Deer Country Network

( The Reckoning )

( Birthday )

[this, too, is a semi-anonymous post, though anna has used this username once before, nearly a year ago. she doubts anyone is left to recognize it, but given how things usually go, she'll just give herself away anyway.]

This place by the sea that so few will get the chance to see, and fewer still by the day.
Some of us might have begun calling it home by now.
And for a lot of us, it really did feel that way, didn't it?
Compelled to remain here, to treat this place as though we belong even though all of us are as outside to the whole system as Mariana is to us.
But not anymore. And maybe that's also the blessing of a Pthumerian. Freeing us from chains we couldn't even tell were around our necks.
Or maybe it's a curse. The curse of choice.

I'll spare you too much flowery bullshit.
If you had the chance to return home, would you take it?
Your true home. Where you came from before you washed up here.
Knowing what you know now. Knowing what you knew then.

Show your work.

[Maul's posts as of late had been a bit more lighthearted as he tried to set up his brother on a date and spoke of a memetastic grumpy batcat. But he'd been waiting for this day to come and so his face was as grim as if he was at a funeral during this post. His followers had been on the alert, watching for the signs, and had come to tell him that what he'd feared most had come to pass: Sidious was back at full strength and starting to possess people again in Trench. He couldn't put it off any longer. He had to warn people of what was coming.]

I come to you with the gravest of news. My former master, Darth Sidious, also known as Emperor Sheev Palpatine to some, has arrived in Trench. Many of you already know what that means, either through viewing my memories or listening to me talk about him. For those who do not, he was the man who raised me and turned me into....this. [The one word encompasses all of Maul, his psychopathic personality, the anger and pain he'd held onto for so long, his life being completely ruined by his master, getting turned from a person into a weapon and now spending the rest of his life trying to heal from that.] If you think I am dangerous, he is ten times as worse. He is pure evil. There is no reasoning with him, no way to appeal to any goodness that might reside within him, for he has none. All he has ever wanted in life is to gain power and he doesn't care how many people he must hurt or kill in order to do that. He's destroyed entire planets and every living thing that resided on them in order to do so. A city full of people is nothing to him if he wants to ascend to ultimate power.

Only his spirit has arrived rather than his physical body, so he is currently traveling from one body to the next as he tries to find a form he can take over for good. I have yet to discover a permanent way to banish him but I am open to suggestions. In the meantime, take whatever precautions you must in order to protect yourself and others. Trust me when I say if death is the only option, we must take it. You cannot afford to give him a chance, for he will brutally kill you if you give him one. Better to kill someone then allow him to remain and tear Trench apart at his whim.

His eyes look like this. [Maul closed his for a moment and channeled all the old anger he felt towards his master. When he reopened them, they had changed from the grey-brown color they had been holding steady as for the past three months and were back to the Sith yellow color they had remained for so many years.] They remain that color no matter who or what he is possessing, so it is a way to track whose form he is in. Please let me know if you spot a person or monster that has those eyes and I will deal with it.

[That euphemism of course meant that he would kill Sidious if he had to. Maul had gone over a year without killing anyone in Trench but he knew he couldn't afford to use kid gloves on his master. He'd need to be brutal and swift. He went to turn off the Omni and then paused, remembering one last thing he wanted to say.]

Oh, and Anakin? --The annoying whiny older one that is, not the annoying weird younger one-- if you try to interfere with this? I will stop you. That's not up for negotiation or debate. I'll kill you if I have to and keep you as a squid in the ocean to keep your idiotic devotion to this man from causing this situation to get worse. That is all.

[Then he does go and turn off the Omni for good this time.]

[OOC: This is the kickoff post for the Palpatine in Trench player plot! Feel free to interact with Maul, threadjack others to talk with them, or just head straight over to the log post to get started. As a reminder, Maul doesn't necessarily need to be involved in exorcising an NPC or character if you just want to do to something among two of you.]

Hi, everybody. A couple of announcements. Uh, first...

[Vyng — an androgynous Sleeper with angular, elven features and wild, wavy gray hair — appears in public for...the first time in awhile, actually. But it’s time to rip the bandage off. He takes a quiet breath.]

Tuck is—

[He swallows. And continues in a quiet tone:]

Tuck's gone out to sea. The two of us were — are — pretty much married, so. If anybody has any loose ends or. Or unfinished business to tie up with him? Let me know. I’ll help however I can.

[There’s a wet sheen to Vyng’s eyes, but his expression is otherwise calm and collected. He and grief are bedfellows these days. He’s accepting it, even if he's privately having trouble settling in with the fact he's a single dad now.]

What's the second thing, you ask? Here, I made a thing—

[He flashes through a series of hand-drawn cards in fancy lettering:
]


> 𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐀 𝐋𝐎𝐍𝐄𝐋𝐘 𝐒𝐀𝐃𝐒𝐀𝐂𝐊? ☹️

> 𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐀 𝐍𝐄𝐖 𝐏𝐔𝐑𝐏𝐎𝐒𝐄 𝐈𝐍 𝐋𝐈𝐅𝐄? 🤷‍♀️

> 🌈 𝐃𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐌𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐎𝐅 𝐂𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐀 𝐆𝐀𝐘 𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐌𝐔𝐍𝐄, 𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐒?


(っ◔◡◔)っ ♥ 𝐈𝐅 𝐀𝐍𝐘 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐒𝐄 𝐀𝐏𝐏𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐎 𝐘𝐎𝐔, 𝐃𝐑𝐎𝐏 𝐌𝐄 𝐀 𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐄! ♥


> 𝐈'𝐕𝐄 𝐆𝐎𝐓 𝐀 𝐅𝐀𝐑𝐌 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐍𝐄𝐄𝐃𝐒 𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐀𝐅𝐓𝐄𝐑 ☀️

> 𝐀𝐋𝐒𝐎, 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐂𝐇𝐈𝐂𝐊𝐄𝐍𝐒 𝐇𝐀𝐕𝐄 𝐀𝐃𝐎𝐑𝐀𝐁𝐋𝐄 𝐇𝐀𝐓𝐒 🎩



> 𝐈𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐍𝐄𝐖 𝐂𝐀𝐋𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆? 👀 👀 👀

[Vyng haphazardly tosses the cards over his shoulder and gives a jaunty salute. A silly way to end his message, but...given the circumstances, maybe that’s the point. The feed suddenly ends.]

[The feed opens up to an unnaturally beautiful garden. For those familiar with Ange Ushiromiyra or Beatrice's magic they'll certainly recognize the golden butterflies fluttering about the and resting upon the golden roses. While this area looks nothing like Trench, one of the carnivorous plants can be seen going to snap at one of the butterflies.

Only for Ruby Rose to pop up on the screen and slices the plant in two with a scythe made of scythe made of pure energy that she had not been seen with before. In fact she seemed incredibly energetic for someone who should be dealing with the draining effect on cold bloods this month. She's also dressed surprisingly formal for her usually very goth tendencies. She quickly dusts herself off and looks to whatever is projecting the Feed.]

Sorry about that. Just dealing with a few nasty pests that stumbled in here.

Speaking of which~!

I thought it would be fun to give everyone a little tour of The Golden Land my beautiful wife, The Golden Witch Ange Ushiromiya has created.

[The feed turns shows off the beautiful Garden, along with a gazebo with a table set for a tea party beneath it, a massive hedge maze that contains various doors that poke out from the overgrowth unnaturally. As they pass by a couple of the doors one might hear a few bangs or something that might sound like finger nails raking on the doors. Ruby seems to ignore it until she notices one slowly start to open and she'll step in to slam it shut and lock it with a key before turning back to the camera.]

Oh, just ignore that! Some people get a little rambunctious waiting for dinner, you know?

[Speaking of dinner, the next door in the hedge maze is open, and it leads to an extravagant kitchen. Inside that kitchen, one Xerxes Break is not making dinner. He is sitting cross-legged on the table, forming bits of crust into an intricate top for a terribly pretty pie. He has already made cookies and some wads of frosting shaped like roses that probably have cupcakes underneath, and is having a grand time. He glances up as Ruby steals a cookie.]

There you are. When you've finished whatever you're up to, come see me, would you? I was thinking we ought to come up with a present to make for Miss Ange. [As he speaks, he picks up a fork and casually hurls it off to the side somewhere. There's a thunk, and the angry gurgling of another carnivorous plant that tried to follow Ruby in.] Since she's made us such a lovely new home, we ought to make something really great for her too, don't you think?

[Quite frankly sitting on tables and throwing cutlery is just normal Break behavior. But those who recognize him may notice that the one red eye he keeps visible has a distinct glow about it, and his ever present omen — who is on the floor nearby, happily chewing up a pumpkin someone has conjured for him — has all of his too many teeth out in a manic doggy grin he cannot quite seem to put away.]

[Ruby bounces on the balls of her feet in excitement.]

That's a great idea! I'll wrap this up quick!

[And quickly begins to float out of the kitchen and into a grand lobby that seems to be just as over grown as everything else. There is a Portrait of her and Ange that eventually stops by and presents with open arms.]

Any who wish to visit this wonderful world created by our Golden Witch, Ange Ushiromiya are welcome to.

But please try not to cause any problems. I'll only politely ask you to leave once.

[And the feed closes with a smile that seems almost a little too sweet as she again grips that large scythe.]

[OOC Purple is Break.

TLDR Ange has made an interdimensional hidey hole centralized There will be a log coming up in the next few days to explore the area and have some fun!]

( CW: Johnny Lawrence under the cut. )

[Jun has his head resting against his fist, looking bored and unamused.]

All right, all right. We all saw that other post. How many of us are under fifteen, then?

Or were under fifteen when you were brought here, I know that some people have been here a while.

[this, like most of the posts that anna makes, comes in the middle of a sleepless night. she's gone as anonymous as she possibly can, at least. maybe that will stop people from calling her out. maybe one day she'll learn how to talk about her emotions without sounding like a theater kid turned supervillain.]

How are we all feeling in the wake of January?
Are we feeling whole? Normal? Like ourselves?
Suppose you aren't. Suppose you walked, or flapped, or slithered away from the shedding ceremony feeling extremely different.
Could any of you pinpoint that change, do you think?
Would any of you even still be aware that you used to be someone different?

And on the other side of the coin, for people who returned to "normal".
Do you remember what happened? Do you remember who you were?
Or is it all turning into some kind of soup within your own brain?
Do you have any way to stay that gnawing feeling of dread inside you when you think of the way you're losing touch with your own identity?

And if you have no idea what I'm talking about... call it a thought experiment.

[Maul was sitting outside on his roof, the snow softly coming down around him, hood up so they didn't land on his head. There was a soft, contemplative look on his face that he didn't often wear. For those that knew Maul, they'd realize there was one big change. His eyes, which had constantly been a golden color before, were now instead a grey-brown.

Next to him, looking perfectly fine with this cold weather due to the fur that made him little more than a ball of fluff, was his Mankey, named rather fittingly Cranky. Though Maul seemed unaware of it, the Pokémon was imitating his master in body language perfectly right now, sitting down with his arms folded and staring off into the distance. Mankey see, Mankey do and all that.

There was a long pause before he began the video. He was woolgathering and trying to put everything together, saying it in just the right way.]

For anyone I teach, classes will commence again now that I am back. [There was a pause.] In case you were unaware, I made a long journey to my home galaxy for about three years, though I understand I was only gone for about a week here. I had....quite the experience just before I came back with the Dark Side of the Force. I had to face a great many things about myself and learn some hard truths. But while I could not accept what it had to offer me then, I think I am ready to now. To let go of the past, to put some of my pain behind me, to gain more power than I ever thought I could.

[Always with the search of power. He couldn't help it, such a thing was ingrained into him by now.]

It taught me to let go of fear and pain and instead learn to care about others, to keep anger close, but never to let it turn self-destructive. Things many of you have told me here but which I did not want to listen to. But who am I to deny it when the Force itself tells me such things? [There was a soft laugh.] Well, I have returned and don't plan to go anywhere, much to the misfortune of some of you.....But this has proven an interesting experience, one I shall take heed of going forward.

[ When the feed starts, it’s at a bit of an awkward angle, a teenage boy half-staring at the camera, but still clearly fiddling with the Omni itself. At least he does seem kind of aware he turned it on, since he mumbles: ]

So you send a message this way..?

[ In fact, if you look, the teenage boy may look faintly familiar - just a few decades younger than people who know Daniel may be used to. But that sure is Daniel LaRusso as a teenager, seemingly trying to figure out the Omni– though he doesn’t get too far with it before he is suddenly lifted up by a dashing, handsome young lad in a red leather jacket with a distinct cobra design on the back of it, making Daniel drop the Omni as he’s startled by it. But just as quickly as he is lifted up, the boy turns and dumps the other kid in a steel trash bin. There’s a lot of banging, clattering and shouting that gets cut off as the blonde boy puts the lid on it and holds it down with one arm.]

What the hell was that loser doing anyways?

[Teen Johnny then steps away from the trash bin before suddenly pushing forward and shoving it down. There’s a crash and off camera it sounds like the can is rolling down a hill. Johnny steps back and notices the camera rolling. He smiles an 80’s heartthrob smile and fires finger guns at the camera.]

Hey babes.

Johnny Lawrence here, Ace Degenerate.

Me and LaRusso here are throwing a badass party once we find a place to host it. He’s a dweeb, I know, but trust me. I’ll make sure it’s awesome. It’s going to blow that other big party out of the water.

[ There’s a suspicious sound in the background, if you can hear it over Johnny Lawrence chewing up the scenery over here. Something akin to more clattering, and then a rush of footsteps. ]

Be there or be squa–

[ Unfortunately Johnny doesn’t get to finish that sentence, because Daniel suddenly runs back into the frame, tackling the blonde straight to the ground– and onto the Omni, meaning the feed cuts out. ]

[ Off-center on the screen is a small freckled child with an impressive green bedhead. His T-shirt, of a suitable size for a teenager, is now as long as a bedgown. He fitfully rubs the sleep from his eyes. ]

Please... Anyone we know who can watch us... and reach high things... and cook katsudon? Paul-kun and I are seven years old now. Kaworu-kun is two whole years younger than us. He’s so little...

[ Tears prick at the edges of his huge green eyes. He just woke up like this, he misses his mom, he barely remembers how to work the Omni, but he must make his case. He has to ask for help for the sake of his friends, one of whom is very tiny!

However, the tiny one seems unconvinced.] Someone always comes. They leave you alone for a bit and then come back when they need you.

[ The other seven year old in question stands behind Izuku with his arms crossed over his chest, an effect somewhat undercut by the fact the sleeves of his too big sweater flop over his hands and dangle towards the floor. He glares from underneath a fringe of messy curls that match Izuku’s except for their dark colour, and amends Izuku’s statement with a crisply pronounced: ]

Which doesn’t mean we can’t defend ourselves.

Oh! [ Izuku remembers, ] And I’m very sorry, but you can’t watch us unless you’re our friend. Mom taught me not to talk to strangers.

[ Paul nods emphatically, then turns away from the screen to disappear to the left. When he does, the end of a sheathed knife that’s almost comically large for his small frame is briefly visible under the hem of his sweater. He is not kidding around about self-defense. ]

[ Izuku glances offscreen after him. ] Paul-kun, what do you have there—

[ Cheerfully, without an ounce of hesitation, Paul answers: ] A knife!

[The pale haired boy tilts his head curiously.] What’s a stranger...?


[ ooc: Due to last year's recurring event, these are temporary AU versions of Deku wannasmash, Kaworu peripheries, and Paul terriblepurpose ]

[She’s been here for over a week now. Time to get the lay of the land. The video opens up to a particularly tall blonde woman with a golden skeletal arm and a smirk. She's here to cause problems on purpose.]

Greetings, hello, salutations. My name is Ianthe Naberius. I’m new in town, twenty two, a princess of Ida, unfortunately single and dreadfully bored!

Now, I come to you today, not only to introduce myself, but to ask something of all of you.

Who do you hate most in Trench and why? I’m trying to meet people, network, but it’s so hard and overwhelmingly positive! So consider this an open invitation. Warn me about that dangerous scoundrel who kicked your puppy, seethe about how much you despise me for whatever reason, tell me about your parasocial hateful fixation on one of the local divinity. It can be a minor slight you want to complain about, a friend of yours who owes you two perfectly intact human skulls, or it can be an actual danger to this lovely little community of ours.

Now, before you try to say “this is childish and stupid!” You’re absolutely right, but it is a necessary part of self care to allow oneself to be an absolute cunt once in a while. [Or all the time, if your name is Ianthe.] So let’s not make any grand claims to being above something like this, mm?

Feel free to use the anonymity feature. Or the privacy feature, I guess, if you’re shy or worried about being fileted like a fish.

[Good day, Trench, and welcome to... whatever this is going to be. Here is one Palamedes, sitting at his desk in what may be broadly recognizable as his office in the Sanctuary, whether or not one has been in it before (it has, these days, a distressing worm-on-a-string curtain in place of a door). Palamedes shuffles through some papers, tsks, and gets up to simply walk off screen, although this is not an accidental post, for he does call back:]

Damn my filing system! Hold on, don't look away.

[So now: the sounds of shuffling, and also, footsteps on a ladder? Then the eventual soft thump as he hops back down, and finally his several layered cardigans masquerading as a torso coming back into view, before he sits back down in the chair with a hearty squeak of rusty metal.

He has even more papers now. A small pile of notebooks, actually, which he folds his hands atop before properly regarding the camera.]

So! I wrote a book. Are any of you in the publishing business? Here, locally, or otherwise? My wheelhouse is firmly the academic, and literature— while a passion project— is a field I know far less about. As such: publishing. Any tips welcome.

I am also in the market for some cover art, I think. My artistic talents leave a lot to be desired, but I've produced some helpful mock-ups, somewhere around here...

[Just kidding they're right here ready and waiting, and so he holds them up side by side:

( cut for Incredible Artwork )

...So, yes. His handwriting is, of course, perfectly legible.]

Like I said: I'm an academic, not an artist. I'll pay you in whatever you like, blood or stone or- [and he leans briefly off camera again, to mutter, then he's back] -or scones! Good ones, for people into that kind of thing.

[Yahoo... Draw him a horny squidmance cover page... This is ordinary.]

Obviously, children need not apply.

Oh, and the working title is Ceasefire of the Senses: A Treatise on the Juxtaposition of Passion and Reason, unless you happen to be my cruelest critic and dearest spouse, love of my life, in which case "that title is ridiculous" and it's actually called "that story in your fifty notebooks." Regardless.

[He pats the pile of notebooks, like, his title is good actually? This might be a thinly veiled opinion poll about the title.]

And as it's the season, again, if anyone needs a professional hand with their lockjoint, come down to the Lumenarium- or Sanctuary- and ask for Palamedes. I'll take care of it with a silk touch; you get to keep the stones. Drawings of squids entirely voluntary for that one.

Looking for roommates

The Apartment: I don't have a place yet and don't know exactly how you get one, so I am sorry I cannot put a catchy tagline and information about that like the advertisement guide says.

The Roommate: My name is Kageyama Shigeo, I went to Salt Middle School but I haven't found any middles schools here yet either. Sometimes I played video games with my brother, that is a hobby. People have told me I am surprisingly reliable, so I will try to be a good roommate.

You: I don't really have a preference for what a roommate is like. A good person, I guess. My dad smokes sometimes so I don't really mind that, even if it smells bad.

When: Soon.

Contact: I don't know how to put a link for that yet, I'm sorry.

[The feed opens up to Johnny Lawrence staring at the screen like he isn't aware that it's currently life. He's looking incredible thoughtful as his fingers type down a message. It's... very uncharacteristically thoughtful of him. It would almost be hard to peg him as the same person if not for the occasional pause to take a swig of beer.

After a moment he stops. His eyes scan over the screen again as he carefully reads back what he's written. Then there's a little flick of annoyance that shifts to frustration.]

No this is stupid.

[He whacks the screen before standing up putting and shoving it aside lightly.]

You don't apologize. That shows weakness-

And there's no wea-

[The feed shuts off.]

[And a moment later another message comes through via text.]

Dear Robby,

I just wanted to apologize for what happened at Miyagi-Do the other day. I didn't want things to break into a fight, especially not like the one that did. I wanted to come and support you and what you had chosen to do. But I thought if I showed up in any sort of Eagle Fang gear it would be taken as a challenge. It turns out it did anyways as well an insult to your training ground.

All I can say is I'm sorry. You have every right to be mad at me.

If you can find it in your heart, don't blame Paul for this. He's a good kid who just got roped into the mess I made.

Johnny.

-

Dear Daniel LaRusso,

I'm sorry for the scene I caused at your dojo. I didn't mean any disrespect to Miyagi-Do and, I wasn't looking to reopen any can of worms between us.

I've been trying my best to support Robby and respect his wishes to give him space since he got here. And even though he told me that he'd be helping you reopen your dojo. It still hurt that he chose to stick by you instead of give me a chance to prove that I can be there for him.

It's why I showed up to the dojo in the fucking plumbers get up. I panicked and thought if I showed up doing anything karate related it'd be seen as disrespecting your dojo or a direct challenge to what you were doing.

Turns out it was both either way. Go fucking figure I'd screw it up that bad.

I'll do my best to keep my distance from your dojo. But don't blame Paul for this. He's a good kid and he just got pulled into my bullshit.

Johnny.

-

Dear Paul,

I'm sorry for dragging you into that mess. My relationship with Robby and LaRusso is a shit show on the best of days. And instead of owning up to that like a sensei should, I threw you into the middle of it. I put you in a position where you had to face the consequences of every bad decision I've made in my life. You didn't deserve that.

I keep telling you that I'm not going to fail you again. And then I go and do it all over again.

The way you stood up after all of that and apologized for what had happened. I just

I wish I could be half the man you were in that moment.

Don't blame LaRusso or Robby for what happened there. They were just trying to get at my while I hid behind you.

You're the real badass here.

Johnny

[ The broadcast seems to be coming from a Japanese-style garden, though with less greenery, given that it’s Trench. Some people might recognize the man standing in it as Daniel, though he’s not wearing his usual Trench getup, instead wearing a white karate gi, complete with headband. Next to him is a boy some people might recognize as Robby in a similar white gi.

It’s Daniel who speaks up first, his facial expression a relaxed smile. ]

Now, I know that there are a lot of people in this place who already offer help with fighting lessons. But this place can be so dangerous, and there are a lot of people here, so.. better to have too many opportunities to learn than too few, right? [ He shakes his head. ] That’s why I decided to open up the dojo I ran back home here as well, Miyagi-do Karate.

[ Yes, he’s gesturing an absolutely unnecessary amount as he speaks. It’s the Italian within him. ]

Miyagi-do isn’t about learning how to go around picking fights. It’s about learning how to defend yourself and how to protect others, while also focusing on your internal balance. All of which are invaluable skills in this place.

[ Daniel pauses, glancing at the boy standing besides him, before his smile widens a tad and he moves a hand to pat Robby’s shoulder. ]

I’m sure some of you might recognize my student Robby here. He’s been practicing Miyagi-do for a long time now [ never mind some stuff that’s being shoved under the rug here, sshhh ] and will be helping out around the dojo.

[ Robby has been quiet up to this point, letting Daniel speak without interruption, eyes cast in the man's direction without directly looking at him. But his lips roll when the hand falls on his shoulder, and his expression turns serious. ]

It's true we don't come from a world as dangerous as this one, or as many of you do, but the dojo will hold to its promise to help protect its students by passing on any knowledge and training that will give each one a better chance out there. I'll be helping to lead some beginner classes outside of weapons training, and I can give any advice to newcomers if you want to talk to someone closer to my age. [ Or theirs, perhaps, but same difference. ]

We welcome anyone from any of the other schools of fighting, just as we'd recommend that people go to others to find what works for them. Sensei Uchiha of the ninja school and Sensei Lawrence of Eagle Fang are good teachers with their own styles I can recommend, and if we can help alongside the other teachers here, that's our goal.

(ooc: daniel is the black text, robby the green text! ooc information can be found over here!)

( This is not Peter Graham, though of course, posting anonymously takes away that possibility. The user didn't want to use the boy's network handle, to inevitably be seen through the filter of "Not Peter."

The user is trying to define his own identity. )

why did you choose your title here on this THING
what is the meaning
?
?

( ...Texting is still something he struggles with, though the demon has been watching and learning and forming his own conclusions on how to do it. Autocorrect is a life-saver. Two questions get two question marks. ....Even if they go in the wrong place. )

i will grant you a
GOLDEN COIN
if you
RESPOND

( ...For those who know Paimon fairly well, that particular offer of exchange might betray who he is. But the demon of Knowledge is curious to hear reasons, and within them: perhaps stories, memories, self-perceptions. There is a meaning to everything, whether simple or complex.

And perhaps by the end of it, he will know what title he would give himself, here on the network. )

( major spoilers for Nona the Ninth )

[The video opens to Lance with cat ears (again), a tail swishes behind him. There's the sound of painful squelching as Keith off screen goes through some more gruesome transforming and he winces, looking over at him. It seems to have been mild this time at least, and Lance goes for the rambling jokes because that's how you deal with someone you care about going through that, right?]

Okay, soooo who here's never done the horizontal tango? Made the beast with two backs, knocked some boots, jumped some bones- [there is the sound of shifting of bone and he hums, rethinking] Forget that last one, but by now if you don't know what I mean, here's a few more for you: a little afternoon delight-

[Keith groaned a bit, his teeth audibly clenched as he scolded a, "LANCE!" from the background, though that didn't seem to deter the Blue Paladin from continuing.]

-pounded the punani pavement, shook the sheets, the old in-out, shot the meat rocket into the sausage hole, bam-bam in the ham, rolled in the hay, boppin' squiddles, cattle-prodding the oyster ditch with the lap rocket. Fucking hell, made whoopee!

Seriously, I could keep going, but if your answer is 'never done that, what are you even talking about', some guy in Gaze told me your blood cures this whole- [he gestures at himself and then glances off camera at the sound of a grunt from Keith.] mess. Noooot that I wanna cure myself, I can take it, but some people I know need it and aren't gonna ask because their heads are nothing but dumb hair and no brains.

[A bit of an unhinged laugh to himself/some internal conversation as he looks down and to the side. There's a growl from the background, possibly from Keith? (Definitely from Keith.) Then he jerks himself back.] Yeah, anyway, if you fit the bill call me before my idiot b-teammate turns into something that eats my face. I'm too pretty for that.

[There may have been a time when Lance knew virgin blood was blood that hadn't been used in a ritual, but the draugr's fucked with his already recently fucked memory. So enjoy.]

[ Green = Midoriya | Blue = Murderbot | None = Locals ]

Beasts can be people. I had to see if there was a person in there. That's why I used a Moon Drop on the Bugge.

Waste of a Moon Drop... Just kill it like we all do, Deku. [ The voice comes from a grizzled Hunter with their hand on their hilt. ]

[ Midoriya isn't filming this. He and a group of farmers are the subject of this onlooker's stream. A few Hunters are interspersed with them, identifiable by the badges that match Midoriya's own. They know him by his Hero name, Deku. His green Hero gear is lightly stained with his own warmblood. He's bruised and exhausted, but anyone familiar with him knows that he'd be much more injured if he actually came off worse in a fight. ]

If there's a chance I can save someone without killing, I have to try.

These are my crops! The blood of the Bugge enriches them, don't you understand? I have to feed my children! [ A farmer brandishes their harvesting sickle. ]

I--I'm sorry. If you need help, I--Please, let me help. There has to be another way. There are other ways to make the soil better, just--we can figure this out together--

[ Several people in the crowd push forward, and Midoriya flinches with a step back in time with them. He can feel several stabs of alarm in his head. It evokes multiple memories of a group of people ganging up on him, and he's not good at using words to defend himself. He wants nothing more than to wrap his arms around his head and not look at them, but these are people he wants to protect. He has to face them. ]

Congratulations, you are being streamed live to DeerNet. Don't do anything you'd regret.

[ The voice is flat and even, near emotionless but with a slight edge to it. If anyone looks at their relic, it is streaming with a one second delay. ]

[ OOC: replies will come from Murderbot and Midoriya ]