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Ames, Iowa / November 27th / 5:06 P.M. -- Restored Timeline - "The World Which Should Be"
So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.
- Matthew 20:16 KJV
I will not forget the day when the sides were chosen/
Me against me against me/
Clothing so drenched with sweat/
And the teeth they were clenched/
Who can I trust when I.../
Grabbed hold my enemy's neck/
And choked 'till he ceased/
Blisters with disbelief (I awoke dead)/
And when I awoke I couldn't believe it was me/
All the time it was me/
- Project 86 - "Me Against Me"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41CLhOnoqes
“Watching you guys play right now,” Isaak said, mouth agape, “I don’t know how any of you ever thought this would be a good idea. With these settings, the COMs almost always pick up better items and run you off the road.”
“Not only that,” Isaia added with a calmness which ran counter to the bevy of activity in the living room, “but when they’re set like this, the AI tend to rubber-band more by using exploits and shortcuts. Regardless, it can make for a rather fun experience in the right light.”
“COMs on hard; All items; 250cc,” Isaak enumerated, “I can’t even tell what’s going on with all this noise! How’s this any fun, Zaya?”
“COMs cheat,” Ethan, the eldest quintuplet, said from his seat at the other end of the couch. “We know this, but that’s never an issue. It’s never about being first anyway.”
With his eyes fastened to the screen and his focus honed to a sharp point, his usual cheery smile was now whetted like a keen cutlass poised to strike.
“Then what is it?” Isaak asked.
“It’s about being better.”
It was then that, from the corner of the screen, a single player collided with an object precariously placed on a ramp before spinning out of control and plummeting down a bottomless drop. What followed soon thereafter was the cartoonish caterwauling of the driver plunging into the abyss and the eruption of an admittedly childish argument.
"Sacrament!" Elias cried out in exasperation.
"Regarde ça? Tu sais qui l'a fait? C'était moi." Ezrah sneered. "J'ai laissé cette banana-là juste pour toi. Tu as fait aussi ça si facile ! Pas désolé au fait."
"Surveille ton dos. Je suis en train de venir mettre une fin à ta merde."
"Je m'en fiche. Je fais ce que je veux."
"Attention, les mecs," Isaia calmly intervened. "Maman peut encore vous entendre de la cuisine."
The two quarreling foxes simultaneously risked a glance into the kitchen to see if their mother was eavesdropping, but once it became apparent the coast was clear and that she was far too busy with family to notice this skirmish, the two brothers rejoined the conversation in full.
“COMs cheat. So what?” Ezrah asked with that same crooked smile. “It doesn’t matter if they know every shortcut. If you’ve got the right strategy, you can still place in the top three. Lakitu won’t always be around to save you from your own incompetence.”
“What strategy? Your strategy is just a banana shield,” Elias shot back. “It’s not a strategy, it’s a crutch. COMs cheat—yeah—but in the end, it’s all about dumb luck. A blue shell can take you and everyone else out at the finish line no matter what you do.”
“Hey now, don’t you put that evil on me, Ricky Bobby.”
“Did it ever occur to you both, that the more you distract yourselves like this, the easier it is for me to race right pass you and lay my traps unnoticed?” Isaia slyly asserted. “Consider it food for thought. COMs don’t need to cheat if you’re so easily distracted.”
“Man, I don’t know what’s going on, but this shit’s fun to watch,” Shane said with exuberance as he pumped his fist into the air. For the skunk, this was less familial microcosm and more harmless spectator sport.
“I got to say, it’s a little hard to follow though. I can’t even tell who’s winning.”
"On a de la chance. Il ne peut pas acclamer pour son chum s'il ne joue pas." Ezrah stealthily remarked. "Cela devrait garder les choses justes. Pour maintenant."
“Shut up, Etzy,” Elias retorted in turn.
Isaak, the youngest quintuplet, rubbed both eyes and sighed, “I don’t care if COMs cheat or not; after a while, can we play another game? Preferably one that doesn’t have Mario Kart in its title?”
“That’s a great idea, Izzy!” Ethan exclaimed with his genial demeanor reemerging. “Once we’re done with Rainbow Road, we’ll load up Smash on the Switch. That way Shane can play with all of us. We’ve got a few extra GameCube controllers here if Ian and Erroll want to join in. Ellie, too, if she’s not busy!”
“Eddy,” Isaak interrupted, unconvinced, “if this how we act when we’re playing MK8 Deluxe, how is Smash going to be remotely better? If anything, it'll be worse."
“Izzy, don’t act like you’re not as competitive,” Elias argued. “Go grab a controller for your boyfriend while Etzy and I fight to the bitter end.”
“Has it really been much of a fight, Lias, if I’ve been ahead of you this whole time? Let's be real. This is hardly a competition.”
“I’ll be honest here,” the skunk declared, “you guys will probably beat the crap out of me at this rate. I didn’t grow up with Nintendo, so you’ve already got a big advantage. Though, that doesn’t mean I’m not in it to win it. Whatever we end up doing, I’m playing for keeps.”
“Now that’s what I’m talking about!” the eldest fox hollered with approval.
Isaak loosed a small laugh, resigned but not deflated, and pronounced, “Fine. I’ll play a round of Smash once you’re done losing to cheating bots like always. Happy now? I love you guys, but you all drive me crazy.”
"On t’aime aussi, Izzy!" The four other identical quintuplets echoed in unison.
I want to take this time to give my thanks to
Crocdragon for all the effort they put into making this scene and all my boys look their best! I absolutely love seeing them together like this, and Croc deserves all the credit for the scenery you see here. I'm so very happy with how this all came together in the end!
art is © Crocdragon
The Skulk [from left to right: Ethan, Ezrah, Elias, Isaia and Isaak Valern] and Shane Knight are ©
nazcapilot
So the last shall be first, and the first last: for many be called, but few chosen.
- Matthew 20:16 KJV
I will not forget the day when the sides were chosen/
Me against me against me/
Clothing so drenched with sweat/
And the teeth they were clenched/
Who can I trust when I.../
Grabbed hold my enemy's neck/
And choked 'till he ceased/
Blisters with disbelief (I awoke dead)/
And when I awoke I couldn't believe it was me/
All the time it was me/
- Project 86 - "Me Against Me"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41CLhOnoqes
“Watching you guys play right now,” Isaak said, mouth agape, “I don’t know how any of you ever thought this would be a good idea. With these settings, the COMs almost always pick up better items and run you off the road.”
“Not only that,” Isaia added with a calmness which ran counter to the bevy of activity in the living room, “but when they’re set like this, the AI tend to rubber-band more by using exploits and shortcuts. Regardless, it can make for a rather fun experience in the right light.”
“COMs on hard; All items; 250cc,” Isaak enumerated, “I can’t even tell what’s going on with all this noise! How’s this any fun, Zaya?”
“COMs cheat,” Ethan, the eldest quintuplet, said from his seat at the other end of the couch. “We know this, but that’s never an issue. It’s never about being first anyway.”
With his eyes fastened to the screen and his focus honed to a sharp point, his usual cheery smile was now whetted like a keen cutlass poised to strike.
“Then what is it?” Isaak asked.
“It’s about being better.”
It was then that, from the corner of the screen, a single player collided with an object precariously placed on a ramp before spinning out of control and plummeting down a bottomless drop. What followed soon thereafter was the cartoonish caterwauling of the driver plunging into the abyss and the eruption of an admittedly childish argument.
"Sacrament!" Elias cried out in exasperation.
"Regarde ça? Tu sais qui l'a fait? C'était moi." Ezrah sneered. "J'ai laissé cette banana-là juste pour toi. Tu as fait aussi ça si facile ! Pas désolé au fait."
"Surveille ton dos. Je suis en train de venir mettre une fin à ta merde."
"Je m'en fiche. Je fais ce que je veux."
"Attention, les mecs," Isaia calmly intervened. "Maman peut encore vous entendre de la cuisine."
The two quarreling foxes simultaneously risked a glance into the kitchen to see if their mother was eavesdropping, but once it became apparent the coast was clear and that she was far too busy with family to notice this skirmish, the two brothers rejoined the conversation in full.
“COMs cheat. So what?” Ezrah asked with that same crooked smile. “It doesn’t matter if they know every shortcut. If you’ve got the right strategy, you can still place in the top three. Lakitu won’t always be around to save you from your own incompetence.”
“What strategy? Your strategy is just a banana shield,” Elias shot back. “It’s not a strategy, it’s a crutch. COMs cheat—yeah—but in the end, it’s all about dumb luck. A blue shell can take you and everyone else out at the finish line no matter what you do.”
“Hey now, don’t you put that evil on me, Ricky Bobby.”
“Did it ever occur to you both, that the more you distract yourselves like this, the easier it is for me to race right pass you and lay my traps unnoticed?” Isaia slyly asserted. “Consider it food for thought. COMs don’t need to cheat if you’re so easily distracted.”
“Man, I don’t know what’s going on, but this shit’s fun to watch,” Shane said with exuberance as he pumped his fist into the air. For the skunk, this was less familial microcosm and more harmless spectator sport.
“I got to say, it’s a little hard to follow though. I can’t even tell who’s winning.”
"On a de la chance. Il ne peut pas acclamer pour son chum s'il ne joue pas." Ezrah stealthily remarked. "Cela devrait garder les choses justes. Pour maintenant."
“Shut up, Etzy,” Elias retorted in turn.
Isaak, the youngest quintuplet, rubbed both eyes and sighed, “I don’t care if COMs cheat or not; after a while, can we play another game? Preferably one that doesn’t have Mario Kart in its title?”
“That’s a great idea, Izzy!” Ethan exclaimed with his genial demeanor reemerging. “Once we’re done with Rainbow Road, we’ll load up Smash on the Switch. That way Shane can play with all of us. We’ve got a few extra GameCube controllers here if Ian and Erroll want to join in. Ellie, too, if she’s not busy!”
“Eddy,” Isaak interrupted, unconvinced, “if this how we act when we’re playing MK8 Deluxe, how is Smash going to be remotely better? If anything, it'll be worse."
“Izzy, don’t act like you’re not as competitive,” Elias argued. “Go grab a controller for your boyfriend while Etzy and I fight to the bitter end.”
“Has it really been much of a fight, Lias, if I’ve been ahead of you this whole time? Let's be real. This is hardly a competition.”
“I’ll be honest here,” the skunk declared, “you guys will probably beat the crap out of me at this rate. I didn’t grow up with Nintendo, so you’ve already got a big advantage. Though, that doesn’t mean I’m not in it to win it. Whatever we end up doing, I’m playing for keeps.”
“Now that’s what I’m talking about!” the eldest fox hollered with approval.
Isaak loosed a small laugh, resigned but not deflated, and pronounced, “Fine. I’ll play a round of Smash once you’re done losing to cheating bots like always. Happy now? I love you guys, but you all drive me crazy.”
"On t’aime aussi, Izzy!" The four other identical quintuplets echoed in unison.
I want to take this time to give my thanks to
Crocdragon for all the effort they put into making this scene and all my boys look their best! I absolutely love seeing them together like this, and Croc deserves all the credit for the scenery you see here. I'm so very happy with how this all came together in the end! art is ©
CrocdragonThe Skulk [from left to right: Ethan, Ezrah, Elias, Isaia and Isaak Valern] and Shane Knight are ©
nazcapilot
Category All / All
Species Unspecified / Any
Size 1280 x 711px
File Size 202.5 kB
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