Stopping Time

What inspired the spirits in your wip?

Thank you for the ask! Sorry I'm a bit late responding. It's been a crazy week.

I had a mythology book when I was young, and it had stories from various cultures. Several stories discussed the veil between the spirit world and reality and how it would become thin during all hallows eve. Additionally, there was always the potential for things to slip through cracks in the veil if they weren't too powerful.

The idea in mythologies that natural phenomena and fluctuating conditions were due to invisible interference from higher powers gave me the idea to have them fight every 500 or so years to explain seasons of prosperity and destruction in the world.

With all of that in mind, I divided the spirit's into 8 great spirits representing earth, wind,fire, and water for both chaotic and good. Under them are other spirits who are either weaker or overall uninterested in the conflict.

I originally had designed one creature known as Null to be the only supernatural being that I focused on, but once the others came into play I knew that he needed to be incorporated in an off the wall manner to fit his character. So I them made it that if a spirit of similar element was killed before the 500 years, then the one who killed them had to take their place. With that in motion, it was only a matter of making Null a glutton who had no interest in spirit politics, then I had him "accidentally" eat the light water spirit right before the 500 years were up again.

Null was the original base of the entire story, so in everything, I needed him to be preserved. As for where he came from... I used to play a mobile game called The Battle Cats and he was inspired by a combination of different creatures in that. (They have something pretty fun character designs in it) Another point in the early draft if the story was that he would pop up I random places appearing as an inosenct animal at first before distorting his features and revealing his pseudo humanoid form playing into his chaotic side.

Thanks again for the ask!

Two of the inspirations for his main design.

Hypothetical scenario

Your OC's come to life, which oc are you terrified of ? Who are they?

Thank you so much for the ask Wyked! Sorry for the late responce.

I was thinking about this for a while, and I tried to reason that It might be someone from my main WIP, but really, when I laid all the facts out, I would be most terrified of Null.

Null is a chaotic spirit driven by his hunger and twisted nature from a WIP that likes to pop up in my head every now and again. I’ve tried writing it about three times, but when I get several chapters in the story, it always just feels wrong. Anyway…

To give some background for the story, there are 8 great spirits, 4 focused on creation, and 4 focused on distraction with a multitude of lower spirits for each type. Every 3-5 centuries a battle of sorts is held between them using chosen vessels (Humans who are compatible with specific spirit power) to determine which set of spirits is locked away into the spirit realm and which is left to mold the world to their whims.

Less significant spirits of either side can slip through the cracks and make it into the world despite their alignment. Null, being one such creature, came to the world following his drive for food and stumbled upon the creation spirit representing water. Since it was resting, Null was able to eat the great spirit. Long story short, he ended up with the Great Spirits' role in the next conflict and had to seek out a vessel that could withstand his dual nature or suffer in the spirit realm with no hope of food if he failed.

If he popped into this world, he would litterally have a feild day eating anything he could get his mits on. If he had any idea that I was responsible for some of the things that had happened to him, then I would not meet with a swift end.

An illustration below the cut off

@kuebiko-writing Thanks for the tag! I'm not sure if I'm doing this right, but here we go.

My favorite books to read are about messed up people trying to be better for either themselves or for someone important to them, while everyone expects the worst of them, and the world just decides that it has no intention of giving them a break.

My favorite books as a writer (that I attempt to write)....

Honestly, it's hard to boil what I like to write down to a favorite, but I do enjoy writing stories about people who have been dragged into bad situations and try to keep their lives and sanity intact with varying levels of success. Not everything works out for them, but sometimes I give them nice things.

I have a question for everyone who would like to answer:

What are your favorite books as a reader and what are your favorite books as a writer?

Beautiful Things

@flashfictionfridayofficial prompt

Summary: A snippet of lore for the story I have been attempting to write. Pulling back from a crazy world, is it any suprise that the universe could be just as odd?

He’d watched over the small egg for millennia, protecting it from harm. It hadn’t been the only one. It was just the one that had yet to hatch. As the centuries passed and the number of guardians slowly dwindled, *** had chosen to stay. They had warned him that if the little one could not break its shell, then it could not last in the expanse, that its light was not worth protecting. *** had stayed silent and watched the other newborns hatch one by one, following the guardians into the expanse of space to learn of the universe and their place in it.

Guardians labeled him foolish while retreating, but *** waited for the child to form. He could hear the growing heartbeat through the shell getting slightly louder with every passing century until it was just as strong as the others who had hatched before it. Then he could feel its will and knew the child should have been strong enough to break its prison, but still, it did not act. After waiting for a century more, *** pressed his conscious forward to question the child. He asked if it required help breaking the shell.

While guardians were forbidden to interfere with the hatching, *** had been helped as a newborn, and he would not let this newborn rot because of tradition. Even through the shell *** could feel that despite what the others had said, this little one’s light would be something truly beautiful.

{I don’t want to go… I love these creatures too much to destroy them.}

Its voice was stronger than he had expected, but *** understood the newborn’s conviction. The creatures that lived on the surface of its egg were fragile beings that would not survive the hatching process. He’d watched countless species destroyed that way as he sat among the dying husks of empires.

Reaching out again, *** warned the newborn that if it did not hatch after developing, then it would surely parish. Then, after rotting, it would lead to the death of the creatures that it cared so deeply for. They had good lives, and they had been given millennia to grow and experience so much. *** explained that this was simply the conclusion of their natural existence, but he could feel that the newborn’s conviction did not waver.

{No… I have heard their song and it is too beautiful to be lost, so I will give them what time I can until my end comes.}

*** frowned and reached out a finger boring deep into the surface of the egg. If the newborn felt so strongly, then there was another way, but it would have to commit to a lesser form until it had seen the terrifying nature of the song that it longed to protect.

Pulling back, *** caught a glimpse of the newborn’s light through the opening he had formed and knew he could no longer watch the child if he wanted to respect its wishes. Without him, the newborn would be alone for the first time in its existence, and *** shed tears, which fell like stars smoldering in their dissent. *** knew its light would have been the most precious to behold, but its memory would have to be his alone.

{Thank you}

Something Shiny

Thanks for the tag, @flashfictionfridayofficial

Warnings: mild body horror, altered mental states, mild nudity (nothing too explicit, but I figured I should mention it)

Wren watched in quiet longing as the carriage grew smaller in the half light until it was nothing but a dull glimmer in the distance. They’d rejected her again. She’d been so good too, doing all of the chores and following every rule down to the letter, but it wasn’t enough.

 Looking down at her ruined dress, it felt foolish to have hoped things would end differently this time. If she had just stayed quiet then perhaps her sister’s dress could have at least been spared, but this of all event had just been too tempting to not at least ask. Was it so bad for her to have fun sometimes? She had proven that she could behave, and it wasn’t like she wanted to see a stupid prince anyway. Watching the glittering stones dance across people’s throats was all the entertainment she’d need for at least three months, and maybe if she was lucky someone might lose a sliver that she could find, and add to her meager collection. 

Pulling out her string and needles, Wren picked up the nearest torn shirt and began to mend the shoulder. Her family wouldn’t be back until morning, so there wouldn’t be any music to spy tonight. As she tried to focus on the work in front of her, the silence grew to a suffocating pitch. Moonlight washed over her, bringing with it the glint of something shiny in the distance. 

A plume of feathers burst from her skin and colors began to shift as a thick film slid over her eyes. Her ears twitched as an obsession began brewing in her mind. Since her collection had been plundered months ago, the scraps she’d managed to gather were less than spectacular. She could finish up her mending, but working distracted was a fool's errand and it wasn’t like mother expected her to finish the work this evening. 

Pulling out some extra clothes that she had held back from the last batch of mending, Wren packed away the unfinished pieces before her wings burst through the torn back of her dress, scattering the old silk across the attic. Feathers ruffling in anticipation, Wren flung open the window. Gripping the frame, her fingers twisted into talons as she took in a deep breath free from restraint.

 Jumping from her window, Wren dropped down the side of the moat before allowing her wings to unfurl and lift her soaring into the air. Her flight feathers hadn’t completely recovered from the last pruning, but she’d been careful to avoid flying around her step sisters anymore, so they were starting to forget again. 

Wren let out shrieks of excitement as the world flew past her in a blur of dazzling color, lit by the moonlight overhead. Catching a draft of air, Wren rose higher into the air, allowing moonlight to bathe her before plunging down to land on her prize. Tackling the lone figure she pinned its limbs with her talons and plucked a pretty stone from its throat. Examining it closely she gave a trill of excitement before pulling away.

“Pretty! Can I trade you for it?”

Not one to completely forget her manors too easily, Wren pulled one of her finest feathers out, presenting it to the stranger who was now sitting on the ground, stunned. 

“Sure?”

Quickly gripping her prize, Wren handed over payment and perched on the edge of the water enamored by the strange stone she’d bartered for. It wasn’t that she was surprised by her triumph, her negotiations were impeccable. It was more that she had only parted with one of her shining feathers, when she had been prepared to go up to three. It made the trade even more thrilling. 

“Take good care of it, I spent many hours caring for that one, It’s good luck you know?”

Wren soon found that her upselling wasn't necessary, as her trade partner, a man in leather armor, seemed just as enamored with her feather as she was with her stone.  On closer inspection, he seemed to have some strange weapons at his side. Was he some type of hunter perhaps? 

Remembering her sister’s warnings of such folk, Wren remained calm, giving the man a friendly wave before taking off into the sky. She didn’t bother to look back, knowing that even if he could draw his bow in time, she’d be well out of range before he could notch an arrow. If he had tried to strike earlier, her talons would have made quick work of him, and then she could have her stone, feather, and a meal. While her mouth started to water at the thought of a snack, her step mother would definitely know she’d fed. Wren shuddered at the possibility of losing her flight feathers again and quickly returned as the moon was setting, determined that this little distraction wouldn’t upset things too much. 

Character Profile Tag: Billy

Thanks for the tag @creatrackers I had a lot of fun with this one. Sorry I'm so late getting it finished.

Full name: Billy, Shepard of the Blue Moon

Age: 4045 yrs

Gender: male

Species: Forest Guardian

Appearance: Standing at around 5'10 when fully upright, Billy is a mass of foliage and wood in the shape of a man, he appears to have a large beard made of ferns and wears a bone mask over the top of his face showing a pair of deep purple eyes.

Occupation: (Formerly) Shepard of the Blue Moon Valley. (Current) An initially reluctant member of a certain rogue squad of misfits.

Family: Forest guardian's are formed when a prior guardian is about to die or reaches their 4th millennia. In the first and much rarer case, when a forest guardian is about to die through unnatural means, they can split their core and send it into the ground for a 100 years to preserve the natural power. After the time elapses another forest guardian is formed from the core which has by this point re-fused. In Billy's case his predecessors' core did not fuze back and formed two separate Forest Guardian's. So he has one sibling named Jade, but they had their own paths and did not meet often after reaching adulthood. As for found family he has been adopted into the main squad by MA who isn't one to take no for an answer when it comes to strays.

Best friend: He gets along with most of the main squad fairly well (baring Ember), but he has a stronger connection to Hati since the mechanic was instrumental in making his more effective means of re-vitalizing nature. In turn he helps to keep Hati's unstable inventions from falling apart.

Pets: He has no pets and he prefers the company of plants.

Describe their room: (Former) A thick forest with lush foliage and a balanced echo system, it was his pride and joy. (Current) The back of a 6 passenger roofless (Stollen) military vehicle that is one bump away from falling to pieces, the one perk being a flood light that he can use to help get some 'sun' on the smog covered battlefields.

Items in their bag/purse: Assorted seeds and a copy of a half burned political thriller that he picked up somewhere along the road.

Hobbies: horticulture, reading, and hunting down particularly noteworthy offenders to the natural order.

Favorite sport: shooting

Abilities/talents/powers: As a forest guardian he has the ability to accelerate the natural progression and evolution of plants and animals. He is also able to levi an amount of control over natural things even partially extending to the human body unlike most of his species that mainly have this power over plants or animals. He is a skilled marksmen, and amateur engineer thanks to his friendship with Hati.

Relationships: He isn't and has not been in a romantic relationship before. As a Forest Guardian he doesn't particularly have any dive for connection. He does enjoy his friendships with most of the squad more than he had expected he would, but never felt the need to pursue anything further.

Fears: burning alive, watching his forests burn, fire, not being a worthy predecessor, and his squad dying unnaturally.

Faults: He is Stubborn, and doesn't tell people about his problems usually leading to avoidable consequences.

Good points: He is loyal and considerate.

What they want more than anything else: To re-establish the forests that were devastated and to watch over his squad so that they can live full and happy lives (Even Ember).

No pressure tagging:

@renasdoodles @kuebiko-writing @davycoquette ,

@wyked-ao3 @somethingclevermahogony @boomiburst @lyutenw ,

+Open Tag

Questions to copy:

Full name: Age: Gender: Species: Appearance: Occupation: Family: Best friend: Pets: Describe their room: Items in their bag/purse: Hobbies: Favourite sport: Abilities/talents/powers: Relationships: Fears: Faults: Good points: What they want more than anything else:

Thanks for the tag @the-archivist-14

My Goodle Docs have only gotten more cluttered since Tabs became a thing....

Original Works. (They have suffered so much this year 😭)

Bloodmage

Coral Crown Adjacent

Company

Absolute Zero

Usually, don't post much about my fics on the main, but I figured that I would just put thease here for convenience (not just because they have been draining most of my creativity 🫠)

Most of thease haven't been posted and are in the editing phase 🙃

Fan Fiction

Shadows of the Past

Bear and Jaguar

Was it Personal?

The Awakening

A letter from Aubrey

Broken Bones

An Unexpected Guest

Dropping Bodies

D6 Mine

Another world

Revenge

Frozen Posion

Tinker

Again

The King and His Fairy

Dbd Work in Progress

The Adventures of Strum

Bounty Hunter

No pressure tagging @wyked-ao3 @renawriter @kuebiko-writing @renawriter @aalinaaaaaa

+open tag

Got tagged by @punchspeedchunk ~ thank you~

Rules are: Post the names of all the files in your WIP folder, regardless of how non-descriptive or ridiculous. Let people send you an ask with the title that most intrigues them, and then post a little snippet or tell them something about it!

I'm afraid there's not really much new for WIPs since I last played this game in December, but at least I've made progress on the WIPs! (these are all Fantasy High fics)

Vampire!Riz (finished, waiting for beta)

Fabian is Rapunzel

Sated

It's Never Fantasy Lupus (finished, waiting for beta)

It's All Fucked Up

Omega-Ace: Vitharon

Romeo & Juliet but There's a Mystery

Torture AU

You Can't be Here

Call My Name pt 1: The Sweetest Sound (finished but waiting for other WIPs before I release it)

Call My Name pt2: A Rose by Any Other Name

Hobbert's Mint

Sune's Sexiest Person of the Year

Fabian's Fetish

Jumper/Knitwits

Fatherhood

Withdrawl

Why Aren't You Here?

tagging: @stellarcider @nonbeanary98 @the-archivist-14 @alfalfairy @aloofturtles-blog

If I follow you and you're writer and I forgot to tag you, I'm very sorry!

Last Line Tag

Thanks for the tag @kuebiko-writing

Sorry for the late response.

This is just a bit of my little bloodmage WIP giving a bit of perspective on Billy's motivations

Forest Guardian’s were, above all else, the protectors of nature and were often referred to as its shepherds. Long had they used their power and gile to protect their flock. That had been fine when the humans still held reverence for the sacred, but as that reverence faded, humans had changed. They become far too dangerous to rely on traditional methods. Defeat after defeat forced the shepherds to evolve, and Billy had been no different.

Handing his staff over to the strange human he watched as the living wood of his shepherds crook was twisted into a more fitting tool, no not just a tool, this thing was a weapon that he would use to sow vengeance.

No pressure tags: @kuebiko-writing @renasdoodles @davycoquette @flurrysahin ,

@literally-just-zay @creatrackers @somethingclevermahogony + open tag

(Let me know if you want to be taken off the tag list)

@flashfictionfridayofficial

100th Anniversary

We return to Luis and Jade to take a peek at an important milestone in their relationship.

Story Warning: Mentions of forced mutation, violence, and a bit of self-deprication.

When the Blood Crystal was first embedded in his heart, Luis had been filled with so many emotions that it had paralyzed him. At some point during his transformation, many of those feelings had withered into husks. The only one that he was able to maintain past the pain was an all-consuming anger. Without anything to hold him back, like all of the first Bloodmages around him, Luis channeled that anger into power, destroying anything that stood in his way.

His anger burned the brightest of them all. It burned through his entire being, leaving nothing but a monster driven by destruction.

Humming absently, Luis ran his hands through Jade's hair in a calming motion while glancing down at the strange little clock she had offered to him earlier. She had gotten the idea because of some silly little comment he had made after she pulled him back from an attack, and as embarrassing as that had been, he enjoyed the gifts.

As he was considering when to give her his gift, Jade suddenly pulled away from him, and Luis quickly untangled his fingers from her hair.

“I have something extra special for you dear.”

"Love, you already gave me a gift."

Taking a moment to reach out and gently grip Jade's hand, Luis smiled reassuringly at her. It was a big day for both of them, but her sudden outburst took him a bit by surprise.

"No, this gift is a special gift. You get too lonely while I am away, and I wish to hunt without worry."

As straightforward as ever, she would worry about a monster like him getting lonely. Jade produced a small box from somewhere in her hair and presented it to Luis with a beam of pride.

He could feel her energy pulsing from the object even through the box. Gently prying the box open revealed a set of green earrings that filled his mind with the forest as he touched them. A small chuckle escaped him as he felt the box in his own pocket grow heavy, to think she would have the same idea on their 100th anniversary.

“What am I to do with you Love?”

Nuzzling his chin affectionately, she picked up the stones and carefully put them into his ears with too much care for a creature of her power. Once she was sure they were in place, Jade pulled back beaming with excitement. Luis froze as he took in the energy. This was a part of her. They were connected in so many ways, but this one was different. He could feel her heart beating softly if he focused on the earrings.

A burst of emotion boiled over in his chest, and he leaned over, kissing her on the cheek. Now was as good a time as any to give his gift, so Luis stood to his feet and carefully presented his own gift with a sheepish grin. Despite being late to present his gift, Jade’s ears twitched with interest as he opened the box revealing a pair of blood red crystals he had spent months crafting so that they would be just right for her.

“Dear, you could have hurt yourself again!”

She held him close for a moment before pulling away to inspect him carefully. After inspecting him for any signs of injury, Jade seemed satisfied that he was okay and leaned down, letting him put the earrings in. Standing still for a moment, Jade suddenly began to purr with excitement as she felt his heartbeat.

“I will delay my hunt for the time being.”

Cooing affectionately, Jade settled back onto the couch, pulling Luis into her embrace.

She had given him hope, and Luis was finally looking forward to living out his extended life. The pain of his past was long gone now, just a fluttering memory that held little significance. Even if he had bad days, Luis had what none of his kind should have been granted, hope. Today was another gift that he didn’t deserve, but he couldn’t help but be greedy when it came to his Love.