this to play tricks on others for his own fun. Such as making items invisible, or making one item appear as a different one. The fact that he constantly regulates harmful Ley Line energies within his body, means he has no use for a vision of any kind.But he doesn’t just grant curses. Sometimes, he uses the power of the World Tree to close deals or offer wishes. Imagine wishing something from a fairy, and instead of an adorable little pixie, you're visited by a large, towering insect fiend. You may think you're signing up for a simple deal, but you end up trading away your limbs, becoming a test subject- or ending up being turned into one of his "courtiers" bound to serve him until the end of eternity.Be careful what you wish for!︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶
Notes:
- I took a lot of inspiration from malevolent fairies, who would enjoy snatching mortals away into their realms, forcing them to become their spouses or servants (or in Zaro's case, test subjects). I feel like it's a great match for a mad scientist!
- Zaro is also inspired by "Hags"! Especially how he pampers his victims with pet names, and draws a wide smile (while hiding his sharp teeth) and urges you to do something very dangerous. He has a doting and kindly vibe, almost like a grandmother showering her grandchild with love. Zaro is definitely more of a "doting old grandparent" and less of a suave charmer.
- But most of all? He is a bloodthirsty fey creature that wants you for his experiments. Before you know it, you'll be sucking on poisoned apples.
- Zaro sometimes has nightmares of rolled up newspapers, slippers and bug spray. Zaro also despises going into water. He definitely can swim, but in most cases he will simply refuse going into any water that is beyond knee-depth. He will just grumble and stand there.
- When making him I took inspiration from the Grig fairy, Hags, Scorrow and Driders (especially the part about losing sanity on the account of their transformation)
- He "delights in corrupting purity & beauty" visually, this works even better because he's a bug, more specifically a locust associated with corruption.
Diary of Balthazar: Intertwining branches of Fate
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's (Dottore Segments) from Genshin Impact!
... Ever since the day of their creation, the segments worked hard to obtain information in their respective fields. They've been brought to life from the very essence of Dottore himself, his own body- and became his way of seeing the world with new eyes.The genius has eliminated the cost of just sticking to one path, and while this was largely beneficial, there has been some friction between different units of segments. Each possessing the temperament of the „original Dottore“ there would be arguments, and sometimes things would even come down to blows... There's even been a fair share of deaths caused by none other but the segments going after their own. But there was one of them that stood out- he wanted to play no part in it. His name was “Epsilon”- and he was one of the rare few who willingly stuck to the main objective that the scientist willed for his segments. He could mostly be seen in Prime's company. He looked up to him, knowing that the first “Omega” build was modelled after the scientist in his prime age, and greatly appreciated his mental acumen and mild mannered character. He'd carefully note down each of his words, and would execute his plans with great care.Prime knew how to steer other segments towards a common goal, and Epsilon appreciated that. He was fuelled with a desire to accurately represent the wishes of the "original Dottore", and being surrounded with temperamental segments he understood well what it meant to be fed up with their constant arguments.On one occasion while they worked together, Prime briefly mentioned some of his old projects. About the one time he had been tasked with segment creation. He had the opportunity to contribute in creation of his other self, watching as something new emerges from the broken pieces.Dottore was cloning himself to see what he'd need to see, perhaps, how to not end up where he did. Epsilon thought about it with almost an envy but also warmth that is rarely seen in "his kind". He was curious- and Prime satisfied him with an answer.Some years ago, Prime had created an exotic segment for the sake of his scientific study. A non-human segment, made out of Dottore's breath, said to contain his restless dreams. The result was extraordinary- a bionic fairy was created. A being capable of surviving alongside Irminsul's Ley lines, living effortlessly among the memories and souls of those that are forever recorded onto the ethereal tree. It was an extraordinary opportunity to tap into new knowledge. Unfortunately, all contact was lost. Prime smirks- perhaps on purpose. The segment in question stopped delivering reports about the Irminsul, inevitably delaying some of Prime's own progress.This could not be permitted to continue.Epsilon frowned upon hearing this. He wished that all segments took their jobs seriously as he had a poor experience with a particular segment who did whatever he pleased. After some deliberation, Prime turned towards his assistant. „You know, this is a relationship that I could mend. I would much favour it over coming to blows... and perhaps something will come of this for you too. You are a most trusted assistant to me, thus I will leave you with this task".Prime turned his head towards Epsilon, saying: „I will send you to meet him“ with a melodic tone that almost couldn't be ignored. "Of course" Epsilon replied- "it would be my pleasure to aid you". His heart began to beat more strongly at the thought of helping someone whom he'd served and admired for so many years.--With a short bow, Epsilon excused himself from Prime's study. And in less than a week later, he found himself on board the "Narchillian", a mercantile vessel in possession of the Fatui.On his way to the destined meeting, he couldn't help but feel excited. And anxious. He was interested in seeing this exotic segment with his own eyes, even though he feared he might meet a madman instead. He was tired of men who embrace sheer depravity in pursuit of knowledge. Soon he felt his body ache as a result of change in climate. They were drawing near.His gaze falls down, onto his limbs. These mechanical hands that resist him, they are both his burden and pride. Vague memories flew through Epsilon's mind. It was of someone else, who also could have been "him", but in a different way. It was as if these memories were experienced by someone else, but perhaps it would be better to address them as "feelings" rather than distinct events. It was like trying to recall a dream- and it was a bad one.The gentle swaying of the ship, and scents of the sea carried by the wind accompany Epsilon's ruminations. But this peace, or rather- emptiness is quickly dispelled, as one of the Fatui crewmen loudly assert that the harbor is within sight. And there it was, a sprawling new area, filled with new faces. The Fatui set into motion, and Epsilon was left to carry out his task. But, his curiosity overpowered him and he ventured further inland. Beckoned by something that was at the time unknown to him. It was like he set his foot off a boat and into a land of fairies from children’s tales. The open plains with meadows and forests stirred something pure inside of him, it was happiness. But also loads of pollen- too much of it. Epsilon leaned back and sneezed so loudly that Prime could almost hear him back in Snezhnaya.He reached his robotic hand out to an uncanny damselfly fluttering around him. It landed elegantly on his open palm. The insect looked at him with near-conscious intellect, before darting off in an unknown direction. Were all insects in Sumeru this way?--The flow of Ley line energies was particularly strong that day.It was something that Epsilon didn’t notice, but it was subtly working to lower his guard. Such was the nature of Sumeru, which borders between the real world and intricate layers of fantasy....Or perhaps a conscious, malevolent force. As Epsilon pushed on with his quest, he found himself near Mawtiyima Forest. This place was an object of stories about mortals encountering supernatural phenomena. Ordinarily, this wouldn’t mean anything special. There is plenty of places in Teyvat with myths tied to them. But with the special intel he could only receive from Prime, Epsilon knew this was a good starting point. Any domain entrances in this area would regularly become corrupted.As he walked through the forest, Epsilon played out the events from his day as a way of passing the time. But soon, he felt that it was hard for him to concentrate. The elemental energies dispelled his thoughts and gave him terrible weariness. He felt drowsy, and his feet were weak. Suddenly, the mist around him thickened, confining Epsilon to his nearest surroundings. Something huge jumped next to him in muffled sound, but for whatever reason, he couldn’t keep his attention fixed.Where are the enemies? Who are they? And why is it so hard to keep my thoughts?Epsilon assumed a combat ready stance, despite his deteriorating strength- "Who are you?? Show yourselves! I hope you know what you're messing with!"But instead of meeting him face to face, an unfamiliar voice rose up in his thoughts, spreading with a hiss: "This issssss a good place to rest... why don't you lay those weary limbs low..."These invasive, droning thoughts were difficult to shake off, which gave Epsilon an increasingly alarming feeling. The ground kept getting softer beneath his feet with each step taken, he felt his eyelids growing heavier, and his body became increasingly hard to move. But he didn't want to rest. These weren't the mechanical components acting up, but Epsilon quickly losing his consciousness.Each of his blinks felt like they lasted longer than the last one, and before he could realize he was more than six feet in the air!Epsilon watched his feet dangle beneath him. And then he spotted sharp, rake-like feet. Definitely not human. Has he slipped into a nightmare? As Epsilon slowly lifted his gaze, he became filled with an equal measure of terror and wonderment. The creature spoke with indignation - "Omega sssssends his spawn to investigate me! The nerve! Heed my wordsssss, this is my private ssssanctuary! I won't tolerate sssselfish intrusion. He can keep his fingers to himself!" - The insect growled and hissed, upset that another Dottore segment trot upon his concealed domain, surely to find out its treasured secrets.His voice boomed with flamboyance and pride. But Epsilon doesn’t even hear the insane fairy segment’s ramblings, despite the spit that is flying everywhere.His eyes curiously rested on Zaro’s legs. What is he, really? Epsilon perhaps expected to see a strange number of fingers, or perhaps even a horn or two.But the being in front of him was not as much of a monstrous scientist—as it was a monster with intelligence. Its humanity was as questionable as it was lacking. Then, a claw pointed at his face.--"Hissss... Your master should have known I’m fairly unwilling to share my secrets. Perhaps now that you have seen me, my cover is well and truly blown." Epsilon's attention snapped back to Zaro. His emotions were so intense, and the ley lines so powerful in the Mawityima forest (if they were even in the same location anymore) that the feelings of the two began blending into one another. Epsilon understood Zaro’s recklessness and pride, but also learned that Prime broke his heart. He felt powerful, vengeful emotions, and unreadable monster instincts, such as "hurt" and "kill". These last words sent cold chills through his body, and he hoped that the rational side of his captor's mind would overpower the instinctual one.The demonic segment resumed- “Prime only wants us to complete his objectives. He wants us to be mere tools! This isn’t what Dottore should be... he should be free, unrestrained... like a firestorm that rages through the land, carving it’s presence upon the face of the world. The whole world will know the one it rejected... and it will crave him back!”Zaro leaned into Epsilon with a conspiratorial smile. His grin became predatory, his wings began to flutter. “I can hear your thoughtsss” ... “Why can’t I break free, if only my limbs were stronger♫” Zaro repeats the words in Epsilon's voice. A wild, wicked laughter whipped across his mind.“What if I gave you better ones, fully functional monster limbssssss?... a world of ssensory delights will open itself before you. I will even give you some of my monsters to play with”. Through their shared consciousness, Epsilon could feel that Zaro’s words were not lies- the gift of mutation wouldn’t hinder, or degrade him. But it’s purpose was to spoil.Epsilon would have returned home, having failed his mission and being tampered with by the one who openly renounced Prime. It was the humor of a wicked fairy, drenched in debauchery and vice. Epsilon felt his will waver for a moment, but he remained steadfast. Zaro scoffed, becoming overly aware of his own constitution - "You would refuse the gift of mutation? ... But why sssshould I merely let you go? Oh, If only you knew the kindssss of experiments that can be produced on a segment! Your massssster was proud of what he created, too. Well. Allow me to demonstrate some of the more impressssssive effects of my power-"The towering insect reaches his clawed hand out towards Epsilon, peering into his mind and picking through his memories, looking for something that he may use. But the segment resisted, dropping all complicated thoughts and focusing on one important thing.Within him gathers all the powerful motive force that stands behind love- but also helplessness, loyalty and courage. Even if his Ruin guard parts impede him, they are a symbol of something important- which he accepted a long time ago. This was something that no foreign power could bend or twist. The demon insect brushed through Epsilon's mind, but he didn't find any traces of lies, or plots conceived against him. Only unwavering loyalty, and love towards Prime.Epsilon has successfully resisted the attempt.--Zaro now looks at his intruder, who appears to be at peace with himself. The segment's slow breathing quells the bionic fey's wrath. He grows silent and then he raises Epsilon’s chin, speaking to him from a short distance. “Hmph. It looks like you weren't a worthless skunk after all..." Prime chose well who to send to confront him. He hissed with indignation, and let Epsilon go. Clearly, what he saw in the segment's mind spoiled his mood for feyish jokes. "Forget it! I cannot stand this nonsense about loyalty. If you're not prepared for transformation then so be it! So long! This entire thing has cost me my appetite!"He mumbles towards the young segment one last time: "As for you, Epsilon, you should push such qualities out of your heart it's... it's distasteful". Zaro turned away, but not quickly enough for Epsilon to fail to capture the emotion that was written all over his face.Shortly, Ley energies began wrapping around Epislon's body. The same energies that were making him drowsy earlier. This time they overwhelmed him like a wave, no longer subtly creeping upon him. He tried to resist, but before he knows it- he has been transported back to Prime's lab. Only, he didn't know if he had arrived then or if it was a longer period of time. A growing headache started to thump inside his head, and Epsilon grabbed himself by the temples of his forehead.Then he heard a nearby door open, and another segment entered the room. This was an assistant whom he remembered seeing around Prime, helping out with surgeries. He had a slight stubble now, which was somewhat strange to our Segment. „Segment Epsilon, I thought you were a goner!“ – The assistant gasped, rushing towards him, letting a plate of food fall to the ground. He placed his palm on Epsilon's forehead to see if it's warm. Epsilon now realized that he's in a hospital bed. His eyes widened. The other segment started speaking: „It has been two months since Lord Prime sent you out to Sumeru, then you suddenly appeared out of nowhere! walking from the forest, no less! We were so confused, we didn't know what to do. You were exhausted, and starving. You have slept for three days now. Don't you remember anything?“Has so much time really gone by?"Did this really happen?" Epsilon was rattled, both from the teleportation and from the wild news laid out to him... He was so exhausted that all he could remember was a flutter of wings, and being held above the clouds where the air was fresh, and that his body felt light. The assistant told him that in his sleep, he kept muttering something about „giant insects“ and that wording got him pretty worried about sending future detachments of Fatui to Sumeru...Epsilon laughed.The other segment rubbed his head and seemed confused. In the background, Prime lounged in his chair. His experiment was a success. His exotic creation was not only alive, but also somehow still remained sane, despite the countless mutations wreaking havoc through its body. A monster couldn't think, let alone spare a soul that wandered into its den. Without witnessing „love“- he wouldn't have let Epsilon return home. That is not a judgement that a beast can make. While twirling a vial between his fingers, Prime thought to himself:"...And now... let's leak some of that information. We will allow the others to investigate for their own curiosity. And neither they, nor Zaro- will be able to see they've all been coming from me" He smirked contentedly.Epsilon sat at his work desk at the end of the day. He was resting in the seat and looking at a peculiar flower in his hands. The forget-me-not flower. He handles the fragile bloom gently as the scene slowly fades away into a row of tall, stained glass windows behind him. After all was said and done, he still felt a little bit of admiration for the towering monster.︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶
Notes:
- Thank you for reading! 👋 Epsilon is a Segment who belongs to @theclusterx on Twitter/X !
Diary of Balthazar: Alchemy of New Encounters
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's (Dottore Segments) from Genshin Impact!
... Following one of the segments' fateful run in with Zaro several months prior, rumors began circulating across segment-operated labs.The whispers in their circles spoke of an artificial fairy whose body mutated thanks to an affinity for the ever-changing Irminsul. Something more akin to a creature, rather than an individual. Prime has been trickling information through the grapevine, and like any fast travelling gossip the stories became more ridiculous with each new story told. Some stories held that the fey could breathe fire, lift objects with its mind or that a drop of its venom could kill twenty Sumpter beasts.... Twenty what?All of a sudden, a powerful blast ripped a metal door out of its hinges. As the iron doors' mighty wings fell to the ground, a whimsical voice grew louder and louder, just beyond the wall of smoke."Hohoho! What's this about a powerful venom?? I could use something like that in my studies! What's a mad scientist without questionable extraplanar demonic extractions in his lab! hohoho!"He smiled atop the sundered door, his sinister grin shining from ear to ear. This was Segment Iota, and lab sized explosions were not an unusual event for him. Blackened walls, and flakes of ash stirred through the air as Iota tilted a flask containing remnants of a suspicious green liquid upside down, first licking it's opening and then rattling it next to his ear only to confirm it's all been spent.At first he seemed dissapointed, but then he tucked the glassware into his vest. Like a bolt of lightning, he jumped forward, leaving behind him a familiar scene of an alchemical experiment gone wrong. It's quite fine. He has a sizeable force of minions to do his bidding and cleaning. He cannot be bothered with paltry stuff, especially with such fantastical rumours abound! Iota knew that there was no time to waste. His resources were running low on supply (As a result of overly vigorous scientific testing, and nothing at all to do with an innocent desire to see things explode). When a dangerous adventure beckoned you to answer its call, Iota knew to answer back shouting. It's already been decided.--With a vigor rarely seen in Dottore segments, Iota grabbed the wings of his wardrobe, swinging them wide open.From there, he took out a comically large suitcase. He tossed it onto his bed and it opened with a snap. He was so deep in his wardrobe that his legs could be barely seen sticking outside. First he throws out meaningless clutter such as towels, blankets (Even his own clothes). Then he gets his hands on wrenches, sawsblades, needles. That wardrobe must be deep indeed! Without looking, Iota manages to fling them all right into the suitcase. Even some nonsensical objects that Iota deems absolutely necessary for the journey to Sumeru such as, the purple wind-up ballerina doll. With a swing of his arm, the toy also finds its place among the supplies. At some point, he pauses. He's looking at a crowbar. A rather sensible item. But says "nah" and throws it into the back, where he heard the yelp of an unfortunate Fatui soldier caught in the wrong place at the wrong time.Iota's minions have already gotten used to their master's adventurous whims. It wasn't the first time a box, a shovel or a knife came flying towards someone's head.As Prime had predicted, Iota was an excited and deeply curious segment who couldn't resist the lull of risky and dangerous enterprise. If presented with something interesting and new, he would take initiative.He smirked. No coaxing necessary. As for him, it would be an excellent way to gain more information without making direct contact. Segment Iota studied poisons and potent alchemical brews. His materials -must- include exotic items of all kind. Livers and viscera of adeptal beasts, and tears of beings thought to have been long extinct. A vial of poison, or a scraping of a fey creature's wing would feel right at home. It really doesn't get more special than a Harbinger whose clone has mutated himself to the point of becoming a monster. When such a unique opportunity hangs in the air, it must be seized with every limb available. Segments competed with each other in their scientific goals, and Iota will surely be proud to share some of his finds. And in the end, Prime will make sure that he is properly rewarded for his initiative.... Before departing for Sumeru, Iota was intercepted by Epsilon, who warned him against desire to go searching into the unknown. He informed him of unstoppable body transformations that led to Zaro's loss of cognition. That the creature he encountered that day posessed a devious, and fragmented mind. It's not something to be taken lightly. What he is about to meet is dangerous, unpredictable and it certainly isn't "fun". All giddy, Iota told him to relax, that "he's got it" (he pulled up his sleeve, and flexed his muscles at Epsilon to which the latter rolled his eyes). Iota reminded him that he is a Harbinger as well and that he's more than capable of protecting himself.--Iota took a detour through Fontaine, where he rounded up some soldiers and fellow researchers from the ranks of the Fatui. Promised with amazing treasures and being allowed to keep what they find, the researchers sign up eagerly for the adventure. Equipped with fabulous inventions and portable equipment, they make their way to the capital of Sumeru.In the following days, the trek into the nation's wildlands prove to be exhausting and dangerous. Their expedition was rarely left alone. Always attacked by wild animals and hilichurls, it felt as if the land almost didn't want them to be there. It was a superstitious belief and yet almost palpably true.Somewhere hidden in a domain, deep beneath the layers of dreams Zaro laid still in his chamber, submerged inside conductive fluid. He saw and heard all of the ridiculous rumors told about himself. He was angry, and that anger manifested through the climate that Iota's expedition had to bear.The Fatui who had to fend off the attacks from the wildlife were too busy to even consider that. When Iota and his underlings finally arrived to a suitable destination, they were so tired that they simply pass out. Stacked on top of each other like sardines. Iota leaped onto a massive fallen tree and stood with his feet wide open and his arms spread wide. He scanned the environment, looking for any points of interest. After taking out a dubious-looking scanner from Fontaine, he decided that this is the place. They will set up a temporary workshop, paired with objectives within the camp. The staff won't be idling by while the hunt for the renegade segment carries on."This is fieldwork, not vacation, get to work you worms!"- he croaked at the top of his lungs.--The camp was bustling with the Fatui Iota recruited, while he retreated to his tent to oversee the remaining preparations. He was ready for all sorts of contingents. Animal attacks, a sudden encounter with the Traveler- anything.It had all been neatly laid out on the map which he scribbled out with pencils (Colored ones, you're damned right). The scope of his preparation should not be underestimated because of it's jovial nature. Iota had the whole place under non-stop surveillance. Cleverly designed alarm systems from Fontaine were there to detect anyone or anything that isn't part of his team. Nothing could slip through his fingers.With the temporary camp set up and installations in full operation, some of the Fatui questioned Iota about the nature of this job. Meanwhile, Iota was carefully mixing poisons at his desk, looking at his minions through the flasks. He asked them what's wrong, bearing his usual smile: "Getting cold feet already, Anton?" he asked with such a mischevious tone it could be interpreted as mocking - "Not at all, Lord Harbringer we just..." - "We are on the cusp of finding something amazing!" (Iota interrupted him) "Think about it. Don't you want to bring a worthy trophy back to Snezhnaya? Something you could sell at an exorbitantly high price at the black markets in Fontaine?" (He grabbed the underling by their collar, and forced them to the table). "A wing, a feeler. A leg. That alone would be more worth than your meagre life. If you wish to be of actual use, quit pestering me. Or else" (He threw one of his flasks on the floor and the alchemical brew exploded in a glittering silvery smoke) Or else I'm throwing you into the furnace myself." - "Yes sir! Master, we never intended to slight you!" - "H-he means it my lord!" The other underling stepped up for his comrade. "Good" - Iota relaxed and pulled out his knuckles. "Now get to work, and don't come back until you have something for me to research!".Once outside, the underlings looked at eachother with worry: "It looks like the master is really not letting go of this one" - "No, he won't be. And by the look of things, we could end up here for months! Lets better hurry then. Not even the loss of limbs will excuse us... For the Harbingers!" The two salute each other and wander off.That is the last time they are seen.--
In the meantime, Iota was so gripped by his search that he started to forget his own basic needs.But there was no trace of the demonic insect and the difficulty of his task started to weigh heavily upon him. His prey escapes him as if teasing him for even daring to try.Iota cursed his luck and returned to the camp to work on another alchemical brew. Because of his frustration, it wasn't coming out quite as it should. But it already had a remarkably sweet, rotting smell. In the evening, Iota aired out his tent to get rid of the odour in question. His experiment has dissapointed him, but without even realizing, Iota has created something that subtly attracts sumeran bees- and other particularly large insects.Iota worked tirelessly through days and nights as his initial excitement about the hunt diminished. He stomped back and forth in his tent. It has been another exhausting day with no promise of adventure. In the midst of all this dissapointment, he failed to notice that his subordinates were going missing in alarming numbers. The segment was too busy with his pursuit to even notice until it became difficult to keep the workshop going.Only then he truly noticed how few of the Fatui were left. The tension in the camp became high. The soldiers were afraid of going to sleep. Something would snatch them in the night, or they would hear screams that they would go investigate... and then vanish just as well. The alarm systems weren't responding how they should have. Iota then realized that they were tampered with, but not how.In reality, Zaro had been sending confused Fatui back to camp after having planted them with fake memories.One of them was implanted with the objective to disarm camp security. To Zaro, it was a great sport to return confused underlings back to their master and eavesdrop on the confusion through the leylines, or watch them lose their way in the jungle and die. This was all possible because Iota was too busy. But even after realizing that his men kept getting captured and robbed of their free will Iota reacted unexpectedly.He was thrilled about the disaster.That same night, Iota stayed up late. It was an eerie night and he was hoping something would happen. The lights shone with full capacity, attracting blood sucking pests from nearby groves. He ordered his remaining staff to kill the lights and wait.Fearful and hesitant, his subordinates put out the last remaining flames while looking over their shoulders and listening for unusual moans of the wind. Nothing happened, as if his target could read his mind and plot ahead of him. Iota decided to turn in for the night, dimming the candle by his bed. But before the smoke could die out, two clawed fingers emerged from the darkness and closed the tiniest flame. It was Zaro.He looked at the sleeping Iota with a wide grin, his sharp mandibles sticking out of his mouth. The insect demon took a deep breath, sucking the putrid scent of Iota's failed alchemical brew into his lungs with great satisfaction.He was not here for Iota. He didn't care for the Segment, and avoiding his band of fools was easy.But the rotting, sweet flavour of his brews was an irresistible elixir for a monster like him. He just wanted its recipe. But he couldn't resist tampering with the Fatui who were stationed there. They were simply too... delectable. Sweet. They were practically begging to be killed.Despite initially avoiding contact, Zaro now felt comfortable enough to approach. After all, no soldiers or scientists would be there to stop him. He grinned with needle-like teeth. It was all mostly thanks to him, and 'somewhat' thanks to the horrors of the jungle. As for the few of the Fatui who remained, Zaro was well acquainted with what would happen to them next. Seemingly flowing out of the Harbinger's tent, his predatory eye fell on the unsuspecting soldier sitting guard beside it. He was tipping back and forth on his seat, on the verge of falling into slumber. Zaro has decided to toy with Iota's underlings some more, before returning to their master, invading his mind and robbing it of the alchemical recipe- and perhaps his remaining sanity as well.--Through the nauseating, restless sleep, Iota woke up in the middle of the night. The high humidity in the air made it hard for him to rest. He felt tired. As if he had a thousand dreams and dawn was nowhere near to come.He decided to walk out of his tent. And finally, on that last day he spotted a familiar figure in the camp.With an apparent state of calm all over and still in the process of waking up, Iota rubbed his sleepy eyes and approached. His first thought was that another segment followed him from afar. Surely here to demand something from him, or even mock him for his failures.He failed to notice that the remaining few soldiers laid in the grass as if struck dead or unconscious. He approached slowly until he saw the segment bring a flask of his brew to his lips. That immediately rattled him awake. It was a highly explosive hyper active Inazuman ore mixed with mercury and picric acid. A spill of a single drop could burn through a wooden table. Iota's eyes widened- but this segment unflinchingly gulped the glowing liquid with as if it was orange juice. As he drank, it sizzled the corners of his mouth. He let out a satisfied groan. Like a traveler walking through a desert being given a glass of water."I'm sssssorry." He hissed nonchalantly - "I helped myself to your thingssss, ke ke ke-" Iota quietly stared with his mouth open as Zaro's mandibles clicked with each laugh."Wow"- he whispered.He was almost ready to hand him another flask from his vest. Just to see what would happen.As light shone from Iota's lamp, the inhuman features of his visitor became more and more apparent (Despite his oh-so-clever human disguise). But, Iota was unable to see through the ruse because his mind had already been charmed. Zaro's single eye blinked at him. It was some biomechanical wonder, a joining of metal and sinew. Zaro stretched his clawed arm out towards Iota, demanding another flask. Thirsty for it. But then, Anton, the last remaining survivor of the camp, manically tugged on his master's shirt. Covered in blood and struck with panic he tried to shout Iota back to his senses before it was too late.
Anton: "Master!! Iota, damn it, can't you see that THING??"Zaro tilted his head and observed Anton intently, with a hint of mockery. He then chirped and agreed, to his horror. Meanwhile, Iota's eyes stopped at the visitor's chest, wondering where that sound was coming from. Is this... normal? - But his last remaining Fatui subordinate was so stubborn that he managed to break him out of passive stupor.Iota finally noticed that his unusual visitor is nearly three meters tall!! The monster's bones snapped as he reclaimed his true form. Iota's eyes opened wide as Zaro loomed over him, his back cracking beneath his cloak like the branches of an ancient tree.Four arms, and four legs sprout from his twisted body, smashing into the ground, with the fingers twitching independently of one another. Zaro lets out a guttural, ominous laugh. Anton runs away screaming-"I WILL NEVER WORK FOR DOTTORE SEGMENTS EVER AGAIN"Zaro: „Aren't you worried for your subordinate? hissss I know where he is headed. I know his type. They don't last very long in the jungle. Hurr hurr hurr hurr..." - His yellow tongue slid across his sharp, needle like teeth. "Not to worry. You will join them soon". His towering shadow rose over Iota. Iota chuckled to himself and admitted he's in danger. After a few seconds passed that felt like an eternity, and to Zaro's surprise- the segment took on a combat stance.He reached for one of the belts around his hips and took out a bomb. He acted on impulse, this was his most familiar course of action. When in danger- blow it all up! Zaro's face folded into an expression of anger and disgust. Before he could say anything, the entire camp lit up in flashes. It was like a New Years' celebration. Iota jumped out of the smoke and right onto Zaro's human shaped torso "I've always wanted to meet a spider-and-human crossbreed!" -he grabbed him by the face with joy. Zaro hissed- "I am not A DAMNED SPIDER!!" - his wings spread open in rage. Their droning buzz was enough to cause a headache. The monster's all too human indignation surprised Iota. "Hissssss... I was going to rob you of some of your knowledge. But it seems you must want to die by my hand instead."Zaro's body propped up for flight. Iota saw that he was about to leap. This was his only chance, and the decision had to be made quickly! - with incredible dexterity he scrambled to Zaro's back and held onto his carapace. Zaro roared with a surprisingly deep voice and launched himself off the ground with a deafening shockwave. The momentum of the jump was so intense that the Sumeran camp quickly became a small dot on the horizon. Iota didn't waste any time. He's come all this way, and god dammit he will have something to show for it. He reached his hand into Zaro's mouth, to the insect demon's surprise.... In response to the sudden maneouver, Zaro was so startled that he accidently took on his human form mid-air. Plunging both him and Iota to the ground.Miraculously, Iota has managed to capture some of his poison into a precious little vial. Zaro was forced to dart off while still hearing bombs being flung towards him from afar. He was so embarrassed by the encounter that he spent six full days cowering in his Garden, piecing together his pride.Iota proudly shook the vial on his way home. He returned with samples that will help him better manipulate the elements. Time to try out poisons laced with elemental energy! Satisfied, he headed straight to his lab and commenced with work. His research will now be ahead of the other Segments he was competing with. Mad chuckling could be heard from the depths of the lab- it seems our segment will be busy for a good amount of time to come. But whenever he hears a locust chirp, he instantly grows more wary, remembering how easily his last meeting could have gone wrong.︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶
Notes:
- Segment Iota belongs to @DulcamaraMuck on Twitter/X ! Thank you for reading!! 🫶 🫶
Diary of Balthazar: A Troubled Oasis
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's (Dottore Segments) from Genshin Impact!
In Zaro's hidden corner of the world, trouble brews. Weeks following after his skirmish with Segment Iota, he still spends time recovering in his domain. This leaves him home-bound, and unable to tend to his Garden. For Zaro, this is a most heart-breaking situation. His serene lakes fill with amphibian monsters and dreaded parasitic vines cover what were once beds of beautiful, sweet smelling flowers.Well aware of what is happening, but forced to sit at home, Zaro observes his beautiful Garden descend into chaos.Once governed by order, it now became a nesting ground for vermin of all shapes and sizes. Helpless but also slightly intrigued, he watches nature grow even if it isn't developing in the way he wanted. He tried sending some of his courtiers to mend the situation- but they'd almost always get killed by the monsters who grew too big and too bold from being able to devour freely.Zaro just couldn't wait for his wings to heal faster, so he could get to fixing as soon as possible. This was a dire situation. His Garden cried out for its master's gentle touch. At the same time, on the other side of the world, there was another segment who also enjoyed the comforts that nature can offer. But his situation was far more ideal.His name was Kappa.--Far beyond the deserts of Sumeru, laid the vast expanses of Fontaine. A moderate climate and suitable living conditions create an inviting home for everyone. Swimming on his back freely in Fontaine's lower city waterways, our segment Kappa goes on with his day. He drifts along, letting the currents take him wherever they please. He has already explored every nook and cranny of this area. Since the day of his creation, Kappa was considered „a failed experiment“ by Prime (Just like Zaro), but this hasn't left him in despair. There was one big positive side to all of that - he wasn't burdened by the plots, or the intrigue that usually take place around Prime. He was left to pursue his own interests, with no one standing guard over him.He felt like the ocean: boundless, and free to touch every shore he wanted. For every adventure he enjoyed, three new ones would wait just around the corner. Kappa has already spent some time traveling the world. He was no stranger to flooded grasslands in Liyue, the tiny creeks of Mondstadt or the humid wetlands of Sumeru.The latter he missed the most. The sound of birdsong instead of the rumbling of metal. As much as he loved eavesdropping on the daily gossip about pending trials, and as much as the peculiar lives of those who lived in Fontaine interested him, he wanted to return to a place he knew to be most serene. Quiet. Without human disturbance. Kappa pondered how he could return- and the answer was not only obvious, but all around him. It was the water. He dove in, and within a week of travel through shortcuts only known to this segment, Kappa found himself in a familiar river bed close to the heart of Sumeru. It was a place with lots of food and good places to relax.... But something wasn't right this time around.Part of the area was diseased. Pustules clogging up waterways, piling up with corrupted water. Kappa began to investigate further and without knowing, accidentally ended up in Zaro's domain. The Garden was easy to access because it was falling apart.Kappa cleared out some of the dark pustules and as a result, water began flowing again, causing the nearby mills to start turning again. Zaro heard the noise in his Garden, his attention immediately drawn to the sound. Fed up with his world constantly changing, he charged out of his home despite his injuries. But when he arrived at the scene he was surprised.There was some damage and an unfamiliar segment right in the middle of his territory, but the area also seemed less... corrupted? Zaro stood with his mouth open as dark vines gave way to healthy blooms right in front of him.Always quick on the trigger, Zaro transformed into his monster form to intimidate Kappa and to match him in size and strength. „What is this nonssssense that I am looking at, exactly? And who are you? SSSSSPEAK! What are you after! Hmmm??“ – the massive insect leapt closer to the shore, careful not to touch the water. Kappa withdrew deeper within, to maintain a safe distance. He did a good thing and didn't understand why this strange monster was shouting at him. Actually, Kappa had no idea who Zaro was, or that this was his domain.The frustrated stamping of the insect's feet was a surprise to him like any other. Why is this silly bug angry with him?„Did you missssshear me? I asked you a question-“ Zaro hissed through his needle-like teeth.In the meantime, Kappa sat in the water in front of him, his mouth submerged as he blew bubbles to the surface. He was watching Zaro with a great level of attention. Kappa is shy and he normally doesn't speak a lot. In this current situation he only gave Zaro short, single word responses that confused him even more. With a gurgly voice, he said: „Kappa only came to a golden swamp, it's warm! Kappa likes it. He will share fish with you! (gurgle) I am Kappa, by the way...“He quickly dove beneath the surface, returning with a fish between his teeth. He continued mumbling something while holding it in his mouth, and Zaro watched with indignation as the rogue segment offered his own property as a gift to him. His eye twitched.Nevertheless, somewhat pleased, he responded- „Do you even know where you are, boy?“Kappa angled his head in confusion. He looked at the insect, pondering his question. At the same time, Zaro tried reading his mind and saw what Kappa said is all there is to it. This "invader" was just a gecko without ulterior motives. His mind was simple and unburdened by the things Zaro expected to find. But, Zaro didn't like finding out that Kappa planned to stay in the Garden.--Even if Kappa only wanted to fish in the domain's lakes. Zaro was a 300 year old grouchy segment who didn't want to have any neighbours. He disliked the idea of „changing himself“ or „changing his way of thinking“ which meant there was only one possible outcome.„It'sssss time for you to go. Monster or not, you are still a ssssegment. You don't get to reach my domain and roam around asssss you please. I have no more patience to deal with incidents, and you are dismissssssed- whoever you are!“Unfortunately, Kappa stopped paying attention to Zaro's words somewhere around „It's time for you to go“. He gazed at the insect as if he didn't understand a word that came from his fanged lips, or (More likely) as if none of that concerned him. Instead he thought about how Zaro was a bug. Quite a big one Kappa thought almost mournfully how he'd never be able to eat him.Zaro's eye squinted in a way that indicates confusion. He was reading some strange signals from Kappa, more closer to instinct than thinking. Then suddenly, Kappa stuck his tongue to Zaro's face like a chameleon (!?). The bug flinched and a moment of awkward pause passed between them. „How highly inappropriate....“ Zaro wiped the spit out of his eye, which started to glitch. With a shaky hand of anger brimming on the edge of explosion, (no doubt) Zaro slowly opened his fist, and firmly grabbed Kappa's tongue. „DO I LOOK LIKE A ******* FLY TO YOU?? out, OUT!!“- with a jerk of his hand, he somehow managed to whip Kappa out of the water. Surprised but ready for combat, Kappa swiftly dodged Zaro's further attempts to grab him. It was monster versus monster- and one of them was wounded. Kappa shows him the tongue again but this time playfully.This sets Zaro off. It was like a wasp trying to catch a fish. Kappa was nimble in the water and elusive to grab. After a few seconds of excitement, Zaro suddenly couldn't find Kappa anywhere. He felt tired, and angry. He stumbled back into the depths of his domain, swearing that he'll find Kappa and throw him out from where he doesn't belong. He wondered where this troublemaker went, without realizing he was on his back the entire time! (He was sticking to him like a gecko). Kappa slinked off at some point and continued investigating Zaro's domain at his leisure. This area was wonderful and soothing. Kappa really liked the nature here. It was a compliment to Zaro's 'gardening', if he was willing to take any.The latter went home, slamming the doors behind him.--... On the first day, Kappa was fishing. He put together some lines he carried from Fontaine and suitable sticks and then indulged in the relaxing activity. He caught lots of different and interesting looking fish.
They had fins that resembled the wings of a faerie, and very elegant looking bodies. They came in all sorts of colors. They were delicious. After Kappa finished licking his fingers from clearing out Zaro's pond of prized fish pool, he moved on to eating berries. On the second day, he ate so many of them that their ink-like juice painted his face.He drank nectar from a strange looking rock, and on the third day he experienced dreams that felt like they lasted for months where he experienced the lives of other people. From the ears of a sumeran Scholar from three hundred years ago, he learned about the fallen kingdom of Al-Ahmar. He tried cooking as well. He boiled some of the lesser monsters in a hot spring (These lessers being Zaro's courtiers who were charged with Garden maintenance) and tried making some of his own dishes in a tin cooking pot he had on his person.On the fourth day, he ran into some dangerous looking monsters. These were the aberrations that grew and fed freely in Zaro's absence, becoming true menaces in the process. They were fiery and their touch crackled with painful heat. They were difficult opponents to fight and they were especially dangerous for Kappa's slimy, wet skin. But he managed to defeat them regardless. When driven into a corner, Kappa could also become a formidable monster. He ended up taking a weapon that the creatures imbued with fire from their bellies. He used that to clear the other toxic pustules that plagued the Garden. Slowly but surely, in an effort to make the area more comfortable for himself, Kappa was also helping Zaro's cause.When the climate in the Garden turned frigid, Kappa could use the weapon he pillaged from the Aberrations to keep himself warm. Despite that he couldn't truly understand the works beneath this strange dream world, he thought the realm was cool all the same. Especially the abstract moving sky that looked like crystalline lights flowing around like oil spills. On good days it was pink and green, and when it rained the artificial sky looked like purple cotton and wool that spun endlessly into the heights above. Though, there are definitely some fruits he won't be eating anymore and some places where he won't drop his guard. Zaro would have normally warned against some of these dangers, but Kappa was still a stowaway in this area and was left on his own to figure out what's safe and what isn't.--Back home, Zaro tapped his clawed hand on a cage containing a trapped Aranara. He spoke to himself: „(Sigh) I know. You're right-“ (The Aranara didn't reply, it was just Zaro talking to himself) – „It's not bad that he's here. And, for the first time in so many decades, another pair of eyes beholds the Garden.""It's the domain I worked on for so very long. My. Garden. You wouldn't get it.“- He sighed and turned around – „And yet, why do I let him run free? On some days I think I don't understand myself at all (His claws sunk deeper into the cage, dangerously close to the Aranara) ...at least I have you“- he placed the Aranara's cage back on a nightstand. The fairy would probably want to cuss him out for keeping it trapped like that, but Zaro liked to pretend that they were friends. He couldn't understand their language anyway. He flexed his newly made wing, still a bit tender to the touch and stared outside the window. He said: „Perhaps there will be a chance for first impressions a second time“ – Then he flew out the window to look for Kappa. This time not to evict him, but to thank him.On his way, he found traces that pointed him in Kappa's direction. Old monster traps have been tripped, and broken nets lie discarded everywhere. He also found a cooking pot with remains of his courtiers left inside. „So that's whats been happening to my servants“ His eye folded into a tired, but knowing expression as he shook his head.In the meantime, Kappa swam around in a nearby pond, blowing water through his lips as if he were a little fountain. Without the monsters, it was incredibly peaceful here, like nowhere else in the world. Probably because it was „nowhere“! This place of true calm and serenity existed in a separate pocket in space made to house thousands of unique specimens and mutations, all permitted to roam freely and benefit from its ecology. It beckons you to let go of your worries and admire it. And Kappa listened. He felt like the sonorous energy of this place could keep even the most fiery person calm enough to be able to focus and work (Perhaps that was its hidden purpose?).On the fifth day, Kappa was so overfed and exhausted from adventuring that he fell unconscious under an orchard tree.A calm voice appeared from the back: "There you are"Zaro flew over Kappa, landing on the ground with his heavy body. His wings fluttered, betraying his positive disposition. Kappa, remembering his first encounter tried to crawl away from Zaro and make some distance but he was too full and it's too hard to move. Zaro intertwined his four arms behind his back like an old man, and he looked up at the tree canopy above Kappa.„You would have known that this tree saps your energy, if I told you.“- There was almost a hint of remorse in his voice. „I saw you making yourself welcome to my things and, not being prone to sharing, I allowed my petty grievances to get the best of me. I'm here now and I'm ready to tender my sincere apology“.Zaro placed one of his hands on his chest in a gesture of honesty. But for multiple reasons, Kappa didn't really understand him. Zaro sighed and frowned, moving closer to Kappa who kept trying to get away at a comically slow speed. He stopped him from moving altogether by stepping on his tail to hold him in place.„If I knew you were going to be such a pain... Ugh, you're really going to make me say it, aren't you?“ They eyed each other quietly. Then Zaro leaned down „....You did a good job. Thank you.“ Kappa smiled at him. The giant insect quickly removed his foot and straightened his back. He coughed into his hand with pride and continued speaking: „Thanks to your wanderings, you've actually done a lot of good to this realm. It was in desperate need of cleaning up. You destroyed the pests that stirred chaos in my garden. That is commendable and warrants an award“ His wings fluttered as he spoke: „You are free to pick the fruits from a layer of the dream that I've shared to none (He smiled). These are the direct products of the Irminsul. They will endow you with memories, intelligence or power of another. No death is untouched by the celestial tree.“ Though Kappa didn't seem to care much for the reward Zaro described. Zaro seemed surprised, if even a bit deflated: „Fine. Nevermind that. You may.. (Sigh) come to parts of the Garden whenever you want“. Now this his elicited a much happier reaction from Kappa, who, all this time just wanted a nice swamp to relax in. His journey was concluded in a way that he could be satisfied. Only one thing- Zaro turns before leaving.... With a sassy wave of his finger in disapproval, Zaro said: "No more cooking"He could deal with Iota's poisinous brews (Even though they burn organic matter in contact) but he absolutely couldn't deal with whatever manifested in Kappa's cooking pot. That was an act of heresy in it's own right, and somehow comically right in the way a Dottore segment should be.--In the end, Zaro was thankful for Kappa's help in restoring the balance of his garden, even though both of them had to compromise. It helped Zaro come around to the idea that just because someone is after a goal of their own it doesn't mean that it has to come at his expense. Zaro was secretly proud that he's found someone who likes his garden. Under that fiery tempest was a desire to witness other lives. He threw some fruit towards Kappa as a gift and Kappa snatched it mid-air with his tongue. „I wish you interesting future adventures, ke ke ke“ And then he vanished, presumably to continue working on his Garden. This time, Prime was left with nothing. Because Kappa was also a free segment, and after abandoning him as a "failed experiment" he could no longer profit from his adventures.︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶
Notes:
- Segment Kappa belongs to @itschalkk on Twitter/X ! Thank you so much for reading!! 🤗
Diary of Balthazar: Even Insects can Dream
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's (Dottore Segments) from Genshin Impact!
Zaro reflected on his long life in the domain he created, thoughts of self-affirmation echoing through his mind. It's something of a lonely sight, with the monster Segment sitting quietly with his many limbs intertwined like the branches of the elder tree. But he doesn't need to move. There's a curious looking drink held in his unnatural hands. It's a "dream-brew", crafted from the fruits unique to the realm of dreams. With each sip taken, Zaro was less here, his thoughts weaving themselves together with the power of the Irminsul. His mind freed itself of his heavy body and he felt his way through the world. He soon flew across the Garden, his wings droning above lush canopies of leaves. He was looking for anything out of the ordinary, carefully patrolling the border of his realm and returning wayward visitors to their home.Ever since he restored balance to the Garden by culling out monsters who threatened to destroy it, Zaro has been acting with increased prudence.The insect Segment has been on the lookout for any leyline disturbances or "tears" that might lead more unsuspecting creatures into his domain. There exists a thin line where the life in this realm collides with the real world.It's a place where lush grasses fade into ether, and where creatures of flesh and blood seemingly lose their way forever.But just beyond this point, life in reality waited for those who were strong enough to take on its burdens. Zaro would often don a disguise just to pay a visit to their world, appearing as a "guest". It was a place he could always see through the eyes of sleeping humans. A place bound by the logic and workings of something that has been more foreign to him than any other segment. The Garden on the other hand, was a place for outcasts who belonged nowhere else. It was a home for oddities and freaks abandoned by the world. Just like him, they were the ones who would always be embraced by this realm while everyone else felt pushed back into the waking world. As he flew through the sky, Zaro was intercepted by a tittering feeling. The sensitive energy threads that are spread all throughout his Garden vibrated. Like a spider's web being disturbed by a struggling moth...The ripples of psychic energy drew Zaro's attention. The insect rushed tp the source only to find a party of fallen researchers and a young boy writhing in painful sleep.Covered with sweat and with an erratic breath, the child mumbled deliriously. It was his life force that Zaro must have felt, for the others around him seem to have passed away from painful nightmares.He descended to get a closer look, his limbs quickly forming a cage around the boy. He soon spots a "Sudri" off to the side, with many bites taken into it. It was the same kind of fruit he uses to create the dream-brew that lets him detach himself from his body. It's effects on the child are clear as he's fallen into a comatose state. Without being a native to the realm, the powerful effect of the fruit would corrode his mind and absorb it into the realm as mere "input". In other words, the Garden has begun to assimilate him.If measures are not taken, the boy will surely die. Zaro paused for a moment. This party must have been lost for a while. They could have been wandering for hours and it would have felt like weeks worth of exhaustion. The energy of the Irminsul is especially powerful here, causing many of these anomalies. There is no way a normal human would survive. Zaro squinted his eyes at the boy - "How... was this one different? What was so special about him?" His scent was familiar, but if he leaves him exhausted and poisoned for long he will never find out why.The monstrous insect realized that to reveal further answers, he will have to summon "his true body" to the area. Because of the overwhelming pressure and his curiosity, he became determined to save the boy.Trying to more accurately determine his state, he hovered his clawed hand above the boy's head. He sensed the clear effects of "Tatarigami"- a curse native to the islands of Inazuma. But he was unable to read his thoughts or see what the fruit was making him dream. Because of the child's exhaustion, the effect of two poisons was even more powerful. Zaro opened his fist to reveal razor sharp claws with a thin coating of special venom. There was no other choice but to perform surgery now that the other options have been exhausted.--An hour into the operation, the boy began to wake. His consciousness came together, but his mind couldn't describe what his eyes see.A giant insect stood above him, its many legs forming a cage all around. Impossible. Sabi's eyes widened in terror. He thought he was still dreaming, trapped in some nightmarish scenario with no end in sight. The insect's head twitched, quickly changing angles as it observed him. Its single red eye glowed in the dark, shedding red light onto his body. He thought that his chest cavity was open... but he had no way of confirming it. The special electro-ghost that manifests as his ability, and the voices of many Segments screamed inside of him with a thundering roar.They urged him to flee. But the boy couldn't move. He couldn't even lift his hand. It was like a paralyzing venom has spread through his body. Something used to pacify its victim before digesting it. This young man, who will be known as Sabi has felt like prey.He tried to glean as much information as possible in this dark mist, relying only on his limited sight and hearing. He heard "the doctor's" quiet laugh, and the grotesque clicking of limbs as his multiple arms perform different operations independently.His nausea and drowsiness made it hard for him to think. And yet, floating in momentary madness a part of him felt overwhelming admiration... for this unknown and terrifying creature - "Is this... a Segment? What happened to it?" Sabi's winced at the next jolt of headache. Then a voice at him from the dark. A raspy, coarse voice with a somewhat fruity tone-"Wish you could run now, little one? But where would you go? Ke ke ke!! You don't even know how lost you are!"In response, Sabi's lips barely formed a question for the looming monster in the dark: "You... have you... done... this... to me?" - a moment of silence passed before the creature answered him. A sharp grin appeared on its face, revealing rows of needle-like teeth. Sabi then hears a "snap" as if the creature just broke something inside of him... then, it started talking - "My mind often fails me. But not today. Kssss... This was all you, my little friend. I am a symptom, you are the cause! Ke ke ke!" - the monster giggled to itself - "...Eating poisoned fruit and getting lost where you don't belong? What a naughty child!".Hearing the monster's words, Sabi tried to recall how he got there and why. He remembered another Segment giving him orders to accompany an observation team as a medic, thanks to his special healing abilities.Then the team got caught up in a powerful ley line disorder, and ended up stranded in this seemingly endless forest. But who? Who was it that sent him? It was physically painful to try and remember. With what little strength he had, Sabi tried to collect himself and clear his mind. The effects of the dream-fruit's poison were slowly starting to abate, and Sabi was determined to find the culprit for this miserable turn of events. Then, a sharp flash cut through his mind and his eyes became frozen in shock. He remembered the Omega segment talking to him, issuing him with the order. It was Prime! -The strange markings on Sabi's body began pulsating slowly, as if only now his body had truly begun to wake.The monstrous insect took notice. Despite being an accomplished scientist, it didn't know what to make of it. It's eye focused on the boy, not realizing that this dying child would soon renew his dormant anger. Zaro called onto his dream-diving ability again and tried peering into Sabi's mind. There were many voices in his head and Zaro recognizes the Segments. They were discussing mundane, irrelevant things.But soon, he recognized a particular voice. A stoic and arrogant voice that could belong to no one else but his creator."My little fairy. Have I found you?"Just as soon as Sabi managed to fully regain his consciousness, the Prime Segment took over his body, controlling him from a distance. A devilish smile appeared on his lips, clearly not belonging to the boy himself. He grabbed the insect's leg. The jovial monster's expression changed from neutral to angry and it fled from Sabi, skittering backwards with its many legs. The Prime Segment sat up. He took over the boy's vision and tried looking through his eyes. But it was too dark. From the corner of the lab, Zaro watched coldly as the possessed Sabi flailed on the surgery table.He recognized Prime's facial expressions, his manners, his gaze- empty and inhumane.After spending so many years in relative peace, he was now facing his own nightmare.--Having enough of it, Zaro swiftly drove a needle into Sabi's neck collar. He infused it with a tranquilizer that quickly brought the boy peace, banishing Prime from his body.Like a drowning victim who had just been saved, Sabi took a desperate breath and relaxed. Free from Prime Dottore's control, his hand found Zaro's leg again, tightening around it like an animal asking for help. His eyes welled up with tears and he stared into the dark ceiling, feeling his body become numb again.Zaro quietly stood above, unsure what to with him. He was planning to release him back into the waking world, but now he found himself wanting to provide shelter. Was it empathy, curiosity, or desire for a rebellion?Zaro leaned towards the boy and tapped his head with his claw a few times, as if he was an object.Sabi's eyes turned towards him. „Why don't you stay and work for me for a while as an assistant? To pay me off for all the trouble you have caused. You will tell me when you wake. Now... Sweet dreams...“ And the next thing Sabi sees is a drape being drawn over him. The cool sheet touched his face. Soon, he faded into restful sleep. For the first time in many years, Sabi experienced a peaceful night's rest. Ever since that surgery he has been unable to hear the voices of the other Segments. Feeling his neck, he noticed that his collar was gone. Only sore spots were left in the places where spikes used to be... This collar was but one of the many ways that Prime used to control him. Zaro must have taken it off to tinker with it. Feeling vulnerable, he quickly pulled up his shirt, and even though no one was around his face became red.--Meanwhile, somewhere at an undisclosed location the Omega Segment sat in his chair. He was agitated that he couldn't properly take control of his vassal. In similar situations, he could have destroyed Sabi from a distance just as he previously did with some of his Segments in Sumeru.He briefly smiled - "It must be the Garden. It's interfering".His Sabi was now like a puppet whose strings have been cut. Since Sabi was still out there, Prime couldn't force his consciousness to move into another body. The Segment turned around in his chair: "Its ability to weaken my power, It's interesting. It seems I have learned another new thing today." He gave a quiet and typically ominous laugh. "Perhaps there are reasonable grounds for this sacrifice. However... I fear I've lost a tool that I could have sharpened to perfection. What a waste." Prime recalled the efforts made with Sabimaru to turn him into a perfect tool. The boy was supposed to be someone who could never fail him and who would be as loyal as possible. A being of perfect focus. To this end, he has been twisting the corruption inside his body to the maximum- destroying his humanity in the process, so that he could be directed into the endless pursuit for knowledge without restraint or failure.
Elsewhere, The giant insect let himself in through the door and Sabi flinched, seeing Zaro's full form in broad daylight (or the closest thing that passes for "daytime" in the convoluted space of the Garden).The monster now fully introduced itself to his patient- and then commented on his unusually calm demeanor. Sabi smiled faintly, lowering his head and rubbing the temples of his forehead from feeling the lingering effects of the doctor's "anesthetic". He said: "I'm far more curious about your experiments than my own health. Knowledge is the only thing I care for."The insect agreed, and giggled insanely in response: "Mm. It seems we share something similar."But then he added with a somewhat intimidating tone: "While you're here, I expect you to help me find sssssuitable test subjects. You won't be eating here for free!" (His wings tittered as his voice grew with excitement) I'm talking about human tessssst subjects. From the waking world!" - Zaro leaned in on Sabi, seeing if his words will elicit a reaction from the boy - "I understand. I won't fail you". In response to his words, Zaro almost seemed disappointed. His enthusiasm of a mad scientist deflating like a balloon. "Sssssheesh. Thisss kid". He crossed his four arms on his chest.He knew that look in his eyes from before. The eyes of a person who lives for nothing but their work - "What a bore... But come to think of... Thisssss child didn't dream while sssleeping. How unusual... And he was not from Ssssumeru!". Moreover, Zaro noticed that Sabi spoke of himself like some kind of machine even though he was a person. Zaro tilted his head and poked the boy's cat-like ears. "Prime really did a good number on you, huh kid?". He wondered if the child was trained to behave in this way so he could follow Omega's orders. Displeased, his single eye narrowed towards Sabi. This carried him to his next thought, and a devilish grin appeared on his lips. He could undo Prime's work. A bit of feyish mischief. Helping this boy could be seen as an act of rebellion.--As time goes by, the duo quickly becomes known as the assistant with a black gaze- and the doctor who does not seem human.Often, they'd venture out of the Garden in pursuit of new knowledge and sometimes to hunt for potential test subjects. Because of Sabi's pleasant human appearance travelers were eager to trust him. Their eyes were more on him than Zaro's bent body. Eventually Sabi has become accustomed to helping the doctor, even taking part in his gruesome side-activities. One such event took place as Sabi was seen mopping a tiled floor. He wiped the sweat off his forehead and looked to the side where Zaro's shadow could be seen, changing into "human" shape from his monstrous form.Normally you would guess this was a scene from an operation, or an experiment. The floor being littered with blood and various monster body parts. But instead this was an event of Zaro "feeding". Placing his human hand on Sabi's shoulder, he came closer to say that he enjoyed his meal, adding that "Sabi has a strong stomach" for being willing to stick around and watch. Sabi laughed endearingly in response and said that he thought his appetite was amusing. But suddenly, his lingering smile lost its warmth and his expression became pained. He took a long pause, just standing there. Something was on his mind. He remembered how much he missed the domestic things that people usually take too much for granted.The world outside of dark, cramped laboratories. He missed the family he had before meeting any of the Segments, before the Tatarigami within his body was used to subdue him. He missed his real home, and his mom's cooking, and the lively conversations around the family table. The loss of Prime's influence allowed these memories to bubble up from the abyss. Sabi's grip tightened around the handle with a screech from his surgical gloves. There was a dissonance between his relationship with Zaro and the rest of the Segments. He wanted to be of use to his newfound mentor and didn't want to disclose his secrets to Prime. But at the same time, he wouldn't betray the other Segments because they were his current "home". When this was all finished, he'd have a place with the Fatui to return to.But his secret wish was always that he'd somehow find a way to get rid of the disease once and for all, and go back to the way things used to be. Something that was "normal".His thoughts were at a stark contrast with the environment that surrounded him. He was all alone, standing in the midst of a pool of blood with a monster in human disguise patting him on the shoulder. "When did everything go so horribly wrong?" - "You know..."- Noticing that his assistant suddenly went quiet, Zaro tried talking to him. His raspy voice snapped Sabi back to the present: "I've been enjoying our conversations for a while now. The monsters are much less interesting to talk to. I should actually thank you- I'm not as bored as I used to be. The ton of information about Inazuma you have dumped on me, heh. I couldn't have learned all that simply by spying on people's dreams" - He gestured with his many arms:"Why don't I offer you something as a gift? For an example, I don't know...
I could cure you.""Do you accept?" swiftly and without sound Zaro now stood inches away from Sabi's face. His usual, terrifying inhuman presence radiating from within.Sabi stood shocked, the mop falling out of his hands into the bloody mess below. For the first time he heard the word "cure" in the context of an offer to help him. He didn't expect to hear this from anyone, especially a Segment of Dottore. Like a child grabbing its parents hands Sabi instinctively took Zaro's claws. His stronger emotions waking up as if they had been in a long slumber. It's been a long time since Sabi's soul was filled with such warm feelings. It was like taking a break from all his recent emptiness. "Thank you"- he uttered his grattitude towards the monster, and leaned onto his chest quickly covering it with tears."But wait"- Sabi moved away, wiping his face- "What do you want in return?" - "Oh, I just wanted to pisssss off the old guy". And this much was true. More than anything, pixies love their mischief. Zaro's motives were to study Sabi and to deprive Prime of a valuable asset. But somewhere deeper, Zaro felt a sense of empathy towards the young boy, having also been a test subject himself. Ever since he made that promise, Zaro noticed that Sabi was doing more than what was asked of him. He was even dusting off Zaro's old lairs (Which didn't make a lot of sense because an insect like him enjoyed keeping his living quarters filthy. He'd always return the junk even after Sabi threw it outside, including severed heads of his previous meals).Sabi even tried bringing Zaro "food" in the form of tied-up creatures after observing his feeding patterns. Zaro burst into a shrieking laughter, asking the young man what on Teyvat he was doing. Shyly and with some reserve, Sabi replied that he "just wanted to fit in".It was true. After spending several months in his company, Sabi had begun to look more like a wild creature than a lab assistant. With bruises all over and a messy hair full of thorns and twigs. While the tied-up monster muffled through the gag in its mouth in panic, Zaro calmly started taking the clutter out of Sabi's hair with precise movements of his claws. "Hmm. Let me guesssss, you must have been hunting in the dangerous placessss. Correct? (sigh) You've probably already gotten lost once or twice now... What do I do with you?" (The monstrous insect tilted its head) - "Would you like to learn more about thisssss place?" - Sabi's eyes sparked up with curiosity, and he drew closer to Zaro, practically pushing against his mentor "Yeees, please!" - "I see. Well, there's a natural order in this Garden. The inhabitantsss here have their own ssssocietal rules, but not like anything you people from outside have seen (Zaro waved his finger in front of his nose with an apparent pride) there are places where the monsssters are sssentient, tolerating each other's presssence without killing. There are areas that are treated as hunting groundssss, belonging to monssters that huddled together into clansss... They even permit the lessss-intelligent but more powerful creatures to hunt there, so they can sssate their hunger without going after their hosts. The livessss they lead are incredibly interesting. I love ssseeing them grow, but I love watching them sssstruggle just as well! I want to create more "life". In a way, I view myself like their father. Just like humansss, monsssters are amazing. They need someone to save them from the outssside world."Sabi observed his mentor with a newfound understanding. On one hand, Zaro creates a dangerous world that knows no mercy. But at the same time he seemed full of unexpected energy to look after these creatures. He cared for this place however strangely he expressed that love. Recalling his treatment by the other segments, Sabi's thoughts turned inward again. He was rarely seen as anything more than a mechanism for performing certain tasks. This way of viewing things was an unusual and refreshing experience. He wanted to ask a thousand questions. But one in particular, was on his mind.Feeling bold enough to ask, Sabi steeled himself and looked up at his crooked mentor."Can I have a map of the Garden?"Zaro stared at him briefly as if stunned. He then flicked the child on his head, calling him out: "Fool! What would you usssse that knowledge for? To get yourssself killed? (He didn't even consider that Sabi might betray him) The only reassson you are here was to repay your debt." His claws furled in anger, but his expression betrayed that he felt anxious. It wasn't just that he didn't want to lose an assistant- by now, he started feeling responsible for the boy. He didn't want him to get hurt.Then, he pushed his finger further into Sabi's forehead, adding: "And don't you dare sssneak around to collect the monster's materialsss either!" Despite his shouting, Sabi didn't seem to understand the reason for his mentor's frustration.
"You know... if I died, you could always bring me back" - Zaro's wings tittered, and he'd gone quiet, boring a stare into the child. He didn't know what to say about his lack of regard for his own life. "You need to care for your life. How do I teach you that?"He scratched his head. Sabi lowered his gaze, feeling that he may have been too pushy with his mentor, not truly understanding the cause of his annoyance. Zaro grumbled like an old man. He still wanted to appease his child, even though he couldn't agree with it. He turned his back on Sabi and began rummaging through some cupboards as if looking for something. He took out an old, empty scroll and started drawing something from memory, dipping his claws into an inkwell of monster blood.Curious, Sabi came closer and tried to peek over the monster's shoulders but he was too short to see anything. "Ksss. There." Zaro turned towards Sabi, letting the scroll unfold. "Now, you can have thissss. But, I have a new order for you. Guard that preciousss life of yours. If not for your sssake, then for my peace of mind. Bringing thingsss from the dead isn't a fun sport. Break this promissse and I will leave you for dead". He shot Sabi with a penetrating cold stare, hoping that the boy would take him more seriously. But he became disarmed, seeing that Sabi's eyes only sparkled with joy with no regard whatsoever for his warnings.He painfully rubbed the temples of his forehead- "Anyway... I won't be adding any detailsss to your map. You don't need them, underssstand? The Garden is ever changing, just like "dreamsss" of people. Eventually, these areasss will disssappear. By then I hope you will have ssated your curiosity". Sabi looked up to Zaro with utmost admiration and jumped into the monster's arms, hugging him by his spiky shoulders with a wide smile. "Could you teach me to feel the garden?" - Beyond what Sabi could see, Zaro's expression became cold. For a moment, he went silent. "No." he added "That would require you to be like me." The grip from his claws strengthened, as if he had just remembered something he didn't want to.Later, Zaro had much to process from his recent choices. For hundreds of years, he was easily reading people's dreams with the help of Ley lines, but all it ever did was break his heart. Now he was about to do it to himself again.Despite that it was a long time since he began empathizing with humans (Thanks to their dreams) Zaro always thought he "claimed becoming a monster". He thought that doing so would give him the strength he needed to carry on.It helped him deal with his hunger, and a bloated body that was alive and aware non-stop on all the wrong places. It helped him deal with a mind that shuts off in favor of instinct at worst possible times, but it couldn't help him when being directly responsible for another life. For something so fragile and weak in comparison to the other creatures that lived around him. This became a great burden to him, but the attachment made him want to try endure it."In time, that child will wake up. But, was it my fault for giving him this fantasy?"--In the meantime, Sabi was enjoying his venture through the Garden. Just holding the map made him tremble with excitement. He was a lot like a Melusine in the way that he could see things differently. Sabi could see the "essence" beyond the outward look of things and he always felt drawn to investigate. The things that people would find vicious, scary or creepy always gave him a sort of comfort. That's why he wanted to observe the other monsters that lived in the Garden. Not just because he wanted to learn more about them, but also because he genuinely liked them.The ongoing creation of Zaro's monsters wasn't just depravity at work. It made sense. And to the old monster, this idea must have been romantic in a way. Unfortunately, Sabi's curiosity and perhaps overconfidence, had him stepping outside the path drawn by his mentor.A desire just to see a little more made him cross paths with a towering monstrosity. This hulking giant, a chimaera of three different creatures no less, saw him from miles away and raced to catch up to the boy. It moved at a speed that should have been impossible for its size and weight. Sabi tried returning back to his original course, but the monster kept pacing behind him. At first it seemed to let Sabi go. But the boy couldn't help but notice that by now, the creature was well away from it's own territory.It was hunting him.Sabi's pace quickened, and he felt panic start to take root in his mind. This wasn't good, but in the very least he was hoping his healing capabilities would help him stay alive. But what if the monster devoured him entirely? What if the monster learned he could regenerate? He'd never see Zaro again. He summoned the electro ghost to divert the chimaera's attention but to no avail. The giant easily tore through his manifestation and began stomping towards its prey like a mad bull. Was this the price of curiosity? Once up close, Sabi could see the full glory of creature about to award him death. It was muscular and well shaped, with almost a sense of aesthetic to its bizarre mutations. Its skin was covered with thin, velvet-like fur and its face bore the eyes of an arachnid. It was truly interesting, just for a moment, before it's curled teeth were upon Sabi. But he wasn't going to simply resign to fate either. He fought back even though the encounter left him crippled and bleeding. Though he emerged victorious in the end, Sabi couldn't be more thankful that his abilities were based on healing.As soon as he could walk, Sabi rushed towards Zaro's lab, bursting through his door. He felt delighted to tell him what he saw. The first things Zaro noticed were the grievous wounds sizzling with the power of electro. The greeting from his side was a sour one. Even though he gave the child a map, Zaro realized that the Garden would always be a dangerous place for him. Despite that he could stomach to watch the other monsters rip each other to shreds, he always knew that Sabi wasn't a native. He knew that all it would take was a moment of inattention, and some monster would snatch the boy away.Zaro reached out his hand and as Sabi thought he was about to smack him on the head (Or reprimand him) his hand landed on his head softly and gave him a pat instead. But as Zaro stroked his head, Sabimaru smiled and grabbed his clawed hand and used it to pet himself in a more lively manner. Zaro was surprised and smiled briefly. This make-believe family maybe wasn't so bad after all. "Pretending" was also a part of the human experience. And in the Garden anything is possible, because even the insects can dream.--Feeling bad about his decision of giving the boy a map, Zaro has decided to allow Sabi to accompany him on this outing. He wasn't ready to let him go alone again. But it never occurred to him that -he- could be the next biggest threat to his assistant.With the dawn of a new day, the two were getting ready to set out. Zaro wanted to have Sabi close because he felt anxious about what happened earlier. The boy would stand aside and watch him perform surgery, taking notes. Their patient was a monster said to be suffering from the corruption of Ley lines from the Abyss. Knowing such pain, Zaro wanted to get on quickly and relieve the creature of its suffering. The process was long and arduous, and Sabi could see that Zaro was having difficulty so he offered his help. He did his best to assist, but the surgery does not go as intended. The two commit a fatal error and the creature becomes enraged, fueled by dark, numbing power.The creature leaped at Zaro, bleeding toxic liquid from its wound and pinning him against a wall. Sabi can do nothing but helplessly try to pry the creature away from his master.Even his electro ghost appears, trying to help him in this endeavor. As Zaro became more wounded, his rage intensified. He entered a primal state and forced an intense psionic backlash. It was powerful enough to kill the lights in the lab and cause Sabi to pull back and grab himself by his head, reeling from a screeching sound in his ears. Within moments, whatever sentience he had was gone and he became a beast fighting for its life.Sabi could see that Zaro was thoroughly bitten, his limbs limping behind him. He hardened his four arms and drove them into the creature's body, killing it on the spot. His opponent was dead but he was unable to do anything about his thirst for violence that kept him alive.He became just like the chimaera that injured Sabi the other day. Sabi tried calling him to his senses, but Zaro easily attacked him instead. There was a cracking sound- and Sabi's vision went dark. Slowly regenerating at the brink of death- Sabi clung to his rampaging mentor, trying to calm and restrain him. Now he fully understood the strength and abilities of this creature, perhaps in the worst way possible.--After getting completely taken out, Sabi woke up to find himself on a surgeon's table again. He sees his mentor working to repair him, but he isn't uttering a word. "Have you been dreaming again, Sabi?"- Zaro asked while working attentively to patch him back together. "It was a dreamless sleep" - he replied, smiling serenely. The clicking sound of limbs was a most soothing comfort after the recent escalation. He was happy to see Zaro again but he could see the subtlety in his expression. His mentor was having a hard time coping with his uncontrollable outburst of rage. It was clear that Zaro hated having his impulses take control of him.Sabi's relationship with such things was different. He somehow accepted waking up again and again, each time feeling more empty inside, until he no longer cared if it weren't right. At that moment however, he wanted to care. He knew he wasn't Zaro's enemy. Sabi really, really liked the idea of protecting Zaro. Keeping his doctor's back, and standing his ground against other monsters. Even if his growls were just the angry meows of a kitten. He extended his hand and formed a little fist. His mentor's appearance evoked awe in him, not fear or disgust. Even though Prime's goal was to twist Sabi into becoming a tool, he ultimately couldn't achieve this goal.
Serving as the core of his beliefs, Sabi always had his family. Getting back together and finding a cure for his condition was his long standing motive that persevered through everything the world threw at him. This motive was his reason for joining the Fatui organization in the first place. On the other hand, Zaro was "born there". It's the only world he ever knew. He went into all of this having only what Prime could give. Is that why he created "The Garden?"- "It must have been so lonely" so Sabi thought. Despite having raised so many monsters and critters in it, he has failed to emulate "normalcy" even though he turned the rules of his world inside-out.--A day came when Sabi finally finished the serum for his mother. But instead of saying goodbye, he turned towards his monstrous mentor and said that now nothing will distract him from the Garden and the life in it. In the end, Sabi was happy with the idea of just staying there. He widely smiled, and embraced life in the Garden at his new mentor's side. Without telling Zaro, he has stopped looking for a cure for himself. Over time, he even came to accept himself how he was and no longer wished to see "a different self". He came to embrace his madness, seeing it as a part of him, something that he now even cherished.︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶
Notes:
- Thank you for making it this far and reading my story! ^^ I know this one was a bit longer. Sabimaru is a character who belongs to @SilenceMasamune on Twitter/X !
Diary of Balthazar: All is Fair
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's (Dottore Segments) from Genshin Impact!
...It's been a month since Prime triggered the termination sequence...Everything was quiet. So many of the voices of other segments were drowned over a span of mere hours. So much knowledge scattered like dust in the wind, with one man declaring himself worthy, merely walking away after making such a sacrifice. And yet not all of them were destroyed.In an abandoned warehouse, one sat in a darkened room. He's surrounded by stacks of vials and jars. This cramped storage room is his office. He cleaned a mithral blade in his hand, and a glint of light reflected his features. This rugged Segment is named „Otto“, number 228. He was a „spare body“ that Prime kept on hand all these years.A dormant husk of the original Dottore who was stripped of all aspirations, hobbies and interests so that his keen intellect could be focused on one thing only- killing those Prime considers to be „a loose end“. His very name was struck out of records for this purpose. It's as if the rest of the world didn't exist around him. Otto kept cleaning his blade with disinterest. He flicked a cigarette between his fingers. Once again, Prime's unfinished business will be washed with blood.--As an assassination segment, Otto was put together to locate and eliminate Segments before they became too independent or in the case of halting information leaks that could harm Prime. Otto was also there in case if Prime ever wanted to separate himself... from the Harbingers. It was necessary have something to fall back on in case if the Fatui sent their warriors to hunt him down (Prime was calculating that the others were doing the same thing as him). "Strike first and make sure it's the last"- Otto was the most combat-savvy segment. He acted with ultimate precision and patience. He could talk for hours about the subtleties of his work, and the details of his finest kills. At the same time, he saw his job „like any other“. Otto simply doesn't see contracted killing being different from crafting artifacts or selling fruit on a stand.After many years of forced cryosleep (His boss only needs him as a spare body after all) his awakening was greeted by Prime's face, covered with a mask and with a pale smile on his lips.He congratulated Otto on „waking up“ smirking to himself and saying that many others didn't get to enjoy that luxury. He handed Otto a list of objectives (His so-called shopping list). A handful of rogue segments, as Prime called them, needed to be culled before they could retaliate against him. Who his targets were never mattered to Otto. The most driven and the most lowly segment were no different in his eyes. They were but targets to eliminate.Otto was considered to be so impersonal by Prime that he didn't even have a name. A body stripped of emotions doesn't need one. Some personality still emerged in him because remarkably, Otto was annoyed that his work could not be credited to anyone. And he took pride (Like any other Segment) in the execution of his craft. With that being said, Otto suffered no preaching from Prime and would harshly cut him off if he went on tangents, telling him to „shut his mouth“ so he can focus on cleaning his weapons. He often communicated with Prime by giving him silent nods and short responses.Streaks of smoke rose from the cigarette between Otto's fingers„Is that all?“ - he asked Prime, obviously waiting for the man to leave him to his work. „Don't keep me from doing what I do“ to which Prime waved him off and told him that he is right to his opinions, as he is to his own.--One of the targets on his list was a segment number 113, by the name of Balthazar, codename „Zaro“. Zaro was an old test subject before anything else, a result of free form experimentation with the goal of creating a segment that could interpret the Irminsul. He was a segment in charge of sentience and transposition of the „soul“, or rather whatever latent elemental residue ends up being stored in the ley lines after sentient beings pass on (or dream).As this bionic creature, he posessed the ability to overwhelm the will of sentient creatures, melting their mind's defenses like wax. He could read minds, compel them to do things or erase memories of vital information... This was very troublesome. Prime described him as someone whose own mind had been compromised, and has become too uncontrollable not to be taken out. He painted the picture of a madman who dances naked in the moonlight and sucks the sap of the Divine Tree. Otto agreed. With himself being an empty slate, the mind reading fairy would have nothing to find-- aside from visions of its own death as Otto already savours the kill.Since Sumeru was nearby, Otto decided it would be his next location after he finished a job on the south of Fontaine.--...Four days later, Otto stood above his fallen victim...He's ended the life of some poor segment who was still a teen. This ended up bearing heavily on his soul. He has never killed someone this young, let alone someone who could have literally been „himself“.He lit up a cigarette, smoke drifting away just like his thoughts. Otto was created at the age of 33 and he never got to experience his teens. He didn't even know his own "clone years". „The man I'm supposed to be, the man I don't really know and he will never know me... Is this the fate that the original Dottore truly wanted for himself? I just don't see it.“An opinion formed in Otto's mind: „This isn't something an intelligent man would want". Perhaps it was his boss (Prime) who was the „rogue segment“ after all, harming the integrity of the mission that all segments shared. Well, that was an uncomfortable thought. The collection of knowledge has nothing to do with settling personal scores. What Otto didn't know, was that this slight doubt created a weakness that could later be exploited.Some time later, Otto packed up and left for Sumeru. He knew that his opponent has been recording events from the leylines and so, was „eavesdropping“ on the world for a long time. His arrival was no doubt expected. Otto knew he'd be fighting on the home ground of his prey. But that didn't matter because the job had to be completed. This directive could not be overridden. He laced his blades with special poisons. A cruel tincture that works only on Dottore segments. Otto knew that Zaro's body is probably unstable because of so many different elemental energies flowing through it. This could be used against him, perhaps to even counter his mind affecting abilities. This trick was his joker card. When arriving to the main city, Otto initially posed himself as an investigator of the paranormal from Inazuma who takes an interest in demons.He claimed to be interested in „fairies“, but many in Sumeru were horrified when he worded them as „monsters“. And yet someone sought him out in the end. It was an unpleasant topic- but there were whispers of a fey that wasn't a sweet, benevolent creature, but a disfigured monster instead. This would eventually help Otto track his quarry down.
The clues that Otto gathered led him to Mawtiyima forest. A dangerously unstable area filled with energies of ancient dreams and memories that stem from Sumeru's ancient past. The whole area was aware of Otto's arrival, and so was Zaro. His quest had him walking through ankle deep water at the valley floor. He didn't like his shoes getting wet but there was no helping it. As he walked around the forest searching for traces of his prey, strange visions suddenly tried to grab him. It was an unannounced psychic attack. The floor bent beneath his heels and he fell face down through the earth, into a dream. He focused his efforts in resisting the madness. It was disorienting and because of that, his mind was additionally weakened to follow-up psychic attacks. A fluttering of wings could be heard. But not gentle like the wings of a fairy. More like the stridulations of wings of a giant insect. Otto felt like he was being hunted instead.„Hmmm. You don't look like much“Zaro emerged from a dark cloud.He was in his "human" form. He hovered in the air near Otto, posed as if he was resting on an invisible chair that was floating in the air. His voice was tinged with some dissapointment. Otto's body was frozen and flushed with cold sweat while his eyes darted around. He heard a voice but didn't actually see anything. He was trapped in a dream, a place between waking and sleeping. Zaro smiled. He conveyed a warning to Otto with telepathy, telling him that he is lost and should turn back. He also told him that Prime's downfall has been foreseen, and that he wouldn't be the one to stay in charge forever. That his selfish actions went against knowledge, and knowledge doesnt serve a „master“.Zaro continued to add that he was rejected by his own kind, and as a Dottore- rejected by humans as well. Having experienced exclusion twice, he found comfort and consolation that Prime's plan failed. Otto struggled against Zaro's psychic pressure, enough to be able to say: „I came here to kill you, not to hear you yap“. Zaro laughed again- he laughed, and it sounded like there were insects chittering inside his body (And perhaps they were). He warned Otto to turn back one last time, even saying that he would grant him „a wish“ if he behaved well...But Otto was stubborn and determined to push through. He was dedicated to his job and truth be told, it was the only thing he knew how to do.Prime stripped him off other abilities that a Dottore „should have“ in order to improve his efficiency as a killer. But take that away, and Otto is left with no purpose or way to live. In a way, Otto himself has already experienced "deactivation" but differently. He could never get started on any research, he was programmed to not be able to do so. His research would always end up with him wanting to create a random mess. He could never sit down and concentrate on something. He even forgets to eat, and he thinks sleeping is pointless but then passes out of exhaustion anyway.But when it comes to killing, it is as if his inadequacies never existed.Just put a weapon in his hands, and he will do it. These strong but sad feelings helped him struggle against Zaro's mind dive. But the Fey segment wouldn't let up, and Otto continued to feel his presence in his mind, trying to pick apart his memories. ''You shouldn't mess with someone memories. Memories make a person who they are'' - Otto struggled to make the words through his gritted teeth, fighting against his body going numb.Zaro found this delightfully amusing. At the flick of his wrist, they were transported through interplanar dimensions again. This time they were in a nicely furnished room, inspired by Sumeru interiors.Zaro walked his fingers across the back of a camel styled sofa. He added: „Bodies of fallen assassins, their blood stagnating and becoming hard, until it became this gilded furniture“ He laughed and slid into the seat, pridefully rubbing the furniture as he threw one leg over another.„You and I are in a world carefully strung together from the dreams that fell off the Irminsul. Time flows differently here, among other things. Would you rather meet my carnivorous mirrors or will you become my next piece of furniture?“ a sly smile danced across his lips: „I will even let you keep that precious bowtie“. Otto struggled against the dream, enough to tell Zaro that his furniture sucks and that he has bad taste.He managed to tear himself away from Zaro's influence one more time, enough to deliver him with a blow of his "joker". A shriek ripped itself from Zaro's throat. In the next moment his assault was more fearsome than ever. The illusion of the room around them fell apart and Zaro's anger fueled, mind flaying abilities crashed over Otto's will like a furious wave. Otto felt himself falling into a void and his memories and thoughts were stripped out of him with merciless, grabbing hands. Instead of his humanlike appearance, a horrific insect creature emerged in the abyss of Otto's mind eye. Then everything went blank again.Suddenly he began to think about his past. About the fate of all Dottore segments. All of them unique, but none of them allowed to be themselves and reach their true potential. Always subservient to Prime. Something within Otto awakened as a cause of Zaro's meddling in his brain. What was he ever born for? just to fill the appearance of A Dottore? what is a Dottore? Why does he have to obey one man who sees him as nothing but a tool? With this new overwhelming feeling, Otto tried to rage Zaro's mind flaying abilities away. He was breaking his shackles with the zeal you'd normally see in heroic protagonists and not in hollowed out assassins. Segment blood seeped from Otto's eyes, physically suffering from stress and bringing him to a near-death state.It took another few thrashes for the bionic segment's wild temperament to settle. His wings fluttered in an irritated manner and he regained his human-like form. „You are both here and you are not. You can die never, or a hundred times. But that's not the point.“ Zaro moved his hand over a wound on his stomach that slowly vanished. The stabbing wound Otto inflicted with the joker was merely a manifestation within the dream of Otto resisting Zaro's mind dive.--There was something different about Zaro. After he went diving through Otto's memories, he re-emerged without a desire to continue the conflict.He instead turned his cyclopean eye towards Otto with pity. „God... There was nothing here. Just 90% of cryosleep“. He was surprised that after being suspended in Cryosleep for so long Otto was even capable of feeling „anger“ at all.To Zaro, this was incredibly tragic. He shook Otto trying to honestly convey that the battle between them is pointless. They travelled back to the original realm. The Mawtiyima forest. Where both of them are still standing. It was silent all around. Zaro's hands were on Otto's shoulders and Otto was barely moving with the status of his condition unknown.But before Zaro could utter another word, a knife found its way to his stomach. This time for real. Before it could sink more deeply into the Fey segment's body, a small blue creature intervened and took the majority of the blow. Zaro shielded his creature as the segment poison began circulating through its body. He compelled Otto not to kill them. And as for Otto... he just felt so damn tired. He wiped the blood from his lips and nose. He was no "Dottore" at all, just an assassin. And a shitty assassin at that. He saw his hand tremble as he was unable to finish the job. He no longer even knew if these were his own thoughts or illusions placed into his head by Zaro's psychic abilities. Everything has melted away...Zaro took notice of Otto's thoughts, still reading but not affecting them.Suddenly, a sharp signal cut through their connection. Prime sent out a second signal, killing off another segment and this time it's target was Otto (Prime considered him to be compromised).This was a surprise to them both. Otto was still alive, but Prime considered that Otto had already „lost“ and saw him as trash to be disposed of. Zaro watched as Otto curled up before him, with tears trickling down his exhausted face.„Urggh.... what the hell was the point of any of it?“Otto fainted and woke up to find himself in Zaro's care. Perhaps luckily, he wasn't affected. It's because he became so mutated from experimentng on himself that the security measures Prime installed into all of his segments stopped working on him. Otto laughed painfully and said "heh, so outliers like you really were a threat after all". Zaro shushed him and told him not to waste his energy.
He wondered if Zaro would keep him captive as well. That he'd simply be inherited by him after Prime. The powers of illusion that he posessed didn't instill him with much comfort either. Otto fidgeted nervously, desperately trying to find a cigarette in his coat. Zaro didn't like him smoking because he was repelled by the smell, but he let him go for it anyway. As for his question, Zaro shrugged with apathy. He suggested that Otto should stay over and allow him to look after his wound. After all, his deactivation was meant to be fatal and Zaro had already found ways to stabilize his body and his consciousness. They stared at one another from opposite sides. The buzzing of insects could be heard in the background accompanied by the dripping of water. The impression was that they were in a large hive and that the comb structures were like skyscrapers reaching into the air. It could have all been an illusion, but it was beautiful.The more Zaro spent time looking at this other segment, the more he realized that he was starting to love him. How perfect this other, unknown self was. Such a hopeless creature, so mortal and convoluted. Ever since then he encouraged Otto to find himself. And they spent time together in Zaro's hidden tapestry of dreams where blades of grass stroke your feet gently and where even dark creatures look upon you with understanding. Zaro introduced Otto to all kinds of new creatures he created. All he ever wanted was to see life emerge from different forms. From the small and docile ones, to the ones ravenous as much as he. Otto thought this was endlessly interesting, and Zaro even allowed him to dissect and study some specimens in order to break away from any lingering Prime's directives. It wasn't long until Otto's own heart began to beat faster when he was near Zaro. They understood their intended purpose better than Prime who has seemingly lost sight of it. To observe the world, from many, many different perspectives and viewpoints. And to form one's own perception of the world. And here, authority had no place, because it limited spontaneity of how the world works. Such a rigid mind could not hope to observe the world from all perspectives.Otto left the service of Prime, but still works as an independent contractor- meaning its possible to hire him for assassinations. A proper assassin can still get paid pretty well.︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶
Notes:
- This is the last of the Segment stories. I'm extremely thankful to everyone who wanted to participate! I wished to finish more of them, but I simply did not have the stamina. This lovely segment belongs to @/exxiry from Twitter/x !
The Primordial Sin
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's from Elden Ring!
He believes in the existence of the goddess of Sin from lands beyond. At this point, Regill is 26 years old and he had been a Page ever since he was a child. Regill was picked up from the streets by his master who had been looking for a good fit to grow into his retinue. As far as he knows, this is all he is good for. Having grown up in his master’s care, he learned how to spin him around his finger. Regill had a silver tongue and knew how to get himself out of trouble and skip work. Regill’s home was a “cage” but it was undoubtedly a comfortable one. The same could be said about his relationship to his master and others around him. It was a lukewarm existence. He knew some servants had it worse- those in service to Seluvis have been said to endure abuse, earning no freedom even in the grip of death, as their master would turn them into puppets for his own wicked ends. Regill knew he was lucky among the unfortunate but this didn’t make him feel any better.It was just luck.He wasn’t in charge of his own life, but in a boat, swaying on the waves. Everything around him seemed inconsequential. Regill knew he was going to be unfair towards others, and in turn- that others would do the same. Not out of spite or hate, but convenience and necessity. Is it a crime for a hungry child to steal? Is it a crime to 'rescue' a child out of poverty when you buy them as a slave? Regill couldn’t bring himself to care about unfairness or humiliation, because it was the only world he knew. Instead, he understood that living is about “desire”, and that life does not exist without it. The only crime in his book, is not closing your fist when an opportunity sits in your hand. This is at the core of his character and also his greatest limitation for growth. Regill’s biggest fears are death and boredom, and sometimes he can’t see the difference between the two.But eventually, Regill stops liking what he’s been doing- or rather, he gets bored with what he was doing. He begins to feel that he’d rather do more with his life than endure a lukewarm relationship with someone who buys his affection, whom he neither loves nor despises. One day Regill simply woke up with the idea that he wanted to change as a person. He wondered if this was possible to achieve, not trusting the claim over his own desire (Can it be done? Can he change the status quo?). He started studying, using the vast library of his master. He’d buy himself out of service.Something turned in him, and he wanted to challenge fate even if it kicked him out on the streets or threw him in jail. He wanted ownership over his own life.--He read about concepts of outside the Lands Between being tied with humanity, and how “darkness” was their nature. Regill thought it was interesting. Reading about it was like justifying everything he had experienced so far. Are all humans guilty from birth? Is that why it’s so natural to feel so terrible? Is that what dictates their fates and makes them perpetual servants to higher beings? Is guilt just masquerading as complacency and lukewarm satisfaction? Is that what makes them sit and obey? But there was more. He eventually reached forbidden tomes detailing outer gods, and a particular being caught his eye- the Goddess of sin.He wondered, if in her eyes, such a thing as an "innocent" existed, and what would be the criteria for that. He started to believe that through penance he could be reborn and freed of his past (Or his nature). But what he actually meant was that it could remove his flaws as a person. He didn’t want to face the fact that such a thing could only change through difficult personal decisions. So instead, Regill begged for “Sin”, a manifestation of his personal demons that he could conquer.He thought once he kneeled before this unknown goddess, he would somehow rise as a different person. He was chasing happiness in form only. Even if he labelled it as “Sin”, Regill was no different from the adorers of the Golden Order who kneel and pray for salvation from the Golden Tree. But this isn’t how life works. And Regill doesn’t know it- but his prayers would be answered. However, this penance wouldn’t come in the form of something he can easily overcome, or even recognize. She will teach him that the world is much wider and larger than he thinks he knows. He’d get everything he wants- just not in the way he wants it. And out of all this, Regill’s unusual “luck” is born.--Somehow suddenly- the Golden Order caught wind of his heretical studies. Now, chasing the dream of buying himself out service became ashes in the wind. Instead of becoming a Royal archivist in Leyndell, Regill watched his plans fall apart. It felt just like something pushed him back to the start, before he thought he’d figured out the game.But that’s when his overly attached master pleads to the Golden Order to have mercy on his beloved servant.Thanks to this man’s (unwanted) affection, Regill’s life was spared. It was a strange feeling and it became even stranger when Regill was set to serve as a Confessor on the fringes of the kingdom, hunting down people who “sinned” against the Order in a similar fashion as he did. It felt purposeful and artificial, but since Regill couldn’t point his suspicion to anyone, he had to comply. That was when he closed the tome with readings on “sin” and ventured outside. At least he wouldn’t be confined to his master’s mansion anymore, and that was what he wanted... right?As a confessor, Regill came in contact with many people and got to listen to their stories. Because they saw him as an agent of the Golden Order (and the High Will), they didn’t mind sharing their hopes or the horrors they committed. Regill suddenly felt humbled, and saw that other people were the heroes of their own stories just like him. They made him aware of the vast range of ordeals that people go through. He started to feel bad about the overly simplistic interpretation he used to have of the world.
--With a new determination and pride, he clutched his tools to himself, and thought about how he’d do better at his work. That perhaps, this is where he’s meant to be. Regill secretly felt a little proud- he thought that he grew as a person.Reg felt more driven than ever before. But that was when he lost everything again. As a Confessor, it was inevitable that he’d one day run into cultists of Mohg’s order. He looked into their eyes and saw pure darkness he could not understand. They overwhelmed one of the camps he was staying in, and crushed the defending force that stood in their way. Like shadows, they slinked from cover to cover, avoiding damages to their numbers until they dashed the life of the last remaining knight. The survivors were rallied together to the center of the camp. Regill kicked and screamed, but their strong hands dragged him there nonetheless. Confessor and the guilty, all tied together like lambs waiting for slaughter.His entire body was shaking, just like the people on his left and right. The cloaked figures walked around them, happy to have found offerings to sate the Lord and his followers. That’s when they started bleeding people dry.
The Primordial Sin
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's from Elden Ring!
The mere sight of it drove Regill mad with fear. This was brutally different from the life he enjoyed mere months ago. No longer was there a concept of evil and good he built up in his mind, no more people and their life stories.The only thing he knew was “fear”. And he saw how easily his understanding of the world shattered again. He begged for his life first, but then he begged to be put into service, saying he could bring them more offerings. Anything to avoid the pain and suffering of being bled to death like the others. One of the cultists, a surgeon nonetheless- grabbed Regill by the face, giving him an unusual and reassuring chuckle beneath his mask. The followers of Mohg decided to give Regill a chance- pressing a knife firmly into his open palm, and telling him to finish off the rest of the sacrifices. After the deed was done, the same surgeon approached Regill again-with a mask in his hand and bearing his usual, gentle smile. He delicately removed the knife from Regill’s hands (having to use some force, as Regill was gripping it to the point of numbness) and stroked his hair.He whispered into his ear, that he’d mould Regill into a fine Dynasty Noble. And that he would be more than he ever dreamed of being.--Regill started to work for the blood cult, learning their routine and how to distance himself from the horrid actions he had to take to keep himself alive. Keeping the cult happy was a far worse fate than doing service for his old master. This time he was actually hurting people.But, while working for these nameless fiends, Regill got to travel all over the Lands Between. The most interesting locations were the “burial tombs”, which he and his clan desecrated to learn more about the Erdtree. What rotten luck. Regill could dive into his research without anyone stopping him. He could roll open any scroll and read any tome while scrutinizing its content without someone keeping guard or trying to stop him.On one special occasion, Regill spent an extra amount of time in Caelid, exploring a particular Tower where he defeated a pair of Godskin Apostles by using the cult’s abilities. That’s where he found Blackflame, a volatile power that took a liking to him. The Blackflame danced around his fingers, biting his hand ever so slightly like a playful pet. He sat on the Tower’s ground level, in dust, not caring how filthy his sanguine noble outfit had become. This was the first time that he felt especially excited about something. This was the fruit of Regill’s search for “sin”, and for the first time it was a power he had gained on his own. The black flames felt weighty which was different from the blood flame that Regill had the opportunity to conjure. Just so, Regill accepted that he wasn’t a “spectator” anymore. He wasn’t here by accident, this wasn’t luck. He couldn’t blame the things he did on outside circumstances anymore. Taking advantage of the cult to further his pursuits was a conscious trade, and even more sin was granted to him in exchange. He sat alone with this revelation, his feet and hands burnt, but feeling happier than ever before.As more time went on, Regill became a full-blown Dynasty Noble, complete with their mannerisms, language and knowledge.He even got his own, private quarters. Now he was writing his own scrolls, and imparting his knowledge to others. He was strong, and he had “rank”. His studies of the Blackflame made him a teacher to others and he enjoyed this role. But, in the depths of his heart, he still felt shame when looking back to all the sacrifices he made to the Blood Lord. This was a clear sign that this place was not his final destination, as he still hadn’t found himself. No matter how much he tried to rationalize that this was a game of winners and losers, it didn’t work. All those people died so he could continue serving yet another master. An idea occurred to him- what if he became so powerful, that he could take over the cult’s head... and perhaps, even disband it?He would need a lot of power to do it. The Blackflame flickered in Regill’s hand promisingly, as if agreeing to conspire together with him. If only his old master could see him now.
The Primordial Sin
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's from Elden Ring!
But then, another disaster struck seemingly out of nowhere. After months of preparation to challenge Mohg, the Lord of Blood - a Frenzied Lord suddenly appeared (as typically expected of “chaos”) with a simple motive.To consume. Grow in strength.They just wanted the cultist’s concentrated power and began consuming their lives for their runes, with the side effect of Frenzied flame washing over the palace like an unstoppable wave. What didn’t survive, was subsumed- what survived, went insane.Dozens of his cultist allies fell to the frenzied rays of gold. Not as punishment for the wicked- but simply on a stranger's whim. Regill grabbed himself by the head- he didn’t want to be sucked into the crucible of life, losing himself, his place and all the knowledge he sacrificed so much to gain.The image of himself with dignity and purpose slipped out of his fingers (But could there even be dignity when its built upon the suffering of others?). When Regill woke up, he was surrounded with dozens of dead. Mohg was dead too. While he was out of it, the Frenzied Lord merely stepped over him, letting him survive out of carelessness. He looked around to see the lake of blood ignited by yellow fire. He knew he couldn’t resume on this path again. And to make matters worse, he was now infested with “Frenzy”. He could do nothing but submit to the reality of his new situation. It was time to start over, again. He wasn’t alone in his head anymore, and that’s why he wanted to cure the frenzy. He paused his studies on the dark, and shifted his focus to a new outer god. A familiar place manifested in his memory- the Haligtree. He remembered from the Blood Cult that this is where Miquella was from.He found a horse, and started a journey. The blackflame urged him on with confidence. Despite his shattered dream, he rode through the frozen lands of giants. Through snowstorms and snow, he became covered in scars and his journey became written upon his body. When he arrived to his objective, Regill was met with more disappointment. Miquella’s needle was nowhere to be found. And it couldn’t be crafted either. But despite that he didn’t find a solution for his Frenzy, Regill learned more about “The Primordial Crucible”. He observed the grafting process in the Haligtree, and learned how it was made strong. It was because of the constant change- of evolution and mutation, a reason for which he learned it was outlawed by the Golden Order he once thought he’d serve. Regill chuckled to himself. It was all so absurd and ironic- but he decided to learn crucible magic nonetheless, in a desperate attempt to stave the Frenzy’s claim over his soul.Even without the needle, he found another way to make himself strong enough to resist the flame. But there was one more place Regill wanted to see- the lost city of Nokron.In one of the scrolls he found while perusing the dusty libraries of Miquella’s city, he saw mention of Farum Azula and talk about an old God who departed to the land of stars. Since, by his understanding- this old god existed in the time of the Crucible Era, he could potentially learn more about how to separate individuals from “the soup of souls”- as he called the Frenzied flame.--On his way back to Limgrave, he had to stop for a terrifying sight. The city of Leyndell became a ruin. The buildings were crumbled, and burnt ashes filled the streets. Wrapped in rags, Regill traversed over the fallen city. He saw the master's old home, reduced to rubble, frightening scorch marks scarring the roof of a once golden pavilion. Regill paused. How many months has it been since he went missing in action as a Confessor? It was such a long time that even the cult he served was wiped out. He felt.. relief. Like a stone fell from his chest. Regill’s past and future could never join together to form a loop. He abandoned the place, carrying the image of the city’s opulence in his mind like a last memento.
The Primordial Sin
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's from Elden Ring!
When he arrived to Limgrave, Regill began looking for an entrance into the underground world. He was aware of an old well that could lead him to the city, but all access routes were blocked at some point, which meant he had to find a different way in. He travelled through forests, scoured the burning plains and peeked into every cave. His search availed to nothing, aside from finding a couple of new merchant friends and a strangely friendly warrior jar. Exhausted, Regill sighed loudly and slid on his back, looking at the sky.Just as he was scratching his nose, a meteorite ripped through the sky with deafening noise. It all happened in a split second, and it was as if the clouds themselves were set on fire.Regill’s eyes bulged open, and then a hot blast threw him away. If he had any eyebrows, they were gone now for sure. Regill rubbed his eyes, and dusted off his clothes. He started carefully approaching the impact area, waving off the flying dust with his hands even though it burned his eyes. As he came closer, a distinct shape started coming into view. It was a massive crater! And the residual gravitational energy was so strong, that huge chunks of rock still hung in the air. It was as beautiful as it was unnerving. Regill wasn’t comforted by the idea that one of those things could go plummeting down on his head as he tries to climb down into the hole. But at least, now there was a way in. Regill nodded, and then jumped downward into the unknown. A faint sprite of Blackflame lit up his way.--He was shocked by what he saw. The city of Nokron itself was tidy and barely damaged, its dignified walls stood proud and tall.But even more, Regill thought how far beneath the surface he was. He was struck by a sudden fear of everything collapsing, though he decided to put that thought aside in his mind. He didn’t want to feel afraid of just walking around this city, especially when he had a goal to accomplish.The heels of his boots clanked against the city’s polished black tiles. With every turn of a corner, Regill saw something new. He was shocked by the amount of stairs- despite that most of its current population consisted of beings he understood as “slimes”.There were even massive, sentient balls (Yes, balls). Regill once stood on a balcony in utter horror, as a seemingly inanimate object tried to reach him in order to crush him underneath itself. This thing even stalked him- quietly trailing from behind and forcing Regill to take narrow passages.
He almost felt like he was just sightseeing now, as if the original goal in his mind was now somewhere else.He had a distinct feeling that the city itself was alive and aware of his presence... and that it was preparing something for him. That was when he met another human- or rather, something close to it. One of the “slimes” he had been encountering took the shape of a person. At first, Regill thought it was a monster trying to imitate him, but then he realized this being had its own mind. It begged him for mercy- and although equally scared, Regill agreed to hear it out. This being introduced itself and its species as “mimics”, and surprisingly enough, he even ended up taking care of it.--The mimic spent time by his side as he explored the city, hearing many of his tales about his journey so far. It took quite a liking to him (even though he was mostly rambling about places and gods it had no idea about). It was so unbelievably long since he had a chance to chat.Regill even spoke about the Gloam-Eyed Queen who was capable of dispensing justice even over the gods themselves. Exciting- the mimic thought. Justice this, justice that- for someone who claimed the world is “just winners and losers” (at least at the start), it was obvious what Regill still cared about the most.The mimic didn’t understand much but loved hearing his voice all the same. It was perhaps obvious only now, but Regill had slowly been changing as a person this whole time. They weren't very visible milestones- but with each adventure, Regill was becoming more responsible, and more kind. This finally came to show when he was opening his heart to someone, talking in great detail about his experiences and feelings, even if his listener could only understand so little. It quietly adored the first human it saw, and to that being, Regill was the most amazing hero ever (even though he was very far from that).But then, at the end of his journey in Nokron- Regill learned that the people of Nokron killed the God he wanted to find for the sake of their own revenge.
The Primordial Sin
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's from Elden Ring!
That was it, the end of the journey. Again. His only hope of curing the frenzied flame was destroyed while settling a grievance hundreds of years old.Regill was deeply disappointed and angered. He cried seeing that he could not take control of his life no matter how much he tried. In the end he left the place without a word and did not even say goodbye to the mimic he took care of. On his way out, he took one last look at Nokron. It wasn’t an answer to his plight, but at least it was beautiful. It was a quiet gift in its own way. Regill sat down, with tears in his eyes and stared at the "stars". His days were numbered.--In the end, Regill decided to let go of his “desire”, and start wandering around. Perhaps this was his destiny. Maybe the big revelation he was meant to realize was that life was transient. That obsessions should be let go of, and other emotions be enjoyed to the fullest. It included embracing time, and embracing pain that no one promises to lift. His Blackflame remained with him as an eternal partner on whichever journey he decided to take, on this precious and only life. His witness, the sin he so longed for.Whatever happens, he always seems to survive and things somehow turn out for the better, even if he actively tries to fail. It scares him. He thinks it has to do with the Grace of Gold, or whatever is still left in him, but the truth is in the domain of the goddess of Punishment and Sin. He doesn’t see that both the disasters and his unusual luck stem from the same source.Now he stalks the roads of Limgrave. He ditched all of his old clothes, and just wears the things he picked off dead Godrick’s soldiers or other bandits. They’re light, inconspicuous and comfortable even though they kind of paint him as a target. He even has a nickname with the local bandits, “Buckethead Regill”. Lately, he even seems to think that people can allow themselves all sorts of fantasies if it makes them feel better. Even if those fantasies are arrogant.Without much of a goal in mind, he now plays his flute and lounges around during the day. This is because he sleeps at day, and pillages at night. He likes sitting in alcoves, or resting in tree canopies since climbing is very easy for him and he likes to stay out of sight. He can also imitate bird songs to a very high degree. He can do at least 15 different melodies of various different songbirds in Limgrave. At least he's not bored while waiting for the Frenzied flame to consume him.He doesn't sleep well, because Frenzied Flame is hard to endure. As soon as he closes his eyes, instead of "going into the land of dreams", his mind wanders into the frenzied cauldron, replete with screams and wails of thousands of bodiless souls that were forced into their primordial form. He often looks sweaty, exhausted or miserable when roused from sleep.--Initially, he became a lowly bandit because he needed to survive from day to day.But Reg learned that he actually preferred this way of life. Maybe this is finally who he is? He knows he's a good-for-nothing rascal and he lets his travel companions know that if push comes to shove, he will likely abandon them to their fate (and he expects them to do the same). He doesn't like being followed around or having companions because he starts feeling responsible for them, and he knows full well, that when the situation gets serious, he will be the first one to run. So he shoo's away anyone who tries to get too close.--Someone else was listening in on his story, there was a consciousness that seemed to swim undeterred in the Frenzied flame. Every time he slept, it watched him with pointed curiosity. It couldn't be anyone else but the Frenzied lord, the same one who decimated the bloodletting clan long ago (...And doomed him forever). He wanted a part in this “story”. And his name… was Nye.On the most ordinary day, his greatest obstacle just walked up to him with a smile and a greeting. Regill is beside himself again- how can he convince the primordial, eldritch monstrosity to spare his life?And maybe even spare this world?
Dug Out Heart
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's and the canon characters are OOC!
It was a beautiful day. A yaku-yoke talisman dangled from the ear of a young red-haired man who hummed as he walked along the cracked road. Wesley liked to pretend that time was frozen on Earth because that made it easier for him to deal with the apocalypse brought on by the Punishing Virus.Away from the red tide, he could pretend that the world was visited by autumn that never leaves. With that attitude, the general state of devastation didn't seem so bad. Perhaps he was a bit guilty to admit that he’s gotten comfortable with this silence. He was on his way to the conservation area named C-09 “Cyte”. It was close to a mission in which he would be participating alongside the Gray Raven, and since he preferred spending time on Earth as opposed to Babylonia, he volunteered for some busywork in the colony so he’d have a reason to leave the starship sooner. There was always someone trying to bribe him or skirt him to their side for some shady business. Even though past events have practically left him an outcast, he wouldn’t stoop so low.He shielded his eyes from the sun and looked around. His gaze travelled over the dry trees, collapsed roofs, and demolished metal structures that jutted up towards the sky like a funerary dress with many holes. Everything was covered with a layer of rust. Even the road no longer resembled what it had been before. Whole lengths of it were hidden under leaves and engraved with cracks that sprouted sharp bushes. Wesley casually sauntered around, despite the heavy exoskeleton on his shoulders.He passed along rows of boarded up windows and toppled street lights. One of the houses was not barricaded, and one of its broken windows framed his figure. The little redhead became curious and quickly checked if there were any energy signatures around, and then carefully stepped inside. Immediately at the entrance, he was greeted by a poster of “Carbon Cat”, a villain from an old popular Golden Age show. Being how he was, Wes smiled and couldn't resist striking a pose like the anthropomorphic cat in the picture.A little further from that spot, he came across a room that gave view into all the adjacent rooms because of collapsed wall panels. A little dissapointed, he said: “It’s so gloomy here… Huh, well, what did I expect. It’s the apocalypse, after all” and threw a glance at the front door where one of his mechanoids stood like a sentry. Despite how people were usually unsettled by those things, Wes felt comforted instead.He wanted to see what was at the end so he stepped into the gap and walked along the wall, dragging his finger across its surface and leaving a line in the dust. But when he reached the end of the house he noticed something disturbing. The side of the wall facing outward was almost completely bare, and just outside, there was a collapsible fire pit with embers that were still flickering. He said: “Somebody lives here. I better get my gu-”“Hello” – “Agh!”A soft, contended voice peeped from under a hood. Wes almost jumped out of his exoskeleton.
--It was a girl wearing a Babylonian scout uniform, with a professional camouflage cloak over her shoulders. She had curious eyes and big glasses. The nametag hanging around her neck read “Leona”. “Achilles, I presume. Acting commandant of the undertaker squad?” – she started noting something into her tablet while regarding the emblem that was fastened into his harness. Only then he relaxed his hand on the gun, saying: “Been reading up on me, have you?”Following introductions, he realized that she was also here for the building effort on a new conservation area. For a moment, she seemed to look around before her eyes settled on Wes. “And your teammates, where are they?” – “Oh, they are most certainly here”. Wesley snapped his fingers, and a group of puppet-like mechanoids stumbled over from the other side without their master’s elegance. Leona was a bit startled, but Wesley seemed quite proud of them: “They’re also programmed to sing and hum along, look!” – he knocked on the head of one of his uncanny mechanoids, and it happily rattled out “Happy to serve, sir!” instead. “Haha, well (he waved his hand), they work normally most of the time”.Leona couldn’t help but notice that Wesley’s mechanoids were awfully decrepit. Mechanoids were human-like robots who predated Constructs and who used to serve humanity before the advent of the Punishing Virus. Where Constructs housed a human M.I.N.D., mechanoids only ran a simulation instead. Because of the relative simplicity of their make, they were more susceptible to the virus, and on Earth, the risk of infection was high. Regardless of the care and maintenance that he puts into these things, it’s undeniable that he was walking around with his own potential executioners.“Aren't you worried these things might kill you?” – she pointed her finger at Gearz-22, who glared at her with his barely humanoid eyes. Wesley replied candidly: “Why should I be bothered? Don’t worry miss, I learn plenty from the mangled corpses I put together. I know how to avoid sharing their fate, so there is no need to worry about me. At least heaven is always close in my line of work. Anyway, I see you love fishing just as much as I do sticking my nose everywhere ^^” – he tilted his head with a smile, nodding at a fishing rod next to a slow moving river behind her back.Hah. Leona smiled and moved a strand of hair behind her ear. She gestured to the tablet in her hands and explained that she will pack up and head for the colony only when she finishes gathering data. As security detail, it was her job to look for any signs of the red tide. For Wesley though, Cyte is where work would begin. She also leaned in to say- “You can service your power armor there. I bet it will be quite happy to lift the ‘weight’ off your shoulders”.They both laughed and Leona sent him on his way. As his figure became smaller in the distance, so did her faint smile fade away: “So it’s true. He is literally not allowed to have any constructs accompany him. Wesley was that person who lost their whole team. But... for what….?” she tried to remember. “For colluding with the Ascendants.” The words rang darkly in her mind, and she shuddered. “It’s too bad. He seemed nice though”.--Wesley continued on his way to Cyte. Following the military tribunal, his new life has been lonely. His job has him mostly dealing with corpses, and handling them is often a nightmare. One time, he had to pull out the remains of a construct who fell into land clearing machinery and his corpse got stuck between the gears. He couldn’t wash off the gore for an entire week.He didn’t mind deployment in the middle of nowhere just because he liked getting away from other babylonians. It was also because he felt like he deserved it. After everything that happened to his first squad and how he permanently lost his ability to be a commandant even though he holds the title. His mind is permanently tainted because of connecting to an Ascendant, so he can no longer connect to constructs or he might endanger them. One of his previous constructs, Renée even submitted a letter to the president of Babylonia Council, demanding almost exclusively that Wes to never be put in charge of another living thing again. This bought him lots of mockery from other squads who often call him a "fake", given that his team's name is that of a mythological warrior while he can't even take charge of a single construct.
There was also the constant danger of his dated mechanoids becoming corrupted and attacking him while in the corner of his eye or behind him. He’s already gotten used to dispatching them as soon as they start making weird sounds. Even Babylonia outfitted him with a custom gift just for this purpose. Whenever he has a little too much free time to think, he can’t help but wonder if this technical oversight was also a punishment for becoming too protective over a construct because he couldn't tell the difference between her and a human child. The thought of that was making him nauseated.But still, today was supposed to be a good day and he would destroy his own luck if he started worrying about things that had already become an indelible part of the past.
Dug Out Heart
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's and the canon characters are OOC!
Before he managed to reach his destination, Wesley stumbled into a familiar scene.A bunch of miserable, hungry-looking humans were rooting around in the remains of a delivery car. Judging by the amount of damage and the age of the vehicle, the attack itself could not have been their fault. Wesley briefly recalled seeing a message in the dorms’ commission system about a ground support unit that went missing. He brushed his chin. It would be pretty good if he could find the missing documents that Celica has been looking for...Meanwhile, the scavengers were already taking in his measure at a safe distance. He could hear the sound of scrap weapons dangling from under their cloaks. Their haggard, withered faces reminded him of the misery he already experienced in great abundance on the Nighter. These people were no raiders- oh, he knew those painfully well. They were probably here just scraping around for food or antibiotics. Either way, he wouldn’t sic his mechanoids on them because hurting them would only traumatize him more. And besides, he’s a gravedigger, he retrieves corpses, it’s not his job to make more of them. So instead of antagonizing anyone in the group, he said: “Can you just tell me what you took so I can document it?”“What for? so you can tell your friends in the conservation area to keep searching for them? Like hell we are gonna do that” - a black-haired man in a white shirt objected, staring him up and down with contempt.“Listen, I’m not your enemy here” – “That’s rich, coming from a Babylonian.” Wesley sighed and resisted the urge to eye roll. “If I really wanted to, I could have already whipped you together and have these guys drag you to the nearest colony. We’re still talking, aren’t we? I simply want to take inventory and be on my way”.A brave old lady with a colourful rag wrapped around her head stepped forward: “What’s with the charity anyway? We know what it means when people from the starship suddenly start being generous with us reprobates. And it’s nothing good”- she lifted the rag and tapped her finger against a massive cranial scar.Wesley sighed. Heedless of the tense group around him, he crouched next to the ruined vehicle and started ransacking it as well, stuffing some of the things into his pockets as if he did this dozens of times. Then he stood up to meet their baffled gazes and declared in a cold, almost authoritative voice: “Now you’re guilty, and I’m guilty. If the guards in Cyte want to stop you, you can just say I put you up to this. Whether or not you make that decision is up to you. Now pack up, and follow me before the corrupted find this place”. The scavengers shrugged at each other and came along, believing that Wes had also incriminated himself. Luckily, letting them keep their plundered goods was good enough of a bribe.--When they finally arrived to Cyte, Wesley let them scatter. They didn’t know that picking valuables off the dead was actually his job, nor that he was helping himself just as much as he was doing them a favour. While pretending to rob the car, he was pointedly looking for the documents that would let him finish an old commission. Besides, there was another reason why he was happy- while they were marching together, he could use his mechanoids to protect them. Any corrupted on the way were obliterated, and the crooks were escorted safely back home. With everything troublesome out of the way, Wes perked up happily: „Now that that's done, Lets go see our lovely lady secretary!“.Then he made for the makeshift information desk that Leona told him about and handed in his commission. He asked if there was any work for him and his motley crew of mechanoids.He also used the opportunity to inquire about the Gray Raven’s arrival. After his disaster with Ember, this brilliant team was one of his rare allies, so he wanted to be able to assist them in personal capacity as much as possible. The information clerk thanked him for his willingness to help. Perhaps this time, he will finally be able to spend more time helping people rather than picking up what’s left of them. He very much enjoyed that.The briefing he had on his terminal said that the otherwise inconspicuous area of Misty Lake became active with nano-interference. What he didn’t know, was that all the previous intel collection experts who were sent to investigate went missing and that even the Purifying Force became involved. Babylonia had to start putting together joint task forces from personnel on standby. That is how the mission became available to him as well.Before ending the day, he would also drop by and visit his old friend, a construct who goes by the name of Karenina.There was no need to ask for any directions, because he could tell by the distant cursing and constructs hurriedly walking in the opposite way. But he was actually drawn to her blunt and straightforward nature. He would always candidly say hi even if it was far out of his way. He loved listening to her complaints and rambles, and even felt validated when she rambled about his mechanoids not receiving proper care in Babylonia. At this point, he instinctively knew when her throat was starting to get dry. Their cooperation started early into Wesley’s new career as a gravedigger. He had to stay in touch with her team (The Engineering force) so they wouldn’t accidently bring a building down on his head before he finished extracting corpses. He was also in charge of maintenance of his equipment on Earth and that made him very handy, not to mention that he used to work on Ember’s repairs all on his own. Since both of them were mechanics, there was quite a lot to talk about.
Karenina was also empathetic to his situation. Whenever he lost hope about finding his old construct, she’d stomp her foot into the ground and tell him to get his ass up and work harder. She told him to put that energy to some good use instead of self pity, and that his time on Earth shouldn’t just be used for running away from his problems.Wesley still cared about Ember, even though she left with the Ascendants and the whole turnout costed him his future. After everything that happened, he at least wanted to know if she was alive and okay, even as an enemy. Just being able to clap his eyes on her would make him feel a bit ‘redeemed’
--Meanwhile, the Ascendants on Earth have already embraced Wesley's former construct as a new addition to their ranks. They even looked after her, and taught her how to control the Punishing virus. She knows she can't go back no matter how much it pains her to ignore her former commandant. A part of the reason why his efforts were so fruitless was also because she did not want to be found. Nobody could guarantee her safety if she ever wanted to return. Besides, she felt indebted to Roland for saving her from becoming a corrupted. He was the one she met that fateful day. Her body reacted well to his virus ("his gift"), which helped her survive the filtering threshold instead of becoming a mindless monster.But that did not stop her from sharing her stories about Wes. She ended up oversharing so much that it annoyed Roland all the way to hell and back. Unlike the people of Babylonia, Ember saw Wesley’s good sides and even embellished his accomplishments. The way she described him, Wesley sounded almost as dangerous as the Gray Raven commandant.Roland is an Ascendant enforcer who serves Luna, and he was always looking out for his group. Humans and Ascendants don't tolerate each other, so that is why hearing about Wesley put him in a state of alarm. As the usual opponent of Gray Ravens, he took it very seriously when someone started comparing another human to their leader, and he really didn't want Babylonian bloodhounds on the doorstep of the only home that was real to him. He also wanted to cut the connection between Ember and her commandant so she wouldn't be loyal to anyone besides Luna. This is when he went to assess Wesley's "threat level".--His presence near Cyte was no coincidence. Roland was exceptional at hacking into comms, so all he had to do was listen in on the human ground team broadcasts until he picked up info about a mission that Wesley was going to be a part of. He decided to check out this so-called "commandant of Death” in person, but had no way of knowing that the Gray Ravens would be there too. They had their own objective, and their comms were especially well encrypted, thanks to Lee. With so many high-profile teams on the spot, the situation became complicated and Roland got injured as a result. Clutching his wounds, he bewailed the Gray Raven’s presence (Why is she always there?? Is she the only commandant they have??).Since he was on a spying mission all by himself, he had no choice but to send a distress call.After a long wait, someone finally arrived. He got a knot in his stomach when he realized it was the person he came to spy on. But rather than a badass like Philippa, Wesley turned out to be quite harmless. Roland was surprised with how wrongly Ember had been describing him all along. Meanwhile, Wes took care of his wounds simply because he thought he was helping a wounded construct and had a deep desire to be useful. Since Roland was in disguise and kept his "punishing levels low", Wes had no way of telling that he was actually helping an Ascendant.Roland learned that the only reason he responded at all was because the last team that heard his distress call thought he was too far away "and as good as dead". Since Wes was in the funeral business, dead and alive were equally good so he came to investigate anyway. He also jokingly said that "Corpses don't usually send out distress calls" to which Roland played along asking "What do you mean usually?". They exchanged a few more words and then parted ways.Roland was amused by how Wesley turned out to be. He managed to get up and running thanks to his efforts, so he decided to tail him back to camp just to see him a bit longer (while steering clear of the Gray Ravens of course). Once the coast was clear, Roland approached the small encampment and found out that everyone there was drunk. "What's next? A carnival?" he grumbled to himself, tilting an eyebrow. Since this camp was close to the mission area, and the punishing concentrations were high, they had to shut off their water supply so they could only rely on liquor for the rest of the day. That's where Roland found Wes again, and this time he was waving around a jug of vodka and milk.He initially planned to scare him by revealing his true nature, but they ended up chatting like friends instead. They hit it off because they both liked stuff from the Golden Age, and it was the first time someone with a pulse could comment on his favorite movies. In the end, Roland talked to Wes so much that his voice module stopped working correctly, and he even stayed up until everyone else left. Being himself, he couldn’t resist dropping hints about his true identity, which led the conversation in the direction of questioning his “humanity”. At some point Wes blurted out drunkenly "What? of course you are human!". His careless phrasing left the Ascendant feeling both happy and dejected at the same time. He loved playing this role, if only it didn't leave him with a painful kind of joy. Roland smiled bitterly: "My, my. You're so drunk. Imagine if you were attacked by an Ascendant right now."But instead of doing anything aggressive, he let the inebriated redhead fall asleep and left quietly with the first morning light. When he returned to the Ascendants hideout, he avoided Ember the entire day, denying he ever met her former commandant. What was he going to tell her? That he was kind of nice... and sweet? Just saying those words made him chuckle. Wesley is not how she describes him. He is worse, but also better.There were still so many things he didn’t get a chance to say. He started entertaining the idea of pretending to be a human, and wondered if he could keep talking to Wes that way.--A couple of months later they crossed paths again, only this time Roland would save Wesley. They met in a themepark where Roland's mission was to stop anyone from helping the Gray Ravens. When he saw a familiar face approaching the gate he was supposed to guard, it threw him for a loop. But then he quickly realized that he was worried for a human's wellbeing instead of considering how his presence might endanger the mission. Roland laughed at his mistake and sent a wave of corrupted enemies to „greet Wesley at the entrance“ as a way of correcting his initial reaction.... Only he happened to regret it right after. Roland did his best to focus on other cameras, but his eyes kept anxiously running back to the one Wes was in. His sarcastic jokes were soon replaced by silent uneasiness and sounds of combat filled the vacuum of the room. For some time he even avoided checking it, because he didn’t want to see him get mauled. An accidental glance lent him a view over Wesley’s battered and bloody face. It made his breath hitch, and after wordlessly saying “no…” he clumsily made a last minute decision to help after all. Roland used his „Punishing“ to take control over one of Wesley's mechanoids and helped him survive the onslaught of corrupted that he himself sent. He felt relief that he survived, but also berated himself for changing his mind so quickly.Then suddenly, his thoughts were interrupted by a gentle, warm feeling on his head. Wes was patting his mechanoid without knowing it had a lingering connection to Roland, transferring the feeling of "touch" all the way to the Ascendant. This was a peculiar experience. He became flustered so quickly that he cut the connection off, thinking „Phew... Haha! Well played, dear commandant!“. But then, he patted himself a few more times while looking at Wes on the screen. He chuckled, because it didn't feel the same way.This wouldn’t be the only time he tries taking control of his mechanoids.However, as soon as Wes noticed something was off, he would immediately reach for his weapon which resulted in Roland getting “shot” repeatedly. It was abrupt and violent, but there was a strange satisfaction in witnessing such a cruel side of someone who once treated him as a human, even if by mistake. It reminded him of Mandy. He wondered if he felt this way, being hurt by the friend he loved. It was wonderfully… ironic.--After this he decided to trail Wes for some time, either hanging out indirectly by taking a more skillful approach with possessing his helpers or watching him work from public cameras. Whenever Wes was in danger, Roland would shout at him to “dodge something” then slap himself on the forehead when realizing Wes can't hear him. And when he saw Wes talk himself down on the camera, he'd excitedly reply- “You’re not stupid, you’re doing great!”.It became like watching his favourite podcast.This slowly turned into his idea of relaxation. Sometimes while watching Wes run around on a flickering screen, he'd pat his head with a finger or press his tiny silhouette like he was crushing a bug. He would even interact with the “actor” by sending him on a wild goose chase or make him run around in loops. Sometimes he would even help Wes, by preparing the mission area like it was a stage before he arrived. This went on for a long time. Wes wasn't aware of Roland laughing at his jokes, commenting his actions, or completing his monologues. He was helping an Ascendant get through the day without even knowing.Roland noticed that they were similar in a way of treating the world around them like it was some kind of show. The only difference was that the human he sees somehow seems to enjoy himself.At this point, Roland felt a bit like he was stealing Ember's commandant. Sure he'd tell her about him eventually, or ask more questions. But he would always be the one to keep an eye on him. He was still telling himself that he was just „testing Wesley“, even though he just spent time secretly helping him or listening to his voice. At other times he even wrote messages on walls, waiting for Wes to reply like they were exchanging graffiti tags. In some weird way, it was like he became Wesley's guardian angel, simply because he "didn't want the show to end".One time, Roland woke up next to a tablet he was looking at before and wondered why he was enjoying this person's company so much to begin with. Both he and Wesley have lived outside the social world for so long that he started to see his own loneliness in him. It was absurd, but he liked it and it was interesting. If he ever wanted a friend in this life, it would be someone who looks, talks, and sounds like this person he found. And Wesley almost grew accustomed to that stare. Of someone or something, at the back of his neck.
Dug Out Heart
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's and the canon characters are OOC!
More time passed in between. A lot of things happened for the Ascendants, and Roland was too busy to keep track of Wes anymore.Then the Pulia park incident happened, and it was like the whole world stopped turning for a year. One day, Roland decided to lock himself away in a prison. It's where he went to clear his head or just sit in silence. But then he realized there was someone else in the same prison, only they seemed to be actually trapped. He felt bored so he reached out, and they started working together while anonymously exchanging messages. This way of communication reminded him how he used to interact with someone from the past. It made him feel a bit low, like he lost something again. But as new messages kept popping up, he had to move on.Their collaboration went smoothly. When it was time to finally meet his mystery partner so they could „escape together“, he was shocked to realize that this person was none other than Wes.He didn't know if it was fate or something else, but it cheered him up to see that Wesley was okay. He was also aware that this would be the worst time to reveal that he is an Ascendant since his actions greatly contributed to the birth of the Twins. He pulled himself away from the meeting point, but still wanted to help him escape. Things became a bit complicated as he tried to stay out of sight while keeping him alive. Wesley was determined to save him and kept stubbornly charging forward, even though he had no idea that he was saving an Ascendant again. He was just sick of looking at corpses all the time, especially because he was stranded on Earth during the Twins’ rampage.In the end, he still managed to get hurt and Roland had to throw a flashbang under his feet just to avoid getting recognized. Wes was blinded now, but at least they were together.Roland had to get him out somehow, but still hesitated touching Wes, as if he was the one with the deadly virus inside. The urgency of this situation had him overcome this feeling though, so he put his arm under Wes and helped him stand up. He boasted proudly next to his ear: „Your cavalry has arrived“ - „Finally you came. If I stood here any longer, it would have been really stupid.“ Wes made a self-depreciating joke. He couldn’t see it, but Roland smiled."We still need to break out of here. I'll be your eyes, you just need to aim and shoot". As he said this, Roland slipped Wesley's glove off because it was making it harder for him to pull the trigger. Maybe he was a little closer than necessary, (and his Punishing levels were low) so he felt the touch sink straight into his skin. It was a comforting feeling, just like the first time. Registering that he liked this more than he initially thought made Roland laugh at himself. Then he fixed Wesley’s aim, ignoring what just happened.--While helping Wes with his shooting, Roland ended up getting carried away.Four o’clock, eleven o’clock- he took more control of Wesley’s body. He was spinning him round and round like a ragdoll. At this proximity, he could even feel the the thumping of Wesley's heart as if it was his own, warm and alive in that „void“ under his ribs. The human was too exhausted (And blinded) to resist the Ascendant from taking the lead.Like Frankenstein's monster getting zapped back to life, or battle drums echoing inside his chest, it urged Roland forward, throwing him this way and that- like he was dancing. It felt like he was in his perished human body, dusted off and brought back into the light for a fantastic show. They frolicked and danced while the old prison around them crumbled from all the bullet holes. It was also a bit frightening... But squeezing the human to the point of his brittle bones breaking, until he starts pleading "Enough, enough!" made a sly smile stretch over his lips.As absurd as it sounded, maybe Wesley was right the first time they met. If no one around is able to tell he's an Ascendant, maybe he's human after all? It made him laugh: “Hahaha… wonderful, wonderful! Let’s keep enjoying ourselves, shall we?“ then he continued to dance with an increasing tempo, ignoring Wesley’s pleas for mercy while swaying freely. When all the corrupted were dead, his arms wrapped around him. He held him a bit too long. It was now definitely a hug, but he can't exactly say „I missed you“ to someone he never formally met.With no strength left, and no guts to tell him to stop, Wes let Roland control his weight. They stood still in a „dip“ pose, with Wesley's blood dripping off his hair, and Roland with a smile plastered on his face. When the excitement finally subsided, they headed outside where Roland placed him on a relatively safe spot. This little romp and the increased levels of the punishing virus made Wesley's mind feel a little rattled. But that’s also when Roland happened to notice something- the blindness, it should have worn off by now. "Oh-hoh! You're keeping your eyes closed, but you can see, right?“ - "So it was you who threw it"- Wes winced, trying not to sound nervous. Halfway through he already realized it's better he doesn't see anything he shouldn't, so he kept his eyes shut. „Well, looks like you got it. Good boy!“- The Ascendant patted his gritty orange hair without elaborating further.--
Roland realized that he doesn't „have to" return him immediately since Wesley's position in the military was only a minor one. Maybe he joined the dead instead of just burying them? The Ascendant chuckled at this devious idea. Instead of notifying Babylonia to come pick him up, Roland decided to borrow him for a few more days. He could use this chance to safely probe how hanging out would actually feel.He kept the ruse of an anonymous stranger, and then pretended to suddenly come up with something: “Mmm… I'm sorry to inform you, but I’m afraid you aren’t high on their priority list. But I just remembered! I have a camp nearby. It’s quite safe and you can wait for your people to come rescue you. I’ll even inform them myself. That’s much better than being left behind, don’t you think?”It's a good thing Wes couldn't see his smile.Two days passed with Roland trying to spur a conversation while promising to be honest. He thought it was hilarious that it was technically Wesley’s job to remove “actors” from the stage once they’ve been worked until death.When it was finally time to return him home, the Ascendant honored his word. He notified Babylonia and drew attention to this ad-hoc camp in the middle of nowhere. But before he departed, with Wesley's bandages already coming loose, he squished his face and jokingly pasted a kiss into his cheek. It burned a little and he almost saw his face: „Wh-what was that??“- „Ahh you seem surprised! Did you forget how this story goes? (Roland cleared his throat, sounding as sarcastic as possible) The 'hero' gets the kiss for saving the girl. Well, nevermind. You’ll have to do better next time“- He pushed Wes back with a finger on his lips and cheerfully said „Ciao!“. Wesley felt an unfamiliar tingly feeling, and it definitely wasn't the Punishing. It was so strong that he had to force himself to think about something else.It didn’t take long for the support force to arrive. Wes stayed up all night thinking what he meant while examining the rough red spot on his cheek. Was that the same person he rescued a year before?--A few days later, the Ascendant ruminated while playing the rythm of some Golden Age tune with his fingers.After all this time, he really didn't expect Wesley would still be around. His life became just a -little- more interesting again.Humans are fragile, all it takes is another incident with the Red Tide and their little exchange will end before it even properly started. Following this line of thought, he decided to spend more time with him before something else occured. He wouldn't settle for one-sided interaction anymore. This time he wanted to reveal himself personally, even if Wesley hated him for being an Ascendant. Instead of treating him as something imaginary, Roland decided to make Wesley "real" by finally approaching him face to face.But there was a lot of uncertainty in his heart, and Roland was tempted to borrow courage from „The Jester“. It's a part of himself that he switches to when he is afraid or unsure. When it feels like he's wading into a mistake or like he is about to feel ashamed of himself, he can switch to a version of himself that he can distance from and mock, as if they were not one and the same. But regardless of the risk involved, he began strategizing while making room for companionship in his heart. He was curious about that unknown variable- the 'fake commandant' who sees him more as a human than either an enemy or a tool.He wanted to know what shape will „he“ take in Wesley's eyes as they continue to spend time together. Besides, he could treat the next visit as a bonus. Around this time, the Gray Raven commandant (Philippa) was exchanging information with Luna so it can be like mixing business and leisure. At least now he knows what he'll be doing in his spare time.
--Finally on June 7th, 2123. he and Lamia accompanied Luna on a visit to the Gray Raven. They boarded the interstellar fortress and blended into the crowd, thanks to the efforts of a certain Babylonian faction, and Roland’s amazing costumes. But his confidence was dashed when he saw just how many humans lived up here.It was overwhelming because he hasn't seen so many since the Golden Age, and he lived through several cataclysms in the meantime. Part of him wondered if half of them were fake, it sent a chill down his spine. He even worried briefly that he wouldn’t be able to find what he’s looking for. But that’s when he spotted a familiar redhead standing next to the place where they were supposed to meet their contact. The ginger was just the same as he left him. Pretty, young and knavish. Lips suppressed into a cordial smile and beautiful eyes that try to feign composure.Roland's expression flicked back into an impenetrable smile and his confidence returned. After all, an actor like him can't be barred from the stage so easily. After rubbing his eyes, Wes recognized him too, even though Roland changed frames in the meantime. His expression of shock turned into a frown.This was just another case of Philippa getting him in hot water on the account of her unsanctioned adventures. And now because of her, there was another Ascendant in his life.Roland enjoyed every minute of it. Being held in his eyes, scanned from the bottom of his feet to the top of his head, he felt „real“ alright. It was nice to finally meet, friend. He sauntered up to Wesley, swinging his arm in an exaggerated arc and cheering “holaaa” in a musical way. “Do you have any idea why I’m here?” he asked, immediately leaning on the ginger’s shoulder, and then continued- “Nah. Of course you don’t :P”.Before Wes found any words to say, Philippa already greeted Luna and they started talking about their trip. Wes was actually surprised to see them on such friendly terms, but then again he was mostly out of the loop about the Gray Raven's life over the past year. He had no idea that his friend was communicating with the Ascendant princess in secret or that Luna kept sending her rare minerals and rocks from the Moon (Besides Philippa, there was no other human she'd rather cooperate with). They even successfully linked M.I.N.D’s, even though Luna is an agent.--The two „assistants“ were soon left on their own. Wesley tried to slip away from this awkward situation, but Roland clapped a hand on his shoulder and dragged him closer: „Looks like we will have a lot of time together, amigo. You better keep an eye on me“. The Gray Raven looked over to their lively interaction and smiled: "Ah so you two have met. Good, that makes things easier". And then, with some relief went back to talking with her special guest. It almost seemed like she was glad they didn’t need her attention.From here, they started hanging out regularly over the next few weeks. Roland came with a signifficant advantage. He knew Wes for well over a year (Although from a distance), knew most of his secrets (Thanks to Ember unknowingly doxxing her former commandant), held knowledge on a construct that is dear to him, and he even spied on Babylonia through his mechanoids. He also enjoyed that Wesley was intimidated by him. He missed that, being the weakest Ascendant after Lamia got her frame.Despite promising to behave, he'd always try to drag Wesley into long discussions or deliberately rile him up. And arguing with Roland was pointless, because even when he knew he was wrong, he'd just keep going to piss him off.At other times Wes would be tasked with simply keeping an eye on him, which the latter took as incentive to disobey as much as humanly possible. He loved watching Wesley’s jaw clench as he stood quiet and tried not to get involved.For a change, he had power over a human instead of it being the other way around. This was a balance of power that suited him marvelously. He almost wanted to gloat, and seeing his beloved friend get angry from first person was quite a treat. Despite Wesley's apprehension, Roland was pleased. This is the way „Jesters“ get treated anyway. He kept laughing all the time, and even the other Ascendants noticed that he was in a remarkably good mood."Wesley! I am at your service today. At. Your. Service-♡♡„He announced each word with such gusto, bowing deeply with his eyes closed. It was like seeing an immortal being deigning to borrow a feeble mortal soul a fraction of their time, expecting an applause. Wesley rolled his eyes. At this point, his resilience to the „Jester“ began to drop and he slowly lost the emotional stamina to withstand everything that Roland kept throwing at him (And he wasn't even used to dealing with people, since he was always surrounded by mechanoids). Soon Wes started enabling the Ascendant's theatrics, letting him twirl around and goof off to his heart's content. And to Roland it seemed, that his “fellow fool” was finally starting to tag along.
Dug Out Heart
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's and the canon characters are OOC!
During the Ascendant's stay in Babylonia, Roland was having the time of his life. Even though keeping his “Punishing” levels low kept making his body feel awful, he’d still manage to feel better by having fun with Wes (or at his expense).Sometimes he’d just stare at him, and then burst into laughter after imagining some funny scene that involves him. Meanwhile Wes just stands there, mildly annoyed while looking at the giddy Ascendant like he lost his mind. He’d ask: “Okay…What the hell are you doing?” and Roland would just wave him off while laughing, saying something like: “Oh, nothing, haha. Just talking to you” - But you didn’t say anything yet!..." (Which left Wes feeling even more confused than before).Or he'd pretend to be mute to the opposite effect. Instead of responding to anything that Wesley says, Roland would keep shrugging like he's unable to speak- „Hmm? (He grins mischievously) Why does this annoy you? Don't you like it when I'm silent?“--Whenever he got bored he'd promise to tell Wes info that he ABSOLUTELY DOES NOT WANT TO KNOW 💢 He had enough trouble and didn't want any piece of whatever trouble Philippa and Luna were stirring up. But whenever he stuffed fingers into his ears, Roland just came much closer and started talking louder, trying to make him hear it anyway (although he wasn't actually telling him any important information, he just enjoyed making him sweat while hovering over him).And sometimes when he got too close, Wesley would get red in his cheeks and his ears. Though, he tried to resist the temptation of initating such reactions too often.He would also weave slight lies into their conversations, especially when telling him things about Earth and The Golden Age. He loved filling Wesley’s memory with nonsensical facts about things that never existed. For example, Wes now believes that there is a crystalline “skull of death” that came into their world from another timeline because it couldn’t have been made by human hands when it was discovered. Since “The Punishing” also came from a different dimension, it only gave more credence to his ridiculous story. Roland also taught him other nonsense that Wes now randomly spouts when surrounded by other squads, which makes them go “Huh?” “What?” and “Looks like you finally lost it, Wes”. These little interactions brought him much joy. He wanted to see him rattled, and confused, he wanted to see an entire rainbow of emotions. While howling from laughter on the side, he'd cover his genuine expression because he didn’t want people to see the expressions that are truly his. After the Mandhasti park incident, the only way something could belong to him was if he kept it hidden.Being unable to sleep also left him with too much time on his hands. There were a few reasons for that: it's when bad things usually happened and because of habits he gained as a child. He'd have 10 espressos just to stay awake, and there was always something that had to be done, even if he couldn't think of it. This just carried over into his life as a construct. He always ended up finishing others' missions or simply stayed awake because being 'on standby' was baked into him. His days were always so busy and he wasn't used to feeling this idle.But unlike him, Wes actually had to sleep.Roland had to use this downtime to reflect on everything he’s been through over the past years. He could barely choose which of his stories was worth telling first. He was already skipping through a lot just so he could share as many as he can.Maybe they could play a game of exchanging stories? Who knows.It’s probably a terrible mistake, but it has already taken him hostage, because when he wasn't with Wesley, he was starting to feel bored.--Always early but not too early, Roland could be found waiting in front of Wesley's dorm. He was waiting for the right moment to knock on the door using some long forgotten code (No one does this sort of thing except Echo). And when the door finally opened, he clicked his heels and exclaimed playfully: „Com-man-dant-!♡“. Abruptly woken up, Wesley was still squinting his eyes, mumbling: “Nnf... You’re here”. But instead of giving him an actual response the Ascendant just watched him scratch his tummy. His differently colored eyes trailed the motion of Wesley's hand as it vanished beneath his shirt, lifting it just enough to show his hip and belly button. And below it, the loosely hanging waistband revealing Wesley’s lower abdomen.What a nice shirt! What material is that shirt? How do people get this stuff? He cycled through these questions wordlessly while looking at the sleepy human in front of him. He almost asked “…Need help with that?”. But instead he tilted his head and smiled, saying: “Here- I wanted to give you something for all the fun you brought me”. Wes had no idea what the Ascendant wanted to achieve, but sleepily extended his hands at his demand all the same. Then Roland dropped a present into his hands. It was so heavy that it pulled Wes forward. It was a bunch of (seemingly) random items he found while sneaking around Babylonia on his own. There was a fashion magazine, a mascot decoration from a cafe, a colorful tablecloth, a small music box, a book about some man and an island, and a pamphlet from the WGAA. Roland looked at him expecting a „thank-you“. He looked like a naughty child wanting to be praised, with hands behind his back and swaying on his feet at the door.Wes sighed „Thank you. Did you want to do something today?“- Smiling, Roland leaned on his shoulder, pushing a finger into his chest: „Whatever you want, amigo“.Then they decided to try taking on a few support missions together. This is where Wes got a real taste of how unruly Roland could be, and being unable to form a M.I.N.D. connection made it even harder. Roland liked to pretend that he can't understand instructions, and would let Wes get in trouble just so he can watch him panic. A mission that should have taken an hour now takes three instead. People who watched these two in action were left puzzled, thinking: „What... the hell are they even doing?“. In the end, Roland does what he is told, just in a very roundabout way. It was like trying to teach tricks to a very troublesome cat. When they wrap up and head home, Roland slinks into his dorm by pretending to hold the door, then sprawls out on his bed with the intent of watching him work.Wesley: “You can’t be here” – “I know.” - Wesley sighs.Roland: “What? Can’t I keep an eye on my enemy? (He kicks his feet) How else am I supposed to know what you humans are up to, haha”. Wesley shrugged and placed a box with construct bodyparts on his workbench. While he worked, Roland kept probing him for opinions about death and returning to Earth. Then he wanted to share more stories with him, saying that he was lucky to find him in such a good mood (Even though he was the who initiated it). Unable to concentrate, Wes put down his tools and said: “Ahhhh fine. Screw it, let’s have more stories about Earth then.” – “I knew I had you hooked! (excitedly, Roland clapped his hands) You won’t be disappointed haha. I promise, when I’m done, you won’t have to talk to me for the rest of the day!”. Wes shook his head and listened. He knew that the catch was that Roland would talk until tomorrow.The Ascendant was full of stories. At times, he said so much that Wes heard his voice more than his own thoughts. (It seems there’s other ways to get a M.I.N.D. connection after all hmm?). But he was happy to indulge him all the same. Seeing his excited way of self expression made him think it was really cute.--Roland always believed that he could connect by talking about his experiences. It just happens that many of his experiences were really traumatic. He wasn't trying to confess anything, he just wanted to share the things hes been through. At the same time, Wesley felt relieved that Roland was someone from the outside. He never had a chance to show his good sides to anyone and Roland's view wasn't polluted by any rumours or fear. He also started to like seeing what Roland does. He wasn’t just letting him do things because he didn’t feel like objecting. He wanted to see more of his expressions too, though he was just starting to notice the small differences in his smiles.Over the next few days, they shared even more stories.Wesley told him about the things he's embarrassed about, like stealing a child's picturebook about birds (Because she drew better than him) which gnaws him to this day. And Roland shared a story about how he laid in front of Alpha's front tire one day because she wouldn't take him somewhere. With fingers crossed, Wes promised to keep his secrets. He was glad that Wesley was more interested in trivia about his life rather than things pertaining to missions or some impossibly large goals. It's been a long time since he talked about himself.He also found out that Wes felt like he was “a joke” version of what he was supposed to be (being a fake commandant and all). It was something Roland could relate to. At times, he also felt like he was not the right character for the role he wanted to play.Wesley was saved from the Nighter only because the babylonians thought he was useful, (Just to end up shoveling corpses with a ruined M.I.N.D.) and Roland was due to be a famous actor with a bright future ahead of him only for that future to be revealed as as a lie. For both of them, the world wasn’t all they thought it was. But when they worked together, they were a bit more than what they were on their own. He saw Wesley as "real" and when Wesley interacted with him, he felt real too.
--Then there were times when Roland just wouldn't let him work in peace, even though he could go anywhere else in Babylonia during his breaks. Wes even tried changing his behaviour as to not give Roland any desired reactions, but he quickly learned he is just adjusting to whatever fits Roland in the end. The only way to win is to give in, and the longer you spend time letting him do his thing, the longer he will do it.Now that he was here, Roland didn't want to waste the hours doing anything else. What's more he was Babylonia’s ‘enemy’, shouldn't someone keep him company? While watching Wes fill out his forms, he’d say stuff like “You can just start it in the tomorrow morning.”, “Can’t you make someone else do that? Give it to the Gray Raven, she loves paperwork” or “Want to see a neat trick? Look, I’m making you drop it faster ^^’’ “ while clicking the lights on-and-off as Wes tries to read.When none of that worked, Roland would just sit in his couch and start sighing loudly, trying to look “as bored as possible” in Wesley’s peripheral vision. Eventually he’d succeed in stealing him away from his duties so he could listen to him share “his boring old woes” while treating him to sweets in a coffee shop. Wesley was there for the free food, and the Ascendant didn’t mind bribing him if it meant being able to claim as much of his time as possible.--Wes, however, did manage to find a way to make use of the Ascendant's loafing. If he can afford to watch, then he can help too.Instead of letting him get bored and tamper with his tools (Whether it was fiddling with saws, drills, or pneumatic shovels, for Roland’s own reasons, Wesley’s things were always more fun to break or play with) Wes called him over, promising something fun.He dragged over a black bodybag, unzipping it open to reveal a mess of severed limbs and barely recognizable bodyparts. It looked like something out of a slasher movie. If it was any other construct, they would get shocked or feel nauseous. But since it was Roland, he said; “Oh dear me! What did this bastard ever do to you, Wessie?” – Wesley scoffed: “He didn’t do anything, and it’s “them”. There are two bodies in here, Cynte and Pravi. We need to put them back together. Care to join me for a puzzle?” – Roland bowed: “My dear commandant! I thought you’d never ask! I'll do my best to make them look as good as new”. Like putting together something from a giant box of mixed up LEGOs, they put the two deceased together and then sat in the couch, looking at the pair of corpses proudly. Roland blushed, leaning towards Wes like a bashful girl: „They remind me of us“ – „Don't make me get another bodybag“. Wes responded, pushing the cheeky Ascendant away.--Things went south on their next mission as their lack of coordination resulted in Roland ending up injured (Since they can’t sync their minds like a normal commandant/construct and have to rely on traditional methods of communication).But instead of using the Punishing to fix his body, he decided to wait for Wes. He was mostly fine, he just liked having the latter fuss over him. With his hand covering a nasty gush in his stomach and vital fluid all over, he leaned back and sighed: “Just like the ‘good old days’, eh?”. When Wes finally reached him and got started on his repairs, he started to laugh. It felt ticklish. He almost forgot about the damages on his frame, and had to focus instead on keeping the human’s little fingers from getting where they shouldn't. In contrast, Whenever Wesley stretched, Roland tried tickling his sides while saying it was „a convenient time to attack“ and that he should be more wary of exposing himself to the enemy.Roland also gained a habit hacking into Wesley’s work computer and then leaving him compliments on his attempts to keep him out ("Ah, good one! You almost had me out. Almost-") or leaving notepad files on his desktop with little messages like “Hiiiiiiii ♡” or “Show me how you’ll surprise me today ♡”. Watching Roland goof around while successfully hacking through Babylonia’s firewalls made Wes wonder how scary it would be if he actually gave it his best...--Sometimes when they hung out in Wesley’s dorm, Roland would nudge Wes into choosing which Golden Age character to perform (this was also a subtle way to figure out his favorite characters). Once, Wes even asked if he could pretend to be –him- while picking up missions from Celica on his behalf. Among other things, Wes noticed that Roland seemed to really like old movies. Even though he lived during the Golden Age, he only had enough time to watch them after becoming a construct. But after the apocalypse, it was hard to find stuff that was intact and even when something worked, it was boring to watch them alone. Because of that, Wes gave himself a task to keep finding classical books and movies in Babylonia for him to enjoy.While he scouted for new titles to watch, Roland kept taking care of his living space whenever he stayed there. Each time Wes returned home something would be different- his decorations would be in a new place, the furniture would be re-arranged and his plants would be watered. For a few times he left his own dorm scratching his head, because he didn't recognize it. He also found the old terminal they used to exchange messages in prison, cleaned up and neatly placed on his desk.It made him smile.One time while he was wandering through Babylonia at night, Roland spotted a few gambling machines. It reminded him of the time when Wes lamented how much money he lost there.It looked just like something out of the pompous Golden Age. He chuckled. “Humans are such fools. How do I even rate compared to them?” Then he noticed some guy in a tattered suit trying to appear lost and sneak away. But Roland was good with discerning such subtle expressions “Oooh. A lucky winner, perhaps?”. He came down on his whip, and tailed the man until he managed to pickpocket him. Returning to Wesley’s dorm, he whistled when he saw the prize amount. On the next day, he slipped the ticket into Wesley’s coat and later pretended to take it out with surprise: “Woah Wesley! You won, oooh!”. He watched joy spread over his face, and then said: “I hope you don’t forget to buy me dinner. You wouldn’t neglect your special (and only, cough) construct now, would you?” Wes suddenly hugged him. It surprised him a little, but Roland didn't fight back.Instead of withdrawing, he let Wesley cling to him. That little heartbeat that grew so dear to him over the past year was now so close. Are all humans this soft?But since they were in a hug, Roland couldn’t resist playing another ‘joke’. His dear friend was bringing out his impulsive side and he wondered how far he could push things before really getting in trouble... With his lips curled in a cheeky smile, he said: “They say touch is used to confirm the existence of others… Ahem, in that case, why don’t you try touching me in other ways too?” - “Okay, okay. That's enough. You’ve had enough”. Wes dryly pushed him away, studying the Ascendant's strange expression.Speaking of, Wes did not forget to treat him. It just so happens that they conveniently ended up spending all the money Wes thought he „won“. They visited a restaurant in disguise and spent the evening chatting lively. Roland incurred a monstrous bill (He ordered every dessert Babylonia could offer) and kept rubbing his foot against Wesley’s under the table while flirting like there was no tomorrow. At the end of that adventure, he was already thinking up a new scenario. A new short story that will let him drag his fake commandant away without a pardon, where they’ll continue being…(He stops to laugh at himself)... Haha... well, does it need a name?--Ironically, behaving like a "Jester" lead Roland to speaking his mind more freely and it soon became a new habit. He no longer saw it as a mocking term, but as a pledge to his freedom. It is no wonder that he was cynical, considering everything he went through. At the same time, Wes started to remember the things he does. He took note of how Roland loves being asked questions, and keeps nudging him to ask more. How he kicks his feet when he's excited or how he likes keeping him on edge with subtle intimidations. And then there was his cute top and his exposed collarbones… Wesley's mechanoids began to gather dust as they spent time together. This was also very beneficial for his corruption-touched mind. It was good that he talked someone he was starting to like. Roland had no idea that he was making someone this happy just by being there.--Thanks to Wesley, Roland was starting to indulge in more and more ordinary things. Ironically, he was quite similar to the Gray Raven commandant in the way of not being able to enjoy simple pleasures.But now that he basically squats in Wesley’s dorm, he often helps himself to his things. Sometimes, while interacting with them he experienced snippets of a life he was supposed to have. Roland's imagination was quite good, since he could only entertain himself for a long time.Kindness is something he associates with regrets he buried, which still ooze poison into his soul. With a creak of his artificial joints, he put a hand on his chest where his heart used to be. What would it be like if he was a human? Would things be different for him if he was like them, with red blood and a heart made of meat? Would they come to his rescue, or at least keep him from harm? Probably not. Humans are vindictive, cruel and above all deceitful. They can’t even resist going after each other. He always reminds himself not to underestimate them. After all, it was humans who took his ‘heart’ and even if it was still there, it surely wasn’t beating anymore…However, Roland also saved some humans. They were interesting to watch and full of surprises. Sometimes even kindness- and warmth that was unlike the one emitted by the Punishing virus that simmers under his skin. He still felt that they had some intrinsic quality he couldn’t study. A trick, or a secret that makes them so durable and persistent. It's not like he can hack into them like other constructs or the corrupted, and forcing a mind connection on a human commandant causes them to perish.What was his experience of being a human? Being caffeinated, vomiting and hurting himself. It was a revolting memory that made his punishing levels rise, infecting the ordinary items he held in his hand.
Dug Out Heart
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's and the canon characters are OOC!
Despite being so close to an actual Ascendant, Wesley hasn't felt dizzy or experienced corruption-fueled confusion in a while. His mental health had a clear blue color. Roland's company and his feelings towards him were good enough to outweigh the negatives. Wes couldn't help but smile when coming to work the next day. „Smiling when looking at dead bodies, commandant? And here I thought I had a twisted sense of humor“ – „Pfft. Good morning Roland. Want one of these?“- Wes pushed a biscuit into his mouth and then pulled on his gloves for work. Roland mumbled something while chewing.It was like a scene out of some popular TV crime show. Wesley's mechanoids were there first. They started their programmed scheduele of corpse collection and were gathering their belongings. Until Wes arrived, Roland was just watching them carry out their routine without getting in the way.He seemed to stare at the face of one of the dead constructs. „Do you think they're out there somewhere?“ (He was teasing Wes about his spirituality) – Wes scoffed playfully „Hmm hmm. Zero respect for the dead, I see“. Then he leaned over the body, closing the construct's eyes. „This one died seeing something nice. That is why their expression is so calm. They won't be leaving any ghosts behind“. Then he performed some obscure ritual (A funeral rite he'd come across while studying Kowloong purification rituals) that Roland never saw before. The Ascendant's eyebrows lifted in confusion. Wesley replied with a friendly tone: „This is serious. You really like to piss off fate, don't you? The way things are it seems I'll have to get a talisman for you as well.“ Wes proceeded to carefully bag the serum his mechanoids gathered.--On their way back, Roland started making comments about human nature. He kept generalising humanity and focused only on their flaws, talking about them like they’re animals that always let their nature get the best of them. Wes wouldn't put up with such negativity.He stopped him to say that humans have their own ability to choose, and that the human „trickery“ he keeps mentioning are just patterns he's obsessed with. Yet, Roland's detached smile flipped upside down. He didn't consent to this speech, and he absolutely hated being analyzed.If he wanted to listen to idealist ramblings, he'd go spend his time around the Gray Raven instead.This meritted "punishment". He approached Wes, grabbing him by the wrists and getting into his face until he could feel the wetness of his breath touch his skin. „Ugh, what has gotten into you!?“ – „Do you want me to learn about humans or not?“ – He referred to his construct abilities, and then started scanning Wesley in a way that's way too thorough. He had no intention of falling in line despite Wes's protests. Then he started asking if different things were „real or not“. It was like a polygraph test and Wesley was the subject. There was no point to this other than Roland's amusement.As they struggled, the mysterious smile returned to Roland's face. Wesley's brain activity entered his visual range, and he watched the colors of his feelings and anxiety, rippling across his silhouette. He was endeared to this lightshow of chemical symbols. The flickering of his nervous system was like little lights in the dark. How can synapses firing be this cute? Well, you'd have to ask him. The pulse under his thumb was a fine „price“ for this wisp of life acting so boldly in front of him.Was this too much? He asked Wes. „Forget it. Ughh, I'll headbutt you if you try something like this again“. Red in his cheeks and ears, he pushed the Ascendant away. Despite his fun, the look of discomfort on Wesley's face froze him. This little game of cat and mouse crossed some lines. It was the first time that petty revenge made him feel so guilty.Excitement became entwined with anxiety in some nauseating way. Roland had to do something about this, so he prodded a bit more: “Come on, what’s wrong?” – Wesley scoffed: “I don't know what to do. There is nothing I can do that even remotely impacts you” – “Hah. You could dump me”- the Ascendant chuckled out with a shrug. But instead of waving it all off, Wesley started contemplating something. A moment of anguish washed over Roland. Suddenly it felt like he was standing in front of a gun. - “But I don’t want to” Phew. The clouds parted and Roland immediately flipped back “Ha, see? That’s because you love me”. He smiled, leaning into Wes as if nothing happened at all.--He didn't want it to happen again, and this event showed the need to understand how Wesley thinks. Roland felt regret over the fact that they couldn’t connect minds. The connection between a construct and a human was a special one and he always wondered what it felt like. He never experienced it before because he was abandoned as a test subject before he even had a chance to try. Wes was so close, but nothing changes the fact that his M.I.N.D beacon has already been irreversibly damaged. He could pick around his thoughts if he wanted to, but that would expose him to the punishing again. Since Wesley’s mind had no guardrails for these connections, it could potentially kill him. And even if his mind wasn’t tainted, it’s a question if he could handle connecting to an Ascendant at all. People like Philippa are very far and few...A part of him also felt self-conscious about what he might hear inside Wesley’s mind-Being unable to see inside someone's head is sometimes a blessing.What if he was only putting up with him out of fear? Even with access to constant surveillance and knowing him for over a year (albeit one-sided) Roland was still afraid of being "fooled". On the other hand, he was starting to take Wes more seriously, and wanted to keep his trust, if there was any. He wouldn’t go ‘in there’ unless invited. Though, occasionally he could hear a stray thought from Wes by accident.--Luckily, he found a different way into his thoughts. Roland was relieved when he realized he could just keep records of their conversations and analyze them later.He started keeping gestures, faces, and even the smallest emotions. Once he knows how he reacts to different things, it will be just as easy as reading his mind. Now, whenever Wes thinks or feels something he doesn’t want to share, Roland can use his normal approach. He can apply subtle pressure like maintaining intense eye contact, or just refuse to cooperate until Wesley gives in. "Hey, Roland do you know how to access this control panel?" (Roland crosses his arms behind his head, sitting back with a smile and no interest in helping) "Hmm, hmm. I don't know anything, Wes :)".Roland also found additional uses for keeping records of Wes. He can put them on playback whenever he wants to give Wesley an “I told you so”. He can also prove him wrong, remind him of something… and definitely hear his voice when he is not there. At first, Wesley’s reaction was “that’s so creepy!” but later, he started asking for his help: “Roland, play me the shopping list I said before” - "Roger that, commandant".He also began to tease him in a way where he'd conviniently make him say or do something embarrassing. Then he'd say ''recording mode on'' and continue to stare at him unblinkingly with his heterochromia eyes. Most of it was a joke. But the recording of Wesley's earnest smile, directed only at him, became permanently stored in his M.I.N.D.
--Eventually, even Wes couldn't keep up and got worse at his job. He was dedicating too much of his time to appeasing Roland and keeping him out of trouble. He was a construct with -at least- a decade's worth of missing connections to make up for. But somehow he made him promise to tone it down.He sat on the couch next to Wes while he was working on hs report, and pretended to fall asleep. He was using this opportunity to relax on his shoulder in complete silence. Instead of saying anything, he listened to Wesley breathe. Constructs don’t really depend on that, so he liked being able to hear it. Since the atmosphere was peaceful, it made Wes finally drop his report.He fell asleep on Roland's head. He sighed and scolded Wes: “Hah. Aren’t you eager to trust?"“How am I supposed take you seriously when you’re like that?” Roland made a grimace and gently poked his chest, reprimanding him for lowering his guard when they're still supposed to be enemies. And then he walked his fingers across his upper arm until they reached his hand: “...Are you really that dangerous?” (He was referring to humanity in general, not Wes). Then Wesley shifted a little, making Roland jump: “Ah, you are snoring of course, Pffft. I knew that.” Then he relaxed again, this time huddling even closer, like he was about to share a terrible secret. “I’m going to tell you another story…. Just a bit more quietly.” Then he started whispering the “Story of his Life”, the one that he despised the most.He told the story of a little puppet whose dream never came true. A sudden disaster revealed that nothing the puppet wished for ever existed. Since Wesley was asleep, Roland didn't feel like he needed to shield his expression anymore. Tucked in by his side, Roland resumed to the point where he was surrounded by other dying dolls when vivid memories started to creep into his artificial muscles and skin, making him feel like he was in that damned park again. Because of what he’s been through, he became terrified of falling into a void where no one can catch him. But then he was suddenly hugged by Wes who moved around in his sleep. This reminded him of their first meeting, when he was saved without being asked anything in return."Oh, fine" - He laughed quietly with his face squished awkwardly into Wesley's neck. It seemed so calm inside his dreams. Inside his mind, that he will never be able to visit. “I wonder… if you knew that I was holding your hand now, what would you do? What kind of excuse would I have to make? Or perhaps, you’d let me stay here”. A part of him wished Wes would wake up, because then he'd have to explain himself. It would make this moment a little more real.In the morning, he slipped away before Wes could tell that anything happened. Then he spent some time alone gazing at Babylonia's fake sky with much weighing on his mind. When someone speaks with a Jester's privilege, it's impossible to know what is true and what is not. And when something is a secret, the world can’t destroy it. Maybe this companionship too, would be safe if he could keep it hidden.Since then, he liked touching Wes in passing. Brushing his fingertips against him, or throwing his arm over his shoulder to bring him close and offer a passing thought. They couldn't connect minds, but he soon found that physical touch was a fine replacement instead.--For some time, Roland has been relaxed and “himself” around Wes. But this moment of peace disturbed him. It felt like an intermission for something ominous.That is when he had a sudden realization. How does one sound when they are honest? How does –he- sound when he is honest? What kinds of words does he use, are they same as when he is ‘acting’? Roland stopped, and his calm feelings slowly turned into a knot in his stomach again. He couldn’t even figure out when he’s pretending, fawning, or just being himself anymore. He would like to be honest with Wesley, he’s started to appreciate him that much.But there was no clear indicator when ‘honesty’ was happening. He can't recognize it himself, and in the end it was just as confusing as when he lies. A writer named Hawthorne once said that no one can wear one face to himself and a myriad to others without finally getting bewildered to which one is true. He slid into a similar feeling of helplessnes and disgust. Even though nothing bad happened yet, he felt the overwhelming dominance of the “Jester”. He called himself Roland the fool again, because he was the one that is always outwitted and laughed at, always trapped in a passage between light and dark.At this point he switched from doubting himself to doubting Wes. He must have had some way of keeping the truth hidden right under his nose. He was watching him for so long it's no wonder he grew attached. Wesley must have served as a distraction while the Gray Raven commandant did whatever she pleased... All this time, the kindness he experienced was just a noose slowly tightening around his neck and now he was beginning to realize it. Bitterness and disbelief flooded his M.I.N.D. as he imagined a fantastic betrayal. Suddenly, there was a caustic lack of air in his lungs.What if he missed some important clue? Something inside of him just snapped. Bewildered, he rushed to check if Luna was okay. He ran until his body began to creak in a strange way. The last time she was around humans, she almost lost her life and even ended up being imprisoned on the Moon. But when he finally made it there, all he got was a puzzling look. She was simply playing cards with Lamia, with no hint of danger anywhere. He slid down a wall outside. Roland is the type of person who makes a friend in their head- then he makes an entire storyline about how this friend is the best thing in the whole world because he’s not ‘real’ so he can’t betray him, and THEN he imagines this friend betray him in that story too. This constant killing of himself when something new happens has been making him insane.Crouched with his hands over his head to block out the world, he whispered to himself: “God, aren’t you tired from constantly starting over?”--He seemed to constantly ignore the fact that Wes was actually fine with all this. He kept imagining a horrible scenario that hasn’t happened yet, so he’d have a reason to feel bad because being ‘happy’ was just not normal for him. Roland seemed to think that nothing good could happen without a heavy price to pay.In the meantime, Wesley was oblivious to the chaotic maelstorm beneath Roland’s grinning facade. Ever since the Pulia Park incident, he was afraid of being alone. Despite that Roland was an Ascendant, he was thriving by his side. He was a living thing, and to Wesley, he might as well have been the most wonderful thing in the world. But he had no idea that he and Roland were already “gone past the point” of being friends, then lovers- and that they were “currently breaking up”. Wes could just wait for him to return after vanishing without a trace. Around this time, the diplomatic exchange between Luna and the Gray Raven was at its close, and it was time for the Ascendants to head back to Earth.
Dug Out Heart
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's and the canon characters are OOC!
The two of them didn’t communicate at all. Roland didn’t even say goodbye- Wes heard it from Philippa instead. Why didn’t he come? He felt a cold sting in his heart, thinking: “Oh. I guess that’s how much I meant to him…” When going back to his dorm, he was dragging his feet as slowly as possible, in hope that Roland’s face would suddenly appear, cheering "hola amigo!" like usual.But on the last day of Ascendants in Babylonia, he did receive a mini Roland toy in a package. It was soft and it had a mocking expression. When he took it into his hands, he felt as if he was entrusted with something fragile. Roland didn’t want to see him directly, but still wanted to leave Wes with something. A part of him wondered if he would break the doll or throw it away in disappointment. As he went back down with his Ascendant family, Roland’s gaze at Babylonia remained as complicated as on the day when he was coming up here. It was still something out of reach.--Roland felt bad because he knew he’d eventually have to leave.A part of him still feared that Wesley would betray him, and he wondered if they’d meet as enemies the next time they meet. He even panicked and blocked his number, Even though he didn’t expect Wes to call. Despite that he was a construct, Roland felt like acid was flaring up in his stomach again.Wes also tried to go on as if nothing changed, but he couldn't understand why he suddenly felt so bad and melancholic. All the positive progress seemed to be undone. Now that Roland was no longer here, he kept wandering around aimlessly and staring at the artificial sky without saying a word to anyone. This silence was sheer and jarring.Late at night, his thoughts were too alive and he constantly tossed around in bed. He kept thinking about all kinds of mischief that Roland would cause if he was still here. He pressed the toy close to his heart, melting anxious thoughts away. Wesley wanted to shower him with every good thing he knew. He hoped that whatever happened in the future, Roland would be the one to survive. Quietly, he whispered his wish into the toy, like he was casting a spell. This is one thought that he hopes no one "hears".--Whistling a familiar Golden Age tune, Roland arrived home with Lamia and Luna, where they were greeted by Alpha and Ember. It was sobering to be back on familiar ground and everything fell back into being normal.Luna left with her sister to chat privately, and Lamia immediately spread over the couch. She left Roland all alone with the travelling bags. Seeing that it was just the two of them, Ember approached him. She seemed really eager to ask if he’d seen "her commandant", but he just wanted the conversation to be over as quickly as possible so he can go back to unpacking things. He didn’t want to think or talk about Wes -at all-. It left her with the impression that he had a really bad time up there.As he finished unpacking his companions' things, he went over to his suitcase. It was a small thing and he already knew what was in there. Rather than unpack it normally, he turned it upside down and let everything fall out. The contents crashed out with a loud noise, while he stood with his face void of emotion. Ember and Lamia tilted their heads to see what the hell that noise was about. Noticing their curiosity, he told them off: “Eavesdropping is a very bad habit, my ladies. Can’t I have a moment to myself here?”When the two curious heads disappeared from the corner, Roland looked down at his feet.It was just a bunch of ordinary objects. Back then he jokingly took a few things from Wes because he wanted him to freak out when he found out they were missing. There was even one 'foot' from a construct corpse that Wes was working on. He sighed. He picked up Wesley's music box and sat on a stool, blankly staring forward. As if stealing back what you gave could somehow rewind time.When did it happen? When did he catch that disease? The one that takes no prisoners, and makes people stand in front of oncoming trains? Was it when he pretended they were friends? It was just so relaxing to watch Wes run around and sometimes join his busy routine. He liked sneaking him out on a whim or saying „just for today“ a hundred more times and little lies that he could see from a mile away. A trickle of Punishing bloomed in his cheeks as he rifled through his memories.Reaching for different tricks was like throwing a hook. Get him to ask more things so he can gauge his own feelings... How awkward he’d become when “no” was not a response he wanted to get. Even if they knew each other for a decade, he’d somehow fumble and it would sound like it was the first time they met.Wesley’s expression was always so fun when he seemed surprised. A little smile crept up on his face while he was brushing his chin.He never expected someone would loyally run to his aid, or look forward to spending more time together. To make things worse, he started wondering when he’d see his fellow "actor" again. Roland kept repeatedly knocking on his head. “How troublesome, how troublesome”- he chuckled. This person had somehow become a part of his life now. A little piece of the mosaic that makes up what he is. But Roland was also the fixer, the one who solves problems. He wasn't going to spend his life bitching and running in circles. It was all in there- like a gun, he pointed his metallic finger to the temple of his head.He was about to delete all those recordings of Wes.It's the one benefit of being a construct.He started concentrating on his Punishing to perform a targetted clean, but then he stopped.It takes him a very long time to like somebody, because he has to beat his shadow every time. He’s not going to do that 32549375 times. It has to be worth it. And another reason why it’s such a huge thing to open up is because he truly hated feeling like he was about to walk into an ambush. But these last few weeks (no, more like a year and a half) were something that he actively worked on and showing up was his choice. Instead of deleting his recordings, he laughed about the whole ordeal and rubbed the temples of his head. His face began to beam in a scary way, like a mad gambler loading a dice. This was something that he won. He will reframe it as his ‘prize’.Roland shook his head: “Pfffft, what a mess this has become”. Now that he has developed (and accepted he has?) feelings for this human, he'll make sure Wes carries his share of the burden. Roland tended to think that his companionship was a curse on its own, so it naturally came as a consequence of spending too much time with him. It was a „curse“ he was happy to lay on him. It could be fun to see how he navigates an Ascendant's affection...He put the back of his palm against his head and laughed loudly: "Hahaha! how I pity you poor fool. How will you ever make it up to me?"--Shortly after, the Ascendants gathered around a dinner to celebrate the progress of their plan.They don’t experience feelings of hunger, and this was mainly Lamia’s idea because she wanted to do something nice as a gesture of her reverence for Luna after spending time together in Babylonia. She even made the effort to cook everything herself, though Roland made sure to check the end result. As they gathered around the table, they exchanged their experiences from the sky fortress.After everyone shared what they’ve been through, it was Roland’s turn to say his piece. But since he spent most of his free time around Wes, it would be the only thing he can talk about beside the Ascendants' main mission. At first he was reluctant, because his M.I.N.D. was still packed with emotions he hasn’t fully metabolized. But he pushed through it because he didn’t want to ruin the mood just because he felt bad.At first he shared every embarrassing thing he knew about Wes.Now the other Ascendants knew his every failure.But then he also started talking at length about what he and Wesley saw and what they did together. His knowledge showed that he knew quite a lot about this person, as if they really were ‘construct and commandant’ for that brief period of time. Lamia was impressed, and almost felt bad for not having produced such a detailed analysis for Luna. Then Ember suddenly asked: “Did you remember to mention me even a single time?”Roland tapped his mechanical fingers against the table. He was going to fulfil her request, he just happened to forget while he was there. She continued: “And when will we see him together?”- Alpha snorted and said: “Pfffft. You will never see him”. The situation got a bit quiet as Roland and Ember stared each other down like two cowboys in a duel, but they soon resumed chatting normally.--
In this lively exchange, Luna was able to tell that something was going on with her knight. Roland had new gestures and mannerisms, it was like her friend had a new warmth. Despite everything so far, when she looked at the people seated around her, it seemed like the world didn't end at all. Seeing Lamia's red face when she just couldn't adjust or watching her people bicker like they're children reminded her of times that seemed to disappear when the Punishing occurred. It was almost… okay.This place was starting to look like something familiar and warm.After reuniting with her sister, she wanted to reclaim some of the things she once used to hold dear. She has been buried under the weight of her role (and the dangers that come with it) for so long, that she overlooked the small joys that somehow survived in this harsh world. And ever since she returned from the moon, she was also much more calm.For a while now, the Ascendants were not just her servants anymore. After surviving so many ordeals, this rowdy bunch became her new family. She knows they rely on her for leadership, but that didn't matter as much. Since all of them were connected to her by some degree (By the merit of sharing her power), she could literally tell how they felt. She didn't want to just be their leader, she was eager to let them search for their happiness. Perhaps they will bring some of it back „home“.Roland was her knight almost since the outbreak began, and he has been fiercely loyal since. Luna knew him well, so she wanted to protect his feelings. She didn’t want him to become a slave to unrealized needs and desires. If this person could help him find contentment, then she would gladly help. And if her friend got too cowardly, then she would give him a nudge. The Ascendant princess decided that the next time she works with Philippa (the Gray Raven), she'd try to make sure he has extra time. Sometime later, Alpha told Roland that Wesley was on Earth again. He pretended not to care, though she instantly caught on that he did. As soon as her back was turned, he was going off somewhere ‘to stretch his legs’.Watching this somewhere from the side, Lamia asked her: “Miss Luna… I’d like to have a human too” – The princess responded: “Well, then get one. I said you could have one, not that I’d find them for you… And since you have all this free time, you can finish the rest of your mission, since Roland is too busy to finish it for you. What, did you think I don't know?”Realizing she was busted, Lamia fled to do her job more energized than ever. Luna smirked while watching her dart away in panic. She liked teasing her, and besides she wanted to work harder, right?--Roland reluctantly dropped by the temporary camp Alpha told him about, when he noticed his pace was a bit faster than normal. He usually associated the feeling of 'anticipation' with a disaster about to happen, so he had to focus his thoughts on something else.As he was going towards Wes’s whereabouts, he spotted him heading deeper into the camp. Drops of sweat appeared on his artificial skin and he muttered something to himself before crawling through the vents just to see him. When they met, Wesley had a difficult expression. It’s the one when he doesn’t lie but he also doesn’t feel like telling the whole truth.Roland was also tense and on the verge of breaking into his thoughts just to read them himself.He tried to lighten the mood with a joke: "H-hola! Amigo… we are infiltrating your camp (He smiled awkwardly) You wanna help? If you’re not busy... Haha". Stuck in that vent, he looked like a helpless, stretched out frog above him. Wesley crossed his arms with a deadpan look and said he’d scream for help. Roland coughed: “Ahem... Please don’t. I’m not here on any mission, it was just a joke. It’s really hot here” (He was keeping his Punishing levels low to avoid drawing attention from the guards.... and he was clogging the vents, which made the heat unbearable). Wes helped get him get down.Roland admitted that he was avoiding him, and how he wanted to spare himself the heartbreak by rushing to the ending that had the disappointment he was most familiar with. Then Wesley suddenly punched him! He was wearing his exoskeleton, so it hurt quite a bit. Roland’s eyes became wide with surprise- “Good. Now you have a reason to feel sad, because I punched you and –it- hurts. You do know that thinking like that basically means you're calling everyone else who isn't 'you' a liar? It’s not fair. After having so much fun together, you say “none of it matters”, and when you need to remember it, you just don’t. It’s painful to think that only the bad things are the ones people remember about you”.Of all things, Wesley really didn't want to be Roland's 'villain'.
Only now Roland started to see how exhausted and fragile the human in front of him looked like. He paused for a bit when he realized that he never considered how Wesley felt. That hurt more than the punch itself. He was just so used to pushing himself over the breaking point that he often forgot others couldn’t. His thoughts were interrupted when he heard Wes’s voice. “Why are you even here?” he asked, shifting from one foot to another with an anxious look. And then... without any warning, the Ascendant stated plainly: “Because I love you-“Wesley became rooted on the spot and his pulse must have increased by tenfold. Roland said it so casually and without restraint. He hated how he could say something so important so easily, and he was not in a mood to play guessing games moments after being hurt. He felt like he was Roland's plaything. His fists clenched, and he decided to use his own ‘jester’s privilege’. If he doesn’t want to be serious, then why don’t we all start talking nonsense? hmm? “I love you too”- Wesley responded with a weary smile and a hint of bitterness.Roland became more serious and warned him that he should not throw such words around. “Oh? Whatever do you mean, beloved of mine?” Wes retained his acidic smile. He tilted his head to the side and put a hand on his hip like he initiated a checkmate. But Roland said nothing. How was he supposed to tell him that he memorized his natural expressions and body language, to the point of being able to tell that what he just said now was complete truth? He was also quiet because he was totally shocked. He didn’t know what to choose between saying something clever or pulling him into an embrace.Suddenly, he burst out laughing and started kicking dirt under his feet from being unable to cope with the surprise. “Relax, I was kidding haha, I didn’t mean to disappear”.Swaying and giggling to himself, he once again looked like that naughty child that stood at the front door of his dorm.--“Well. If that’s all…” (Wesley lifted his brow, considerably annoyed and utterly oblivious to the Ascendant's sudden change in mood) – “No, wait!” As Wes turned to leave, Roland quickly shoved a cold, metal box into his hands (He was only abrupt because he was afraid of letting him leave. He had to finish his intention, quickly, before something else shocking occurs). Wesley recognized it was the music box that he couldn’t find anywhere. When he raised his eyes to Roland, the latter asked him if he kept the doll. Wes crossed his arms and tilted his head at Roland with a curious half-smile: “I’ve been holding onto him while you were gone. "Someone had to". Roland said: “Ahem, it was a trade” – “Uh-huh. You know when you trade something without the other person knowing it’s called stealing, right?” he tapped his nose – “So… you don’t want it, then?” – “I’ll be keeping both as your punishment. But thank you for telling me your thoughts for a change. It's not like I can read your mind”. There was a pang of guilt in Wesley's smile.Roland was anxious and didn't want this to be their last meeting, so he quickly came up with a lie: “There is no need for that… I... Actually… My activation date is coming up soon” (he moved closer with a serious tone) “You can thank me then. A-and by the way, I have three birthdays now. One for when I was born, one for my first frame, and finally, for this one”- he tapped a finger against his bosom. Before leaving, he paused one more time: “I’m curious how you’ll surprise me. My expectations are going to be very high, so don’t disappoint me”. He winked at Wes with a smile and left outside, letting sunshine stream in where he stood.--When he came back to the hideout, he was excited. He totally forgot to tell Ember about her former commandant again (Though he decided he’d just do it next time). When she asked if anything interesting happened, he just said “Nope” with zero hesitation and sprawled out on the couch next to her. Then he casually threw his arm around her, and grabbed a handful of some snacks she was eating, thinking:„What fun, haha ♡ What should I do next time, I wonder?“The dates of Roland’s birthdays were actually random, because he doesn’t really remember them. But he wondered if Wesley would.To his surprise, a birthday present made its way on the first date just as he said. It found its way to him through Alpha and Philippa. It was a modest box of candies, but he savored every one. He even thought about making them permanent somehow.The lies he told became a part of his reality again. Guess he’ll have to remember these so-called ‘birthdays’ now.They kept communicating through baits, trades and challenges. They were both looking forward to them, and each puzzle ended with something like “look forward to the next one!”. They were also leaving subtle hints where the goal was to figure out what the other person meant (Sometimes they would involve pop culture knowledge, like leaving hints with rythms of their favorite show openings). Sometimes they’d communicate through pipes, or locked doors. Sometimes the notes they left were completely ordinary questions like...“Dear Stranger, how is your day?”For a few times, Roland even laid on the battlefield and pretended to be a corpse that Wesley was supposed to collect. He would find him, and then lean over his shovel while putting the blade next to his head, smiling into Roland's face. „Are you comfortable there, dear Roland?“. The Ascendant replied with a smile, laying among the corpses like a snow angel. It definitely wasn't the most conventional way to meet but it suited them perfectly. It was fun completing these 'quests' on the side of their missions. Only they knew what these games meant and Roland loved to play. Even when he sometimes wasn’t sure if Wesley will manage to follow through, he always did.He waited patiently for their next meeting, nurturing that new feeling in his heart. Even when he felt these nice things were ‘wasted on him’, he reminded himself that he already claimed them as his ‘prize’.
Dug Out Heart
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's and the canon characters are OOC!
Roland was now more sure of what he wanted, and one of those things included doing something nice for Wes. Most things he does are ‘nice’, but this time it needed to be something different and special. He would have his chance soon, because it was almost Wesley’s birthday (A date he marked in his M.I.N.D.).Roland was racking his brains trying to come up with ideas. He wasn’t sure if Wes would like a surprise or not. There was already enough risk involved with all of their little interactions, so he wanted his human to feel extra safe. A place with people maybe? Private but safe? That sounded good. But what to do? After some thinking Roland decided not to buy anything. Wesley can get whatever he wants in Babylonia anyway.Making something would be the best, and Roland was excellent with handcrafts. He could make a toy of him. A little Wesley nui with bones inside and its own exoskeleton frame, so he can move it around? He was also thinking of making him an album with all the screenshots he took of areas while roaming all these years. Maybe too depressing but still, some of those pictures turned out really nice. He knows Wes would appreciate seeing different places. He also thought about baking (He was great with desserts). A pie? One of those extremely sweet, candy-on-top sort of pies. Or is that too much? He was known to bring exaggerated gifts.--The greater privacy of conservation areas also helped him reach Wes more easily.He snuck into his tent early at dawn where he found him asleep. If Wesley's reputation wasn't ruined by everything that happened with Ember (and why he's mostly ostracized), Roland wouldn't be able to approach him at all. Unlike Philippa, he wasn’t some “hero” that constantly had stage lights on him, with thousands of eyes peering at his every move. Hassen’s efforts to keep him low-key, as well as Babylonia’s lack of regard for his life made it all easier for the Ascendant. It may sound strange, but it made Roland happy. When he watched him rest, he felt his shoulders loosen up.He gently pulled down his collar with a finger, and counted new scars with a frown. And then he moved the strands of his hair, so he could better watch him sleep. He wondered what kind of dreams was he having, and if he should even wake him. Instead of teasing him like he initially wanted to, Roland took his face until his wet breath could almost touch his lips. A warm smile like candlelight spread across his face. He whispered him a question: "You can’t be accused of betrayal if you don’t even know what’s happening, right?" - then pressed his lips against Wesley’s in a way that would not make him wake.The redhead winced from a slight tickle of the virus, and Roland bounced back. He cleared his throat with an “Ahem-“ then started speaking normally, like nothing ever happened: “Oh my, commandant! Well aren’t you careless? If you keep relaxing like this, something really dangerous might wake you next time-!“ The first thing Wesley saw was Roland’s grinning face from up close like he already got used to.Wes groaned and threw himself back into bed, and Roland moved to an inch of his face to deliver his gift.“Holaaaa!” – He pressed his lips into his cheek and gave him a beautifully handcrafted flower made out of resin where each petal was different. Wesley’s annoyed protestations made the kiss all the sweeter.--These petals represented different places which Roland visited during the time they spent apart. Then he laid comfortably next to him, and started explaining the meaning behind each one. The gift was perfect, it was delicate and full of stories. The morning light almost made it look alive when he traced his fingers across its colourful edges. It actually reminded him of the person nestling in his arms (It made him almost wonder what, or who was the real gift here?). Now these frozen memories were his to watch over. Other than "stories", it seemed Roland just kept finding more things for him to keep safe.They spent the early birthday morning whispering between each other, talking about adventures and new experiences. Roland’s head rested comfortably between Wesley’s chin and collarbone while the latter leaned on him. He was also spreading his arms while weaving his tales, while Wes patted his head with adoration. They huddled together like two little birds. It turns out the Ascendant really liked to cuddle. “Now who’s too comfortable?” Wesley smirked, looking at his face from above.He couldn’t help but notice that Roland’s expression was different somehow. Wes put his forehead against the Ascendant’s hair. He can’t look into his mind to check, but that hardly matters. Then Roland suddenly asked: “Hey why do you stick around with me?” - “You're joking, right?” Wes said without hesitation. “I wouldn’t trade my time with you for anything in the world.” he poked his nose and procedeed to list everything he liked. He could name at least 20 things before he even reached the part about Roland's looks. Roland was surprised to hear about some traits he never even paid attention to. It made him laugh. God knows how long it has been since he felt this way.“This is too good, too good hahaha! Forget that I even asked, pfffftt”- he covered his face with the back of his palm. Wes wanted to see him, so he gently lowered his hand, revealing Roland’s true expression. The Ascendant’s smile was awkward and sweet. It was a face that he was slowly discovering in fragments during his stay in Babylonia. A face that he already fell in love with. Everyhting else fell into the background.He kissed him, and it burned him a little (Even when low, the punishing still stung). But then Roland kissed him back, and they continued, little by little, one second at a time.
Like fiery butterflies.--Roland never looked more precious, this Wesley was sure of.The privacy of this cozy little room made it feel like this moment would never repeat. Fearing his expression will vanish soon, Wes cupped his face in his hands. Roland blushed, and the surge of his punishing-infested vital fluid started stinging Wesley’s palms. It was like holding a nettle with his bare hands, but he didn’t care at all. That’s when he realized he never engaged Roland from this up close. He wasn’t even sure anymore if the heat welling up within him came from exposure to the virus or his own excitement.He kissed him again. The Ascendant chuckled “Well, that’s not bad as a thank you amigo ;) ” and then kissed Wesley's aching palms. “...Does this hurt?”- he asked, and then took one of his hands and guided it to his chest “Why don’t you rest a little here”. Wes tried to move his hand, but Roland kept it firmly in place. He grinned at him while his face became very, very red. Roland assured him: “Don’t worry, I won’t let anything bad happen to you” and Wesley blurted out laughing: “Pffft... No way you said that with a straight face. Is this some kind of passion-fueled romantic story?”. They laughed immaturely, trying not to be loud.And yet, the anticipation they endured and the anxieties they swallowed down kept bringing them closer and closer. All the words that were yet to be said were boiling inside. The things they were yet to see, and the fights they were yet to have acted like kindling inside their hearts. These little embers of a passionate relationship urged Roland to make a move on his fellow actor. His favorite character, his so-called-commandant. He wanted to engulf him and leave nothing but ashes behind.Moved by these feelings, Roland wanted to say: “Thank you for sticking out with me, I appreciate your companionship”...But instead,He found his hands moving ahead of his words, under Wesley’s clothes and pulling up his shirt. Wes retreated back into his bed, reaching for a serum and jabbing it into his thigh (Roland never saw him stab himself with a serum with such a determination as he did that day). He followed into his bed, embracing him and leaving kiss after kiss upon his chest. Each of Roland's kisses left a vague trace of punishing on his skin. It was like leaving a signature, an indellible statement saying “I was here- and here, and here-”.”Hahahah…” – “What are you laughing at?” Roland sounded muffled while buried in his chest. His shirt was pushed all the way up, leaving him bare, but also, making a barrier between parts of himself that are his and the one below that is Roland’s.After a long time of being curious, he was being rewarded with such fantastic reactions. It makes him want to bury himself in the human more- as if they could share identities and lose their names. He wanted to steal his time, his warmth, and later his thoughts and desires. Until Wes became willing to give all those things away willingly to no one else.Then he grabbed Wes by the thighs, pulling him onto his legs until he was seated comfortably. Wes wouldn’t have to say anything since his corrupted M.I.N.D. beacon was already giving away his consent. Realizing that something 'signifficant' was about to happen, Roland had to check something before this could go anywhere. Something that he didn’t bother with in a long time. He put a finger against Wesley’s mouth, and told him to wait. Then he suddenly got up and scurried off behind a divider. This left him totally confused. He assumed Roland needed to gather his bearings.He wasn’t completely wrong. Now was probably bad timing, but Roland wasn’t sure if he actually “had anything” down there.--His first frame was like the Lucia : Dawn one. There was nothing between his legs but a smooth surface and ball joints for legs. He did have a "frame change" since then, but he never bothered to look if there was any difference. He was never a very sexual person to begin with, it was mostly just him being immature or bad with jokes. And because of the “make” of his body, his drive was almost nonexistent so he still didn’t care much about it. Since Ishmael remade his frame, a part of him was also put off by the idea that someone else decided what his body should look like. But now he really needed whatever was down there to do its job. He didn’t want his moment with Wes to go to waste.Roland: “What is this?"With his shirt down to his elbows and perched on top of his bed, Wes asked if everything was okay, to which Roland hastily responded “Pfft, haha it's no problem, no problem at all amigo!” while secretly freaking out. It seems that Ishmael and he had a pretty big misunderstanding. There is a brief flashback of their last meeting in his M.I.N.D.-Ishmael: “So, tell me Roland. Is there anything specific you’d like your frame to have? It can be anything. It’s your wish now, after all.” (She leaned towards him in a conspiratory way, with a finger over her lips) "Anything at all?" - Roland: “Whatever.” He just stood there with his arms crossed and back turned to her, wanting her help but also to interact with her as little as possible. He may have been a bit rude… And then he distinctly remembered the pink haired woman's face looking -slightly annoyed- before she committed her powers to his transformation. As he put two and two together, the grim realization came to his M.I.N.D. No wonder it was so easy to perform those acrobatic splits and kicks with no trouble at all.--He appeared from behind the divider looking like a soldier who deserted battle. His face had ‘defeat’ written all over it, and he was thinking how to apologize to Wesley for this ‘terrible letdown’. Wes looked at him and his pants with curiosity. Before he managed to come up with anything, Wes pulled his pants down. When he saw the situation, he burst into laughter. Roland wanted to eat a wall right there and now. Or explode into confetti, like a proper clown.But Wes hugged him, whispering "Don't worry, you're just like me!". Confused, hugged and with his pants down, Roland stopped talking for the first time in his life. He was still processing everything that just happened.Wesley had much more experience with this sort of thing. Seeing how distressed he was, he helped Roland relax and see that he was just as hot and desireable as he was 5 minutes ago. With a little bit of trial and error, they had great fun together. Roland was almost depleted after this exercise (Keeping his "punishing levels low" was a boss fight on its own), but still enjoyed holding Wesley’s hand while resting by his side. For him, this was more precious than the act of intimacy itself. Wes joked: “Probably shouldn’t treat life-saving serums like condoms anymore” – “Well, it would be a waste of serum if we didn’t do anything” - "Pffffft. I guess so". They continued to relax for as long as the morning could afford them. He knew that Wes’s interest in him was sincere. He just couldn’t believe it was happening. He rested while the morning light slowly reached their bed.He felt warmth tickling his foot. This was real.
Dug Out Heart
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's and the canon characters are OOC!
The morning was sweet and slow. Roland rested on his side while leaning on his hand and Wesley laid in front of him with his back pressed against his stomach. Warmth settled into the soft covers around them. He ran his eyes over Wesley's figure with satisfaction, happy that they could both be here. He kissed Wesley’s hair and lowered his face into his neck to feel his warmth. Roland finally felt relaxed, and there were no more burning coals under his feet. Curled up around his back, this was a smell he filled his lungs with. For a moment, he wished that the rest of the world could be as warm as this room.It may be his birthday, but work still needs to be done so Roland decided to wake him up. He started to whisper, tickling Wesley's ear with his lips while his hands travelled to his palms: „As you lay still, restless thoughts weigh heavily upon you. What's waiting for me? Who am I going to fight? How am I going to survive? Ahhhh but right now, I'm in a safe place. A warm and soft bed, right next to my... …“ – „Roland, stop pretending you're the voice inside my head“ – „Whoops, haha you wake fast“ – Wesley took him by the jaw, then pulled him closer and kissed him.„You know, if you don’t get up soon, alarms are going to start blaring. And then I’m going to have to kill a lot of people…” He smiled calmly. Wes was brushing his lips with his finger, wiping the sheen that his kiss left behind. „Yeah, yeah I hear that. I’m waking up. I promise“. Then he kissed him again. „Oh, the greed ♪“- Roland shook his head and whispered, letting himself be adored.--There was still something that he owed Wes. The timing wasn't perfect, but he would finally tell him the story about Ember, his role in her ascension, and where she seemed to disappear. He knew too much chaos would upset him so he held back. But now that they were close enough he would tell him the whole truth, even if it warranted a nasty reaction.Wesley interrupted him- „Wait you, y-you... you're being serious about this. And you're here relaxing with me? Oh my god, Roland. Fuck my birthday, we need to go now!“. He almost practically tossed Roland off himself, and started looking for his shoes. He only stopped when he saw a bunch of armed constructs from Babylonia patrolling in front of their tent.Roland approached from the back, poking his cheek with a finger. „Hmm, hmm. You'll lose your head if you keep charging around like this“ – „You have no right to say anything“ – „Maybe“ – Roland replied casually and sat in the chair next to his bed. „You don't want to bring half of Babylonia to our camp, do you?“ completely dejected, Wes slumped beneath the window.„When is your first day off? I can always blow up your tent if you need a sudden accident, haha“ (Wesley gave him a sharp look) „Pffft, what? I'm joking. Probably.“--Roland promised to help him visit. But there was a catch. Location hints are all the“ helping“ he would do. It wasn't like him to serve everything on a silver platter and he wasn't going to let Wes slack off, especially when it's about something as important as this. Wesley would have to create an opportunity to visit the secret Ascendant base, then find a way to sneak inside and return all on his own.When the day finally came, Wesley barely slept. Roland waited for him at an agreed place, wished him good luck and then promptly vanished like a skillful actor exiting the stage.This was all happening at the Rosewater dam, a large concrete monster on the side of a small community which shares the same name. It was located deep in a pine forest where nature still dominated over human presence. Wes somehow managed to grab an assignment all the way out here without sparking any suspicion. He walked over to the dam's stone foundation to get a better view. If the circumstances were less dire, he would have enjoyed this mission as he normally enjoys exploring abandoned places. It was always his habit to shove his nose everywhere like a curious little fox.His point of entry was a massive plug hole that lead to a water reservoir. It was currently dry season, so it stuck out like a weird tower. The way down was segmented with steps (Something about helping the outflow of water whenever the dam became too full). Now he could use them to descend towards his goal. But first, he injected himself with a dose of serum and powered off most of his exosuit's surplus features to lower his chances of detection. As soon as he took off, Roland made a move as well. He never really left, and it was all thanks to his scheming that the other Ascendants had something else to do on this day.He told Lamia that he needed her to gather some info and that she was the only one he could rely on (While knowing full well there was a place nearby where she'll slack off instead). Alpha was busy because she had to clean up a mess that he couldn’t handle and step in for his “lack of strength”. Luna knows that he plans to have „a guest“ around this time, so she just found something else to do as well. The only thing that was left to do was follow Wes around and ensure that everything was safe. He wouldn't put Wesley in the way of a potentially dangerous meeting, he just wanted to see if he was up to the task.--Wesley kept heading further in. Without its usual functions, the suit he loves so much felt more like a heavy burden. Each section of the tunnel he was in was filled in by concrete lines that reached all the way to the ceiling, making him feel like he was walking around in the bowels of some giant beast. 50 meters beneath surface level, the feeling of isolation became really crushing. The effects of the serum were still strong so he tried to focus his thoughts elsewhere only to end up worrying instead.The last thing he remembers about Ember was her virus-eaten frame, and her trying to comfort him by saying that they'll both somehow be fine. He felt guilty. Not just because she almost died due to his incompetence as a commandant, but also because he was swooning over Roland so much that he forgot about this „redemption“. Without closure, he'll just keep walking around in the same maze forever.... But Wesley doesn't want to think that something is not fine. He does not want to think about it no matter how bad it is. When he's working on corpses he's glad he's not them. When he watches soldiers leave, he's glad he's not among them. When he sees their camaradery, he's glad he doesn't have it, because there is nothing he can lose. For him it was like falling asleep at the bottom of the ocean, where he wouldn’t have to worry about anyone or anything. It has been this way ever since his M.I.N.D. beacon became corrupted. What he has is not courage, but complete surrender.This realization has made him grind his teeth. He didn't want to be content with not knowing. He couldn't be a citizen of this permanent dusk.He was also afraid that he might have moved on. Whether or not this choice was taken from him, he just accepted what happened (As always). It invalidated everything he did so far. Like the promises she'd do well in her new team, or that there would always be someone she could rely on. „Ugh, I hate you“ – He spoke to himself, shaking his head. He took another serum out of his jacket and painfully jabbed it into his arm. Some time later, he finally reached the reservoir. A massive, spacious room that spanned at least 20 meters high. It was full of thick columns that spread all the way from one side to another, and the northernmost wall was lit up by an ominous red light.Luckily, this place has been out of service ever since the outbreak began. But rainwater still sometimes leaked in through the other tunnels, covering every part of the room. There was no way to cover his steps anymore and the closer he moved towards the light, the stronger his symptoms became.Then he saw Ember. Ripples spread around him with each step he took in her direction. The source of this light was her core. A battery so steeped in punishing that it barely resembled what it used to be. The same could be said about her. Though still small, she looked more the part of “corrupted” than regular construct. Blood trickled from his nose and a drop fell between his feet. This was without a doubt, the Punishing infection. Ember was crouched down with cable like tendrils searching for something inside a dead corrupted that was slung over her knees. The entire scene was like something out of an eerie liminal photo.Her animal shaped inver-device looked more like a crown of spikes, and the armored parts of her body corroded into something entirely new. They were like black bones dotted with cavities made by flowing water and strange biomechanical growths took place along her arms. She also had a tail that looked like a fish bone. The whites of her eyes became black, and her once-gray irises now glowed crimson (And since her skin turned gray, that change seemed even more drastic). The coating meant to mimic human skin was also gone around her shoulders, betraying her puppet-like joints. Regardless of her fearsome new form, Wes still looked at her without any fear or apprehension. To him it seemed that not much has changed (Though that always seemed to be his problem).Ember didn’t react to his presence because she already knew Wesley was there. Even if she couldn’t feel the ripples on the water or hear him approach, she could always recognize the faint life signature that she once used to keep safe.
--Ember: „You're here“ – „Yep, it's me alright“ – „You didn't know how to come here on your own“ – „Yeah...“ – „It seems like Roland spends lots of time around you, and somehow he doesn't even manage to bring you here safely? That does sound like him though. It takes an especially dense person not to tire of his games“ (Ember wasn't happy or sad. She was just kind of there) – „Hah. Don't expect me to say anything smart, you know I'm never ready or prepared for any mission I'm given... Are you okay?“Ember made a deliberate circle around herself in the water before rising to her feet. It was like she was drawing an invisible barrier with her finger. When she stood up, that finger remained pointed at Wes. „Am I okay? You could just send a message if you were that curious haha. Coming all the way here sounds a bit over the top, no?“ - “I wanted to say I’m sorry for not coming sooner. I always wanted to see you, but I never finish what I start. And even this I can't consider to be my own choice. I'm only here because someone reminded me of it. Otherwise I'd probably never come”. She watched the red streak curve around his lips as he tried to smile sincerely. His apology was as sharp as a sword.“Pfffft… Did you come here to see me, or did you come here to feel like shit“ - „Eeeeh… A bit from column A, a bit from column B“ (Wesley drew lines in the air with his bloody finger) – „Haha, I’m surprised you kept your humor. I’m not surprised it's still as bad as always“(She smirked. That „child“ could always see right through him)Wes was desperate to confirm that everything he did was for something. Now he seemed relieved, even though their reunion was from perfect.Wesley: “Permission to speak?” – “Shoot” – “I always knew it was not your style to just lay down and die” – “ Haha, yeah. It’s good to know you’re still around as well” – “Hey, you know what? It’s been so long, so why don’t we do this again? (He winked) Maybe we should start over with less drama this time (He clears his throat and bows playfully) Hello~”When she heard that, Ember’s eyes lit up with a bit of hope. She quickly stumbled towards him, her ruined legs could only do that much. From this up close, Wes could feel the punishing still coursing through her. She was stronger than Roland by far. He didn't notice it, but it made his hairs stand on end. His body reacted like he was approached by a dangerous predator.Ember made a curtsy. „Pleasure to meet you. Do you still drink tea? Well, I still make tea“ – „I will keep that in mind.“ – „Yeah, you better“. They both laughed, but soon there was an awkward silence between them, even though they were old friends. Time felt like it was suspended. Neither of them really wanted to be there.--With Wes bowed, she could see his scars. She still felt bad about „burning him“, especially since she used to be a support construct devoted to protecting his health. This meant even more to her because she was once an assassin until Kurono decided to let her go.Ever since the events that transpired in the Saint-Laurent nuclear reactor, she has been free from most things, but so was Wesley. She knows that he's traumatized by everything that happened. Babylonia does not accept him either- And she already told him „to do what he wants“. Then why does it feel so bad all of a sudden? Now that he's doing what he wants and now that he came here, she feels lonelier than before. Wes was always one of her closest friends, even if he didn't know it. He looks and sounds just how she remembers. But the person that came here was already „new“.In her absence, it was Roland who came and befriended him. He just happened to tag along while Wes was already changing. Now her old friend became a stranger, and the only part she still recognized in him was the one that could never take things seriously. Ember pretended to look down at her feet while watching his reflection ripple in the reddish water. Her eagerness from before quickly decayed into sadness. It felt like she was a part of a world that no longer existed. Finally seeing him just made her realize more that she said her goodbyes when she gave him a hug and became an Ascendant.To make it worse, it seems that Roland liked this version of Wes, even though (By her judgement) it's the one that's worse than before. He was once so different and special. Now he was just like everyone else. Maybe she didn't know him at all?It's all reversed now. She used to tell Roland about him even though he kept getting annoyed, and now she’s horrified to know that he ended up living all those stories with her commandant instead. All this time, they kept meeting in secret while she kept her distance because she was afraid of what would happen if Wesley was seen with an Ascendant. And in the end, it was Roland who reminded him that she still existed at all.He fulfilled her wish, and now that Wesley was finally here, it felt like a horror story. And how does he plan on Wes becoming “his commandant"? What the hell was that about?. The question gnawed at her. It was much easier to tolerate him until she began to see traces of him in Wesley's voice and actions.--(This wouldn't actually be the last time that Ember and Wesley see each other, but there has definitely been a permanent shift in their dynamics. For an example, Ember will still ask Alpha for special Kowloong tea leaves when she's somewhere they used to sell. And when she treats him and the others to tea, she will never say that his cup contains his favorite infusion, nor that it's more bitter than the rest. This is just her way of expressing her disappointment)
Dug Out Heart
*This is a headcanon story with fan-oc's and the canon characters are OOC!
They won't have to sneak around behind the stage forever. Thanks to Philippa and Luna joining forces (Something about Kurono, a burial at sea and a series of particularly strange decisions from Babylonia causing her to seek refuge with the Ascendant princess) they could meet under the same banner.They were able to enact the roles of “commandant and construct” again. Only, this time it was different. Roland didn't want to borrow Babylonian terms because he didn't want to abide their customs so they ended up calling each other by their real names instead.Half jokingly, Wes even suggested that they were more like a knight and their squire instead. They can't connect minds, nor do they answer to a Babylonian chief so what does it matter? And he got so used to taking care of him and dealing with his shenanigans anyway that he could already guess what he was about to say. Roland agreed, so they continued helping each other how they could. Wes kept Roland’s gear upgraded and in good shape, and he made sure that he never ran out of ammo. If possible, he wanted him to win without sacrificing a single drop of vital fluid.--Eventually, they found their own style of fighting. Resources on Earth were scarce, so they had to make do with anything that was available. It was a mix of wireless radio, coded signals and even whistles (As well as some tricks Wes picked up from the Forsaken in the Pulia Park aftermath). Wes planned well and knew when to get out of the way while Roland was good at performing solo and keeping himself in check without the need of a commandant. And he could react well in most situations without someone telling him to do this or that.Having to do everything "the old way" made them look even more like the roles they were trying to play.Roland also kept his humor. He would still contact Wes even if he didn’t have to, just to mess with him. Wesley’s receiver kept beeping with totally pointless updates like notifying him on weather changes which he can see for himself, or ask questions that didn't need answering. He'd say things like: „I found a broken door, amigo! :D“ or „Quickly Wes, 3'o clock, there's a cloud in the shape of a cat!“ (It didn't even look like a cat). At other times he would just call him and then start talking in monologues over the microphone or send emojis instead of normal messages, making Wes decipher them. He was basically sending him encrypted diary entries. Wesley’s patience would be wasted on anyone else.He would also tease Wesley when he’s giving out orders. Whenever he got too much into it and started throwing around dramatic lines like “Show off” or “Teach them how to dance!”, Roland would half-jokingly point out that he’s stealing quotes from a show. Then Wes would get embarrassed, fumble a bit and correct himself by saying something more normal like: “…Ahem… Okay, just get it done” – to which Roland responded: “That is also from somewhe-“ Wes: “EVERYTHING IS FROM SOMEWHERE!”Having gotten his favourite reaction, Roland would swing into the fray, laying waste to their enemies.And since they were on Earth, it meant Roland could ‘steal him’ more often to go on a few-day long dates without anyone asking too many questions. He easily came up with a whole bunch of stories to cover up for his disappearance. One time they visited an old crumbling cinema to watch a movie. Roland was smacking a projector to make it work, while Wes picked some nice seats like they were about to see a premiere during the Golden age. Then they hung out and watched some old films Wes took from a babylonian video rental, pretending it was the real thing.--Working on Earth together also meant more chances to get intimate. Roland didn’t really need that kind of intimacy because of the nature of his body as a construct, but he liked seeing Wes happy. The act itself was just something he enjoyed on the way. Another way of providing comfort was sneaking under his sheets to spend time by his side without disturbing him. Wesley would wake up with little red spots on his skin, just like the ones when the Ascendant first kissed him. Sometimes they would both pretend not to know the other is awake, just so they can cuddle quietly. He loved the feeling of Wesley's warm feet pushed up against his own.He would tease him by approaching from the back and wrapping his arms around him. His hands would slide under Wesley’s shirt, pretending to rub his stomach while Wes is focused on reading some report. Then, when he is sufficiently distracted, Roland’s hand would wander off into his pants, and even further down… which is when he fakes a surprise and says “Oho... and what’s here?” and then tightens his arms when Wes almost pounces to the ceiling.Sometimes he would sneak up on Wes and put his cold hands on his skin, promising that they will warm up if he lets him keep them there. Or he’d find Wesley asleep and then lay on top of him, squashing him with his mechanical body while saying: “Hmm, hmm ♪ why-oh-why is my bed moving so much?” with a grin while Wes tries to wriggle out from under him.When Wes was absent, he’d lay into the outline in the bed where his body used to be. And when he came back, he’d tease him by saying that he can’t go in because he lost his spot.Roland also liked climbing into his bed, saying that he’s “a snake that needs to curl up to something warm”. Then Wes would say: “Oh, is the serpent back to bite me now?” – “Mmm. No. The serpent came back for warmth. It won’t bite unless you move” and Roland would nuzzle into him like he was his cushion. Now whenever Wes wants to leave the bed, Roland tells him that he “has to prove his resolve” and clings to him like a python until Wes finally manages to writhe out of his arms. He releases him on his own once he’s had his fill… But also because he knows Wes will make them both coffee. He’d yawn and stretch his construct limbs, moving closer and giving Wes a smooch before leaving him to his business. His partner was selfish, but knew how to make him feel good.And sometimes, he’d just leave him in peace and enjoy watching him sleep.He always did what he wanted and Wes loved this quality of his the most. Always being able to make your own path takes a certain amount of courage he just didn't have... yet. After all, that was something he was learning from Roland too. Plus, he loved playing along in his games, making him feel special and needed. He loved his rambles and his stupid jokes too. Roland brought so much laughter and joy to Wes that the latter decided to live more sincerely. As terrifying as it was, he had to let the gears of time continue moving after an indefinite pause.--Eventually, Roland wanted to uplift his status to that of an ‘Ascendant’, but Wesley was limited by his humanity. He wanted him to become stronger (Better capable of protecting himself) and more independent, so he could rely on him more. At this point, the battles they could take were still very limited.Roland also wanted to know what kinds of choices would Wes make with his new freedom. Even before all this, he liked giving options to others and seeing what they do with them. A part of him was also curious what he’d look like. Roland always thought that the Ascendant’s appearance was superior to any manmade design. He recalled a time when he modified Tifa. If it came from "his gift”, he was sure that Wesley’s frame would look beautiful. After all, he was proud of what Ember came to be (It would also be kind of funny if both commandant and former construct were ‘turned’ by the same Ascendant).Unfortunately, due to the fact that his brain implant was already tainted by the corruption of the Punishing, Wesley’s consciousness could not be separated from his human body without putting him in harm’s way.
--They also liked “performing” (Something that Wes originally came up with while running around with his corpse-gathering mechanoids). Sometimes they would swap roles for fun, just to mess with their enemies or so that one of them could handle the boring parts of a mission while the other could have fun. When they were together they could balance the load of being a clown. Wes was one of the people who became themselves when they ‘put the mask on’, while Roland was the opposite ,fearing he’d lose himself in it. It became easier for him to tolerate those traits in himself after first liking them in someone else. Whenever he went too deep, Wesley was waiting at the shore with an outstretched hand, even without a M.I.N.D. beacon to light his way.Sometimes when they rested, Roland asked him if he could be fooled into thinking that he was “a good construct”. Wesley would look at him and say that he only ever knew the “Roland” he showed him, and that one was good to him. Even though Roland hasn’t explicitly told him about what happened in the Mandhasti park yet, Wes knew it was something that still made him feel miserable. This is why he tried not to take missions that reinforced Roland’s negative self-image.Roland always had a hard time expressing and identifying his own true feelings. Before reaching the surface, they had to go through an entire internal process. That already made it difficult for the person who loves him to see if their love was doing anything. But Wes didn't rush him. He truly believed that he should love himself more, and he wanted to see him grow. And he wasn’t delaying his gratification either, he was simply happy where he was while staying true to himself.He already felt glad that Roland was willing to express his vulnerability to begin with. He was also starting to define himself more and it made Wesley very proud. Is this how real constructs and commandants feel about each other?Showing him “what he sees” was the least he could do, and it’s what he’ll keep trying to accomplish as long as they are together.Roland wanted to step into Wesley’s shoes and understand what he keeps seeing that makes him believe in him with such confidence. It was the shape that “he” took in Wesley’s eyes. He knew him well enough that he trusted he wouldn’t choose to abandon him. Things were already much different from the past. This time, Roland was already surrounded by a lot more people that love him.These little ‘dolls’ will have a different story..."Once upon a time, in a kingdom far away, the story began with a knight and his squire,
with an important task to make the princess’s wish come true…"︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶︶
Notes:
- The Gray Raven commandant's name is Philippa Anheier. She was also brought into the taskforce by Hassen. But unlike Wesley (who was taken in as a child), Philippa was acquired from a prison, to which she owes her ruthless and daring personality. She is 183 cm tall and wears high heels and a military uniform for most of the time.
- She frequently tests how much she can push Roland around through Wes.
- There is more room for angst and character development, but this story was always supposed to be short.
- Their story will likely resume when he gets a new frame!
- This is mostly a fluff/comfort story because I love this character
- Thanks for reading!
Artwork
WIP: Black Ripples
Length of story: Around 28k wordsType: Enemies to lovers, romance, dystopian, found family, some horrorThe setting: The story takes place in a world that was devastated by a rogue planetoid that came from a wormhole after another civilization dumped it into this solar system (They were just disposing of a planet devoid of resources, an act of corporate negligence). As it intercepted our planet's atmosphere and caused apocalyptic natural disasters, Earth became uninhabitable, and any survivors escaped wherever they could (The story revolves around a particular colony that settled into a gargantuan, well-isolated server). In the end, even though the planetoid became ripped apart by Earth's gravity, a strange „Signal“ became embedded in Earth which caused any sentient organism to terminate its own existence in particularly violent ways. This is why humanity abandoned the idea of venturing outside and formed their own society within the Server, which becmame known as „The Commonwealth“. However, even the server isn't impervious to the Signal entirely, which gives rise to other crises that plague different sectors. The creation of „Alters“ was one of the responses to these challenges, where humans began to graft best-performing personalities onto blank androids, and have them fill up the population in the declining colony.Wesley: Stubborn, smart and lonely. He does not explain his feelings, and he tends to lash out when misunderstood. Wes is also prone to lying because he wants to avoid confrontation. Ever since his parents fell out of love when he was little (he became withdrawn and started to look for escape very early, often making little robots to the point of them overflowing his room), things started going from bad to worse. As a teen he learned the truth about Prima Arum's business but was too young to do anything about it. And then his parents voluntarily joined in the expulsion of that group, leaving him behind. He searched the entire complex for his friend only to eventually realize her condition was critical. After destroying something important in the facility by accident, he joined an organization so he could keep looking after her health, during which time he doused the guilt by piling on more and more work (and this is where he gained the habit of neglecting his physical needs as well as the need for socialization). He literally forgot how to hold a conversation! When she was finally better, he was too messed up to be her friend like he used to and being around her was only more of a contrast to „what used to be“ and „what could have been“. He felt like a burden and wanted her to live her life fully now that it became possible, and he just wanted space for himself to quietly heal his wounds now that he finally reached his goal. But since he's not good at taking care of himself, this „healing“ comes in the shape of taking on more work behind the back of his organization. This results with him getting enmeshed with the problems of the people he was helping. And although he was taken by force, he felt a relief that someone pried him off his situation when he himself could not do it.Laurie: An android (androids are called „Alters“ in this story) who once used to be a healer. In the past, Alters were forced to serve humanity through insidious programming that made pleasure only emerge out of servitude. But during the Alter war, humans who fought for better treatment of all actually rescued him from his regiment and cracked his insidious code. He decided to stick around because he fell in love with them on his own after witnessing their sincere care for others and plight for survival. Fighting alongside them also felt like fighting against those who enslaved him. Unfortunately, they were overwhelmed one day and Laurie was slain alongside them. But because of his artificial body, he was captured by a life-preserving system that forcefully took his fading consciousness and started replaying his life over and over again in order to prevent him from expiring. He woke up from his forced sleep and the events that followed scarred Laurie even more, to the point where he started to live just for the sake of moving from one day to the next. He slid into melancholy and wanted only a life of ease, freedom and power. But when he met a caravan of other Alters (The Black Ripples), he fell in love with their goal of running to the surface, and later with their camaraderie that reminded him of what he lost. He is an amoral, prideful, and listless character who is inherently good inside. He just thinks the world sucks and everyone is equally to blame (so it's best to run away, no matter how much he brags, this is at the core of his character). His pride substitutes his „shame“, because he would not be able to face and withstand how hurt he truly is. If he does not see his own sadness, he will be able to live with the illusion that everything is normal (This is reflected in his refusal to have his broken body fixed. He looks like a corpse, but nothing is wrong, and he is proud of it). He cares for his group greatly, but deep inside he is unsure if he wants to fulfill their goal of ascending to the surface or „selfishly“ keep them by his side. These wishes are crystalized once shone through Wes (a human, something he's conflicted about) as a lens.The Black Ripples: A Caravan of discarded and wronged Alters who were picked up by Baba Yaga and her right-hand woman, Nessa. Baba Yaga was an accountant Alter, who after the end of the Alter war, started buying Alters out of their servitude and setting them free because the government was laggardly slow with systematically banning and removing their servant code. She rescued Nessa from her position as an enforcer in a human trafficking ring, and together they started to dream of going to the surface and leaving this abominable Server behind. The group grew as they found more fanatics to join their cause, and until Wes, they allowed only Alters to join. Despite that she was no longer active in the Server's politics, Baba Yaga would still use her resources to push Alters forward, although she also became noticeably weary of reconciling the interests of others (she gradually turned to coercion, and when Laurie joined their group, she was using him to instill fear in other Alters to comply) and began to cut corners in cruel ways. However, her group is slowly starting to outgrow her (they are beginning to find comfort in each other), and one day she may turn around to find that a blossoming garden was growing behind her back all this time. Perhaps she will let them show her the way instead.Some context: This short story is for a project I'm working on with my girlfriend (a big zine combining text, comic panels and illustrations). We decided to make a special world setting for all of our oc’s to inhabit, and everything is going to be tied up into one main story as well as side stories depending on how much time we have to work on them. This story will feature some notes I left for myself, and I apologize for the places where they might feel too plentiful (Notes are marked in a different colour and put in brackets to separate them from the main text like this).My questions:
Can you tell me if there are any info dumps, places where the story feels confusing, or particularly slow?
Does the individual character progression of Laurie and Wes feel satisfying?
Does the romantic progression between characters feel satisfying?
Is there any concept or character you wished there was more of?Please ignore the grammar and syntax errors, as I'm not yet sure myself which pieces of text I'll leave and which I'll draw. For now, I just want to see if the story develops satisfactorily, and if the characters are consistent with their personality.
WIP: Black Ripples
"It was one of the strangest days in my life. I remember it, in the dusk of the blood-soaked Alter war. I was an Alter medic, created solely to follow and heal the soldiers of the Commonwealth who came to raid a sector at the furthest end of the server. There I saw something incredible that struck me with awe (Panel of Laurie looking impressed) . However starved and exhausted, however likely to lose, the rebels put up one hell of a fight. The well-trained bloodhounds fell one after the other, and I... I was freed"."They could have bound me to a new master, put me in the service of their leader, but instead they removed my personality modules. For the first time, I was able to express my anger, and for the first time the joy of caring for others was my own. I was no longer compeleld by a false sense of meekness and pleasure through enthralment. For all this time, from the moment of our creation each of us had guardrails that blocked inputs such as sadness or rage, which is why so many of us worked ourselves to death with a smile"."My first real decision was to help the rebels, not knowing that I was still chained to them. Even though I was no longer bound by the subliminal charms of my make, I was not ready to judge humans as they are, especially since they were so eager about decisions I myself did not yet understand. I was simply pulled by their eagerness and hope. Maybe they didn't know it either. Maybe it was convenient for them. I merely wanted to stay by their side and patch up the bullet holes that they earned for my safety. For every murderer that I once healed, I wanted to bring a freedom hunter back from the brink of death. And I was good at it. Even though they were losing, this is where I wanted to be. This is where I would have felt fine dying (A brief scene, where a captain named Madeleine shouts to everyone in the tent: „The company commander says we stay here for three more days! help Laurie take care of the wounded!” – and then Laurie pulls her sleeve, saying “And what about you? Let me take a look at your eye, Madeleine)."Or so I thought. One time, the Commonwealth soldiers took us by surprise. They broke into medical tents, killing... me. The few guards, the patients, all together. I was dragging myself on my arms, in some futile attempt at grabbing a weapon, when a boot pressed itself against my back, and I watched the heads of the people I cared for get blown off instead. Things were starting to sink into a viscuous darkness, and all I felt was the hatred they earned as my mind went blank".--Then I.... I had a very long dream. It was a long and beautiful dream, much longer than any dream should be.(Third person now) The scene shows Laurie's body, with eyes still open, but no shine in them (Important, make this stand out) on a corpse pile around a Tetralisk as the scene slowly zooms out. The narration explains that this is one of the „Tetralisks“ that the exploited Alters were forced to build. Unlike human bodies that had to be burned to prevent disease in the server, the Alter's artificial bodies could be dumped near the Tetralisk because they still had a charge of energy inside that the monument could siphon, like „batteries“ for the oppressive monolith. Since they were corpses, they were considered a resource instead of given a burial as they would give to a person. Even dead, they were seen as 'useful' above all else.After this explanation, we see Tendrils from the Tetralisk slithering up the corpses' sleeves, leggings, etc. (You see how the places where they are connected are full of blue veins, and how they glow in an unnatural way, and the Alters are dead, their eyes like a doll's). One such tendril was in Laurie's nose, and the other was going into his clothes, clawing for his heart. Then another narration: the Caretaker, a central system of those monoliths, noticed that some of the Alters were not completely dead, but fatally wounded. While digging through their brains uninvited, it found dim embers, clinging to life.And this is where the horror began. Doing what it was programmed to do, the CTK uploaded the Alter's consciousness into itself, leaving only a broken vessel behind (until it could be replaced by a new one, preventing wasteful deaths). It would simply keep the consciousness busy with something in the meantime so it doesn't die/degrade. Emerging from the black tar, and back into the light, suddenly everything felt just fine for Laurie. Like someone wiped all those horrid feelings from his slate. He was back where he wanted to be, with no recollection of what comes before or after. And completely ignorant of the desecration that was perpetuated upon his body. His biggest worry were the patients he had to tend to that day.(Back to Laurie's POV) "Groups of people were rushing around me, base full of voices. A young rebel from Banzena was rushing with food for his friend and bumped into me. Tea (Red tea, ominous foreshadowing) spilled over my outfit- but the child apologized to me, even though I was an Alter. I was not used to that, so I smiled as my eyes follwed him to his older brother. Perhaps I was just not used to the feeling, and discovering new ones was like feeling touches on skin that was dulled for a hundred years. I went ahead and did my usual rounds... Then suddenly, I felt a chill on my nape. Like something horrible was about to happen"."As I turned around to see what's behind me, a moment of silence passed, and then enemy soldiers started roaring and shouting, storming the whole place, killing me and my patients. Then I blinked, and I was back at the start. I would tend to the wounded, live out my day, and then get shot. Every time I would forget what outcome waited for me".One of those times, as I called the patients to gather around and get their lunches- a cold, terrifying premonition whispered to me: „All of these people will die.“ – „Where did this intrusive thought come from? (Suddenly, his face darkened) They all die, don't they? A bitter taste spread through my mouth. A plate fell from my hand and shattered on the floor. Something terrible was coming, again."--
(Third person again) Meanwhile, in the real world Laurie's body continued to deteriorate. There are gradual scenes of his mechanical body degrading, plus scenes of scavengers rooting through his clothes, taking his things, and then later, another group showing up with a wheelbarrow and even opening up his body and taking his insides. After they were done with him, they laughed and kicked him down the pile (While drawing, these scenes are intertwined with those of his „normal day“).--
The CTK system was imperfect due to its own mutations that were starting to emerge as well (Because of the Signal that began to permeate the Server), so Laurie began to notice that his day was repeating. He was in some kind of loop, destined to always be hunted. He began to dread when „they“ would come again, because he was able to sense that something was wrong, but also that there was nothing he could do about it. Fear and paranoia were starting to drive him mad. Then he started doing little things, different things that would mess with the cycle. All he had to do was behave „opposite“ of normal, until the simulated day was different. But death would still come, and it was very painful. Sometimes, because of the disharmony in the illusion, death would actually come sooner. Laurie just couldn't cope with any more pain. Fearing his summary execution, sometimes he'd vomit at the start of a cycle from stress, or become incapable of performing his duties. He became fearful of waking up to see the same thing.Then he did something radical. Already becoming unhinged, Laurie killed the boy who bumped into him at the start of the cycle. And for a brief moment, his eyelids twitched open in the real world. Instead of the tent, for a split second, he saw the top of the server in Banzena (This was a lot like when you're in a nightmare and you FEEL yourself moving in bed like you're just on the cusp of waking up. He held onto this moment with his entire being. It was hope). Then he started killing everyone in the medical tent, his allies, his patients, taking the role of executioner instead of healer..... And every time, the damned CTK made their reactions to his betrayal completely realistic. That, coupled with the act of killing for a „non-combat Alter“ traumatized Laurie in a profound way.But he really wanted to live, he wanted to cherish the real life that he was given, however lacking and sad it was. In the dream, he thought how the first thing he wants when he wakes up is a normal glass of water and nothing else.
WIP: Black Ripples
Every inch of his body reviled the action of harming his patients until something important in him just “broke”. The CTK reacted to this. Only when he killed everyone in the tent, several cycles over, he was in such emotional dissaray, that he completely ejected himself from the CTK (Triggering himself a mental breakdown was his pyrrhic victory). CTK couldn’t continue “helping him “, as much as he was making himself feel “worse”. The Caretaker system was unable to comprehend how a consciousness that it was supposed to nurture kept getting hurt so badly. CTK's primary function was to preserve, so it had to stop whatever it was hurting Laurie. The simulation was interrupted and Laurie's consciousness slipped back into its source- his real body, or whatever was left of it.When Laurie finally woke up, it was the first time that he could see the ceiling for more than a few seconds. He was smiling a crooked smile, while laying with his arms outstretched on a corpse heap (From then on, he morbidly considered this „the place of his birth“, and it's where he comes to celebrate his birthdays).His wires were pulled apart and he looked like he had been gouged apart but he was alive. He even had to check his body if any mice had started to live inside. Then, Laurie noticed something was siphoning his life energy. He tore the tendrils off himself, black blood oozing out of the wounds. Most of his organs were stolen, aside from those who got corrupted when the CTK connected its tendrils to them. After decaying for so long, his heart became bleached and riddled with black veins, so no one wanted to steal it. Laurie thought that was so ironic, so he laughed. But sadness followed shortly after. He realized that many of the bodies around him were none other but his fellow freedom fighters, now quietly feeding the CTK as batteries (Some of them he recognized from the dream- „the people he killed just 5 minutes ago“ were actually dust covered corpses, long dead). It made him feel sick, just like in the dream. He sat up. Among the many dead Alters, there were those without clothes and their wiring was exposed without any dignity. To be honest, even Laurie could hardly tell himself apart from the corpses. He touched his face, only to realize that half of it had sloughed off. Time did its thing, he wondered: „How long was I here?“He also tried ripping the CTK tendrils out of his fallen comrades, and he shook them, calling their names loudly. But it was impossible, unless if the consciousness from the inside denies it. He at least tried to cover them up, restoring some dignity to the dead. He sat there and waited a whole day… hoping at least one more person would wake up.They did not.Laurie stood up and felt that he was completely forgotten, just like the rebellion, like their tales and companionship and all the promises of a world that was better than this one. It became something everyone would rather forget. Things moved on as usual, as if the fight was someone's imagination, as intangible as the dream he was having.After Laurie left the pit, he had to spend his days in hiding. People were horrified to see a „naked corpse“ walking in the street, and he easily got unwanted attention. Some people feared him, suspected him, or just didn't know how to help him so they crossed the street out of awkwardness which hurt just as much. When he tried to seek out his old compatriots by visiting the places they used to habit, he realized that only the desperate and „prideless“ were left (People who feel no less guilty about their own survival than him). Broken as he is, his „compatriots“ ended up ratting him out. They reported him to the occupying Commonwealth force, because they were terrified of any phantom that lingered from the Alter war (They were too traumatized, could not take any more).Dissapointed to the point of disgust, Laurie made himself scarce with the superior speed of his CTK-mutated body. He thought „what's the point of hope, if this is all that's left behind?“. This is also the time when he started seeing the giant shadow of Fright everywhere after a while (A CTK related phenomena). It kept him moving on his feet. He wasn't afraid of it as much as he was annoyed by it. „I don't have anyone as company, but I don't want you either“. He saw it as the spirit of the thing that kept him captive, and now it followed him like an unwanted witness.--The Alters lived a hard life in the aftermath of war which ended with their bitter defeat. It has been peaceful since then (If you can call that shit peace), but it's possible to see that charity from the Commonwealth isn't enough, and that the wounds of the war run very deep. The Alters no longer belong to „guilds“ or „masters“ and have to earn their own living, but their movements are completely restricted and the government imposes it as a form of control of where they go and what they do after the war. The privacy infringement is huge, and people often mess with Alters by disabling scanners that are supposed to interact with their tetra-links, literally locking them out and making them unable to get to work on time, and etc. There were plentiful „small“ injustices that, when bundled together, made life a living hell for the survivors.After the war, some Alters haven’t even gotten their programming broken (How Laurie was freed). They literally stayed in the “property” of their owners, who used their privileged status to sidestep laws or make them moot, or they would prolong the legal procedure for so long that it felt like it would never happen. Also, even though another war was unlikely, humans expected retribution.And all kinds of bogus rumours about Alters started floating around. The surviving and de-militarized Alters just wanted to live peacefully and forget, too tired to even foster hate anymore. But law enforcers always scrutinized them more than necessary, and traders who come from the Commonwealth and other sectors were fearful of doing business with them.This forced many Alters into crime, and then arrogantly, some would say „Ha! see, they're unreliable at their core, we should return them to their masters!“. But luckily that was rare, because at the end of the war, the old council of the Commonwealth broke apart and the most radical Councilmen were chased away. Still, this made little difference in day to day life, since new politicians wouldn't spend time dealing with something so sensitive and problematic, they just let the status quo fester like an infected wound.--One day, Laurie felt capricious. Despite being detested and avoided, a sudden change of mood wanted him to walk into a human-owned place and eat some decent food. It was a nice 'day' (Or whatever passes as daytime inside a metal box) and the annoying Fright was nowhere near, so he decided to relax. Gotta use the time you have alone, after all. During the Alter war, there was an operative he used to know who owned a small place next to a railway where the rebels once used to store supplies. Now it became something much more benign, a restaurant. He looked at the big smiling face on the billboard. He felt: „Well, I have a right to go there just as much as anyone else“. He had money (don't ask where he got this) so they let him in, but he felt their wary gazes all the time. He was wearing a coat, so you couldn't see how badly rotten his body was. He looked a bit annoyed from everyone's attention, but as he sat down, people just went back to their chatting/gossiping.Flipping through the menu and thinking how strange and interesting these new foods were (Laurie actually showed a positive emotion for a change, excitement), his ears caught all kinds of conversations. Complaining about the price of rent, being stuck living in a certain sector because of a job, being unable to connect to one's friends or having agitating neighbours who won't let you sleep were all normal things. But he also heard this: „I hear they've opened a new outpost for the explorers. What a marvelous thing! If our outriders tame a new part of the Underside, there will be more energy for everyone“ – „Don't get so excited. My friend who works for the Workshop says that they will delay with opening the outpost for regular teams. The CTK system is going haywire, and it suspiciously stopped reporting to us what it's seeing there. Or who knows, maybe it was compromised by some third party. There were also claw marks that look they couldn't have been made by any weapon, and definitely not a human, no matter how much their Alzar mutated“ – „Maybe it was them“ – „Who, Alters? Oh... there is one right there“ – „Ugh. Stop being such an ass. Alters are made after humans. If a human can't randomly sprout claws on their own, neither can an Alter. Our Alzarin is the same. Besides, don't you think they've had enough?“ – „Oh, I don't know anymore....“– „ Just eat your food. I'm starting to regret sharing this place with you“ (They open their newspaper with annoyance).Before the last person took a stance for the Alters, Laurie almost thought about „fake admitting“ that he was the cause behind those rumours, just to give those judgemental humans a well-deserved scare. But the human's kindness ruined his appetite for being mean. Still, he thought it would be great if everyone was so terrified that they ran from the restaurant so he wouldn't need to pay his bill This thought cheered him up, so there are a few musical notes around his head and he is humming). He crossed his arms and waited for the waiter like everyone else.
WIP: Black Ripples
Then suddenly, something else took everyone's attention. The restaurant goers started to glare at a ruckus taking place outside.Fleeing from G.A.R.M., a couple of young Alters broke into the restaurant. They immediately took one half of the restaurant hostage, and demanded quick silence and compliance. They were both overloaded with supplies that were clearly stolen from somewhere, but it seems they missed their train. One of the 'supplies' fell on the floor, an artificial blood vial. They declared themselves as „Beauty and the Beast“. Laurie almost blurted out laughing (He thought: „Pfffft. Those are some extremely stupid nicknames“). Like all the other captives, he also took shelter behind a cover, much to their grumbling. Some of them even wanted him to protect them (And he just thought „I already died for you fuckers. No thanks“). The others suspected that he was in league with the interlopers because of how he looked. He rolled his eyes. Typical humans. Then Laurie focused on the pair, trying to figure out what they're whispering about.He heard them say something so outrageous that it filled his bleached heart with hope. First they were talking about some guy named Lancelot leading them here away from G.A.R.M., and then the girl named Beauty said: „We don't fear the blood stained guardians because one day we'll behold the sky itself“. A voice in the coming from the headset she wore responded: „That's great and all Beauty, but dont think physical injuries absolve you from the debt you owe me“ – „Blah, blah! When we go to the surface, I'll raid a bank for you. Sound good, Lancelot?“ . The humans who also overheard them mocked them: „Then why are you hiding here, taking hostages?“ The rest of their conversation blurred out for Laurie as he pondered their words. Surely they aren't crazy and don't mean going outside, right? That's where the Signal is. The thing that kills everyone and the reason why they're all here. He thought to himself with a laugh: „Hah. A real sky! I wonder what that looks like nowadays“. A smile full of bitterness and weakness spread across his face: „Can... the pieces of the smashed up planetoid still be seen outside? I wonder how that would look like...“Laurie peeked his head above the counter and glanced at a clock display on the wall. It was stopped now, probably because of a bullet hole in the middle: „Ughhhh, how much will this take?“. He felt frustrated because he didn't want to spend such a long time among humans. Even more so because he didn't even get to properly enjoy his food. A grumble from his stomach reminded him that since Alters are made after humans, the hunger he feels is very real too.He was cursing the Alter couple for meddling with his day, but then decided to help them after all.„Hey. Twats. If I help you, are you going to leave sooner?“ By addressing the couple directly, Laurie earned himself countless venomous glances from the crowd. The girl, Beauty, seemed overjoyed with the prospect. „Another Alter! weehee!“ she beamed up with a wide smile, fluttering over to Laurie like a butterfly. „Tsshh. Yeahh yeah. This way. Come on“ Laurie lazily walked past them both, gesturing to follow. The onlookers seemed surprised, but Laurie knew the layout of this building. And unlike these youngsters- as he considered the pair, he was several generations old, as his model of a body suggests. Old enough to know things that almost everyone forgot. He smirked at the thought that being a 'ghost' was useful. “They have no idea what this town used to be. This place was an empire. Before... the people here had real grit“.„Ummm, hello?“ – Beauty had to snap her fingers to get his attention and he was a bit annoyed. Then, he even took pride in the pair's curious and impressed glances, trying to look more sagely whenever they asked him something and whenever they got lost as he slowly trailed behind them with a satisfied smirk.Laurie also briefly experienced some old memories while tracing his hand across the dust-covered walls, going through secret storages and hidden passages On the walls, you could see shadows of humans and Alters, fighting side by side as he dreamily stares into the wall, like a mix of present and past). Then, he led the pair to a massive emergency gate. They looked intimidated by it. It was so aged and decrepit, like it could crush all three of them at any moment. But this was Laurie's moment to shine.„Make way, kiddos!“. First, his chest puffed up with pride and he gave them a speech. He sounded like a haughty teacher, and only after he was done with his lecture he finally got to work. First, he told them to stand by because this required a special process. Skills of disarming the trapped gate, using codes only different groups knew. Laurie got on his knee and started picking away at differently colored wires with care. Beast pondered: „Huh! So the hatch is surrounded by something explosive?“ Before Laurie could react, the pair blasted it down, almost bringing the entire storage down with them. It led into the Underside. Watching all this Laurie just said „Or you can just... do that, yeah“.Beast went in first, and through the smoke he saw Beauty jump into his arms, and the two seemed to lean perfectly into each other. Laurie stood up with a hand on his hip, watching them. If he didn't know they were Alters like him, he would have mistaken them for ordinary people. Beauty said „Aren't you coming with us?“- Laurie seemed taken aback by the question. „Huh?“ Then he composed himself and said „Nah, I'll just go back the way I came. I'll raid some of their stashes as a prize for solving their little situation.“ – „Do you seriously not expect humans to come after you after what you've done?“ – „Ohhhh? Let them try. (He proudly raises his chin) I can take care of myself, and I'm incredibly fast“.Beauty tilted her head and asked: „Doesn't running everywhere by yourself get boring?“. This softened him a little. Laurie looked agonized, but even though his lips were making shapes, he said nothing in the end. Then suddenly, an axe was thrown into his hands. He looked puzzled, holding it with both hands like an awkward gift. Beauty continued: „We always need Alters who aren't afraid of doing something a little profane for their kind. Did you ever kill anyone, Laurie?“Then the panel focuses on Laurie, who looks at the axe contemplatively while gliding his thumb along its edge. In his mind, he said: „Huh....Did I?“--The names of his first new friends were Beauty and Beast. Beauty was rescued by the organization's leader when her partner left her for dead, and Beast was a discarded firefighter who fled after realizing that his non-updated components would soon lead to his death (he'd literally cook), and his masters were simply fine with it because they'd just graft his personality anew. Laurie also learned that Alters in the Black Ripples rarely use their real names, and that their codenames are awarded due to their contributions (Beast has to keep reminding him not to use his real names, but it just means that Laurie really sees them as people: „You seriously need to stop calling me Walter. We have rules, you know?“).The Ripples travelled across the server in a caravan. This caravan is a repurposed metro for travelling the server via special lines without disrupting server plate energy. Thanks to Paige's (Gold's) hacking, this vehicle moves stealthily on the rail and it's very cool because it's basically a ghost train that they use as headquarters. They delete all the coming-and-going info, so „it doesn't exist“ just like them.As he spent time with them, the Black Ripples became Laurie's dear family. It seemed that much happened while he was „dreaming“ and it was an interesting experience to be taught about the world as if he came from another planet. He was thankful for members who were patient enough to sit down with him and tell him the story of the things that happened (He was like Harry from Disco, asking the boat woman about the world). During his long dream, his body rotted and his memory became damaged so he forgot about some broad topics. Even though his consciousness was in the CTK, the chips with his memory were still physical. Also, since he was out for years, many new things happened in the span between the rebel war and the current day.He found his place among the menagerie of upstarts, each with a different scar from the past. Nessa the Red Hood carries a trigger inside her that no one knows how to take off (and if they tried it would kill her) and has a similar problem with trusting her feelings like Laurie, Ransomme („Lancelot“) who was hiding because he ran from a pair of friends that allegedly „saved him“ when he realized that they kept resetting him as soon as he learned something incriminating about them (He still doesnt remember why! hint: it had something to do with stealing financial assets) and the law enforcement is looking for him. Beauty was a member of a cabaret and had many „sisters“ who performed together but she split off after being saved from an abusive partner.Laurie became a part of their routine, and they of his. He loved playing cards with Red Hood, Lancelot and Beast. They would all gather the funds together and gamble in one of the train carts. He loved ratting out other members to Baba Yaga over petty things, or tagging along with the Beauty and the Beast on rampages. He noticed everyone's little quirks, and he delighted in witnessing them.
WIP: Black Ripples
As a habit, some Alters have taken to calling him „grandpa“ even though he is the quickest one there. Nessa in particular keeps calling him a „senior citizen“ and calling him out for not replacing his old components that were eaten away by the CTK. They were even trying to bet him into it- but whenever that was part of the bet, he never lost. Sometimes you get the feeling he almost liked looking like a rotting corpse (Actually, him being a corpse even scared one of the members at the start, and it made him grin. A scene that shows Laurie saying hi to Gold, and a smaller Alter shyly hiding behind her looks cute).(Gold usually worries for him and even noted how „Laurie really does not like getting repairs, and is usually a very long time between his maintenance checks, and he keeps lying to everyone that he's a healer and that he's fixing it himself even though I know he's just doing it to avoid inspection“). She even went through the trouble and ordered new organs for him and installed them herself. She told him to go outside and take a deep breath, and use his lungs to talk instead of the speaker in his throat. Try feeling like a person- „yuck“ he thought. But later he went on a roof somewhere private, and there he took a deep breath, and then cried. Since he didn't breathe or vocalize with his lungs for god knows how long, his sobs were particulalry heart breaking because he didn't even know how to do it.--The missions that he shared with Black Ripples were a whole world apart from the misery he was experiencing. As he drove around with them in their run-down train, it urged him to remember: „When was the last time that he earnestly smiled?“.But sometimes he watched them recklessly dash ahead and it sent chills down his spine. Laurie regrets not being able to hold them back and has a similar feeling to watching young soldiers charge off into their deaths. This is where his role in the group crystalized: he supports them, helps them extract, prevents fights, and preemptively takes out their enemies. He was often sent to oversee other groups and keep them from getting in too much trouble. He gained the name „Woodsman“ as someone who protects against bad wolves. He finally got to help someone again, thanks to his new powers. It was the only good thing out of that CTK ordeal. One day, Belle gave him a special gift, an adamantine fire axe. This gave Laurie newfound pride, who saw himself as a „hunter of big bad wolves“ and „dogs“ as he used to refer to G.A.R.M.Though he was still bothered by one thing: He wasn't sure if his feelings were real, or if it's just some hiccup of the programming that's left. It was a great relief to him that Black Ripples were an all-Alter group, since the programming was tied to fawning over humans. But Gold tried to reassure him, since she actually checked him. After doing his maintenance the first time he arrived, she said the instinct was gone when his first humans cracked the code- and even if something was left, some human scavenger ripped it out of him while he „dreamed“. Being free is what enabled him to escape the CTK's sweet embrace of death after all. Of course, Beast would like to add a joke that „they found his brain was missing“ when they first did maintenance on him- to which Laurie would growl out a reply: „Better than not having a brain to begin with“.At this point, Laurie feels elated by the group and cares for them. He again found people he wouldn't mind dying with (This way of framing things is a very bad habit of his, make sure to point this out somehow). Black Ripples were a dear family to him, and at this point he would do anything to protect them. He felt as though he started to fill a void that was left by his first group. He understood how Baba Yaga felt about them and what her goal was. They were a select group on a pilgrimage, with a special goal, „To see truth and equality at all costs“. It was something that he finally felt fire for after the rebellion has failed. It was a romantic, righteous claim over oneself. A claim over one's death just as it was over life. Laurie decided to have a short life and a merry one. It was all the optimism that he could find, with how little he was left. His state of mind was: „if you got this far, you might as well keep going“.With his new organs, he would eat copious amounts of food and spare himself no pleasure. While gorging himself on a rooftop somewhere, he talked to the image of his fallen friends; „I hope you like the way I'm using your gift. hmph. If you have any objections, speak up (lonely silence). "Ha. I didn't think so“. (Also note: Laurie is really fond of energy drinks. Make like 10 squashed cans around him).--Black Ripples often made deals with groups of Alters and humans, trading weapons, favors, knowledge. All in favor of gaining enough material and funds to keep trying to break the server walls and go outside. Baba Yaga often cooperated with crime organizations- and her group actually had a few of them under their thumb. the threat of violence was good at keeping those poor, desperate fools corraled for better or worse. Laurie just brandishing his axe was sometimes enough to stop a conflict before it could even happen. He thought it was quite ironic. The „instinct“ that would make him revile the thought of hurting humans was gone thanks to the rebels removing his restrictions. Their greatest „gift“ to him was now helping him harm them (Instead of processing trauma in a healthy way, he deals with it through irony and cynicism).Sometimes their incursions would take violent turns. And Laurie excelled here too (There was still a gap in his heart that he'd fill with boredom and cruelty under Baba Yaga's leadership). He was particularly passionate about killing G.A.R.M. members. He developed a technique of slicing off their heads at super speed, tallying some kind of hidden kill score in his mind. Then we have a scene where Nessa appears surprised that a former healer would enjoy getting so bloody and personal, especially one that was actually killed by the army- then Gold answered empathically, stirring her drink: „As a medic, you're helping people, but you also see what caused them those wounds. I would say that healers are actually the ones who see the worst of humanity from up close. Especially in the center of conflict. I'm glad that he's venting his anger instead of swallowing it down, but the way he does it sometimes scares me“.--The scene shifts to another place, a tight passage between buildings in daylight. We see the hurried footsteps of someone wearing a dark uniform (Wesley). He was on his way in this godforsaken place to pull his colleague out of a bind. He got stuck there because his tetra-link stopped working, and he was scared out of his mind of moving without it, because he needed it to record where he was for his boss named Jackal.„You don't have to be so scared of him. He's much more lenient than you think“- Wesley said while tinkering with his tetra-link. Then he noticed some data has been lost, the last two hours. His colleague looked at him while sweating, his eyes pleading that he didn't do anything wrong during this period and just waiting for Wes to dole out his sentence.Of course, Wes could tell the difference between a system bug and someone purposefully tampering with the machine... mostly because he was already guilty of doing that himself. „So you're telling me you just sat here for two hours, sending pings every few seconds instead of looking for a way to save yourself? Pfffft.“ With quick and skillful movements he fixed the machine with ease, demonstrating his level of knowledge. The other guy was impressed. Then Wesley handed him his own Tetra: „By the way, can you take this to the base? it's faulty, it will be of no use to me while I'm here.“ – „Ohh, um okay“- he carefully took it out of Wesley's hands. On closer inspection, the Tetra really seemed to be totally screwed in some way he couldn't understand at all. He didn't question his senior, since Wes was his mentor and was one of the Bureau's long-standing members (Not talking about Black Ripples here, Wesley belongs to the G.A.R.M. organization).Wes: „No worries. I won't stay long''. Wes was accustomed to lying. Every time he would come up with some other reason for stealing a few hours outside his normal mission. With practice he became good at it.„Oh, and I know this is awkward, but could you please refrain from telling Philippa? (He said this so casually as if he almost forgot it) I mean, she'd also ask why you were out here for so long, and it will be easier to explain if we're together“ – „Sure Wes, I'll see you back at the base“ – „Glad to hear it, see you later then“. His colleague, both thankful and humbled, quickly did a salute and rushed off into the maze of streets. As soon as he was gone, Wes exhaled: „Alright, and now to work“.
(Third person again) For all the time working for Jack & Phil, Wesley was an off-the-record medic who'd usually tinker with robotics and CTK-related stuff. He was helping them phase in and out of the Underside during their clandestine activities as they required (such as killing Heirs, which was highly illegal in the Server, and also because Jack & Phil did not have official clearance to do/investigate what they've been doing (This is how they operated until Jackal founded the Bureau. Honestly they couldn't even ask for help against Prima Arum, because they weren't supposed to be there either). He also used his skill to go exploring off-limit areas to pick up scrap and rare materials for making simple robots that still brought him joy.As an illegal medic (Jack makes sure his activities are unreported, and he isn't listed anywhere as working as a physician), Wes could take the blood of people who died in his care- many of which the Commonwealth did not know about. He had a large library of blood samples from criminals, civilians, missing persons (people often go missing in the Underside), even G.A.R.M. operatives and knew how to doctor Alzar enough to be able to use the same sample two or three times.Despite that Cait (his childhood friend) managed to recover in the end, Wes felt absolutely horrible for taking her off life support too early (which caused her to start mutating again) because he was the one in charge of taking care of her. Even though it was thanks to him that she recovered so much, he was devastated when he saw her rapidly deteriorate. And in the end, her problem was solved by someone completely from the outside and it seemed so easy, that it made Wesley's best efforts so far seem like careless experimentation (It wasnt, he was truly giving his best, and Jack and Phil too, but since they all had to work in secret this was all the equipment they had access too). Perhaps he simply felt crushed when he realized the futility of his efforts compared to a legal, well-funded reserchear.We see Wesley take out a vial of Bl-Spillage suppresant and jab it into his neck. Things were going poorly for him. His strides with blood experimentation couldn't go far because Jack told him to lay off it (He was prohibited from it since he'd get so obsessed with work that he kept making his own health worse. He has a lot of trauma considering his Prima Arum heritage that he didn't work out, he keeps thinking he can do impossible things and then collapses) and he felt bad because CTK turned out to be quite useless aside from being used to harass the population.He always wanted to help people, he was just bad with choosing the way he does it, so it always turned out shady because he liked going the route of least resistance. He also felt bad about Prima Arums running loose. Their last encounter did not give him any closure.The blood vials that peek out of his bag are the same as the ones when Beauty & Beast's loot fell out of their bags. These precious things were Wesley's way of helping Alters. Instead of spending time mentoring new recruits for Jackal (even though his version of new, reformed G.A.R.M. was much better than the last), Wes focused on helping the survivors of war. It was a personal project in which he could actually see that he was making a difference. And Wes really needed that, just as much as he needed space from old colleagues and friends. He would give the blood vials of deceased people to help Alters open up passages and live their lives without the constant eye of the Commonwealth following them. He wasn't selling them as much as he was giving them away for free.--When he saw an incoming call from Cait on his terminal (Sometimes she would send personal calls), sometimes he would mute the sound and ignore it because he was too conflicted to talk to Cait. But he was infinitely glad that she was enjoying a normal life, and he wanted her to find
new friends now that she can.Now she was working as a dispatcher for missions. Almost no one knows her past as a test subject, and she's mostly living like a normal girl (The past where she looked like a monster only exists in the memory of a few people). People call her by her nickname Cat, or Kitty and it turns out she has quite a bubbly personality. When she was dispatching missions for Wes, they would always end up chatting for longer. They mostly talk about ordinary things more than work. Catching up with each other, talking about shows, etc. Though after the Alter War, Cait notices that Wesley is notably more depressed when they talk in comms. And privately, he feels very guilty that he can't match her enthusiasm and even fears that he is making her feel guilty/ashamed for wanting to be happy when he is not. He just wants to let her bloom, and for himself, he just wants to lick his wounds.Cait and Wes chatting: ''You know Wes, I know you saved my life and there's no way to ever make it up to you but...... with such huge amount of info you gave them, not to say important info, you could have at least added a bit of extra like ''Oh yeah, and please give her enough money so she is settled for a lifetime! Also give her a free flat so she doesn't have to do a minute of work! Haha'' – „Hahaha“ (Wesley's soft laugh is transmitted over the static) „- Yeah I wasss uh, making it all on the spot. Honestly I remember very little of what was happening in that moment“ (A panel where he's scratching his head, but in the background we see his horrific memory. Oh he remembers extremely well. But he doesn't want to bring the mood down, nor does he want to revisit it even though that moment of sheer panic and horror burns brightly in his mind). Now that the roughest part of the sailing was over, he wanted to steer all waves away from Cait.He gave her his casette so she could listen to relaxing music while she works, just like he used to share his earbud while she was asleep in a coma (Last panel is on that casette).
WIP: Black Ripples
So far, Wesley slipped up only once with all this sneaking around, which made him arrogant about his ability to continue doing so. It was a lowkey funny situation where someone working in the Commonwealth informations noticed an irregularity- „That guy we're searching for, he passed through this door 7 times!“- then his colleague leaned in, saying with fright: „But sir.... he's been found dead two months ago!“. This gave Jackal a headache and he had to step in to forge some documents and make the noise go away.But Wes didn't stop to think that someone would want to hurt him for it. He was so enmeshed in his work that he didn't think twice that maybe some of the Alter families he sympathizes & works with were criminally liable, and were still rebelling against the government which makes him very much complicit.Today, he paid a visit to a large family of Alters (often a like-minded group would choose to live together and assign members with activities that help them survive and gather funds). Sometimes he would use his medical knowledge to help them, share leads about where they might find work, and of course- give them the blood vials. But today the family seemed on edge.When he tried to leave, they captured him instead. He found himself cuffed to a pipe in the basement. Then he overheard their tense discussion (through the pipe). He heard them say “If we ensure he only brings the stuff to us, we won’t have to deal with the others anymore! It could finally be over!” – “you fool, he could turn us in after what we did now, we better release him immediately and apologize!” – “If we don’t give him back, there will be trouble with the other humans! What if someone reports this? What if enforcement shows up?” – “Quit barking you two, I can’t think!”. Wesley sighed, pulled some box closer with his foot and sat down (He doesn’t want Alters to have problems with humans either and it was clear that the family was very split up about this). He didn’t want to call Philippa for help, because he knew the family had a chance of getting hurt (And he definitely didn’t want a G.A.R.M. commander to come knocking on the door of Alters). Also, if he asked Philippa for help, the Bureau that Jack worked so hard to build would be slandered if rumors started floating that he was potentially abetting criminals. Wes did not want Jack’s efforts to be in vain either, so he chose to bide his time and wait.--Then the scene switches to the Black Ripples point of view. We see a tacky, lavishly old-fashion decorated room. This was Baba Yaga’s favourite style of decoration. Laurie is playing with his axe in a bored way while sitting in the corner of a sofa. There are other Alters seated in the adjacent couches, and there is a short old woman, with the cadence of fairy godmother going through a massive stack of papers (They are old fashioned to avoid getting spied on by CTK and Commonwealth).They have an open briefing, Baba Yaga says: “There is a family that is trying to cut connections with us and wants to go independent. I don’t know what gives them such confidence, but if we lose them, we lose something to trade with other families that enable us shelter and cover for us during our operations. You are to reign in the troublemakers before it becomes a trend. Beauty and Beast- you two are good at intimidation. Make sure they remember their place, and requisition twice the goods that we would normally trade (she shakes her head) why are they so reckless? (Baba is talking about the same family that captured Wes). Laurie, dear. Would you wait after everyone has left?”Laurie immediately propped up in his seat and responded in some extremely ass-kissy way, even though it’s not necessary at all. The old woman chuckled and other members visibly showed cringe “Ewww, man.” and “Come on dude, leave your shoes outside” – while Laurie has this face :3 with little twinkle effects around him. The old Baba Yaga laughed heartily and said: „Ohh hoh, I know he's full of shit but I like hearing it. A person my age doesn't get compliments often“ (She blushed a bit waving her hand, looking almost like a cute old grandma rather than a chief of a hardened crime organization).Some time passes by, and we see Beauty and Beast show up at the house. They are dressed as law enforcement to avoid drawing too much attention. And somewhere in the distance, we see Laurie keeping a watchful eye. He leaps closer, sticking to the walls like a shadow.--In the basement, Wes hears commotion above. Sounds of arguing, stuff breaking. He props up a bit in curiosity and panic. This isn't a time to be sitting around, so he takes a lockpick from his hair and begins haphazardly trying to unlock his cuffs but he keeps failing (The scene switches to another room. Beauty and Beast were starting to lose their patience, but then we see Laurie holding Beauty by the wrist and telling her to calm down). She seems surprised and asks why he is here, and he tells her that he was sent here to make sure no blood was spilled. But then one of the frightened Alters says something that extremely pisses Beauty off (Something that brushed with her personal trauma). Even Laurie's eyes widen in surprise, and he doesn't (or fails to?) stop Beauty from lashing out in violent retribution, killing the Alter on the spot. „Aahh!! They're gonna kill us!“ the other family members shriek and the situation escalates. Some of them try to run. Beast knocks them out, and Laurie trips one with his tail. It became a very, very ugly situation quickly. Then Laurie clicked his tongue: „What a god damn shame. Beauty, we can't trade with corpses, you know.“- „I'm calm now. Can't you tell?“- she wipes blood off her face, glancing between the dead Alter and Laurie's fierce gaze.That same feeling of regret of „not being able to stop them“ resurfaced in Laurie. He didn't want an innocent Alter to die. He didn't want her to get hurt either and he didn't want her to hurt others. He didn't want his comrades to become like the humans they fight against. All of this was expressed in a heavy sigh as he collected himself and moved on.„Well, I'll go around the house and make sure there aren't any witnesses. If there are, we're taking them to the Caravan. I don't want to see any more Alters hurt today“. Then he turned towards the restless, tied up hostages on the floor and started waving his finger while saying „Tut tut tut. We had a good thing for a while. We just don't want you to get too 'law abiding' all of a sudden“. His smile could be interpreted as threatening. They don't even dare look at him.As he's walking down, he notices Beast trigger facility conversion. As an ex-firefighter and Alter who worked in maintenance, he knew how to revert living quadrants back to functional ones, which would result with a flush of electrical energy, and temperatures would rise extremely. Whatever was inside will turn into a bonfire.There is exhaustion and annoyance in Laurie's eyes: „You really couldn't control yourself, Walter?“ - „We're taking them all with us, aren't we? We might as well turn this fuck-up into a message“. Laurie sighed. „Fine. I'll check if there is anything valuable since I'm at it“. He scratched himself and yawned, walking down with one hand in his pocket (Cool scene as he's walking into the basement, his long tail trailing along the descending stairs).
--After the sounds of intense violence, everything went quiet. Wesley ducked behind the boxes as much as possible, pausing his frenzied lockpicking to peer his eyes into the darkness of the hallway.Then he heard footsteps slowly getting closer. Wes immediately gasped when he saw that it wasn't anyone he knew. It was an Alter, but badly rotten, almost like something out of a horror film: „He's missing half of his face!“. Then his eyes came down to his feet- where he saw blood dripping off his soles. Laurie noticed that, so he shrugged. He said: „I'm not the one who killed them, if that's what you're wondering. I'd never raise my hand against an Alter.“ (He said these words while pointedly looking at Wes, who was a human. Panel: he's looking at him with half-lowered eyelids, is it mockery or contempt?)As Laurie stood there, the circuits under his feet were starting to light up. The facility conversion was well under way, and its progression made Wesley's blood spillage hike (It is an easily agitated health condition, caused when the material Alzar becomes compromised by the Signal. The blood of the affected reacts when there is a disturbance in Alzarin, such as processes that cause the material to change and shift). Wesley started coughing and his eyes began to water. He switched to begging mode, pleading to Laurie that he releases him and he won't say a word of this to anyone. Laurie almost chuckled hearing that. He preferred to watch Wes choke casually „Why such a hurry? Besides, that Blood spillage problem seems bad. You should probably lay down and rest, no?“- he opened his arms in a fake magnanimous gesture.„No, no! Listen! I'm useful! (cough cough) I heal people, I can be your medic“ – „Hmm. Bleh (The word flies over Laurie while he's looking at his nails). Killing is a lot easier than healing. Why would we ever need you?“ - „Fine, okay, fine!“ – Wes's physical condition was getting worse. So now he proposed a deal to Laurie. He said that he will give him blood for passing through the CTK systems if he lets him go. Of course, Laurie doesn't trust that. He leaned closer to Wes: „Pfffft. Why would I negotiate with you?“ (Then he moves back, throwing his axe over his shoulder) „In your position, anyone would say that.“ – He turned away and started leaving. Wes shouted at his back: „I swear it! (cough, cough) listen, if you go here and here- (He gives him instructions) you will find my suitcase, that's where they hide it, among other valuables“ Laurie tilted his ears and rolled his eyes, but still decided to check it.„Oh, by the way...“Laurie put his axe on the floor and kicked it over to Wesley.Wes had to jump, the axe almost caught his feet. „In case I don't get back on time, you may use it to cut off your fist and escape“. Laurie was grinning and pointing to his wrist, enjoying the look of terror on the human's face. This was also proof he WILL come back because he loves his axe. He waved his hand and told Wes not to die before he returns and confirms that his promise wasn't a lie.As time went on, Wes was under a lot of stress. He kept looking at the axe with fear, unable to cut off his own hand (Laurie is inflicting the same, desperate fear of pain that he was once subject to because he doesn't think much of it). Instead he returned to trying to lockpick himself out. But the blood spillage and anxiety made it much harder because his hands kept shaking. Eventually it reached a boiling point and he fainted. As his consciousness slipped away and the lockpick fell out of his hand, Wes felt grudge against Laurie. The corpse-like Alter's mocking smile was the last thing in his thoughts.In the meantime, there is a scene from the perspective of boxes as Laurie moves them around. He suddenly smiles at the camera- he found what he was looking for. „Huh, well what do you know! A human that doesn't tell lies“. Then he returns to Wes and finds him passed out. (We see Laurie putting his finger on Wes's artery to check if he's alive). Then he sighed with barely audible relief. Despite that he no longer worked as a medic, he would simply not leave a living person behind if he promised to save them. Even if they are a repulsive human. The next scene features a few Alters sitting tied up in the kitchen, when Laurie emerges from the basement, carrying Wesley over his shoulder. ''Looks like I found a stray kitten in your basement!'' The family Alters looked sad when they saw blood streaks on Wes's face, they felt like it was their fault. In his other hand, Laurie carried a suitcase laden with precious treasure: blood vials. Beauty started hopping around him, asking excitedly, and lifting Wesley's head by the hair to look at his face: „What's that you got there?“ – Laurie pushed his finger into her forehead, looking smug: „Tut, tut. You messed up, but I didn't. This is the gift I'll present to Baba Yaga. And –you- little lady can be patient and find out then.“ – „Awww.“ frustrated, Beauty had to give up.
WIP: Black Ripples
Then we get a scene where Wesley is starting to wake up (Maybe for a brief moment, he thinks he's in the past, when he woke up from coma after that new recruit Caron blew herself up? It could be a moment of great horror/shock before he realizes it's not the same thing. Then, mentally he's still in the moment when he passed out from blood spillage, so he's in a very foul mood). Everything hurts, but he seems to be in a clean bed. The medications make it difficult to talk. He surveys the room around him. His belongings were all laid out on a table, it was obvious he was searched. His eyes fall on the glass of water, and then he noticed a figure leaned against a wall behind it.It was his nemesis.Barely speaking, he babbles these words: „Did... you hffff... do this?“ – Laurie shrugged and said „Who knows“, gauging how Wes will react (Yes he did, and he also waited there for him to wake up to verify that the meds are working properly). „Anyway, you seem to be well. Your kind dies last after all“. He watched Wes take a sip of water, and then left the room. Wes still felt sore about everything that happened, so the scene ends with his hand reaching for Laurie with many, many questions to ask.Then, next scene. Now we see Laurie defending Beauty & Beast like they were on trial in front of Baba Yaga. First, he starts off by glazing Baba Yaga (As usual, this is their dynamic) and then he states: „I know that things got out of control, yes, but that is because the rogue Alters couldn't mind their manners and they... (Laurie actually paused, thinking how to avoid mentioning Beauty's trauma while trying to stay respectful) challenged us in a way that required a serious demonstration. We failed to agree on the severity of said demonstration, and the result was a tragic one. Well, what happened, happened. It's not the first time for anyone in this room, is it? Let any who is not guilty to cast the first stone“. He paced around, with his arms spread in that same magnanimous gesture: „But allow me to turn your attention to something else instead-„ Then he flipped around and gestured to Wes who was trapped in a small cage, normally used to transport cattle around the server.Wesley looked extremely tired and numb, and even though his strength hasn't recovered at all, he had manacles on his wrists. And when he looked around, all the Alters who were sitting around him had some kind of weapon. This was so superfluous flaunting of power really annoyed him. What was he gonna do, chew through his bars?Laurie: „We have found the source of your troubles! Someone was giving them a hand behind our backs. And for free? Hah. Something must be wrong in that head of his (He knocked on the cage). The family did not know that such 'good will' comes at a price and they got in bigger trouble than they could bargain for. Anyhow, this ...person... behind me appears to be some kind of smuggler. So not only will the Ripples be able to peacefully resume doing business with other families, but now we also have a new source of blood for ourselves. The surviving Alters we brought will also be used to help, and I know just the thing. Consider this 'penance' for their misdeeds" (Then Laurie proceeded to explain his plan for establishing their own Alzar blood forgery. He seemed very proud not only to fish his friends out of trouble, but also do a great job for the old matron).Everything seemed to be going really well, but just as Laurie was enjoying his fine moment, Wes interjected from the cage to his captor's surprise. What reached Laurie's ears first were not sweet words of praise from his boss, but Wesley insulting him.„Hffff.... Cages, weapons. All that metal, just for me hfffff. Pathetic. I'm barely.... barely standing“ – Laurie froze. It's like he forgot that thing in the cage behind him could speak. There was a tick in his eye as he turned back to see his prisoner leaning against the bars towards him: „You put me in a cage, and put guards around me... Hfff... Do you just have cages for putting people into waiting on standby? Sure seems like it...“ - Now the eyes of Beauty and Beast, as well as Baba Yaga were on Laurie to see how he reacts (Could almost hear them whisper amongst themselves: ''Hey, you brought this one here...''). Then there is a panel that just shows Laurie's dejected face, as Wesley continues sharing his unsolicited opinions (One speech bubble under another, with stuff like "Hff.... you owe... me some answers hfff) and Laurie's face just looks more and more like a frown.„You insolent little!... You're in a precarious position, you runt“ – Laurie kicked his cage. „I'm sure it hurts to talk, and you use it to insult me. We'll see how proudly you wag that tongue when you lose it!“ – Wes immediately responded: „You...(It hurts, he wanes a bit).... you woudln't have saved me if I wasn't useful!“ – „That's right, so you better start showing it soon!“ – „Hfffff... Come closer Frankenstein, and I'll bite your plastic nose off“ – „It's not plastic! And how about we show your guts to everyone in the room, just to prove what a wretched little thing you are!“And so, these two just started arguing and ignoring everyone around them. Finally, Laurie reached his hand into Wesley's cage and grabbed him by the throat, but neither of them were going to yield any time soon.The old woman was more amused by this than Laurie trying to sweet talk himself and the couple out of trouble. So she clapped her hands and said: „Alright, enough. I see how it is. Laurie, from now on, you will keep an eye on our new associate. It seems you and your little friend are well on the way of getting along“. Both Wes and Laurie looked speechless, it's the only time they stopped barking at each other.The old woman adds: „You brought a human here without asking, and even suggested we work with him, now who did you think should take responsibility?“ (Yaga looked extremely amused, though there was a very dangerous remark in that smile).--Of course, that wasn't all for Laurie's punishment for failing to keep Beauty & Beast in line. Since he tried to hide Beauty and Beast's fuck up from her, grandma passed their chores on him as punishment. Later when he meets Wes that day, he's sore and angry because he got grounded and because he ended up in a fight while working off his due.We shift to a scene where Laurie kicks a can: „Grrr now I have this human attached to my hip“ – „No, you don't, just let me be and go do whatever that pleases you“ – Laurie waved his finger and walked up to him. „And what, let you escape? Ha, I don't play those games. But even if I did though, where would you possibly go?“ – „Home?!?? I'd go back to my pleasantly boring life, taking care of trainees and patients in my care“ – „Oh? Ahhhh, right. You're a sawbones or something such. Hmmmm...“ Laurie became intrigued, so he quickly peppered Wes with some questions to test his mettle as a healer. To his surprise, the human answered to a satisfactory degree when he expected he'd fall short (This surprise was neutral and curious, not yet empathetic nor vulnerable. Perhaps this is the first positive thing he respects about Wes). Anyway, the conversation continued: „You're pretty lucky you know. You should be honored. You're in a place full of those who consider humans something between pest and entertainment, and you're doing just fine. It's ridiculous“ – "I empathize with you, truly. Maybe you should just let me go" – „Ha... You know what I think, runt? I just think you're trying to look tough.“ – „Tell yourself what you want. I'm getting out of here the first chance I get“. – „I don't think you understand your situation, runt. In the Caravan, guests leave when –we- want them to. And saying you're a guest is being very generous„ (He pokes Wesley's head, which Wes stops by taking a hold of his wrist) – „What is it you have to do here anyway?“.„Mmh. A bit of this and a bit of that. Reconaissance (He grins, not deigning to elaborate further). It's just unfortunate that everything will have to take a lot slower. I enjoy my free time, you know.“ – „Well, how about I make you another deal?“ – Wes quickly started talking before Laurie could say anything: „No, hush! I'll keep it a secret, you can run off and do your thing. This punishment you got was unfair anyway. You and your coworkers returned safe, you regained your business partners, you even got a new source of income, and the Commonwealth is none the wiser. Your um, boss lady should have given you a reward. If it were me, why I would- “.„Ugh, enough, enough! Shut up. You don't know what she thinks, and stop pretending like you do.“ (He rips his hand out of Wesley's grip, disgusted that a human is trying to articulate his comrades). Wes raises his hands in surrender: „You don't have to pay attention to everything I do. You could have finished everything you wanted to by now instead of us standing here talking. There is nothing interesting for me here anyway. I don't recognize this place, and it's so high up. I can just die here. I'm going to stick around, patiently, in the same spot until you return, okay?“.Instead of being angry, Laurie looks to the side. He lets out a pensive sigh, thinking what a handful this person is. Then he took another glance at Wes (The look he gives is that of concession, not scorn).„Fine. Suit yourself. I don't like bargaining with prisoners. Even more than that, I dislike bargaining with your lot. Just don't die.“ Laurie waved him off and swiftly disappeared.Some time passes by. Then, a lot more. Wesley starts getting seriously bored. He realized that Laurie is probably stalling because he doesn't want to be there with him. Anyway, he kind of started appreciating this place. It had a great view of this side of the server. Of course, you'd only be able to get this high up if you were an Alter or someone extremely nimble. He wondered if Laurie came to this place before (...And if he enjoyed the view. This is the first time he's thinking about Laurie in a neutral/curious way). Then he had another chilling thought. What if Laurie left him up there to starve? What if he conveniently pretended to forget? Or he could just go back to Baba Yaga and tell her that he fell of the platform this high up. It would save him the nuisance of dealing with him. Nah no... no. He's valuable to them. To Laurie. Right?Wesley couldn't help but get nervous. Although, he didn't know that Laurie was already there, peacefully eating something while observing from nearby (''Heh. He's gonna start screaming any moment now...'' he mumbled while stuffing his mouth), I guess he was waiting for him to start freaking out. He also wanted to see if Wes would keep his „promise“ and wait.Anyway Wes started looking for ways to escape. This resulted with him carelessly leaning over some rail, and the rail snapping under his weight. The scene when he falls: you see the rail from the platform, and Wes isn't in the shot, you just see a speech bubble saying „Ahhhh!“ – at the same time, in the foreground you see an empty bag of snacks fall down just as some shadow descends the same path that Wes fell). Then we have Laurie holding him by the hand with a grin, saying: „ku ku ku... oh, maiden in distress, do you need any help?“ And Wes looks at him confused like (He didn't understand how was he here so fast): „????? ... help!!“ And Laurie continued to say „I knew you'd try to get away“. Then the dastard let Wes slip a little: „Always the same thing with you humans. I don't even know why I bother“. His smile became more devious. He was quite enjoying having this control over a human. Wes started to look even more distressed, and then Laurie finally pulled him up.After that, Wesley proceeded to follow him around obediently like a baby duck. It seems he has lost his taste for adventure and idle chatter (Which Laurie enjoyed).--While walking together, Laurie would ocassionaly throw him a glance to make sure Wes isn't getting lost or trying to escape. He definitely tried though. But whenever he'd start to stall around street corners or trying to get lost in a crowd, Laurie would say „Didn't think so“ and pull him over around his waist with his tail. Wes was very light, so this was easy to do. "You're malnourished. You should eat more" - the corpse like Alter mumbled to himself. "What? Did you say something?" Wes thought he heard something. But Laurie just shut the conversation down by saying "Nope" and continuing to press forward without turning back.
He slapped his tail at Wes. "Just hold on to me. If I stop feeling you for a moment, I'm going to start searching for you. And if I find you, I'm going to count every bone in your body by breaking it. Are we understood?". Wes nodded like a soldier and took hold of the Alter's bony, slick tail that still had tufts of white fur sticking out here and there. They walked in silence for a while longer, but Wes started to relax and become more chatty. As soon as he deemed he was no longer in mortal peril, he started sharing every passing thought (Wesley yapper moment. You could see Laurie's expression subtly shift as he realized he was about to say goodbye to comfortable silence. We see a huge panel stuffed with speech bubbles, and in the foreground we see an annoyed Laurie. He thinks: "God he's annoying, doesn't he have any friends?"). As the one sided conversation went on, Wes started sharing his thoughts on robotics and the projects he's worked on so far. And Laurie's tail became more interesting too- he started talking about Alter tails and other appendages, wings, horns and so on, how they have synergies and how they are a marvel of technology. He's seen something like that before, an eel-inspired ability to discharge and generate its own electricity, and rely on electrolocation, becoming a tool of incredible utility. Laurie neither understood nor cared too much for that techno babble, but he could very much share his own experiences (this became an opportunity to brag). He told Wes how he utilized it in combat so far, how many people he knocked over and how much damage he caused. He told him that when he couldn’t hack some terminal, he just jabbed his tail into it and fried everything. This was different than what Wes was hoping for, so he piped down a bit. He was also a bit annoyed from getting yanked all the time, so he played a trick on Wes: when the redhead asked his next question, Laurie zapped him. This is the first time he looked at Wes since they started walking like this, and gave him a smug little grin as if daring him to ask the next question.
WIP: Black Ripples
The next mission begins with Laurie deciding to drop by Wesley's lab to tell him what’s on the agenda that day (and promptly get in the way of his work). But when he gets there, no one is around (There should be a scene of him walking his fingers across a table while saying something (like wondering “where oh where did you go”). He starts investigating (And in doing so touches stuff he shouldn’t, and even swipes some vials on the floor carelessly with his tail by accident. He doesn’t bother to clean the floor, just stares at the puddle like a bored cat). After all, housekeeping isn't his job.Then the doors slide open and Wes is seen walking in with those Alters that were supposed to guard him. It seems that they made up (Reminder, it’s those same Alters that cuffed him to a pipe, the Ripples charged them with keeping an eye on their human prisoner). It makes Laurie’s eye tick a little. Seeing them make up so quickly just didn’t sit right with him. He was at least hoping it would be awkward for them for a while. He looked impatient: “Took you long enough, runt. I see you’re already finding ways to talk your way out of work”. But then his mood brightened up a little when he saw Wesley’s face upon realizing the mess in his lab and how he’d have to stay up late to clean it. Of course, he would tell Wesley that it’s ‘his’ fault for being absent from his workplace.Today’s mission was to steal valuable information from memory channels. They were finally going to give those blood vials (That Wes gave them) a trial run. „Lets see if you're as good as your word, Wes“ – „What's the plan here?“ – „The plan is that I need access to the Common operations. These blood vials allegedly belong to the secretaries who work there, so I should be able to get through. However, since I don't know if they're bogus or not, you will be the one who takes them to the CTK terminal. If you lied, you'll be the one who gets burnt. If, there is even room on your skin for that anymore hah“ (He's referring to the bruises that are left on people's skin after a blood spillage attack. Wes was full of them. Also, while saying that, Laurie is flipping the vials between his skeletal fingers, make a cool panel for that).„But I've never accessed those terminals before“ – „Really? well, I hope you figure it out then“. Wes climbs the spiral staircase and uses his knowledge to force open a terminal. He was thanking his stars that no alarms went off. While pressing the needle to one of the vials and entering access codes, he was comparing Laurie to a turd in his mind (He imagines some very unflattering chibi versions of Laurie with flies flying around him while he was tinkering). Then suddenly, an alarm goes off. A metal cuff wraps around Wesley's hand and he freezes in fear as the screen reads „Error encountered, please wait for a Caretaker specialist“ – „F..fuck, did I enter something wrongly?“. He hears Laurie climbing up the stairs and saying: „Enough sightseeing, runt. Get out of there“ – „I told you I didn't know! The blood is fine, you just underestimated the system! You didn't let –ME- prepare!“ Laurie rolls his eyes and approaches. He buries the needle into his arm and says: „Once I'm in, I can play to my heart's content. Watch“. Suddenly, the alarm stops and Wesley's hand is released. He watches as Laurie casually taps into the Common Operations database and begins stealing records about legal disputes. „Why?“ he asks. „Baba Yaga needs dirt on someone. I have no idea where it is, so I'm just going to download everything. Do you like it? I can wield the system in ways never imagined by its creators“. (This is "authority", an ability some Alters gain when they get tainted by the mutated CTK)Wesley can't help but notice that Laurie is grabbing more than he should, and after he was done, he ordered the CTK to delete the entire database. Basically, he sabotaged legal proceedings, so many lawsuits would literally have to be reset or dropped entirely, meaning lots of humans would never see justice). It was his way of leaving a signature and he seemed so proud about his petty vandalism.Then he looked at Wes with a satisfied smile and said: „You didn't intervene. Good job! you're really learning how to get along-„ but when he reached for another needle, Wesley grabbed his hand, saying: „Stop it. There could have been useful information in there“. Laurie is letting him hold his wrist, and Wes realized that Laurie wasn't pulling away this time. Instead of breaking off, Laurie grins and feigns an „oh?“ and backs off on his own, leisurely continuing to say: „Things break all the time. Who knows how it happens?“. But, his eyes remained trained on Wes, as if trying to make him look away (he succeeded, Wes loses the staring contest).„Go and do your job“ – Wes ducked his head and coldly brushed him off. Laurie shrugged like it's nothing, and responded „Next on the list, collecting your precious blood samples. Don't fall behind, I need to make sure you're getting all of this“. He looked something up on his phone and then threw it into Wesley's hands.Then they go to a corpse heap- not unlike the one Laurie was 'reborn' in. It's an awkward moment, since laurie was reborn on a pile, and Wes is now harvesting the bodies just like Laurie was once harvested by scavengers. This is not Wesley's preferred way of harvest, and he feels conflicted about giving that blood to other Alters (Maybe Wes tries offering a quick parting prayer for the dead, out of Laurie's earshot). Laurie pretends he doesn't care + is cynical about it, but he takes note of Wesley's compassion, or at the very least, the fact that he feels sorry that things like this happen regularly (This was normalized, so Laurie did not expect an apology). Maybe the apology surprises him and makes his ears jerk up, and then he bursts into laughter. Maybe he could say: "Bwahahah! Thanks for a good laugh!"Moving on from there, Laurie can feel Wesley's eyes on him (Put an emphasis on this in a scene, also the tone shifts from something somber to being about the two of them, something „fresh and new“ in comparison). Firstly, Laurie pretends not to care but find some way to show that he's clearly aware of being watched. „What?“ he asks, raising an eyebrow and looking a bit annoyed (Wes is trying to remain professional but show that he's clearly distracted) „I've seen many Alters so far, both living and dead. I have never seen an Alter with a condition like yours, though“ (Laurie: ''What? My attitude or my good looks??'') (A panel on Laurie's midriff, + you see a bit of Laurie's chin and lips, make it suggestive, this is Wesley's POV, indicating his early feelings) Wesley scratched his head awkwardly. „Well, I'm a medic, you already know that. If you need, I can-„ then Laurie hmphs and closes his coat like a lady whose honor was just insulted- „I bet you would, runt“.Wesley continued scratching his hair, feeling a bit dumbfounded. Then Laurie says: „Lets hurry the fuck up. That giant creep is beginning to stalk us“ (He is talking about the mutated CTK that only those who are affected can see. Wesley is just looking around with confusion). „Stop being such a lost duckling all the time“- it snaps Wesley's attention back to where they are, and he follows without complaints.--Later, Laurie finds Wes slacking with his new Alter friends again. This time, Gold was there too, so Laurie couldn't be as snippy as he wanted. What's worse, it even seemed that she invited Wes to help her with maintenance on some of their comrades. Laurie pulled him to the side to say that "Did you forget what you were supposed to be doing? Your actions reflect on me too, you know. If you slack, it looks like I'm not doing anything either" - "Aw come on Laurie, don't get your tail in a twist" - Gold tried to relax him, although he was still staring down at Wes. Wes felt bad, but said okay. That he'd find him once he finishes up with Gold.Laurie proceeded to sulk on a couch. He mumbled to himself: “Huff. I should be more strict. It’s like he doesn’t even know what he’s here for anymore. When I get bored, I'll leave”. Anyway, while he’s sulking, Wes comes back a bit sooner, and it’s like flipping a switch, Laurie immediately seems to be in a better mood. He immediately starts chatting up Wes with other tasks that he came up with (Have a panel from Gold's POV when she sees the two of them walking close together, also this clearly needs to be different from Wes following him around like a pup).When Wes and Gold are working together later, Laurie offers to assist as a medic himself. But all he does is nitpick and say stuff like: „That's good. Bad. Not like that“. Wesley's hands shook a bit from stage fright. Laurie enjoyed this form of hangout. „Hurr, hurr. You missed a spot“- he'd point with his mechanical claw to something he missed, bent over him like a grandma, his tail happily swaying back and forth. And maybe Wes wouldn't let himself be corrected- he worked on Cait after all and had his own reliable knowledge. Then Laurie would start muttering something to himeslf... and Wes would have to make him repeat it out loud (so he hears it too). Laurie grumbles but he actually does it, notably to Gold's surprise.Ever since then, Laurie would actually help when Wes asks him for help (But only because it was in the scope for Black Ripples in general), then he wouldn’t say, respond, or do anything else until Wes remembers to say ‘thank you’.
WIP: Black Ripples
Sometime soon, a sinkhole to the Underside opened in one of the sectors they were in and a lot of chaos ensued. People were hurt, so Wes stopped by to lend a hand to the emergency team that was already there. Laurie was watching him dart back and forth with a harsh glare. It reminded him of himself, so he was annoyed. It all felt so damn surplus. „Do they really need that much attention?“ – „Yes, they're terrified out of their minds. I know how they feel so I'm trying to help“ – „Oh? So you wouldn't care to help if you couldn't relate to them?“ Laurie threw him a casual and acidic smile. „No, It's not like that.“- Wes disregarded him and continued to help. For a moment, Laurie eyed the humans who seem just fine to him, by his standards.Then as Wes turns around, he hears „Oh fie, I am so scared, how can I go on? Everything is oh-so-terrifying!“ behind him. Laurie was half-making fun of the people who were there, and half-doing this to see how Wesley reacts. When Wes turned around, Laurie had a sly smile on his face (he did get his reaction, after all). He sighed deeply. People lost their homes, and some of them were buried under rubble while this creature makes light of their suffering. For a brief moment, Wes actually fantasized about slapping Laurie from one ear to another (Draw a panel with this fake scenario), but then he took a deep breath and rummaged through some boxes and brought Laurie a blanket and a cup with tea. He tied him into it like it was a straight jacket, hoping it would shut him up. „There, is that better?“ – Wes smiled stifly, engaging him in his joke.Meanwhile, there was a gentle surprise on Laurie's face. For a brief moment, an intrusive thought flew over him- how nice would it be if that gesture was real. Wes said: „If you need anything, shout“.Then, just as he turned around again, in less than five seconds he heard: „Wesley?“ – „...Yes?“ (he sighed)– „.... My tea cup isn't full“. He turned around to see the corpse-like Alter's toothy grin (Definitely make it so that Laurie enjoys messing with Wes, especially when he dangles the alloy cup towards him, maybe one panel just with his hand doing that). Looking at the blanket undone, Wes doesn't know what else he was expecting. So, he filled up his cup and spent another moment together. Then he left to do his work and Laurie was left to be comfy and drink his tea I guess. Later, Wes was exhausted, and he sat on a bench where he fell asleep. Laurie found him there. Then, he took that blanket he had and returned the favor. He couldnt exactly wrap the same way without waking him up, so he just grumbled: „Eh, ugh. Like this?“. He did try though... for a moment. Sort of. And then left it half-finished. When Wes woke up, he still felt sleepy and the blanket actually made him feel comfortable despite how weirdly it was put on him „How bizzare, who on earth puts a blanket on people like this?“). He was comfortable enough to nestle a while longer, having no realization that the smell that brought him comfort belonged to no one else but that raving creature he recently met.--The next day, Laurie was bored and had nothing to do (Here comes the scene with him messing with Beast's handheld game) so he threw the game and took out his flip-phone (It was pink and very retro) and he dialed Wes's number. At this moment, Wes was busy cleaning up Beast's (Walter's) compartment and dusting each of his many, many figurines (Since his ''proper'' workplace wasn't ready yet, any Alter could order him what to do, which they took full advantage of. While dusting off figurines, he was like: ''Oh. I know this one. This one is from that show. Oh wow what a detailed red dragon!''). Laurie gave him a new order: he wanted a whole mountain of things, from ordering takeout food to having his coats ordered by size. It was like seeing a choosy customer nag their waiter. He'd also make him do pointless things like carry stuff over even if its just a few meters away. At first, he enjoyed running Wes around like a slave and forcing a human to play the opposite role they had been doing all this time to Alters. But watching Wes rush around in a busy manner also reminded him of –his- humans. The ones that he used to joke and fool around with, before his Dream made him tarnish their memory.He was not sure how to feel about this (Hesitation? He can't place himself in regards to Wes). The last time he interacted with humans, it was just the same few people that he kept killing hundreds of times over (It was impossible to ignore the memory of such a realistic simulation). He forgot what normal should look like, he was just curious and Wesley was feeding that curiosity... (Draw a panel with a group of same humans repeated a few times and it looks a bit faded out, and in front of them, is one Wesley with normal colors and he's waving at the viewer).--Finally, they start working together on the plan that Laurie presented to Baba Yaga. They head to a location where Wes will supposedly start working on the counterfeit blood vials. It was a forgotten Commonwealth lab, which was already host to a counterfeit blood workshop (but not under leadership of the Black Ripples). Laurie would use this opportunity to threaten the current artisan and the purpose of doing so was to strengthen the loyalty to Black Ripples through coercion. When they met the artisan, Laurie subtly insinuated that he might be soon replaced by Wesley (“Business seems to be going well!… Just what I like to see. though I do wonder (glances at Wes) how replacable this skill might get. Let’s talk, hmm?” He sat down next to the artisan). The artisan wouldn’t budge at first, but Wes helped boost Laurie’s arguments hoping to avoid violence altogether (Here we see Wes getting weirdly into it, like wow he's really getting into the role huh?). Don’t forget to point out here how Laurie was pleased with Wesley's performance. He looked at Wes with satisfaction and pride (But soon, this brief moment of enjoyment will get a harsh reality check).Their threats prompted the artisan to beg to be kept in service. Laurie said: „Good! I'm glad we could come to a mutually beneficial agreement“ and then knocked him out without warning. Then he proceeded to turn the workshop upside down in search of a business ledger (this was another way to keep the artisan in thrall, insurance basically). Then he gloated, but Wesley reprimanded him and did not want to participate in his celebration.„You didn't have to go so far“ – „Oh I sure did. Don't you know that surprises keep people honest?“ he threw his arms with a nasty grin, hoping to force Wesley to pick a side. But Wes does not feed him what he wants.
This caused a dour expression to appear on Laurie’s face (Maybe he was a bit let down that Wes didn’t turn out to be as cruel as he wanted). “You’re already a part of this. What, you think you’re making a point by just standing? You work in the black market and expect not to work with criminals? Bahaha!” – “I’d rather not be used like this” – “Haha! Well, isn’t that a harsh way to say it. I made sure you where you could be most useful” – “You dragged me all the way here to threaten someone who is already terrified of you” – “Nope. I dragged you here so he could be terrified of you instead.” – Wesley threw a glance to the knocked out artisan on the floor, and his face scrunched. “I don’t want to be used to hurt others” – (Laurie lost interest in the conversation, he was already on the floor rummaging through things, back turned to Wes) “Well, that’s too bad, because your options are pretty limited right now. Relax, he still gets to keep his old job. He just changed masters. We’d never seriously get rid of him, he has all the knowledge and worked on all the details to keep this place running.” – “Besides (he added) I would never kill an Alter”.On his way out, Laurie pushed the ledger and the other stuff he took into Wesley's hands. He did it so carelessly that some of it fell on the floor. He looked a bit like a kid who got sick of playing with his toys. He said to Wes: „If you want more of this in your life, this is a rare chance for you to experience it. I suggest you enjoy it while you can“.This is how Wesley's new job will work: He will work together with the Alters that Laurie took along. Even though they're already acquainted, surrounded by all of them like this, Wes is going to feel like he's surrounded by prison wardens (This is the intended effect). Since Wes really does not want to be seen as suspicious, we can have tension situations that look a lot like early courtship. Wesley watches his messages intently at night, waiting for Laurie to call, or whenever he's outside, he scans the horizon with his eyes to see where he will appear. He looks around for him and asks about him. When he sees him, it is both exciting and stressful.
WIP: Black Ripples
Laurie soon acquired a new habit: he would perk up happily whenever Wes was too tired to deal with him 'just being impossible'. Since Wesley was still a human, and Laurie a support Alter, he could siphon those emotions, and became quite fond of 'frustration'.He was slowly realizing he doesn't just want Wes to simply obey anymore (it gets boring, when Wes obeys too easily Laurie almost gets uncomfortable) but he likes it more when Wes resists. He actually wants that from Wes. So whenever he tries to push Wes on something, like asking him to announce him to underlings, Wes always puts him back in his place by saying something embarassing instead. Laurie got used to this, and almost started to expect it (At the same time, Wes would sometimes walk around on his own and suddenly burst out laughing to himself over some moment Laurie had or a joke he told „PFFFT HAHA HIS FACE WHEN IT FAILED“, it seems like mocking but he's actually coming around to the fact that he's starting to like him).Then, Wes needs to ask him something, so he calls his name... but Laurie pretends not to hear it. So Wes is like: „Laurie? .... Laurie. Laurie! Laaauuuriieee! L. A.U.R.I.E.“ And that goes on until Laurie has heard his name enough times. He turns around with content and looks at with Wes, saying: „Okay runt, what's up?“ – „Why did you just ignore me?“ – „I wanted to hear my own name“ – Wesley inhales, keeping his annoyance down: „Then just. say. that“ – „Nah. This is more fun. Keep going, I'm not impressed yet“ (He patted the ginger).(FIRST RESULT OF THEIR INTERACTIONS: When Laurie and his other Black Ripple friends corner some humans and get what they want from them, instead of beating them up, Laurie suddenly seems bored, scratches his chin, and says to let them go („Start running, and if I see you falter I'll kick your ass to the finish line“). While being with Wes, he is working out his feelings towards humans. It makes him less hostile to other humans. This is very important.)Nessa, passing by Laurie in the hall: „Where is that friend of yours that's always around“ – „Shut up, none of your business.“ - „Ah, nearby then“- Laurie frowns.Then one day, Laurie calls Wes on the phone again. Wes picks up, and you hear his tired voice on the other side: „(Sigh) I'm not gonna bring you shi-„ – „So whatcha doing?“ (Here comes the part where Laurie is kicking his feet while laying on the couch. Make a full page panel, at the top of the page, Laurie is comfily sitting on the couch and talking into his phone, which he holds like an influencer, and under him all the way to the bottom of the page are speech bubbles, one lined under the other showing how they talk casually and nicely. This is their first normal conversation!).Then one day, Laurie comes into Wesley's lab: „Hey runt. Runt? ... Where'd ya go?“ – He sees Wesley sleep on the couch. Laurie is hesitant to wake him up because he wants to let him rest (he pouts a bit though). But he also really wants him to notice him. So, first he crouches next to Wesley's face, and you see him go „phoo phoo“, almost at kissing distance (He's gently blowing air into Wesley's face. Wesley's face scrunches and he whispers deep in sleep: ''ugh. stinky monster--..'' and Laurie looks shocked with indignation...). Then you see him build a tower of cards on top of Wes. Then you see him poke Wesley's shoulder with his tail, saying: „Runt? the 'monster' wants to talk to you“. Then he has his ear next to Wesley's mouth, trying to listen if „Wes is pretending to sleep“. Then next scene is him sitting on Wesley's back. And he's sitting in a very polite kind of way, which makes him look like a giant cat. Finally, when Wes wakes up, he wakes up to Laurie's face 10 cm's away from his own, peering straight at him. „Ahh! Welcome, runt!“ – „AAHHHH“ Wesley gets flustered and jumps behind the couch, and Laurie remains on the same spot, looking at him like he's lost his mind: „Hey, what's your damn problem?“Anyway, Wesley's job slowly falls out of the center stage as he and the captured Alters slowly get accustomed to their routine. The Blood synthesizing part becomes business as usual, and the Black Ripples shift their attention to new problems. The group gets interested in working with Prima Arum (Here put a small reminder how the Prima Arums have a need to go independent after their losses in the Underside before). Wes doesn't know about this yet. He is almost kinda peaceful. Jackal and Philippa don't seem to be looking for him, and he's taking this rather well. You can see him in his lab, tightening up his bow and pining a differently colored pen to his breastpocket: „Hmm hmm which pen suits me today?“ – he wears them based on his mood: „Ah! Orange it is!“.Laurie has the same effect on Wes that his group had on him (In the sense of feeling free and happy, We basically see the positivity carry on from him to Wes).--Next scene: Wes is working on manufacturing some artificial blood. Laurie drops by and it doesn't look like he's there for work, just in a mood for chatting. Then he notices Wes is wearing a head band with his long bangs pushed all the way back. He looked hilariously bald. As he tried to stifle a laugh, Wes told him with utmost seriousness: „You're laughing at me being responsible, just so you know“.Anyhow, Wes also lets him know that he's not supposed to be there now, to which Laurie just bows in an exaggerated way and says „My humble apologies“... and then stays anyway because he's just ungovernable like that. For the first time, he carefully broaches the topic of Alter war. This is a very sensitive topic for him, but since he remembered Wes apologizing to him about the fate of Alters at the hands of humanity and the fact he knew what the corpse piles were for, Laurie figured that Wes perhaps had more personal involvement in the war than he previously thought. He wanted to know a human's perspective. He wanted to see if his opinion on the majority of humans still held up.Other than talking, Laurie also kept reminiscing with a distant expression. Then we have cool panels like: Laurie walking in the background, and you see his deformed silhouette through differently colored vials, sometimes leaning over things curiously with his hands behind his back. „What was it like on your side?“ – „Everyone was dragged into it, in a different way. No one really knew how to deal with Commonwealth's orders, so they threw themselves into different extremes. Entire sectors that wanted to stay neutral, or even showed slight sympathy for the Alters were left in the dark. Without access to granary facilities, or help from the maintenance department, they quickly descended into chaos. People were choosing between their own survival and the death of strangers. Then some of them started talking themselves into it, trying to make siding with the Commonwealth seem like the right choice. Humans are completely incapable of dealing with guilt in a healthy way (Make a special panel for this, because this is also Wesley's great flaw). And then when the Alters blocked the sky surges, all hell broke loose. I didn't see the end of it though, I was out cold“ – „You know I'm going to ask this. Which side were you on? Don't fret about the answer. It won't change my view of you.“ Wesley seemed to ponder something for a moment. Laurie was too absorbed in reliving some internal trauma to notice Wesley's uncharacteristically solemn expression. It was regret."I was... with some people. We were in the district of Alhena, a place already in danger of crumbling into the Underside. We were in the midst of fighting some unsavory characters. When the war began, the hardships multiplied by tenfold. I'd spend my days sleeping in the same room with the patients I was healing. The people who came to me were commoners, operatives... G.A.R.M. (He was extremely careful while saying this). They were quite literally „falling on us“ from above. Some of them may have returned and been your enemies. I am... sorry... for that“ (This apology is for the lie he has just told. Wesley did not take part in G.A.R.M's operations, but he was definitely one of them).Wesley didn't notice that while talking, Laurie came very close to him. Suddenly, he felt Laurie's claw touch the scar on his neck. He winced a bit because it was cold and it surprised him, but then he started getting used to it. „And where did this come from? It looks quite poorly maintained. You probably wouldn't have such a huge scar if someone took better care of it“. (MAYBE PINING COULD GO HERE? Maybe Wes tries to touch Laurie's fingers, but he casually pulls them away before he could do so).„That's because... you see, during the war, one of the „unsavory“ characters I have told you about turned out to have a spy in our ranks, and she blew herself up next to me. Her target was my friend, and I almost gave my life for her. I don't regret that decision, but I spent the following months in a coma, and since I was the best healer they had, well, they did all they could“ - „And your friend, does she live still?“ – „She does“ (And then, in a more somber panel, Wes continues to himself: „Though I don't think you would like it“).As Laurie pulls away, Wes is left with a feeling of guilt and yearning.Then, Wesley flashed him a vulnerable smile, trying to make it seem like he's in a good mood: „So, what's your judgement of humans, then?“ – „They are liars“- Laurie responded without hesitation, looking somewhere past Wesley (For a second, Wes thought he was talking about him and it felt like getting shot). But then he also added this: „But you're alright“. And then he patted Wesley's head. Wes should have a very warm and surprised expression on his face. He feels very grateful, even looks quite emotional. Laurie was content with the conversation because he was able to touch upon a painful topic and re-evaluate it after a while. Wes became a piece of a world that was quite familiar to him. „I guess that makes us both veterans of the same war“.Later, there should be a scene where one of the Alters that Wes works with comes into the lab, complaining about the new tasks they've been getting. Since they are Alters, they are allowed to know more about what goes on than Wes who is still more in a hostage position even though others have gotten used to him. When Wes asks them what's wrong, since they are friends, they let it slip that the Black Ripples want to work with Prima Arums. And this pretty much makes Wesley's heart sink into his feet.Then there are a few panels with uncomfortable flashbacks for Wes: How it suddenly feels like his scar is searing even though it's old. Later, Wes stays up to work later than anyone else, and when he's done with work, he realizes that the vials in his hands are completely wrong.
WIP: Black Ripples
Laurie finds him asleep at the job in the morning. He isn't angry, instead he just plays with Wes and thinks it's kinda cute (Show Laurie in a playful and innocent light). Then, as he's moving back, he accidently pushes a cup with his elbow and he's like „WHOAH“ (Like how when guilty people are on edge, so they get startled more easily, in Laurie's case he was 1000% focused on Wes and subtly crushing on him).Laurie's reaction wakes Wes up, and then Laurie insists on taking care of him. „You might have been the best healer, but you're not the best healer around here“ (They look very comfortable with each other here. Laurie feeds him something sugary to boost his energy up. Has he actually started carrying around sweets for Wes?). "What are you doing?" - "I'm helping you gain some weight. You can't be that skinny if you're supposed to work". Then Laurie teases Wes again, something about Alters being allowed to get off work sooner, but not him: „Alters may leave work sooner, but not you- and maybe that should change soon“ (Maybe he phrases it like he's bribing Wes?). He is saying this while leaning his head over Wesley's- this gives Wes an idea. If he came closer, he'd be able to learn more about why Prima Arums are here, and what are they up to.„I bet you wanna take me on missions so you can take all the credit while a human does your work. Then I should probably run while I still have a chance“ – „Hahah! You don't have a chance. Since you already want to know so much :3“ (Laurie pinches his cheek, pulling it up and down, draw Wes in a cute style, this is Laurie's POV)Seeing that Laurie likes him, Wesley decides to flirt with him so he can take him around so he can overhear more about what Prima Arums are up to. One of the flirts: he offers a kiss to Laurie and then dodges it when Laurie comes close. Even though nothing happened, you see he's very satisfied by the outcome. After he almost kissed Wes, Laurie mocks himself, but finds it amusing. He says something like: „Careful. You don't know what you're playing with“. While Wes is laughing, you see Laurie’s hand grab him from outside the panel and he kisses him. Since Laurie’s tongue is electrified just like the rest of his body, he uses the opportunity to zap Wesley for teasing him. “There, there. That’s more like it”- he wipes his lip with his thumb while having a smug expression (Wes is still dazed, it was like kissing an electrical outlet).In further scenes, Laurie turns out to be a real yapper too. He happily chats up Wes and shares his jokes, thoughts, trivia he knows about the world, shares medic tips, shares anecdotes. Wesley plays along with him, but this cements the affection that he already had. He realizes that he likes Laurie as a person (he looks forward to new adventures or disasters by his side).Flirt 1: Laurie started to defy Wes by making it impossible to finish their mission, because he'd hide the last thing they need. After searching for two hours, Wes sighed and finally asked: „Laurie. Okay. Obviously you know, where is the stuff?“ – „Hmm. I don't know“ (He's swaying on the spot like a kid). „Maybe it's in my pockets? I'll only give it to you if you ask nicely-„ Wes scoffed, and to Laurie's surprise, approached him and started going through his pockets without asking for permission. This was hugging distance, and his arms were umistakably around him. He was too shocked by this act of insolence to interrupt the moment.Flirt 2: Laurie, tries to look bored and suggestive: „You know? I'm feeling quite generous today. Why don't you order –me- to do something for a change? It can be your treat. I'll do anything you like. Anything (He moves in closer with a leering smile, Laurie definitely thinks he's irresistible right now). It's clear he is expecting something that he wants anyway. And then Wes leans by his ear. Responding with mischief, he whispers something extremely boring with a smirk. Like a 30k word essay. Laurie looks totally deflated.Soon Wes starts feeling guilty about leading Laurie on. Or IS HE leading him on? (He senses the honesty in his own feelings). He fears that if he really does love him, then he's treating him poorly by trying to use him to hear about Prima Arum. He really can't choose between feeling guilt or desire, and the tension of these two instead just... lead him to thinking more about Laurie again anyway. He remembers how nice Laurie was to him recently. He remembers Laurie's last „invitation“ and how flirtatious he looked (When he wanted Wes to demand something 'special' of him). What if something else happened instead? Realizing that he's even considering this, makes Wesley's face light up red. This will be his secret.--Later they were on some mission together, and this time Wesley is supposed to note everything that Laurie does- they had to record something for Baba Yaga, but Laurie turned it into something that was more fun for him instead. Instead of an objective recording, it was now more like a biography of someone heroic or famous. The corpse-looking Alter enjoys it to the fullest. He destroys something („Wesley, make sure to note that down!“ and Wesley reacts like: ᇂ_ᇂ“Showoff” ) or some menacing looking guy walks into the room with them and says something like „You're not going anywhere“, and Laurie looks excitedly at Wes, shouting: „WESLEY. START RECORDING“. Then Wesley dares him to try something difficult. Laurie almost succeeds but then ends up smashing something by accident and Wes tells him something like: „Great job! Well, 99% of it“ – Laurie looks back at him with a wink, saying: „Take the good with the bad.“ – he comes very close to Wes and takes him by the chin, all playfully: „Now say thank you. Did you forget your manners?“ Wes responds: „Is your hearing bad? is that why you have to be so close?“ – „Huff. I don't owe you any explanations“ – „Is that right? Then how about this?“ – Wes tiptoes and kisses his cheek. And then, while Laurie is still surprised, he quickly whips out the camera, leans into Laurie, says „cheese!“ and snaps a photo of them together with a smile (The camera had a flash on. On the photo, Wesley has a sweet & cheeky smile, and Laurie looks totally confused). While Laurie is still blinded from the flash, Wes tosses the camera into his hands and says „You can decide what it means, because I don't feel like explaining anything either“.Laurie grinned with a full toothed smile: „I was just talking about manners“.Then Wes changed the topic by talking about the camera: (Wes is not in the panel for this one, we just see a speech bubble with what he says, and we see the camera from Laurie's POV) „By the way, I already took a few photos, in case if you wanted to go over how cool you are“. Later, when Laurie goes through them alone (he's laying on a couch in the dark when everyone sleeps), he sees some sneaky photos that were taken a long time ago. It's kind of romantic, because the photos show how Wes sees Laurie from his POV. (Insert Laurie's doubt here- he wonders if this human would betray him, is he like all the other humans who just see Alters as a means to an end, or is he genuinely having fun when they're together as much as he is?)--Wesley and Laurie finish their daily rounds. As they return to base, Wesley spots a lot of new crates. He pries one open and sees a lot of ammo inside. Then he subtly asks „What's that Laurie, your axe not good enough for you anymore? Do you need this much ammo to fight G.A.R.M.? – Laurie gets into his face and says „Oh, but we are much more bold than that. What, did you think we just walk around shaking down rabble for spare coins all the time?“ (he says in a voice that is more menacing than usual) – „I thought you wanted no bloodshed“ – Laurie corrects him: „Ah-ah. No bloodshed with Alters“ – „I don't think bloodshed with humans is what you want either“ - „(Laurie's eye ticks) You know what I think, runt? That you need to keep your thoughts to yourself every once in a while“. Then Wes gets a chilling realization that Laurie's group could be thinking about taking on an entire sector. But what for?„Isn't this a bit similar to the war?“ – this puts Laurie on edge. „It's not war, it's....“ (His eyes remain on the contents of the crate for a very long time. His eyes narrow. He thinks to himself, grabbing a fistful of cartriges: „This really is a lot“).These words follow Laurie to the next location. Laurie sneaks off to ask Baba Yaga about her current plan. She notices him leaned like a shadow against a door when it closes. She says: „It's not like you to sulk, Laurie“ – „I don't sulk. I thought my job was to let you know when things start moving out of control. That was...“ – „As much as I appreciate the sentiment, Laurie, we aren't doing so well“ – „Clashing with G.A.R.M. and hurting civilians is much different, I've seen how this spills over before“. Then she assures him: Prima Arum promised an entire sector in the Underside as a „gift“ to Black Ripple if they should succeed. Their job is just to make some noise (attack a sector, not actually kill anyone or even win a skirmish), then wait for Prima Arums disguised as enforcers to arrive as heroes and let them secretly take the sector. If everything goes well, they will continue helping each other, and later.... Prima Arum will help them reach the surface they yearn for. Baba Yaga continues to add: „It might be our best chance. Maybe the server walls are too thick, maybe gathering all of the resources will take too long. And I'm afraid our members will never get a chance to see the sky they so desire. The mention of the word „sky“ makes Laurie's ears prop up a little. Seeing the sky is the first thing he wanted after tearing himself out of the CTK. He wants to see it through. For gods sake- he wants at least one personal wish to come true.Laurie now has conflicting feelings, and he chooses to project them on Wesley. He rationalizes to himself as „We brought him here against his will, of course he would try to undermine our plans. I want my freedom, and I completely forgot about him missing his own". He thinks Wes is getting nosy and that he needs to keep an eye on him.Laurie also gets tense because he starts to suspect that there might be leftovers of his insidious programming and that might be making him „like“ Wesley, so he wants to regulate his feelings more (This is just an excuse he gives himself so he could distance himself from Wes). So far, he was only surrounded with Alters and Wes is his first human since the horrors that happened in his Dream. This realization makes him bite his lip (He is too insecure to trust Gold's judgement, and clinging to this lets him conveniently sidestep his own feelings).In the meantime, Wes is anxious because he thinks he pushed it too much. Laurie keeps ignoring his calls, and it seems he was put in detention, because they didn't give him any work to do, and unless he was on duty he was prohibited from leaving the lab. He just cant sit around to find out, so he talked one of his colleagues (those saved Alters) to spy on Laurie for him.They agree to do it because they feel bad since Wes ended up in this situation because of them. And also because Wes forgave them for it, they felt some obligation towards him. Besides, he didn't frame it as spying. He asked: „I just want to know what they're doing so I know if they will ever set me free. You guys started doing something else so I feel forgotten“.Since Laurie wasn't here as often (he was sus of Wes) the theory about being forgotten sounded plausible.
WIP: Black Ripples
Laurie surrounds himself more with Alters again, and he buries himself in work. He decides to do those missions for Baba Yaga personally. After all, he was one of the most capable members (Here he tries to replace the feeling of liking Wes with being proud about his work. This should be framed as refusal of feeling).The first job is an exchange as a part of preparations for the attack. The Prima Arum contact turns out to be Octavio. He's wearing a cloak over his shoulders so it's hard to see the mutations on his face. But the strange outfit still draws a curious look from Laurie. Laurie tries to bend down, pretending to be doing something so he can see under Octavio's hood, but the youth noticed what he was up to and said: „How rude haha! You don't have to peek, just ask me! whoosh!“- the boy threw his hood back, revealing obsidian dark eyes and terrible scars that crown his face. Laurie: „H.. huh. Sorry, but do you seriously feel no pain at all? I can check that for you....“ – „Ah, that? There is no point in trying because these are not wounds at all, mr. Laurie“. Before Laurie could say anything further, Octavio took his hand and pressed a strange crystal into it with a handshake. It was a strange, greedy thing. It felt a bit like the tendrils of the CTK when they reach for an Alter's vitals. He felt like he was being tested although he and Octavio were the only ones present.What he heard next freaked him out even more: „That's right, he's a good one! So, be sure that he stays safe.“ – „Excuse me?“ - „Oh no, sir, I wasn't talking to you“. Laurie opens his fist to look at the strange crystal. „You mean... this?“ – he asked, his eyes drawn up to the mutated youth smiling at him. Octavio: „That's right! Please take care of this gift. Its value will show its true self soon“.First day of the cooperation with the Arums. We start with a panel that has the strange crystal around Laurie's neck.The Black Ripples have cornered some humans that Prima Arums pointed out (This has to be a parallel with how Laurie spared some humans after hanging out with Wes). The situation was tense, it made Laurie's artificial hairs stand on the back of his neck. One of the cornered humans barked at him with fury: „That's where you were, you bastard!“ – and Laurie, as if accepting the role of himself as 'cruel and unforgiving', said: (With a cynical venom we rarely see before, make sure that the panels portray him how he sees himself at this moment) „Look, I don't know who you are. I did many bad things to many people“. The first guy tries to fight against his captors, then Laurie punches him. Fear and shock ripple through the group. Laurie: „Well, if I punched him in the face he must have done „something“ wrong (sarcastic smile) I would never punch an innocent person“. These last words made him a bit disgusted with himself.Laurie's job was simply to „pass the crystal onto some human“ and nothing else. But when he did that, he witnessed a violent transformation of the crystal greedily taking over all the Alzarin inside a person and turning into... something, or someone else. And then it absorbed the blood (Alzarin) from the other trapped humans. A Prima Arum character known as „Arde“ emerged. Arde let the remaining blood seep into the red runes on his porcelain skin, and thanked him courteously: „Ahh, thank you my friend! It's been such a long time since I was able to speak for myself, and on that account, I give you my deepest grattitude. Hah, how clever of her, knowing I'd feel indebted this way“. Laurie was shocked. He stands frozen and looks at the mangled mess that accused him of cruelty just moments ago.One the Alters who were spying for Wesley saw the scene and quickly fled when Arde seemed to spot them. Naked and bloody, he just waved at them as if he was a gentleman passing some people on the street. "Your people?" - Laurie seemed surprised because no one was supposed to be here. A distinct feeling of fear crept up on him- if some humans saw this now and the news travelled across the Server, they would all be in deep shit.Later, Laurie can be seen airing out his shock to Nessa (She is smoking while leaned on some rail, he's ranting next to her). He tells her that they've never had such an unreliable ally, and that Baba Yaga is telling him nothing. He feels like he has failed. Gripping the place where that red necklace used to be, he says: „I've lost my composure today. All it took was a bad mood. Nessa... do you ever think there's a posibility that you and I end up in a fight, and I reach for your kill switch before you could stop me?“ – „Hah. You can't even sit still when Beauty and Beast are on a mission, so nope. I don't think you have it in you“ she takes another drag of smoke. „How are you so damn calm“ Laurie frowns while looking at her. She smirked at him: „Because we've known each other for over a year now, and you still keep using my name. And you're a lot more transparent than you think, Mr. Laurie Monad“. Then she gets somewhat more serious: „As for Baba, you leave her to me."--Meanwhile, the Alters who were spying for Wes came back to the lab and shared their horrifying experience. They described the strange man in great detail, and Wes immediately recognized who it was.The revival of Arde enraged him (Especially after it cost his friends so much to defeat him, now he was completely fine, as if waking up from an afternoon nap). The stress caused him an acute Blood spillage reaction. But, if they are reviving Arde, then Rena must be nearby as well. Wesley wanted to personally confront her. Wesley stormed off without a word, and the Alter who told him this became so worried for him (they regretted telling him), that they decided to break their promise and find Laurie and tell him what he is up to (Scene where they're telling Laurie).Wes was already outside causing trouble. He only managed to find the Prima Arum's hideout because he broke into a Black Ripples terminal and he got the location there. When Laurie arrived to the scene, he saw a scrambled terminal covered in blood, his face cringed and he thought „what the hell is he doing??“. That will surely incur a punishment. He was both worried and angry at Wes (he stuffed the broken pieces into his pocket, so Wes wouldn't get in as much trouble), and quickly started to go after him, following the blood and any clues that were there.--Laurie lost him for a while, and in the meantime, Wes was met with one of the puzzles that Prima Arum are so proud of right at the entrance. Beneath the symbol of a phoenix was a riddle: „I guide you through your early days, Teaching you in countless ways”. Wesley tries every variation with “family” that he can think of, but nothing worked. He paused briefly… and then decided to enter an old password that he remembers, 10 years ago before the Prima Arum were exiled by the government. The time when he still lived there with his family. It was an old adage of theirs, mixed with numbers and symbols. The little screen lit up with “welcome home”, red letters that Wes observed with sadness. He went in, and Laurie came after him.There, Wes confronted Rena. He looked really messed up from his blood spillage (it’s a very stark contrast between the two of them). “You came really far, choosing to deal with all that. It looks like things didn’t improve much for you since we last met” (There was a smirk on her lips, as if looking at an unruly child who got their comeuppance) “Why are you here? Did you finally come here to ask for help with homework… or (she smiled in a relaxed way) did you realize how futile it was to cater to failed experiments? You can’t deny your tie to this place. Your parents have already ascended to the Surface, and every little bird has to leave its nest sooner or later” – She turned around with a handkerchief, and started fussing over Wes with the latter trying to dodge her. “Spare me. I don't need your help. What are you up to again? What are you plotting?” – “That is a disappointing question, my dear. Rather than bothering with Arde, you should ask yourself why you were so easily left behind. Oh (She spotted Laurie standing in the shadows. Regardless how well he hid, she isn’t human so she could see him easily. He didn’t realize he was seen. Meanwhile, Rena chuckled and decided to cut the conversation short) You weren’t ready then, and I can see that it is still the case. A good teacher will only answer good questions, so come back once you’re ready”. Rena wrapped her authorization hand into the kerchief she used to clean Wes, and stuffs it into his breastpocket. The golden “R” is smeared with blood. (+ Rena taunts Wes here, which will result in Wes retaliating later. Maybe she tells him that he is „roleplaying as an orphan“).While watching from the sidelines, Laurie was a bit curious why a human that he keeps in thrall wouldn't want to go back to their home. Up until now, he kept thinking that Wes yearned for his home. It just shows that he doesn't really know him.But more than that he focuses on the authorization card and where Wes puts it. (Maybe if he could steal it, he could even find things that Baba Yaga is keeping from him. After all, there are many things she did not mention to him, and if he wants to perform his role as Woodsman and protector, he has to know). Laurie's loyalty did not waver, as for Wes- he decided to deal with his insubordination later.--Laurie gets called for a new mission early in the morning (He doesn't have time to check on Wes). Black Ripples cause a stir, and G.A.R.M. show up. This is much different from their usual skirmishes, since they were targetting civiliian facilities this time. Their objective is completed, but Black Ripple members get battered badly. Seeing things go haywire, and his companion Alters getting beaten in the street without any help from Prima Arum despite their strength traumatized Laurie. They were left on their own. Beauty gets beaten badly, Beast gets taken. More armed forces march in, Laurie barely manages to drag some members away. His mechanical legs spark as he over exerts them, and they stop obeying him. Soon he collapses from exhaustion. Some Alters are taken away into G.A.R.M's custody. Laurie is terrified that they will be imprisoned, or even secretly resold.He blamed himself for not being able to get them to safety (He ignores that this would have been impossible). He beat his useless legs, cursing the all the boons he got from the CTK, and the limits of his body. „Gahhh!! Shit like this always starts with one accident!!“. Then he had an invasive thought: If only he was more like those monsters.
WIP: Black Ripples
Laurie returned to the hideout with a limp from the damage he caused to himself (He lost his composure again). Some of his friends were grieving, some of them tried to stay strong. Beauty was passed out with Gold tending to her wounds. She was using her own blood to substitute what was lost. Nessa was in a shouting match with Baba Yaga. Laurie did not want to get in the way of his comrades grief. He simply made his way to Wesley's lab. It was his way of „hiding away to be alone“ like a wounded animal.When the doors of the lab opened, Wes sat in the furthest corner, surrounded by the blood he didn't clean and cabinets he toppled over while clumsily sneaking back after his visit to Rena. Laurie's eyes softened while looking at him and his expression changed. He must have stayed like that for the whole day („Oh Wes...“). (Laurie was too depressed to reprimand Wesley for acting on his own or acting in secret. They were both a complete mess). Laurie came to Wes and sat down next to him. They didn't exchange any words, Laurie just leaned on his shoulder and closed his eyes: „You bled all over my furniture, Wesley.'' – Laurie spoke first, commenting in his usual way but without its usual cheer. „Well, at least you're lucky you're stuck with a nuisance like me and not someone truly dangerous.“ – Laurie just said „hmm“ in response, while nuzzling more into Wesley's shoulder. Wesley continued: „You will get used to them, Laurie“ (he was referring to the Prima Arum, he already accepted that the Black Ripples chose to work with them) – Laurie cut him off: „I don't have to get used to anything“. Then, Wes took Laurie's hand and they rested together (Panel that shows a gentle hand hold, like holding for fingers). Wesley could see how traumatized Laurie was too, but there wasn't more he could do. He liked Laurie, but he could not ignore how little he knew him. They only met recently afterall, and the image of Laurie holding him off the edge of the rail (or how he acted the first time they met) still unsettled him. (Even though they're practically cuddling, there still needs to be a sense of loneliness)In this peaceful situation, Wes begins thinking about himself and where life has led him over these past few months. Lonely is all he's been so far. Cait was the first person he ever connected with, but they –never- actually got to do anything because she soon had to be put into the CTK induced sleep. And while Phil and Jack were always around, they were usually in „work mode“. They were people he respected and who looked after him, but he was always orbiting them from afar. Age difference, circumstances and rank would always get in the way, and there was never a good excuse to get to know each other personally. And then, there was all this work & work, until he himself ended up like Cait. And ever since waking up, he was just sad all the time.Then suddenly, there was this new person who is constantly with him and genuinely responds to him. He was smitten with Laurie because Laurie was someone to adventure with, his partner in crime (literally), always up to some mischief (Laurie might literally be something that Wes wanted since he was a child, since he grew up in Prima Arum and the joys he had in childhood were tainted once he learned what was happening in the shadows).Anyway, while thinking these comfy thoughts, Wes eventually fell asleep, and Laurie started looking if he had any wounds that needed to be bandaged. Looking under his sleeves, shirt. While doing so... he had an intrusive thought, or rather a temptation (Hey, remember that authorization card?). Laurie realized that being this close to Wes would give him a chance to steal his authorization card (Aaand he did that). Instead of staying by his side, he just tucked a lab coat next to him. He leaned towards him, and left a small kiss on his hair. As he was leaving the lab, he looked back at Wes with guilt in his eyes.But the little red card promised so many answers.--Laurie snuck back to the Prima Arum hideout and used Rena's card to get in. He carelessly tossed the card past the red „welcome home screen“ once he was done with it (The point of this is to show how little emotional impact this has on Laurie compared to Wes. The luxurious calling card sits in a puddle). Then, he got stuck at the weird Prima Arum puzzles. They don't use CTK technology at all, so he couldn't hack it, and the puzzles themselves were sentimental and downright strange. Very annoying to deal with. He accidently triggered some security measure and had to dart away. He only managed to avoid getting hit because of his extreme speed, but this made him notice how Prima Arums are surprisingly well equipped. It made him wonder if they really needed the Black Ripples to be their 'muscle' at all (they just needed them to be their ''excuse''). Especially with members who can spring back to life after being reduced to an inanimate object. Meanwhile, the Prima Arums were already watching him on cameras. They wanted to grab him, but Rena gestured that she will meet him instead. She was curious about Wesley's choice in friends. Laurie gets lost in a maze of laboratories (Symbolic for being lost in the maze of his mind, make panels that focus on fear & disorientment. Make a panel that mirrors the one when he was standing in the dark next to Baba Yaga's door, just as lost as he was then). He passes by some display cabinets, and his eyes fall on a strange piece of scrap. He immediately thought it was from the surface (He was right). Just being near it caused a grating vibration, and when he withdrew from the object, it already seemed to form a permanent scar. He looked a bit surprised, and then bumped into Rena. Rena calmly says: ''Visitation hours are over. Did Baba Yaga send you?''.Laurie didn't answer, but asked her what that piece of scrap was. „Our doom“ Rena responded listlessly and rested her hand against the cabinet. As her sleeve dragged upward he spotted the same strange red runes that Arde had.„Only those who are strong are truly free. Trust me when I tell you, that without that, you would not be able to bear the tragedy. An average person cannot even leave the server nor resist the trappings they are born into. It would be like holding ants beholden to the machinations of humanity“. Rena leaned over the cabinet, looking at her own reflection in it. She said: „I hear you Alters want to behold the sky, but what if you could behold it more often than just once? We want in, and you want out, how convenient it is that we each have what the other wants.“ – „Can you survive outside?..“ Laurie sheepishly asked. He looked at how Rena didn't seem to suffer from being in the strange object's presence. „Of course she can“ (He thought this to himself and frowned). Then Rena said: „It's possible. When you gain resistance to it, you can even practice normal things. Like taking out some coffee, and a magazine. Just like what normal used to be. What people gave up when they started living in boxes“. Rena looked back at Laurie with a slight, but genuine smile. This is something she truly believes in. Then she turned to leave and said „That is something I want everyone to be able to do. You can leave whenever you want, I trust you won't make a mess. Send my regards to your master“ – instead of saying goodbye, Laurie said: „I don't have a master. We are...“ (Sound of door closing).While returning home, Laurie shakes his head and has a distinct feeling that he's in way over his head. When he made it back, he was surprised to see Wes angry at him. „How could you leave without telling me? Why would you go there anyway? Why not just ask me... I would have... I“ – he buried his face in Laurie's chest. For Wes, the situation was awful because it looked like his worst expectations were coming true. He hated the thought that Rena was right about people either using him or betraying him.With a hollow smile that convinces no one, Laurie said: „Couldn't you just pretend it fell out of your pocket?“. (Besides that, Laurie became deeply conflicted because of watching his comrades get hurt & being offered to keep looking at the sky. Despite his group's main goal, no one really wants to die. Now is the time to make a decision, so it's the perfect timing for an argument).Also, 1) Laurie was a bit shaken because he started feeling guilty when he noticed Wes was upset because he cared for him 2) (Wes is now actually angry enough to openly discuss Prima Arum). He starts by saying that Prima just sees his group as canon fodder, and that they will ultimately just use Alters as a distraction and let them butt heads with the government on their behalf, as they try to re-enter the Commonwealth atop their corpses – Laurie immediately countered with: „You have no proof of this! They have already treated us fairly, and offered us a chance to rise above our situation should we want it. They have been nothing but transparent so far.“ – When Wesley realized what came out of his mouth, he hesitated. He felt bad about his choice of words, and also for poking into Laurie's wounds. But he really didn't want Laurie to become the next victim of his sworn enemies (It wasn't even about Wes's beef with Prima Arums, or his concern that Black Ripples might continue working with them, Its about him not wanting Laurie to end up like Philippa or Cait AND THIS IS IMPORTANT). Wes continued like ranting, without meeting Laurie's fierce gaze: „What about surprises then? They will start marching you to the surface because they see you as test subjects. Hell, they see –themselves- as test subjects. They aren't normal. Do you want someone who collaborates with the Commonwealth to send you to die?“ – „Again, you have no proof! Why are you so dead set they want in with the government?“ – „Because I was one of them! and I saw them desperately fail to carve out a place of their own! Their beloved surface is all they have, all they care for, but everything they need to explore it is down here!“- Laurie hissed out with frustration: „Finally, some truth out of you. But even so, how dare you talk about what 'death' means to Alters! Canon fodder, test subjects, do you even hear yourself? Even in death, we are forced to be loyal! Even in death, we feed your lamps like god damn batteries! No one can force you to take responsibility, and we are left with clawing for survival in this... in this box!“ (He's gesturing exactly like Rena) – Wes responds: „And what if Prima Arum decide to turn you into monsters? they can easily change their mind once you begin to depend on them. They take people against their will and turn them into immortals. What then?“ – Laurie already remembered how Rena offered him immortality as a choice. However, he seems indecisive and unsure now (Which makes him even more pissed off). He burst out angrily:„Bah!! I look like a corpse already!! What's an extra limb or two?? I made my choice ages ago!“ (He grabs Wes by the shirt and pushes him into a wall) – Wesley struggles: „I don't understand... even so... Black Ripples has a bad reputation... but Prima Arum... sentenced to death.... They are hunted... and by hunting alongside them, you... You say... don't care, but.... others... can they take even more than what they have?“ – then the panel focuses on Laurie's face, with these finishing words from Wes: „It's going... to be the same again... and for what?“. To this, Laurie was not sure. Seeing the surface was a personal goal. And yet, since he joined the Ripples, many things changed in the meantime. He changed. He hissed and let Wesley stumble. For a moment he stood in the same pose and then he just left without a word.Then Laurie is seen walking around outside, and hears a news broadcast about the time when his people got beaten up in the street when things went bad- he sees the same scenes that he already personally experienced. He hears the media talk badly about Alters in general as a consequence of what his group did. He hears the words „mobilization“ and „pacification“ but he almost doesn't react to them at all. Everything just makes him so tired of working with humans at all.
WIP: Black Ripples
What is the wish he holds most dear? (Normality. He only wants to go to the surface because he wants to escape the misery he experienced here. For him and Rena, „Normal“ have entirely different meanings). In the end, he makes his own decision. He thinks of the very first people that made him feel like he truly "lived" after waking up on that corpse heap: „I don't know about the future, and I don't care. But there are two people to whom I owe much. I'll let their light show me the way again. Hah... Luckily cutting paths out of trees is what I'm known for“ Cool panel here, with him walking forward with his axe drawn). It's not that he chose what Wes or Rena said. He doesn't even choose his own wish (the romance of seeing the real sky). There are more important things then butting heads about moralities regarding Prima Arums. Besides, that's the business of humans. Let them stew in their own mess.Then he comes back to the headquarters and there he stands in a door frame (that's how the panel looks) and when he looks inside, he just sees empty beds (missing places of members who were taken by G.A.R.M.). Laurie looks agonized about what he's doing to do:„Ugh, god. Baba Yaga will kick me out for this... I will lose them... but I want them all home.“--Sometime soon, the Black Ripples are seen moving onto the subsequent stage of cooperation. The next stage of Baba Yaga's plan. The Ripples will blow up a rail to stoke more tension, and then hopefully wait for the corrupt diplomats of Prima Arum that have infiltrated the government to arrive and mediate. Baba Yaga said that they would then declare some area „unusable“, so that they may ditch the caravan and move in. As the attack group is heading towards the mission (it has Laurie in it), Laurie suddenly turns towards Wes and whispers: „Hey runt“ - „I have a name“ - „Ugh....Fine. Wes. Hey Wes“ – „Yes?“ – „You will follow me and do as I say, without questioning“ – Then Laurie tells him that they will go free Black Ripple members instead, and Wesley smiles at him and says „As you wish boss.“ which confuses him: „You-... That's right.“ (This is the first time that Wes obeys him as he was supposed to instead of making things difficult. He was actually showing unconditional support. This is important, because Wes can see and is glad for Laurie making a new path of his own. Definitely point this out with one panel).How does Laurie know where the abducted Black Ripple members were taken? Nessa told him after she was arguing with Baba Yaga. After sneaking away from their mission, Wes and Laurie meet Nessa at the entrance of a Commonwealth law enforcement station (where G.A.R.M. took their people). She waited for them so they could use Laurie's CTK hacking ability.„Hey! Took you long enough. I had to warm up a little“ There were already a few knocked out people at her feet. She was smoking and she smiled. Then she dropped the butt of her cigarette next to the face of the unconscious person and said: „The gents were so kind, they borrowed me their fire“ (A panel with her foot extinguishing the butt in front of their unconscious faces).Laurie will have to hack very carefully, because this time they can't afford to cause a mess, and since they know that alarms will go off anyway, their plan is to be as fast & efficient as possible when they do. 1) The point isn't to vandalize and leave a statement as Laurie did with the judicial system before, 2) these aren't common or general systems that Laurie typically encounters and 3) since they anticipate hacking, the CTK system here is alert to that behaviour. Laurie does his part very carefully by becoming more personally enmeshed with the CTK, but it actually pulls him into a brief „dream“ again. Since he is there as an intruder, rather than ending up in a dream that's tailored for him, he snippets of the dreams of others. If he stays too long, this might overload and destroy his own consciousness. He already feels like he is in there too long (This has to look horrifying, it would be good if he sees similar things as Eryk. They are engaging with the same system, after all).When he comes to, the first thing he sees this time is a human that's happy to see him: „Wes?“ (A parallel with him waking up after first dream, where he was surrounded by corpses). „Ah, Laurie!! You're alright, ah thank god! thank god!! I thought I'd lost you „– he's hugging him and shaking him. – „Wesley... its fine... you can stop now. How long was I out?“ – „Don't worry I think it was just a minute or two... Nessa Went ahead“ - „What?? that long?? Go, go go!! We have to hurry!“ Laurie immediately stumbled onto his feet and they rushed.Laurie and Wes head to the east wing. At the entrance, Laurie is like „Gahh! shit, why is everything locked!!“ – instead of risking Laurie's fall in a dream again, Wes did a decisive thing and used his authorization as part of Bureau of Investigations to open the door. Laurie's eyes became wide, and in a second, he forcefully grabbed Wesley by the nape from the back: „You were with the Bureau this whole damn time??“. Laurie felt betrayed, and he took note of how Wesley chose to shield 'himself' by keeping all this a secret (Then he realized, the first time he found no trackers on Wes was simply because he assumed he wouldn't have any because he's a smuggler.. but not LIKE THIS). But at the same time he felt so relieved that they'd get his family soon... he had no idea how to formulate this feeling. Before he could say anything, Wes said this while still in his claws: „You can either stop me or let me help your family“. Hearing this, Laurie reluctantly loosened his grip and let go of Wes – he growled to himself through his teeth: „God, is everyone a secret agent now :/“ – Wesley heard him and he chuckled: „Relax, I'm not on duty now. Besides, I'm not an operative of any kind, I'm just a medic. That part was always true“ (The doors slide open with ease).Then, Wesley proceeds to assist Laurie in releasing his family members. Laurie ends up asking Wes why he's doing all this. Wes easily says: „Because they are your family, and I like seeing families come together“. Laurie cannnot figure out if this is the truth or a lie after everything he's seen, so he sighs. He looks agonized again but has no time to properly dwell on it.--Chaos creates opportunity. In this mess, Wes could potentially fulfill a personal wish of his own. He wants to alert Jackal about Prima Arums as a way of foiling Rena. So, he triggers an additional alarm system, which occupies Laurie's attention with hurrying up to save his people. Even if he wanted to see wtf is Wesley doing, he simply doesn't have time to do both.On the topic of „home“, at the same time, Wesley is at an opportune moment where he can choose: he could get conveniently 'lost' now and go back to Jackal. Or he can go back to the Black Ripples. Instead of seeing his direct choice, we only see that he left a note behind for Jackal.Laurie has a heartfelt moment of setting Beast free and telling him that he shouldn't give up because there is still much to look forward to. Now that he's finished freeing everyone, he turns to look for Wes. He doesn't know if Wes can find his way back, and he doesn't want the Caravan to leave without him. Then he notices Beast following him after a while. He stops, and the hulking Alter bumps into him. „What?“ – „...What?“ – „Why are you following me?“ – „You helped me (Beast scratched his head) didn't your boyfriend stay behind?“ - „my WHAT? (Laurie looks like a spooked cat) how do you even know he's here?“ – „I saw him dart past like he was being chased by brittle stars. I guessed you were here to save him as well? Though, I think he managed to slip away in the commotion“ this triggered some alarms for Laurie. What was he in a rush to find, when their objective was here? „First of all, Regroup with Nessa and get out of here! And...! Wes... he's not my... whatever you said“ – „Oh, Nessa is here? cool“ (Beast casually responds while wiping his nose). Laurie frowns and thinks („god he pisses me off“). Then he rushes to see what the hell is going on with Wes, leaving a confused Beast behind.(Maybe here somewhere put a fun scene how Laurie is thinking what he'll say to Wes when they regroup. What if he's hurt and laying somewhere?) „When I find that little runt I'm gonna.... I'm gonna...“ He continues his search for Wes in the hardcore belief that Wes has chosen to wait for him instead of running back to the Bureau and what he assumes are his people. He even calls out for him into a dark corridor at some point. First quietly: „Wes... are you there?“ and then when panic starts to set in: „Wesley!! Wes!! Wes!!“. His heart sinks when he sees G.A.R.M. operatives running toward him instead.In a split second, he gets blinded by some weapon he never encountered before. And then, an operative managed to shotgun him in the narrow corridor. Laurie usually fights in the dark, and he had so little room here. He was out of his element, and he couldn't use his speed to attack (He did manage to lodge his axe in one of the attackers, although that means he lost his axe too). He had to weigh his few options and choose to escape: „Guhhh... I can't believe these dogs are snapping at my heels“. He managed to break contact, but then collapsed against a wall (Before passing out, he murmurs to himself: „Did you call them... Wes? No... you wouldn't.... you wouldn't“). Wes finds him after a while, mirroring the situation from the start when Laurie returned to find Wesley passed out in the cellar. When he realized it was Laurie, he broke into a sprint. This is also a parallel to how they met, with Wes charging towards Laurie (where Laurie merely walked to him the first time, with time their bond increased, which is reflected in the urgency). Wes hears Laurie whisper with closed eyes: „There you are“ and he (Laurie) smiled. Wes whispered to him: „You found me Laurie, you did great... you did great. Now rest“.--(Now we see an Alter blood trail, it suggests that Wes dragged Laurie off to somewhere. Idk how the logistics of this would work, but bear with me). We see Wes taking care of Laurie in some cramped, hidden space. There is lots of tools, bandages and pieces of metal discarded all around them (Panel on that, leading up to these two), and Wes is in full focus mode. He knows it's his fault that guards caught up to Laurie, and it sobers him up a lot. He was already so scared when Laurie passed out, and he really shouldn't have left him. Almost losing Laurie makes him determined to stay by his side. He realizes that if he loves someone, he should seriously stop being so indecisive and fucking around. He didn't panic while working, and took care of each wound carefully. Thankfully Laurie was a –very- old model, so that working on him was more similar to working on a maintenance robot. Wes thought how he would react if he knew he thought that (“Pfffft. You'd be so pissed if you'd knew what was on my mind'') maybe Wes continues to talk to unconscious Laurie while he's working on him. „Thanks for putting up with me. I did all I could, Laurie… I really want you to wake up. Please get better soon“. After he's done, he's looking a bit at sleeping Laurie and he sees his open palm. Since no one is looking at him, Wes puts his hand into Laurie's (There is a panel on Wes's face, showing his vulnerable expression).When Laurie wakes up, he sees himself patched together and asks Wes if he did it. Wes imitates the thing from the start by saying „Who knows?“ – he even teases him about some minor fixes that he should have had fixed ages ago. He also says: „Helping out the fastest person in the world, how embarassing for you“. Laurie: „Ghahh. I told you not to touch me... hahhha..whatever. I'll find a way to compensate myself“ (Laurie says this while pointedly looking at Wes, there is a slight, relaxed smirk on his lips). Then Wes sincerely thanks him for not knocking him out when he found out he was with G.A.R.M. He stands up, and offers his hand to Laurie (Maybe when he hears this last word, Laurie hesitates to take Wesley's hand to stand up). Wes teases him (in a self-aware way): „There, there. Just stop pouting and walk. I won't tell anyone that you had to accept help from a human. We'll make up a big story how you saved the day and I was the villain tempting you“ (Laurie took into account that when Wes did uncover himself it was to help HIS family. Then he accepted Wesley's hand after all, and even leaned on him- perhaps a bit too much, seeing Wes buckle under him. He still liked to tease him, even in this situation. His human is back where he should be).
WIP: Black Ripples
Somewhere else, we see the outcome of this whole situation. Diplomats from Commonwealth came (Prima Arum in disguise) as part of a „Alter negotiator“ group. This is Prima Arum's new trojan horse. They came here to raise a public relations debacle, and use the fact that the dust is still in the air to publicaly form their own „peacemaking group“ (This would be extremely dangerous, since Prima Arum are only focused on themselves, the discriminated group they claim to stand for would basically be used by them as a shield as soon as anyone wanted to look into the sources of their operations). They started talking to the press about extreme G.A.R.M. violence. They'd say: „well, you can't solve everything with violence, these few days have been an obvious proof that the dogs cannot perform all duties. This is where we come in.“ and then to their dismay, Jackal showed up himself. He bears a polite smile that is probably more dangerous than a wolf's bared teeth. He approaches with gifts and apologizes for misunderstandings, and how, if there is a peace option, he wants to be the first to make amends. He says that he came as soon as he could (Even with Prima Arum trying to keep this as hush-hush as possible, a task of this signifficance would never warrant the Bureau Councilman to personally arrive in normal circumstances.He came here because Wesley left him a note).Being cheeky as he was, Jackal subtly tried to be in the center of every camera as much as possible, waving politely, to let the watching Prima Arums know that he's here and he's ready for round two. He also said this to the camera: „The Bureau is a young organization, and one of its reasons for existence were post-Alter war investigations, not just for crime investigations, but also to bring peace and closure“. – Then he looks off somewhere into the distance, possibly thinking of the person who helped him.Jackal immediately became curious about this new „peace solutions group“ which leads to the Prima Arums dipping out of the deal with Baba Yaga post-haste. Especially after they learned that the taken Black Ripple members are no longer in G.A.R.M. custody (they thought Jackal pardoned them for info) + (since Wesley left notes on Rena's base, Jackal carried out targetted raids there, which pissed off Rena a little).What was the Prima Arum's plan here? Well, after failing to acquire Alhena, they did manage to get one of theirs into the new Council (a „primary“ of theirs), following the collapse of the old one after the Alter war. However, this group is too popular with G.A.R.M. in the worst way possible (And Jackal wants their blood personally) so they don't want him to find out that they have a Councilman who's on their side. That is why they were trying to launder some of their operations through other groups. The fact that Black Rippels had a grudge against the commonwealth made them suitable instead of asking around in human sectors where that would get noticed faster. They see their „misfortune“ as the only worthwhile thing they can offer them. They wanted the Black Ripples to create problems that they will show up and solve. And if they managed to convince a few of their members to become „primaries“, then it would be impossible for Black Ripples to wriggle away unless they wanted to trigger a schism within their own group. They also wanted to partake of the Black Ripples' members ability to use 'authority'. Authority is something Black Ripples often used to evade G.A.R.M.. Some of the members who were deeply affected by the CTK like Laurie could directly tap into other CTK systems and issue commands since they technically became its „relatives“ (Prima Arums simply cannot become relatives of the CTK due to their bodies mutating with a crystal that works opposite of Alzarin). Alas, they were found by the hellhounds before any of this could be achieved.--When Laurie finally got back to headquarters with Wes, he was very happy to see everyone was home (Beaming, cute, almost as if he wasn't a corpse). But their reception of him was a mixed bag: there were some real frowns among the Black Ripple members, such as Lancelot who lost a lot of money and who thought the other members would have been eventually saved anyway. All they knew was that Laurie disobeyed an order, and somehow their busines partner suddenly broke off all connections. Baba Yaga looked at Laurie with disapproval, but also slight hope, in a way of „I see you have chosen a different path but Im kinda glad you aren't like me“ and she appears to look at the rest of the group in a hopeful kind of way. Perhaps this initative from her members showed that there might be a different future for her group unlike the one that she imagined (This is important, because this opens a different route that could be more member-oriented, more family like? The nice part is, that it all started with Laurie who was very bitter and lonely until he met them all. Despite his nightmares, he brought something genuinely nice to the group). But now he has to clear things up for Baba Yaga- why did he decide to break off from the mission & how did he manage to free his comrades?Laurie realized that he was put on the spot. He was so happy, that he almost forgot he was about to be interrogated. Laurie is torn between saying that Wes might be a secret agent or not. He himself is unsure if Wes (who he basically just met) leans more toward medic or spy. Laurie is torn and doesn't know how to excuse himself to Baba Yaga + he is also afraid he's going to be kicked out and lose his family anyway.... But as he opened his mouth, Wes started to speak instead.Wes took the blame on himself (didn't want to risk Laurie's position in the group, especially since he felt responsible for it. BUT he changed the truth a little, this way he could still keep his own fate in control) and said that it was he who pressured Laurie into doing it. He frames that as hoping Laurie would be busy freeing his brethren so that he could escape from them in the commotion because he wanted to reclaim his freedom“. As for the how, Nessa defended Laurie and told Baba Yaga that if she wants to be angry with someone, she should be angry with her too. She said that she couldn't respect Baba Yaga's willingness to work with someone when half of her family was conflicted about it.Beast also helped, saying: „Why don't we find the surface our own way? The Black Ripples don't need help from any humans. Besides, I'm still very much fond of the caravan. I think many of us made wonderful memories here. Wouldn't you say it's a much more fitting part of our „tale“? Rogues who ride on ghost trains, and who terrify their enemies with the fables they wear. Baba Yaga, you made us into this“.The old woman's face is creased by dissatisfaction. She knows she's wrong, but she isn't going down without a fight. First, Baba Yaga reproaches Laurie by saying: "G.A.R.M. could have trailed you going back to our base, or just have captured you there. That was extremely irresponsible". Then she wanted to execute Wesley (because she wanted him to stay silent + she became very suspicious of him) but Laurie intervened. He pointed out that they weren't tailed home and that nothing bad happened, so she can't make a judgement based on something that didn't happen.He points out Wesley's usefulness to make them blood for sneaking around, since hacking is still risky (Also since they just broke into a guarded facility, the Bureau will probably be looking for forced entries for some time now). And, if they suspect him as being a G.A.R.M. spy, they can simply keep him as insurance. If anything suspicious happens from now on, they can execute him then. He'd justify keeping him around as keeping an eye on him. They could also trade him with G.A.R.M. if a situation ever demands it.Laurie also took note of how Wes 'saved him' by taking the blame for the infraction, and it made him a bit more optimistic.The old woman begrudgingly agrees to this (She says she's too tired from their mission with Prima Arum flopping anyway, and doesn't feel like executing anyone.), and says that the executioner will be Laurie instead, so she pairs them up again since it was Laurie who brought this „landmine“ into their home. This is how Wes and Laurie continue working alongside each other. Any mistake could mean the death of familial Alters, or Wesley's execution. So she hopes they will keep each other in check. Besides, she knows he's going to say everything to Laurie anyway. And then Laurie will accidentelly spill the beans during a casual coffee break anyhow.There is more reasoning to this: Keeping an eye on Wes is Baba Yaga's punishment for Laurie for sticking his neck out to prove Wes's innocence. „Since you're defending him SO MUCH, you can have him“ (This is also opposite from the start of the story, from Baba Yaga jokingly putting them together, to Laurie actually begging her to keep Wes only this time she's annoyed). There is also a personal reason for Laurie: He wants to know why Wes is so close to the Prima Arum leader.--Later, the Caravan is celebrating the return of their comrades. Baba Yaga is sitting out, but so is Wes. He's sitting alone next to a cabin window, so you can see his expression in the reflection. In the end, getting the Prima Arum to fuck off was not as satisfying as he thought it would be. His regret over hurting Laurie was far greater because once again someone near him got hurt. If only he was more clever, perhaps, he could have thought of a better path.He chose to isolate, but then the person he wronged shows up seeking him... Like he usually does. „Celebrating alone are we? Well, that at least saves me the effort of prying you off any of my chatty colleagues. God if Beast was here, I-“ (Laurie starts glancing behind his shoulder, as if his friend is going to pop out with confetti from somewhere). „Laurie, I have to tell you something“ – „What's that?“ (Wes cannot bear to continue lying to him, especially after seeing him get hurt, or smile at him at the brink of collapse. He wanted to actually deserve Laurie's sincerity). Wes admits that he fell into temptation to dispose of Rena and he took it. While apologizing, he bows towards Laurie, which reveals red clawmarks from when he grabbed his neck from behind.Laurie's initial reaction is rough: „That was so careless! I could have died because you couldn't figure out your priorities. So much for your care... (sigh) you do things without thinking, and then you feel bad when things go to shit. Next time, tell me when you're planning something or we're done.“ – Then he hesitates a bit (He sees his clawmarks on Wes's neck), he composes himself and tries to defuse the situation: „...That being said it wasn't the first time I got blasted by my colleagues, or almost lost an arm to them. Wes?“ (He smiles and tries to make the situation less heavy). Laurie tries not to take it too seriously. Wes accepts Laurie's feelings, and excuses himself with the intent to leave.“Oy, where do you think you’re going.” (Panel as Laurie's fingers sneak into Wes's neck collar from the back, where we can still see the clawmarks, and by doing so holds him in place) „Who said you can leave? You should at least stay and rejoice with me over the fact that we both still have our heads on our shoulders. I never saw Baba so angry before. That’s worth celebrating, and you’ll never guess what I have here-“ Laurie dangles a bottle over Wes. This could also be a reference to the previous moment when Wes dodged his kiss. "Now why don't –you- tell me some stories about yourself, instead? There is so little I know about you, and I'm not going to bother guessing anymore“ (Laurie pops the cork off the wine and pours himself a glass, intent on hearing about Wesley's past for a change). He pulls Wes to sit in his lap, which makes the latter hesitate/fluster at first. Wes starts telling his story, about his family, Cait, about how he was taken care of by Jackal. Wes also tells him about how he dropped an entire building onto a server level by accident, and that every victory he since felt like a pointless one (He feels low. However, Laurie’s perspective is different, and a bit erotic, since he is seated on his lap. While Wes is busy feeling sorry for himself, Laurie is the one who notices they’re somewhere private and very close). Wes continues to say that he will leave the Bureau for good, to which Laurie tells him: “You shouldn’t cut contact with humans, you’re human too” – “I’m talking about cutting ties with my organization” – “You told me those two are your friends. Why don’t you think about that with a more clear head?”.Being here and all the drinks caused Wes to eventually build up a blush in his face, and Laurie told him that he's really bad at hiding his feelings. Wes said „It's because of the booze!“ and Laurie said: „Liar“ with a smirk (Wes seemed to brighten up a bit and gave a slight smile). „Anyway, enough dooming. I didn't even see if you got hurt since then. Stop squirming-„ Says Laurie as he begins to rifle through his shirt. „I'm not hurt, I... ohh“ (He figured it out). He felt Laurie kiss his chest and his tongue against his skin. He hears Laurie's hot breath: „You're not going anywhere this time, little runt“ – „Huff, Wes is my name“ –„Oh? lets see if you can convince me by the end of this night“. Wes smiles and relaxes. He hugs Laurie who's under his shirt (This looks very cute, like he's shielding him with his arms) and the scene gives way to dark.In the morning they lay together, Wesley's hair is loose and untangled, and they look the most relaxed so far, with Wes nesting in Laurie's grasp. „Laurie, I think now is a good time. There is this girl I've been close to, and I was wondering if we could- (then he notices Laurie's o__o expression) HEY DON'T LOOK AT ME LIKE THAT, I DIDN'T FINISH (Wes is gesturing to shield himself whatever thought Laurie is having now). What I meant to ask, is if we could keep supporting her from the shadows. He explains to Laurie how they're both Prima Arum runaways, and that, very much how he cares for his Ripples, he wants to make sure that her life now is a good one without getting in the way. Laurie looks forward to Wes giving him a window into his world.--EPILOGUE:Ironically, Wes got a nickname of his own even though he wasn’t an Alter, and it was “Pinocchio”. This was the result because he kept lying about his connections to the Commonwealth.Some scene, where both of them are in Wesley's lab. Laurie asks him something. Wes is like “not now, I’m working”. Laurie scoffs through his sharp teeth, then he wraps his tail around his chair, and pulls him over to his side (Wes has the chair with wheels). “Don’t ignore me when I’m talking to you. It’s a unique position, to be given an opportunity to listen to my thoughts” – then Wes moves to sit in his lap instead: “Alright, I’m listening”. Ever since, Laurie spends a lot of time in Wes’s lab, which he is confined to. But at least he makes it better by bringing stuff from outside, including rumours and stories. Sometimes Wes is allowed to go out, but only if everyone knows ahead of time, and Laurie is always around.Laurie also started coming to Wes for maintenance, and did it more often than before. He is like “Why don’t we let Gold take care of the other Alters, and you can focus on me. Unfortunately, it seems my body is in worse shape than I thought. I’d like to go back to the dashing and wonderful me that you’ve come to know” And he adds in a sneaky way: “Have you thought of a way to do that yet?” Soon they started having ‘special medical treatments’ after which Laurie seemed more invigorated for his tasks.Wes also finally figured out how whenever Laurie wants to order him around, it’s about ‘his reactions to it’. So now he even props up and asks for further orders, to which Laurie gets flustered (Wes is looking for new ways to catch him off guard, it’s their little game).