IdeasGuy

The Good Life: Sense of Purpose (ch. 2)

This world had very little in common with her own, Nico Robin was forced to conclude, and not for the first time as she took a sip of tea, gazing out to the aptly named City That Never Sleeps -- New York. At night, the sky was simply a dark curtain while the stars were instead streetlights, headlights, and skyscrapers -- another name that seemed rather deserving from her position. Most buildings were made out of steel and glass, motorized carriages stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic, while a g...

Castoff: Bad Blood (ch. 18)

The more Guts heard Emhyr talk, the less that he liked him. He was made of sterner stuff than Guts initially gave him credit for though. The king that he had fought for was a petty coward -- absolutely everything that Guts imagined a king would be. Weak. Waifish. Afraid. Radovid had been an improvement, but in the end, he wasn't smart enough to get out of his own way. Emhyr was…

Emhyr reminded him of Griffith in the worst possible ways. He was composed, for one thing. Even when he was...

Legends Never Die: Settling Up (ch. 40)

“So, we lost, huh?” Astolfo had an interesting reaction to the news of the Frankish defeat. I had been a little wary of it, to be completely honest. Which was why I had kept the news from her until the ransom was taking place, despite the fact that her hands were in chains. Simply put -- if she wanted to kill me, then now would be the time for it. A sigh heaved out of her, “Ah… I’m gonna get yelled at when I get back…”

She accepted the news with ease. I watched her careful...

Legends Never Die: Well Earned Rewards (ch. 39)

I had absolutely no idea what happened, I realized, utterly exhausted and completely spent. I managed to block the charge that would have cost us the battle, but I had no idea what King Widukind did to win the battle itself. However, I knew that we had won, because Rinaldo's expression crumpled to one of pure horror, as if the very worst case scenario had transpired. He looked at me, panic shining in his eyes as his grip tightened on his sword. I was on a knee, trying to get my breathing unde...

Legends Never Die: Shining Stars (ch. 38)

Strength surged in my limbs, the edge of exhaustion I had felt fading away to be replaced with power. The injuries that I had suffered seemed to close, or at the very least, they stopped bleeding. It didn't go unnoticed by the Paladins, who narrowed their eyes in response, but they said nothing of it. Roland leveled his blade at me while Rinaldo tried to hide the wound under his armpit that leaked blood down his chainmail and armor.

It was Thorkell that broke the brief standoff, throwin...

Legends Never Die: The Weight of the Many (ch. 37)

The first day of the battle, I didn't fight. I sat on top of the hill with the reserves, my men seated on horseback as we waited for movement from the Paladins. However, on the first day, they didn't leave their king's side, leaving us to watch the two armies clash against each other. I watched with awe as the ground seemed to tremble underneath the many feet that charged across the field. It was almost like seeing a wall move, the air filled with war cries and defiant shouting from the Frank...

Never Fade Away: Never Fade Away (ch. 25)

Time slowed to a crawl the moment the force of the impact hit. Adam Smasher peered into the tank, his eyes glowing an ominous red. I didn't know much about him beyond vague mentions here or there. Mostly coming from David, because Adam Smasher was apparently the most renowned borg in the world. Ninety-six percent of his body was chrome and metal. I had thought it would make him an easy target. That was arrogance on my part.

I lashed out with a daemon, my gaze flashing red as I tried to ...

Never Fade Away: I Know You See Me (ch. 24)

Arasaka Tower was big, I realized. I had never seen it up close before, but no matter where you were in this city, you could see it. Arasaka Tower was a testament to the control the company had over Night City. It dominated the skyline, equal to a mega building. Rebuilt after Johnny Silverhand nuked the tower years ago, demolishing it and the surrounding blocks, and now fifty years later it stood taller and prouder than ever.

It was practically a different city in front of the tower. Ev...

Never Fade Away: The Loved and Lost (ch. 23)

Things were progressing well. Almost too well, I thought as I looked out at T-7 and Kaiden, both of whom were currently basking in the sun. They both had optics, so there was no real danger of hurting their eyes by staring up at it for too long. They were joined by a good dozen others, all of them trying to adjust to the wide open spaces. Jack was with another group, as was David and Lucy. I honestly think I would be overwhelmed without them, because taking care of nearly two thousand childre...

Never Fade Away: It Was A Passion For The Ages (ch. 22)

"The outside world smells," M decided, looking around at Night City with a sense of wonder. Wonder that I had felt once, but now I was looking into every single shadow for an enemy. We were on our way back to the base in Pacifica -- everything had went as smoothly as it could have, even if the loss of A was a bitter pill to swallow. We had his body and he would get a burial. The first one among us, I figured.

"You get used to it," I told him. "Up until a few days ago, the ceiling was co...

Gacha God: Logical Explanations (ch. 23)

As far as disasters went, this one was an unmitigated shit show, Natasha summarized her thoughts rather aptly as she sat at a round table inside of Avenger's tower. It was a disaster on every imaginable level. First, Italy was rather upset about the spy plane that crashed in their front yard. Understandably. The security council was also rather upset about the loss of the Gravitonium. And of course, Ian Quinn was kicking up a fuss about Shield stealing from him, but at the very least, those c...

Gacha God: No Regrets (ch. 22)

"Your eyes are fine," Peter told me as I lounged on the couch back in the man cave. I winced at the light he was flickering in my eyes to check my pupil dilation and other medical related stuff, quickly closing them and resting the wet cloth back over my eyes. The coolness of the ice pack wrapped within helped with the throbbing ache. "The X-rays also looked good. As far as I can tell, it's more of an issue with the eyes themselves rather than an issue with the surgery."

So, I wasn't go...

Gacha God: Dance Like No One Is Watching (ch. 21)

I opened my eyes, and it felt like I had been blind for my entire life and now the settings were kicked up to HD. I winced as Peter finished taking off the bandages while I sat on the machine that just did the transplant. We went right to cutting as soon as my plane arrived. As the last of the bandages fell away, Peter spoke, "You took to them pretty well according to Mr. Starks machine, but rejection is still something we have to worry about. So, erm, I'm going to keep your… eyes," Peter i...

Gacha God: Contractually Obligated Tragic Backstory (ch. 20)

"Well, that was particularly humiliating," Natasha Romanoff remarked, a frown in her voice as she looked at the massive pillar that had ripped through the asphalt, preventing them from giving chase to Audacity’s associate. It has been nothing more than dumb luck that she and Clint were already in Rome -- they were searching for records relating to… well, in any case, Natasha had jumped at the chance to capture someone that had connections to Audacity. He had been laying low for a few week...

Legends Never Die: Well Earned Rewards (ch. 39)

I had absolutely no idea what happened, I realized, utterly exhausted and completely spent. I managed to block the charge that would have costed us the battle, but I had no idea what Kind Widukind did to win the battle itself. However, I knew that we had won, because Rinaldo's expression crumpled to one of pure horror, as if the very worst case scenario had transpired. He looked at me, panick shining in his eyes as his grip tightened on his sword. I was on a knee, trying to get my breathing u...

Legends Never Die: Shinning Stars (ch. 38)

Strength surged in my limbs, the edge of exhaustion I had felt fading away to be replaced with power. The injuries that I had suffered seemed to close, or at the very least, they stopped bleeding. It didn't go unnoticed by the Paladins, who narrowed their eyes in response, but they said nothing of it. Roland leveled his blade at me while Rinaldo tried to hide the wound under his armpit that leaked blood down his chainmail and armor.

It was Thorkell that broke the brief standoff, throwin...

Legends Never Die: Weight of the Many (ch. 37)

The first day of the battle, I didn't fight. I sat on top of the hill with the reserves, my men seated on horseback as we waited for movement from the Paladins. However, on the first day, they didn't leave their king's side, leaving us to watch the two armies clash against each other. I watched with awe as the ground seemed to tremble underneath the many feet that charged across the field. It was almost like seeing a wall move, the air filled with war cries and defiant shouting from the Frank...

Legends Never Die: The Last Act (ch. 36)

I had never seen so many people in one place before, I thought, seated on top of a horse at the crest of the hill that would serve as the final battlefield of the war. It looked exactly as King Widukind, who was next to me, had  built it. Directly before us were thousands upon thousands of people -- a shield wall that felt like it could stretch on for miles and miles and at no less than twenty men thick at its thinnest. Fourteen thousand Saxons and Norsemen, in addition to three thousand...

Never Fade Away: I Know You See Me (ch. 24)

Arasaka Tower was big, I realized. I had never seen it up close before, but no matter where you were in this city, you could see it. Arasaka Tower was a testament to the control the company had over Night City. It dominated the skyline, equal to a mega building. Rebuilt after Johnny Silverhand nuked the tower years ago, demolishing it and the surrounding blocks, and now fifty years later it stood taller and prouder than ever.

It was practically a different city in front of the tower. Ev...

Never Fade Away: That Loved And Lost (ch. 23)

Things were progressing well. Almost too well, I thought as I looked out at T-7 and Kaiden, both of whom were currently basking in the sun. They both had optics, so there was no real danger of hurting their eyes by staring up at it for too long. They were joined by a good dozen others, all of them trying to adjust to the wide open spaces. Jack was with another group, as was David and Lucy. I honestly think I would be overwhelmed without them, because taking care of nearly two thousand childre...

Never Fade Away: It Was a Passion For The Ages (ch. 22)

"The outside world smells," M decided, looking around at Night City with a sense of wonder. Wonder that I had felt once, but now I was looking into every single shadow for an enemy. We were on our way back to the base in Pacifica -- everything had went as smoothly as it could have, even if the loss of A was a bitter pill to swallow. We had his body and he would get a burial. The first one among us, I figured.

"You get used to it," I told him. "Up until a few days ago, the ceiling was co...

Never Fade Away: Consume My Hate (ch. 21)

"Your nose is bleeding," Jack remarked as we headed to our destination, flying in one of the air cars that I had commandeered. The others were following behind us, the mission already underway. I had anticipated this moment since I first escaped the Orphanage -- the moment that I would go back. I thought I would be nervous, or scared. Instead, I found that I was so focused that I hadn't even noticed that a drop of blood had trailed down out of my nose. "Did you miss a dose of your immune boos...

Castoff: Awkward Reunions

"What are you doing here, Ciri?" Geralt questioned, pulling away from her. He took a step back, and Ciri saw him searching her face. There was a subtle and quiet exhaustion in his features that told Ciri that he had been pushing himself too hard for too long. She felt more than a few pangs of guilt for that. They had been so close to a reunion already, and they went right by each other. It seemed like she put him through some unnecessary trouble.

"I was looking for you," Ciri confessed....

Gacha God: No Regrets (ch. 22)

"Your eyes are fine," Peter told me as I lounged on the couch back in the man cave. I winced at the light he was flickering in my eyes to check my pupil dilation and other medical related stuff, quickly closing them and resting the wet cloth back over my eyes. The coolness of the ice pack wrapped within helped with the throbbing ache. "The X-rays also looked good. As far as I can tell, it's more of an issue with the eyes themselves rather than an issue with the surgery."

So, I wasn't go...

Gacha God: Dance Like No One Is Watching (ch. 21)

I opened my eyes, and it felt like I had been blind for my entire life and now the settings were kicked up to HD. I winced as Peter finished taking off the bandages while I sat on the machine that just did the transplant. We went right to cutting as soon as my plane arrived. As the last of the bandages fell away, Peter spoke, "You took to them pretty well according to Mr. Starks machine, but rejection is still something we have to worry about. So, erm, I'm going to keep your… eyes," Peter i...

Gacha God: Contractually Obligated Tragic Backstory (ch. 20)

"Well, that was particularly humiliating," Natasha Romanoff remarked, a frown in her voice as she looked at the massive pillar that had ripped through the asphalt, preventing them from giving chase to Audacity’s associate. It has been nothing more than dumb luck that she and Clint were already in Rome -- they were searching for records relating to… well, in any case, Natasha had jumped at the chance to capture someone that had connections to Audacity. He had been laying low for a few week...

Gacha God: Smooth as Sandpaper (ch. 19)

"Damn. It'd really help if I could speak or read Italian," I remarked, flipping through the instruction manual, seeing it all in a weird made up looking language. Though, I suppose all languages were made up. I just so happened to understand English. "Guess we're stuck looking at pictures," I continued, flipping through the book to find pictures that would help me fly the plane. I must have found the section for people that didn't know how to fly a plane but had to because the pilot had a med...

The Good Life: Carrot and the Stick (ch. 4)

There was a black cat looking at me, I noticed, making eye contact with the golden-eyed feline from across a back alley as I went about my business. Mostly aimlessly wandering New York to get a temperature for the various gangs that I now controlled. The Bayers’ territory had been divided up and given to the rest of the Eight, and as far as I could tell, most of the gangs took their acquisitions with glee. If there were any issues with the new status quo amongst the rank and file, then the ...

The Good Life: Ill-Intentions (ch. 3)

Cinder cycled through her social media pages, smirking to herself all the while. Across her feed were reposts of the video that the Vought team edited together -- and she had to admit, it was nicely done. If she hadn't been there, she would have thought that it had been an actual team-up, the transitions were so flawless. That video alone brought her more attention than she had received in the past month several times over.

With a lazy tap of her fingers, she uploaded a new video along ...

The Good Life: Sense of Purpose (ch. 2)

This world had very little in common with her own, Nico Robin was forced to conclude, and not for the first time as she took a sip of tea, gazing out to the aptly named City That Never Sleeps -- New York. At night, the sky was simply a dark curtain while the stars were instead streetlights, headlights, and skyscrapers -- another name that seemed rather deserving from her position. Most buildings were made out of steel and glass, motorized carriages stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic, while a g...