Thanks for taking the time to read again! And you make very good guesses :)

I've read most, if not all of VAL's stories. They seem to follow a set pattern, see obstacle, go through obstacle with extreme prejudice, get loot (if applicable).

Hah! Maybe I need to shake it up a bit...

Not necessary, the VAL seems to have a tried and true method, maybe they just need to meet a bigger fish. Or, maybe just have a really, really bad day where despite all of their skill and power, they just can't seem to get all their shit in one sock. I'm kinda curious to see what they would do to the Cabal, though I imagine it would involve Ricochet try to wrestle with one........ When I find something that I truly enjoy reading, I dissect it. Find the tropes that the author uses, start trying to predict where the story will go. I also hope that some of the Author's skill will rub off on me. I mean, I can picture a great muthering battle, with great descriptors, but any dialogue I write seems to come off as 2D and boring.

Since you've taken the time and seem interested, I'll share---my idea here (without revealing any spoilers) is to take a more... Avengers-ish approach with them than a Halo-ish approach. If that makes any sense. Like, you'll get these stories that build up and establish why they're a big deal. Superhero-ish. They have these abilities, even sort of outstrip other similar Guardians if only for reasons of style. So when something unexpected happens, or they just plain get beat, it's a BIG deal. Building up a good villain takes some doing. But it's coming :) Also, read 'No Place for Mercy' for a taste of me testing out them losing. When VAL isn't enough and they need backup, it's gonna be big.