#fem!bell

​"Do you believe in eternity...?"

​Dismantling her beliefs and breaking down the boundaries of her mind felt chillingly similar to the most toxic, poisonous parts of love.

​He constantly tried to seep into her, like ink dissolving in water.

​And Bell, despite knowing it was an attempt to exploit her, couldn't help but feel a sense of pity toward his desperate struggle to take root in her heart.

​She owed him her life, but that debt was merely a contract.

In return, she was given a reality of cold eyes, withered hands, and a bizarre daily routine.

​"Nothing lasts forever."

​When she answered, Adler slowly let out a smile after a few seconds of silence.

​"Enlightenment."

​He whispered, savoring his own words.

​"You've gained something too, haven't you?"

[Creator's Note]

It's been a while since I used Photoshop, which meant I actually got to use layers for my sketching. I've been drawing with MS Paint for the past few months, but it doesn't give you any brush stabilization at all. (I only recently found out they added a layer feature.😝) But hey, I find that raw style pretty fun. So I think I'll keep using MS Paint for my future doodles.

(I feel like Maica's eyes and hair are closer to an ash beige. Similar to Adler, it's in that ambiguous zone between blonde and light brown, but with low saturation. That's why she looks relatively pale compared to him.)

WIPs

COD BO Fanweek 2025

Day 2 Historical Period AU ‘Viking Era’

“Each horizon is a new beginning. Rise and reign.”

***This story is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to actual events or people is purely coincidental. Just read it for the thrill.***

Plot: The story follows Lisette (considered her true name in this AU), the youngest princess of Scandinavia, born after eight elder siblings—Stitch, Stone, Naga, Wraith, Knight, Jackal, Kitsune, and Portnova. As the last in line, she was often overlooked and neglected, even by her own father, Perseus, who rarely spared her any attention.

During her childhood, Lisette devoted herself to training in combat and mastering the skills necessary to serve her homeland. She accompanied her father and brothers onto the battlefield, and by the age of eighteen, she had finally earned recognition from Perseus and the royal family.

Five years later, Perseus led his army—together with all nine of his children—across the sea to invade western England, then ruled by King Russell. The conflict between the two sides was merciless and unrelenting, drenching the land in blood as countless lives were lost.

But as Perseus’s forces dwindled and supplies ran scarce, he sought peace. He dispatched envoys to negotiate a treaty with Russell, offering his own daughter, Lisette, in marriage to the King of Western England. In return, Perseus secured farmland for his Norse people and forged an alliance to prevent rival Norse clans from invading the island.

After her marriage, Lisette converted to Christianity, taking a new name: Bell, Queen of Western England. To the people, she became known as the “Viking Queen”, infamous as the “Lady of Bloodshed”, for she herself had slain many on the battlefield.

Drawing upon her experience from her homeland, Bell aided Russell in matters of governance and ensured the smooth running of maritime trade routes. Yet despite being husband and wife, their relationship was cold and distant in the beginning—conversations rarely strayed beyond affairs of state.

As time passed—months turning into years—their bond slowly changed. They began to open their hearts to one another, and what had begun as a marriage of politics gradually blossomed into genuine love.

In time, Bell bore her first child: a strong and healthy son named Phillip, heir to the throne of Western England. He was later followed by twin sons, Blake and James, completing the royal family.

Well, he thinks he isn’t supposed to. He’s “America’s Monster,” after all. And typically, he doesn’t. Everything he does, morally questionable or not, is always for the greater good; to protect the world. Someone has to get their hands dirty to keep other hands clean.

And yet he can’t stop thinking about Bell. She was working for Perseus. His right-hand man until everything that happened. Bell was just supposed to be an asset. A way to get the upper hand over Perseus. Nothing more.

But somehow, God knows how, Bell became more. She worked hard, so hard that Adler sometimes had to remind her to take breaks. She always put the team and Adler before herself, even for things non-work related. Bell always talked to everyone, treating them like they were friends, not just colleagues.

Treated Adler like he was her best friend.

Bell understood him. She truly cared about him. She “went” through the same hell of Vietnam as he did. Adler almost wish he hadn’t agreed to using his memories of Vietnam. Almost wished it wasn’t him that was Bell’s handler. Maybe it would have hurt less in the end.

Him taking Bell to the beautiful, artic cliffside instead of just killing her right after the bombing wasn't him trying to give her a dignified end. Him telling Bell that she was a hero wasn’t him easing Bell’s guilt over working with Perseus. Him saying it was never personal wasn't Adler trying to minimize the hurt Bell must have felt from his betrayal.

Adler cradling her dying body, keeping her close to his chest, making sure she was as comfortable as she could be didn’t mean anything. It wasn’t him mourning her.

Header Image Created By Neka C.C(Creator of this Neka C.C’s Name is listed on bottom of image) : Click

Today(September 22) is a very special day and that because it’s the chosen date for My Bell(Natalia” Bell” Novikov). And what better way to celebrate her birthday than to look back on her evolution from a simple reader insert fill in to a OC with her own story.

— haunted dreams, of a should-be ghost, of bygone feelings

CONTENT WARNING: SOME visceral description, implied unhealthy dynamic/dependency, mentions of death, adler being narratively haunted by bell, fem!bell, bell reader, adler suffering (yippee)

author's note: definitely not the proudest of this but i do love the idea of adler being haunted by bell, as an inversion of the fandom popular trope of bell being haunted by adler. because i think adler should rightfully suffer! as he should!!

———

A shuddering breath leaves him. Cold is the air that caresses his chapped lips, brushing tauntingly against the raw flesh that throbs and radiates with flashes of hot agony. Somewhere…somewhere…

If Death be a shadow…

His finger twitches against the freezing metal trigger of his 1911. Its weight rests against his hand — clutching it tightly to ensure it won’t slip from his hands as warm blood does from his torn-opened flesh. His arms grow heavy with the weight of blood, or the lack thereof, and his vision grows dimmer. The dark silhouettes before him are but blurry masses of eigengrau that looms overhead. With his legs sprawled on the ground, and a wall behind him.

Urgency should be pulsing through his veins. Urgency should be seeping from every pore, every wound. Where is his urgency, but overridden by a sense of dull languidness his entire form is slowly submerging into.

In the shadows he lay, he rests on; leaning against it. And from the shadows behind slips a hand.

OH YEAAAAHHH I DREW THIS A BIT AGOO!!