You know how Robert runs afoul of the Dragon Goon (also nicknamed Lóng/Ryuu in fandom) in Sardine, and the guy seems fixated on him?
Well, in East Asian and particularly Korean mythology, Fox spirits (kitsune, huli jing, gumiho/maegu) and Dragons do not get along.
One famous Korean fairytale set-up is "The Monster Fox Threatening a Dragon"; in which the Dragon King of the Western Sea is so injured from a fight with a divine Gumiho, that he seeks the help of a mortal archer named Geotaji/Jakjegeon. The archer helps slay the kaiju fox, rescues the dragon princess, and the Dragon King grants him the princess's hand in marriage as a reward.
It's a little of a subversion of the European trope of "princess held captive by a dragon" cus in this case; the princess is a dragon, and the "dragon/beast" is a hungry fox demon.
There's also Taoist mythos in which foxes work alongside the Celestial Gods against Dragons in times of war. Even in tales where the dragons and celestials are buddies, a fox demon will appear as an opp towards dragons.
Evidently these two groups of animals no likey each other.
This is likely tied to Buddhist symbolism of foxes being symbols of deceit, earth, and femininity, and dragons being royal, airy, and masculine. Sort of a darker version of the contrast presented by Dragon/Phoenix motifs common in mainland asia.
In the Mecha Man Foxtrot au: Robert is a fox spirit hybrid, though he likely doesn't know how deep the Fox vs Dragon grudge goes. The Dragon Guy be glaring at him like he's wearing opposing gang colours.
Which makes the whole thumb-biting and bathroom beat-down seem a little more thematic.
Robert, on the phone: "Grandma, I got into a fight, and I bit a guy's finger off... again."
Grandma Su-jin, worried: "Did you swallow it? Was he human? Dear, if he's human you need to make reparations at the temple-"
Robert: "No I spat it out. I think he was some kind of dragon hybrid?"
Grandma Su-jin: (*loud cackle!*)
Robert, confused: "Whats the joke?"
Grandma Su-jin: "Just ancient history, dear. Nothing to worry about." :3
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Honestly between king cassino and this random shroud goon character has me in a choke hold lmaooo
Some headcanons of lóng or whatever the dragon guys called
Final attempt to draw this dude I like to think he has like..reptile or dragons traits
Tiny veryyyy tiny hairs on his palms and feet to climb like lizards do
With that gold dog tag I like to think he either loves or likes gold enough to have a hoard (secretly of course)
I added to his design e.g; spikes on back and a tail no wings though and some claws nice and sharp
Possibly poisonous? Armstrong and toxic think so (yesss I asked them hushhhh..)
Subtle scales on his body but the ones on his face are more visible
His pupils dilate if shocked, irritated and or scared
We can agree his tongue is forked yea? Probably a deep red color with maybe a gold tongue piercing-- possibly??
Perhaps he's mute? Or just doesn't speak? Either way he purrs (how cute!) and growls all those animal-like sounds
Probably a fan of killer croc or that one lizard villain from spiderman? Forgot his name lol
Bro definitely eats like a lizard (fruits, bugs) but also meat like most dragons
Prolly a mix of both dragon and reptile
A more embarrassing thing is that our lil dragon friend sheds his skin yes! You guessed it! ---like a lizard! Shroud finds it...not very pleasing
with the other red ring members lóng most definitely gets teased for it
As a cold-blooded creature lóng naturally likes heat any warmth really but really likes fire on his back with his powers and all he's most likely immune to burning upon a fires wrath
Can be found on the ceiling if you're sneaky enough. just chilling...reptile stuff ya'know?
Most likely wags his tail like a doggy.
Anyway here's some attempting to draw this mf
And yesssss I ship my persona with this dude too I'm a hoe okay? Can't blame me tho right?... Right? RIGGGGGHHHT???
The first time Armstrong and toxic found lóngs dead skin after shedding
I’m just going to say tbat Inko and Robert will be open to poly (so that way either sonar or Flambae’s can join) and also I’m just imagining Flambae seeing the burn scars (from Bakugou’s quirk) on Izuku and being so fucking angry
Yeah, these two read "there's room in our bed for more". Might be surprisingly freaky in the sheets, but at the end of the day they're both looking for someone who treats both them and their son right. <3
Bakugo seeing Izuku again after the school break, only to see an entire squad of furious superheroes beside him like bodyguards.
(Also Flambae sees a lot of his younger self in Bakugo, and doesn't want him to go down that dark path.)
Fun fact! All we know about Izuku's (supposed) biological father Hisashi is that
He's currently abroad.
He can breathe fire.
Remember a handsome son-of-a-gun we've been discussing in the "snake hybrid au"?
That feel when the cute twunk at the bar is your co-husband to your wife whom you've been estranged because of being excommunicated from the yakuza.
Now I keep thinking a scenario with the Dragon Guy from the Red Ring (who I've been calling Dagon in my head), in the snake hybrid!Robert AU, during The Assault to the SND. He can probably smell where Robert went and sees ThumbStick going in that same direction, so he instictually follows. If he is more of a western dragon then he's gonna feel pretty territorial over the pretty snake, even if his human brain is telling him it was just a hook up. So he follows, and when he sees Robert trying to ambush the peeing villain his instics fully kick in.
Everything after is a blur. He remembers listening Visi and Robert discussing over pulling the downed villain's pant up (ew), going around the SND hunting down for more Red Ring because Robert asked him to (those damn eyes and voice) and by the time the dust fully settles and it looks like he's going to get arrested, the Z Team starts to say he is with them. And Robert is more than happy to support the claim? Guess he's a Phoenix now?? Yay???
Oddly enough, I don't feel, in case of a polycule, he would pose a problem. Because western dragons? Are greedy, and like to hoard. It's only that instead of gold or anything like that, Dagon takes a look at this motley band of ex-villains, all pining for the same man as he is, and his lizard brain goes "More mates? MORE MATES!"
Idk if this is something, but just feel in my bone that bro saw those doe eyes fog with pleasure once (1) and he was done for.
Prev.
Ohohoho!
Also consider that with Robert's larger form in this AU, he actually can't hide from ThumbStick as easily as in canon. Things get messy (in more ways than one) when the killer decides to pee later, and take out "random SDN blue collar" now.
Dragon Guy (love the name hc Dagon btw) intervenes, much to Robert and Visi's surprise.
Turns out the lure of "possible date with cute snake guy" (and maybe more if Robert and him did hookup in between Ep 5 & 6) is stronger than the dragon's loyalty to the Red Ring. Plus he figures after the Z-Team beat the crap out of the Red Ring forces, that it's a sinking ship anyway.
Toxic and Armstrong seeing the Dragon Guy/Dagon/Long/Ryuu getting a pardon cus he flipped on the Red Ring for a twink. (Perhaps multiple if Waterboy is involved)
Dragon Guy: "Don't care. He's cute as hell."
Toxic: "Boo, you whore."
Bonus if Shroud is still alive. He is pissed at the disloyalty, but at the same time can respect the instinctual need to protect one's mate. Also its nice to see Robert expressing his more repitilian side for once.
The Z-Team are a little confused at first why this seemingly random ex-Red Ring guy swapped sides, but Sonar and Coupe quickly ID him as "Robbo's bf from the Sardine bathroom". Scandalous teasing ensues.
Flambae, impressed: "What went on in that bathroom? I've never recieved head good enough to change loyalties!" XD
Dragon Guy turns out to be a sweetheart under all those tattoos and spikes.
Lizards can be surprising romantic creatures. Males will suspend from branches/cielings of enclosures to act as hammocks for their mate. And in the case of certain skinks, will mate for life.
Combine that with the belief of western dragons acting a bit like birds; gifts, nest building, food sharing etc, and you've got an ex-villain with some rizz.
(I am suddenly reminded of those Dragon Bros comics.)
The addition of more mates is no issue. Lots of species of snakes/lizards keep to tight poly groups.
Plus, there's no harm in seeing how Dragon Guy handles Flambae. ;) (combine this with the popular au idea of Flambae being a dragon, and thkngs gets spicy)
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I loved the narrative of Robert from the hybrid trafficking Fighting Ring Club, but I wonder what would happen if one puts a little bit of parhelion into it?
The cashier from 9/11 that helps Arthur on the original au is not a good person on this one, and sells the pup to the traffickers for cash.
I'd like to add the idea that Shroud bought Dagon out of the ring. Not out of the goodness of his heart, obviously, but because he saw good henchmen material. Neither of them wish to have anything to do with the organization until they hear through the grapevine that there's children in the matches (some villains have some morals, after all). The fact that said child is a carbon copy of Robert, bruised and malnourished (for trying to defend Alfie), might not play on the traffickers favor. Not even ashes remain.
I'm not sure if Robert would be kidnapped as well, because on one hand I like the idea of them sitting down to compare trauma flavors of "Hide your animal traits at all times!" vs "Show off your animal traits! To kill!", but on the other hand the three wolves sharing and being able to comfort each other as they try to survive that hellhole until certain megabat saves them is interesting.
As for Shroud, his list of priorities takes a drastic change (bear in mind he does not have all the info):
1. Make the traffickers pay
2. Dote on his granchild(ren)
3.(If Robert's kidnapped) Determine if Alfie is his biological grandson too and whether his birth was consensual
3.(If Robert's not kidnapped) Figure out why the fuck his son abandoned his grandson
4. Find the pups other parent. He'd simply like to talk. In an empty warehouse. With a gun.
5. Get his son away from that bat hussy
6. Recover the Astral Pulse
Prev.
I'm wondering if the Hybrid Experimentation/Trafficking/Fight Club groups should have a proper name. Something like "The Beastarium" (a compendium of beasts) or "The Menagerie" (a collection of captive animals).
I personally like the idea Arthur being captured before Robert.
Depending on Arthur's origins; perhaps the mech explosion acted as a dimensional gateway, the cloning process finished, or the little changeling just finished being "born". Either way, a tiny lost version of Robert Robertson is taken away to somewhere cruel.
Put the rest under Read More due to length. Alternates POV a little:
It looks like a zoo or pound for people like him - people that look part animal.
A place where the "caretakers" strike if Arthur covers his ears or hides his tail.
The pup is tossed into a communal cell with other children like him until he can be assessed by the Menagerie's doctors. A form of quarantine.
Arthur is barely six years old, and he's housed with other children as old as seventeen.
The bigger kids are meaner and hungry, quick to shove little ones away to steal daily food rations. In-fighting is a daily occurance - older pups biting and hitting the younger to express frustration. Arthur quickly learns thats there's a hierarchy he's not fitting into.
Despite this aggressive atmosphere whenever one of the better-dressed men appears; every single one of the hybrid children go quiet.
A well-dressed man takes Arthur to a room resembling an operation theatre with a dentist chair.
A doctor with a face mask asks the pup basic personal questions with an artifically sweet tone. Then he puts something into the back of Arthur's head.
Arthur is dumped back with the other children without fanfare.
There are adult hybrids too. Some big, some small, some scary, some soft. Sometimes they leave at the behest of a guard and return hours later with injuries. Sometimes they don't return at all.
One day, they put a baby into the childrens' wing. The guards say its an emergency placement until they find someone to taje care of him.
The older pups are jealous. Babies get treated better than them. Babies get guaranteed food rations and a Mama to take care of them
An older boy tries hurting the baby.
Arthur sees red.
The guards only react when the sounds of violence turn to pained whimpers. They see Arthur on all-fours, hunched over the baby wolf-hybrid like a shield. And at least five larger hybrid children beaten to submission.
A well-dressed man visits him. He's impressed by how violently the pup fought. He asks who Arthur really is.
Arthur doesn't mince words, telling his captors that his father is Mecha Man, and that he's probably trying to find him as they speak.
This only makes the well-dressed man grin even wider.
He orders the guards to take Arthur and the baby away to another cell.
Arthur tries to fight against his restraints, but a guard grabs the back of his neck like he's a dog.
The new cell is barely nicer than the children's wing - it has a drain, a water trough, and an area with a crude bed.
On that very crude bed sleeps a much older wolf-hybrid. He's skinny and scarred like the other adults, but there's signs of him seeing the doctors recently.
The well-dressed man says this is Mecha Man - and he will be taking care of them from now on.
Arthur is too shocked by this knowledge to process the cell door clicking shut behind him
What world is he in?
-
When Robert comes to; he sees a pair of scared hybrid pups. The elder shielding the younger even while shaking with fear. The baby crying for a mother that has long abandoned him.
Robert's body hurts in so many ways, but his first act is to try and soothe their whimpers.
The older boy calls himself Arthur. He looks exactly as Robert did at that age.
Fuck. Either it's time travel, or his captors managed to clone him with some memoroes intact.
The baby doesn't have a name. Arthur says that he doesn't have a Mom anymore. That the other inmates tried hurting him.
Robert knows this has to be a mind game. Exploit his inate heroic instincts to protect these pups so he's more likely cooperate.
But these two need him right now. He can plan his escape around them.
He holds the baby and the mini-Robert close as a parent would. He'll find a way to get them out of here.
Or he'll die trying.
-
More ideas for Dragon Guy's (aka "Dagon" and hc birthname "Ryūnosuke") lore.
In previous AU ideas; I suggested that Dagon was an excommunicated yakuza, and that his oyabun (boss) gave him a choice: Death or Mutilation & Exile. Dagon chose the later, losing his tail and leaving for the US.
What the quiet dragon-hybrid was not warned of; was that his clan saw his survival as a liability. The second Dagon landed in the states, he was snatched up by the traffickers - told that he still needed to work off his debt to his criminal family. Dagon agrees to participate in the pit fights, although his accommodations leave much to be desired.
Due to Dagon's slightly higher status among the captives, he's granted more freedom to roam the halls. He quickly becomes aware that many of the others housed in the same complex aren't there of their own free will or moral obligation as he was.
The most obvious being the child hybrids kept under lock and key by the staff.
Dagon is unable to comfort the crying pups directly, but he strains his frayed vocal cords to sing a lullaby from his homeland through the separating wall. The younger pups soon falls asleep, and the elder one stifles their cries to try and be strong.
A small pup reaches through the bars at the large man - claiming that his name is "Arthur" ("Like the hero king"), and that he had tried asking a cashier for help finding his father - only for the vultures to snatch him up. Arthur is already thin and bruised from trying to protect younger pups from staff and crueller inmates.
Dagon feels a new pit of anger form in his gullet. If he could offer anything for the little ones' release, he would.
(The dragon hybrid may adopt his new title of "Dagon" from how the pup mispronounces "Dragon".)
Some time into Dagon's "career"; a new face appears in the adult ward. A beauty with red-brown hair and skin decorated with freckles and scars. The staff seem inordinately invested in keeping the catatonic man alive and well - keeping him on around the clock medical watch.
One day, the "Sleeping Beauty" is whisked away to part of the facility other inmates dub "The Body Shop". A place where their animalistic traits were encouraged, often with medical assistance.
The Sleeping Beauty is soon housed with Arthur and a baby wolf-hybrid for reasons soon made clear. Whatever glamour or modifications hid the man's wolf-hybrid traits falls away like shed skin.
The pups are confused and frightened, but their new cellmate is quick to try and soothe them. His tone is near-maternal, cradling both as if they'd birthed from him.
The Beauty's name is "Robert". Arthur seems confused by this knowledge - "Thats my dad's name."
(Dagon's stomach feels as if it can't sink any lower.)
During his next scheduled fight, Dagon manages to get a good look at the wolves' cell. The elder pup Arthur is indeed, the vision of his caretaker. The younger pup is sports grey fur and a longer snout, casting question to his origins. Robert refuses to relinquish his hold of either of them, staring at the passing guards and inmates with deep calculation.
Dagon wonders if they could have been friends in another life.
-
Shroud knew from early on that Robert could have been swooped-up by hybrid-trafficking vultures, and uses a proxy to buy an ex-yakuza's contract. He couldn't go straight for the jugular, less he scares those cockroaches into moving shop.
He strikes gold when his purchased bodyguard recognises the photograph he shows him.
Dagon, testing his new throat augment: "Ro...bert."
Shroud, hiding his elation: "Yes. He is my son. He is currently missing, and I suspected that the Menagerie have him. He is a part wolf-hybrid, and they no doubt are exploiting that."
Dagon, using a writing slate: "Seen him. More wolf now. With two pups."
Shroud, tone darkens: "Pups..? How old?"
Dagon: "Elder pup five maybe six? Younger pup baby, small."
Shroud: (*goes quiet for some time, calculating*)
Shroud: "I need to call in a favour. Robert won't be excited to see me, but perhaps he'll listen to a hero."
Later that night, Chase receives an anonymous tip about a suspected "dog fighting ring" in his inbox. He swears he recognises the typing style.
Robert, the two pups, and countless others held captive by the Menagerie, are soon rescued in a massive sting operation.
Though, not before Sonar nearly gets torn apart by a dire wolf!Robert thinking he's a threat to his pups. Sonar is quick to indentify himself and teamup with the feral wolf-hybrid.
SDN holds the trio on medical watch aa they process all the rescued captives. Robert identifies the two pups as *his*, and refuses to be parted from them. Sonar backs up his claim.
In bar closeby; Shroud watches the news report of the historic sting operation with apt interest.
He's already let his new henchman tear the well-dressed director of the Menagerie apart.
The older boy in Robert's arms is the very vision of him. The parentage of the baby cradled by the rescuing manbat is unclear, and Elliot hopes that Robert isn't the parent. Less he nearly killed his own grandchild, and left them to be born as a captive.
Elliot starts planning a family reunion. His grandchildren deserve to know their grandfather.
