Martin and Jon end up somewhere else, and that somewhere is Night Vale.
CW: mentions of surgery, mild swearing, character death, mild description of blood, gore, brutality, egregious bodily harm, & gun violence
Spoilers for the entire TMA Podcast!
y'know I think that the night vale spiderwolves could be a blaseball team if they wanted
I’m officially invested in @sm0kebreaks, @kerink, and @game-warden‘s tma/wtnv crossover ‘verse, I think (edited to include everyone who contributes to this au, because I wasn’t totally sure at first)
[ID: a sketch of Martin Blackwood, Jon Sims, Cecil Palmer, and Carlos the scientist, in a selfie taken by Cecil, with “Welcome to Somewhere Else!” written in the top right corner. All are in sm0kebreaks’s designs of them. Cecil is at the base of the photo, grinning excitedly and holding up a piece sign. He appears to be leaning backwards, since everyone else is viewed from a higher angle. He has his hair in low pigtails, and is wearing a multicolored jacket, three eyed sunglasses, and chunky lightning bolt earrings. Jon is to the left, behind him, and is smiling amusedly. He is wearing a plain shirt that says “t-shirt.” Carlos is to the right, at the same level as Jon, smiling widely with his eyes closed and giving Cecil bunny ears with his fingers. He is wearing a lab coat and a plain t shirt. Martin is behind all of them, in the center near the top, and is smiling with a slightly tired but genuine expression, and waving. He is wearing an acrostic t shirt that says “DILF: damn I love frogs.” There is minimal shading, and each person is blocked in with a color. Cecil is blocked in with teal, Jon is blocked in with green, Carlos is blocked in with purple, and Martin is blocked in with light red. /End ID]
Also yes, this is what’s actually going on:
[ID: a doodle of the same thing from a different angle, without color, of Cecil awkwardly bending backwards to take the selfie, while everyone behind him mostly stands normally. /End ID]
“i need a cigarette” - jon sims moments before lightners gruesome death
redraw of this
🌹
'What had been blisteringly hot―especially when compared to the wet, middling weather of London―was now a biting chill that proved too much for the thin crewneck and plaid shorts he was wearing. He rolled the flint wheel of his lighter (a new one, cheap and plastic) against his thumb, savoring the way the sparks flash against the dark blue sky before striking with purpose and lighting it. His hand only shook briefly in the chill before he could manage to light his cigarette.'
for every "🌹" in my inbox i'll post one random sentence of a random WIP i'm currently writing
me and @4bsent-damascus have been discussing this for forever but whenever i think of tma/wtnv i think of the connection between the old oak doors and the distortions doors, meaning if there was a crossover i would like to imagine cecil and carlos ending up in helen’s corridors, and jon and martin being thrown into the desert otherworld [ which is definitely a domain of both the vast and the corruption ]. cecil would have to deal with his [ not new! ] powers as an avatar especially considering he is fully aware of his abilities now, and jon would begin having visions of cecil through his perspective as they fight over dominance for the eye.
I am literally SO EXCITED to finally be able to post something from my "Creepy Evil Bosses" crossover, now titled Ballroom Demons.
Synopsis:
Marcus Cutter and Kevin of Desert Bluffs have found a way to trick Elias Bouchard into joining them on a trip to Kevin's favorite Queer Night Club in the desert. The experience will be more than they bargained for…
Kevin hummed as they thought of the best way to phrase their comment. "I do love a grand gesture," they said, "but will the sentiment not be a bit… lost on him?"
"Please, Kevin," Cutter said, "have a little faith that I know another dramatic bitch when I see one. Besides, it doesn't have to convince him, I just know he likes a little cherry on top. Trust me, we'll be able to work him into it one way or another."
Rating: M | Kevin & Cutter & Elias | CWs: sexual innuendo, flirting
I reread an old fanfic I wrote, last updated in 2020, and now I'm mad that I can't read more. And now I'm more mad because the only way for me to read more is by actually writing more.
Anyways, writing about media consumption as literal media consumption was probably the only stroke of literary genius I'll have in my life.
I don't know if anyone else here has 1) read to the end of Passerine and 2) listened to the end of the Strexcorp arc of WTNV, but let me tell you, this is the second time today I am hearing about a smiling god and it really doesn't get less unnerving.
A thought I had. I like to think Cecil's bosses are Kakos Industry clients. I also like to think Corin sometimes has to deal with weird crap happening to him as a result of all of the different evils and chaoses around the world. Ten points to anyone who guesses how I got the blurry effect.
Just the text transcription:
Corin: Where am I? Who are you, sir?
Cecil: Hello, Mister Deeth. On behalf of our radio station and city council- Welcome to Nightvale
[Image ID:
A pencil sketched comic of Corin Deeth the Third meeting Cecil Palmer.
The first panel shows an undetailed room with a desk and the two men. Corin, depicted as a pale man with long hair wearing a pale shirt, grey vest, and dark pants and shoes. He is standing next to a desk where Cecil, drawn as a man with dark skin and long, near-white hair, sits, holding an old-fashioned microphone. Corin is looking around concernedly and asks "Where am I? Who are you, sir?"
The second panel gives a closeup of Cecil from the front. He is wearing a top that has no sleeves, is held up by its collar, and has a white kitty patch over the left heart. There are black bands on his left arm. His third eye is open slightly wider than the other two and his hair is flying. He replies with, "Hello, Mister Deeth. I am Cecil Palmer. And on behalf of our radio station and city council-"
The third panel shows a simplified version of a city with two buildings, a watertower, and a shed. There is a giant eye in the sky. Insie the grey-shaded iris is a white crescent moon and a black bird extending its wings. Above the upper eyelid are the words "Welcome to Nightvale," as Cecil finishes his sentence.
All three panels have a glitchy/slightly blurred appearance.
End ID]
How i remember you as a writer is your creativity. Like you come up with these funky lil crossovers but make em work.
Thank you :)
I will admit I do not make them work tho :(
Info dump about the wonderland au NOW.
WOOO big post time hi everyone heres like a “ short “ layout for the au [ shoutout to u also for worldbuilding this with me aswell!
༓☾ celestine: the gatekeeper
voiceclaim: cecil’s distorted voice n 171
- celestine is the wonderland’s cecil of sorts, and they look very similar despite being two different people mentally/physically. He is a gatekeeper for the wonderland, allowing different creatures to pass through rabbit holes to travel around, sometimes letting outsiders [ like carlos ] in from other worlds. He works on his own accords and doesn't take orders from anyone, especially the queen.
- celestine is a shapeshifter, and can change into practically any creature. Due to this, he has an extensive knowledge about every wonderland creature, and can speak an array of languages, including his own, which is spoken in reverse. Sometimes he switches to this language unconsciously. His studies are conducted in a large library in a secluded area of the Forest.
- other powers/abilities involve slight foresight [ kind of like deja vu but for the future ] and being able to create rabbit holes. He floats slightly off the ground, and night follows him wherever he goes. Due to the constant darkness around him, his eyes glow. He cannot see out of his main two eyes, but can through the other eyes on his wings and body.
- he likes to wear darker night colors, with yellow accents like stars. Most of his clothes are long and flowy, along with his hair which is often put into complex hairstyles. Occasionally, he will have wings or a tail, but normally the only wings of his remain on his ears/face. He has three “ stars '' on his forehead, which can change position depending on his form. Normally, no matter what he looks like, the stars remain an indicator of who he is.
⋆⛧* kevin: the cheshire
voiceclaim: kevin’s normal voice mixed with the distortion of Him [ pwrpuff girls ]
- after another attempt to be eaten by the smiling god, kevin does not find himself back in the otherworld, but instead in the wonderland, forcibly taking the place of the cheshire and gaining his powers; with a cost.
- he meets carlos and celestine in the forest, after having followed them for a day or so. Upon learning about the cheshire’s removal, celestine explains to kevin the danger of his power, that the wonderland will take an extreme toll on him since he is an outsider. He ignores the prophecy, embracing his new abilities, taking them as a gift from his god.
- his new power includes the ability to teleport [ in wide smile cheshire fashion! ], extreme agility and flexibility, and enhanced hearing/vision. The effects of the wonderland distort him, and new powers arise, now out of his control. Days after his arrival, his new powers include uncontrolled phasing through walls/people and traveling through mirrors and reflections. The more he gets distorted the louder and unbearable his voice gets, and soon whispers and laughter follow him wherever he goes. At one point his hearing and reflexes are so enhanced that he is constantly on edge from hearing someone’s heartbeat a mile away.
- his abilities are seen as useful for the queen, and kevin is hired as her highest-ranking guard. He is super excited about this as it allows him to accompany her during executions, and he can just go crazy and hunt down people !
- the longer he stays in the wonderland, the more his figure becomes distorted, too. He begins to look more insect-like and his human features become less defined and combine with his feline features. i could go ON about what he looks like but that would talk up a whole nother page so if u want like a full infodump just about his appearance i will do that :]
- he has a halberd instead of his axe too !
✧･ﾟcarlos: alice
voiceclaim: it's just him lol
- while investigating the disappearance of a few interns, carlos falls through a rabbit hole and ends up in the wonderland. Celestine finds him after he gets lost in the Forest, and helps him find the nearest rabbit hole back to Nightvale, which ends up leading them to the queen's castle. In total he spends a week in the wonderland in their time, but about a month in nightvale time. During this time cecil gets super distressed and makes broadcasts asking for help to try and find where Carlos might have gone.
♥♡ laurette: the queen of hearts
voiceclaim: i forget the name of her but that one fancy ass skeksis
- laurette is the queen of the wonderland, and despite her intimidating figure she is really a sweetheart, and wants to help carlos come back home as much as possible. Kevin works also as her jester, and she treats him like her little gremlin son [ he is ]. He is constantly at her side and she always consults him before large decisions.
- laurette loves all things hearts and red, and looooves big fancy dresses and headsets. She is easily amused by anything, especially carlos and the world outside of the wonderland. After they first meet, she spends a long time getting to know him and asks lots of questions, especially about his family. Carlos has to explain punk to her and his piercings and she loves them and makes her royal band learn to play some of his favorite songs.
- A day after celestine and carlos make it to the castle, laurette hosts a ball for her birthday and to celebrate her visitors. Even though the two of them accept the invitation, celestine still sticks with carlos due to his extreme distrust of laurette and kevin for working together.
- laurette looks very similar to a skeksis and is super big!! She towers over everyone :]
The crossover headcanon that Jon the Archivist became Jon the Hunger only grew on me leading up to TMA’s series finale. The idea of TMA being a prequel series (if by accident) to TAZ Balance is so appealing as an origin story for The Hunger.
Whether the Fears move on to another dimension or stay until they drive their prey extinct and starve, realizing their own fear of Extinction,
Leading up to his sacrifice, Jon would’ve wanted to Know. After being forced to condemn the whole world, and after weighing the possibility that he’d then have to be the one to mercy-kill the whole world, he’d want to hope for relief, to Know if there’d be peace found after death. And, well, in his final moments... he “solved” it. The answer came to him in such a way that only sadistic horror entities can bring upon their hosts. So then, his existential dread passed the point of no return, he was already becoming the will of The Eye as much as The Eye was becoming his, his murder caused his discovery to be broadcast across the world as it dawned upon him, converting them all into Eyes like he’d done in the ant burrow, and The Eye being the Fears’ head alongside The Web, Jon the Archivist fucked off through that Hilltop rift... as Jon the Hunger. “Oh, but The Hunger is all shadowy–” The Dark. All the Fears are fourteen sides of the same die, including The Eye and the Dark. And, hell, you remember how Balance has planar systems? And how it was mentioned that The Hunger interfered with the laws of physics by overlapping occupied spaces? And how the Buried, Lonely, Spiral and Vast all bend the fabric of space to their will? In this crossover headcanon, the Fears could’ve been planes themselves, orbiting around TMA’s material plane, until either the apocalypse event or The Hunger’s completion converged their whole system like it did to other planar systems.
Jon the Hunger’s description would fit Jon the Archivist, but his appearance would especially fit S1 Jon, the person he was before he was so thoroughly groomed for hosting The Eye and progressively losing grip of his humanity. Jon the Hunger takes on a form that closest resembles Jon the Archivist from back when he was still fully himself. Formal, yes, but humanly formal the way he was when he felt wary of unseen danger in the Magnus Institute, humanly formal in the way he was when he would use formality as a defense mechanism to keep distance from the people around him. It’d be as if Jon were to some degree reset, as if Merle reached out to the most human, least assimilated Jon he could call upon.
And the idea that Merle was able to parley with the Hunger and not just reach for Jon in there, but reach all the way to call directly upon Jon the Archivist’s humanity, that is some good shit.
What I’m thinking about now is how the planes were all separated and put into suspension after The Hunger was dismantled, and how all those planar systems would be restored over time. Would TMA’s planes reload at the detour point to continue toward the same canon ending or, would its planar system have to have had such a major reconstruction to prevent the same event repeating, and maybe to compensate for what happened to TMA to become The Hunger...
Let’s say it wasn’t a perfect renovation. Let’s say the result was that an eldritch influence is still very much present, but it’s not so parasitic anymore, not so... destructive. The Fears, which had come together as the Hunger, were disassembled and reassembled when their resident planar system was rebuilt. The Hunger’s components-- the Fears’ components-- would become a part of this remade plane’s natural order, not just something that forces itself upon it. The Archivist and his boyfriend were affected by this too, as is what would happen to avatars. But this time, they could both be given a second chance. Start over with different hands dealt to them. There would still be glimpses of their former selves, just as there would undeniably be glimpes of the Fears’ former legacy in this world, but they’d have undeniably been made new, to honor a fresh start in their new lives... as a radio host and a scientist.
Surprised and delighted to learn that my irl friend group is “really enjoying the first season of Welcome To Night Vale” and I’m eagerly compiling a list of podcast recommendations to pass along because I just kind of assumed they already knew about them? But apparently not? So now I get to recommend my favorites!
[ID: finn W commented: capricorn's just reminded me of family guy, when peter replaced his contacts with forks. End ID]
6 - The Drawbridge
I felt compelled to write a TMA/WTNV crossover, so have Kevin writing a statement for the Magnus Institute 👀
'Man in a tan jacket' with flies???? Omg babe is that you????
