Abyss. I worldbuild, draw monsters, body horror, and sometimes fanart. Do not use or repost my artwork without my permission. I am a 21+ adult and my content is not tailored to minors - you have been warned!
245 posts
Synapticabyss - "The Circus Is On Fire!" - Tumblr Blog
All drawings for the "Bigger Than Me" (the videogame) artstyle challenge thingy that I had myself do. All images are in chronological order upon creation.
Features: -Crimm Ulv Sil'een -Ilsiel and the ravens -Sirrith the Red Wyrm -Yulilah the Otherworlder, Letanno the Homeworlder, and Albert the Ball Python
so hey, where does one kiss Grendel anyways? asking for myself (urgent)
Super Devil reworks
idk I like Metal Slug. I'm shy to share what I've worked with but hey it's my blog so whatever!
There might be a zine in the future. But also maybe not. I hope there will (I shall be making it in that specific timeline), there's lots of stuff I've written in private but I'll post a little mini-glossary of terms and what they mean.
Body horror beyond this point!
This will be only for the main Metal Slug protagonists through instances 1-3. All Abyssal Timeline alterations are based on observable in-game things, mostly.
Typically when speaking about my warped AU versions of characters I title them "Abyssal [Name]" but here I will revoke the "Abyssal" section because it'd take up too much space.
Glossary of Useful Terms
HOST - Within the Abyssal Metal Slug Timeline, a host is what a playable character is. They are "host" to powers granted to them by the Super Devil through a specialized infection known as Conduit. Hosts are difficult to kill due to regeneration, cease to produce bodily waste, process consumed energy differently than humans, and overall develop immense physical strength. Beyond that, hosts are known to develop specialized abilities.
RESPAWN NODULE - A small, purple-tinted tumorous organ within the middle-torso of a host. The respawn nodule produces regen fluid, a black sludgy biological substance full of supercharged, fast-acting stem cells that can heal any damage within times that would render most humans bled-out and dead. Fuelled by the NESS-Organ.
NATURAL ENERGY SYSTEM STORAGE ORGAN (NESS-Organ) - Repurposed gut system, which acts as a refinery of "slimefilm" that is produced from consumed foods within the stomach. Slimefilm conversion is almost instant. Refined slimefilm energy is used to fuel respawn nodules. NESS-Organs should be kept full at all times to prevent Creeping Resurrection Sickness.
HIVES/GRAND HIVES - Hostal groups and anomalous armies, respectively. "Grand Hive Regular" = Regular Army. "Grand Hive Morden" = Morden Army. Main Metal Slug gang has their group named "Hive Peregrine". A hivemate, or hostmate, is the same as teammate.
There's more in the overall word-legend but it'd be an even longer read if I listed them all!
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Super Devil Form is an artificial supercharging of hostal general and specialization symptoms through experimental Pro-Devil Serums, which safely amplifies bodily Conduit intensity at the cost of causing Hyperconnectivity Syndrome. Hyperconnectivity Syndrome is the temporary mental state that describes P-D serum afflicted hosts, which closely resembles sleepwalking or "waking dreams" - that is, they are not mentally all there.
Due to the potential risk of the serum causing emotional distress in hosts, the potential risk it poses to civilians due to Hyperconnectivity Syndrome, and the nigh-impossibility of containing a host in their Super Devil Form, pro-Devil serums are rarely ever used.
MARCHRIUS DENNIS ROSSI Hostal Specialization: Brainfog immunity, higher mental process capacity, physical dexterity
Under the effects of the serum, Marco's limbs elongate and his body becomes coated in somewhat-thick chitin with a rough texture. Joints become spherical, allowing for each of his limb joints to become effectively omni-directional with no risk of joint tension due to specialized tendons. His fingers become alarmingly thin and, like the rest of his joints, the bending points also become omni-directional.
Mentally, Marco initially appears lucid and unaffected by Hyperconnectivity Syndrome, but it should be noted that it might not be safe for most to interact with him. Alarmingly, Marco becomes a lot smarter than humans are biologically capable of when under serum effect, and becomes easily mentally bored with humans which can lead to agitation - agitation can lead to danger. He remains passive to his hostmates.
Due to his intensified intelligence, it's advised to never try to out-strategize SD-Marco (Super Devil Marco). However, he is known to accept surrenders.
ERI KASAMOTO Hostal Specialization: Heat/Burn resistance, explosives effectiveness
Under the effects of the serum, Eri remains at her standard human proportions, and her skin becomes semi-stony and coated in overlapphing "scales." Her tendency to use her teeth as a weapon intensify, and her reaction speed increases rather drastically. Her insides appear to "glow" with incandescence, shown mostly in the eyes as well as the underside of her torso - as her blood becomes reactive and so superheated that even her spit can cause severe burns. Gains total heat and explosives immunity.
Mentally, Eri becomes very easily agitated and poses significant risk to anything she considers an irritant. She is shown to speak even less than she normally does when her body is clear of serum, making it difficult to communicate with her in Super Devil form. As her blood is reactive, and that she herself becomes immune to explosives, it is incredibly dangerous for anybody to shoot at her as it would immediately cause a flame explosion that would not effect Eri.
However, she becomes significantly weakened towards anything cold that doesn't melt before reaching her. Frozen helium bullets recommended.
TARMICLE (TARMA) ROVING JR. Hostal Specialization: Physical damage resistance, physical strength
Under the effects of the serum, Tarma's skin solidifies at an extremely small scale, resembling toughened biological nanoplating. This softened plating absorbs almost any damage lashed out due to its absurd toughness and high surface area. His arms become mildly translucent and somewhat luminous, similar to unprocessed slimefilm or diluted energy-dense host fats. Part of his lips seemingly vanish, showcasing at least fourth frontal teeth at all times, both upper and lower.
Mentally, Tarma showcases his average human intelligence, although dulled by Hyperconnectivity Syndrome which causes him to be somewhat more impulsive and monomaniacal. Tarma is known to be a low risk factor in his Super Devil form, as he is rather naturally calm and can even be friendly so long as he never feels like he is being disrespected. He is known to be very "touchy" with his hostmates in this state, but obeys if he is told "No."
As he becomes physically strong enough to cause fusion in certain elements with just his grip, and can throw fist-condensed objects with enough force to match military artillery, it's advised to be polite to Super Devil Tarma.
FIOLINA GERMI Hostal Specialization: Anatomical-knowledge attuned, weaponry-operation attuned
Under the effects of the serum, Fio's eyes become pale and her arms harmlessly split down the radius and ulna and through the palm. From the cloven points in her arms extend pale-purple tendrils similar to that of ribbon worm tendrils, which she can use to infiltrate robotic and biological enemies. The tendrils have absolute command if applied, granting a type of "faux"-hostalism to anything Fio interfaces with, making the infected damage resistant, regenerative, and powerful similar to that of a true host. The relationship is parasitic. Fio also produces far more regen fluid than normal, making her not especially damage resistant but that she simply out-regenerates any taken damage.
Mentally, Fio becomes skittish but social in her Super Devil form. She is only considered a proper danger if she becomes frightened, which causes her physical strength surge. She is known to share her regen fluid with any and all injured without bias, and can become upset if the regen fluid is rejected, which rarely happens due to the fluid's omni-biocompatibility.
Super Devil Fio, despite her friendliness, is a uniquely dangerous host in this state due to her tendrils having an incredibly long reach and can branch infinitely, which can cause her to infect "chunks" of enemy forces that act as soldier bees protecting a queen.
uhhhh um uhh uhmmmm (BGM style, yeag)
LETANNO
-23 Year old Male Homeworlder -Mechanical engineering student -Some flavor of depression -Favorite food is ah-ping -Not scared of spiders -But is scared of Albert
YULILAH
-19 Year old Female Otherworlder -Hard time graduating school due to autism (school is not built for autistic folks in mind) -Zookeeper aspirations -Can comprehend the horrors -Good empathy, but training to showcase it -Will think you're inept if you use the wrong words for things
ALBERT
-6 Year old Axanthic Ball Python -Not scared of Letanno
Quick environment studies. First image is a study of the flooded staircase in "MILITSIONER."
Two Pages about Humans
From "The Troll Who Fell Through My School Ceiling."
Originally written on Kanka, transcriptions exist underneath the Kanka images. The pages detail some basic biology information and other intel I felt is necessary as flavortext to better understand the world of "The Troll Who Fell Through My School Ceiling."
"Otherworlders are humans native to the Otherworld.
They are considered a smaller and weaker variant compared to Homeworlders, having thinner limbs, nearly completely smooth skin with much less surface area, larger eyes, larger heads, and longer legs. But whilst the physical differences are quite clear, Otherworlders are otherwise not much different from Homeworlders at all. They have the same exact level of intelligence and social instincts, and can develop any and all mental attributes that Homeworlders can. Their longer legs make them quite a lot faster than the average Homeworlder during a sprint, and Otherworlders seem to have evolved from runner prey species instead of evolving from persistence hunters like Homeworlders.
While Otherworlder anatomy is quite functionally and aesthetically mirrored with Homeworlders, their finer anatomy is alien. Alongside every other living thing in the Otherworld, Otherworlders seem to be "non-cellular", thus producing their signature smoothness. Although it would be pointless to apply Homeworlder scientific law upon Otherworlders, as they are fundamentally different from one another at a biological level, it is safe to say that Otherworlders share largely the same skeletal and organic anatomy, although the way this anatomy achieves largely the same Homeworlder results is unknown. Otherworlders do not visibly breathe, they have no "idle" movement when not moving, can appear to be totally motionless, and while they do have bodily bloodflow, these pulses cannot be felt or perceived from the outside. Letanno, a Homeworlder male trapped within the Otherworld, has described Otherworlder hair as "so soft it feels almost like nothing."
Otherworlders have certain natural biological pigments not seen in Homeworlders which causes a wider variety in hair and eye colors. The genetics determining this pigmentation always contain at least one dominant pigmentation gene that is absolute, and cannot "mix" with other pigment genetics. Thus, Otherworlders will either have one color or another, and will not grow multi-colored hair if the two parents have different hair or eye colors. The most common hair colors are Pink, Blonde, Blue, and Brown. The less common colors are Red, Orange, White, and Black. The rarest hair color is Purple. For eye colors, no one color is of greater rarity. It is extremely rare for Otherworlders to grow body hair, and sometimes even lack natural eyebrows.
The eyes of Otherworlders have quite a lot more physical variety than that of Homeworlders. While color seems to be randomly selected by a large number of recessive genes, there is a range of "ocular detail" determined by an unknown genetic factor. Eye colors that have appeared can seemingly have any color visible to a human retina, while the actual ocular detail varies greatly from individual to individual. Low ocular detail can result in irises that look completely smooth, while seemingly lacking a pupil. This "lack" of a pupil does not impede the Otherworlder's ability to see. Eyes with lower ocular detail is considered less attractive, while higher detail eyes are considered more attractive. Irises that appear completely black is also possible. The only color that Otherworlders cannot gain whilst retaining their sight is pure solid white, which would only occur if the Otherworlder in question was blind.
Otherworlders have notable skull differences in comparison to Homeworlders. Other than being smaller than Homeworlder skulls yet proportionally large compared to the rest of their bodies, Otherworlder zygomatic bones are not fully linked around the orbit of the eyesocket, similar to the ocular bone orbits of a cat. The ocular sockets are also quite large, and sets the eyes farther apart. Otherworlders do not have individual teeth, instead having upper and lower boneplates with specific region thickness, with the curved inner boneplates being thicker like that of molars while the outer areas behind the near-nonexistent lips are thinner, like that of incisors. "Fangs" are a common sight for Otherworlders, but these fangs seemingly serve no purpose on account of being too small in an already small mouth. They can be filed down with use or for aesthetic purposes.
Due to the intense proportionally sized cranium of Otherworlders, it's extremely common for Otherwordlers to suffer birth complications. While strides have been made in medical technology, it's still quite common to suffer stillbirths, mothers dying during birth, or mothers becoming disabled due to hip injury during birth. Wheelchair and crutch accessibility is a highly esteemed aspect of Otherworldly society as a result, while abortions have been legal and free even since the middle-ages. It is extremely common for Otherworlder children to be raised by members of their extended family, at least in the more rural areas where it's standard to live in large family units built up of that extended family. In more developed or dense areas, it is easier for smaller family units to function with less risk."
"Homeworlders are humans native to the Homeworld.
They come in a wide variety of races belonging to the same species, and often sport much more subtler differences that tend to be common to their specific ethnic origin as well as familial genetics. Compared to Otherworlders, Homeworlders are very large and carry extreme anatomical density. Homeworlders have visible circulatory systems, a higher amount of skin surface area, visible skin texture that is able to be felt via physical contact, and denser body types compared to Otherworlders. Due to this anatomical difference, Homeworlders are incredibly physically strong, immune to Otherworld blunt damage, and resistant to other forms of physical damage at the cost of lower mobility and a greater need for larger amounts of food.
There exists only one Homeworlder within the Otherworld, and this Homeworlder is considered visually eldritch and is often referred to as a "Giant", "Troll", or "Demon". But this singular Homeworlder within the Otherworld showcases no stunted or "lesser" intellect, as Homeworlders are just as social and intelligent as Otherworlders - they can develop any and all mental attributes that Otherworlders can.
While Homeworlder anatomy is quite similar to Otherworlder anatomy, their finer anatomy is considered horrific by most. The inner anatomy of a Homeworlder can, to an extent, be seen from the outside if one were to inspect the Homeworlder closely enough. The amount of anatomical Homeworlder detail is often so intense to experience for certain Otherworlders that the Otherworlder becomes dizzy, or overcome with instinctual fear, even if Homeworlder facial expressions are able to be translated in the mind of an Otherworlder. The anatomical features that Otherworlders often note from the one Homeworlder present is his fleshier nose, his skin which "looks almost like he has some sort of leprosy" (a comment regarding plain pores and normal skin texture), and his "fangs."
Homeworlders, as opposed to Otherworlders, sport individual hairs and individual teeth. All Homeworlders grow a degree of body hair, which can make the largely hairless Otherworlders mistake them for having coats of fur. And as Homeworlders lack oral boneplates, their individual teeth are almost guaranteed to be mistaken for being a mouthful of fangs, no matter how smooth the tooth may or may not be. The idle movement of a Homeworlder who is not in motion does also stand out, for example - the rising and falling of the chest as a Homeworlder breathes. Because of the similar-yet-different internal anatomy of Homeworlders, they are never able to be totally motionless unless the Homeworlder in question is dead. And due to this knowledge within Homeworlders, it can become easy for them to worry about the common motionlessness of Otherworlders. Homeworlders are also capable of undergoing a phenomenon known as "goosebumps," which is a leftover evolutionary reaction that occurs in the skin if the Homeworlder feels threatened or excited. This phenomenon causes the skin to become "bumpier" and the hairs upon the body to stand on end. Otherworlders find "goosebumps" to be extremely intimidating, since their perception translates it as a threat display.
Yulilah, a young female Otherworlder who currently cares for the trapped Homeworlder, has described his skin to feel "like very soft squishy sandpaper" and his hair feeling "very soft and wavy but in a rough kind of way. Does that make sense?"
Homeworlder pigmentation is decided by the pigment "Melanin", which serves a variety of biological purposes in Homeworlder bodies, but are most often noted when describing hair, eye, and skin color. Melanin comes in a small variety of pigments, but this level of pigment variety is much lower than that seen in Otherworlders. The most common hair colors for Homeworlders are Brown and Black, while having Blonde hair is slightly rarer. The rarest hair color pigment for Homeworlders is Red, or Reddish Orange. Melanin levels present within the iris determines eye color, with Brown reigning as the most common eye color, and Green and Gray being some of the rarest. Despite some Homeworlders having blue and green eyes, this coloration is not caused by specific biological pigments that produce "green" and "blue" (as seen in Otherworlders), but is instead the result of light refraction. This light refraction is also the cause of why some Homeworlder bodily veins may appear blue, despite having red blood.
Homeworlders have notable skull differences in comparison to Otherworlders. Homeworlder skulls, while being larger than the skulls of Otherworlders, are proportionally smaller in comparison to the rest of the body. The mandibular bones of a Homeworlder, even a juvenile one, are far further developed than the mandibular bones of Otherworlders. The mandibles are where the individual teeth of the Homeworlder are located, with the inner teeth within the cheeks being thicker molars and the thinner front teeth being the canines and incisors. The ocular orbit is fully linked at the zygomatic bones, with the eyes often being placed equally apart from one another on the face, although the distance varies between Homeworlders. Homeworlder nasal openings upon the skull are much smaller than that seen on Otherworlder skulls, but produce larger noses with prominently visible nostrils, which is a feature unique to Homeworlders. Homeworlder eyes, due to their inherent infinite amount of detail, are considered "hypnotically beautiful" to some Otherworlders, provided that they do not pay attention to the veins within the eyes."
Letanno's Notes-to-Self
"Walk on knees indoors."
"Be gentler with door."
"Stop being scared of asking for second servings."
"Do dishes."
"Do laundry."
"DO NOT CALL PARENTS - wasn't recognized, threatened with police."
"DO NOT FORGET FACE COVERS."
"Further explore dead internet."
"Look for job."
two pages about humans coming soon-ish, hopefully yayyyy
Writing my "isekai" has been an interesting experience in worldbuilding so far!
I recently incorporated the whole "dead parent" trope in a way that I feel is rather realistic and makes sense for the world. Somehow, this flipped the trope entirely as to where having two LIVING parents is seen as rare.
Adoption, abortion, and having large inter-generational families is common. The stereotype isn't that the mother stays home and cares for the kids, that's the stereotyped role of the father.
Fun stuff!
More Imperfect doodles, courtesy of a request!
I was once asked by a friend what it'd be like to actually kiss Kisser (first image.) The answer naturally depends on what type of kiss it is. Either way, if you kiss Kisser, he might decide he doesn't want you to leave!
Second image showcases Donor, an Imperfect Vestal I thought up one jolly night. Size discrepancies aren't too unheard of for Imperfects, but Donor is unique in that she is QUITE A LOT taller than most geneline hosts have any "right" to be.
Donor is one of the most vocally coherent Imperfects produced to date. While it still takes a bit of translation power to fully understand what she is saying at any given time, it's easier to catch the gist of what she's communicating in general.
Donor is extremely social and quite jovial, but she has an extreme difficulty in understanding that most humans don't really feel safe around a towering fungal mutant woman whose mace is fused to her "unholy-flesh-arm." Despite this, Donor will happily mingle with host and human alike, while their discomforts flies past her like someone not understanding a certain joke. Whenever Donor notices fearful body language or expression in a human, she assumes that there's danger around and will go on the defensive.
Donor is not intimidated by anything. Brigand Vvulf unleashes his war roar? Donor is gonna return a war roar of her own with twice the volume and thrice the ferocity.
And she also heals her fellows not by the power of God, but by grafting pieces of her own mutated flesh onto a wound. This, obviously, causes a bit of stress. But it's better than to bleed out.
College project, which was to showcase our chosen books via some act of creativity. I decided to do a false theatre poster of Franz Kafka's "The Process" in the styling of my fanart of the Militsioner Protagonist (the Abyssal Renegade.)
The pairing felt only correct as I felt The Process and Militsioner share similar themes. Both of which I enjoy. In the proto-lore of the theatre poster which sadly was never written because I ran out of time, the Abyssal Renegade would play the unfortunate Josef K.
Letanno Byrghals, Homeworlder male, age 23. Yulilah Paean, Otherworlder female, age 19.
Page out of the "Black & Red Anatomica", a fake meta-book used to compare "realistic" and "stylized" human anatomies.
Kisser - An Imperfect Highwayman who was named as such originally as a cruel joke, but he ended up taking the name to heart. Kisser is lankier than non-Imperfect hivemates of the same geneline, and while his Imperfect visual differences are often easily hidden behind a scarf, people can still differentiate him quite easily due to him wielding two pistols instead of one pistol and a dagger (as is typical of members of the Highwayman geneline.)
Kisser is a "giggler." He laughs easily and his primary noises consists of chuckles, giggling, or similar sounds. He enjoys sitting atop the Stagecoach with his weaponry so he can preemptively shoot any hostiles on the road.
Goose - An Imperfect Runaway who named herself after being asked what her name could be. Goose has seemingly taken it upon herself to perch atop the shoulders of members from the Leper geneline to act as a seeing-eye. She has developed her own way of giving accurate combat information to whichever Leper she's shepherding, which involves a detailed angular tapping upon the head or shoulders. At night, Goose willingly stands guard as she requires less sleep and has very effective warning calls.
Goose is a "babbler," a very common thing seen in Imperfects. She will happily engage hivemates and humans in conversation, but she is incoherent. Tone is heavily depended upon. Goose enjoys sharing food.
Imperfect Hosts are a unique type of human-dependent Heirspawn. Whereas average hosts effectively produce clones with the same baseline personality which refracts later on due to quirk, traumas, virtues and other experiences, Imperfects are unique instances that carry an irregular abundance of Heir spores. What exactly goes on inside of the Stagecoach cloning pods to produce Imperfect Hosts is ill-understood by humans, and even the Heir itself.
To most humans who do not understand the Imperfects, they will often be branded as "madmen" and "madwomen." However, it must be stated that Imperfects are fully sane, capable, and able to form virtues and traumas just like their Standard counterparts.
when rent is due but nobody will hire you and also you turn into a giant anytime you get worried about your future (relatable)
Concept for Nick's crutches that he gets later.
Cloudrift-02.N Zambekke produces specialized assisted living tools for free, providing you can wait. Tools designed to make the lives of the disabled (and unusual-bodied, like Nick) are built with inner highly sensitive nervature, dense adaptive non-newtonian inner fluid, and a flexible but extremely tough outer layer of necrocarbon. Their work is to keep him upright, as he would collapse under his own weight if he tried on his own.
Nick's own senses cannot be hooked up to the crutches themselves, due to his hairtrigger tech-biology, so the crutches compromise by sending vibrations to the limb & balance support beams. The crutches themselves have debated intelligence, as it only obeys two to three of Nick's commands, and is able to move from place to place on its own should he not be wearing it at the time.
Overall, Nick's opinion of his crutches are lukewarm. But he does not wish to return to a life without them.
Faerûn's girlfail-iest superhero being about 5 seconds away from having a crippling panic attack after having killed a bard in her sleep
Good Dark Urge playthrough has added 50 years to my lifespan, thank u larian
Under the Renegade's mask.
Because of the Renegade's "fill-in" nature, it lacks a face of it's own beneath whatever mask it wears at the moment. A high-realist's true face, if perceived by lower entities, causes visual discomfort and fear for all, including the Giant himself.
The effect of a lower being looking upon the maskless Renegade's anti-face causes eye strain similar to staring at the sun, with onlookers experiencing chromatic aberration and having the anti-face burnt into their eyesight for a few moments upon looking away.
