So many stories these days start out, “well, it was a pandemic and…” but, yeah, it was the pandemic and….
Anyway recently, I was poking through some of the files on my phone when I realized that two years ago this month (after three months of quarantine/WFH), I was playing a puzzle game on my phone, clicked on a free advert, which turned out to be for Ikemen Sengoku. I normally just click through these things… I’d tried to play a couple other romance/story apps before, and none of them had held my interest. This one looked more intriguing, and I thought, “what the hell… if it sucks, I can always delete it.”
Two years, many new friendships, and about 300,000 words of fanfic later… (I didn’t delete).
So, here’s to some of my favorite Ikesen men:
Takeda Shingen… that smart, strategic, sneaky, flirty, emotionally intelligent hunk. Come for the beefcake, stay for the brains. I’m a sucker for a they-rescue-each-other trope, and at the core, that what his story is. The adult amongst all the Kasugayama crazies, the one who knows how to solve everyone else’s problems, but ignores his own until it’s too late. Thank you, Shingen, for being the best muse I’ve ever had. Or, well the best muse since Luke Skywalker (but that’s another story). Maybe I just like a man who can swing a big sword?
CW: Abuse of Power, magical exhaustion, dehumanization, dehumanizing language
Verse: Kethrys
Only briefly mentioned, but Ariadne belongs to @just-horrible-things and is a crucial member of the Kethrys verse. She will be mentioned multiple times in this arc, and some of this will be co-written with JC as well.
~~~
Her eyes blink open slowly, wincing at the bright light shining through from the sun high overhead. Her first realization is that her body is drained, still shaking from the blatant overuse of magic. There’s red in the rock-studded dirt from her nose bleeding when she tried to continue past her limits. Too much. Again. She passed out, nearly draining the life out of her. It’s her job in the king’s army to be some throwaway weapon with no value. Use her powers until she can’t physically continue. The normal day. Jo is clever enough to use her magic in a way that won’t actually impact her side of the war, but it’s flashy enough for her cruel commander to think she’s actually doing her job.
There’s a sharp kick from a steel-toed boot, colliding with her ribs, and jerking her back to awareness with a sound between a gasp and a yelp. “Get up, weapon.” The commander sneers, second word hissed in disgust. “Make me.” Jo doesn’t bother to hide her snarking response. She doesn’t need to be that creative with Bolshain… she honestly doesn’t have to say anything to provoke him. As predicted, there’s another kick, straight to her chest, driving into already bruised ribs. It leaves her gasping for air, wheezy and sharp, her chest feeling as if it’s crushing her lungs. “Get up, Amir.”
Jiang Cheng is just about to leave the house when Jin Zixuan calls him.
“Hello?”
“Jiang Cheng, good, hi,” Jin Zixuan says, always a little bit awkward on the phone and Jiang Cheng still can’t understand how Jiang Yanli finds this charming.
“What is it?”
“Listen, weren’t you looking for a new cupboard?”
“Yes?”
“I have one for you if you want.”
Jiang Cheng frowns at nothing because for all that Jiang Yanli loves him, he doesn’t trust it.
“What’s the catch?” he demands to know and Jin Zixuan laughs awkwardly.
“Nothing?” he asks and he doesn’t even sound convinced himself.
“Alright,” Jiang Cheng slowly says, because he is still looking for a cupboard and if this is one from the Jin estate it’s bound to be exactly what Jiang Cheng is looking for. “Do you have time now?”
“Yes, please,” Jin Zixuan immediately says and it only makes Jiang Cheng wonder what could be wrong with the cupboard.
Still he gets into his car and drives over, wanting to get this over with so he can enjoy the rest of his day.
Jin Zixuan is already waiting for him in front of the house and he seems way too happy to see Jiang Cheng.
It’s suspicious.
“Jin Zixuan, just tell me what’s wrong with the goddamn cupboard,” Jiang Cheng says to him instead of a greeting and Jin Zixuan wrings his hands in front of his chest.
“Listen, so I think A-Yao meant for this to be incinerated with the combustible trash, but I thought that’d be a waste, especially seeing as you are still looking for one but now that I had this for a day in the house, I don’t know if it’s really such a good idea anymore—” he rambles and Jiang Cheng pinches the bridge of his nose.
“What is wrong with it?” he demands to know, cutting Jin Zixuan off.
“I think it’s haunted,” Jin Zixuan says with a wince and Jiang Cheng stares at him.
“What the fuck, Jin Zixuan,” he breathes out. “Show me.”
