ok so this is another long shot but a few years ago there was a twitter post (in japanese i think?) that had measurememts for how to make this book stand thing out of cardboard that you could use to double up books and use up more space on shelves
back then i made a bunch of these but by now i lost the pic and dont know how to find the original post anymore
if it comes down to it i can just take one apart and get the measurements from there but i would be very grateful if anyone happens to have the original post or something similar??
don't mind how long it's been since i made this post, anyway i realized that i don't even need to take one apart to get the measurements when i can literally just unfold it and refold it /FACEPALM
so anyway here is the diagram for anyone else who is interested!!
this requires pretty big carboard pieces, if you have a really big box or something you can make it from one piece, but if you don't, you can also just make each of the pieces individually and then tape them together
and then in the end you put it together like this!!
and then when you make a bunch you can put them all next to each other and stack your books like crazy
EVERYONE START GETTING MORE USE OUT OF YOUR SPACE NOW!!!!
âI would die for youâ âI would kill for youâ
I would be gentle for you. I would change my nature for you. I would communicate for you. I would not listen to my impulses for you. I would bring down the walls and unclench my fists for you.
I would hold you and put you at ease until I felt the tenseness on your shoulders finally relax. I would protect you and care for you both. I would do whatever it takes because youâre mine. And you deserve all the softness you never got before. I would be your solace when you do not have any. The world is cruel, therefore I shall not be. For you.
Warnings: Body Horror, Gore, Graphic Depiction of Someone Transforming into a Creature (see body horror), Mild Blood (surprising lack of blood for a Doom Fic), If I missed any please let me know!
Part One: The Hurt
Derrin had woken up with a rather nasty headache but as much as he would've liked to have gone back to bed, the ARC couldn't afford to have people calling in with migraines. Not with Hell banging down on their door. So with a swig of water and a migraine pill Derrin made his way down to the main laboratory to start his shift, on the way, being asked by several coworkers if he was feeling alright. Apparently it wasn't just his head that felt like shit.
About 4 hours in Derrin had already drank five bottles of water and downed another migraine pill, but they did little to relieve the pain. He was about to ask one of his supervisors if he could go to medical to get checked out when an announcement rang out over the intercom.
"Alert, Doom Slayer detected in the immediate area. Please proceed with caution."
A quiet murmur rippled across the room as people began to talk once more. Derrin remembered Dr. Hayden mentioning that he expected the Slayer to come in search of the Demonic Crucible. If that was the case⊠maybe he could tough out this headache a little bit longer. He really wanted to meet the Doom Slayer.
"Hey Derrin, you doing alright?" one of his fellow researchers asked, he couldn't tell who, his head felt like it was spinning.
"What? Oh, yeah, I'm doing fine." the intern mumbled "Just a little headache, I'll be fine,"
"Alert, the Doom Slayer has entered the facility. Alert, the Doom Slayer has entered the facility. Please commence evacuation in an orderly fashion."
'This is it' Derrin thought and panicked murmurs rippled throughout the staff. Derrin began to make his way to the Crucible's holding cell, stumbling a couple of times along the way. His headache was getting worse by the minute, maybe he should've gone to medical. But if he had, then whe wouldn't have gotten to witness the Hellwalker step forth from the elevator and approach the intern and the crucible.
"It's him⊠I-I mean Dr. Hayden said you'd be coming for this sooner or later" The intern stammered, trying his best not to look or sound like he was about to pass out as the behemoth of a man pulled the Demonic Crucible from it's cell. He was so close to the man that Derrin could actually see through the dark blue visor, even catching a flicker of concern when the Slayer spotted how pale Derrin had become before making his way to the next room.
The intern began to follow but stumbled as his legs started to give out. Derrin hit the railing hard, letting out a sputtering grunt as the wind was knocked out of him. A firm grip helped the young man to his feet as the Slayer let Derrin brace himself against his arm. His bones were aching, and Derrin let out a small whimper of pain as his head felt like it was about to split in two. Everything felt blurry and the intern could barely make out what people were saying as the Slayer helped him up the stairs.
"Mmm sorryâŠ" he mumbled out as the Slayer sat him down on a bench. His bones were aching and the sound of his heart was like a thundering drum in his ears.
"I-" the inter began to croak out before he fell to the floor, nails digging into his scalp as his face twisted and contorted in pain. His muscles twitched and spasmed and he could feel the pressure on his bones building until the eventually snapped and the intern began to scream.
The Doom Slayer began backing away as the ARC personnel began to run from the room as the man he had just helped began to writhe on the floor in pain. Sure, he knew that people could turn into demons, but he was still startled by it all. He wanted to put the poor guy out of his misery, but he also needed to maker sure that bucket of bolts doesn't get destroyed if things get hairy.
Slayer unceremoniously ripped the cyborg from his chassis as he pinged Vega for a portal, the former ARC intern now howling in agony. Fuck, he couldn't take it anymore. He needed to put the thing out of it's misery.
Derrin could feel his skin tearing itself apart and flesh parted aside as his bones continued to snap and mend only to snap again, doubling in size and length. His spine felt like though it were being ripped from his body and pulled apart as old vertebra were pushed out like baby teeth by new larger vertebra. Nerves burned like he'd been set alight from the rapidly growing skin and flesh that began to cover him, sheets of his old self sloughing off as the evisceration was outpaced by the rebirth. But all of that paled in comparison to the sheer agony from his face splitting open.
His voice warbled from human screaming to a more primal wail, his throat growing sore from the near constant howling. The intern could feel his teeth shifting to and fro and his jaw broke and widened to fit his new more monstrous teeth. Derrin's glasses grew tighter and tighter before snapping in half as skull began to split and heal like the rest of his bones had done moments before. Though slowly but surely the pain began to dull and the hammering of his heart began to die down as his transformation came to its end.
The former intern took deep gasping breaths that burned his now tender throat and lungs. A deafening silence falling over the poor man broken only by the sound of a shotgun being racked. Derrin whimpered as he came to the realization of what was about to happen and curled in on himself as the cold barrel of the gun rested on his head, the blades of the meathook starting to dig into the still tender flesh. The former human let out one last whimper before bracing himself for the end. But it never came.
Derrin could hear the Slayer's grip on the shotgun tighten before the gun was pulled away. His heart was in his throat again. Why hasn't he killed him yet? Was he waiting for Derrin to make the first move? Did he pity him enough to let him go? No it couldn't be that, he'd never let a demon just go free right? He was a demon⊠right? His ears twitched as he heard the slayer kneel down next to the former man. Wait, his ears could twitch? Derrin's confusion was quickly replaced with pain as the Slayer's hand fell heavy on his shoulder once more. The former intern hissed in pain as pain shot across his still tender and he felt something long attached to his spine lash out side to side, causing even more pain across his nervous system.
'I'm getting soft' The Slayer thought to himself as he holstered the SSG and knelt down beside the former human. Viscera and torn clothes pilled around it's now larger body. If he were to wager a guess the once five foot six man was now around the same hight as a hell knight, maybe even a bit larger. He could hear the poor thing whimpering as he had approached, they both knew what he'd became and Slayer could only imagine the anguish the former human was feeling in his final moments of lucidity. He didn't even know the poor guy's name, he had glanced at his name tag while he was helping him to the bench, but it was just a series of numbers. And in an attempt to offer comfort in the beast's final moments, he gently left his hand rest upon it's shoulder.
The former intern had immediately hissed at the touch, it's tail lashing out behind it as it pulled away. The Slayer hummed mournfully as he realized time was up. But before he could even stand up another portal had opened. Argent energy crackled through the air as the crimson portal wretched itself open across from the two, and a tall humanoid demon stepped out.
Metal armour clanged against itself as the demon approached. Its torso nearly bare, save for half a breastplate, the atlan port pulsing in tandem with its tainted heart that pumped rotten blood through purple spidering veins that cut through its pale ashy skin. Two great curved horns protruded from atop its gaunt skull, another pair framing the muzzle like guard obscuring its mouth as it spoke.
"You were never one of us." its voice heavy and metallic as it dragged its argent ax across the floor "You were nothing but a usurper, a false idol who blinded us. But my eyes have been opened. Let me help you to see, Slayer." The Marauder spat, casting a shower of sparks as it readied its weapon and challenged the beast.
The Doom Slayer charged forth, having switched to his ballista and fired a shot. The Marauder deflected it with its shield before dispersing it and lunging forth with its ax, its eyes burning green with fury. The Slayer just barely dodging only to fire his shotgun into the demons back before dodging again as it returned the action in kind. The two continued their dance of death as Derrin looked on. Fire, block, dodge, fire, dodge, then block again. The two moved about the room like a hurricane of iron and plasma.
The Slayer had been distracted by a pack of imps that joined the fray when a blazing spectral hound burst forth from the Marauder, barreling towards the unsuspecting Hellwalker. That was when something stirred in Derrin, something old, something angry, something that had the human turned troll charging across the room and tearing into the hellhound. Wrath overpowering pain as he felt his teeth sink into the hounds spectral form, shattering it like glass. The beast roaring in defiance to the Marauder before charging towards it like a rabid bear.
Heavy claws slammed down on the shield as Derrin tried to shove it aside in order to tear into the demon, who was too distracted by the new assailant to notice the Slayer readying another ballista shot behind it. The force of the energy bolt sent the two flying, with the battle hardened Marauder recovering from the new formed troll. The Slayer and Marauder slammed into each other as Derrin regained his breath.
"Your honor and duty mean nothing!" the demon spat "Only pain matters now." It continued as it bashed its shotgun into the Slayers head and kicked him across the floor before turning its attention back to Derrin. It fired a shot, it hit, but the beast Derrin had become did not stop as teeth clamped down on its horn.
An ax to the chest finally sent the message to his brain that Derrin was hurting, hard.
"And you.." the demon growled as it kicked him onto his back and started to press the argent axe into his chest. "Your end shall not be quick."
An enraged roar shook the room as the Doom Slayer barreled towards them, Doomblade extended and a look of pure rage in his eyes. Another hound was sent only for it to be sliced in half by the Hellwalker. The shield, shattered like glass against his fist. The Marauder only had one chance to shoot at the Doom Slayer only for his hand to crushed in Derrin's jaws and the Doomblade rammed through is skull.
The Marauder dropped to the floor with a heavy thud, dark blood seeping from its wounds. Its ax sputters a few times before going out like a light. The former intern breathing heavily as the stench of his own burnt flesh and hair permeates his nose. His head is ringing again, this time from being slammed into the ground twice, and he can barely keep his head up long enough to look at the Slayer before passing out. The last thing he sees is a large drone drawing near as a blue portal opens behind it.
"Dr. Hayden has been secured. What do you wish to do with this individual?" VEGA said, his voice filtering through the comms as the music died down in Slayer's helmet.
Slayer looked to the former human who now lay unconscious at his feet. At the mercy of the Hellwalker and his companion. On one hand, he'd helped the Slayer, potentially even saving him from another trip through limbo. But on the other, he'd attacked the Marauder with such ferocity that he felt like had he not had the wind knocked out of him by the ballista, he would've killed the Marauder on his own. That was a terrifying amount of rage, an amount he was all too familiar with.
"I do not detect any significant amounts of Argent Energy in his body aside from the residual energy from the Marauder's ax. I do not believe he is a demon if that is what you're worried about. But I do detect a possible concussion from the repeated head trauma."
Slayer continued to think.
"If we do not take him with us he will likely be killed by either demons or ARC personnel."
"We'll take him, I want to know what happened, want answers." The Slayer finally signed to the drone before hoisting the intern's unconscious body onto his back and carried him through the portal.
the D&D campaign I'm in just got put on hold, but I still finished up this little guy. He's the "little brother" (smallest of the three) of my character (Four Bells) and is the sweetest little goblin bard you'll ever meet.
Finally an update to the troll au! Though it's not a new chapter but a revision of the first. For those out of the loop I'm revising/rewriting the first few chapters of the fic before proceeding with chapter 4 (which might become chapter 5). Anywho onto the chapter synopsis!
After centuries imprisoned and asleep, the Doom Slayer awakens to a scenario all too familiar. Hell is once again sinking it's vicious claws into yet another world and it's up to him to stop it. Time will be of the essence if the Slayer wishes to stop this invasion before it gets any worse. From imps and gore nests to dubious old women plotting his downfall, our trollish Doom Slayer may find leaving this lab to be far more difficult than anticipated.
How long had it been since he fell asleep, how long had he been trapped in this endless⊠nothing. If he focused hard enough itâd become a greyish white almost, but other than that, it was just⊠nothing. It wasnât dark, it wasnât light, it wasnât heaven, it wasnât hell, it was just nothing. Was this what death felt like when neither Heaven nor Hell wanted someone? He couldnât feel much, it was like that kind of numbness where if you focus hard enough your hand starts getting cold. But for the Slayer it felt like thousands of tiny imps crawling all over him, their little claws stabbing into him like needles.
Sometimes heâd recognize the things he saw, or at least he thought so. Obviously, he knew what the demons looked like, but it was the people who threw him off. Sometimes they spoke, their words garbled by the howling wind. There were a few he recognized, though he wished he didnât. Heâd try to ignore them when he could, it hurt less.
Sometimes in the nothing heâd âseeâ things out of the corner of his eye. Shapes and objects, sometimes heâd even see people or demons, but whenever heâd turn to look theyâd disappear back into the void. If he was quick enough, he was able to get to the objects before they slipped away. Other times heâd get there just as they faded away but he was still able to touch it and feel where it used to be. The people never stayed.
Sometimes heâd recognize the shapes, they were almost always things from his past; a brazier from the colosseum, a statue from the keep, a dead pinky. Sometimes heâd feel something when heâd touch them too. The warm hum of a barrier, the cool dampness of the cell wall, the sharp pain of an electric shock⊠Perhaps some memories were better left in the past.
It wasnât just things heâd see through, it was sounds too. He could never make out what they were saying, it was like trying to listen in on a conversation in the next room over while youâre falling asleep. You could recognize some voices, but it was usually too muffled for him to make out the words. Something inside him ached when he couldnât recognize a voice.
Eventually the Slayer found himself tuning out the sights and sounds of the empty nothing, the things he was seeing were starting to get less and less familiar, the voices more garbled, the guilt even stronger. At least, that was until something new happened.
He could smell something.
He hadnât realized it before, but he could never smell anything before. It wasnât something you really think about all that much. And yet, here he was, following that scent through the void. At first he couldnât tell what exactly he was smelling, but as the nothing slowly began to fade away he could pick up the familiar scent of blood, brimstone, and smoke. Soon the void around him had gone from nothing, to grey, till he eventually found himself climbing the great stone steps of that godforsaken keep. There he found a massive set of unfamiliar doors, but an all too familiar mark carved into the stone.
Pressing onwards through the heavy doors, the Doom Slayer was greeted by a pitch black room. The smell was even stronger here, like he had found the source but couldnât see it. His head was pounding and feeling was beginning to return to his body. The cold numbness fading away into a faint warmth as that familiar ache seeped back into his bones. Something sharp was digging into his wrists.
And then finally, after a millennia, he opened his eyes.
The room reeked of smoke and fresh blood. Was it his blood? Above him hung a massive stone slab, an all too familiar sigil burning bright red in the ancient stone. To his right something snarled, a zombie.
The Slayer snarled back as he tried to reach for the walking corpse but something stopped him. Spikes dug into his wrist as the metal shackle kept him chained down, but a little extra force quickly solved that issue. The zombie lunged forth and the massive clawed hand slammed down, crushing the fragile bone against the ancient stone. The corpse slumped to the floor with a dull thud as the Slayer freed his other hand from the sarcophagus. The shackles themselves were still clamped but there were more pressing things to deal with at the moment.
Rolling out of the sarcophagus, the behemoth stumbled forth, his legs unsteady after a millennia of disuse. His joints cracked as the Hellwalker stood to his full height, his head just barely scraping the ceiling above. The sound of his awakening had alerted a nearby group of zombies distracting them from the corpse of their former coworker as they shambled closer. But the zombies werenât the only ones who noticed the Slayerâs awakening.
From hidden cameras, unseen viewers watched as the Doom Slayer made quick work of the zombies. And watched as the beast stared down at the lifeless corpse in his hand, seeming to contemplate something before dropping it like the rest. A seed of concern sprouting in the mind of one of the observers.
âAre you sure about this?â
âEven if we had another choice, we wouldnât be able to contain him at this time.â
With the zombies dealt with, the Slayer was able to finally get a good look at his surroundings. The room was large and reeked of blood and smoke, an alarm was blaring from one of the adjacent rooms and the light would periodically bathe the room in a red light before plunging it back into candlelight. His sarcophagus, his prison, sat in the middle of the room in a bay of sorts. Short metal walkways allowed for access to the open sarcophagus; whoâs lid hung suspended from the ceiling by metal appendages. More metal arms draped down from the ceiling, equipped with various tools and manipulators. The sight of the equipment tickled at something deep in the back of the Hellwalkerâs mind, sending an unpleasant shiver down his spine.
Across the room from him sat a small bay window near the ceiling leading to an observation room of sorts. Blood was smeared across most of the glass, obscuring the room on the other side. Given how fresh the blood in this room was, the Doom Slayer reckoned whatever was going on had started not too long ago. Hopefully he still had time.
The Slayer spotted a large set of glass doors to his left, bright red words projected onto the glass. âLOCKEDâ. Maybe that panel by the door could help?. It was small, about the size of his palm, but still legible to the massive man.
âDOOR LOCKED, PLAY ECHOâ, curious⊠The Doom Slayer gently tapped the screen with a clawed finger and the hologram flickered to life.
An older woman walked towards the sarcophagus, a scowl written across her face as she drew near. A group of people knelt around the closed sarcophagus,oblivious to the woman and whispering prayers too quiet for even the Slayer to hear. He hated it when people acted like this, like he was someone to be worshiped, like he was some divine being and some monster desperately clinging to what humanity he had left. Not wanting to watch any longer the Slayer turned to leave when he heard the woman speak.
âItâs starting to get out of hand, if this continues heâll awaken. We have to contain thisâŠâ
Something moved in the Slayerâs peripheral as the hologram began to flicker before disappearing completely. The beast growled, something wasnât right, the stench of Hell filled the air and he was certain that woman had something to do with it. He needed to find out what was going on and how bad it was, he needed to get out of here. Finally the thick glass doors opened, the hydraulics straining as the Doom Slayer pried them open to reach the next room faster. For through the doors he could spy something of far greater use than some holograms.
There, across the room sat his armour in all its glory, embedded in a slab of stone not unlike he was moments ago. A faint grin flickered across the beast's face as he approached the old armour, pushing aside the machinery that surrounded it. Thick dark claws dug into the dark porous rock as the Hellwalker reclaimed his armour. Hellish visions flooded his mind as the scoria crumbled away and he donned his armour once more.
A massive tower of stone reaching upwards into a crimson sky, hellish energy billowing out of its core. At its base; a door emblazoned with that wretched titans skull atop three others, their eyes glowing red like the very demons they depicted. The body of a Wraith lay broken and rotting atop an altar of stone as its soul lay exposed to all of Hell, twisted into a source of their wretched power. Lastly through blinding crimson light emerges an ancient artifact; its form distant yet familiar to the Unchained Predator.
Air hissed as the Slayer finally donned his helmet, the machinery within slowly calibrating after millennia of unuse. Now that he was no longer exposed to any potential threats the Doom Slayer was able to investigate the room around him. Glancing at the screen next to him, the Slayerâs suspicions were confirmed. âDEMONIC INVASION IN PROGRESS, PLEASE SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTERâ. Gently, he slid his fingers across the screen opening a menu of sorts and after a moment he spotted the status report button and pressed it. He had been hoping to get an idea of how bad the situation was in order to start damage control, only to find that the scans were incomplete. One of the satellite arrays was down, heâd have to go out and find a way to repair it. Though that would be difficult for the goliath of a man, perhaps he could find a survivor or two to helpâŠ
Itâs Hell, everyone is probably already dead, he thought, even if there were survivors why would they ever trust something like you.
A map displaying the location of the downed array appeared onscreen. By the looks of it the satellite was close. Good, he could get the array back online and see if there were any survivors to worry about before tearing this place asunder. As he was plotting the route in his mind, the map became blocked from an incoming call. Surprised, the Slayer let the call come through. A deep reverberating voice came through the comms, they sounded⊠robotic almost.
âWelcome. Iâm Dr. Samuel Hayden. Iâm the head of this facility.â
Oh, the Slayer thought, So, youâre the one to blame for thisâŠ
âI think we can work together and resolve this problem in a way that would benefit us both.â The man continued in that strange robotic voice.
The Doom Slayer growled and grabbed the monitor, the glass and plastic cracking under the pressure before getting thrown into a nearby wall. He didnât have time for excuses, Hell was invading and there were demons to be killed. He didnât know how long it had been since this started but it was almost certain that the body count was already high. He needed to get out of this lab.
Searching the room, the Slayer spotted another, albeit smaller door just in front of him. It was a bit of a squeeze to get through the door but he managed to do so without causing too much structural damage. On the other side was a much smaller hallway meant for humans to move about the facility and not massive brutes like him. Sure it was wide enough for the Slayer to pass through but the ceiling was low and the metal catwalk groaned beneath his weight, threatening to give out at any moment.
Along the catwalk were various racks of metal canisters. Most of them were fairly tall, around the same height as a human, but were a lot wider than the typical gas canister. As the Slayer passed by some of the canisters he noticed they were marked âAB+ DM1-5â. Something felt⊠odd about the canisters but he didn't have the time, nor was he interested in finding out the contents. He didn't have time for that, he needed out of this damn facility.
Further down the walkway the Slayer spotted a small group of zombies huddled together, some tiny fragment of their humanity driving them to seek each other out⊠or they were trying to build a gore nest. But it wasn't the zombies that had caught his attention, no, it was the dark shapes moving just outside the lights of the alarm. Though the hallway was dim, the lights were just bright enough to stop his eyes from adjusting to the dark but it didn't take night vision to tell that there were imps already on the prowl.
Pushing past the undead, the Slayer made his way to the door. The catwalk groaned again, the metal growing weak from trying to hold the massive beast up, he wanted to leave but another blast door stood in his way. He was strong enough to lift it, but he knew the catwalk would surely collapse if he tried, that only left one optionâŠ
The Doom Slayer backed up as far as he could, bracing his knuckles on the ground before breaking into a sprint and ramming through the metal door, crushing some of the zombies in the process. Metal shrieked as the blast door war ripped from it's track by the behemoth and unwillingly brought into the next room. But the door wasn't the only thing that was shrieking, as a small pack of imps could be heard clambering through the vents before dropping down into the room.
The Hellwalker snarled at the demonic pests as they continued to scream at the intruder. One got bold and even threw a fireball towards him before screaming again. A wicked grin crept across his face as he returned their screams with a roar before charged down the hall, ramming one of the imps into, then through, the window behind them and into the small pit below. The Slayer quickly found his feet just in time for one of the surviving imps to leap onto his back. Heavy claws sunk into flesh and bony plate and ripped the hellish pest from his back and threw it into the nearest wall with a satisfying crunch.
The remaining imps crept away from the Hellwalker. With their numbers halved, the demons were far less willing to take on the massive beast. With his distractions gone for now the Slayer was able to see what had them so rilled up. To be honest he had smelt it before he'd even entered the room, but seeing the Gore Nest for himself only fueled his desire to get out of this damn lab and get that satellite back online. Even though it took up the entire center of the room, the Gore Nest was still fairly small. Hopefully that meant the attack had only just begun. Flesh and sinew were stretched thin across the structure, trying their hardest to lift the nest into the air where hungry beasts couldn't reach. Yellow pustules twitched in tandem with the its heartbeat as a gaping maw clasped tightly around a sphere of demonic energy. The entire scene before him bathed in the crimson lights of the emergency protocol.
Heavy claws cleaved through soft flesh as the Slayer plunged his hand into the largest of the pustules and ripped out its heart. The Gore Nest screamed in pain as its heart was crushed like a rotting fruit. It's screaming was returned by a cacophony of shrieks and howls from the imps as they returned with numbers tenfold. The possessed that had previously been roaming aimlessly now focused on their nest's assailant as the nest itself began to rapidly deteriorate.
A roar bellowed out from the Doom Slayer as the fight began. Even without his weapons, the Hellwalker was a formidable foe, tearing through the imps with ease. Blood and gore were splattered against walls as the fight played out. Though it was more of a bloodbath if anything, as the second the beast got his hands on one of the hellish pests they were swiftly turned into a smear of gore against the nearest surface before turning his attention to the next.
One of the imps had been able to land a hit while the Slayer was busy squeezing the life out of one of it's comrades. The Hellwalker felt the infernal heat wash over his back, the flash of searing pain followed by a violent flick of the tail had the pest pinned to the wall. Its corpse hitting the floor with a thud as the Meathook retracted back into place.
A loud boom rocked the room as the Doom Slayer ripped the last scout in half, its final breath was used to let out one final howl which was soon returned with a bellowing roar from beyond one of the blast doors. Whatever the imp had called out to began slamming itself into the door in an attempt to get in. Still riding the high of his first fight in eons, the Slayer decided to give this unseen opponent a little bit of a helping hand. Claws dug into the the steel as the Slayer began to pry the door open. While his body may have begun to atrophy, he still had much of his strength and was able to lift the door, albeit with some considerable effort.
Once the door was open a massive imp charged forth, tackling the Slayer back into the room.
Ah, so thatâs what it was
The two massive beasts tumbled back down into the shallow pit, the two wrestling with each other before the brute was kicked off by the Hellwalker. The two beasts snarled as they circled one another, both combatants looking for an opening. Though the Imp Brute was nearly a had shorter than the Doom Slayer it still posed a worthy foe for the still groggy troll. Both were eager for a fight and all it took was the Slayer stumbling on a storage crate to send the brute charging across the room, bringing it's arms down in a haymaker.
The Slayer stumbled back in a daze as the Brute jumped atop him once more. Pinned down again the Slayer began to growl in frustration as the overgrown imp clawed at his helmet. Its meaty hands trying to pry the helmet loose to get at his face and neck as it screamed in rage. The Doom Slayer screamed back as he managed to free one of his hands and grab hold of the beasts jaw and pull.
Its screams turned to that of pain as it switched to desperately trying to pry the Hellwalkers claws from its face but to no avail. The claws dug deeper as the pulling got stronger until the tendons failed and the jaw was ripped loose. The demonic brute stumbled back, hands grasping where their lower jaw once was in some desperate attempt to stop the bleeding. A wet gargling snarl bubbled out as one last act of defiance before its head was skewered by the tail blade. The Brute stiffened before collapsing to the ground with a loud thud as scarlet blood pooled on the cold gray floor.
"Demonic Presence Eliminated. Lockdown Disengaged." The facility voice chimed overhead as the red of the emergency lights faded and the cold white lights of the lab revealed the carnage that had just unfolded. Blood painted much of the room, most of it from the gore nest as it died, the rest being from the imps who corpses were now strewn across the room. The door from which the Brute had entered let out a mechanical groan as it slowly opened, the mechanisms within undoubtedly damaged from their rough handling, but it appeared they weren't the only doors now unlocked as two more doors opened. One of the doors led to what appeared to be an elevator while the other lead into another laboratory.
Curiosity piquing his interest the Slayer decided to investigate the lab. At first glance it was like any other lab he'd been in, albeit one that was clearly being used to study him. It⊠unnerved him to say the least, to be treated like some ancient artifact or weapon, like his unconscious body wasn't a few feet away in the other room.
As he was exploring he found more of those canisters stacked in the corner, some full some empty. But that wasn't what finally caught his eye. No, that title went to the massive shotgun shells that sat upon one of the tables. One had been opened, it's contents dumped onto a metal tray revealing large metal balls ranging from the size of a small orange to the size of one's fist while another tray nearby held the gunpowder that was once packed in the shell. If they had some of his shotgun shells then that meantâŠ
It took some searching but eventually the Doom Slayer found what he'd been searching for. behind thick glass walls in the next room over sat an oversized shotgun. The barrels of the gun were about as tall as a man, the ends scorched black from how much it had been fired that day in the Sanctum. The wood of it's handle worn with deep grooves from the Slayer's monstrous claws. Despite the millennia that had past while he slept the Shotgun looked as glorious as the day it was torn from his hands by that wretched Baron. He needed that gun back.
The door may have been locked but that would do little to stop the Doom Slayer from retrieving what was his. With each blow to the glass, the Slayer remembered the countless nights spent in his workshop making blueprints and testing various prototypes before his beloved shotgun had been made. Oh how he loved look of fear that horde of demons had the day he blasted the face off that Hell Knight, the silence that followed was just as deafening as the gun. After that day fighting the legions of Hell actually started being fun again, and with the success of the shotgun he had even started making schematics for future guns⊠though none of them ever came into fruition.
With one last blow to the glass, the barrier shattered. The Doom Slayer walked purposefully up to the pedestal and retrieved his beloved weapon. His grip on the handle fit like a glove and his ammo pouches still had some heft to them, good they hadn't dismantled all of his ammo. The Slayer equipped the ammo bags and holstered the shotgun before leaving for the elevator
Just as he was about to try and cram himself into the small cabin another hologram flickered to life in the hallway, it was that woman again. A scowl was plastered across her face as she walked out of the elevator, listening to some unseen person and muttering under her breath. She looks up to something or someone not caught by the recording and scowled harder until she finally spoke. "We cannot allow him to leave this. He'll ruin everything if he doesâŠ"
The Hellwalker growled as the hologram flickered and began to loop on the woman muttering to herself. Whoever she was, she had something to do with this. He could feel it.
"That was Dr. Peirce, she was the head of the Lazarus labs before this incident."
The Slayer's head snapped to the source of the noise as Dr. Hayden's voice filtered through the elevator's control panel's comms system. His face souring as he realized who was talking to him. The troll shuffled closer to the panel as the doctor continued to speak.
âIâm willing to take full responsibility for the horrible events of the last 24 hours but you must understand; our interest in their world was purely for the betterment of mankind.â The Slayer glanced down at a corpse slumped against the railing of the elevator, their blood was smeared across the glass in an attempt to escape, and growled. The elevator track began to groan from the beast's weight.
"Everything has clearly gotten out of hand now, yes, but I promise you it was worth the risk. I-" Dr. Hayden was cut off as the control panel was ripped from the wall by the Doom Slayer and was crushed between he claws.
Metal screeched as the elevator came to a grinding halt, the hydraulics audibly struggling to lift the Doom Slayer any further. The beast grunted in unease as he felt the car jostle once or twice. Looking down through the uncomfortably thin grate flooring, the Doom Slayer could see a very long drop down.
"I will not allow you to leave this place."
The Slayer looked up from the floor only to be greeted by another hologram of this Dr. Peirce, only this time the woman was staring directly at him. It unnerved him, to say the least. No sooner had she finished her sentence the elevator gave out and the cabin and Slayer were sent screaming into the Martian depths below.
You have to be careful with your knight. Theyâre not used to gentleness, and it might take some time for them to accept it. The first time you remove their helmet, they may not be able to meet your gaze. This is normal. Thereâs a lot more of you to take in than through a visor, and it can be overwhelming. Donât expect them to make eye contact immediately. When you undress the rest of them, go slowly. Youâll be forced to because of the very nature of the armor they live in. Make sure you pause after every piece and allow them to get used to freedom once more. Itâs especially important for them to breathe deeply once youâve removed both cuirass and gambeson. Place your hand over their heart to ensure they take a few deep breaths from the chest before you continue. When you are finished playing the part of squire, be sure to give them something else to wear. Theyâll feel far too exposed at first. Make sure itâs something light, they donât need any more weight on their shoulders. Do not be surprised if their hands tremble when you take them. The feel of your hands is a far cry from that of their gauntlets, and it may take some time for them to adjust to the softness. Reassurance is your friend with a vulnerable knight. Encouragement can also aide you, but be cautious to avoid overuse. If your knight feels pressured, they will revert to their training, and you will never know their true self. If it is your wish to have a knightly lover, do not glorify the shell, but rather, cradle the creature within.
Springtails are these tiny little bugs that usually live in the dirt, they mainly eat mold so theyâre very helpful in terrariums! They can also come in a bunch of different colours though the ones in my area are white. You can sometimes find large groups of them in puddles during or after rain.
Theyâre hard to get a picture of cause they jump around so much (hence the name springtail) but theyâre the little white specs that kinda look like rice almost. Theyâre also all over the world on every continent including Antarctica!
I plan to use my colony in my next isopod (pillbug) enclosure to help keep the mold at bay.
Behold! My first attempt at drawing plate armour in like 5 years! I wanted to take a crack at drawing a troll in some plate armour despite it not being what their armour would typically look like, which Iâll take a crack at some other day.
Full plate like this would be very expensive to make especially for a forest troll (the species depicted here) given most of them are well over 11 feet tall. I feel like being a knight in like medieval times facing off against a fully armoured troll would be terrifying.
In the future Iâll figure out a better way to cover the ears
Unfortunately this head shape in particular wouldnât really let me do a hinged helmet so it kinda ended up being a mix of a greathelm and a houndskull helmet.
I might try and work something out to get a hinged helmet but Iâm not sure if thatâs gonna happen.
As for how I designed it I ended up looking less at human helmets and more at horse helmets at the start, as it was a better fit for the head shape and based the ear covers on falconry hoods. When I do a more traditional/troll made version of armour Iâll probably end up leaning in more with the horse armour aspects.
A.K.A A Chunk of Chapter One to the Doom 1 part of the Troll AU
But also this is more of a rough draft if anything nor am I going to be posting this fic until after I'm at least done A Beast on Mars.
Trigger Warnings for this Piece include: Body Horror, Mild Blood, and First Degree Burns, I'll also warn Mild Gore just to be safe.
The dull throbbing headache had now become unbearable, his teeth ached and it felt as though his jaw was about to explode. He had began limping his way to the bathroom but had barely made it past the stove when his legs gave out from cramping. Buddy grunted as he went down, utensils clattering to the floor with him as his muscles began to spasm.
"Buddy! What happened? Can you tell me what hurts?" the doctor asked as she rushed into the kitchen.
He opened his mouth in an attempt to explain but all that came out was an agonizing scream as he felt something growing beneath his teeth, pushing them up and out as newer, much larger teeth took their place. Buddy brought his hands to his face in an attempt to stop his jaw from growing to accommodate the new teeth only to watch as claws forced their way through the tips of his fingers. His spine continued to ache and his nerves scream in agony as he felt bones begin to rip their way out of body too small to contain them. He couldn't find the strength to continue screaming, only to softly sob as his new body continued to grow as remnants of his old one fell away.
"Buddy?" Rosa said softly as she approached the heaving mass on the floor that was her soon to be husband. There was blood all over the kitchen floors and cabinets, her husband or what was left of him, now a sobbing mess as scar tissue rapidly formed over the parts of his body torn up by the transformation.
What had happened? What caused this? Was he a werewolf? No, not wolf-like enough, and the tail was too long⊠She didn't know what had become of the man, but she knew he was in pain, and she knew he was still her Buddy. So against her instincts and better judgment, Rosa approached her no longer human partner and slowly cupped her hands under his chin.
Buddy jumped back at the sudden contact, his skin still tender from all of the ripping and stretching, though the cold glass and metal of the oven was no better. When his vision finally cleared he saw Rosa crouched down in front of him, a look of fear and worry written across her face. She was so close⊠too closeâŠ
A low growl rumbled out of the no longer man startling them both. Rosa took a step back while a frightened Buddy stared her down. Buddy went to get up in an attempt to flee only to place his hand on the still hot stove. The beast-man yelped in pain as he pulled his hand away. Before he could even process what was happening Rosa was pulling his hand to the sink. The cool water felt nice on his skin as the burn subsided, even easing the pain from his transformation. Buddy's breathing relaxed as he let the water continue to wash over his hand while Rosa dug out several dishtowels and ran them under the water.
"Does the water feel nice?" she asked as she wrapped the burn in the damp cloths while Buddy let the water run over his other hand. The massive creature rumbled in agreement. "Ok, I'll go get some more towels. Just wait hereâŠ"
Buddy nodded in agreement before he went back to watching the water run over his monstrous hand. Shockingly his old fingernails were still attached, partially clinging to the base of his claws⊠Claws, he had claws now. Sharp ones at that. Claws that could hurt. Hurt him⊠Rosa⊠Peter⊠He thought to himself as he picked away the fingernails. He didn't want to hurt them by accident. Rosa was still upstairs, maybe he could just sneak away while she was still busy. Buddy glanced back over to the stairs to make sure she wasn't coming back yet but spotted her already coming back down the stairs with a laundry basket of towels. He frowned mournfully before slowly getting up and making his way to the patio door.
"Buddy? Where are you going?"
It took Buddy a moment to finally find his voice before he painfully garbled out an explanation, "Look at me Rosa, I I-I don't want to hurt you or PeteâŠ" he could already feel his throat closing up again.
"Oh Buddy⊠you're not going to hurt us," Rosa said softly, setting down the basket. "You may not look it but you're still you, and I'll always love you regardless of what you are or how you lookâŠ"
Buddy knelt back down to Rosa's level as she continued to approach him. His chest felt tight again, this time from him fighting the urge to cry. Rosa carefully wrapped her arms around his head as Buddy buried his face in her shoulder. Slowly he brought his own arms up around her to complete this awkward embrace, a much softer sound rumbling out of the newly created troll as the two sat there in peaceful quiet.
I just found out I never posted this drawing I did a few months back (did it at the same time as the Mim drawing!)
Iâm just so happy with how this one turned out like god damn. I definitely need to give him more neck next time though lol.
I got this big olâ prompt list that Iâm using to try and get better at drawing and to try and draw some of my ocâs more so you might see some newish (new to yâall) ocs
genuinely wild to me when I go to someone's house and we watch TV or listen to music or something and there are ads. I haven't seen an ad in my home since 2005. what do you mean you haven't set up multiple layers of digital infrastructure to banish corporate messaging to oblivion before it manifests? listen, this is important. this is the 21st century version of carving sigils on the wall to deny entry to demons or wearing bells to ward off the Unseelie. come on give me your router admin password and I'll show you how to cast a protective spell of Get Thee Tae Fuck, Capital
Okay, here we go! I'm gonna try and put this in order from least to most technical knowledge required. I'm not responsible if you accidentally create SkyNet etc.
Level 1: browser extensions
This one is basically impossible to get wrong, or at least to get wrong badly enough that it causes any problems.
Get Firefox, or a Firefox fork like Waterfox. If you use a fork, make sure it's one that will let you use add-ons. On a PC, pretty much any Firefox fork will take add-ons, but on mobile devices, many don't. Iceraven is one that does.
Get the add-ons uBlock Origin, YouTube Sponsorblock (if you use YouTube), and FBCleaner (if you use Facebook).
uBlock Origin comes with a built-in list of filters to block ads and trackers, but you can add your own filters to block any specific element of a website you don't like. You know those goddamn floating frames on fandom.com sites that block half the screen? Now you can zap 'em.
Sponsorblock uses crowdsourced timestamps to automatically skip sponsor spots and self-promotion in YouTube videos. Never listen to anyone say "hit like and subscribe" or "Raid Shadow Legends" again.
FBCleaner hides all content from your feed except posts from people, groups, and pages you've actually chosen to follow.
Level 2: leaving enshittified services
The software that's become standard over the years in a lot of fields is steadily selling more of your data, showing you more ads, and pushing you to buy more expensive subscriptions. Time to tell them to get fucked.
Dump Adobe apps for Affinity or Krita. Drop Microsoft for LibreOffice. Change your default search engine from Google to DuckDuckGo or Qwant. Use OpenStreetMaps instead of Google or Apple Maps.
Level 3: network-level DNS fuckery
DNS, or Domain Name Service, is the thing that tells your computer where www.website.com is actually located. By hacking your network's DNS you can force it to tell your devices that ad-hosting domains don't exist at all. Some of the steps on this one can get pretty technical, but because you're doing all the difficult stuff on a dedicated device, you can't really fuck up anything that seriously.
Get yourself a Raspberry Pi (a cheap older one like a model 3B will work just fine for this purpose), and follow a guide like this one to get it set up running AdGuard Home. AdGuard, like uBlock, has built-in filter lists, but you can also add your own if there are specific domains you want to block.
Once it's up and running, you'll need to change the DNS settings on your router to point to your AdGuard service. This is different for every router but will always start with logging into the admin panel with a password printed on a little sticker somewhere on the router.
With that done, every time a device on your home network looks for ads.website.com, it'll get back a message that says "sorry, can't find it", so it won't be able to load any ads.
Level 4: Android-specific DNS fuckery
Because AdGuard runs on your home network, it can't block ads on your phone when you're away from home - and what's worse, your phone will sometimes remember the addresses it got when you were out and about, and ads will get past your AdGuard wall even when you're home.
To avoid this, get AdAway for DNS-based ad-blocking directly on your phone. The easy, but less seamless, way of using AdAway is the "local VPN mode", which doesn't require you to do any mucking about with your phone's operating system.
Level 5: automated media piracy
The best way to stop seeing ads on all your streaming services is to stop using streaming services. There are loads of ways to do this, but the best ones involve setting up what's called an "arr stack" (Google that for setup guides) along with nzbget and a usenet account. Most of the time you'll want to set this stuff up on a dedicated device - an old laptop gathering dust in the closet is a great option, or you can grab something used from a charity shop or a local electronics recycler.
The great thing about usenet is that unlike with torrents, you don't have to do any sharing from your computer, so you're in a lot less legal jeopardy - legally speaking, distributing pirated content is waaayyy more serious than accessing it. I pay about ÂŁ3 a month for a secure, high-bandwidth usenet service.
Once you start getting your own collection of media on your own computer, use the open-source media library manager Jellyfin to browse and play things from basically any device.
Oh, and don't be a dick. Pirate all you want from big corporations, but please pay independent small-time creators for their work.
Level 6: fucking with Android
Android phones are a lot more locked-down than they used to be, but depending on the device you own you can still do a lot of messing around under the hood. Note that if you get something wrong while doing this, there is always the possibility that it will turn your device into a paperweight.
Before you buy a device, check where it sits on the Bootloader Unlock Wall of Shame. Once you've bought it, check the xda-developer forums for guides on how to unlock it and "root" it (gain admin access) with Magisk.
Once Magisk is installed, you can add modules to do all sorts of cool stuff, including using AdAway in "root mode" which makes it basically invisible.
You can also install YouTube ReVanced, which will do all the ad- and sponsor blocking stuff we took care of in your Windows browser a few paragraphs ago. Be careful: there are a lot of fake sites out there pretending they're associated with the ReVanced project which might be injecting malware into their downloads. This Reddit post has the official instructions and links.
Also, try out the modded version of Facebook from APKmoddone, which will block most of the same shit as the FBcleaner add-on from earlier. There's always a possibility that modified apps like this are doing something dodgy, but I've never had any issues with this one personally.
Level 7: fucking with Windows
This one is scary because it can seriously fuck up your shit if something goes wrong, but some really cool people have actually made it very simple to strip all the bloat, ads, and spyware out of Windows. The tool I use is ReviOS. Start reading at https://www.revi.cc/docs. Basically, you'll need to download a tool called AME Wizard and the ReviOS "playbook" that tells AME what to do. Read the documentation before you do any of this.
Level 8: switching to Linux
I'm not going to pretend this is an option for everyone. Half the software I use on a weekly basis isn't available on Linux. But if you can switch? Do it. These days, Ubuntu - one of the most popular flavours of Linux - is built with people switching from Windows in mind, and a lot of things will be pretty intuitive. It also has great documentation and a huge community you can go to for help if you're confused about stuff.
And that, friends, is a comprehensive approach to banishing the demons of capitalism from your home!
A human to their big, overly friendly troll friend that's a bit to playful
~Omie
Thanks for the prompt friend! Sorry for the long wait, I had a bit of trouble figuring out how to get from folks chilling in a hot spring to someone getting bit lol. Anyways without further ado, here's the story
The Hot Spring
Prompt: "Hey! what did we say about the teeth?"
Up on a mountain overlooking a valley, there sat a hotspring. A hotspring ran by a tomte named Brage. Normally the hotspring was well visited⊠but now? Now, he was lucky to get even one visitor. And lucky he was as two folks walked through the front gate, a troll and a human. A tall human albeit, but a human nonetheless. Honestly he swore those humans got bigger every year!
The two checked in; said they wanted a hot soak after some rather rough training sessions. Given that the troll was well over twelve feet tall and the human had to be at least seven, it was no surprise they chose one of the larger springs. The two headed to the changerooms and Brage returned to sweeping the front desk.
âAaaaaahhhhh, isnât this nice Art?â
âMmhmm,â
âNice hot waters, no drill instructor shoutân at ya, itâs quiet.â The troll finished, raising their hands for emphasis.
The human stretched, rolling his shoulders until one of them cracked before sinking deeper into the hot water with a sigh. Gef was right, this was relaxing. Itâd been so long since heâd had a hot bath, and while Gef had a hot spring in her home, she had insisted they come here instead. Though he still didnât know why. If he had to guess maybe her hot spring was in need of maintenance, it would make sense given how it was a separate room from the bathroom. Maybe he should just ask.
âSo why did you insist on coming here anyways?â
âThe springs here are more âhumanâ friendly with shelves for smaller folks to sit on with their giantfolk friends. Not to mention theyâre over one of the source springs on the mountain.â She explained, âAlso I still need to figure out what to do with the fish I put in my springâŠâ
âThe huh?â
âI stocked my spring with fish, threw in a cooling crystal or two to prevent them from boiling. Now itâs a pond and I have free fish!â
âUh huhâŠâÂ
âYou knew what it was like out there last year! I donât want to get into a fist fight over some damn trout!â Gef shouted, gesturing to the ruined trainyard in the valley.
Art chuckled at his friend's outburst. They loved to be dramatic, always making a big show when the two sparred. The captainâs style and hers were two very different types of sparring. His captainâs style was strict and repetitive which led to many complaints from his fellow soldiers. Gef however liked to put his skills to the test and always made sure to try something different to keep things fresh⊠even if that included throwing a forklift at him, though she did apologize afterwards.
âSo, got anything new planned for our next sparring session?â he asked the now basking troll.
âYeah~ but I wouldnât want to spoil the surpriseâŠâ they grinned, their teeth on full display. Art made a face as he got a feeling he knew what said surprise would be. Choosing to ignore the possibility of having to explain giant bite marks to his superiors and go back to relaxing.
Some time later Art was resting atop one of the logs chained to the bottom of the spring, Gef drifting lazily a few meters away. As he floated there, he began to wonder what the hotspring was like back before the world had gone to hell⊠would it ever recover? Would things go back to the way they were before? What other folks frequented this place before hand? He remembered seeing some smaller pools about the size of a pond or bathtub.Â
How small could they get?
Gef had told him that sheâd seen trolls that towered over human houses and even other trolls, and judging by the depth of their current spring it was meant for those larger trollsâŠ
He shuddered.
While Art trusted Gef a fair deal, he still couldnât help but worry about the rest of her kind. Even Gef had warned him that not all otherfolk are friendly, and that some would actively want to cause him and others harm. Was it right to keep this knowledge to himself? To selfishly keep this information away from his superiors. All so that he could keep a friend who could tear him apart without a momentâs notice?
âWhy the long face Art? Still thinkân about training?â Gefâs asked, a hint of worry ebbing through her cheeky voice like their bodies in the spring.Â
He paused for a moment, thinking over his response â... yeah,â
âDamn⊠Heâs really that hard you guys. Maybe I could go down and persuade him into easing up on the lot of you,â a cheshire grin spreading across Gefâs face.
âNo. No, nonononono. Do not. That would make things worse tenfold. You making an appearance would set everyone off!âÂ
âAlright, alright. I was joking yâknow⊠I wouldnât do something like that to you ArtriseâŠâ
âI knowâŠâ the man sighed, âitâs justâŠâÂ
âHey, cut it with all the gloom and doom. I get it, your bossâ a dick. But youâre not on duty and youâre relaxing at a hotspring with the only thing for miles that could pose a threat necessary for your action. Now stop worrying before I do something about it.â
âThat sounds like a threatâŠâ Art said as he got up to change his seat, turning his back on the troll.
âIt is,â
âOh yeah? And what exactly are you gonna do then?â the man replied sarcastically.
âThis,â Gef replied as the lobbed a fistfull of half melted snow at Artâs back.
The man yelped in alarm before delving into a coughing fit.
âYOU FUCK-â he half wheezed, half yelled out as Gef began to laugh. The man continued to cough as he trudged out of the water and to a nearby snowbank. Gef, who had begun coughing themselves from laughing at Artâs reaction, was completely oblivious to the incoming retaliation.
The cold half melted snowball hit the troll square in the chest causing them lurch forwards from the shock. âOoooofff, ye little shit, Iâm gonna getcha for that!â they howled as they began to chase after their friend.
Art quickly fled the waters opting to run along the rocks while Gef chased from the shallows, the man occasionally lobbing a snowball whenever heâd gained some distance. Gef made an attempt to lob another ball of snow at Art, only for the man to dive into the water.
âOoohhohohoo⊠you think getting in the water is going to save you little man?â Gef rumbled darkly, âHAH, weâll see about thatâŠâ With frankly terrifying ease Gef dived into the pool, gliding straight to the bottom and letting the steam and bubbles distort their figure in the milky waters.
Art searched the waters for Gef but couldnât pinpoint the trollâs location. The man began to swim back to shore as fast as he could while a twinge of fear began to creep up his spine. He felt the water around him surge causing him to brace as his friend barreled into him like a bipedal walrus.Â
âAlright! Alright! You win, you win-âÂ
Artâs surender was cut off by Gef playfully biting down on his shoulder and upper arm. The man tried to pry the trollâs jaws open but to no avail. One of their tusks was hooked under his arm while the other was pressed into his back, making Art very aware of what Gef had said earlier. If anything around here had the potential of being a threat, it was themâŠ
Thank the gods Gef was mischievous and not malicious.Â
âHey! Whatâd we say about the teeth!â he scolded, smacking Gef on the nose with his free hand.
The troll spat him out with a dramatic âbleghâ before their face returned to their regular cheshire grin.
âYouâre gross, yâknow that Gef?â
âI could say the same to you human. I never understood all those stories about man-eaters, you taste awful,â
âThanks?â
âYouâre welcome,â
Art rolled his eyes as he washed his arm off, Geff getting out of the spring and reaching for a towel to dry off.
âSpeaking of food, I saw a food stall on the way in,â They said, wrapping the banner sized towel around their waist âWanna go see if itâs actually open?â
âDoubt it is, but alright,â
And with that the two friends left the spring and began making their way over to the small kitchen. Brage, who had watched their little kerfuffle, decided to start up the stoves for his guests. Maybe they were a sign of good things to comeâŠ
Here's a prompt idea for you! Idea of reaction or writing the reaction:
What would your Troll!Slayer do and think if one of the humans he safes of a group of survivors (he helped evacuate?) but before he leaves or their evacuation ship leaves. One dares to come over to the bloody giant to offer a small gift in thanks. A toy, or stuffy or home made necklace?
~from Omie
I am so sorry this took as long as it did! But finally after 9 months it's done! Also you're getting the short version here, I'll add the full version to my ao3. (I don't got a better name for this other than the placeholder :p)
Eeby Deeby
God how long has this whole Demonic Invasion been going on for? Hell, he didnât even know what month it was anymore. It was getting colder, that he knew. He also remembered briefly confusing the ash for snow when it had started. It had to be over a year, he was sure of it. He remembered his first group getting ambushed by what they thought were dead frozen demons⊠at least he got Freya out of thereâŠ
After memories like that it was a wonder he was able to fall asleep at all. But low and behold the man practically passed out the second his head hit the pillow. The stress of the day crashing over him like an avalanche. And thankfully his sleep was mostly devoid of nightmares. Sadly Freya was not so lucky.
Late in the night Olson was awoken to the sound of Freyaâs crying. Olson tried to ask what was wrong but the girl refused to answer, her only response was to hug her godfather tighter.
âLet me guess, you donât want to go back to sleep?â
ânoâ
âAlright, how about we go stargazing instead, thereâs a lookout not too far from camp. Does that sound better?â
âYeahâŠâ
The two crawled out of their tent. Freya grabbing her bag, and Olson grabbing a flashlight or two for them. The two quietly walked away from the tents, the fire had long gone out bathing the campsite in darkness. Thankfully though it was not complete darkness as the waning moon shone its pale light down through the trees.Â
The night was quiet, with the only sounds being crunch of their footsteps on dirt and pine needles. Wind gently blowing through the old branches of the pines. Down the trail they went, the two oblivious to the great shadow that followed them from just beyond the trees.
The lookout was surprisingly clean, given the past few years of the Demonic Invasion. The binoculars miraculously still worked as Olson peered through them to the city below.Â
He knew it had been bad, but now as he looked down at the ruined city he could fully see the scale of destruction the invasion had wrought. Decaying hellgrowth scattered about the buildings, smoke still rising from where he assumed that medical clinic was. He could also pretty clearly make out the Doom Slayerâs path of destruction during his purge of the Gore Nest. Buildings toppled and the massive corpses of brutes littered about, some of whom had what looked like chew marks? Olson shuddered slightly at the memory of when he saw the Slayer after the Gore Nest. Maybe the ARC is rightâŠ
âI wanna look too!â
Remembering that Freya was with him, Olson turned the binoculars up and away from the city before letting her take a look. The girl looked on in wonder while her godfather kept an eye out. He didnât want to admit it, but he felt watched. The longer he looked the more and more he started to recognize this specific feeling and when he last felt it. The Slayer was here.
Immediately Olson went from scanning the brushline to scanning the branches. There he was able to spot the Slayer rather quickly. The massive troll was making little effort to keep himself hidden, though even if he was his armour did little to help him. Along with his armour the Slayer had one of his satchels slung over his shoulder; it looked mostly empty aside from what he assumed were the other two sacks.Â
âI take it youâre leaving Slayerâ
The troll nodded and stepped out from the treeline. His steps slow and deliberate, making sure to not step as hard as he usually did. The Doom Slayer knelt down a good couple of feet away from the humans, taking note of Olsonâs still tense body language. He balled his left hand into a fist and rotated it clockwise over his chest. He continued to sign until he remembered that neither Olson or Freya knew sign language.
âIâmm sorryâŠâ The words rumbled out of his throat, low and gravely, rattling his lungs.
Olson could feel his body shake as the Doom Slayer spoke. His voice was deep and basey, and he could tell the troll barely used it. It almost sounded painful for him to talkâŠ
Just as he was getting up, the Slayer was stopped by Freya, who had shouted to get his attention.
The Slayer halted his movement to see what the child wanted. Heâd noticed that children seemed to be fond of him for some reason whenever he was around them after a bit, he never understood why though. Shifting his focus to the child she seemed to be holding out a plush toy.
âDu ska vĂ€l norrut? HĂ€r, ta med dig Cairn, de gillar att Ă„ka pĂ„ Ă€ventyr!â
âShe wants you to have the plush,â Olson translated.
âSo you wonât be, beâŠ. lonely!â The girl added, taking her time to say the words.
Slayer carefully stretched out his hand, and accepted the gift. It was on the smaller size, easier to carry around for both him and the girl. The toy had short soft grey hair, in which large ears poked out. Their nose was also rather large as well and they had a rather cheerful expression. A longish tail tipped in the same soft hair poked out of a pair of puffy pants. The plush also sported a patchwork vest and backpack, which complimented their red sweater. The longer he looked at the doll the more he realized it kinda almost looked like him, or more accurately whatever he was.
Olson watched as the Slayerâs eyes grew wide as he inspected the toy. Freya seemed giddy that the big troll liked the little troll. The Slayerâs tail swayed gently from side to side as he nestled the toy in his chestplate with the head poking out just enough to âseeâ the world around them.
âThank you,â the giant rumbled out, signing the words as well. Freya repeated the sign back to him to which Slayer smiled back.
âThank you Slayer, for helping us. May your journeys be safe.â Olson said, changing his hold on his godchild as she began to yawn.Â
The Beast bowed his head as the two humans returned to their camp, giving Freya one last wave before he disappeared into the trees once more.
It was around noon when the dropship landed in the parking lot of the lookout. Soldiers and medical personnel filled out, checking injuries and sweeping the area. Soon enough Olsonâs band of survivors were sat aboard the aircraft and flying out of the valley they once called home. As Olson and Freya watched the trees go by, they saw a familiar figure step out from the trees and wave them goodbye.
The Doom Slayer rumbled happily to himself as he watched the aircraft disappear over the mountains. Glad that the humans were finally safe. Maybe heâd see them again when he reached the Safezone. Maybe theyâll even meet Derrin too. Slayer gave the small plush a pat on the head before he himself headed out, there was still a whole lotta walking ahead of him.
