Unconventional Gifting

Project 32 'Night Hound'

A cruel punishment to set an example.

The dead companion had laid at its master's feet as loyal as it had been in life. No power had been enough to stop that. Desperation and isolation drove the master to make this creature from the body of a dead companion.

Night Hounds appear as tall, emaciated hounds that appear normal up until the joint between the neck and head where the head has been severed. Two tubes connect a skinless substitute head to the body. Hard to kill and exilent guard dogs, the hounds are also extremely loyal, and once choosing a master will stay with them until death.

If the bond is close enough, then the soul of their chosen master can animate and linger with them as they pass into the afterlife.

Another Cog

(A little study of Margaret before she calmed down)

One, two, punch.

Dodge, quick check behind, and repeat.

Blow after blow her fists contacted skin until they were bruised and bleeding.

This wasn't even her blasted job... she wasn't getting paid for this crap so why did she always end up babysitting fools?

'Just a small favor Mag, I'll put in a good word with the boss.'

The ever present promise of promotion always just a hair out of reach.

Raising her fist, Margaret bought it down like a hammer on one of her fallen assailants for good measure. Pulling back her arm with a hiss of pain, she examined her shaking fingers and found part of a tooth imbeded in her knuckle.

Standing to her feet Margaret kicked one of the attackers again for good measure and wiped some blood from her nose.

She needed a drink, or a smoke, probably both. The idiot she had been protecting wasn't around anyway, so after calling for an ambulance, she stepped out of the lobby in search of the nearest bar.

Heads Up, Seven Up

Share 7 lines from one of your WIPs

Thanks for the tag, @renasdoodles

I haven't reached the editing faze of my WIP yet, so you just get the unedited insanity that it is at the core.

Taking a deep breath, Owen released his hold. Maren had finally calmed down once he got her out of the water and rested.

Well calmed down in the fact that she was currently unconscious. He still had to go off into the woods to look for anything that could help fight the withdrawal symptoms.

This was fun. Thanks for the tag!

No pressure tagging: @kuebiko-writing @davycoquette +open tag

Character Profile Tag: Billy

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

Full name: Billy, Shepard of the Blue Moon

Age: 4045 yrs

Gender: male

Species: Forest Guardian

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Favorite sport: shooting

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

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

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

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

Good points: He is loyal and considerate.

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

No pressure tagging:

@renasdoodles @kuebiko-writing @davycoquette ,

@wyked-ao3 @somethingclevermahogony @boomiburst @lyutenw ,

+Open Tag

Questions to copy:

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

Pick 3 OCs and give them each a song

Thanks for the tag, @literally-just-zay

I was planning to just do three but it was pretty fun so I just did the whole squad.

MA- Time in a bottle (Jim Croce)

Above all else, MA loves the world and wants to cherish every moment in it.

Owen- Army Dreamers (Kate Bush)

I had trouble with this one, but it fits him best because he could have been so much more if he had been given proper care.

Ember- Gasoline (Halsey)

Ember wasn't always a piromaniac, but one too many blows to the head, and one failed burning execution changed many things about her.

Bonus!

Tori-Baker (Aimee Carty)

He is quite skilled and, in his own way, very good at his job. He just works with crazy people who are better than him in their fields.

Hati- Believer (Imagine Dragons)

A core concept of Hati is his ability to change the world based on his beliefs

Billy- Gotta Be A Reason (Alec Benjamin)

The centuries have not been kind to Billy, but he has to keep moving because who else will?

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

@somethingclevermahogony @creatrackers

It’s all in the eyes 

Thank you for the prompt @flashfictionfridayofficial

No warnings

Word Count: 608

It was the final day of the grand celebration and Rue was late. Tapping his finger against the table, Kaliyah scanned the crowd again. It wasn’t like her to be this late. Normally it wouldn’t have been of much concern to him, but he had been itching to discuss the latest reports with her since they had come in with the afternoon meal. He’d managed to intercept most of the interesting tidbits today, but the information would only be good for so long. Once the council got wind of it, their advantage would be wasted, and he could already tell that one report would be of particular interest to many at the event. Rue’s keen sense of their cohabitants was vital to finding the best buyer, and they were running out of time.  

A crack of thunder suddenly split the sky, startling the attendants and drawing their attention. Vibrant blues and greens filled the night air overhead, as a flurry of water droplets began to cascade towards them, suspending just above the heads of the guests. Kaliyah’s hand relaxed on the hilt of his blade as recognition dawned on him. Of course it would be him. Scowling Kaliyah continued to silently scan the crowd for any devilry as the other attendants watched small constructs form from the water droplets with complete devotion. Kaliyah even found himself glancing at the intricate constructs dancing across the sky in an elaborate dance despite his irritation. 

As the performance was reaching its height of action, a great serpent of water rose up consuming the constructs, rolling itself into a sphere that quickly shrunk into a solid form and landed at the feet of the council, refined into a shining pearl of the sea. The crowd erupted into applause as one of the council servants rushed forward to present the stone to the council head, who inspected it with greedy eyes.

The disrespectful undertone of the performance and its conclusion seemed to have been ignored by the participants,  who seemed content with the grandeur of the performance, but Kaliyah shuddered to think what such a statement could mean. That man didn’t make such boisterous plays mindlessly. Looking towards the door, Kaliyah watched Lan silently step into the courtyard, towering over everyone as usual, in a very unusually flashy dress. The crooked smile plastered on his face painted him as the picture of geniality, but Kaliyah didn’t miss the flash of darkness that passed through his eyes as he bowed to the council. When the noise from the crowd finally died down as they returned to their revelry, an air of excitement still lingered from the performance. Lan never disappointed. 

Growing uneasy at his unexpected appearance, Kaliyah made ready to sneak away from the party, but as he was approaching the exit he caught sight of Rue. She looked beautiful, adorned in a simple dress and practically glowing as she quietly offered Lan a beverage. Kaliyah almost reached out to her, but having no desire to intrude, he swallowed his pride, turning to leave. If she had chosen Lan then he would respect her decision. 

‘Come now Capitan, don’t keep Mrs. Rue waiting.’

Turning suddenly Kaliyah caught sight of a small water construct in the shape of a snake that seemed to smile at him mischievously before dissipating.Turning towards Lan, half fuming, he caught Rue’s gaze and stood in shock as a light blush spread over her cheeks. Had they not come together? Catching Lan’s expression, Kaliyah felt his ears burn slightly at the hint of mirth filling his cold eyes. The old snake had definitely planned this.

An Interesting Conversation

@flashfictionfridayofficial Thank you for the prompt! Also, thank you for your kind words about my drawings and writing in the past :) These prompts have been really good for getting me to write original work more regularly. Thank you so much!

Warnings: alcohol and some tension?

Summary: John runs into an unexpected figure at a lack luster party.

You were quite difficult to track down you know.”

John set down his wine, uninterested in the sparkling liquid after an initial testing. So far, this event had been a waste of his time, and speaking to another elite wasn’t going to improve his souring mood. 

“I keep to myself… Politics no longer hold any interest to me.”

Watching the many debutantes fluttering across the dimly lit ballroom with their sparkling capes and glistening helms had only contributed to the perpetual headache that had recently been plaguing him. He thought he might at least get to meet with someone interesting, but the older participants who might have been good for a story or two were all focused on the dance floor, assessing potential seeds to develop with even less subtlety than a child in a candy store. After two hours of this nonsense, he had little hope that any conversation here would be worth his time. 

“Yet you always hold such sway over the tides of history… I remember reading about your exploits on Teris 7, the carnage that you wrecked… It was inspiring.”

John turned his head slowly, his eyes fixed on the towering figure just to his left. A simple red cape held in place by two golden fasteners caught his attention before the coiling cables draping past her ceremonial helmet snaked into view. She was quite the figure to be appearing here.

“Such high praise, Admiral Krom, but you seem to have me confused with someone, don’t you? I may seem tarnished, but my time does not span further than your father’s.”

He noticed the flinch, turning his body towards the drink he’d laid aside. It seemed more palatable now that the conversation had shifted to such a useless topic. 

Before he could reach for it, his hand was intercepted, the music beginning to swell as bachelors flooded the dancefloor to have their promised turn with a rising star. 

“Humor me?”

With another half hour before the doors would reopen, he accepted her advance, swaying along to the tune until her moves began to shift, turning to a much older step that his body instinctively fell into. 

“The Dying Constellation… banned by the mad emperor after the death of his beloved wife, and nearly lost to time… not the type of thing one’s body forgets, is it?”

John’s shoulders hunched. She was a persistent pup. One who seemed to have done her research.

“What do you want?”

His words were flat, and he wasn’t sold on the conversation, but for her to have learned that dance at such a young age… she deserved a modicum of engagement at least. At the height of the echoing music, Krom dipped him back, pulling his waist towards her with a tense grip and closing the distance between them in an instant. 

“The empire is rotting John. I just want you to do what you do best and remind everyone just how small our bluster is in the face of real monsters.”

Her words rang out like music, causing the husk to stir with excitement in a way he hadn’t felt since encountering the first emperor. Her ambition was palpable, and borderline, desperate, hidden behind a thin facade of calm that was threatening to break with every word she spoke. 

“He was already proud of you, Elodie, and revenge can’t revive the dead.”

He pulled away from her gently, the strength gone from her hands as he picked up his wine, downing the liquid in an attempt to quiet the beating of their hearts. What use would there be in getting excited now? 

“No… But you can, or at least the husk could manage it, right?”

He froze, a spark of interest finally starting to unravel the ball of apathy packed tightly in his chest. Perhaps this party wouldn’t be a total waste of an evening after all.

Her Special Day

@flashfictionfridayofficial

Summary: Alexia and Nihil spend an important occasion in an unplanned way, but it ends up working out.

Warnings: reference to violence, depictions of decapitation.

Alexia sat down on a slab of stone with a sigh of relief, her attention gradually drifting to the stars above. Lifting one tired arm, she rolled the strange device in her hand absently.

“Do you think that humanity will ever reach the heavens?

Nihil hummed a response, but he was still focused on his work. He always took the worst jobs since he knew how much she hated them.

Sitting in silence felt wrong, so after waiting for a further reply for some time, Alexia finally forced herself up from the floor and slowly trudged over to the irritated man.

“Oh come on, I know it wasn’t how we planned to spend the evening, but look at it this way… Someone was going to have to deal with them and at least this way you get some of the loot right?”

The hacking stopped as Nihil turned his attention towards her.

“I had everything planned, I wanted it to be a nice evening Alex. Just one nice evening, I even had chocolate… Chocolate Alex!”

Wrapping one arm around Nihil’s shoulder while raising the device to the sky, she pressed down the trigger, causing a cascade of explosions to ripple through the compound behind them.

“But this is nice too, Wouldn’t have had such a light show if we’d stayed inside anyway.”

Nihil lowered the head in his hands before leaning against her stooped form. This was nice, and honestly it was the best birthday she’d had in years, most importantly it was the first birthday that she had the chance to do what she wanted to, and that was more than she could have wished for three years ago.

The falling stars mixed with the sparks from the burning buildings creating a beautiful display of light that dazzled her eyes.

“Beautiful”

Nihau had leaned his head back and was gazing at her. Staring down at his ruffled hair, Alexia instinctively leaned over and planted a kiss on his cheek. Beautiful indeed.

Out of Context Tag Game

@kuebiko-writing , thank you for the tag!

Groggily coming back to his senses, Owen was confronted once more with the shattering realization that his squad was still missing. At least he wasn't Impaled anymore, so small mercies. A good sleep had a hand in that he'd bet, ma always said it did. Looking out at the marred earth surrounding the crash site, Owen stared blankly at the neat piles of immaculately clean bones carefully arranged into rows in place of his fellow passengers. He'd eaten them, hadn't he?

Tagging- open tag

Thanks for another fun prompt @flashfictionfridayofficial !

Happy New Year!

This is another random snippet inspired by the prompt.

Cold Winters Night

The falling snow turned to slush around midday and had continued pelting down in an endless onslaught well into the evening. Annexed from the other houses and nestled between two towering warehouses, a pair of windows glowed brightly with an inviting warmth that seemed to cut through the howling wind. Inside, the fire burned brightly, keeping the week's soup and most of the bar toasty. It helped that Zora had finally invested in some proper insulation over the summer months, but what good did it do her if there were no customers filling the tables?

Usually, around this time, the bar would be packed with workers, just back from the mines, drinking and carrying on about whatever petty squabbles that had grabbed their attention this week. Today, it seemed that the slush was enough of a deterrent to send them all scurrying back to whatever holes they called home. Even the corner closest to the fire was completely empty. If the weather continued to get worse, and this became a trend, she might have to take Ruth up on her offer to go to the country for a bit. It would be nice to see the kids again, even if she’d end up suffering another lecture about starting her own family, and Prior had been asking to borrow the bar for storage anyway.

Just as she was convincing herself that the trip would be a good choice, Zora’s solitude was interrupted by the little bell above the main door ringing. A dripping figure draped in a brown sack stepped through her door, tracking in a mess of ice. The shivering child who barely stood three feet tall struggled to close the thick oak door before turning to the counter and tottering forward. From the boney limbs poking out from under her ragged clothes, the child looked to be a beggar, but Zora hadn’t heard word of any kids on the streets lately.

When the child finally made it to the bar, Zora watched in silence as the scruffy child pulled herself slowly onto one of the bar stools and shoved a bag across the counter towards her. As the torn burlap scraped forwards, the twine strap holding it closed came loose, spilling shining gold coins between them. The child looked from the coin up to Zora with a determined expression that didn’t belong on such a young face.

“I want you to be my father.”

Zora briefly wondered if her years of drinking had finally resulted in hallucinations but quickly decided that the child was just confused. Turning away from the child, Zora grabbed a clean bowl and filled it with soup. Her appearance had always been on the masculine side, sure, but usually flirtatious drunks were the only ones to mistake her for a man. Maybe Prior wasn’t completely off basis with how much she’d let herself go.

“Eat up kid.”

Setting the soup down, Zora watched the child’s eyes light up.

“Thanks Dad!”

After gulping down the soup like a starving animal, the child gave her a big smile and offered up the clean bowl. Zora chuckled and accepted it, filling the bowl once more, much to the child’s delight. She wasn’t sure what this father business was all about, but there was nothing else going on tonight, and it wouldn’t hurt to figure out what the kid was doing with so much gold.