Those Who Cry "I" in Silence At the Heart of the World: Session One

No, there isn't a session zero for this campaign. Nor am I GMing it; That would be my brother-in-law Kyle. The lack of a session zero will hopefully be clear by the time you get done with the post. If you don't see why that is please let me know and I will be more than happy to clarify. Thank you.

Teal awoke to water in his nose. About him was inky blackness, cold and utterly bereft of hope. Suppressing panic, Teal felt where his bubbles were going. Pushing up in that direction as fast he could wasn't good enough, however; Teal's lungs burned and he couldn't keep a level head anymore. So he rotated down, pointing his hands and feet towards the abyss. There was a FWOOSH.

Up.

Up.

Up. He popped out of the water like a cork. Into a dark storm. Into a titanic tidal wave. Teal looked down. He was up much higher than he intended; he was easily a quarter mile in the air. The tidal wave still dwarfed him, a quarter mile up! The tops of trees were being covered by the wave. Teal was going to die and he couldn't stop screaming because he was falling and he had a long way to fall. The wave smashed into Teal, knocking the wind out of him. But it didn't knock the sight of the incoming leaf-covered spears away from Teal. And the boat.

There was a boat.

Teal struck out toward toward it. He had one chance. His body briefly warped from the energy rippling through his fingers. The boat's lip cracked under Teal's grip, but he held on. Pulling himself up, Teal hoped the inhabitant was friendly.

The woman at the tiller was laughing, hair flapping in the wind. Her laugh went to cackle as they got closer to the trees.

Teal decided that maybe he should hang onto the side, out of the madwoman's sight, a little bit longer.

But those trees were getting closer and closer. Maybe that crazy woman wouldn't have so many pointy ends as what was coming at him. Teal pulled himself over the side. She didn't notice him as she continued that maniacal cackle. That crazy woman wasn't going to live. Teal needed to do something. 

Five figures appeared at the front of the boat, causing Teal to jump. He doubted the crazed woman noticed them. Teal felt a magical weight descend gently upon him. "Survive" he heard one of the five say.

And then they were done.

Teal tackled the tackled the cackling madwoman, bracing them against the boat with his magic.

CRACK

BOOM

WHUMP

Teal had always been incredibly hard to hurt and that held true here. Not one bit of the boat was intact; wood shards pierced trees. The loony girl was unconscious, but alive. Somehow. Teal shook her. "Hey!" Teal yelled. She needed to wake up. So Teal slapped her. That usually woke people up, right? But nothing. Teal couldn't stop slapping out of some misbegotten notion this woman would somehow notice. But her eyes remained closed. 

Teal slumped, leaning back onto a nearby tree. He finally felt it: there was no elan. Elan, the vital force that kept the world vibrant and beautiful... was gone. This was forest was ugly. Drab. It didn't sparkle and shine like he knew it should. What had happened here, what catastrophe had befallen the world to deprive any place, no matter how small, of elan??

Something large grabbed Teal. Something bony. Five talons. It came out of some strange ruby that lay nearby. Teal couldn't remember if it had been there a minute ago and right now he didn't care. Teal was being dragged to it by the gigantic hand. Screaming, Teal forced white-hot flames out of his hands. Calling forth sorcerous fire was something Teal was hardly skilled at, but he had to try.

The fire glanced off the ruby, which didn't so much as heat up.

And then Teal was in the hand of a glowing monstrosity, its being white from the emanation. "YOU SHOULDN'T BE HERE"" boomed the mouthless face. "WHY ARE YOU HERE"

"I... I... I... woke up in an ocean" managed Teal. "I was being attacked by cultists and then I woke up to a tidal wave! And now I'm here! Who're you??"

"DO YOU NOT RECOGNIZE MY VOICE??"

Teal stared idiotically, but only for a moment. "Kenuel???" Kenuel the star?" Teal's calling had been to sit in the astral tower of Mount Kenuel, helping poor malcontents learn the will of the star Kenuel, servant of Thule, Lord of Fate and Magic. Teal and Kenuel had achieved a bond not unlike friendship over the last decade, communing through the astrological rites of Thule, who Teal worshiped with all his heart. "But, but it's so good to see you! Finally we meet! Why... why aren't you happy to see me?"

"HOW DID YOU ESCAPE?"

"Escape what?"

"THE NIGHT YOUR PATRON WAS KILLED."

"Thule's dead???" Teal tried to work his jaw further but nothing came out of his mouth a moment. "I- I- I- He can't be."

"HE IS."

"But- but I-"

A small nimbus cloud was formed in the void and Teal was placed upon it; the nimbus was surprisingly firm. The large form before him swirled into a cloud, becoming a mere nine foot tall woman, features defined as if in granite.

"How is  Thule- how is-"

"A SPELL WAS CAST FROM YOUR MOUNTAIN THAT NIGHT"

"My mountain??"

Kenuel nodded.

"But they were nobodies when they broke in!  Thugs! Malcontents! With clubs! One of them raised a club and everything went dark!"

An invisible force slammed Teal down, breaking his ribs, knocking the air out of him. "I looked for you" Kenuel stated as Teal gasped and wheezed. "The spell launched from your mountain wrecked the whole order of creation, cursing your mountain. But that was not you. You cannot kill a god." Kenuel stared at Teal a moment, the light emanating from her glowing softer. "But you can find out what happened". Kenuel snapped her fingers. The ruby in Teal's fist glowed.

Teal stood outside what he had hoped would be his tower. The great land of Thylia, that great continent of peace.. .was now an island. From the mountain top Teal could see the coast. The land about Teal was decimated. Roiling energy sparked off of the barren stones. Literally nothing could live here for long. Teal needed to leave. His ribs were definitely broken and he knew if he didn't hurry he'd starve.

The ruby was still in Teal's hand. Peering at it Teal could feel how connected it was, to everyplace, at all times. All he needed to do was ask. A less desperate man would have questioned where asked the ruby had come from, have asked what possible cost there was to using a power this great. But Teal's knees had began to knock against each other from sheer exhaustion and hunger. "Bring me to a place where I can heal and eat" he wheezed at the ruby.

A portal opened before him.

"Thule, you will be avenged. And restored" Teal whispered under his breath.

He stepped through, to a land of green.

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Two-Headed Shark Attack

Well, that got tainted for me. Fast.

I'd seen a bit of Six-Headed Shark Attack, loved it, and decided I wanted to see the beginning of the series. So I talked with my brother as we were going on vacation. We wanted to see bad movies and laugh at them. I told him about Six-Headed, how much I liked it, and that I wanted to see the first one in the series. He agreed. Of course my sisters got roped into this whole thing, because why not? It's late at night, and the house is quiet and we could use the laugh.

Oh my goodness. The CGI. Yeah, that's the actual CGI up there. The picture does not do it justice, at all. I mean, I know there's worse CGI out there, but wow. Just wow. Watching two bodacious babes get swallowed whole by this thing was about the most amusing thing I've looked at since... well... Six-Headed Shark Attack! The opening minutes of this movie do not skimp. And it's great.

The acting is so bad, so awful, that it transcends almost all the classifications I can rationally give it. It doesn't help that the dialogue is especially horrendous, with the barest of one-liners and cliches to just give the barest hint of caricatures.

OK, I can't keep this up: I didn't finish the movie.

Here's why.

So throughout the flick the camera kept staying a bit too long on the vapid models, male and female, that they had hired to shoot this travesty. I know that's normal and all that, but this felt different to me. Weird. Predatory. The fact that in a number of shots the models (I really can't call them actors!) were playing it up to the camera, on purpose, did not help.

And yeah, I tried to ignore it. Whatever, right? Bring on the bad CGI sharks, that's what I'm here to see! Yeah, I know, they're probably going to show a little skin or whatever, but I'm not here for that, give me my freaking shark carnage showboating please. 

But right there, with my sisters watching, two of the models took their tops off.

Now, I'm no prude about this sorta thing. I've done life drawing classes, which completely redefine what it means to make comments about someone else's anatomy and not being a skeev while doing it. There is such a thing as tastefully done nudity that doesn't make you feel dirty looking at it. And yeah, it may have had something to do with the fact that my sisters were going "I DIDN'T COME FOR BOOBS I CAME FOR SHARKS" that put me off. But the simple fact of the matter was that the way the scene was shot felt... wrong. There was something to it that put me off in my gut.

So, at the behest of my sisters and my screaming gut, I turned it off.

I won't be coming back to it.

Maybe the other entries in the series are not exploitative. I know the bits of Six-Headed weren't, and I'll happily rewatch that and laugh about how awful that movie was. But Two-Headed Shark Attack felt mean-spirited. And I'm going to have to sit down and figure out why that is. Because I've got questions. Questions that I didn't have before watching the movie.

See, to me shark movies are about the triumph of the spiritual over the carnal. The best shark movie ever made, Jaws, doesn't reveal a whole lot about the protagonists of the movie. In fact, it hardly shows the shark. It focuses on the drama of valuing human life over profits, even if those profits may cause great discomfort.

OK, that's a bit simplified. And rough. But c'mon, Jaws is a freaking classic for a reason. It's what I got for the moment.

Let me try this with another shark movie that's actually good: The Shallows. In it Nancy Adams goes to the beach where her mother had been shortly before giving birth. Nancy does this to feel some sense of connection to her now-dead mother. The shark that attacks Nancy is a female great white, with scars from mating. The movie does not tell you that. But female sharks are always larger than male ones, and if you know anything about shark mating then you know it's bloody.

Yeah, I know the image is "too big". Yeah, it's on purpose.

That image? Right up there? That is what a shark movie is about. The secrets under the surface, the metaphor is very clearly right there, because that is a mama looking to devour a daughter who is trying to create a memory when she should be grieving.

I'm not sure how else to put it, but that image right above is what shark movies are about. Somehow.

Now, as a parody movie I think Two-Headed Shark attack needs to stick to those same rules, even while lampooning them. And lampooning a shark movie is certainly fun and praiseworthy! But I think you should stick to the rules of shark movies, epitomized in Jaws and The Shallows. I won't pretend to really know what those rules are. But they are there. I can feel them. And this movie broke them. Which means you just have a slasher film. I don't want a slasher film with a shark. I want a freaking shark film. And I wish I knew what that meant.

Hm, this may turn into a rabbit hole. We'll see!

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May the Power Protect You: Vesper Vasquez (Hyperforce Black)

So yeah... apparently people really like it when you follow a pattern. When I didn't do Vesper earlier I got a lot of questions about when I was going to cover this character. To be perfectly honest, I did not want to. Vesper was the one character in the game that I viewed as legitimately broken. And I didn't really want to spend a whole post dumping on other people's fun. Because I would. I totally would.  Fortunately, however, Team Renegade decided to do a much-needed nerf. Vesper is now much more in line with the other rangers, and thus reveals what I think to be her true role: the cleanup.

Vesper's Cry Havoc ability lets her essentially do most of her stuff for free, assuming she's got four other enemy figures in her location. While it's extremely powerful the ability does have its limits. A lot of Vesper's cards don't cost any energy, so you can get into a position to where the ability isn't needed. It's really handy when it applies, and a bit of a bummer when it doesn't. I've seen boss and monster fights where the group purposefully kept foot soldiers alive so that way Vesper's ability could keep going! Hyperforce Blue is a great partner to set that up, what with the Serpent Zord and whatnot.

Hades Technique is one of the oddest cards in the game. On the one hand, it could grant you a ton of energy, but on the other hand the fight has to go your way and you won't get that much energy using this at the very beginning of the game. However, once you've wiped out enough enemy cards you may find yourself with a couple of cards that could work, if only you had enough energy.... which Hades Technique corrects. 

Ooh. 

I just talked myself into liking that card, right now, as of this writing. 

I think I'll leave it there.

Oh, but I do love Ground and Pound. As my group experiments more and more with letting monsters having their day, this card begins to look better and better to me. Sometimes we just let an enemy card go off because it means we can actually gain more from having it hit us than not.  At first it was very strange, but we've settled into this softer style, letting monsters deal damage in exchange for getting bigger bonuses than a lot of straightforward combos we've done. Ground and Pound really fits the bill for us.

Cerberus Fang is a godsend. Taking damage shouldn't be that fun! Ooh, look, I got a card out of being attacked, as opposed to losing it or getting a delay on getting it. It doesn't seem like much, until you flip up that card and find yourself smiling. Yeah, it costs an energy, but you'll rock some enemy card with it. Nothing's perfect! Although that's not true if there's four or more enemy figures on the board....

Coeus Shield is another no-frills card. Block for someone else and put this three shield card atop your deck. It lets someone else lose less cards, while protecting yourself. It's a total defense card. The one energy cost is annoying, but it's probably the one card I've used the most with four or more enemy figures on the board. It's just so freaking good!

So Coeus Axe is a sea change sorta a card. It doesn't nova terribly well, but if you've got a bunch of cards that  are close to being knocked out Coeus Axe can just wash over your foes like a tidal wave. It continues Vesper's theme of catching up. Considering how brutal the dice in this game can get it's nice to have a character who can help you get ahead of the curve again.

Do I really need to say why the Cerberus Zord is awesome? I mean, seriously? It's one damage to three cards. Considering that the rest of the cards in Vesper's kit are for reversing the bad luck of the dice and ensuring you can clean up being able to just deal three damage acrost three cards is invaluable for the group, nevermind making sure Vesper's kit lives up to its promise.

I'm glad they fixed this character. I do think she was broken. But with that fix I can simply enjoy Vesper as a cleaner-upper, that person who equalizes everything out. After a certain point she peters out, but by that point in time everyone else should be able to carry the slack. And they will. But they never would have gotten there without Vesper getting them there in the first place.

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Mercy Waits

Massive spoilers for Clannad incoming. If you plan to watch the show I must sadly ask you stop reading. But please come back after that and finish the post!

I was sitting in Kyle's dorm room. The lights were low. We'd been watching for hours. I'd just seen Nagisa die and was still drying my eyes. Crying for stories had not really been my thing at that point in my life, and I was a bit mad that I had cried for Nagisa's death. And then Ushio, the daughter, showed up. And I knew what they were going to do the instant she showed her cute little face. I swore at Kyle throughout her introduction, cussing him out because I knew Ushio was going to die. Over and over again I swore I would not get attached, out loud, at Kyle, who just chuckled.

I had just finished finally drying my freaking eyes, thanks. And yes, I couldn't help it at that point. I loved Ushio with every last beat of my broken heart. And yes, she did die. And yes, I sobbed so hard that I thought my lungs would give out. I have a vague memory of them doing so. And me going on without them.

I still can't watch the above scene without crying. I know because last night I found myself randomly finding the scene on Youtube, curling up in a corner, and sobbing as I watched it. Ten. Years. Later. Even today, this show is the gold standard for showing what the mercy of God looks like. Every step of the way long-standing sorrow meets someone who can address that sorrow. Not something. Some one. All these characters are looking for an answer to their questions, to their problems, to their heartache.

An answer never comes. Us folks with broken hearts always want it to, but that's a long wait for a train that won't come.

The answer is person, other.

It's always person that comes to us. Person who gives the context necessary to see who you really are. Person who helps you to let go of the question that you had. And then the tears come to wash away the hurt. With person.

The thing that really struck me last night, in between suppressed sobs, was how this scene would have been impossible without the previous 40+ episodes before. Tomoya had a long-standing problem of not being able to forgive his father (I'd argue that's actually the central problem of the series). That hard heart had been shown to be eating Tomoya from the inside out, making him less than he truly was. And he would not let go of it. Throughout the series Tomoya becomes more and more himself, reaching out and helping others with his presence, with his personage, but he refused to be fully himself toward his father. Over and over he is invited to become himself towards his father. Over and over he refuses. He's got Nagisa, after all, the love of his life! What the hell does he need with his father??

And then one of the most heartbreaking things I've ever experienced happened.

Yes, she's been dead about two minutes when Tomoya begins to try to revive her with Ushio's existence.

It goes as well as you'd think.

Tomoya became worse than his father, who had lost his wife as well, but at least he kept Tomoya! He didn't abandon his son, like Tomoya did Ushio.

So when Ushio forgives her father, she shows him something that Tomoya had nowhere in his heart. It was Mercy, in the fullest sense of the word. Tomoya not only didn't have the strength to forgive on that level, he didn't even have the inclination for it. Ushio forgave Tomoya for abandoning her and Tomoya's heart broke, wide open, to receive her mercy. 

And it meant so much more than God doing it. 

So God got out of the way, knowing that the moment between father and daughter would come, knowing that intervening would block the two of them from being able to connect in the way they would want to. So God got out of the way, allowing the two of them to become the people they needed to be for each other. And waited.

The day my firstborn came into the world was one of the happiest days of my life. It was also one of the most terrifying. I looked at this child who had responded to my voice with the utmost attention, and knew he was to bring the end of something old, cold, and vile in my soul. I knew he would bring the death of a part of me that I had never loved but had held onto with all my might. He spends his days killing it with his little presence, by his stubborn little insistence that he loves me. And I him. There are some days I want to fight it with all my might, but that boy is the strongest person I've ever encountered. Day by day he wears down my hatred and pain. Day by day I give in to him a little more. That boy is a juggernaut. He never seems to tire of loving me.

It is a long, drawn out surgery, where the patient has to be awake and without anesthesia. Slowly but surely I find that sorrow and joy's separation are removed, until they become one, sharp, double-edged sword. Sorrow expands, cutting and breaking where it must, so more joy may invade and enliven the shriveled remains of my soul. Where to be joyful is to be sorrowful too, and to be filled with peace that it is so. What began ten years ago, in a place of darkness, with Tomoya and Ushio continues even now in the persons of my wife and children, who very patiently help me turn over the tyrants in my soul, transforming the lizard into horse, parasite to mount. It is a long road.

But there is mercy in it being so. And so I continue up the hill, towards the shining city at the top.

And yes, I listened to the above song obsessively after my first was born. It was the only thing that could give context to what I was feeling, looking at that beautiful face. I hope someday he understands what he's done for me. I pray he finds the same relief and challenge.

But there is mercy in waiting for that, is there not?

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Beside the River of Truth: G1E2

"Partners into the Future"

"Two Heads are Better than One"

"Stark and Osborn: Out to Change the World"

"The Alliance of the Century"

Everywhere Steve clicked there was a headline about it. The world was ablaze with the news. And in every article there he was. The traitor. Tony. Tony, who had been drunk when Ultron had attacked. Tony, for whom Peter had to die to give Tony time to hack NORAD. Tony, who couldn't tell through his blurred vision which keyboard was real. "Anything to desecrate his memory. Isn't that right?" muttered Steve as he reached for a phone in the kitchen drawer, still looking at the headline. Next to the phone was the hotspot. Steve turned it on first, turned the phone on, and waited for the two to connect. Once the settings were loaded he dialed.

"Steve. Hi" growled a familiar charcoal voice.

"Nick, how the hell did you let Osborn buy out Stark? Why am I looking at headlines of how Stark and Osborn are practically brothers?"

"We're working-"

Steve had to stop himself  from cracking the phone. "That's. Not. Good enough. Nick. Osborn is dangerous and-"

Nick's growl was dangerously low. "Don't you give me that shit! I've a whole facility on lock down because Osborn had reversed our hack, stealing hundreds of billions of files from our servers! I'm in damage control right now. So why don't you shut your pretty fucking mouth and go run a sharp stick up Osborn's ass yourself? Or are you still crying about how you'll never have abs again, like all the other soccer moms???"

Steve healed faster than "normal" people, but he had his limits. A few weeks ago he had encountered MODOK in Obsorn's office, along with some sham Green Goblin Osborn had set up. MODOK had torn into Steve's stomach, forcing him to retreat while holding his guts together. Steve was hardly fully recovered, but he was better. it was time to go out and try again. "Alright Nick, I'll go and distract Osborn. Hang tight."

"You stupid-"

Click

Osborn sat at his desk, tablet in hand. The yield from the reverse hack was more than Osborn could have ever imagined. "SHIELD... SHIELD... oh SHIELD! I'll have to make sure the UN knows about this delicious tech!" Osborn chuckled. For the first time in a while he felt actually happy.

And there it was.

The Pull.

The Cellar Door had opened.

It had been a long time since Norman had felt it; Parker had still been alive. "Oh, Peter" Norman found himself whispering. "You always brought out the very. Very. VERY. Best in me." The Mask giggled. It always found something funny. The world was always a serious and dark place, but the mask? Everything was funny.

Like the crash of the window; The Mask giggled a bit more at the sound of the tinkling glass in Osborn's office. The giggle had turned to a laugh when he saw that ridiculous red, white, and blue suit. "Round... Two... FIGHT!!! AHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!" in his best take on a basso profundo. The figure in the flag was less than amused. He didn't move as fast as many said he did.

"CATCH!!!"

A bomb came out of his bag, flying away from his fingers. "Oops!"

BOOM

Shrapnel ripped into The Mask's armor as Cap hid behind his shield. "Ooh, someone is frisky" chuckled The Mask.

For a second The Mask saw stars.

And then darkness.

Captain America stood over the Green Goblin, hands to his earpiece. "Goblin's down for a minute. Start the hack."

"Steve, this mission was not authorized-"

"Look, you wanted an opening? Here it is. Goblin's-"

Sparks hit Captain America right in his eyes. But Captain America knew what was coming next; Goblin whiffed the next punch. Steve blinked his vision back into existence. And of course another pumpkin bomb was incoming. Cap ducked behind his shield. He felt the PUNG of the shield bouncing the pumpkin bomb back.

BOOM

Captain America wondered if they were going to bring the whole building down. For a second he didn't care.

MODOK came floating down the hall. MODOK's eyes were glazed over; he floating a bit lazily from side to side. The Goblin grinned "Courtesy of Nicky boy's hack. Turns out they know how to hack AI, but were scared to unleash it on the world! Well, I'm not a scaredy cat. Thanks for the MODOK!!" MODOK charged. WHUUUUUUNG went the shield. Captain America winced; the stitches had torn.

"Steve, goddammit, break off!"

"Did you get the hack established??"

"Steve, we got it, get the hell out of there!!!" It was Sharon. She sounded like she meant business.

So Steve scooted.

Sharon was waiting for Steve as he stumbled through his apartment window, stitches torn. No matter how hard Steve tried to get back into the field Nick and Sharon demanded that he heal. SHIELD was working around the clock, disassembling Osborn's infrastructure as fast as they could. Steve wanted to sneak off and run another raid; he felt better after a few days. But Sharon never seemed to leave his apartment, fussing about and keeping things clean and watching TV in his living room. Steve didn't have to guess if Sharon had been given orders to keep him in the apartment, regardless of circumstance; Sharon told him so. There were times Steve was glad for the company.

And it was just as well. Steve kept seeing the same van outside his window the entire time he healed.Any damage he could have done was already done; Osborn was wasting his time. So each time Steve saw the van he snorted in amusement.

And then winced.

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The Dunwich Legacy Expansion: Review

Real talk time, folks.

The core set is crap.

Yup.

The opening scenario works once. And just once. I don't want to play it again. The second scenario is a lot of fun, but the third scenario has some rather unfair stuff going on. The deckbuilding is a lot of fun! I like the mechanics! But I will not lie and say I like 2/3's of the scenarios in the box. And that's an objective failure on the part of FFG. And yeah, some reviewers have commented on it (like No Pun Included), but given how the game has dwarfed this problem with all the expansions that are currently in the game, it can be easy to forget just how badly done so much of the core box is.

But no, for those of us who just started (like myself): no, it's not just you. The core box is awful.

But this box isn't holy crap.

The Dunwich Legacy is the deluxe box opening acts for The Dunwich Cycle, which is followed up by six packs. I've played through this box twice and it's more than worth the price of admission. There are two scenarios in the box, along with a bunch of character cards to outfit you for that particular set of scenarios, including new characters.

OK, let's get this out of the way: the scenarios are a lot of fun! You go to a school campus after dark and then to an illegal casino, all in the same night. Both scenarios feel completely different from each other and have multiple endings, none of which feel more right or wrong than another, at least in mechanical terms. You have to figure out what you value as well as putting two and two together, because some of the endings were not obvious to me on the first go around. I definitely like these scenarios, just on their own.

You could get a number of plays just out of this box and that is in no small part thanks to the characters. These guys have interesting shticks all around. I attached to Zoe and Pete very quickly, but the rest of them have super interesting gimmicks that will make playing through the box on its own a lot of fun in and of itself. The actual player cards in the box deepen out the meager offerings you got in the core with cards that I've been having an absolute blast with. I may try a spellcaster now! It looked impossible in the core (at least as far as solo play is concerned), but it doesn't so much here. If the rest of the game has cards like this I'm going to have a great time.

After what I think of as a very disappointing start to a great idea this expansion really bounced back, at least in my eyes. There's a lot of variance to the scenarios, which generate fiction that I find to be believable and entertaining. The characters are themselves very interesting, with all sorts little hooks that I look forward to building around, and the new cards really enliven this one starter dude's choices. Totally worth it to me.

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Autarchy: Session Zero

So this is a sequel to The Giggling Dark. If you're getting here fresh, I really recommend getting into that first. In it Xellous goes from child prodigy enchanter to the most promising Celestial Knight ever seen on the planet Pyheeta, fighting against the seemingly endlessly massive race of khen-zai. He also got mixed up in the khen-zai's war against the eldritch horrors known as The Nameless, earning the admiration of not just the very stars in the heavens but the celestial choirs as well.

It's two years later. Xellous and his wife, Kora, have had a child of their own. The region of Khouria is well on its way to recovering from the ravages of the Nameless and the khen-zai have not been seen since the appearance of Raphael the Archangel. And yet Xellous is not satisfied. The khen-zai are still out there. Xellous knows the day will come when the khen-zai will return; he did kill one of the top members of their race, not to mention humiliate another, personally.

So even though Xellous has relaxed he has not been idle. He has continued to practice the mysterious power of Aura Bending, an ability that is unique to him as a Celestial Knight. While the he known as the hero that saved Khouria he has tried to stay away from being the leader of the region with every last of energy that he has. Because he knows someday he will have to leave.

That day has come.

It's time to find Telos, the mysterious friend from another planet who helped him achieve his goals the last time.

It's time to get back to work.

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The Dunwich Legacy, Featuring Ashcan Pete: Extracurricular Activities

The sun had barely set when Aschan Pete shuffled onto the Miskatonic Quad of The University. Sunsets on the quad never felt warm, but left a chill, deep in the bones. Most students went indoors around this time, turning to their dorm dens of debauchery early. The only sound on campus was Duke's panting as he came loping up behind Pete. Duke was agitated; he hadn't wanted to come onto the campus at all, but Pete promised Professor Armitage. And so here they were.

It wasn't just the silence that had Duke unsettled though. Pete could feel something else was watching them. Something... Duke was gone. Pete was back in the jungle. "No, no, not again!" Pete ran and ran.

And tripped.

He was back down the hole.

With her.

There was a giggle. "Asssshhhcan! Ashshcan!" A grin appeared in the corner of the darkness. The teeth moved closer. Bark appeared around it. Something insectile moved under the wood and out of between the grinning teeth. Pete found himself grabbing it and shoving it, wriggling and squirming, down his throat. He choked and spat on the squirming thing and-

There was something wet and warm and smothering covering his face. Hot breath panted in his nose and the soft whine roused him to his feet. Duke continued nuzzling him, licking Pete's hand. Pete sighed and rubbed Duke's muzzle reassuringly. 

The air in Pete's lungs came out his mouth in hot clouds. Duke growled, getting between Pete and the... thing... that had appeared. it was floating. Four eyes. That little girl's voice came out of it. Duke was making ready to lunge, a deep growl erupting from between clenched jaws. Pete grabbed Duke by the collar and somehow managed to yank his snarling friend away. They broke into a run. The Thing did not follow, but floated the other way.

Pete didn't stop running and dragging until they were in front of the campus library. Duke was still bristling and growling. Pete wanted to stop and take a minute, but Duke was so worked up... he was going to charge whatever it was the instant Pete let him go. So Pete grabbed the handkerchief that Professor Armitage had given him earlier that day. Professor Rice apparently had a bit of a penchant for handkerchiefs and Duke had a very keen sense of smell, not to mention a dear love of tracking. So Pete, rubbing behind his friend's ears and whispering sweet nothings, put the cloth to Duke's nose. Duke couldn't help himself. He stopped growling, and sniffed. 

Duke was off.

They stopped in front of the Humanities Building. The sun had sunk behind the horizon, burying the campus in a frosty dusk that made Pete's fingertips tingle. Like the frost the frost that had been in his throat when-

"Hey Mister, you okay?" Duke whined in unison with the freshman, who was wearing a coat. It was July. She picked up Pete, with Duke licking her face in thanks. Giggling, she began  petting Duke, who very happily kept licking her gloved hands.  Pete was a bit red in the face with embarrassment, but the girl was so sweet that Pete couldn't help but smile back at her. "Who're you looking for, at this hour?" she asked, her smile warming the g loom.

"Professor Rice, Miss. I was told he'd be on campus at this hour."

"Oh, I'm Georgia" she said, extending her hand. Pete shook it. She was still warm, despite the gathering cold. "I'm one of Professor Rice's pupils. he's still in the Administration Building. But it's locked now. Jazz, one of the janitors, had just finished locking up."

"I need to see Professor Rice, right away. He's in danger."

"Well we'll need  to find Jazz." Georgia pointed behind them. "He's probably at the library by now. If we hurry we may be able to catch up."

That feeling. Of being watched. It was back. Pete had no idea what... he couldn't...

Georgia grabbed his hands. "Hey! What do you think you're doing???"

There was blood and skin under Pete's fingernails; deep trench marks were in his arm. Pete shook his head, wincing in pain, wiping his hands on his dingy pants. "Um, I'm sorry... I didn't..." Georgia gave him an incredulous glance. "Something ain't right with this campus. Jazz can help us uncover it." As they began walking back towards the library Pete saw a fire axe in a glass box, on the side of the Administration Building. He walked over to it and broke it open. Georgia gasped, but Pete didn't flinch. "We're going to need this."

"You gonna put that axe back? Or do things need to get unpleasant?" An elderly gentleman in overalls came around the corner.

"You Jazz?"

"Who wants to know?"

Pete chuckled. He set down the axe. "I need to see Professor Rice, who's supposedly in the Administration Building. I know things look crazy... I look a bit crazy." Pete laughed, hoping Jazz wouldn't notice all the blood. He did. "Look, Professor Rice needs my help and I've gotten more than a bit roughed up trying to find him, but I promise Professor Rice will look worse 'less I can get there. Come with us." Pete held out the axe, arm still tripping. "If you don't like it you can whack my head off."

Jazz looked down at Duke. "The dog likes you. I hope that's good enough." He took the axe.

Screams were heard from the quad. A student was running down from the quad, screeching about some strange animal coming from the Science Building. Jazz made to run in that direction, but Pete stopped him. "It's after Professor Rice. We need to get to him first."

Jazz nodded. "You sure seem to know a lot about what's going on."

"Not really, I just know enough."

"I need to go. I need to make sure." Georgia waited a moment, but nobody said anything that changed her mind. 

Jazz handed her the axe. "Just in case."

Georgia nodded. And then she was gone.

Pete, Duke, and Jazz ran to the Administration Building. Darkness had fully claimed the campus. Jazz unlocked the faded wooden doors with an old brass key.

A tentacle grabbed Duke and pulled him into the darkness beyond, yipping and howling. Pete kicked in the door, screaming. The room beyond was a scene of carnage and terror. Just next to the door was a fire axe, lying in an open hand. Pete vacated that hand. 

There was a crash and a snapping sound, like a twig. Jazz's eyes would never close again.

Pete charged.

Duke stumbled to his feet and jumped.

The floating thing was sundered a half a dozen ways before it blinked. 

Pete and Duke fell down, heavily. And took a minute to breathe. Well, Pete did. Duke licked Pete.

There was a rustling in a nearby closet. Professor Rice tumbled out of it, cutting his hand on the edge of a chair.

"Professor Rice... I presume" panted Pete. "Professor Armitage sent me.... said you might be in trouble."

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The Pull: August 2020 Edition

The Amazing Spider-Man: Sins Rising #1

As a supposedly conservative Christian, this was a painful read. I'm not Pentecostal, but there's a duality that I've encountered inside of myself that is not Christian, not of what is taught, that this comic brings to the forefront and criticizes, openly, painfully, and honestly. I found I had a lot more in common with Stan than I would like to admit. Good art holds up a mirror. This book held up a mirror in a way that was uncompromising to some of my experiences of American Christianity. 

Actually, a good deal of it.

The Amazing Spider-Man #44

There are a few times when comics really show what they're capable of as sequential art. They transcend the usual trash that is humanity's attempts at art and become something... more. When this happens you get a sublime, almost surrealistic blending of image and letter. 

This issue one of them.

There's a level of "come to this as it is" that is what makes the issue so special for me. There's no attempt to make the issue make sense, and so you have to go along, just accepting the issue as it is. There was a very similar eerie quality in Sins Rising which I didn't comment upon so much there. But the craftsmanship of both comics is just beyond what I would expect for any comic book. Truly art.

The Amazing Spider-Man #45

...and now we're dropped back into Spider-Man's world. There's this jarring and off-putting feeling which matches the story so incredibly well! The compositions have changed, in part because of the change of artist; the more grounded feel is what classic Spidey artist Mark Bagley is known for. Unfortunately Bagley's drafting just isn't up to snuff in this issue, which is sad, given his immense skills. That being said, Bagley's actual visual storytelling is just phenomenal and is used to contrast with the previous issues in ways that are entirely intentional. I love that they took two issues to build up to this one. It feels right and creates this divide from Spider-Man, isolating the character from you, the reader, and leaving him totally alone. You know too much. Spidey knows nothing. 

And your knowledge matches his confusion. Fantastic.

X-Men #10

When most writers swing big, they usually go for about fifty or so issues on a single book. Maybe a little bit more. When Hickman goes big he does at least fifty issues, over the course of at least two or three (or more) books. His new X-men initiative spans authors and comics, and is probably his largest thing he's done so far. And it shows. The thing that most people do not realize that makes a long run is that the concept has to be big enough to where you can go for forever. Hickman's early part of his Avengers run was criticized for being almost obtuse in the amount of plates that he juggled. The series didn't seem to have any connectivity. 

That, of course, missed what Hickman was doing: setting up the points that he was going to start bouncing the ping pong balls off of.

And he's still doing it in X-Men. And yeah, sometimes that's really frustrating, like it is here. Vulcan is not a character I have a whole lot of appreciation for. And I love what Hickman does with the character here, by fleshing him out to make him a hero I can actually root for! And I can't wait for the points to start to connect.

But it can be really frustrating to wait for that. 

That being said, I'm taking notes. When this sparks it's going to catch real good.

Star Wars #5

Luke has recently discovered he's Vader's son, and has to grapple with what that means. Luke has the black he eventually becomes known for in ROTJ, combined with the brown jacket he had from an earlier run. He's still a good kid, but a hurting one, seeking answers. And the person he's seeking answers from gives him answers he didn't expect or want, particularly about Order 66, the Inqiuistors, and Vader's role with them. Of all the people that Luke has to run into, this particular person seems to be the one to pop the idealistic bubble he had about the Jedi.

There's been a dream-like quality to this book for me. Each point they set down I find myself saying "But of course! How else could it be?" There's a magic to this title that is hard to put into words, but this whole run has felt right since the word "go". These folks get Luke. They get Star Wars. And watching that unfold is magic.

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