❛ — FUCKHEAD! ❜

indie travis touchdown of no more heroes

[touchyoudown]

❛  you don't have to pretend with me. i like you just the way you are.  ❜ yes, travis. she likes you earnest and foolish, hungry for challenge, a killer but not a liar. she fills that role in lieu of him just fine.

Though Travis was a crude, brutal, honest individual with absolutely no filter on his tongue, he was always caught off guard when such an attitude was directed at him, especially if it concerned matters of the heart. Even more so, when someone was being nice to him, when someone complimented him. Such an event was rather rare, of course. He stood there, awkwardly, both hands shoved deep into his jeans pockets, baby-blue eyes hidden by orange lenses, staring at a speck of dirt on his sneakers. He didn't say anything for a good while, merely shifting his weight from one leg to the other. Finally, he swallowed the lump in his throat and looked up, but didn't meet her eyes directly. ❛ .... Thanks, I'll keep that in mind. ❜

[log6]

god id wish youd shut the fuck up

wish denied

[greelin]

“explain the character’s motivations and the reasoning behind his actions and who he is”

well

there we go

[poohsources]

🐝  *  ―  𝑷𝑳𝑨𝑻𝑶𝑵𝑰𝑪 𝑺𝑬𝑵𝑻𝑬𝑵𝑪𝑬 𝑺𝑻𝑨𝑹𝑻𝑬𝑹𝑺.

❛  you've been my best friend for years, what made you think it would change now?  ❜ ❛  i'm always here for you if you need me.  ❜ ❛  well, that's what friends are for.  ❜ ❛  remember, i'm always just one call away.  ❜ ❛  how long have we known each other now? i know you better than you know yourself.  ❜ ❛  you're an idiot most of the time, but you're my idiot.  ❜ ❛  do you want to come over and watch movies tonight? i could use some company.  ❜ ❛  you always know how to cheer me up.  ❜ ❛  i made you your favorite food.  ❜ ❛  i know it's 2 a.m. but i really need someone to talk to. are you awake?  ❜ ❛  remember when we used to build blanket forts? let's do it again.  ❜ ❛  please come to this family dinner with me. my family already loves you and i need some neutral person there with me.  ❜ ❛  here, i got you something. i saw it at the shop and it reminded me of you.  ❜ ❛  do you remember that promise we made to each other when we were kids?  ❜ ❛  i'm so grateful to have you in my life. you mean the world to me.  ❜ ❛  i don't need advice right now, just a friend to listen.  ❜ ❛  you're the best friend one could ever ask for.  ❜ ❛  hey, umm ... thank you for being my friend.  ❜ ❛  you don't have to go through this alone. i'm here for you.  ❜ ❛  want to grab a coffee and catch up?  ❜ ❛  we may not talk every day anymore, but i still consider you my friend.  ❜ ❛  i can stay and help you finish this if you want.  ❜ ❛  you've got this. i believe in you!  ❜ ❛  how about we plan a game night this weekend?  ❜ ❛  do you ever wonder what our lives will be like in ten years?  ❜ ❛  no matter what happens, you'll always have me.  ❜ ❛  you don't have to pretend with me. i like you just the way you are.  ❜ ❛  consider it ... a little friendly competition.  ❜ ❛  thank you, you always know how to make me laugh.  ❜ ❛  i can't believe how far we've come together.  ❜ ❛  just stay put, i'll be over in a minute.  ❜ ❛  i've got us tickets for that concert/movies/exhibition you wanted to go to.  ❜ ❛  how about a road trip? just like old times ...  ❜ ❛  i really appreciate you staying in my life all these years.  ❜ ❛  i don't know what i'd do without you.  ❜ ❛  you can tell me if something is bothering you.  ❜ ❛  race you to the end of the street!  ❜ ❛  bet you can't beat me at this game. i'm a pro.  ❜ ❛  i challenge you to a cooking contest. loser has to buy dinner for the next week.  ❜ ❛  you've been such a great friend, and i just wanted to say thanks.  ❜

[travis-strikes-again-deactivate]

ok, fine.

[pochacco]

i am stupid for free. no one pays me to be this stupid and i think that’s very brave

[namelessxflowers]

“If I really wanted to kill ya, I would’ve drawn my sword instead of tryin’ cheap tricks like poison. It’s not mounted on my back for decoration. After all… No offense to ya or yer skills, but ya probably would’ve lost yer head by now. Literally. Already forgot I placed that sheath on yer shoulder? Ya’re either confident or too trustin’.” Not really a remark she expected to get an answer for, just somethin to throw out there to keep in mind - If not about her confidence in her own rather long time experienced in the ringer, then at least about her ethics as a fighter and assassin.

Hilde followed him with her hands shoved in her pockets, her head turning and looking around ever so restlessly as they walked. Santa Destroy definitely had a retro feel to it, from the architecture to even inside the bar. It was charming in a weird sense even after staying there for a while, probably because she was a nomad. Made the local assassin scene even more interesting. “Heh. The smell of cigarettes makin’ the air unbearably thick, even the chairs have seen better days… I get ya, these places are usually the best ones. With the age of a local joint comes the charm and experience.” She grinned as she sat down by the bar, her dismounted nodachi placed between her thighs and leaning against her torso as she crossed her legs and her cap tossed off her head and onto the desk in front of her, pin facing her. She casually waved to the bartender as he passed by them. “Scotch on the rocks for me, and whatever this lad wants for himself.”

“So… If ya don’t mind me pryin’, what got ya in the business? We all got an interestin’, odd story behind our careers… Except the rich asshats who think firin’ a gun makes them a hotshot. Fuckers these days don’t know money can’t buy skills.” She chuckled and turned her seat to face him, elbow resting on the counter. “Lemme throw a guess: Debt? That’s usually a popular trap leadin’ down the rabbit hole nowadays. That’s why my mentor became one.”

[touchyoudown]

Travis refrained from rolling his eyes, but she was probably right. For an assassin, Travis was far too trusting of others, even expecting other assassins, such as Destroy Man, to uphold a code of conduct, and not to pull any dirty tricks while they exchanged a handshake, not only once, but twice. What a fool he was, but at the end of the day, he exploded into a million pieces, and Travis was still whole. So, who was the real idiot ? Never underestimate your opponents, it worked both ways. Either way, Travis kept it to himself, he didn't want to argue right now.

At Hilde's comments about the bar, he nodded. ❛ Finally, something we can agree on. ❜ He followed her inside, settling himself on the barstool comfortably, leaning his elbows on the table. ❛ Just a beer for me, thanks, ❜ he told the bartender.

He turned his head to look at Hilde as she spoke, resting his hand atop his fingers. ❛ I got pulled into this business accidentally in a way... I was enticed... not by riches and fortune, even though, don't get me wrong, shit is nice... it was sex. I wanted to have sex with a smoking hot chick and she told me that if I made it to number one she'd do it with me. So, yeah, that's it. Probably not the story you were hoping for. ❜ He shrugged. ❛ What about you ? You look like you're in it for good reasons. ❜

[darksails]

The sparkle in his eyes winks out like a dying ember, and Bartholomew proceeds to shrug, splaying out his hands in a demonstration of disregard.

"Only a little banter, my friend. Don't get your dear trousers into a bunch," he replies, not missing the sarcasm from Travis. Ha-ha, what a class act.

"As for the ship, well . . . I meant what I said: I'll show you—if we head to the docks, that is. That is where ships are usually found, no?" He sniffs, his indifference palpable. Still, Bart rises from his seat and candidly makes way toward the exit, gesturing for Travis to follow.

"Or, we don't. I could still show you either way, but—as much as you need the renovations in here, I'd really hate to ruin your floors." Or ceiling for that matter. "What say you?"

[touchyoudown]

❛ Banter ? Yeah, sure, whatever... ❜ Travis highly doubted it. Flirting was flirting, no matter what. He would know this better than anyone !

At the comment of simply visiting the docks to see the aforementioned ship, Travis slapped his forehead - hard. ❛ Duh... should've known better. ❜ He could be quite dense sometimes. Nevertheless, Travis nodded. ❛ Sure, why not ? ❜ It could be interesting.

❛ Tell me about this ship of yours on the way. When did you get it, where did you get it, things like that. Any cool facts about it ? ❜ He hopped to his feet, moving past Bart, and closing the door behind them as they made their way down to the docks.

[queenofkur]

Distracted as Ereshkigal was in talking to her viewership, she almost missed the voice emerging from beneath the latest stack of sheep. But there was a single word in those miserable pleas a goddess of death would never miss. Her spear appeared in Ereshkigal’s hand, and she stepped closer to the pile, using the weapon’s tip to kick a plush sheep off the guy’s face. Dumuzid appeared at once, hovering above the still-buried man besides Ereshkigal and pointing the camera to his face.

“Huh. Did you say you’re here to kill these criminals?”

“Gang war,” the low-pitched voice of the big golden sheep helpfully supplied.

“Hmm!—Sounds like useless human quarrelling. What should I do? If I let everyone run free and fight each other, I could get a lot of new souls… But I don’t want my channel to get banned.”

It was a serious dilemma. Fortunately, with the chat by her side, there was no shortage of suggestions coming in, from giving everyone embarrassing haircuts to enforced dance-offs to a battle royale, whose lucky winner would even get to fight Ereshkigal herself. The goddess dropped to her haunches and held out her phone so sunglasses-man on the ground could see the chat messages for himself.

“How about this? You must be an extra foolish human to come here all alone, when there are so many gang members around. So, I’m sure you must have a suggestion, too. If it’s a good one, I’ll add it to the poll and everyone’ll get to vote on what to do. That sounds fair, doesn’t it?”

At least in the goddess’ mind, it certainly did.

[touchyoudown]

Travis gasped desperately for breath, sweat drops cascading down his forehead. The air in the room was stifling with all of this body heat ( and not to mention him being buried alive ). He was finding it hard to concentrate, his lungs working overtime, heartrate wicked fast. He was only able to capture some of the words being spoken. Channel. Banned. Poll. Vote. What the hell ? Was this chick fucking life streaming right now ? Was this Sylvia's idea ?! It would make sense. That bitch seemed keen on increasing profits from each fight and making Travis' life harder than need be in the process.

❛ Listen lady, I'm not participating in whatever the fuck this is ! ❜ He tried to push both the camera and phone out of his face. ❛ Let me out ! I got gang members to kill ! ❜ If they didn't all die of suffocation already.... Man, he better still be getting paid for this....

Not waiting for a reply, Travis found whatever leverage he could, digging his fingers into the plush fur of the sheep, and managed to pull himself out, taking a moment to crash on the top of them all, chest heaving as he tried to recover. Once he did, he turned to look at his belt, noticing his beam katana was missing, likely buried alongside everyone else. Ugh. He really didn't want to go back in there.

Then he got an idea. ❛ Hey, lady. Tell you what. If you find my beam katana and get rid of these goons for me.... maybe I'll participate in your little live stream or whatever. After all, I still got a boss to kill. ❜ Work smarter, not harder. As long as he killed the boss, the cash was his.

[kazimehz]

Fine, armchair it was, though Platinum eyed it with some apprehension. She took a sip of her soda to cope with the mental images of what exactly Travis might normally do in this armchair and seated herself uncomfortably at the very edge of it. Better safe than sorry.

Sorry, though, she was anyway, because Travis’s explanation was both nonsensical and unsettling at once. She nodded to confirm she was listening, but Platinum’s brows furrowed deeply as she took another trip to dissociation-land, kicking his words around in her mind where they caught on too many corners.

The goons look basic as hell. Right. Just like the Armorless Union uniforms Platinum’s squad used to wear. Though they all were individuals, and though Platinum had known all their names by heart, it didn’t matter. To the higher-ups, they were all disposable pawns—just as she would’ve sacrificed them all if need be. If one of them mysteriously disappeared without a trace overnight, no one batted an eye, and no one asked questions. Like it didn’t matter at all if they lived or died.

And Platinum had been barely above them. To those at the top, there’d been no difference between them at all.

“Hah, my life really is a joke then. Even in this place…I don’t look like much of a boss then, do I? I’m not strong enough to be one, either. This sucks,” she commented with a wry smile immediately drowned in another sip of soda. Platinum recovered quickly though, and fixed Travis in an intense gaze hinting at a fierce resolve more serious than their current conversation warranted.

“That new weapon we talked about—will it get me to that boss-level of strength?” She realised a moment too late what a stupid question that was. “If… this were a game I mean.”

[touchyoudown]

Platinum seemed to be taking this a lot more seriously than Travis had anticipated. Her gaze was fierce by the end of his explanations ; he wondered if he had insulted her in any way without meaning to.... again. Well, he wasn't going to say a word this time. He learned his lesson by now. Though it seemed Platinum had an obsession with achieving boss status. Her appearance must've been entirely important to her. Travis could understand that, from a fashion perspective. He, too, wanted to look sick and picked clothes so that he would stand out from the rest. No basicness here.

He considered her questions for a moment, then nodded sagely, humming slightly in thought.   ❛ Well, having an ultra powerful weapon is one part of it, you also have to master it. Sure, some bosses don't, but then they end up looking lame as hell and it leaves an opening for a counterattack. You don't want to end up in that position. I'm no archer like I mentioned before, but I can find you a master and make sure you're prepared ! Just imagine it... you'll be all the rage when you go back home. New weapon, new you ! ❜ Perhaps, that was being a bit dramatic, but that was how Travis rolled.

He grinned at her, suddenly looking excited, bouncing in place on the floor. ❛ This is gonna be so fucking cool, dude. Like, what if the weapon has some crazy ass abilities, too ? It's very possible. Like, uh, firing a thousand arrows at once or some shit. There's some really high tech weaponry in these parts. I mean you've seen my beam katana, and this is just a basic model. I need way more cash before I can afford any others. ❜ Looks like Travis was quite interested in weapons.

[touchyoudown]

@unshackled-instinct : continued from here.

         ❛ Nah, I'm fully aware of where I am. I just don't care. ❜

         The inhabitants of Santa Destroy weren't exactly known for their courteousness, however, it was rare that someone would interrupt a musical performance with their negative commentary in such a loud-mouthed manner that the band itself would pause and answer back to the offender.

         ❛ Y'all gonna wrap up soon or what ? I came here to enjoy a beer without all this extra racket. ❜

[queenofkur]

The setting is what one might call the modern variation of a desert bandit gang’s hideout—only there is no desert, this band of local criminals possesses far more dangerous weaponry than any Mesopotamian robbers could’ve ever got their hands on, and the hideaways of old certainly didn’t display such eclectic tastes in decorations. Compared to the luxurious swords and other weaponry some of the more successful ancient robbers might’ve hung upon their walls though, these contemporary graffitis and posters with questionable imagery are downright pathetic.

Of course, that an uninvited visitor broke into their hideout doesn’t exactly boost this gang’s street credits either.

“Ereshkigal’s bond channel!” a cheerful voice announces to a camera, carefully positioned to capture what remains of the gangsters in the background. “Today I travelled to a parallel world and buried a bunch of seeeriously dangerous criminals in mini-Dumuzids!”

Ereshkigal takes a step aside and presents her work with a smug grin. Where well-armed gangsters should be, only depressed-looking F-tier villains remain, covered to the neck under endless piles of plush sheep, unable to move and either too knocked out or scared to speak up.

“Look, chat, aren’t they sooo much cuter now? Maybe there’s hope for them yet! Send some super-chats to cheer them on! And—hold on. There’s another one?”

The camera (handled by a much bigger and much more lively sheep) swings towards the newcomer just arriving at the scene. His sunglasses, weapon, and entire getup don’t look like the rest of the gang’s at all, though.

“Aha! This must be their boss!” This guy is gonna get Ereshkigal so many more views! For sure! “Dumuzid! Bury him!”

The sheep doesn’t display much enthusiasm, but it diligently switches to handling a large canon instead. Boom! Hundreds of plush sheep shoot towards Mr Bossguy.

@touchyoudown

[touchyoudown]

         Another day, another dollar. As Travis picked out the gig he was going to complete, he thought nothing of it. It was going to be like all the others; go in, murder a bunch of baddies, and get out. Simple. Easy. Cha-ching.

         As he pulled up to the hideout and turned off his motorcycle's engine, he was at once met with the sheer silence of the place, which was odd, looking beck at it now because there should've been baddies coming out to greet him with all the noise he had made pulling up to their entrance.

         Travis opened the door and at once his brain failed to compute the scene in front of him. This was something right out of an anime. Were those sheep everywhere ? Sheep covering the goons ? Where did they all even come from ? Before Travis could complete that thought, said sheep, were literally being shot at him.   ❛ What the fu- ❜ The extreme force knocked him off his ass and he hit he floor, hard. ❛ OOF. ❜ The air was knocked out of his lungs and just as he was about to regain his breath, the weight of even more plush creatures landed on top of his chest, and then had him completely covered.

         Was this how he was going to die ? What a pathetic end. He would rather have died to a low level enemy, than be buried alive like this. This was seriously not cool. What even was this though ? A booby trap ? Well, it certainly was effective, he'd give it that, but wait a minute.... weren't booby traps only supposed to be for intruders ? Then why did he hear various moans and groans coming from the entire floor ? Something wasn't right here.

         ❛ H-Hey. Is anyone else out there ? I'm not with them. I'm here to kill them, in fact. Let me out ! ❜ It was getting hard to breathe.....

[kazimehz]

Right, that. Except—well, that was basically having no plan at all. Again. Still, Platinum entered, taking an experimental sip from the soda Travis had handed her, quietly wondering how many calories a single drop of the stuff contained.

Looking up though, Platinum halted, her eyes narrowing as she took in the freshly revealed surroundings. Whatever she had expected to find in Travis’ place, this was worse. Posters, model figures, questionable movies…all in the same aesthetic as that stuff from Higashi, most of the girls depicted looking suspiciously young and underdressed. Weird masks lined the top of the walls, while instruments and various other objects hinted at too many hobbies to count. More than anything, Platinum’s gaze caught on the tissue pack conspicuously placed near to the armchair in front of the TV.

“Chill…in here…” Platinum tonelessly repeated his words as if they suddenly had lost all meaning. “Here.—Really?” She recovered quickly enough, sounding quite chilled indeed. “So, where exactly do you expect me to sit down when there’s barely one chair? On your lap?” It wasn’t a suggestion that needed confirmation. In fact, it very much needed the opposite of that.

“No wonder you’re single,” she concluded and sighed deeply, trying to drown any images bubbling up in her mind with another sip of soda. And she’d remain right there, close to the exit. “Anyway, we do need a plan. Well, maybe you don’t, but I’m lacking some crucial pieces of information, and I’d rather not head towards certain death. So…”

Briefly distracted by the cheerful faces of half-naked anime girls surrounding them, Platinum cringed. How was she supposed to focus on strategy in a place like this?

“You called yourself a normal guy earlier, but you’re not—not even by this town’s standards. Those flunkies we took out before…those are the average losers around here. But those boss guys were on a totally other level. How do you tell them apart?”

[touchyoudown]

          Travis could practically see all the negative thoughts swirling around in Platinum's brain as she investigated her surroundings. After all, this wasn't the first time he had experienced such a bad reaction from the motel room he called home. He should've been passed feeling angered by people's reactions of it, and he was for the most part, but irritation still lingered. After all, everything in his place was brought here by choice. His figurines were expensive and rare. The wrestling masks were unique and it took him forever to collect all those trading cards. You get the point. Needless to say, those were his passions and it hurt when people disrespected them so openly. To each their own and all that, but one could be respectful about it too.

          ❛ You can sit on the armchair, I'll take the floor. ❜ And to make that point, he seated himself in front of the TV, facing the armchair.

          At the comment about his relationship status, Travis huffed, folding his arms across his chest with defiance. ❛ Hey, I used to have a girlfriend, thank you very much. ❜ There would be no mention that it was all a lie and that his ex-girlfriend was actually his half-sister...

          He nodded at Platinum's question. ❛ So, think of this like a video game, yeah ? The goons are all gonna look basic as hell. Like, around here, they'll be dressed in suits, most likely, or dress shirts and slacks, whatever and they're all gonna look the same, too, I'm talking about same clothes, facial features, curse words they scream at you, their catch phrases, all that. Like the devs ain't gonna waste their time and resources by making them look unique. Now, their leaders on the other hand, their bosses, they're gonna look EXTRA. Flashy outfits, unique dialogue, names, etc. It's pretty obvious and easy once you know the formula. ❜ Travis sounded so sure of himself.

          ❛ Plus, the bosses are also at the end of the level, in the farthest room from the entrance, and the goons are gonna be everywhere else. Also, if we're talking about weapons, usually goons have basic ones like guns, bats, katanas, things like that, while bosses will have something big and powerful like a crazy strong staff or somethin' and unique abilities, too. You still with me ? ❜

[touchyoudown]

@darksails : continued from here.

          At least Bart was finally showing Travis' collection some respect by calling it treasure though he doubted he was being genuine about it. Well, whatever. This strangers' opinion shouldn't have bothered him so much or even matter to him. Guess Travis could be a bit soft when it came to the things he loved.

          ❛ You can physically show me ? ❜ Travis didn't have much time for follow up questions or comments as Bart's words turned rather suggestive, causing him to take a few steps back, inwardly shuddering. ❛ H-Hey, I already told you I don't swing that way . ❜ Bart finished with saying he wasn't his type which had Travis roll his eyes and scoff. ❛ Stop acting like I want you or something, geez. ❜ It was getting a little old now.

          ❛ Anyway, back to showing me. What did you mean by that ? You're a pirate, so, you live on a ship, I'm guessing. Do you mean to say your boat is parked somewhere on the docks ? I haven't seen any massive ships lately. Where the hell is it ? Up your ass and around the corner or something ? ❜ Full sarcasm mode activated, but hey, who knows, could be true.

[touchyoudown]

@kazimehz moved from here:

          Travis made a mental note to purchase some juice for Platinum at a later date. Purely, to get on her good side, naturally. Their relationship was strained, to put it in nicer terms, and if he could do anything, albeit small, to make a difference, he would. At the sound of knocking, Travis headed over to open the door for her, beverage in hand. Her forgetfulness took him a bit by surprise, a brow rising at her as he handed over the can of soda.

          ❛ Well, we were gonna go take down those assholes, weren't we ? Storm their base and shit ? I changed out my beam katana for a stronger one since it's probably gonna be a shit show if we take the battle to them. You... okay ?    Maybe we should call it a day instead like originally planned ? ❜ He personally didn't care either way and if Platinum wasn't at her best right now it would only put them both at risk. Even though Travis was nearly always reckless it didn't mean he enjoyed getting mauled, hurled, or brought to the brink of death every time.

          He stepped aside, gesturing for Platinum to come in, if she wanted to. ❛ We can always chill in here for a little while, if you'd prefer. Maybe go over our plan, if we even have one. I don't, before you ask. ❜

[yuyuyu8823]

[touchyoudown]

@darksails continued from here:

          Yes, it was true, a pirate's honor didn't seem rather trustworthy, but Travis figured as long as the other was in town he could keep a careful eye on him and more importantly his valued collection. Besides, he had other eyes and ears around town, so he wasn't particularly worried. He'd just have to make his associates aware just in case the other wanted to skip town with his stuff.

         Now, Travis knew damn well the dingy motel comment was accurate as fuck, but that did nothing to soften the blow. After all, this place was his home whether he liked it or not, for many a year now. Honestly, this place wasn't even the worst. Sure, it could've used some more cleaning ( but that was his fault ) or renovations and upgraded appliances and furniture, but for the price it was fair, roomy, and kept the cold out. That's all he could really ask for at this rate.

  ❛ No judgment, my entire asshole,   ❜  he mumbled, a frown taking over his entire face, casting shadows on his features.   ❛ But if you must know it's cause I'm broke as fuck. It wasn't cheap to gather all of this stuff. I'd rather have all of this instead of a nicer or bigger place though I guess eventually I will need more room.   ❜ Honestly, if the room didn't already come with furniture he'd probably have none or one chair, at best, along with just a mattress and the television would be on the floor. Classic male home. ❛ I'm guessin' you're rich back home or some shit ? Got a mansion, or what ? Do share. Better yet, show me. Pics, or I don't believe you. ❜ Pirate boy better be packing for all the diarrhea jetting out of his mouth.