#prophetverse

[shandoratheexplorer]

Last Line Written and WIP Whenever

Thank you, @rubyeyebabybat and @alrendriablaze, for tagging me!

I can't really share the last line I wrote because it's a huge spoiler, so I'll just drop you guys the fanfic itself. The first chapter is up and has only 2745 words

Have fun!

An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works

Now onto the teaser for Broken Mirror's next chapter!

"Gods, I'm so tired," I whisper. "It is her right to punish me so. I have failed, and I deserve this."

"Do you, though?" The whispered words sound like they come from far, far away, and oddly enough, they sound just like Rolim.

"Leave me alone," I answer as blood trickles down from the corner of my mouth. I draw another wheezing breath, trying to gather enough magic to heal the damage so I may yet live another day.

I reach for the magic I share with my Dark Lady, but the pool is empty.

I feel so cold…

This is the end, isn't it?

"Shadowheart," Rolim's voice again. "Stay with me."

"I don't need you, and you don't need me," I answer the phantom. "So why won't you stop pestering me?"

"Because you're my friend."

I manage a weak snicker; the cold feeling from before gives way to a gentle warmth.

"Who knew that death could feel so nice?" I mutter weakly.

"Now now, don't be dramatic," Rolim's voice sounds in my ears again. "You're not dead yet."

"I'm hallucinating," I answer. "Clearly, this is it."

But then— I wonder— Why would I dream of him when I lay dying?

Gentle tags to @nw39 @optimisticgrey @lottavilja @vakariansyndrome @denesmera @roguishcat @chaushaus

[verpaso]

How is the organization soleil + eric work for organized?

Thank you! I wish I had a cool name for it but this is what I have so far.

It is an independent agency -- technically a part of the US Govt and definitely funded by the US Govt, but of course due to the nature of it it's extremely classified/hidden and also has a lot of freedom to do what they see fit -- hence the "independent" part.

It's a lot like the SCP foundation as well as the AM from the Bright Sessions, which... was bound to happen LOL. There is a Board of Directors that oversees the entire agency, and there are several branches (locations, essentially) that have their own boards.

These branches can vary a lot though-- Chris's branch was essentially an anomaly physics lab, focusing a lot on the Door as well as some other smaller, transportable objects. Their lab was also small compared to other branches and was further from the Board, contact-wise.

Eric and Soleil's branch is a lot more intense. There is a lab portion but there are various levels of clearance and the higher you go, the worse it gets. They go on field missions, some to check out and examine the danger of anomalous areas and see if anything should be done about them so people avoid them, but others to find people with abilities and convince them to come in and stay with them.

Eric was one of these people, he signed a few papers as a teen and was made into an agent. He goes out and does field missions, but he is.. also an anomaly. He isn't supposed to leave, and he's meant to comply with testing people want to do. The kid was also convinced, though obviously he's just a kid and they're scary guys in suits... yk

Soleil has a lower level clearance-- has a job similar to Chris's though she knows a little bit more than he does. Chris hardly knows the agency exists.

[shandoratheexplorer]

A Song for every Letter - ROLIM

Thank you, @alrendriablaze, for tagging me!

Rule #34 - Fish in a Birdcage

This is a Song that perfectly captures Cazador's view of his spawn, which is why it's on Rolim's playlist.

Out of my Head - The Sidh & SounDiver

I had this song on repeat while writing the chapter where the gang faces off against Cazador. It sits in my drafts, waiting for me to finally get there in the Longfic.

Lover. Fighter. - SVRCINA

This one got onto my playlist while I was writing Meleth Nestadui. Rolim's fighting not only for his life, but also for the love he wants to have. It's a fight against two centuries of trauma.

Innocence - Nathan Wagner

The very first song to get on my Rolim playlist. The text is just so him... There's only one or two lines that don't fit, but other than that, he could've written the damn thing.

Move Forth - Secession Studios

This one's without lyrics, but it just sounds so hopeful!

A Song for every Letter - DOMINO

Don't Wait - Dashboard Confessional

Domi might not look like a very closed-off person, but he is. He only shows the surface-level goof until someone manages to peel his armor back and truly see him.

Owner of a Lonely Heart - Yes

Domi might have had a big circle of "friends" in the past, but none of them truly liked him for himself. So, over time, he realized that you could be very lonely even if you stand in the middle of a crowded room.

Make me believe - The EverLove

Domi has never been in love until he met Rolim, and it's so goddamn scary to him. He's terrified of being misunderstood, hurt, or used again. I picked this song because he'd beg Rolim to make him believe in a love that is true.

I get to love you - Ruelle

Maybe you already guessed it, but this is very DomiRo themed as well. He's full of insecurities, my half-dragon, and he spent a good amount of time thinking he's not worthy of being with Rolim. So he's very happy that he gets to love him anyway.

No more Whiskey - Aroze

Pretty self-explanatory if you know that Domino used to be a heavy drinker (alcoholic). He's been sober for 14 months by the time he meets Rolim again.

One Step Closer - Linkin Park

This one's very much about his overbearing family. He was never good enough, never the perfect heir they thought he would be. And it broke him, bit by bit.

Tagging @optimisticgrey @lottavilja @nw39 @denesmera @chaushaus @dramatiquechipmunk and everyone else who wants to grab a tag <3

[shandoratheexplorer]

WIP Whenever

I have been tagged a bunch by other lovely people here, mainly @nw39 @roguishcat @alrendriablaze and @lottavilja

Tagging you guys right back! (No pressure!) and also tagging @denesmera @optimisticgrey and @tynithia

The truth is, I've been a bit inactive on Tumblr because of all the bots and scammers running rampant here :(

So, here's my current WIP of Broken Mirrors Chapter 37.

Vincent asking the real questions.

I toss and turn on my bedroll until I eventually decide to just give up and crawl out of my tent. I find Vincent sitting by the fireplace, looking equally unsettled. He turns when he notices movement from the corner of his eye. "What are you doing up?" he asks. "Can't sleep, big day tomorrow," I shrug. "Tch," he scoffs, "right, you're going to become a Dark Justiciar, make your wretched goddess proud." I feel anger bubble up again at his judgment. "You fought in her service," I remind him. "Against my will," he retorts, staring into the flames. "And yet you did fight." Finally, he turns, fixating me with those piercing red eyes. "What was I supposed to do? I was being mind-controlled, my body steered like a marionette; every time I tried to wiggle out of Balthazar's grasp, he pulled the leash tighter," his gaze lowers toward the wound on my hand. "Much like that bitch pulls on your strings." He looks back up. "Tell me, Shadowheart," he growls lowly. "Will you dance for her? Or will you finally cut yourself free?"

[shandoratheexplorer]

WIP Tag

I've been tagged by @lottavilja @denesmera and @chaushaus for a few things so here's a WIP snippet!

This chapter of Meleth Nestadui is currently with my beta-readers :3

When I enter the house and put the groceries on the counter, the door to the office is ajar. "Astarion?" I call out, getting no answer from him. It isn't until I walk up the stairs to stow the massage oil and liquid chocolate that I smell his favorite bath salts. Putting the two bottles on the bedside table, I head into our bathroom, finding him submerged in the tub, pinching the bridge of his nose. He looks up when he hears the door. "Welcome home, galad nín", he smiles, sitting up a little straighter. I pull the small stool toward the edge of the tub and sit on it, greeting him with a kiss. "That bad, huh?" I ask. He can't talk about it, at least not in detail, but venting a little has helped him relieve some of the stress in the past. "The evidence is inconclusive, I think some of it was planted, but there's no proof… yet", he tells me. "Devella is on it, though." "She'll find something, I'm sure. She has keen instincts", I smile and rake my fingers through his damp hair. "Oh, I know. I just hate the waiting. We might have an innocent man in prison while the real perpetrator roams the streets." He sighs softly, purring almost as he presses his head deeper into my touch, savoring the comfort of intimacy. I continue to massage his scalp until he visibly relaxes, his eyes fluttering closed. "I brought a surprise home", I change the topic, knowing he can't tell me more than that anyway. If he relays his suspicions and the man were to be on the receiving end of vigilante justice, it'd go against everything Astarion stands for. "Oh?" he peeks one eye open at me, a smile lifting the corners of his lips. "Yes", I nod. "I gave some of my roses to Derryth, and she made a lovely smelling massage oil out of them", I tilt my head toward the bedroom. "What do you say? Will you let me pamper you a little?"

tagging @nw39 @optimisticgrey @roguishcat @vakariansyndrome

[shandoratheexplorer]

WIP tag

I was tagged by @roguishcat and @chaushaus, and maybe some more, but I fell into a hole during the Christmas holidays lol

Anyway, here's some angst I wrote the other day.

859 words of Astarion telling his dad to shove it and cuddling with his fiancé.

It'll all eventually end up in the wedding one-shot/short that I plan to do for Rolim and Astarion this year.

Ellipsus makes it easy for anyone to write together.

tagging @nw39 @denesmera @lottavilja @dramatiquechipmunk @arachnomancer @ankhegs-in-my-salad @optimisticgrey and tagging back @chaushaus @roguishcat

No pressure though <3

[shandoratheexplorer]

The Fall of House Erbil

Chapter 2 - I wanna change my name, disappear.

"The family must not be wiped out!" Cosmos joins in, his tail thumping on the ground as his hand snaps out in a cutting motion. "And for what? For a clan of cowards to continue passing on our cowardice to the next generation, and the generation after that?" I argue. "How can you be okay with being such a fucking disgrace?" "It's you who is the disgrace!" Natalyvia bristles. "By risking your life, you risked everything our family has worked so hard for, for centuries, just to save some commoners!" "Some commoners?" I growl. "Are you hearing yourself, Nat?! These are my friends!" "Pah!" she counters. "They only liked you for our family money anyway." I open my mouth again to retort that she's wrong, but Cosmos cuts me off. "Besides that," he speaks up, "we're a clan of great mages, wizards, and arcanists. We need to pass on our knowledge about dragons!" he argues. "But what would you know about our legacy? You've always rejected it anyway." "I am that fucking legacy, am I not?" I finally stand, my wings flaring out and glowing silver. As my temper rises, the air around me grows colder, the ice in my veins manifesting outward. "The Dragon of House Erbil, am I not?" I chuckle bitterly. "It's why Mother locked me in a sphere of silence the first time the city was under siege, and she would've done the same again, this time around, had she survived." I shake my head, turning to leave. "I'm done being part of this cowardly family… It's time I make my own way." "And how will you do that?" Cosmos snorts, his glowing green eyes flaring up with displeasure. "I'm not giving you a single penny of the family fortune to go out and do whatever you want." "Part of that fortune rightfully belongs to me!" I hiss at him. "You guys earned it selling my scales after all!" "You've spent your allowance on booze ten times over, cousin," Cosmos snarls.

Again, thank you to @baelthi for beta-reading <3

[shandoratheexplorer]

Self-indulgent WIP Whenever

So, I was tagged by a bunch of people. (gently tagging you all back too heheh)

Thank you @chaushaus @vakariansyndrome @optimisticgrey @lottavilja

I'm currently getting started on Rolim's and Domino's love story.

So, let me quickly give you the rundown: Rolim is my Tav from an AU where Astarion was never a vampire. Domino is a noble tiefling OC from Elturel who was there when it descended into Avernus. I won't go into too much detail, as I've written all that out in his prequel story.

The Fall of House Erbil

But this is basically a post-game fic where Domino visits Rolim and the two fall in love.

My head's all kinds of messed up, somewhere between throbbing from a hangover and swirling from the drink I poured to quench the headache. One of the ways to not get a hangover is to simply keep drinking, isn't it? My lips twist into a goofy smile at my own joke. Some wood in the fire next to me gives a loud pop, and I wince. "Domino," Cal mutters. "You ought to just stop and sleep it off." "Pshhh," I make as I sit up. My wing aches from lying on it wrong. I briefly spread them, biting back another wince as the pain of the recent injury spears down my spine, then I fold them behind my back. I know these tieflings from their connection to Alfira, a bard I've been around a lot due to her playing in the taverns I frequented back in Elturel. Now, they're refugees, and… I guess… technically, so am I. Though I could go find refuge with Aunt Zalista back in Waterdeep. But I came to these folks to help them. After trying to pay the fee to let everyone in, I quickly found out that the guards charge outrageous prices, so besides Rolan—who had documents specifically summoning him—we were only able to get Alfie into the city. I tried to pay for more people, after all, money isn't tight… yet, but we were told there's a cap on how many people they let in. Sometimes you end up waiting for hours only to be told the person before you was the last one they let in that day. And it makes me fucking angry. People have fainted waiting in that line; heatstroke, thirst, and hunger are certainly not aiding the situation. So I decided to stay out here and help, because Greater Invisibility is a spell well known to me, and my wings carry me over the wall, past the guards easily. Once inside, I meet with Alfira. She gives me the extra food and medicine she bought, and I give her money for more. That way, the refugees can at least make do for a little longer. I stretch, rubbing my temples and blinking blearily against the sunlight. Maybe Cal is right, maybe I really ought to get sober, at least for a time. But knowing that and actually doing so are two wholly different beasts. Cal opens his mouth to speak, but stops and turns when he hears footsteps approaching. I turn, following his line of sight, and watch as a colorful group approaches us.