*turns Them Into Dragons*

Hive Awakening

so I wrote hive knight fanfiction

(Under the cut, it’s relatively short but I still like it enough to post, takes place post-Embrace the Void)

The Old Light... was fading.

My Queen.

She stood there at a kingdom’s heart, arms crossed in eternal rest. Stood, watching over her beloved Hive just as she had been since...

She had been there for far too long. Uncountable days, him staring up at her in wonder, him reporting whatever notable feat had been accomplished (of which there weren't many, the bees were tense and more restless than ever, though the stasis Hallownest has fallen into in recent times impacted even the ones who wished separation from it), holding one claw raised in a salute as if nothing had changed, him resting by her side and wondering when her dreamless sleep would end...

But the golden heresy seeping into the corners of his mind and vision had left him.

And his thoughts were only his own again, whispers of forgotten light gone now and forever, and he'd had to admit it. The Queen... Queen Vespa, the one he had waited to protect for so long, it was all for nothing, for she was dead. 

Some part of him knew. The same part that had already given up. But he wouldn't, not when he and his kin were dependent on her return. Not when there was a threat to their colony, a pale little wanderer bearing a silvered nail…

He hadn't heard from it in some time. It held no significance now.

With her unmoving form revealed a corpse, the Knight of the Hive couldn't bring himself to stay any longer. It'd be some form of torture, keeping the reminder of his failure fresh in his mind.

He needed to leave.

How could he? That would be the most selfish thing he'd ever done, leaving the Hive in disarray without their most skilled knight to figure out what in the Queen's name they were supposed to do now. He was her protector, though almost equally her second-hand. Every worker had their own part to play in keeping their Hive strong (though it was easy enough to hide from a citizen of Hallownest, it was obvious to those who shared his blood that his duty was not one of a drone), and the Hivelings were content with carrying out short tasks while the rank of a Soldier or Guardian called for their unwavering loyalty, defense for their weaker kin. The Hive Knight was Queen Vespa's closest thing to a diplomat. He wasn't occupied with anything other than the promise of cutting down any foe who'd dare to hurt their dear Queen, leaving him free to be granted the highest honor of the more important work, that which concerned Vespa herself.

The thought of him now being...possibly the most important living bee in the Hive by any standard at all was one that hurt almost physically, seemed to leave a pain in his thorax to wonder, considering what he had to lose.

The most important...

Queen Vespa could produce no more heirs, a fact that should go without saying as of her status. New adults were emerging slower than ever, and the number of eggs was gradually dwindling as more were raised to replace them.

A Queen, in her youth, is no different than a worker. A royal diet is all she needs.

If the Hive were to survive, a new queen must save them.

The Knight sat up. He offered one last, pained and prolonged goodbye to the Queen he'd been willing to lay down his life for.

It had been a while since he'd left her chamber. Longer than usual by...what must've been a few days, a few weeks even, he couldn't judge. The warmth and droning buzz of his sisters' wings comforted him, calmed his tumultuous mind. A Hiveling quickly accompanied him, brushing her soft setae against his own, smelling of honey and... and lacking something else.

The orange haze seemed to have lifted.

The radiant sickly-sweetness of Hallownest's blight no longer bombarded his senses upon his departure from the Heart of the Hive, leaving only traces of what once was.

He whispered a command to the Hiveling, who drew her antennae down in a brief nod, before taking off.

Perhaps the Hive would be alright without him.

Perhaps, he would wander. He would return to serve the new Queen, wouldn't he? The Knight's allegiance lasted longer than the reign of one ruler.

Perhaps Vespa was wrong, and the Hive would not be killed so quickly.

“average person eats 3 spiders a year” factoid actualy just statistical error. average person eats 0 spiders per year. Spiders Georg, who lives in cave & eats over 10,000 each day, is an outlier adn should not have been counted

It has only been five hours,

transgender autistic swag bracket!!

inspired by this tweet:

rules/info:

they don’t have to be canonically trans nor canonically autistic. they just have to have the vibes.

you can submit as many characters as you would like but only one submission per person per character

the bracket will be seeded so that the character with the most submissions goes up against the least and so forth. this is to keep it from being the most epic showdown ever in the first round and then super anticlimactic in the finals

no real people. you’re welcome to submit them and give your reasoning to make me laugh but they won’t end up in the bracket.

no harry potter characters or mcyt. this is just a personal boundary as the person making the bracket.

don’t be a dick. this is all for fun and games. i will block liberally if i need to.

give me your reasoning!! it doesn’t affect the likelihood of them getting win, it’s just fun

propaganda allowed and encouraged!! you can send an ask with it, submit it, or tag me in it! it’ll be under #trans autistic swag propaganda

no characters are automatically included but there are many characters i’m hoping will make it in and i’m excited to see who y’all submit!!

this isn’t just for binary characters, nonbinary characters are encouraged. also let’s try and get some good transfem rep/headcanons in here. we can do it.

i might add more rules. this is my first time running a bracket so be patient with me.

google form for submission will be posted tomorrow!!

inspired by under the cut

thank you for the inspiration @goldenretrieverguybracket @eldest-sibling-tournament @nicejewishcharactershowdown @firefighterbracket @cringefaillosersummit @meangirlbracket @noncanongayestbitchestournament and many more, im too lazy to tag them all.

special shoutout to @tboyswag @chemicaljacketslut for their inspiring brackets from before the poll feature

Verdant and Skitter for @lunchbagboi

ye

so apparently some people feel like it’s annoying when someone engages with a lot of stuff from the same person, like going through their ship tag and liking all the content there. 

hearing about this, i was immediately paranoid about reblogging literally anything from anyone i don’t talk to on a regular basis.

so to save others from the same paranoia, i’m gonna say that if you like every single post on my goddamn blog it is okay. i might be kind of concerned about your level of time management, going through 23,000 posts, but it wouldn’t bother me. 

~Mostly Mollusk~

Part 1 - Part 2 Here - Part 3

Settlements.

Coastal Cities

-Taranoake 

“Bay-City”

A bustling town of bugs and sea bugs, basking in the warmth of the sun.

--Architecture

There are eight main areas of Taranoake to consider: The Gates, Jellyfish Bay, The Outpost, The Colosseum of Ven, The Cast Shell Pit, The Agora, Fort Taranoake, and Training Grounds.

---The Gates

Sandswept driftwood gates with rope tied end to end, dunes collecting around the poles. While nowadays most travellers enter from the Wayward Path, this used to be the main entrance to the city.

Near this area lie shimmering, indigo clam-shell mosaics bearing written welcomes to any who venture into Taranoake.

---Jellyfish Bay

Resting in the center of Taranoake lies Jellyfish Bay, a large pool of water where most of the city's vegetation is grown, for the few among us off put by the idea of eating their fallen friends--or for anyone else in need of a seaweed salad.

---The Outpost

A sight for sore eyes, the travellers off the eastern Path come here to rest after long journeys, beckoned forth by the golden shell beacon perched at its peak. It's an inn of sorts, though without any true owner and rarely caretaker--the denizens here are expected to clean up themselves after they leave, unless of course they die prior.

North of this area rests the skeletal husk of a long-dead beast draped with overgrown seaweed and surrounded by serrated shell, named by locals The Thorns.

---The Colosseum of Ven

Witness grand fights to the death... and maybe even receive a free snack afterwards! Here at the Colosseum, gladiator-fools engage in perilous combat for the glory of battle and the favor of their God of life and death. While victors and any other survivors simply live to see another day, the fallen are consumed by their brethren as it is most honorable to benefit your society even after death.

South of the building the barracks can be found. Connected by a few short tunnels, the room is where fighters rest between battles. Like the main area this place is not short of green blood--many are too stubborn to anticipate combat for long, rather wishing to get back into the fight before a chance to heal up.

---The Cast Shell Pit

After their carapace is judged as unsafe and the previous...owner ill, a corpse may be tossed into the hole with not much thought. It is a mourned soul who is infected in such a way that they can no longer benefit their society. Resting over the mass grave a long shrub has recently planted itself, growing through the sand and gaining worship as an omen of the green god Ven: The Guardian of The Dead, Pando, was formed after the town collectively decided that the tree was in some way sacred.

The pit was meant to contain The Thorns, until it was realized the body was too big to move, relieving the hole of its actual purpose.

---The Agora

Need food? Water? Weapon and shell? Dead bodies? We’ll look no further than The Agora. Overlooking Jellyfish Bay, the city's glorious marketplace has everything you might need after a long day of travel! Visit one of the many vendors for a wide variety of goods and perhaps a conversation, while you're at it.

---Fort Taranoake

Despite its militaristic and intimidating exterior, Fort Taranoake is where the citizens of this lovely town reside. Many call it home nestled within these walls, surrounded by banners and children attempting to scale the walls to reach The Acorn that washed ashore so many seasons ago, the symbol that few but the oldest clam remember.

---The Training Grounds

Some looking to compete in the colosseum, some wanting to travel the world, none having any idea how to fight, many outsiders and citizens alike come to train here. Despite the obvious, combat is not the only class. Students are taught how to forage food, how to learn from their surroundings, how to prepare a meal or subsist off of shells, how to survive the land inside and out of the supposed safety of the city. Regardless of ability, spending some time here could benefit even a champion gladiator or seasoned explorer.

-Citadell 

“Basins-City, Quiet Citadell”

A quiet city along the shore, hidden from aerial view and predators among the tides. 

--Architecture

The city consists of nine bays fading into deep holes, being primarily underground. Rooms are chiseled through the sides of the craters, and platforms are set outside connecting each entry, used as catwalks on low tide and decks at high. In the former case, tarps and stalls can be seen set up on the basins, packing up when the water reaches the third bay and the other areas are soon to follow.

---Six Basins

The holes in which most of the city’s traffic takes place, and rooms are placed around. They can be likened to plazas, and while The Archives has the general layout of a Basin it is considered a room instead.

Notable rooms include:

Woodworker’s Association, Second Basin

Noctiluca Cafe, Second Basin

Kritto’s Stall, Fourth Basin

The Archives, Fifth Basin

H.C. Labs, Sixth Basin

Interconnecting each basin lie series of alleyways where, at the lowest levels, the bioluminescent and edible mosses and algaes are grown, and where the sea-dwelling citizens make their homes. The bugs who cannot live in water are restricted to anywhere else, as the tunnels are drenched no matter the tides, carefully irrigated in a way so as not to flood the plazas.

---The Archives

A massive library carved into the sand, connected through pathway to the fifth basin. Unlike the rest of the caves, the roof is solid, arching over the area and carefully protecting the shell tablets inside from the sun. It is by far the largest room dedicated to one purpose.

---Bellows

A giant, translucent green object with salmon shells placed inside, settled on the sands above the cliffs. When the winds blow strongest, the interior howls and the sounds of the shells rattle through the city, marking the shift in tides.

-Renin

A small, long-hidden ghost town, with merely a sole original occupant. This “town” is composed of dozens of burrowed tunnels and sand statues crudely shaped to resemble frogs.

--Architecture

A labyrinth of tunnels and caves, most filled with fake furniture lining areas that give the whole place an uneasy feel. The whole town is full of cobwebs--and sand lumped together in a vague impression of frogs.

---The Ponds

Three slowly eroding caves towards the bottom of Renin, full of salt water and uninhabitable for frogs.

---Housing

Plenty of sand and rocks shaped into the makings of homes are scattered all around this place, most looking like they haven’t been used in years.

Marine Structures and Settlements

-Kelsik

A town of sea slugs, residing much closer to the water's surface than most other settlements inhabited by the purely-aquatic creatures. Homes are fashioned out of the large shells of other mollusks, and foliage is carefully tended to in the form of rows of seaweed. It's small in that all the villagers know each other well, and travellers are warmly welcomed.

While the population mostly consists of marine gastropods, crustaceans have a history with the town, where a few choose to make their home.

-Cranton's Abode

A driftwood hut pulled together neatly by twine, circled around one side by rocks placed in the formation of a sort of patio, where the work of the lone-though-not-lonely shrimp Cranton unfolds. He's something of a traveller--and scavenger--himself, so despite fire not being an option underseas, his food still manages to be the best of any you'd find this side of the Cities.

-Anemone Reefs

A cluster of inert cnidarians far from the surface, corals scattered through despite its namesake.

In the center of the well-protected forest lies a clearing, where two nudibranch siblings have chosen to make their home.

-The Ruins

A collocation of objects that appear to be more of the strange white internal chitin of dead creatures, those of which terrestrial scientists lament not having more information on. About five full sets of them, just sitting at the bottom of the ocean, all relatively and inexplicably in the same area. No one has any explanation and nothing is known of them except that they must have died some time after the rest of the vertebrates, given their condition. Archeologists may not have time to learn more about these before they are completely worn away by the tide.

-Anchor

A city atop a buoy, inhabited mostly by aerial bugs, and those who can climb up from the seaweed-and-chain “stairways” drifting from surface to seafloor. Though the hard minerals did prove difficult to tunnel through, the sheer size and the natural platforms have made it worth the effort to improve.

guess who beat inscryption!

ok so i watch a lot of youtube videos about chess despite barely knowing how to play and something really funny happened on chess.com which is the site people go to to play chess online

basically they have a bunch of chess bots you can choose to play against at various different power levels (~100 is total noob, ~2500 is like, mega grandmaster). and recently they released a bunch of…cat themed bots?

but the noteworthy one is the cosmic horror known as Mittens.

Mittens has a listed power level of 1. However, that is a deception. Mittens is actually incredibly powerful, defeating top players with ease, and actually holding his own against the most powerful chess bots in existence.

also he sends you these weird messages like

absolutely wild