Est. Read Time: 60min
This Month's Font: Comic Neue
Last time on The Rogue's Scribe....
Yeeeeeaaaaaahhhhh.... so.... about that reset button..... Given that this OCTOBER update is publishing mid-NOVEMBER, clearly that didn't work out as swimmingly as I had originally planned.
Once I published the last update I did get started on this one, but then got distracted at work. As I've stated in previous blog posts, downtime at work seems to be the only way I can squeeze writing into my day. Especially when my outside-of-work hours were spent celebrating my wedding anniversary (Happy 13 years, Hubby!), preparing to head out-of-state for my sister's wedding, and then attending said wedding - including buffer days to help decorate and then clean up the party tent for the reception. (CONGRATS, YOU TWO!)
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| The Nightmare Before Christmas themed wedding
Photo edited for anonymity by LycoRogue |
By the time I came home I was beat. I think I've been running on about 5hrs of sleep per night (if I'm generous) for roughly two months. Which, to be fair, is more than Hubby tends to live off of, but.... still not great.
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| Generated by Bitmoji |
Add in Halloween and the US American election (and the fall-out from that), along with playing perpetual catch-up on housework.....
Sooooo, yeah. When I don't have downtime at work I just don't have writing time. Not ideal. I had hoped to course-correct during these final two months of the year so that I'm back to where I want to be for 2025.
Spoiler alert: hasn't been going great so far.
I mean... *gestures to blog post date* (I've been working on this update for about 3 weeks.... TT^TT)
Also, after Dragnime excitedly told me last month that he was getting back into working on his story, I had suggested that we - including Aurora Morgen and Dragnime's wife - do an unofficial NaNoWriMo. "Unofficial" because none of us want to be actively involved in the official event anymore. NaNoWriMo.org has fallen far from grace with multiple controversies over the past 2 years or so.... Regardless, four days in and... none of us had done any writing (except for me working on this update, of course. Even so, clearly I didn't get much done...).
Aurora had some major stressors that ne's trying to work through and Dragnime is transitioning between jobs. As for me? Well... I'm still running on less sleep than I'm used to, coupled with being burnt out, and I've had some poor mental-health days on top of that. In fact, all of us have been struggling with our mental health (for some obvious reasons) since the election concluded. Needless to say, I haven't been in the headspace to write anything. I've been in more of the "do mindless tasks" mindset.
Lots of endless scrolling through various social websites.... Not "doom scrolling", per se, but just... a way to amuse myself with what others are posting online. Fantheories. Fan art. Quippy statements. Micro-stories. Positive news. Inside jokes (re: "color theory" on Tumblr). Reminders to relax my shoulders and unclench my jaw. Gorgeous original artwork. Bad puns. Et cetera.
My writing friends and I are still trying to sort out how to handle our writing month. Aurora is starting to get the writing spark again, but Dragnime and I are still not in a "sit down and be creative" headspace. And I have no clue where Dragnime's wife is in all of this. That said, it's looking more like we're going to try to shift it to January since we're not doing the official event anyway.
Which means my new task for (the rest of) this month and December is to poke away at Seduce With Caution again. I might not get more actual narrative writing done, but I'm hoping to at least get the plot outline finally to a point that I'm happy with before the end of the year. That way I can hit the ground running in 2025.
Just in time for this undertaking, zenmisery has returned from a 3 year fanfic writing hiatus! Yesterday, she popped back out of the blue to drop the first chapter of her potentially spicy aged-up ML fic Intensity.
Summary:
Somehow it didn’t feel accidental. Slowly, the pairs and trios had wandered away from the dwindling fire and gone to enjoy the privacy of their tents… leaving Adrien and Marinette sitting awkwardly across from one another, pretending that the sounds they were hearing weren’t designed to put pressure on them to finally make a move. They were both keenly aware that there was only one tent still empty, and their things had been moved there by well-meaning friends who now had their hands full with other matters. With this only the first night of a planned week away, will they procrastinate the inevitable or utilize their time wisely?
It's great seeing Zen back after the long hiatus. The story is already a little spicy. A sensual slow-burn as Adrien and Marinette stumble their way through trying to sort out if the other wants to sleep with them, or if there's just some major miscommunication going on. All while not simply ASKING what the other is thinking/wants. Because THAT would be awkward. The chapters are fairly short, so the story is also the best size for a quick read on a lunch break or something. I'm just so hyped for this story.
Plus, Intensity doesn't only help re-inspire me to work on SWC because it's also an aged-up potential-smut story, it's also Zenmisery herself. A sensual chapter she had written for Dress to Confess was what got me down the rabbit hole that inspired SWC in the first place. From day one, I had the intension of writing SWC FOR Zen. To have her active in the fandom again just helps give me the drive to actually get this story done before she *poofs* away again.
Speaking of writing, I mentioned last update that I had a bunch of stories that I wanted to talk to you fine folks about. I'm sure you know well enough by now that you should snuggle yourself in with a beverage and some snacks, because this is gonna take a minute.
First up, I wanted to tell you more about the game World Wide Wrestling. I talked to you last time about Hubby excitedly getting the game, and us playing it throughout the back half of the summer. Sadly, we haven't touched the game since late August/early September. Mostly because the limited times we can get a group together it was to play D&D instead. However, I still want to go over what we came up with in our brief stint of wrestling glory.
I already told you about my character Ned Patrick Corney, aka NPC. Here's a refresher though.
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| Built in WWE 2K22 |
Ned is what's known as a "Jobber", a wrestler whose sole purpose is to make the big-name wrestlers (and even the up-and-comers) look impressive. In other words, Jobbers are wrestlers who are always destined to lose their matches, with rare exceptions meant to either shock the audience or add credibility to the Jobber so their losses again feel like proper victories for their opponents.
According to all of the wrestling enthusiasts I've played WWW with, Jobbers are frequently "Babyfaces" (aka the "heroes"/"good guys" of wrestling). However, since so many of our players picked Babyface as their character's alignment, I decided to balance the roster slightly by going "Heel" (aka the "villains"/"bad guys" of wrestling).
I also figured that, along with balancing our roster a bit, it just made more sense for a Jobber to be a Heel. For one, the Jobbers are supposed to lose to Heels and Babyfaces alike. It doesn't seem very "good guy" to be beating up on another "good guy". I mean, yes, I know that it happens a lot in wrestling, and it gets played out like Captain America vs Iron Man. However, this would be more like Captain America vs Ant-Man's friend Luis. Sure, it makes the Heels look more like bad guys to beat on someone like that, but it also kinda makes the Babyfaces look a bit like bullies, doesn't it? Especially because I wanted my Jobber to be a fan favorite. The little guy (figuratively) that people loved seeing in the ring - and may secretly want to win now and again - but ultimately just enjoy seeing them get the snot beat out of them.
On the flipside, a Heel beating up a less threatening Heel is just standard "bad guy" stuff, and a Babyface beating up on any type of Heel is just basic "good guy" dynamics. It seemed like a better way for Ned to elevate the other wrestlers. He could still be a fan favorite as a villain. There's been tons of beloved villains within all sorts of media.
More often than not, however, when I explained that Ned was "a Heel but not really; it's mostly to try to impress the members of TKO" I then equated Ned to the Marvel character and Deadpool's sidekick: Bob from Hydra.
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| Official comic panels; (c) Marvel Comics |
Hence why Ned's wrestling uniform is green pants with yellow boots and gloves. Hubby wants me to add in Bob's mask and turn Ned into a Luchador when I finally promote him from Jobber. I kinda like him as a Jobber though, so I don't know when I would want to promote him. Game mechanics wise, Ned has earned enough experience that promoting him from Jobber has been unlocked, and there's not much more that I can do to evolve the character without promoting him. But I don't mind that?
So Ned's staying a Jobber for a bit longer.
As for his storyline. It's weird how it evolved. At character creation, you are asked four questions based on the style of wrestler you picked. One of my questions was "Who was my tag team partner before they made it big?" Since it was our inaugural game night, and I had built Ned specifically to play off of Hubby and our friend, we agreed that I should use our friend's "Clown" character Squirrelhausen.
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| Our friend hasn't come over to officially build
Squirrelhausen, but he did doctor the official artwork on his character sheet to get a basic idea. (c) World Wide Wrestling RPG |
We continued that story thread by having Squirrelhausen also be the answer to another of my questions: "Who is trying to get me bigger paydays to reward me for my work?"
On the flipside, Squirrelhausen had Ned as his answer to two of his questions as well: "Who asks me for tips to add something fresh to their act?" and "Who always turns to me to save their segments when they drop the ball?"
We were starting to build this dynamic, which is the point of these character creation questions. I adore that RPGs are starting to include these (previously, it was the DM/GM/Host's discretion to come up with these styles of questions to build these connections between the characters). We had determined that Squirrelhausen and NPC were a Jobber tag team to help bolster the other tag-team duos. Perhaps they were the reason Tau Kappa Omega, AKA TKO, were able to climb the ranks in the first place.
At some point, however, Squirrelhausen's talents surpassed Ned's, and the higher-ups (the Creative) noticed this. Squirrelhausen was offered a chance to promote out of Jobber status, and he took it. He became a Clown instead. Still destined to lose a lot of matches, but played well with the crowd and got to have fun with some of the more insane plotlines and match interruptions. He solidified himself as a Babyface. The loveable scamp who was basically a wrestling gender-swapped Squirrel Girl.
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Textless variant cover of
Unbeatable Squirrel Girl #6 Art by Kamome Shirahama |
Two main components of the wrestling game outside of the actual wrestling combat are the promos the wrestling shows air between matches to create/continue a storyline to explain why certain wrestlers are going against each other, and giving a "Last Week On..." recap for your character. What significant thing happened to them last episode? If they weren't showcased/didn't appear, why?
Our friend determined that the weird storyline that Squirrelhausen had found himself in the previous week was that his signature bag of nuts was stollen! He had determined that Squirrelhausen's signature finishing move was to stuff his opponent's mouth full of nuts before roundhouse kicking them in the cheek, causing the opponent to spray the nuts all over the ring/audience. The bag that contained his nuts for his finishing move was stolen out of his locker, though! And he was on the hunt for the thief!
Fast forward to when I had to do a promo. I thought it would be fun if Ned, the Heel and former partner of Squirrelhausen, was the nut thief. You already have that dynamic of one tag team partner splitting from another, creating an in-character rift. One that caused Ned to turn Heel and seek revenge for being abandoned like that.
It also seemed to fit in the out-of-character dynamic that we created with our starter questions. Apparently, Ned would go to Squirrelhausen (or, at least, the wrestler who played Squirrelhausen) and both ask for advice on storylines and rely on Squirrelhausen to help him save his segments when he drops the ball. Based on how poorly I have rolled for these promos since creating Ned, it's easy to in-universe explain that Squirrelhausen got the promotion while Ned didn't mostly due to charisma. Ned is just.... BAD at the actual acting portions of his job. He's a fantastic stuntman, and can use that skill to make the wrestling moves look realistic, as well as clean up any wrestling mistakes his opponent might make. But the charisma to perform on camera as an actual character? He's still a bit rough around the edges on that.
Anyway, so the in-universe explanation was that the wrestlers who perform as Ned and Squirrelhausen are still friends. Ned still largely relies on Squirrelhausen (who may have also been in the biz a touch longer than Ned, and therefore is simply more experienced). Squirrelhausen sees how much Ned is trying to improve, and wants to help his friend succeed and get better gigs for better payouts. When Ned comes to Squirrelhausen about a new plotline idea, Squirrelhausen suggests the thieving of his signature nuts. But this is not simply a prank on a rivel; revenge for the betrayal of breaking up the tag-team. Oh, no!
As I was cutting the promo revealing that Ned was the nut thief - in which I commented on how Squirrelhausen's bag of nuts was "comically large" like a cartoon bag of money - I somehow got the idea that Ned didn't just steal the nuts to be mean. Instead, desperate to be back on a tag team and finding the TKO duo super cool, Ned stole the nuts as part of his initiation. Since TKO has this Frat Boy theme to the duo, we decided to lean into it. Ned was "rushing" for TKO. And one of the hazing rituals was to steal something of significance from another wrestler. Ned simply targeted Squirrelhausen due to their rocky past.
Later that wrestling episode, TKO had a tag-team match. Ned stood on the sidelines to root on the team he so badly wanted to join. Meanwhile, Squirrelhausen, having seen the tape revealing Ned's betrayal and thievery, busts out into the arena and rabidly bee-lines it for Ned. Caught off-guard, Ned dives into the ring to try to both get away from Squirrelhausen and have TKO protect him. Things get out-of-hand. The tag-team match is called "no contest" (no winner can be announced).
Then the owner of the promotion - "Dynamic" Duke Barron - comes storming out and essentially boxes both Squirrelhausen's and Ned's ears. He then demands that the two settle it, and the main event of the night turns into a ladder match between Ned and Squirrelhausen. Except, instead of a championship belt or a briefcase of money, the prize is Squirrelhausen's bag of nuts.
I told you guys last time, the game got SO weird!
Squirrelhausen, of course, managed to recover his nuts, and win the match by landing his signature finisher on Ned (who was tangled up in the ladder).
The next episode - the one where Dragnime tried out the game - Ned was put up against Dragnime's first character attempt: Luna Shadow. She was our first female wrestler. Side note: I was going to create a female Jobber, but Hubby wasn't sure he was comfortable with having our first female wrestler being the group's punching bag.... fair.... Anyway, Luna had the Hardcore wrestling style. These are the ones who do the insane stunts designed to cut them and bruise them so they have black eyes or blood covering them as they fight. They're the ones who wrestle with barbed wire or smack each other around with metal chairs or walk on a ring matt covered in shattered glass, etc.
Because the answer to one of Luna's questions - "Who is willing to make me bleed?" - ended up being NPC, Hubby had Ned go up against Luna on the card (the wrestling schedule for the evening). Dragnime had his "Last Week On..." explain that Luna was finishing up rehab for a broken leg, or something of that ilk, which is why she wasn't on the previous episode. This would be her debut back in the ring after serious injury. She had no interest in easing her way back in, and demanded a Street Fight match. Tons of weapons - bats, lead pipes, brass knuckles, chains, etc - lined the barrier between the ring and the crowd.
It was a rough match. One that Ned could have easily won, actually (based on dice rolls). Seemed Luna was a bit more rusty than she thought. Ned wasn't booked to win, however. This was supposed to be Luna's triumphant return! So, after I had Ned perform a basic Superman punch - and then decide that this was just his "signature finisher" - I had him purposefully throw the match, but in a way that it looked like Luna had the upper hand. During Ned's attempt to make it look convincing that Luna bested him, she ended up pulling her groin (or some similar leg/hip injury, I can't recall), and Luna accidentally broke Ned's nose! Ned had her quickly finish the match after that so they could both get medical attention.
Next show was when the D&D group could get involved. We then got the wrestlers Hera Cleats and Sveinung "The Fish Monger" Gronsth (his player wanted the most unpronounceable name!), as well as the wrestling manager Hypin' Hugh Acosta.
Hera Cleats is a Luminary style wrestler. In other words, a wrestler who has broken into Hollywood. Think Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, or John Cena, or Dave Bautista, or Randy Savage, or Hulk Hogan, etc. Hera Cleats (they/them) is a weird amalgamation of The Rock and Kevin Sorbo. Their player - Aurora - even asked for Hera Cleats to look like a gender-neutral Kevin-Sorbo-era Hercules. Hera Cleats, outside of the ring, is the star of The Spider Queen franchise (I believe that's the name we gave it...). The movies are basically if The Scorpion King was as successful as The Fast & The Furious franchise.
The Fish Monger is a Provocateur style wrestler. Their whole schtick is to push boundaries and make the audience uncomfortable. Oddly enough, he's also a Babyface.... Guess people like his style of weirdness? He's kind of like Lew Zealand from The Muppets, the one with boomerang fish. He's weird and a touch unnerving, but also in a charming and endearing way???? He's just... a Norwegian fish monger who sometimes uses the fish like a bat against his opponent.
Finally, our one friend decided that, instead of creating a wrestler himself, he'd create a wrestler's manager. These are still very prominent characters in wrestling promotions. They're basically the wrestler's hype-man in promos and, if the wrestler is a Heel, the manager will frequently interfere with the match to either allow their client to win or to cause the match to become "no contest". He decided to take on the NPW - Non-Player Wrestler - "A-List" Drake Simpson, the NPW we had determined to be a bit of a disgruntled employee. His goal was to get A-List a title match. The player would then wrestle as the NPW, unless he wanted Hypin' Hugh to somehow intervene, then he'd switch to his main character.
Aurora determined that Hera Cleats was wrapping up filming for the next Spider Queen, which is why they weren't in the previous shows. Hypin' Hugh had just signed A-List, so this would be his debut episode. I can't recall why Fish Monger wasn't in previous episodes. I think we joked about him having a snag with his work visa????
Anyway, Hera Cleats' first match was against the NPW Edward Aiden Troy, AKA E.A.T. Edward had decided to make the match a wager. He was mad that Hera Cleats was spending more time in Hollywood than in the ring, so he bet that if he won the match that Hera Cleats would have to abstain from filming anything other than wrestling for at least a year. In response, Hera Cleats bet that if they won E.A.T. wouldn't wrestle until he could land a lead role in a major Hollywood film.
We had determined that, in-universe, the wrestler who plays Ed was actually a major Hera Cleats fan and loved seeing them in movies. He also looked up to Hera and wanted to become a Luminary as well. They had been offering him advice out-of-character, and he had just finished secretly filming for his debut movie. As a way to tease it, Hera suggested this wager, and Ed would lose to set it up. We then had Ed sit out of the next episode we played through, but the one after that had E.A.T.'s grand return with a teaser trailer for his upcoming movie as his return promo. He then taunted Hera Cleats in a very Legally Blonde-esque "What, like [starring in a Hollywood movie] is hard?" Continuing their in-character rivalry while the wrestlers (out-of-character) are secretly rejoicing over his success in breaking into the movie business.
Likewise, while I can't recall the exact storyline the same way I could for Hera, Hypin' Hugh did manage to get A-List a chance at a title match within 2 or 3 game sessions.
The player for Fish Monger hasn't been able to join in too frequently, so he doesn't have much of a storyline to follow right now. However, his first match was against poor Ned. Fish Monger had dressed up a fish head in a wig and make-up to resemble Ned's mom, then made out with it before tossing it into the audience. They battled. Ned got smacked around with a tuna. I can't recall how the match ended, but, needless to say, Ned lost.
Now having a better feel for the game, Dragnime, for his second game session with us, decided to start over. He'd much prefer using his childhood wrestling OC: The Gravedigger. A Monster-style wrestler in the same vein as The Undertaker or Sting. His gimmick is that he asks for a casket match whenever possible, and he drags the caskets in himself. Even if he doesn't get a casket match, he will still have a casket by the ring for gimmick shenanigans. He also doesn't have an entrance. The lights just turn off, there's ominous music, and the lights turn on with fog filling the ring and Gravedigger is just... there.
It's been a while, so I can't recall the exact circumstances anymore, but Dragnime has had Gravedigger interrupt matches before. I believe one of them was a TKO match, which then forced poor Ned to go up against the Monster!
So, quick switch back to Ned and his storyline. We had him stealing Squirrelhausen's nuts as part of his rushing TKO and impressing Brad Chadley and Chad Bradley. It worked well enough to let Ned stand ringside (like a groupie or manager) during their next tag-team match. Which then got interrupted by Squirrelhausen, and Ned was forced into a ladder match. The next episode, Luna had called Ned out. I can't recall why. He got into a street fight with her and broke his nose. No rest for the wicked, Ned tried again to garner the attention of TKO by going up against Fish Monger next episode. All the while, Ned is making lackluster promos.
Finally, I managed to get enough experience points to level up Ned's charisma (the Look stat). This allowed me to FINALLY cut a successful promo the next gaming session. This was the trigger Hubby was waiting for story-wise. He had TKO officially welcome Ned into the fold. He was now a member of their tag team! Got the jacket and everything.
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| Built in WWE 2K22 |
I believe this is when Gravedigger came in. TKO was going up against another tag-team: The Dapper Smashers. I think I had Ned intervene to try to prevent TKO from losing, this somehow got the Gravedigger involved. Much like when Ned was called out for interrupting TKO's match that first game, Ned was forced into a one-on-one match against the Gravedigger. Casket match. Ned didn't stand a chance.
I think Ned also somehow got wrangled into a 2v1 match against the Dapper Smashers themselves? It's been a bit, so I can't recall. Point is, for a Jobber, he's becoming quite prominent, and showing up as the opponent in a LOT of matches he has no right to be in. One of the reasons why Hubby wants me to promote him.
Speaking of, I haven't talked yet about Hubby's wrestler: the Call-Up wrestler type, Zayden Quinn.
These are the wrestlers who have been working the indie circuits before being tapped for the national promotions like WWF or AEW. Consider them minor-league wrestlers being called up to the majors. Well, for Zayden's backstory, he had secretly been wrestling since he was about 14; lying about his age since he was too young to be part of the circuit. Once he came of legal age to wrestle, he rebranded and "debuted" under his actual name. He's a military brat whose parents were stationed in Japan, so he mostly worked the Japanese indie circuit. Now in his early 20s, Zayden got tapped for our promotion: Dynamic Wrestling Federation or DWF.
Quick pause to talk about Zayden's finishing move. Hubby is still workshopping the name, but this is how it more-or-less plays out. Zayden tightrope walks the MIDDLE rope (typically it's the easier-to-balance-on top rope) similar to how someone might run along a wall. Once Zayden gets to the turn-buckle in the corner of the ring, he pushes off it, and knees his opponent in the solar plexus before finishing with a bicycle kick to the head with the other leg. Hubby has demonstrated it via my drawing mannequins and it does look pretty sick.
Now, Zayden is hungry for glory, and - based on his finisher - has the skills to back it up. He's been on a meteoric rise, punctuated by his cage match against one of DWF's top wrestlers: Oliver Diamond. Oliver is one of those overly cocky Heel wrestlers. One of those "Diamond is Forever" and "Diamond is Unbreakable" types. While cutting Zayden's promo leading into the cage match with Diamond, Hubby rolled a major success. His promo would go down as legend, much like John Cena's "You can't see me" gimmick or The Rock's "Can you smell what The Rock is cooking?" catchphrase. So, what was Zayden's quotable moment? When the interviewer Olivia Morrow asked Zayden how he felt about going against a strong opponent like Diamond so early into his DWF career, Zayden responded with, "Diamond is just a stepping stone to get to my true goal: the championship belt."
Later in that gaming session, when Hubby has Zayden land his finisher against Diamond, he switches it up a touch. Instead of running along the rope, since it's a cage match, Zayden just straight up wall runs to try to climb out of the cage. Meanwhile, Diamond is climbing the chain-link fencing himself. In an attempt to both get more elevation and to knock Diamond off the cage, Zayden hits his finisher: pushing off of the cage wall instead of the turn-buckle, kneeing Diamond to knock him back from the cage wall. However, instead of concluding his finisher with the bicycle kick to the head, Zayden instead twisted mid-air to face the cage and pushed off Diamond with his kicking leg. In other words, Zayden used Diamond to push off of and get the extra lift to land outside of the cage.
I started screaming, "Zayden literally used Diamond as a stepping stone!!!!"
Since that was part of Zayden's "major success" promo cut, that phrase - Diamond is (just) a stepping stone - went viral in-universe. Now, any player can use that phrase to create "cheap heat". Basically, the wrestler is using the phrase to rile up the crowd or their opponent without doing much work. This "heat" - hype for a match - can then be added to some of the dice rolls made for various actions the wrestler is trying to do.
Since that match, Zayden has continued his winning streak as he attempts to prove himself worthy of a title match. This just adds to the already established rivalry that Zayden has with A-List, as they both originally wrestled in the same Japanese indie circuit. There is also a new rivalry between Zayden and both Oliver Diamond AND his sister Opal. So, as an up-and-coming Babyface, Zayden has quite the list of wrestling rivals trying to tear him back down. It'll be fun to see how his storyline continues to evolve... if we ever get back into playing this game.
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| Some of the DWF roster we've designed so far
Characters designed in WWE 2K22 |
In the above roster, you have the player characters Hera Cleats, Hypin' Hugh Acosta, Ned Patrick Corney, Sveinung "The Fish Monger" Gronsth, and Zayden Quinn. Missing: Luna Shadow, The Gravedigger, and Squirrelhausen.
The currently-built NPWs showcased above - there are about a dozen more that we still need to design - are Hypin' Hugh's client "A-List" Drake Simpson, "Dapper Smasher" tag-team Greyson Holmes and Arthur Watson, "TKO" tag-team Brad Chadley and Chad Bradley, Edward Aiden Troy (AKA E.A.T.), Luchador El Gato Negro (Tooootally not Hubby making me a Chat Noir character!), current DWF Champion "Eliminator" Emerson Black, and Japanese wrestler Kai "Truck-kun" Isea.
Some of you might remember me talking in past blog updates about the Japanese portal-fantasy genre called isekai. Wherein, there is a genre trope of the main characters getting run over by a truck, which triggers the reincarnation a new world. The internet has lovingly referred to this trope as "truck-kun". Hubby just straight up designed a wrestler based on that trope. Being Japanese, you would technically say his family name - Isea - first... making him Isea Kai, aka Truck-kun.
Have I mentioned how absurd this game is? And we can be as cheesy as we want! The game straight up says that our only restrictions are our imaginations.
Soooo, yeah. That's the DWF. I hope we can get the group together for more gameplay with these guys, but the D&D group have already stated that none of them were big fans of the game. So who knows when we'll find a proper playgroup for it again. I'm hoping that Gravedigger's and Squirrelhausen's players at least want to continue....
Speaking of RPGs we haven't played in a while: Scum & Villainy.
As I mentioned last update, Hubby and I watched one of Oxventure's one-shots... which was actually a 4-part mini-series... but nevermind that. The game they played was Teens in Space. What was so fun about this game was that, along with the player characters, the group also jointly builds the spaceship that the titular teens end up piloting. Very much in the same way that the playgroup picks and upgrades their spaceship homebase in S&V. So, essentially, it's like a teen version of S&V with a few different rules. This, combined with the various alien races they came up with for their game, really had me itching to get back into S&V.
For instance, one of the player characters was a species called a pugnarean. Essentially, blob creatures. They get persecuted for the way they look, because, of course they do. So most pugnareans assume the form of another species of alien in order to hide and better blend into society. There was also another alien that was basically a fish inside an endoskeleton, very akin to Ol' Chum/Minion from the Megamind movie.
It's been months now since I watched that series, so all of the ideas that came flooding in has since vanished. That doesn't mean I can't rewatch the mini-series with intention of strictly studying and gathering ideas. Either way, that first watch had my mental hamster-wheel a-churning with new world environments and creatures for S&V. It was exciting to think about that game again and miss running it. Maybe if we get to a "season finale" kind of point in our D&D campaign, like we did in S&V, I can tag back in as GM. Give Hubby a mental break to recharge and come up with more D&D content the same way he did for me and S&V.
Speaking of the D&D campaign, Hubby has done an awesome job at world building. Likewise, having my cleric Aubrianne interact with the world and her party-mates has definitely shaped her personality. I don't know if it's me spilling into Aubrianne, or if it's just the natural "character finding themselves", or if it's a case of the party breaking my character. However, she went from a stoic, beefy, but kind of sheltered/naïve woman to being the exasperated Mom Friend trying to herd cats.
Aubrianne basically went from this:
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| Luisa protecting Mirabel during the song Under Pressure
from Disney's Encanto |
To, well.... this....
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| Image from this BuzzFeed article |
I don't necessarily hate it though. Aubrianne also has a haversack that is basically Mary Poppins' magical carpet bag, so she is carrying ALL THE THINGS. Ya know, in case she's not Mom Friend enough. Meanwhile, one of her party mates Jacob is "the crazy uncle" of the group. It's usually him that's causing the most chaos, with one of Aurora's characters coming in close second. It's usually when Aubrianne's trying to keep an eye on those two that the last party member Jack decides it's his turn to break things.
Poor Aubrianne.
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Beyond the world of RPGs, I also started up a variety of new manhwas on WEBTOON. The story I mentioned last update that "breaks my heart in the best way"? That would be my new absolute favorite: Marry My Husband, which I concluded last night.
When Jiwon, a 37-year-old cancer patient, walks in on her husband and best friend, she realizes her whole life has been a lie. What’s worse, she dies a tragic death at the hands of her husband. Would things have been different if she had made different choices? Fortunately for Jiwon, she is given the chance to rewrite her fate when she is reincarnated as her younger self. This time, she vows to live a happy life. But first comes revenge. Her plan? To marry off her now former best friend to her lying, cheating husband.
- Official Webtoon Summary
I was intrigued by the concept, and the artwork is gorgeous. I personally could do without Jiwon improving her life via a glow-up (among other things), especially when her new love interest was in love with her even when she was wearing frumpy clothes, her too-large-for-her-face glasses, and her hair back in a tight ponytail. Beyond that though?
Oh, man! This series! I love that Jiwon's form of revenge is two-fold: (1) "If my bestie and my hubby want to be with each other so much, I'll help make that happen so that they can make each other miserable years earlier" and (2) I'll live my best life; that'll show 'em! Jiwon is a queen for that!
I also love how cartoonishly villainous the antags - Jiwon's former best friend and husband - are in this series. They are JUUUUUUST realistic enough for you to go "Yeah. I know people like that" and it just proves how cartoonishly villainous people truly can be irl! But also, the series shows how easy it was for the brilliant Jiwon to fall for all of it the first go because of how badly she was gaslit her whole life. How skilled her manipulators are. While also showing how easy it was for Jiwon to sidestep all of their bullshit now that she knows them as her abusers and knows what manipulation to look out for.
Meanwhile, the love interest? King!
I got so addicted to the series when I first started it that I caved and did the whole "watch an ad to unlock this episode early" thing for a few extra episodes once I hit that Daily Pass wall. Granted, using the Daily Pass unlocks an episode for 14 days whereas the ads only unlock for 3, but who cares? I just need to read it that day!
I also knew that the series was complete when I started it, so I scrolled to see how many episodes I had to read. The story-proper ends in 58 short episodes, but then there's 10 "spin-off" episodes that essentially make up an epilogue, and the Afterword, where the creative team thanks the readers and explains how an episode is made. The Afterwords are always free to read whenever you wish.
I knew I shouldn't tempt fate. I knew that I'd run face-first into a spoiler because the Afterword is typically written assuming someone has completed the series. I couldn't resist though. It was free content, and I was curious.
They showcased a soul-crushing scene from late in the series - episode 46 out of 58 - to demonstrate their storyboarding process. I could NOT get that storyboarded scene out of my head, and the next day I caved, and used an ad-unlock to jump ahead and read episode 46 (despite only being on something like episode 12 at the time). Reading the whole episode ripped my heart out, but in the best way. It is so well written and illustrated.
(Don't worry, despite spoiling for myself, I won't spoil for you peeps)
That episode has been living rent-free in my head for MONTHS now. The love interest's love is just so pure and... I CANNOT!
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If you have a Webtoon account (or wish to start one), I HIGHLY recommend Marry My Husband.
Now, just like Marry My Husband, another story that I'm obsessing over lately is also a completed story: The Duke's Cursed Charm.
Duke Carhel Luave is known as the devilish duke due to his uncontrollable magical ability to charm every single person who lays their eyes on him. But this is more of a curse than a blessing with several noble houses plotting to drive him out of power. Having no one he can genuinely like or trust, Carhel wonders if he will ever be able to feel the warmth of another human being. One day, after raiding the estate of one of his enemies, Carhel mistakenly has Lena, the house’s maid, captured in the aftermath. But when he tries to use his charming powers to give her a painless death, something unexpected happens. For some reason, Carhel’s powers have no effect on Lena!
- Official Webtoon Summary
OK, first of all, despite coming across as cold, callused, and even ruthless in the first couple of episodes, you quickly learn that Carhel is a precious bean who must be protected at all costs! On the flipside, Lena, who originally came across as the classic cinnamon roll, ends up being surprisingly badass (as in, surprising even to her) as she defends Carhel.
This is just exemplified by Carhel typically being depicted as a demon, whereas Lena is constantly being given metaphorical bunny ears.
So, for a little bit of context. The comic starts with the world creation myth.
Two monsters - one black, and one white (both depicted as dragons) - relentlessly fought each other for 1000 days and nights, throwing the world into chaos. Then, "a woman in the form of a goddess appeared." She stopped the two from fighting, and made them work together as her guardians. She then established the empire Logos. She ruled over the humans there, and the two creatures transformed themselves into humans to help rule by her side: "they became the two nobles known as The Guardians of Logos." There was the White Winged Santella and the Black Winged Luave. Their lineages make up the two dukedoms tasked to continue their progenitors' duty as Guardians of Logos. All other nobles within the empire were divided into the White or Black houses, depending on which house - Santella or Luave - they served under.
The whole thing really just reminded me of the Day and Night Dukes of Zou from One Piece.
Over the years, it seems that the queen's power over the dukes has waned. Originally, the houses of Santella and Luave were magically bound to be submissive to the queen (similar to the Zodiacs in Fruits Basket and the head of the Sohma family). Because of this loss of power over the dukedoms, the Santella family - along with their bannermen - are making moves to permanently get rid of House Black (and possibly usurp the queen herself)!
With so much political unrest already in play, poor Carhel was also born with uncontrollable charm. Anyone who looked at him, regardless of age, gender, or sexual preference, was instantly enamored. This led to him surviving a slew of sexual harassment as a child. Full-grown adults pawing at him and fighting for his attention! Poor guy ended up having to get the Elsa Treatment; completely isolating from everyone else until the powers could be better controlled. The only ones immune to his uncontrolled charm were his blood relatives, the queen and her bloodline, and bloodline members of the Santella family. Worse yet, those scorned by Carhel's charms one way or another started calling him a demon. Claiming he had full control of his powers and were using them for evil purposes. MAN WAS A LITERAL CHILD! Poor dear.
To try to mitigate his curse's affect, so he could actually function as a duke as well as socialize the slightest bit outside his blood relatives, Carhel was gifted a stone to wear as a necklace. If he keeps that on, and the people he interacts with take an expensive purification elixir, his charm shouldn't have lasting affects. Doesn't always work, however. Vaccines protect different people a different amount, and all that. Some women about Carhel's age, for instance, will still fling themselves in front of his carriage to try to get his attention. So, he still has to limit his time around other people. Which results in a lonely, touch-starved existence.
So, when he takes off his necklace and fully unleashes his charm on his political enemies, it soothes them, and makes them so entranced by him that they don't fear the sword he expertly swings to give them painless deaths. When he turns towards Lena during the raid, however, the girl is rightfully TERRIFIED of him. His charm doesn't work IN. THE. SLIGHTEST. Which is how he learns of her immunity towards him.
He is then torn. On the one hand, Lena is like a magical creature: seemingly pure and innocent, adorable, and the only non-blood-relative/superior/political rival that could treat Carhel as a regular human being. He could spend time with her. Touch her. Let down his guard down around her. He could have an actual relationship with someone; platonic or otherwise. This is a miraculous find, and he CANNOT let her slip through his fingers. On the other hand, however, he had never met anyone outside of the three legendary bloodlines that could resist him. Was Lena possibly a Santella spy? A plant that they knew Carhel couldn't resist bringing home and keeping close? Was she an assassin specifically waiting for him to drop his guard around her?
He decided to bring her home and make her his personal assistant, something he was never able to do before despite most nobility having at least one their whole adult lives. However, he still tried to keep a close eye on her. Keep his guard up. He had his butler Arthur keep a close watch on Lena as well. Arthur being the only other person that Carhel could have extended meetings with. However, Arthur was only resistant, due to years of rigorous mental training as a soldier and Carhel's former bodyguard. Even so, Arthur still had to be careful about how frequently he made physical contact with his master or how long they were in the same room.
So, we have Carhel, who is wary of Lena, but desperately hopeful that she could be someone he could sincerely connect with. We have Lena, who was abused prior to Carhel taking her in, and so she feels like she must earn any kindness she is shown. This leads her to always try to go above-and-beyond the duties assigned to her to thank Carhel for his kindness, which only makes Carhel want to treat her all the better to show how grateful he is for her work, and the upward spiral goes on and on. Finally, you have Arthur, who is terrified of his young master falling in love with seemingly the only woman who could honestly fall in love with him. Arthur's fear? Lena is too fixated on class standings and would be appalled with herself if she ever "dared" to fall in love with someone so above her rank. Which means the young woman would be more likely to find a husband among her fellow commonfolk. If she does, and her marriage results in her leaving Carhel's estate in order to live with her new spouse, Carhel would be devastated. If Carhel doesn't get so emotionally attached, maybe he could handle the heartbreak of Lena leaving.
Which leads to this fun dance of Carhel trying not to fall for Lena because he's still unsure if she's his doom, while also OBVIOUSLY becoming absolutely smitten with her (Carhel also becomes terrified of Lena eventually marrying another and leaving him); Lena always feeling unworthy of Carhel's kindness and praise, so she does everything she can to try to make herself worthy, which just makes Carhel fall for her more and want to shower her with more gifts; and Arthur being ecstatic that his master finally found companionship, and with someone the whole castle adores, but fearful of Carhel falling in love with Lena without her reciprocating.
The manhwa is adorable, OK!?
Shouldn't surprise me, though. It is another adaptation of a webnovel written by Lemon Frog. Who is the same person who wrote the original webnovel that Not Your Typical Reincarnation Story is adapted from. Ya know, the OTHER manhwa I'm obsessed with? To the point of writing a fanfic for it? Speaking of, put a pin in that fanfic thought. I'll be circling back to that further down.
To continue with the train of new manhwas, however, I finally got into the story I mentioned at the beginning of the summer: Office Romance From Hell.
Dumped by her boyfriend and fired from her job, Jineon, her family's breadwinner, has no time to cry over the spilled milk. She must find another job and fast. Enter The Hell, a mysterious company with great pay, excellent work-life balance, and an easy commute! What more could she ask for? Or so she thought. Little did she know, she had walked into hell—literally. How will she navigate the harrowing journey in the hellscape of her new job with King Yeomra, her stunning new boss, further complicating everything? Could love blossom in this pit of hell?
- Official Webtoon Summary
So, to explain a bit more, Jineon got fired FIRST. She then met up with her boyfriend. She had been dating him since, like, high school (she's in her 20s, but that's still a decent amount of time). Her boyfriend is an equally-broke 20-something who knows he can't really make ends meet if he's also trying to cover for her expenses while she looks for a replacement job. So.... he dumps her!
And what are those expenses she has to cover? Well, her dad died when Jineon was young, and her mother has some undisclosed chronic illness that made it hard for her to either hold down a job or properly care for Jineon's twin younger brothers. So, Jineon quickly took on the role of provider for her family.
She did manage to get an office job, but it was a probationary position. She'd have to work there for two years, and then her contract would be extended into a permanent position. She apparently was worked to the bone, frequently had overtime/crunch-time dumped onto her, and was talked out of going to the regular office dinners (presumably, these types of dinners are common in Korea as a way to thank the employees???). She dealt with the grind under the assumption that her hard work and effort would be recognized by the company and taken into consideration when she's given a permanent position. Much to her surprise, she ended up having her probationary contract cut short by a week as the company spent all of its new-hire payroll on a nepo-hire! No more room to extend Jineon's contract into further (let alone permanent) employment. Hence the aforementioned firing.
Jineon frantically looks for a new job, and she keeps seeing postings for The Hell, Inc. Everything seems perfect, even if the company name does make her a bit wary. Deciding now isn't the time to be picky, she submits a resume, which is instantly opened. The next day, she's called to the company. She readies herself for an interview, only for them to instantly offer her the job off of resume alone.
The job requires a 3-month probationary period. She cannot leave the company, nor can the company fire her. Once the 3 months are up, she can decide if she wants to stay on for the full-time position. The job? She is to record all of the happenings within The Hell, Inc. Specifically, all that the boss says, along with the conduct within the company - both among the employees and those outside the company that they interact with. When Jineon questions her qualifications for such a task, the interviewer Cheonwang simply tells her "We want... someone genuine and honest who can document without fabrication." He continues, praising Jineon's integrity and work ethic. Due to Jineon being fatherless, she had faced harsh critiques her whole life; forced to feel insufficient. But this company truly wanted her and saw her good qualities without ever once pointing out any flaws.
She agreed to the probationary period. (Amazing what one can do when they make someone else feel valued, amirite?)
The next day (her first day at the new job), she truly grasps the weight of the job she agreed to. She works in literal hell; the underworld. Seems the Great Emperor Okhwang (Lord of Heaven) had decreed that Hell hire specifically a MORTAL archivist to record the happenings in the underworld. No one is sure why this decree was passed down. Cheonwang, who revealed himself a Grim Reaper, tells Jineon the need for an archivist was because "Memories fade and disappear, even for gods and Grim Reapers.... Which is why we decided to leave a record just as the mortals do."
He then briefly shows Jineon around (she's obviously too overwhelmed and shocked to actually pay attention), and introduces her to the other Grim Reapers. First is Jiwang, who manages the portion of Hell where souls are punished. He's basically the warden. Next is Inwang, the psychopomp tasked to usher souls from the mortal plane into Hell, and then from their judgment to their "deserved fate". Finally, Cheonwang is "a messenger travelling between the Heavenly Realm, the Mortal Realm, and Hell."
After those introductions, Cheonwang shows Jineon to their boss, the Lord of Hell: King Yeomra, the First Human and judge over all deceased human souls. Specifically, Jineon is tasked with recording all of King Yeomra's judgments (like a court stenographer), as well as the reactions from the mortal souls. She's supposed to interject her opinion (into her records) as a mortal.
Personally, given the Creation of Hell story that Cheonwang gave Jineon, I suspect the Emperor has these requirements - a mortal must be the archivist and must interject their opinions as a mortal - specifically to rebrand Hell.
See, when Cheonwang explained how Hell was created, he said:
...Yeomra entered the Underworld. There, he solemnly and coldheartedly judged the dead souls. The never-ending screams of the condemned followed, crying in agony. Their wails often reached those living on Earth. That's how Hell was created, a place feared by the living.
Notice how Yeomra didn't enter Hell. It reads as if Hell were a creation of mortal perception. Mortals cannot accept responsibility for their actions, and lament being justly punished for the bad karma they themselves have earned. This causes fear in the hearts of mortals as they ponder their fate after death. Hell is only as horrible as mortals think it to be, perhaps.
On the flipside, if Jineon discovers that Hell is indeed fair, and is there to make sure people's next lives are better than the ones they just lived, and she records those thoughts for other mortals to learn? Maybe Hell won't seem so scary, and it will reshape into a kinder space for Yeomra and the Grim Reapers to inhabit.
That's my guess, anyhow.
As for the Office Romance portion of the title? Well, as stoic and cold as Yeomra is towards Jineon - as most of these romance stories' Male Leads are - he does start to warm up to her slightly. He rescues her from a dangerous part of Hell that she unknowingly storms off into. He tends to her wounds. He sometimes smiles around her, despite his best efforts to the contrary. He even praises her on the rarest of occasions. Meanwhile, Jineon literally can't get Yeomra out of her head. For some reason, ever since Yeomra rescued Jineon, he has haunted her dreams; sending her flashes of HIS memory. It doesn't seem like he realizes this. Regardless, those dreams, plus Yeomra's incremental increases in kindness towards her has caused her to full-on form a crush on him. Yes, she does acknowledge that her fatal flaw is falling for any male that shows her even the slightest bit of kindness, and she does hate herself for crushing on Yeomra.
Especially after hearing a heartbreaking tale of a Grim Reaper's forbidden love with a mortal.
Yeah, it adds an extra layer there. You want to do the normal "shipping thing" where you hope that Jineon and Yeomra can fall in love. At the same time, though, it seems cruel and unfair for Yeomra to be able to love a mortal, but one of the Grim Reapers couldn't. I hope to learn more about the Grim Reaper's romance, and maybe see that it wasn't forbidden after all; it just seemed that way from the perspective of those telling Jineon the story.
In the meantime, the schoolyard-like semi-antagonistic dynamic that Jineon and Yeomra have is enticing enough to keep me coming back. (plus, I am intrigued by the Hell world-build in general)
Keeping with the theme of "gods who maybe aren't as evil as they seem," Aurora got me to finally start reading a story that I've been eyeing up for a little while. It was originally on Webtoon Canvas, which is the self-publishing section of the app. It apparently got enough attention that Webtoon decided to move it over to their Originals section; a partnership with Webtoon. Which means pulling the original Canvas version, polishing it, and passing it through a Webtoon-appointed editor before re-publishing it on a weekly basis under the Original banner.
Point being, I caught wind of this story when it was a Canvas series, and Aurora convinced me to finally give it a read when it started reposting as an Original. It's unique in that the main characters are all equines. Specifically, the main character is a kelpie, who is posing as a standard horse, but this world also includes pegasi and unicorns. Dark Water
Venus is one of the most feared, hated and misunderstood creatures in the land: a Kelpie. After Nero, the water god who created the Kelpies gets imprisoned, Venus hides on an island with her son. One day, her son dies in a tragic accident, and Venus suddenly finds herself on a journey to bring him back. Along the way, she'll have to face dangers, enemies, and make new friends.
- Official Webtoon Summary
We are introduced to kelpies when one coldly rips a pegasus foal out of the sky in order to feast on him. The kelpies are painted as mindless killers. The only equines to have razor-sharp fangs in order to eat meat. They have no qualms with eating other equines either, as showcased by the poor preyed-upon foal. These are monsters!
But, before we get too far into that, how about a World Build timeout?
On an island paradise for horses - Elide - there were four deities of the elements. First was the unicorn Edaphos, the Earth Deity and lord of all terrestrial beings. Next was the pegasus Aedra, controller of the winds (and therefore, could kinda-sorta control the weather). Third was the water horse Nero, the Water Deity; master of the ocean. Last was the stallion Temper, Fire Deity and lord of the underworld.
Originally, they worked well together, and the world was in balance. Edaphos and Aedra fell in love with the mortal horses they ruled over, and mated with them. This started whole races of unicorns and pegasi. Meanwhile, Nero refused to mate with the mortals. He found a magical way to create offspring and filled the ocean with kelpies instead.
Because of their creation, kelpies were closer tied to Nero. When he not only refused to control his kelpies from their bloodlust, but also actively encouraged it, the other deities decided to imprison him. In doing so, all other kelpies in existence instantly died off.
Or so the other equine races thought.
Secretly, a kelpie had been living amongst them, disguised as a regular horse: Venus. She feared both for her own life and that of her unborn son, so she ran away from the island that was their home. She found an uninhabited island and raised her son in isolation. That is, until the accident mentioned in the summary. Venus was enraged and sought to free Nero to enact her revenge against the other equine races. If they didn't hate kelpies so much, and caused her to flee, she would have been safe on Elide. Her son never would have met his fate.
Upon returning to Elide, she disguised herself as a horse once more, in search for her original herd. The leader of which was her former mate, and her son's father. Upon rejoining the herd, she found out that a soul could possibly be revived, so she now has a second quest: Find a way of bringing her son back from the dead.
It's another interesting world build study, and I am intrigued by Venus's quests. We also see her poor son tortured in the underworld, so I'm rooting for him to find peace one way or another.
The story is currently on hiatus though. I hope it returns soon.
Speaking of, Retired Demon King is back from its hiatus, so I'm hyped to get weekly updates on that!
The latest story that I've gotten invested into is brand new: Seabird and the Wolf.
Chosen by the last remaining Seabird, Lott has been cursed with a target on her back. After the notorious Woohoppiage pirates pillage her village and kidnap her sister, she embarks on a perilous journey to get her back. And she’ll do whatever it takes to make that happen, even if that means joining the Black Ocean crew and pretending to be a man. But she's not the only one with a secret on this pirate ship…
- Official Webtoon Summary
The artwork for this manhwa is absolutely gorgeous. And we'll not talk about the name "woohoppiage pirates". Most of us in the comments are just trying to sort out how to pronounce that name (as well as not laugh as we all mentally read "whoopie cushion pirates"). Along those lines, I'm still trying to sort out how to pronounce the name of the male lead: Keyelo. Is it pronounced like "kilo"? Is it "Key-el-oh"? "Key-yell-oh"?
Anyway, Seabirds are a seemingly mythological race of avians who were tasked by the ruler of the oceans to guide their designated sailors to safety, and lead them to "unimaginable treasure". The legend about them also demonstrates the folly of man. Of course, sailors - pirates, in particular - got jealous of the Seabirds' chosen. There was a bloody massacre in a failed attempt to claim the Seabirds. Little did anyone know that Seabirds were so loyal that they link their life to that of their chosen. When the doomed attempt to steal Seabirds ended, it was believed that the coveted species had become extinct.
Which brings us to Balca, the last Seabird, and her chosen: Lottrelli, Lott for short. The village that Lott grew up in HAAAAAATED that she had a Seabird, finding them as bad omens now; death bringers. They all warned Lott of the doom she was bringing to the village, and tried to get her to abandon Balca. She refused.
Then, one day, when Lott was 20, the most feared pirates on the ocean, the dreaded Woohoppaige, raided Lott's town in search of Balca. For some yet unknown reason, while they murdered nearly everyone else that they came across - including Lott's mother - the pirates kidnapped Lott's younger sister Raltia. As Lott raced to try to save her, a neighbor attacked Lott. He blamed her (and not the raiding pirates; grief, amirite?) for his wife and kids getting killed. The village chief saved Lott, but called her a curse that brings nothing but death and doom.
The next time we see Lott, her hair is chopped short and she's on a slaver ship. Soooooo... don't know if the villagers sold her into slavery or if she was captured after being exiled or if Lott left on her own accord in an attempt to find Raltia. The last option is probably the most accurate, given Lott's undying drive to do just that: rescue Raltia.
Balca is able to sneak up to one of the portholes on the slaver ship, and this is when we discover that Seabirds have a psychic link to their chosen as Balca telepathically has a discussion with Lott. Side note, I love how Lott does respond back to Balca telepathically a lot of the time, especially when she wants their conversation to be private. However, she does also verbally respond to Balca. I love this quirk so much because, yeah, it probably is just natural for someone to respond verbally. Heck, even when I'm watching a show or listening to a podcast, I will respond verbally to something I hear. The people I'm responding to can't hear me, so I could just as easily make my comments mentally. Instead, it's just natural to respond verbally.
OK, back on topic. So, Lott is on the slaver ship. She's desperate to escape, not for her own safety or freedom, but because she is being delayed in her quest to save Raltia (assuming her sister is still alive). Luckily, a pirate ship ends up attacking and boarding the slavers' ship.
Introducing the unbelievably handsome Black Ocean Crew (cue all of the readers drooling over these pirates).
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| Panel from episode 2 of
Seabird and the Wolf |
The Black Ocean is basically the Straw Hats from One Piece, except they purposefully sail to disrupt corrupt governments, free slaves, and destroy violent pirate crews. Which means, they were there specifically to rescue the captives on the slavers' ship, including Lott. During the battle, Lott was knocked overboard while still in her shackles. Panicked, Balca calls out to her owner.
Keyelo spots Balca hovering over the water where Lott fell, and used her as a beacon to know where to search. He dives in, and manages to save Lott. She wakes up on the Black Ocean (the name of the pirate ship), and quickly realizes that, due to the loose rags the slavers were forced to wear, her hair being cut short, and her "modest breasts" (as the author put it), the pirates have mistaken her for a boy. She knows that females are considered bad luck at sea, so she decides she won't correct them. She then overhears the captain talking about going after the Woohoppiage pirates and begs for the crew to take her with. The captain quickly dismisses her with a laugh, and forces her off his ship along with the rescued slaves (once they make it to a port where the former slaves can be taken care of).
Keyelo catches Lott trying to sneak back onto the ship as a stowaway, but, as the co-vice-captain, he listens to her suggestion to let her fight a crewmate to prove her worth. It's a rough battle for her, but she succeeds and earns her place on the crew. Although, most of the crew, the captain included, still feel like Lott is far too weak to take on the Woohoppiage, and are expecting her to wash out as a crewmate.
All the while, we meet the titular wolf. Seems Keyelo has a pet that he has a telepathic connection with similar to Lott and Balca. His "dog" (as Lott keeps referring to him) Ten. Because Balca is used to Lott being the only one that can hear her, she has NO PROBLEM chatting away. I mean, she's designed to look like an albatross-sized parrot. She's a talker.
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| Panels from episodes 3 and 4 of
Seabird and the Wolf |
EXCEPT! For some reason, since Keyelo can telepathically talk with Ten, they can both hear Balca talking as well. It wasn't Balca's squawking in a panic that had caught Keyelo's attention when Lott fell overboard. It was hearing Balca call out Lott's name! Regardless, while Keyelo and Ten can hear Balca, they don't seem to hear Lott's telepathic responses back. Which has already led to some amusing situations.
Anyway, between Balca's size and color, Ten was already suspicious of her. After discovering that Keyelo can also hear Balca talking, Ten is convinced that she is indeed a Seabird, and he is INCREDIBLY wary. He is constantly warning Keyelo to keep an eye on both Lott and Balca. Keyelo, on the other hand, still believes that Seabirds are simply myth, and that Ten is being paranoid.
Also, knowing both that Balca has no filter and neither she nor Lott have any clue that Keyelo can hear her, we've had some very humorous moments. Let's just say the bird is THIRSTY for Keyelo, and has no qualms letting Lott know this right in front of him.
Meanwhile, Ten just revealed to Lott that he can telepathically talk like Balca. Not wanting to show her hand, Lott has been able to pretend she can't hear Ten, which naturally pisses the wolf off. The scene between Ten and Lott did seem to confirm that, since Lott isn't Ten's chosen, he can't read her thoughts the same way Balca can. So Balca probably can't hear Keyelo telepathically, either.
Aaaaand that's where we're at right now. Only 9 free episodes thus far, with the latest only dropping last night.
Enough of other people's stories though. Let's circle back to mine. I mentioned above my fanfic for Not Your Typical Reincarnation Story. For a fandom that I wasn't sure the size of - there's still only 15 fanfics on AO3 for the series - I'm a bit shocked at how well my smut story has been doing! This is one of the stories that I'm STILL getting kudos and even COMMENTS on! I EVEN GOT A REVIEW WRITTEN IN PORTUGUESE! People who are not native English speakers are reading my stories, and enjoying them enough to write me a comment! Most weeks, I'm getting a new kudos notification at least once. These stats are just INSANE to me!
You Pretended Not To Care
Previous Stats
AO3: 1117 hits, 108 kudos, 13 bookmarks, and 6 comments
DA: 141 views, but no other engagement
Total Results: 1258 views, 108 kudos, 13 bookmarks, and 6 comments
Tumblr Notes: 11 total; 9 likes and 2 reblogs
Current (at time of publishing) Stats
AO3: 2477 hits, 217 kudos, 31 bookmarks, and 11 comments
DA: 208 views, but still no other engagement
Total Results: 2685 views, 217 kudos, 31 bookmarks, and 11 comments
Tumblr Notes: 26 total; 22 likes and 4 reblogs
Growth: 1427 views, 109 kudos, 18 bookmarks, 5 comments, and 15 Tumblr notes (13 likes; 2 reblogs)
New AO3 Reviews:
- that was really well written, nice o////o
- I don't speak english only portuguese.
[see below for full review]- you deserve every kudos and more <3 i loved this
- [semi-long review; see below]
- [another lengthy review; see below]
I love that in the 4 months since I last looked at my story stats, I did pretty much the same numbers as I did in the first 3 months after publishing YPNTC. So cool that it has barely slowed down over time. It has already cracked the top ten of my most viewed stories on AO3 (out of 52 total works)! It's not even a year old yet! Out of that top-10-highest-hit-rate stories, four of them have chapters, which skews the hit count as the site counts each time someone comes back to read a new chapter as a new hit. There were also only 2 other stories besides YPNTC that were published after 2020 (one in 2021 and one in 2022), and the one published in 2022 has FEWER HITS (by nearly 250)! AND, YPNTC was the only explicit-rated story in the top 10. Comparatively, the other explicit story I published - Sparks For The Moment - is number 16, compared to YPNTC's 7th rank!
I'm flabbergasted, to say the least! I had NO CLUE this self-indulgent smut-fic would blow up the way it did.
Normally, when it comes to the limited number of smut fics that I've written, I'm proud, but also a bit embarrassed of my work. I feel extra vulnerable. Like I look perverted to those who wouldn't expect me to write a detailed sex scene. Or, on the flip side, that I'd be seen as a prude based on how "traditional" most of my sex scenes tend to be. With the exception of Trish and Devon, I haven't written any kinks into my smut. (Well... I did have some biting in Rensin's Conquest, and I have some scratching in Seduce With Caution... so... baby-kinks...). Point being, I'm normally okay with "being perceived". That is, except for my smut.
But this story? You Pretended Not To Care? I am just so friggen HYPED that people found it! That people KEEP finding it! I see my AO3 notifications on the nearly-daily basis, and YPNTC being on that list just makes me grin. I'm not embarrassed with this one. (well, maybe I'd still be a BIT embarrassed if my mom read this story.... but it's fair game if my sis wants to give it a glance....) I'm just-- I'm dumbfounded with how proud this story makes me. YEEEEEE!
As for those pulled reviews:
Brazilian-Portuguese Review:
I don't speak english only portuguese.
TRANSLATION:
I'm not going to lie and say that I don't feel the same frustration of having read so much of the webtoon and the webnovel and discovering that precisely this part was not written by the author, but my happiness is that there are people like you who save us by writing these moments for us, thank you very much for awarding us with this story.
[edited to fix typos]
I love the comment of Killian taking the lead but looking to Edith for guidance. Because yeah thats how it SHOULD be. Sex is a dance between partners which means even communication nonverbally is necessary. And because despite all his denial (and book plot) Killian cares about Edith.
Also just in general love the dynamic of Killian taking the lead and having the physical experience of his own body and reading others to read Edith's signals. Tho still verbally checking in when he's not sure if it was a good or bad reaction. And Edith being more experienced gently correcting him with kissing and position, and letting him take his time looking at her since it's his first time.
You really capture well how these two just have such NATURAL chemistry that plays off each other
I am real late in discovering this, it was awesome. Both Edith and Killian's feelings felt in character. Thank you so much. If you're reading my comment, I have a request if you do not mind
[proceeds to request another fanfic that delves deeper into Killian's psyche as he officially falls in love with Edith after this first night together. In the book/webcomic, this takes place over the course of weeks/months as Killian tries to bond with his wife, and Edith, not knowing his intentions, keeps turning him down in a misguided attempt to release Killian from his obligations as her husband; preserving his freedoms from his bachelor life.]
Killian's character development was great in both novel and the comic but somehow it always felt incomplete. When I read your piece, I swear I felt so greedy like I never wanted this to end, you've conveyed Killian's conflict so well.
I actually wish to read more of Killian's inner conflict like
[proceeds to talk about the various moments they would have loved Lemon Frog to have explored deeper in the source matterial: Killian wrestling with Edith's reputation vs the Edith he knows; Killian becoming jealous over Edith; Killian picturing a life of just him and Edith as they leave the dukedom upon his older brother officially inheriting the title; Killian's torment upon discovering the abuse Edith had been quietly enduring; Killian's heartbreak when Edith - thinking herself kind due to not realizing Killian's new feelings for her - "reassures" him that he is simply her husband on paper]
When I was reading that part in the comic, I felt like he was facing a raging storm of emotions like she wouldn't even notice him being hurt, he would never belong with anyone, no one would ever bother stopping him from leaving (just like in the past, when no one bothered a bit about him, even in[sic] the wedding night when he was about to tell his feelings to Rhyse, she just left him standing there alone and went along with Cliff). I legit cried in that scene when Edith stopped him it felt like he'd do anything at that moment to keep her by his side, and next moment [Spoilers redacted]. All this[sic] scenes always felt incomplete because of the lack of internal conflicts specially from Killian's side.
English isn't my first language so please I hope you to consider writing a piece depicting all his conflicts. Once again thank you so much for giving us the scene the original author robbed us from.
EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! That last review had me a bit choked up. The fact that someone trusts my portrayal of these characters enough to want more of it from me? To have me delve back into Killian's head as he goes through some of his deepest moments of introspection and wrestles with intense levels of inner conflict? Man, I need to fix my brain so I can become more motivated to write (I'll get more into what I think will help with this in my next update; already started drafting). Because I WANT to indulge this reader! I WANT to go into all of those scenes that they crave more content for!
Enough gushing about YPNTC, though. Let's talk about the second story I wrote this year, and the lone one I wrote in my normal fandom of Miraculous Ladybug. Well, technically, the story is in an AU that was created by MostLovedGirl, but it still focuses on the ML characters of Marinette and Adrien.
I Think I Like You
(Maybe More Than I Should)Previous Stats
AO3: 884 hits, 95 kudos, 14 bookmarks, and 9 comments
FFN: 250 views, 10 faves, 5 follows, and 3 reviews
DA: 645 views, but no other engagement
Total Results: 1779 hits/views, 105 kudos/faves, 19 bookmarks/follows, and 12 comments/reviews
Tumblr Notes: 10 total; 5 likes and 2 reblogs off of my post, plus 2 likes and 1 reblog off Ladynoir AO3 Feed's post
Current (at time of publishing) Stats
AO3: 1361 hits, 148 kudos, 19 bookmarks, and 10 comments
FFN: 357 views, 11 faves, 5 follows, and 3 reviews
DA: 1100 views, but no other engagement
Total Results: 2818 hits/views, 159 kudos/faves, 24 bookmarks/follows, and 13 comments/reviews
Tumblr Notes: 12 total; 6 likes and 2 reblogs off of my post, plus 3 likes and 1 reblog off Ladynoir AO3 Feed's post
Growth: 1039 hits/views, 54 kudos/faves, 5 bookmarks/follows, 1 comment, and 2 Tumblr likes
New AO3 Review:
- They’re too cute 🥰😂
Definitely not the same growth arc as YPNTC! All the more proof of that other story being an outlier and an unexpected hit! Still, getting another 1040 hits (assuming they aren't mostly just bots) and 50+ kudos over the last 4 months isn't anything to sneeze at. Especially with how flooded the ML market is with fanfics.
A respectable growth, even if it isn't YPNTC numbers.
Finally, we have the little-story-that-could. My branch out into the Hailey's On It! fandom after the finale left so many of us broken.
....
Not that there's that many of us to begin with... hence the show's cancellation after only one season, despite the cliffhanger ending.... (Also, just to salt the wound, Disney not only cancelled the show, but they actually REMOVED IT FROM DISNEY+! So, now the few fans the show did have can't even go back to rewatch the series without pirating it..... yo-ho-ho, I guess.)
Anyway, maybe Disney trying to scrub the show from existence explains some of these stats.
Scott's List Item
Previous Stats
AO3: 118 hits, 9 kudos, 4 bookmarks, and 2 comments
FFN: 68 views and 2 faves, but 0 follows or reviews
DA: 275 views, but no other engagement
Total Results: 461 hits/views, 11 kudos/faves, 4 bookmarks, and 2 comments
Tumblr Notes: 3 likes
Current (at time of publishing) Stats
AO3: 334 hits, 31 kudos, 8 bookmarks, and 4 comments
FFN: 740 views, 6 faves, 2 follows, and 1 review
DA: 756 views, and 1 fave by the same person who left the lone review
Total Results: 1830 hits/views, 38 kudos/faves, 10 bookmarks/follows, and 6 comments/reviews
Tumblr Notes: 2 likes
Growth: 1369 hits/views, 27 kudos/faves, 6 bookmarks/follows, 4 comments/reviews, and I somehow lost a like!😭
New AO3 Reviews:Other Reviews:
- Thank you for writing this beautiful work of art! Because that finale cliffhanger!! Was great, but this is the scene I wanted. Really sweet story, I loved it! <3
- I absolutely love this! I started watching Hailey's On It a few weeks ago and I just finished the last episode of the season yesterday. I love this so much and I hope for a Season 2. Great job. Good day 😊👍
- This is the best of the Scott/Hailey fanfictions! Thank you.
- so cute
Poor little story, out of the aforementioned 52 works I have posted to AO3, this one comes in at lucky ol' #42 in number of hits. Yeah.... about what I was expecting, to be honest. The only stories I have that are less popular than this guy include: a Brainy-centric Hey Arnold! story, a zombie story based off of a song from the video game Left 4 Dead 2, a Gabriel Agreste-centric Miraculous Ladybug story, a Eugene/Sheena rarepair story for Hey Arnold!, my Halloween-themed HA! story, a Speaker For The Dead/Enderverse story, and three "technically fanfiction but are basically just a bunch of OCs" fics within the X-Men or D&D universes.
So, for a romance story about the two lead characters (presented by canon as the end-game couple) to be lumped in with my niche stories at the bottom of my popular-works pile? Ooof!
It does seem to be doing a lot better over on FFN (the HOI! fandom is probably mostly still on FFN instead of AO3), but I can't filter my stories by views over on FFN to know for sure where it is - popularity wise - among my full catalogue. Sad to say, with 58 stories published there, I'm not about to take the time to create a spreadsheet or something to get the stats.
Either way, thanks to that spike over on FFN (and a smaller one on DA), Scott's List Item somehow had more eyes on it the past 4 months than the ML fic did! I would have never guessed that my ML fic would have the smallest growth, but you can't argue with the numbers.
Is it a wonder why I feel lost, forgotten, and insignificant in that fandom? Why I'm constantly doubting my writing skills? Why I feel like I'm screaming into the void?
I write niche things - like rarepairs or long-forgotten novels or original content - and I get crickets. Same when I write for my main fandom because of how oversaturated with content it is.
I need to find that perfect balance of "active, but not TOO active" fandoms, I guess?
That, and another thing that I sorted out about myself and my writing, but I'll save that for the next post. You're probably about ready for a stretch and to get on with your day, huh? Well, as I mentioned, I have already started drafting that follow-up post. I've actually been slowly chipping away at it since July. MAAAAAYBE I can get it done before the end of the month, so that I don't fall even FARTHER behind on my update count. So.... keep an eye out for my ACTUAL November update, I guess?
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Also, I officially started up a Blue Sky account. I can't quite sort out the push notifications yet, so I haven't dropped the bird app entirely. I'll still post about my blog updates (and any stories I might publish) on the bird app and over on Tumblr, but I'll also now do so on Blue Sky. So, if you prefer to be on the butterfly app more than the bird app, you can now look for me there!
