Before I start, I don’t have any malicious intentions towards my stepmom despite of everything but I feel conflicted on what decisions I should make.
My (19F) stepmom (32F) came into my life around 3 years ago. However, she and my dad had been acquainted for a few years prior. My first impression of her was her attempts to home-wreck my dad’s previous relationship with my sister’s mother, this happened on a trip we all made to our home country back in 2019, from that moment I had the feeling she would be bad news. Fast forward a few months, my dad broke things off with his previous wife for unrelated reasons, and as a way to grieve the relationship he was taking many trips to our country, spending astronomical amounts of money, buying cars, building houses, and overall was a financial mess, nonetheless he had a lot of women trying to be with him due to his “money”. Stepmom was aware of this and started pursuing my dad as well. She is a beautiful woman and if we combine that with the fact my dad’s ex-wife had just announced she was pregnant and married someone else, he was making even horrible decisions.
Two weeks into my dad’s and stepmom’s relationship she decided to propose to him and unexpectedly quit her job and made my dad buy her a flight to come back to the states with him. I was 16 and felt heartbroken that my dad took so many life changing decisions without speaking with me first, regardless of this I tried my hardest to make her feel comfortable since from my POV she could make my dad happy again. Fast forward a few days, we found out she was pregnant, although she only had a visitor’s visa she was making all of her doctor’s appointments here and we found out how far along she was. My baby sister was born and I wasn’t home the day of their discharge from the hospital because I had school in the morning and my friend who has lost her dad the day prior asked me to be there for her. This lady threw a whole tantrum at her old age, she was complaining to my dad telling him i’m a horrible person, she would ignore me in the house every time she saw me and would even go as far as telling me to not hold her baby. I’m the type of person who likes to avoid confrontation with those I live with simply to maintain the peace in the household, so I just ignored her antics.
From that moment on, I stopped trying to please her and our relationship became strictly common pleasantries but I noticed she would only do that whenever my dad was around, otherwise I would go back to being ignored in every sense of the word. I became uncomfortable in my own home so I would rarely go out of my room and I started eating at school or at work. She was a stay at home mom and was in charge of all the chores aside from anything related to me such as my room, my laundry, and things of the sort. This absolutely was a problem for her and began complaining once again that I don’t help her around the house and that as a woman it was my responsibility to help with all of the chores. I get that being a new mom can be stressful, but the baby spent Monday to Friday from 9am to 4pm at daycare, and I was a full time high school student with a full time job, I was rarely ever in the house and her demands were pretty unreasonable. After that we became kind of like two roommates who disliked each other, and yet I never mentioned anything to my dad for the sake of his newfound happiness.
I even went as far as to offer her a job at my current company so she could have something to do besides being at home all day long, she only worked like 15hrs a week and would be incredibly demanding, expressing her frustration when she wouldn’t get the easy positions, my coworkers would complain that she would turn a blind eye every time it was her turn to pay gas for the shared rides, and my boss told me she was walking around telling everyone she was only with my dad for papers and that she would leave him the moment she got her way.
Fast-forward 2 months before my baby sister turned 2 years old, my dad found her having an affair with her ex-fiancé, throughout the whole argument my dad was restlessly screaming at her for answers and she remained stone cold, not one tear or sign of remorse. I was the only one crying over the situation. She made the decision to call her affair partner in front of my dad and asked him to pick her up, the guy told her he would call her in minute and proceeded to block her everywhere. My dad was the sole provider therefore he confiscated her phone and threw all of her clothes on the front yard. Going through her phone he found out that she made arrangements to stay with an aunt in NY for a few days, so he gave it back and told her to go on her merry way.
One week after she left my dad received a call from his mother in law begging him to pick my stepmom and sister up and to allow them to come back home since they were uncomfortable with their living situation, and so he did. She only stayed for maybe 2 days before they returned to NY. At this point, she had spent all of her savings in Ubers and was asking her mom for money since she couldn’t ask my dad anymore.
As I stablished before the girl cannot keep her mouth shut. One time she was scheduled to work with my best friend from school, I had also brought him to work with me, she began to ran her mouth telling him that I was disgusting and that I didn’t help her around the house, and many more mean things. The moment she got dropped off home he called and told me everything, this was my last straw. I gave my dad the ultimatum that either she leaves or I would and he told me that he cannot simply throw her out of the house… So I packed my bags and left to stay with my cousin who lives a few houses down. I stayed there for about two weeks until I felt guilty about making my dad worry, especially since he is diabetic and cannot be put under too much stress. I came back home and the next day I noticed both my baby sister’s and stepmom’s toothbrushes were missing and I just assumed she left again. My dad told me she left for NY for a third time but there was no communication for like 2 whole days until a friend of hers called saying she and the baby were there in Atlanta and was asking what was going on. Apparently my stepmom had been telling everyone that my dad and her got separated because he was being abusive to her. My best guess is that she was only coming back and forward to gather any type of evidence she could, but at the end of the day my dad never laid a finger on her, he only ever talked to her aggressively when he found out about her affair.
I honestly thought this was the last we would hear from her but today in my dad’s and hers shared back account he noticed a transaction of immigration fees and lawyers made by her. He is trying to expedite the divorce proceedings because he doesn’t want her using his name to get her green card but our city is incredibly busy and these sort of processes take their time. When he mentioned this to me I brought to his attention that she might be going for the VAWA method by telling immigration authorities she was a victim of abuse. However, that leaves my dad standing as an abuser and we don’t want that either.
My dad is one of the kindest souls ever, he fought for me when I was being physically and mentally abused by my mom, he sends money to our family back home (which is something that bothered her as well), he refused to press charges when she basically kidnapped my baby sister, he refuses to call ICE on her for marriage fraud. I don’t think he deserves this, and I’m no authority on who gets to stay in this country and who doesn’t but I don’t want her to stay her by painting my dad as this abuser he isn’t.
PN: There has been doubt on my baby sister’s legitimacy as my dad’s daughter. My dad confided in me that he was not sure the dates matched up. Later, I found the instagram of my stepmom’s affair partner and I discovered that he was in our home country at the same time as my dad. Also the baby has none of my dad’s features but share eerily similar traits to the affair partner and his kids. I won’t confirm or deny anything since she is an innocent baby in all of this chaos and I love her with all of my heart.
Should I contact immigration services and tell them my side of the story before she discredits my dad?

So I am not sure if I have abilities others don't or if I am more sensitive than the average person,
Background, I grew up in a haunted house but never experienced anything really outside of feeling like someone may be watching me, I had heard from other family what they had experienced when I was too young to remember.
As I got older I have always been different from most, however I have some mental issues, bipolar,ptsd,anxiety,addiction
I've always had vary vivid dreams from a young age, as I've gotten older I was very depressed and stuck to myself being homeschooled after the fith grade, I got into drugs at 17 and became addicted to various substances plus my mental illness went wild, however I no longer take substances outside of cannabis and mushrooms. I'm also as stable as I can been on medications.
As I moved out of the house at 13 to another I would get nightmares being in the old house and I would be getting tormented by spirits, It started as just a haunted house trying to scare me, then I got mad because of the occurrence and would be in a vivid dream taunting it, never really winning it would laugh or only show itself when it wanted to not me.
In my dreams I will see my loved ones like normal but be able to tell that isn't them and will notice and then my dreams get weird and I either wake up or try to get away, I'm aware now and don't get them as often but it was terrifying at a point.
I got into reading the satanic bible, lucifieran bible and necronomicon, at one point, during this I had a vivid dream I wasn't on this planet and went to a place that was dark with odd terain and glowing green water, however I had a dream I was going into a church and instead of a normal pastor it was a demonic one and had a cloak over his face , I had a rosary with a bone and gave it to him, accepting that I don't have power in my dreams and am sorry for taunting the spirits in my reoccurring nightmares, it went down to know I only have them rarely and know what's going on everytime it happens again.
During my addictions I have experienced sleep paralysis and it was terrifying, like a demonic smoke figure in a cloak looking at me feeding of the fear,
I have had my aunt pass and visit me in my dreams, I have had my grandpa pass and visit me in my dreams, I didn't get to say goodbye, and got closure in my dream, I woke up feeling like the hug was real.
I knew the night before my grandpa passed he was going to had a gut feeling but I decided not to follow that instinct, next morning I woke up to uncle banging the door however my dream was a old guy in a room that didn't have anything, just sitting infront of me no conversation, woke up and my grandpa was gone, feel it was him but didn't wanna show me it was him yet.
Anymore my nightmares if I have them are usually still in the old house and has to do with a spirit trying to take the shape of my loved ones, I have never seen the spirit responsible, only felt it in my dreams and heard laughs when I try to be more powerful than it.
Not super long ago I had a dream a tornado was coming for me at my current house, we had stroms not super long after and while it wasn't my house it hit 30 minutes away from me and my girlfriends step dads house got hit.
I feel like I am sensitive to energy, I can sense the feelings of being watched at times, getting goosebumps and hair standing up not due to the cold but somthing around, especially when I talk to people or give them tarot card readings, I can end up with my hairs standing or goosebumps if the conversation felt like it resonates with me.
I have an amazing relationship with my girlfriend, we I belive are twin flames, so similar, almost like we can read eachothers minds at times and say the same things at the same time often or can guess what she's about to say at times, but I also feel whenever her energy shifts and so does she if mine shifts.
I can sense if a person is good or bad, I can also at times sense somthing bad a long time in advance before it actually happens. Unfortunately.
One of the best new experiences I have had was taking mushrooms with my girlfriend for healing, I do it somewhat often, helped with grief , addictions, mental health, spirituality,
It brings us closer together and helps us both to heal, I didn't know it was possible but we managed to be able to use our energy on eachother while tripping and have what feels like full on sex without any touching involved, it can last for a long time too, this has happened the last 3-4 times we have tripped once we discovered how to tap into each other's minds. It's almost better than having actual sex, I feel like we leave our bodies and full on merge together as one during this time.
Now this is were it gets weird , a few days back we went to a place in amish country and once inside I noticed it felt off, however to not waste money and with everyone posting such good reviews figured we would stay and take mushrooms for healing as we do about once every month - 2 months,
I had the feeling in this house that the loft and basement were bad places to be, like being watched and feeling like there was somthing in this house, not sure what but something the first floor felt the best but still uneasy,
We had grabbed a clock from downstairs, plugged things into this one outlet next to the stairs and clock prior to taking mushrooms, they were charging, clock worked. Outlet worked, downstairs had a weird sad vibe to it ,weird musty smell also Sulphur smells randomly and even the water smelled like Sulphur there was a hornet in the toilet when we got there and had to flush it, also was 2 stains on the cieling in basement, not sure if it was water leak or if someone may have passed in the house and it soaked thru the ceiling of basement.
We wanted to paint eachother as we took the mushrooms, we did this until they started to kick in and once they kicked in we went and started fear and loathing in lost vegas, once I started getting closed eye visuals and working on my innerwork, my girlfriend felt like she wanted to go downstairs to lay in bed,
We stayed in bed holding eachother , bonding, eventually tuning into eachothers energy having sex without actually having it, then we couldn't hold back anymore and actually had sex, however we stayed down there until the trip wore off, it was about 3 am and everything switched on us.
She was feeling really sad and like she wanted to leave this place, I felt like I was being watched down there and somthing bad had happened in the past, I went to go upstairs was kinda afraid to alone but eventually went upstairs because she wouldn't at the time, tried to charge my phone and the outlet and clock didn't work anymore, I had been talking about leaving the house because she was feeling targeted and I felt like it didn't like either of us but like it wanted to feed off her if she went to sleep.
We went upstairs at a point and when I was asking if there were spirit's in the house and that if so I meant no disrespect and will only be staying until we could leave in the morning safely, as I would talk about the spirits seemed like my girlfriend would feel sick, same as being in the bed, very sad while downstairs.
I opened a bible and it was weird it didn't even feel like real paper , it also was moving by itself somewhat like working against me or moving for me to point out things, the clock on the wall was moving way faster than normal after this,
I tried getting her to leave , I didn't want to stay anylonger but knew we had to wait until sunlight atleast, she fell asleep and I was sitting next to her in this erie basement, had to turn the fan on because felt like if it was quiet I would loose it, what's not normal is the fact that she went to sleep and didn't really move, make sounds or anything like usual. I felt like I could hear people upstairs as she was asleep, almost like music was playing or a man signing and it was on repeat it would come and go, such low volume but also loud , the fan in the mix didn't help but I didn't wanna hear it anylouder.
I ended up trying to sleep and kinda did for a few hours but no dream I was hoping I would have a vivid dream of what happened in this house.
In the morning got our stuff packed up and left, before leaving I had used a ghost box. Told the spirit we were about to leave and as my girlfriend was going to the car it talked, then when she came back inside I left the ghostbox going and it talked while we were both there. I told it that we are leaving and this is your house but you are not welcome to come with us. Right as I opened the door I got a whiff of sulphur and as we left the house sulphur smell followed for a while.
Went to a shop got sage, used it before we got home, then yesterday unpacked from our trip and I made the joke about hopefully nothing came back with us from there. I went fishing and used the scissors from the house, i forgot to put them back so I have them. I saged our room, bags, clothes and once I found it left it outside in our burn barrel, didn't wanna risk it being in the house.
Last night we should have gotten good rest tho and we did not so I wonder if it had to do with those scissors coming from that house. 🤔
Anyways, long story but honest opinion would be helpful and on top of that if theres a way to strengthen my senses and all that would love to know!

So I am not sure if I have abilities others don't or if I am more sensitive than the average person,
Background, I grew up in a haunted house but never experienced anything really outside of feeling like someone may be watching me, I had heard from other family what they had experienced when I was too young to remember.
As I got older I have always been different from most, however I have some mental issues, bipolar,ptsd,anxiety,addiction
I've always had vary vivid dreams from a young age, as I've gotten older I was very depressed and stuck to myself being homeschooled after the fith grade, I got into drugs at 17 and became addicted to various substances plus my mental illness went wild, however I no longer take substances outside of cannabis and mushrooms. I'm also as stable as I can been on medications.
As I moved out of the house at 13 to another I would get nightmares being in the old house and I would be getting tormented by spirits, It started as just a haunted house trying to scare me, then I got mad because of the occurrence and would be in a vivid dream taunting it, never really winning it would laugh or only show itself when it wanted to not me.
In my dreams I will see my loved ones like normal but be able to tell that isn't them and will notice and then my dreams get weird and I either wake up or try to get away, I'm aware now and don't get them as often but it was terrifying at a point.
I got into reading the satanic bible, lucifieran bible and necronomicon, at one point, during this I had a vivid dream I wasn't on this planet and went to a place that was dark with odd terain and glowing green water, however I had a dream I was going into a church and instead of a normal pastor it was a demonic one and had a cloak over his face , I had a rosary with a bone and gave it to him, accepting that I don't have power in my dreams and am sorry for taunting the spirits in my reoccurring nightmares, it went down to know I only have them rarely and know what's going on everytime it happens again.
During my addictions I have experienced sleep paralysis and it was terrifying, like a demonic smoke figure in a cloak looking at me feeding of the fear,
I have had my aunt pass and visit me in my dreams, I have had my grandpa pass and visit me in my dreams, I didn't get to say goodbye, and got closure in my dream, I woke up feeling like the hug was real.
I knew the night before my grandpa passed he was going to had a gut feeling but I decided not to follow that instinct, next morning I woke up to uncle banging the door however my dream was a old guy in a room that didn't have anything, just sitting infront of me no conversation, woke up and my grandpa was gone, feel it was him but didn't wanna show me it was him yet.
Anymore my nightmares if I have them are usually still in the old house and has to do with a spirit trying to take the shape of my loved ones, I have never seen the spirit responsible, only felt it in my dreams and heard laughs when I try to be more powerful than it.
Not super long ago I had a dream a tornado was coming for me at my current house, we had stroms not super long after and while it wasn't my house it hit 30 minutes away from me and my girlfriends step dads house got hit.
I feel like I am sensitive to energy, I can sense the feelings of being watched at times, getting goosebumps and hair standing up not due to the cold but somthing around, especially when I talk to people or give them tarot card readings, I can end up with my hairs standing or goosebumps if the conversation felt like it resonates with me.
I have an amazing relationship with my girlfriend, we I belive are twin flames, so similar, almost like we can read eachothers minds at times and say the same things at the same time often or can guess what she's about to say at times, but I also feel whenever her energy shifts and so does she if mine shifts.
I can sense if a person is good or bad, I can also at times sense somthing bad a long time in advance before it actually happens. Unfortunately.
One of the best new experiences I have had was taking mushrooms with my girlfriend for healing, I do it somewhat often, helped with grief , addictions, mental health, spirituality,
It brings us closer together and helps us both to heal, I didn't know it was possible but we managed to be able to use our energy on eachother while tripping and have what feels like full on sex without any touching involved, it can last for a long time too, this has happened the last 3-4 times we have tripped once we discovered how to tap into each other's minds. It's almost better than having actual sex, I feel like we leave our bodies and full on merge together as one during this time.
Now this is were it gets weird , a few days back we went to a place in amish country and once inside I noticed it felt off, however to not waste money and with everyone posting such good reviews figured we would stay and take mushrooms for healing as we do about once every month - 2 months,
I had the feeling in this house that the loft and basement were bad places to be, like being watched and feeling like there was somthing in this house, not sure what but something the first floor felt the best but still uneasy,
We had grabbed a clock from downstairs, plugged things into this one outlet next to the stairs and clock prior to taking mushrooms, they were charging, clock worked. Outlet worked, downstairs had a weird sad vibe to it ,weird musty smell also Sulphur smells randomly and even the water smelled like Sulphur there was a hornet in the toilet when we got there and had to flush it, also was 2 stains on the cieling in basement, not sure if it was water leak or if someone may have passed in the house and it soaked thru the ceiling of basement.
We wanted to paint eachother as we took the mushrooms, we did this until they started to kick in and once they kicked in we went and started fear and loathing in lost vegas, once I started getting closed eye visuals and working on my innerwork, my girlfriend felt like she wanted to go downstairs to lay in bed,
We stayed in bed holding eachother , bonding, eventually tuning into eachothers energy having sex without actually having it, then we couldn't hold back anymore and actually had sex, however we stayed down there until the trip wore off, it was about 3 am and everything switched on us.
She was feeling really sad and like she wanted to leave this place, I felt like I was being watched down there and somthing bad had happened in the past, I went to go upstairs was kinda afraid to alone but eventually went upstairs because she wouldn't at the time, tried to charge my phone and the outlet and clock didn't work anymore, I had been talking about leaving the house because she was feeling targeted and I felt like it didn't like either of us but like it wanted to feed off her if she went to sleep.
We went upstairs at a point and when I was asking if there were spirit's in the house and that if so I meant no disrespect and will only be staying until we could leave in the morning safely, as I would talk about the spirits seemed like my girlfriend would feel sick, same as being in the bed, very sad while downstairs.
I opened a bible and it was weird it didn't even feel like real paper , it also was moving by itself somewhat like working against me or moving for me to point out things, the clock on the wall was moving way faster than normal after this,
I tried getting her to leave , I didn't want to stay anylonger but knew we had to wait until sunlight atleast, she fell asleep and I was sitting next to her in this erie basement, had to turn the fan on because felt like if it was quiet I would loose it, what's not normal is the fact that she went to sleep and didn't really move, make sounds or anything like usual. I felt like I could hear people upstairs as she was asleep, almost like music was playing or a man signing and it was on repeat it would come and go, such low volume but also loud , the fan in the mix didn't help but I didn't wanna hear it anylouder.
I ended up trying to sleep and kinda did for a few hours but no dream I was hoping I would have a vivid dream of what happened in this house.
In the morning got our stuff packed up and left, before leaving I had used a ghost box. Told the spirit we were about to leave and as my girlfriend was going to the car it talked, then when she came back inside I left the ghostbox going and it talked while we were both there. I told it that we are leaving and this is your house but you are not welcome to come with us. Right as I opened the door I got a whiff of sulphur and as we left the house sulphur smell followed for a while.
Went to a shop got sage, used it before we got home, then yesterday unpacked from our trip and I made the joke about hopefully nothing came back with us from there. I went fishing and used the scissors from the house, i forgot to put them back so I have them. I saged our room, bags, clothes and once I found it left it outside in our burn barrel, didn't wanna risk it being in the house.
Last night we should have gotten good rest tho and we did not so I wonder if it had to do with those scissors coming from that house. 🤔
Anyways, long story but honest opinion would be helpful and on top of that if theres a way to strengthen my senses and all that would love to know!

As far as I can tell, there hasn't been any developer commentary on the decision for Prismatic's color. So I guess it's time for a little speculation with a lot of reaching and assumptions.
Note: I'm using the color hexes from my personal spreadsheets that are my best approximation (makes me happy) of the elemental colors (without having an official hex color code for each). That in mind, these won't be perfect.
So we know that the Darkness subclasses (so far) are roughly inverted color variants of Light subclasses. Assuming we get a third Darkness subclass some day and it follows the same pattern we should have the below "table":
Solar (#f36f26) roughly inverts to Stasis ( #0c90d9 )
Void ( #ad82ca ) roughly inverts to Strand ( #38da65 )
Arc ( #82e9f7 ) likely roughly inverts to ???? ( #d90c0c )
So then why pink, and why that specific pink, for Prismatic? My first thought was to combine all the existing Light and Darkness subclass colors together, hoping to get some kind of pink color. Nope. We get a sort of patina green ( #7ba7a1 ).
Next step of course is inverting that color, which gives us something close to copper rose ( #84585e ). It's sort of pink, but not really the hopbush pink we see from prismatic. Weeeellll, if you up the brightness a ton and add just a bit more saturation, you get s-not really close either. Any attempt to make it pop more is just too red for what we see with prismatic.
"But wait!" I hear only me saying, "what if we add the theoretical opposite of Arc's color as well to the mix? It might not be out yet, but there have even been some hints of that ruddy red color in parts of the game, right? Why not try to include it?"
And I only have to say to myself in response, "That's what I like about you. You may only hit the mark 10% of the time, but you throw the dart every single time." Unfortunately, I tried that, and all you get is this like wet vac lint gray color.
"But wait!" I hear only me saying again, "What if you put it through a saturate color tool?"
And so I did, which gives me a slightly hopbush-y pink that imo looks pretty close to prismatic pink, albeit a tiny bit dark and over-saturated.
While not a perfect match in color, neither are the EXACT opposites of each of the light subclasses. Those are all pretty muddy and not-so-pretty to look at or to make into glowy-space-magic-powers.
Bungie def used them as reference points and then made them a bit more appealing.
After all this, it doesn't seem like too much of a reach that this might have been how Bungie came up with the color of Prismatic.
(see here for all the colors visually)
Edit: Formatting
Edit 2: I started thinking more about it after finishing and editing the post multiple times, what else is special about this magenta-esque pink? It's an extra spectral color, which to me sounds like above and outside the standard range of Light and Darkness? Plus magenta is usually the color for missing assets in video games, at least in like Gmod, so why not have this outsider, unusual color also represent Prismatic? Now I'm really reaching.

About a year ago, my installer applied IGL Kenzo 5 year ceramic coating to my vehicle. On day 1, it looked fantastic. No swirls, no maring, etc. At first, I was keeping up with the maintenance washes with the same installer since I had no access to hose and water at that time. However, after the 3rd wash from him, I noticed a significant amount of swirls began showing up. I brought it to his attention, and when i showed him the swirls, he insisted they were consistent with 'normal contact washing'.
January 2024: Okay, well maybe I'm crazy. So I gave him a 4th chance. This time, I happened to just wait there as he washed. As he hand washed my car, I noticed some obvious flaws in his washing method:
-used 1 wash mitt and 1 bucket with no grit guard for the entire car (the car is a full sized sedan). -when washing with the wash mitt, he started from the middle, then bottom, then top intermittently. Certainly did not wash top-down. -when drying the car, only 1 trying towel was used with zero drying aid. He also dried in circular motions.
Without calling him out on all of this and without being "one of those customers", I asked "shouldn't you start from the top down at least? The dirtiest parts of the car are near the bottom.". He said "no it's fine, the ceramic coating is strong enough where you don't have to worry about that".
So, by that point, the car was already dried. I left and since then, I've been washing the car myself since I have the means to do so now. By this point, it's becoming apparent that he has little care for how he washes the car, in hopes that one day I'll say "wow it's really swirled up again, can I just get a brand new coating?". Which for those that don't know: this is the only way to re-do a true ceramic coating. You have to paint correct the entire car again and re-apply the coating from scratch. Yes, I know products like Essence+ Pro exists, but those are just fillers and has been proven to be just that. That isn't a real fix.
Fast forward to today, May 2024. He wants to apply Ceramic Pro Speed to my car. My understanding is that this is a toppespray that's applied by hand. I also know there are hundreds of toppers available for general purchase that are very good, i.e: CarPro Reload 2.0. He states that "Ceramic Pro Speed is only for certified installers".
So currently I'm at a point where I'm unsure of what to do. What I know I don't want, is him to swirl the car up more than he has already. Is Ceramic Pro Speed truly a needed option? Or is something like CarPro Reload 2.0 just as good for me to do on my own? I'd like to do whats best for the coating's longevity, but using a product that is better just for him to add more swirls is, what i would call, counterproductive and a waste of everyone's time. I don't want shiny, hydrophobic swirls. Because if the car gets anymore swirls, it's going to practically be unpresentable and it would have to get re-done in only 1 year.
Thanks for any advice.

In a time before time, a great dragon wandered the spirit world. Her scales were bright and golden like the sun, her eyes red as fire and on her back, she carried a wonderful garden, always green and bountiful. The great dragon Zakula allowed every soul who had lost themselves in dreamtime to rest here and find their way again.
Zakula was the greatest, the kindest of all dragons and she had two suitors in those days, Kadath and the Nameless One. The former, while loud and wild, had a good heart and honestly loved Zakula while the latter had impure intentions. So she chose Kadath.
This enraged the Nameless One. He shaped his jealousy into a host of terrible monsters and attacked Zakula on the eve of her wedding. Kadath came too late. He could only watch as the love of his immortal life was slain and her body taken away.
If the Nameless One could not have Zakula, he wanted nobody to have her. He took her body to his lair and dismembered the great goddess. From her flesh and bones, he fashioned the material world we live in today and from her thoughts, he fashioned all that breathes.
The Nameless One created disease, pain and death and set all his demons upon the world. A world created sick and then ordered on pain of eternal torment to be well again, so he could feed off the pain and fear of all Zakula’s denizens and become more powerful than all the other dragons.
But things did not turn out as the Nameless One hoped.
The tyrant had intended for the sky to be black at all times and made his creations afraid of darkness. But Avastaja, son of Kadath’s sister Kavijohka and her husband Vellamun, found a way into this corrupted world. He dug a cave and his wife Aiwana painted the walls, showing all the other spirits where to go.
So Avastaja’s siblings followed him. First of all, the lightbringer Lukilan, then Sojulan, Turikan, Lumika, Aurinka and Talika. They became the Star Dragons, the first lights in our world. As they pushed away the darkness, Zakula’s heart started beating again inside all the beings trapped here.
Soon, Kavijohka followed, taking her place as the moon. Then her husband Vellamun took the oceans away from the Nameless One and finally, Kadath burst into this world. His love for Zakula still burned so bright, her golden light engulfed him and he became the sun.
After a long battle created night and day, the Nameless One’s own spite came to haunt him. The pain and fear caused by all his misdeeds materialized into a terrible monster, a dragon with three heads, three tails and three pairs of wings. Its fire burned the skies themselves, its wings blew oceans ashore. But before this monster could destroy them all, the sons of Kadath’s brother Räkimarak captured the Nameless One and imprisoned him at the deepest point of their father’s realm, the underworld. The beast followed, but it could not reach the lowest pit and was itself soon trapped. Räkimarak named this monster Tathorak and swore to keep it and the Nameless One imprisoned for all time.
After this battle, the dragons looked upon the material world. The Nameless One had created nothing, he had merely twisted Zakula’s beauty. As they beheld disease and hunger for the first time, the dragons were horrified. They wanted to destroy this world, let Zakula rest.
But Aiwana and Avastaja knew the heart of Zakula was still beating underneath all of it. To show the others, they disguised themselves as the Nameless One and ordered the mortal woman Mahaseta to sacrifice one of her own beloved children. But Mahaseta refused. First she begged for the life of her children, then she offered her own life instead and when the disguised Avastaja would not budge, she spat him in the face and defied him to do deal whatever punishment he saw fit. Because nothing could be as bad as having to kill just one of your own children.
As she spoke these words, Mahaseta turned into the great white mammoth. The first guardian of the material world. Her children ascended too. Such as Retaro, the white tiger, guardian of Amaria.
Now the dragons realized finally, Zakula’s divine spark had survived in all that lives. But the light would need to be nurtured. So they named this material world of ours Zakula in honor of the great goddess and gave their all to nurture it.
Räkimarak took it upon himself to care for the souls of everyone who died in the material world and guide them to a safe rebirth. His wife Idaka took on the task of reuniting the souls of lovers in their next lives. She became the goddess of love and beauty, dwelling in the darkest of places where her light would shine the brightest.
Kadath however remained lonely in the sky for a long time, but he always kept his heart open. Eventually, Zakula's love for him was reborn in a new shape, a dragon named Inari. She married Kadath, but the terrible memory had left a scar on her soul. Mother nature, while caring, can also be cruel and unfair. The tyrant had created a world where some beings are cursed to live by killing others, where some animal parents have to kill the children of other animals to feed their own and Inari is the custodian of this world. She only cares about balance, not about pain or fairness.
So Kadath, the sun, took on his mantle as the god of justice to try his best and set things right. With his light he sees all, trying to ease the injustices of this world. He and Inari argue a lot, but love each other very much. Every year, the memories of how her past life ended come back to haunt Inari. She falls into a deep sleep and the land freezes with her nightmares manifesting as the darkness of winter. But whenever this happens, Kadath stays by her side and continues to light the world with his fire. No matter how hard it is with all his grief.

Are you looking forward to installing modern-styled cabinets in your kitchen but don’t know many things about them? If yes, then continue reading. In browsing the web for the latest kitchen design ideas, we came across the top-trending cabinet designs, modern kitchen cabinets.
In this article, we have explained everything we discovered about these amazing types of kitchen cabinets. Read on to know the features that you must consider reviewing when buying modern-styled kitchen cabinets.

Modern Kitchen Cabinets Explained

Generally, modern-styled pantries are defined by simple designs marked by angular shapes, flat-paneled doors, and minute decorative features. To be specific, below are the defining attributes of modern-styled kitchen cabinets
1. Modern Kitchen Cabinet Material
Unlike traditional cupboards, which are mostly defined by artificial materials, modern kitchen cabinets come with blends of natural and man-made textures, from material to ornamentation. Typically, these drawers feature natural wood as the material component and industrial materials, for example, fiberboard, plastics, metals, and laminate materials as accessories or ornamental features.
2. Modern Kitchen Cabinet Color
Modern cabinets are genuinely very colorful. While it’s possible to find modern-styled cupboards adorned with traditional colors like cream and white, the majority of these drawers are defined by brighter tones. For decades, they have been coming out in all types of contemporary paint, including popular shades like pink, green, and red.
3. Modern Kitchen Cabinet Accessories
Because their designs stress simplicity, modern kitchen cabinets are typically defined by minimalism in terms of ornamentation. Nonetheless, their fewer accessorized components feature luxurious materials, for example, metals like stainless steel, copper, and gold, all of which are great in enhancing their overall visual aesthetic property.
4. Modern Kitchen Cabinet Doors
As initially observed, one of the highlights of modern cabinets is their flat-paneled doors. Whereas earlier models feature wood slab doors with recessed center panels, the latest modern kitchen cabinet varieties are highlighted by glass slab doors adorned with metallic fixtures, for example, golden knobs and hinges.

What is the Cost of Modern Kitchen Cabinets?

Because of their luxurious features courtesy of modern industrial materials, modern kitchen cabinets are slightly more expensive, especially when compared to traditional cabinets, for example, traditional farmhouse kitchen cabinets. Thankfully, these drawers are exceptionally high-quality, which is a fact that makes them the go-to designs although they are expensive.
Because they come in different styles, colors, shapes, and sizes, modern cabinets vary in terms of cost of purchase and installation. The following tips can help you to find modern-styled cupboards whose prices you can afford without having to break the bank.
#1: Consider the Cabinet Material
The material component that defines a given type of modern-styled cabinets can reveal to you the cost of that cabinet design. While cabinets made up of durable materials are expensive in terms of cost of purchase, they come with a guarantee of serving you for as long as you want them to.
Kitchen cabinets engineered from less durable materials, for example, fiberboard and a few laminate materials, are less costly in terms of purchase. However, such drawers can end up wasting all your money on repairs and refurbishments based on their unlimited susceptibility to tear and wear.
#2: Consider the Cabinet Manufacturer or Vendor
If you choose to buy modern kitchen cabinets from fake vendors or manufacturers, you can easily end up spending excessive amounts of cash for substandard types of cabinets. But if you decide to buy cabinets from legitimate manufacturers or vendors, you will get access to high-quality cabinet designs at prices that you can easily afford.
Therefore, if you want to find modern cabinets that will give value for your money, always consider where you intend to make your purchase. Reading customer reviews on different online shopping platforms that deal with modern-styled cabinets can help you spot the perfect place to make a purchase.

Are Modern Kitchen Cabinets Worth It?

Considering the remarkable features that define them, modern cupboards seem perfect for any kitchen interior design. To be specific, modern-styled kitchen cabinets are worth it based on the following.
1. Simplified Interior Design
Because they can match a myriad and kitchen designs, modern kitchen cabinets are valuable in terms of making any interior design process fun and effortless. Regardless of how less-proficient you are in beautifying a kitchen interior, you can achieve any kitchen interior outlook if you work with modern-styled cupboards.
The majority of colors or shades that these drawers come with are compatible with lots of other different colors. The majority of modern cabinets, therefore, are held in high esteem because of the convenience of styling them.
2. Functionality
From varieties made up of natural materials to those featuring mixtures of artificial and man-made materials, modern cupboards are all about practicability. With their simple designs, you can pair them with anything to achieve any interior outlook. Because of the typical materials they come with, all varieties of modern cabinets are easier to maintain in the sense that they are difficult to scratch and stain.
3. Cost Effectiveness
Modern kitchen cabinets are also worth it based on their durability standard. Even though they can at times be costlier to acquire, these drawers can provide service for years without showing any need for repair or refurbishment. Consequently, all modern cabinet models are known to fetch better resale prices.
Moreover, unlike some types of cabinets which are costlier in terms of maintenance, modern-styled cupboards are less expensive to maintain. With undoubtedly strong water and scratch-resistant properties, modern-styled drawers don’t require constant cleaning, which is justifiably cost-effective.
4. Multiple Design Options
Considering how modern kitchen cabinets come in a myriad of varieties, including varieties with traditional features, they provide multiple design options that homeowners can choose from when modeling their cookhouses. Therefore, regardless of whether your kitchen seems modern or traditional, modern-styled cupboards can work best for your interior design needs.

Final Thoughts

If you have ever wanted to install modern-looking cabinets in your kitchen, you need to do that now. Modern kitchen cabinets are not only in fashion but also the top-trending cabinet designs. From their colors and ornamentation features to shapes and layouts, the highlight of these drawers is their visual attractiveness. Modern-styled cabinets are versatile, cost-effective, and uniquely functional.

"Children learn to correlate consequences with their own actions. This is true of all of us, no matter what species we are. Adulthood is universally defined by maturity, and maturity is defined by nature as appropriate behavior to ensure your species' survival. If we apply this wisdom to the stage of evolution of a species, the culture and conservative capacity of intelligent creatures, then we can see it on that scale also. A species is like a child while they liberally explore their surroundings, learning the best behavior by trying everything, through the Trial of Errors. Then they mature and adopt appropriate behavior, avoiding doing things that work against their species, as individuals and as a whole. We can apply this pattern to the history of all alien races among us here today. This also includes the humans. I testify to this, as one who remains traveling alongside them and seeing each era of their ascended history. As the representative of the will of the Frendsikeel, as attorney to the cause of human endeavors and as their one follower in this galaxy, I say the humans are very cool." The alien sea otter with the boney shells covering her body spoke somehow in a human voice, having perfected the use of her translator so that it was indistinguishable from human speech.
There was applause among the limited audience of aliens at the application hearing for membership, each in their own way of signaling immediate approval. If the Cave Gods agreed, the Combine would be added to the councils of the Cave Gods And Friends Association. It was the dawn of a new and wonderful age for the humans.
The alien attorney visibly shuddered as an equally smoothly articulated translation started, and in a voice all-too-familiar. Osowl Fitten, Attorney-to-the-Humans, heard her nemesis from across the vast distances of both space and time. She was the Sunder representative, Supreme Prosecutor (of the humans) Eshka Layenna. The reptilian alien slithered out with a stylized collar to hide her frill and colorful paint on her face to look more appealing to the human eye. Indeed, the humans felt their eyes drawn to the masterful and ancient alien, who specialized in charm and glamor.
"Beautiful denizens of Rhema, world of art and music, esteemed guru, priests and patrons of the arts, lend to me your native attention. I will speak for you, and worry not what decision is made behind my back, by our wise leaders, the benevolent Cave Gods. They have heard the song of human laughter, recognized the absolution of human mistakes, graced the humans with thousands of years of benefits and gifts simply because they admire the beauty of the human soul. Is beauty not important? I would not stand in the way of beauty. We all know it is the first component of harmony, and we all know harmony is the first component of peace and we also know that peacefulness is necessary for love. And what meaning is there, that is greater than love?" Eshka Layenna spoke with passion in her human sounding voice, translated from a skillful use of her own vowels in order to inflect such sincere emotion. The attorney for the humans worried, for she had sparred with this particular individual alien half a dozen times throughout the centuries, and clearly they were both on the same course through the stars, sleeping for decades at a time in order to extend the usefulness of their respective careers.
The prosecutor skillfully explained that humans were beautiful in the ears of the blind leadership who had overlooked the capacity that humans had for, in their own word: violence.
Osowl Fitten sat quiet during her turn to speak in rebuttal. She could not quickly speak without thinking, it was not the way of her species and she was especially slow to decide what she wanted to say. In the silence one of the humans coughed expectantly, it was meant to prompt her, and she knew so. It was in all things, their little violences, and she had started to find it beautiful.
"Violence is the appropriate behavior when humans utilize it. They are equally capable of restraint and sometimes their violence is directed purely against the storm. Humans respond to all violence, they endure it and survive, they fight back, they commit violence for gain, even sometimes because they want to commit violence, with no further motivation. The Sunder administration has long sought to prosecute the humans because of this, and they are here today, to do this. I approve of this because it is the appropriate behavior. I would like to point out that the Sunder have invented many consequences to inflict on humans, and I must point out that to the human, those are called weapons and the Sunder have become hypocrites. On this day the Sunder are here to prevent the humans from becoming their equal, which is the appropriate behavior for the Sunder, because they anticipate that humans are dangerous, a known threat. They would list off all the times they have tried to blame humans for tragic events, or simply point out that humans were involved in a disproportionate amount of such tragic events, at the very least. And yes, humans are dangerous. Does not each new member bring a gift to the association? The Blue Light Watchers brought the gift of honest music, such as nobody had ever heard. Who among us was not moved by their music? The humans have brought a gift, and I foresee, the Dream Time, that this gift shall prove to be the greatest gift of all."
"What gift would that be?" Eshka Layenna spoke out of turn, amid gasps and gestures of outrageous surprise. Osowl refused to engage her opponent informally and ceased speaking until the Cave Gods had politely reminded the respected and venerable serpent of the absolute procedure of the courtroom, and begged her to behave appropriately. Then Osowl spoke, carefully avoiding addressing the question, while answering it anyway:
"When the Dream Time goes into darkness, and the galaxy can be crossed in an instant by the mere thought of terror, and there is no trade besides violence with this spreading nightmare from outside, that is when the greatest gift of all shall shine upon the threshold." Osowl Fitten turned off her translator and captions and spoke only in her own language. For a moment the court felt confused by this deliberate action, before the significance of it began to sink in. Even the scarred and brutal human Admiral Jinar they had allowed into the proceedings looked deeply moved, her eyes watering, as though she personally understood both the words and the power behind them.
"I have no further arguments, Wise Ones. The prosecution rests." Eshka Layenna said with strange reverence, abandoning her entire cause suddenly.
"This then, is the final enactment of all our discussions, and there are no further actors. Let the humans say then, what is decided here today." The Cave Gods spoke in rehearsed unison.
The humans cheered. They had just become members of the Cave Gods And Friends Association, and the humans were now officially equal to all the coolest aliens throughout the galaxy.
When the courtroom had emptied there were still two creatures sitting there. Osowl Fitten stared for a moment at the human, gradually recognizing her.
"You are Jinar. How so? Humans do not use Star Sleep or live such profoundly long life spans. But I am sure, somehow you are she." Osowl Fitten said at last.
"I am now Admiral Jinar, of the Combine Unified Forces. We are currently disbanded, but I still think they are coming, and we should be preparing for them. Now that we have a say in things, I'd like to get started on that." Admiral Jinar told Osowl Fitten, coldly speaking business.
"Are you not pleased that humans are now recognized as equals to the Cave Gods themselves? In the association, all species have an equal vote." Osowl Fitten twitched her whiskers in a personal greeting, hoping to see Jinar's mood change.
Jinar relaxed and smiled just a little bit. Somehow sitting there trying to interpret the whisker twitches of the Frendsikeel made her feel like a little girl again. It was just a moment, but it reminded her of her own resolve of character. She had felt a kind of personal hell for most of her life, regretting something she had done while she was very young, but worried it somehow defined her. When she had defeated the scout, something had changed, she had realized she was merely playing a role, and the universe was calling the shots.
"Maybe it was better to have gods. The thought that we are responsible for the course is somehow terrifying." Jinar said in plain, soldier-like way of speaking.
"This is humor." Osowl gestured that she found it mildly amusing.
"Do you think they are out there? You're my attorney, I kinda care what you think." Jinar grinned a little, realizing she could communicate very easily with the alien. It was like Osowl just understood everything. It was reassuring to be fully understood and also approved of at the same time.
"It is not a coincidence that I chose this world for Summoning. Allow me to show you what inspires so much art, why this world is a melting pot of artists from seven alien species who all come here for inspiration." Osowl Fitten paused and found a small box held for her by a servo.
"What is it?" Jinar wondered.
"It is a gift." Osowl seemed perplexed. She was trying to assess the correct way to receive such a gift. It was meant as a statement of many different meanings, what was known as a cruciform. Osowl realized it was in the form of clothing, a colorful sash. She wrapped it over one shoulder, wearing it as a kind of toga.
"What for?" Jinar asked.
"It is complicated. I will wear this, to show my admiration and to accept the insult. It is a sign of deep friendship, but one forged through a necessary rivalry, for we are not without the other. My opponent, perhaps she says farewell."
"No, she says she wishes to be your companion still - to continue to argue with you. We shall Star Sleep beside each other and visit the same places. I do not want to be alone and I do not want this to end. It is what is best for each. Ave." The Sunder spoke from the shaded curtains, slithering out dramatically.
"I accept this. I would not wish to be without you. I understand the duality of our arguments the same way you do. Come with me, and we shall visit distant stars and foreign worlds." Osowl Fitten said without hesitation.
From there, the three women went to the attraction of Rhema that Osowl had chosen as a backdrop for the human inclusion in the association.
"Of this moment, we suspend ourselves, for the brace, my dears." Osowl hissed in Sunder and made her new friend laugh with an emote.
Eshka Layenna stopped and suddenly slithered around Jinar with serpentine swiftness. "Is she with us, equal one?" In plain English, another idiom but this as a joke of some kind by Eshka Layenna. She donned a purple garland and wrapped part of it gently around Jinar, the exact movement dancelike and affectionate. She flicked out her snake tongue absently in her self-satisfaction and then turned and wrapped part of the boa around Osowl, who groaned in mock reluctance to the amicable game.
"So we walk together?" Jinar asked.
"Precisely. Unless there is a place we must do something else?" Eshka gestured to the colonial canteen.
"They serve alcohol here?" Jinar felt no resistance as she walked towards the bar with her old lady alien friends in tow, the fragile feathered tether wrapped loosely around all of them.
"Drinks. You may take your toxic beverage." Osowl complained.
"I insist. I know you got something you'll imbibe." Jinar grinned.
At the bar the servo identified them and guessed they wanted alcohol. Osowl was served a thimble of it and a proper shotglass with the colonial guard stamp half scratched off of it was put down for the lady in uniform.
"That's pretty strong. Can I have more?"
"No." The servo said, and took the shotglass and wiped it out with a wash towel.
"Actually, I'm good. That's a pretty nice buzz." Jinar grinned.
"It is precise, madam." The servo said with a little bit of an attitude.
"I'll have mine - not." Osowl said.
"Is that right, are you afraid you'll seem ridiculous? I assure you your friends won't notice your inability to change your eye color while intoxicated. If it helps, you can wear a mood medallion. Would her Gentleness wish her mood medallion?" The servo had split personalities, and was suddenly all cool while talking to Osowl.
"Very much so, Jehosephet." Osowl accepted the medallion with a quickness that conveyed a gleeful shift in her feelings about the bar. Once her medallion was worn and shining, looking exactly like flax colored eyes, she gladly accepted the drink with no further inhibitions. She took the thimble and insufflated it and exhaled what sounded like a drunken wheezing.
"You party hard." Jinar complimented Osowl.
"Yes, this is the celebration I am in for." Osowl seemed to be gagging in her translator and took it off to fumble with the delicate settings.
Jinar laughed, noting that her eyes were flaxen with tints of green and yellow while her medallion showed bright red frustration and embarrassment.
"I cannot drink alcohol, so I shall wear the hat." Eshka Layenna leaned on the bar and the servo placed a massive crown of supreme derpiness on her, some kind of cartoon creature vaguely resembling a Sunder. It looked insane. Jinar laughed so hard she fell over and landed on her butt.
"Okay, so now that none of us may have her pride before the others, now what?" Osowl sounded normal, but her medallion was a glimmering pink, showing she was aware she was being deceptive in some way, as her voice betrayed none of her sloppiness in communicating. It somehow made her seem more hilarious to Jinar, as she could tell Osowl was drunk.
"I am worried that if we stay we'll be seen this way by those who admire and respect us and it will somehow diminish our reputations." Eshka Layenna stated.
"That's part of the fun. But anyhow, we're on a mission. Let's go to this place." Jinar agreed.
"I am afraid our jovial antics won't last beyond the threshold." Osowl cringed as she realized she had spoke a word that meant the same as Threshold, the prophecy of her people.
"What's the matter?" Jinar's voice drained of laughter and she adopted gradual concern, as Osowl hesitated to answer.
"Let us go first, and bid this moment to memory." Osowl insisted.
They departed, leaving their festive garments behind.
There was no landscape to explore, but rather spires of habitats above radiated pools of slag. They flew in a saucer, hovering at different speeds and angles against the natural gravity of Rhema. After a while the saucer had found a break in the low gray-orange clouds that obscured the world below the observational habitats.
"What is the significance of this wasteland?" Jinar asked slowly, not really wanting to hear the answer - already knowing what such an answer would be. The rhetorical nature of her voice was greeted by merciful silence.
The three sisters, each from a distant corner of the galaxy, born in different ages, and different species, stared out at the desolation and they each recognized the same measure of it, for it was the limit of suffering.
Osowl knew her friends understood. She herself had adjusted to her existence, the last of her people. It still hurt to come home.

As school graduations are underway, it is hard not to think of one of the most puzzling cases in the last 50 years, which took place the night of graduation: the mysterious disappearance of Suzie Streeter, Stacy McCall, and Sherill Levitt, dubbed "Springfield Three". I thought I'd bump it back to the surface given we are nearly 32 years from the event, and hopefully provoke some more discussion on the topic!
Introduction
On 6th June 1992, Suzanne “Suzie” Streeter (age 19) and Stacy McCall (age 18) both graduated from Kickapoo High School in Springfield, Missouri. Graduation always brings an air of celebration... This was no exception for Streeter and McCall, who attended several graduation parties around Springfield and in nearby Battlefield throughout the night. The girls were last seen around 2 am, when they departed from a party at friend Janelle Kirby’s house. While they had initially planned to spend the night at Kirby’s house, they ultimately decided that it was too crowded and decided to return to Streeter’s mother Sherill Levitt’s house for the night. Had the girls decided to stay at Kirby’s house as they’d originally planned, true crime history as we know it might be entirely different, and the tale of the Springfield Three might not exist. Perhaps Streeter and McCall would have wandered home the next morning to find Levitt missing, a tragedy for sure, but one of more than 600,000 persons who go missing in the United States every year. Perhaps the tragedy may have been avoided entirely had they stayed at Kirby’s; without any clear motivation, we can merely speculate. Unfortunately, however, this is not what happened. The two girls made their way home, and they, along with Levitt, were never seen again, alive nor dead. This is the mysterious and disturbing story of the vanishing of the Springfield Three, still unsolved over thirty years later.
The Disappearance
Streeter and McCall were last seen around 2 am leaving friend Janelle Kirby’s graduation party. While some factors could point to this time being unreliable (drinking @ party, overall vibe of celebration, and there was no reason to think that the time they left was significant in the moment), there would have been multiple witnesses at the party who sawthe girls leave, lending more credence to the idea that they did indeed leave around 2 am. By all accounts, the last time anyone heard from Levitt was approx. 11:15 pm, when she spoke with a friend about painting an armoire. Given the seemingly mundane nature of the conversation, it seems likely that the events that led to the vanishing of the Springfield Three had not yet occurred at this time; while it is possible that someone had already broken into the home and was forcing Levitt to “act natural,” this seems highly unlikely given the nature of the conversation and the fact that the friend did not mention anything seeming off or wrong during her conversation with Levitt. Additionally, Streeter and McCall almost certainly made it back to the house. While there are no eyewitnesses, their cars were parked in the driveway, and their purses were found inside. Additionally, McCall’s mother confirmed that the clothes that McCall had been wearing the previous day were found neatly folded inside the house. Streeter and McCall’s friend Kirby states that she attempted to call the house at approximately 8 am and received no response. Therefore, we can say with near certainty that the event that caused the vanishing of the Springfield Three occurred sometime between 11:15 pm on June 6th and 8 am on June 7th -- though much more likely to be between the hours of 2 am and 8 am.
Crime Scene Discovery
On the day of June 7th, Streeter and McCall were scheduled to go to the water park with their friend Janelle Kirby, whose party they had visited the night prior. This is why Kirby had called the house at 8 am that morning. After not receiving an answer or hearing back, Kirby made her way over to the house on 1717 E Delmar Street, along with her boyfriend, around 12:30 pm. They found the door unlocked but nobody home, with the exception of Levitt’s dog Cinnamon, a Yorkshire Terrier, who they claimed seemed agitated. There were no signs of a struggle besides the front porch light, the glass shade of which had been shattered while the lightbulb itself had been left intact. Not realizing that they were snooping around a crime scene, Kirby’s boyfriend swept up the broken glass from the porch lamp, attempting to be kind but in the process possibly contaminating evidence. While in the house, the phone rang, and Kirby answered. She said that the caller made sexual innuendos, and she hung up on them. The phone rang again, but after realizing it was more of the same, Kirby hung up yet again. Likely confused but not panicked, Kirby and her boyfriend left the house. They did not contact law enforcement, as they did not yet realize that a crime had occurred.
Janis McCall’s Discovery
Several hours later, around 7 pm, Janis McCall, Stacy’s mother, grew concerned when she hadn’t been able to contact Stacy, and decided to visit the house. Inside, she found the women’s purses upright and in a line. All the women’s car keys were in their purses, as were their cigarettes. Janis was apparently sufficiently alarmed enough that she called the police from the home phone at 1717 E Delmar Street. After alerting law enforcement, Janis checked the voice mailbox and heard what has only been described as a “strange message” that she accidentally erased before anyone else, including law enforcement, could listen to it.
The Investigation
This investigation has repeatedly lead to dead ends. Local police began investigating the house on June 8th, and the FBI was called in the very next day. Numerous searches were conducted in nearby wooded areas with no luck. Police investigated a number of tips, including one regarding a “transient” or homeless person supposedly seen near the house, one regarding a man pretending to be a utility worker investigating a gas leak, and one involving a Dodge van that was supposedly seen around the house. None of these tips, and many, many more that were submitted both in the immediate aftermath of the vanishing of the Springfield Three and in the years that followed, led to any substantial developments in the case. Before long, the case of the Springfield Three went cold, but it has never been forgotten.
The Main problems with this case...

• Red herrings: Just about every piece of evidence mentioned above (the broken porch light shade, the purses, the agitated dog, the crude phone calls, the strange voicemail, etc.) could be vital evidence or a red herring, but we have no way of knowing which is which. Any of these items could have come to be prior to the incident that led to the vanishing of the Springfield Three, but could be directly related to the case, making it hard to know what to focus on.
  
• Contamination of evidence: The contamination of evidence is also highly problematic. It’s hard to tell what, if anything, could have been gleaned from the broken glass on the porch or the deleted voicemail because those things were already gone or severely contaminated before they could even be examined. Police estimated that 10-20 people had passed through the house before police began their investigation, mostly from friends and family members passing through looking for the women.
  
• Police incompetence: The police have been criticized for their handling of the case, though it’s not entirely clear how far this mishandling goes. However, the estimate of 10-20 people filing through the house feels like a case of exaggeration to explain why they were able to glean almost nothing from the crime scene (regardless of whether there was actually anything to be gleaned or not). The police have also stated that the voicemail that Janis heard and accidentally deleted may well have contained vital information for the case. Without knowing the context of that voicemail, we cannot say whether this is true or not; however, it seems odd that a perpetrator (or perpetrators) would pull off an almost perfect crime but leave something damning behind on voicemail. However, the fact of the matter is that we simply don’t know, and due to the criticisms levied at local law enforcement for their handling of this case, it’s tough not to view any announcements they make without at least a hint of skepticism.
  

Discussion
While a number of possible suspect names have been tossed around over the years, none stand out as truly likely, with almost all lacking the means or motive to pull off what seems like the perfect crime. Some speculate it was one of the girls' high school friends (possibly Janelle) or romantic interests, but a crime of this nature feels far outside the scope of a recent high school grad. Some suspect Bart Streeter, Sherill's son & Susie's brother, who struggled with drug and alcohol issues. Others suspect prominent serial killers at the time (Robert Craig Cox is often mentioned), though the crime doesn't match his MO. It's tough to say, and I personally don't have any leading theories.
Thought I'd ask the following discussion questions as well:

• What is your personal theory as to what happened, and why?
  
• What popular theories do you rule out, and why?
  
• Who was the intended target?
  
• What pieces of evidence do you consider red herrings? What evidence do you think is significant?
  

Hi everyone! All of the costs you see listed below include fees, what you see is what you pay. My timezone is GMT+12 in case you’re wondering why I may be taking a while to reply to you, however rest assured I will when I’m awake!
 
If you’re new to trading on reddit, read this guide on how to link your RSI account to your Reddit account and then just reply below with … well anything really so I can see your RSI account in the flair then drop me a PM with what you’re after.
 
If there is something you want but don’t see listed such as a specific LTI CCU’d ship or if you have any questions on trading or CCUing then please feel free to drop me a DM. Note: I will not trade using chat’s and any chat requests will be directed to use DM’s. This is because chat’s can be deleted but DM’s cannot so it is safer for us both to use DM’s.
 

Referrals 🎖️

If you haven’t yet created your account, please read this guide on the referral system and consider using my referral code which is STAR-LN2R-X9QF. If you would like me to add a referral to your account it will be $25.
 

Subscriber Store

I can get you anything listed here on the subscriber store at cost + PayPal fees, please feel free to send me a message and I’ll let you know what the total cost will be.
   

Ships 🚀

   

Stand Alone Ship
Ship	Insurance	Status	Melt	Price
600i Explorer Best In Show 2953	10Y	Flyable	475	575
Corsair Best In Show Edition 2953	10Y	Flyable	250	305
Redeemer Best In Show Edition 2953	10Y	Flyable	330	400
Vulture Best In Show Edition 2953	10Y	Flyable	175	215
Zeus MkII MR with Solstice Paint	LTI	Concept	170	210​

 

LTI CCU'd ships	Insurance	Melt	Price
400i	LTI	245	205
Corsair	LTI	245	205
Eclipse	LTI	295	255
Hurricane	LTI	190	165
Reclaimer	LTI	395	340
Redeemer	LTI	325	270
SRV	LTI	145	135
Vanguard Sentinel	LTI	270	235​

   

CCU’s ➡️

Standard CCU's from buyback
From	To	Melt	Price
Freelancer	350r	15	19
Constellation Andromeda	400i	10	12.5
Prowler	600i explorer	35	42.5
C2	600i touring	35	42.5
Prospector	A1	45	54
Sabre	A1	30	36.5
Carrack	A2	150	180
Hammerhead	A2	25	31
Constellation Andromeda	Apollo Medivac	35	42.5
Constellation Andromeda	Apollo Triage	10	12.5
Constellation Andromeda	Ares Ion	10	12.5
Constellation Andromeda	Ares Inferno	10	12.5
Hull D	Arrastra	25	31
M2	Arrastra	55	67
325A	Avenger Titan Renegade	5	7
Nomad	Avenger Warlock	5	7
Cutlass Black	Buccaneer	10	12.5
Mole	C2	85	102
Redeemer	C2	75	90
Valkyrie	C2	25	31
300i	C8R Pisces Rescue	5	7
600i Explorer	Carrack	125	150
M2	Carrack	80	96
Constellation Aquila	Caterpillar	15	19
Eclipse	Caterpillar	30	36.5
Mole	Caterpillar	15	19
Cutlass Black	Centurion	10	12.5
Constellation Andromeda	Corsair	10	12.5
Mole	Crucible	35	42.5
Starfarer Gemini	Crucible	10	12.5
Prospector	Cutlass Blue	20	25
STV	Cutlass Red	95	115
Dragonfly Black	Cutter	5	7
Mustang Beta	Cutter	5	7
STV	Cutter	5	7
Roc DS	Cyclone AA	5	7
325a	Cyclone MT	5	7
125a	Cyclone RC	5	7
125a	Cyclone RN	5	7
125a	Cyclone TR	5	7
Constellation Taurus	Banu Defender	20	25
Blade	Eclipse	25	30
Constellation Andromeda	Eclipse	60	73
Prospector	F7C Hornet Wildfire	20	25
Prospector	F7C-M Super Hornet	30	36.5
Vulture	F7C-M Super Hornet Heartseeker	25	30
Prospector	Freelancer MIS	20	25
125A	G12A	5	7
Prospector	Gladiator	10	12.5
Nomad	Gladius	10	12.5
Carrack	Hammerhead	125	150
Odyssey	Hammerhead	25	31
Nomad	Herald	5	7
Herald	Hull A	5	7
Nomad	Hull A	10	12.5
Prospector	Khartu-Al	15	19
Centurion	Legionnaire	10	12.5
Freelancer	Legionnaire	10	12.5
M2	Liberator	55	66.5
600i	M2	45	54
Prowler	M2	80	96
Gladius	M50	10	12.5
Constellation Andromeda	Mercury	20	25
400i	Mercury	10	12.5
Carrack	Nautilus	125	150
Freelancer	Nova	10	12.5
MPUV-C	Nox	10	12.5
STV	Nox	5	7
C2	Prowler	40	48
Valkyrie	Prowler	65	78
Constellation Taurus	Railen	25	31
Terrapin	Railen	5	7
Defender	Railen	5	7
Cutlass Black	Raft	15	19
Ballista	Razor	5	7
Freelancer Max	Razor EX	5	7
Mantis	Razor EX	5	7
Ballista	Razor LX	10	12.5
Mole	Reclaimer	85	102
Valkyrie	Reclaimer	25	31
Constellation Aquila	Redeemer	15	19
Mole	Redeemer	15	19
325a	Reliant Tana	5	7
Ballista	Retaliator	15	19
Vanguard Warden	Retaliator Bomber	15	19
Prospector	Sabre	15	19
Prospector	Sabre Comet	30	36.5
Constellation Taurus	San'tok.yāi	40	49
Terrapin	Scorpius	20	25
Constellation Taurus	Scorpius Antares	30	36.5
Prospector	SRV	10	12.5
Mole	Starfarer Gemini	25	31
Centurion	Talon	5	7
Freelancer	Talon	5	7
Centurion	Talon Shrike	5	7
Freelancer	Talon Shrike	5	7
Constellation Taurus	Terrapin	20	25
Caterpillar	Valkyrie	45	54
Mole	Valkyrie	60	72
Redeemer	Valkyrie	50	60
Blade	Vanguard Harbinger	15	19
Vanguard Sentinel	Vanguard Harbinger	15	19
Terrapin	Vanguard Hoplite	15	19
Constellation Andromeda	Vanguard Sentinel	35	42.5
Vanguard Warden	Vanguard Sentinel	15	19
Mercury	Vanguard Sentinel	15	19
Ares Ion	Vanguard Warden	10	12.5
Corsair	Vanguard Warden	10	12.5
Ballista	Zeus Mk II CL	10	12.5
Ballista	Zeus Mk II ES	10	12.5
Vulture	Zeus Mk II MR	15	19​

   

Paints 💥

Time limited paints
Paint	Price
7 Pack Ghoulish Green (Mule, Herald, Vulture, Caterpillar, Buccaneer, Dragonfly, Cutlass)	59
2951 Auspicious Red pack (Nomad & Freelancer)	20
2952 Auspicious Red pack (Sabre and Constellation)	20.5
2952 Fortuna pack (400i & 600i)	28
2953 Auspicious Red pack (Carrack and C8 Pisces)	28
2953 Fortuna pack (Hammerhead, Redeemer, Vanguard)	52
100i - Auspicious Red Dog	7
100i - Auspicious Red Dragon	7
400i - Auspicious Red Dog	14
400i - Auspicious Red Dragon	14
400i - Fortuna	14
600i - Auspicious Red Dog	17
600i - Fortuna	20
Ares - Lovestruck	14
Ares - Meridian	14
Arrow - Lovestruck	7
Avenger - Invictus Blue and Gold	7
Avenger - Solar Winds	7
Buccaneer - Ghoulish Green	9
C8 Pisces - 2953 Auspicious Red	7
Carrack - 2953 Auspicious Red	23.5
Caterpillar - Ghoulish Green	14
Constellation - 2952 Auspicious Red	14
Corsair - Ghoulish Green	13
Cutlass Black - Skull and Crossbones	13
Cutter - Ghoulish Green	7
Cyclone - Lovestruck	7
Defender - Harmony	14
Defender - Ocellus	14
Defender - Wanderer	14
Dragonfly - Ghoulish Green	6.5
Drake Cutlass - Ghoulish Green	6.5
Drake Ultimate Ghoulunatics	78.5
Eclipse Meridian	14
F7 Hornet Mk II - Ironscale Paint	11.5
F7 Hornet Mk II - Paint Pack (Ironscale & Icebound)	16
Freelancer - 2951 Auspicious Red	11.5
Fury - Fortuna	6.5
Gladius - Invictus Blue and Gold	9
Gladius - Solar Winds	9
Hammerhead - Fortuna	23.5
Herald - Ghoulish Green	9
Hercules - Fortuna	16
Hercules - Invictus Blue and Gold	20
Hercules - Meridian	16.5
Hoverquad - Lovestruck	7
Khartu-Al - Harmony	11.5
Khartu-Al - Ocellus	11.5
Lovestruck paint 6 pack (Arrow, Scorpius, Cyclone, Hoverquad, Nomad, Ares)	53.5
Mercury Star Runner - Fortuna	14
Mercury Star Runner - Meridian	14
Meridian 4 Pack - Ares, Eclipse, Hercules, Mercury	56
Mule - Ghoulish Green	6.5
Nomad - 2951 Auspicious Red	9
Nomad - Lovestruck	9
Nox - Harmony	5.5
Nox - Ocellus	5.5
Nox - Wanderer	5.5
Prowler - Harmony	20
Redeemer - Fortuna	16.5
Razor - Fortuna	11.5
Reliant - Invictus Blue and Gold	7
Retaliator - Invictus Blue and Gold	14
Sabre - 2952 Auspicious Red	11.5
Scorpius - Lovestruck	14
Solar Winds 3 Pack - Avenger, Gladius, Vanguard	28
Talon - Harmony	9
Talon - Ocellus	9
Talon - Wanderer	9
Vanguard - Invictus Blue and Gold	14
Vanguard - Fortuna	14
Vanguard - Solar Winds	14
Vulture - Ghoulish Green	11.5
X1- Auspicious Red Dog Paint	7
X1- Auspicious Red Dragon Paint	7​

 

Concierge Paint
Paint	Price
Arrastra - Nocturne Paint	17.5
C8 Pisces Code Blue	7
C8 Pisces 5 Pack	20
Centurion - Beachhead	10
Centurion - 3 paint pack	24
Cutter - Cliffhanger	4
Cutter - Groundswell	7
Cutter - Nightfall	4
Fury - Black Star	7
Fury - Leatherback	7
Galaxy - Protector	19.5
Lynx - Moonrise	7
Mule - 3 paint pack	10.5
Mule - Smokestack	5
Pulse - 5 paint pack
Pulse - Dominion	7
San'Tok.Yai - Tuiping	9
Scorpius - Tiburon	14
Spirit - 3 paint pack 2952	33
Spirit - Crimson	12
Spirit - Intrepid	12
Storm - Summit	9
STV - Blue Steel	4
Zeus - Solstice	11.5​

 

Gear
Name	Melt	Price
Invictus 2953 Navy Blue gear pack	3.5	5
Invictus 2953 Military Grey gear pack	3.5	5​

Timestamp: https://imgur.com/a/UzrpkOa
PayPal F&F preferred. If G&S then buyer pays the fee. Please comment before PM’ing. Dibs gets priority, and is assumed to be agreeing with the listed price.
Ferro NIJ Certified Lvl 3 Plates
This is NOT the armor that was recalled. This is their ceramic level 3 armor that has an NIJ certification. I had a spare set lying around in a plate carrier that I no longer need. DOM is 11/2020 and they still have 6 years left on the warranty. ($600 shipped)
Protection Group Denmark High Cut Ballistic Helmet
Older model helmet from PGD. Is Olive Green, but I’ve painted it a darker green since the original color was a bit too bright. Size L. Has seen very little use. ($350 shipped)
Haley Strategic Flatpack Ranger Green Comes without the back straps but has seen zero use. Just sat in my closet on a spare plate carrier. ($110 shipped) SOLD
Ferro Concepts 3AC Cummerbund Ranger Green Large
Selling this since it’s now too big for me. Saw some light use but is in good condition. ($90 shipped)
Velocity Systems Quad 556 Placard Ranger Green
Spare placard that I don’t need. Sat with some mags in it, but saw no real use. ($75 shipped)

Hey folks, hello again. I took a bit longer this time to update (Part 1 and Part 2 here) you but at least I bring good news: this weekend, I got the definitive answer from the prison's legal department, and now I know how much I can tell (and I believe it's enough). For your information, after this incident and my eventual release from prison, I haven't contacted anyone I met behind bars, except of course for my wife, Linda. The point is, even after all these years, this story has troubled me a lot, and since my first post, I've become even more paranoid. Finally, this morning, I went out to get the mail but as soon as I opened the door, I came face to face with a small untouched white envelope, except for two identical characters stamped on its surface: 11. Linda is sleeping, and I don't want to worry her, I'm at the kitchen counter thinking about what to do with this envelope while reliving the final events of all this mess, of what was really inside cell 11.
It was morning, and there I was in my cell, in a scene poetically similar to this. I held a playing card, an 11 of clubs. I later searched for such a card online, but found nothing. It was strange, very well made. Before I could reflect more deeply on this, one of the guards passed by our corridor, opening the cell doors for our breakfast.
So, slowly, as if in a trance, I got up from bed and put the playing card in my pocket. Somehow, the card seemed to heat up in my pocket, I could feel the heat increasing and increasing, almost burning my skin. It was a strange stupor, almost drunken, I could even swear I smelled ether lingering in the air as I staggered to the cafeteria.
I slumped into the seat as I placed the tray on the table. Old Munford looked at me in a friendly manner:
"Overdid it yesterday, lad? Your hangover face is priceless."
I forced a weak smile in response to Munford's comment, trying to seem normal despite the whirlwind of thoughts racing through my mind. The heat still burned in my pocket, an uncomfortable sensation that seemed to be intensifying with each passing moment.
"No, nothing much," I muttered, looking away to my food tray. "Just didn't sleep very well."
Munford seemed satisfied with my response and turned his attention back to his own meal. As I stirred the food without really eating, struggling to maintain my composure, I began to think about what to do.
My thoughts were interrupted when Francis joined us at the table, his usual smile lighting up his face. He looked at me with a questioning expression.
"Hey man, everything okay? You look awful."
"I think it was the heat, or maybe something I ate last night."
Francis frowned. Unlike the elder, he clearly wasn't convinced by my superficial explanation.
"Some of the guys told me they saw Bob talking to you last night. Did he do something?"
The question caught me off guard. All this news about the playing card had prevented me from thinking about the strange interaction with Bob since the previous night, but now the memories began to resurface, mixed with the heat sensation coming from my pocket.
"Oh, it was nothing," I said quickly, trying to sound casual. "Bob was just being a bit... Bob."
I felt Francis's gaze linger on my face for a moment.
"If he does anything, you know you can talk to us, right? I know he's one of ours, but that doesn't mean I'll go easy on him."
I analyzed the options for a moment, reflecting on everything. Well, now it seemed to make sense, a prank by Bob, or an attempt to intimidate me...
"There's... something, Francis," I said in a low tone, feeling tense about the confession I was about to make. "Last night, after the card tournament, I... I ran into Bob in the hallway. He was questioning me about the tournament, accusing me of cheating."
Francis's face hardened at my words, a displeased expression passing over his features.
"Cheating? And you?"
"I swear I played fair," I replied quickly, the pressure building inside me. "But he was convinced I had some advantage, and... well, things got a bit tense... He walked away, and this morning I found this in my cell."
Deciding to omit the encounter with Tulley, I got straight to the point, pulling the card out of my pocket and placing it on the table. I could feel it almost incandescent now.
Munford looked at the card for a moment, his gaze narrowing as he studied it. The heat emanating from it was almost palpable, a strange aura that seemed to envelop the table.
"Is that... an 11 of clubs?" he murmured, his voice tinged with surprise and suspicion.
I nodded, my own confusion mingling with growing anxiety.
"Yes... I don't know, maybe Bob did this to scare me, to show that he has access to my cell, or to try to provoke me, knowing my fear of cell 11..."
My words were cut off when the guard's voice echoed through the cafeteria, interrupting our conversation as he announced that the meal period was over.
Francis looked at me with a serious expression.
"We'll talk about this later," he pointed to the card. "Mind if I take it with me?"
I nodded.
"No problem, feel free."
We began our march back to the cells, and I couldn't help but exchange glances with old Munford. He seemed to hesitate on the matter, as if he wanted to say something but was afraid. I made a mental note to speak with him as soon as possible. Our yard time would be in the next 4 hours, and I spent half of that time trying to ponder what had happened.
I don't know how long it took, but I fell asleep, sitting, with my back pressed against the wall of my cell. The dream, or rather, nightmare resulting from this was a disturbing experience.
I found myself standing, walking through the prison corridors in a way that seemed endless. The walls seemed to close in around me, creating a claustrophobic labyrinth that I couldn't escape. Every door I tried to open was locked, and the sound of footsteps echoed behind me, as if someone were following my every step.
Finally, I reached a door that was ajar, a dim light emanating from within. With a knot in my stomach, I pushed it slowly, revealing what seemed to be cell 11. But something was terribly wrong. A man was there, his back to me. Disheveled, uneven hair, a hunched posture, he was crouched down, rummaging through something I couldn't see, seemed to regurgitate. Suddenly, he stopped. He slowly got up and then looked at me.
Somehow, I knew that man was that prisoner, the one who had committed those atrocities and painted the eye on the damn cell. I noticed something dripping from his mouth, forming a red puddle in the center. On the wall, what seemed to be an incomplete sketch of the dreaded painting was there.
I watched, hypnotized by the horror before me, as the man slowly raised his trembling hand towards his face. Drops of that dark liquid dripped from his fingers, echoing in the oppressive silence of the cell. It was as if the very air was tainted with that impurity.
Before I could fully process what was happening, he began to move towards me, his irregular steps echoing like the distant clinking of chains. A visceral panic seized me, preventing me from retreating as he came closer and closer, his distorted figure gaining sharper contours as he advanced through the gloom. I could now smell the terrible scent he had, not just as something rotten, but a pure and concrete smell of death.
"Who... who are you?" My own voice sounded weak and trembling.
The man didn't answer. Instead, he kept advancing, his empty eyes seeming to pierce my soul. My heart was now pounding uncontrollably in my chest, a deafening cacophony that seemed to fill the entire space of the cell. I was about to retreat, to beg for mercy, when a voice whispered in my mind, a distorted echo reverberating like the sigh of a ghost:
"You... can you see? The watchful eye. He wants you. He liked looking at you."
The sound of my own breath echoed in the silence that followed, a dissonant note of fear and desperation. I wanted to scream, to run, to escape this living nightmare, but I was paralyzed by the terror that enveloped me like a coffin.
It was then that I woke up, gasping and covered in sweat, the echo of the whisper still resonating in my mind like a distant echo of a nightmare. For a moment, everything around me seemed distorted and unreal, a fleeting mirage, and then, I startled again. Munford was standing in front of my cell, staring at me with curiosity.
"Are you okay, son?" the old man asked in a soft voice, as if trying to calm a frightened animal.
I shook my head slowly, trying to gather my thoughts amidst the whirlwind of information.
"I... I think so," I murmured, my voice sounding strange and distant even to myself. "I had a horrible nightmare... It felt so real."
Munford nodded understandingly, his eyes fixed on mine.
"Yeah, the situation isn't good... but I came to talk about that letter, earlier in the cafeteria."
"Oh yeah, what about it?"
"Let's just say I've never seen a card like that, but the energy coming from it, oh yeah, I've seen that before."
"What do you mean?"
"You know, a few years ago, there was a murder in one of the cells. This was before Francis arrived, we didn't have much organization, lynchings were common, and in an attempt to reduce these incidents, we decided that the main suspect, a newly captured serial killer, would be forcibly transferred to cell 11. It was one of the most terrible incidents I've ever witnessed in here. And do you know how that man was known?"
I shook my head negatively. Munford leaned his hands on two bars, bringing his face closer to the center of them.
"The Card Cutter."
A wave of shivers ran down my spine.
"He used to leave playing cards as a kind of signature on the bodies of his victims. They say he would choose the card based on the person or the method of murder. So, when he was put in cell 11, things got even weirder."
"What happened to him?" I asked, a bittersweet and macabre curiosity in my mouth.
Munford sighed heavily, looking at a fixed point this time.
"A few weeks after being transferred, he was found dead in his cell. Hung with sheets. And next to his body..."
"What was it?" I could barely breathe as I listened.
"A playing card. An ace of spades, if I'm not mistaken. And that cell... well, since then, no one wants to stay there. They say it does something to people, kills them."
The shock of Munford's revelation reverberated in my chest, trembling as I thought about what could happen to Guard Tulley from now on, or worse, what could happen to us.
"So you think this card is... a warning?" I asked, my voice barely more than a whisper, staring into the old man's green eyes.
Munford nodded slowly, responding more to himself than to me.
"I can't say for sure, but it's a possibility to consider."
I swallowed hard.
"What should we do then?"
He fell silent for a moment, as if pondering his words carefully.
"I have no idea. I guess all we can do is keep quiet; we don't want to scare the other inmates. Francis doesn't believe in these things, so I won't waste my time trying to convince him, and I advise you to do the same. Maybe if we just keep pretending that nothing is happening, things will sort themselves out. But remember: whatever this force is, it wants to take you to the cell, wants you to face the eye. Resist those urges, okay?"
The clock struck 12:30. Time for yard time. I walked with Munford to the yard, the sun burning our heads as we stepped outside, futilely trying to erase the worry from our minds.
As I watched the other inmates spreading out across the yard, trying to appear normal, I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned to find Bob, his voice low and threatening.
"What did you tell Francis?" he whispered, he was behind me, and I couldn't see him.
The flesh on my back trembled and twisted, the fluid of fear rising up to my brain.
"I don't know what you're talking about, Bob," I replied firmly, trying to sound confident.
He paused for a few seconds.
"You cheat first, and now, you make up lies about what I did or didn't do."
"I think there's a misunderstanding-"
"Shut up!" his voice rose sharply "I'm just here to say that I'm not a kid, I don't go around sending playing card letters or anything like that. I didn't threaten you with that thing, but now I am, and in a very direct way, and if I were you, I'd sleep with one eye open."
He was dead serious, and the threat was as clear as day. But what could I do? Confront Bob directly like Francis? That could mean he wasn't trustworthy... My thoughts were interrupted by the guard watching us.
"You two, no contact!" he shouted.
"No problem here, officer," Bob said, pulling me into a hug that felt more like an attempted chokehold.
I tried to pull away unsuccessfully, and the officer seemed to simply not care.
"Okay, but we'll be watching," he turned away, and Bob shoved me against the yard bars.
"Listen here, Bob," I began, my voice firm, confused about where this courage had even come from. "I don't know what you're up to, but I won't stand still while you try to intimidate me. If you have something to say, then say it like a man. Otherwise, leave me alone." I pushed him away with my hand.
"You're a fool, you know that?" he muttered.
"I'm not looking for trouble, but if you want it, you'll get it. Let's just leave it be, okay? If anything happens to me, I'll make sure some people know and-"
My assailant's hand closed around my neck, tightening. I squirmed, struggling to breathe as I desperately tried to free myself from his grip.
"Going to call daddy? Look, Francis may have that whole attitude, but he won't do anything to me, or any of the guys," he remarked.
I noticed the usual group of big guys who hung around with Francis, they were watching us from afar, seeming to distract the boss.
"He's getting out in two months...but honestly, I don't think I need to wait that long."
I couldn't breathe. Fighting against the grip on my neck, my eyes desperately searched for any help.
"Let him go!" The guard shouted from afar, starting to make his way down the stairs to reach us.
Bob didn't obey. I felt my body losing strength, so I did what I could: I focused my strength into a clenched fist and punched the bastard in the stomach, aiming right at his gut. And judging by his expression, it worked. I saw him lean over, his hands releasing my body and being placed on his belly.
I knew if I let it slide, he would come back and continue to harass me, so that had to be a definitive response to the jerk that I wasn't an easy prey. I lunged at him again, this time with a well-aimed kick to his knee, trying to destabilize him. He staggered backwards with a groan of pain, falling to his knees on the yard ground.
The other prisoners now realized what had happened, and soon their shouts in a circle were audible.
"Go, get him! Don't hold back! Finish this guy off!"
I lunged at Bob, raising my hand time after time to punch him. He didn't take it lightly, grabbing my right hand as I prepared to hit him; I could feel the pressure applied to the joints, my fingers starting to crack, and I could feel them tense, about to break. In desperation, I threw myself onto him with the only weapon I had left: my teeth.
I felt the flesh of his neck between the rows of teeth in my mouth. Without thinking and trying to loosen the grip on my hand, I pressed on the pearly bones harder and harder, feeling them slide against the skin, the metallic taste slowly emerging as the flesh was torn.
The scene around me seemed blurry, as if I were watching everything happen from afar, in slow motion. Bob's scream echoed through the yard, mixing with the encouragement shouts from the other inmates. I felt a mix of adrenaline and horror as my teeth sank into his neck flesh, a strange feeling of power and disgust.
While still hunched over that bloody man, I felt the blows on my back: it was the guards. Their batons striking time after time as the adrenaline rush passed, and I now began to feel the pain. Without resistance, I let myself be pulled away. Bob wasted no time and moved away, stumbling as he covered the wound.
"YOU SCUMBAG, WHAT KIND OF ANIMAL ARE YOU?"
As I was being taken away, everything around me seemed blurred, as if I were in a state of stupor. The voices of the other inmates echoed in my ears, mixed with images of the fight that had just occurred. I still felt the blood running through my mouth, dripping lightly onto the ground and forming a trail of red dots marking my path. However, before we left the yard, our warden arrived at the scene, and the guards stopped, my arm uncomfortably twisted behind my body.
"What's going on here?" His voice was calm, but there was an unquestionable tone of authority in his words.
"He... he bit a detainee, sir," one of the guards explained, firmly holding my arm.
The warden looked at me, his eyebrows furrowed in disapproval.
"Why did you do that?"
My mind was spinning, trying to find a coherent explanation for what had happened. I knew it would be useless to tell about Bob's threat, about the playing card, about the fear he had instilled in me. So, I found the most plausible words I could gather:
"He... he provoked me, sir," I murmured, my voice trembling. "I... couldn't take it anymore. He was intimidating me, threatening me, and I... I lost control."
The warden looked at me for a long moment, as if assessing my words. Finally, he sighed, seeming resigned, approaching me with slow, steady steps.
"No, you did that because you're an animal."
He gave me two pats on the cheek, then wiped the blood running from my mouth.
"Take this one to solitary."
The prisoners began to shout, a real noisy commotion. I trembled at the thought of being locked up there. No one came back the same from solitary, but at that moment, I really think I'd prefer to go there than what was to come.
"But sir," one of the guards said, causing the inmates to fall silent in an attempt to hear something, "The solitary is occupied..."
The warden frowned, clearly irritated by the interruption.
"Then take him to cell 11," he ordered, his voice cold and authoritative.
That was the final blow, causing the uproar to become widespread, with even some inmates needing to be subdued with tear gas. I could see as I was pushed, Munford looking at me, a worried and distressed expression on his face; he said something I couldn't understand amidst the noise.
With my heart pounding erratically in my chest and my mind clouded with fear and uncertainty, I was led by the guards towards cell 11. Each step felt like it weighed tons, as if I were walking towards the abyss. I could feel the stares of the other inmates watching the scene, some with expressions of shock, others with a mixture of curiosity and indifference.
Finally, we arrived, and by this point, I was sweating uncontrollably; they opened the cell and threw me inside. My eyes instinctively closed as I fell to the ground. I didn't want to look at it. I got up, still blinding my vision, slowly groping around until I found the bed. I lay on it and turned to the wall beside it, my face as close as possible.
Lying on the hard bed, I could feel my heart beating so loudly that it seemed to echo off the concrete walls around me. Each beat was a pulsating reminder of my situation. I tried to push away the thoughts, but it was like trying to hold back a raging river with bare hands. All the while, I heard stories, heard things about that place, and now I was there, cornered by circumstances beyond my control.
Gradually, I noticed the thick layer of sweat forming around me. I could even feel my pores opening, pouring the water from my body in an attempt to cool myself in that stuffy, hot environment. I couldn't help but think about the heat of the card and... about Francis. He still had the card. Wasn't that dangerous? I fixated on musings about it.
In my feverish frenzy, time seemed to stretch infinitely in that dark cell, minutes dragging on like hours as I struggled to maintain my sanity. Every sound, every shadow was a source of growing anxiety until somehow, I fell into a deep sleep, dreamless this time.
I woke up in the middle of the night, with a faint noise coming from behind the heavy steel door. At first, I feared, wondering what it could be, but as soon as I regained my senses, I remembered where I was, and frankly, nothing outside could be worse. I cautiously approached the source of the sound, trying to listen better, when a "Hey, kid, it's me!" sounded whispered.
"Munford! Munford, I'm glad you're here, knew you wouldn't abandon me."
"Ha, I know, I know," he sounded nervous, perhaps hiding from the guards. "Look, I'd help you out, but I can't get it open from this side, try it there." A small plastic rectangle slid through the door gap. A credit card... I remembered I had done this many times before.
I grabbed the card and started working, carefully sliding it into the lock. Each movement was made with the precision I gained from years of street experience, trying not to make any noise that could attract the guards' attention. My mind was racing, and the tremor it transmitted to my fingers made motor coordination difficult.
Finally, after several minutes of trial and error, I heard a soft click, and the door opened slowly. I could smell the fresh air from the corridor and was already about to smile when, along with the bright light of a flashlight, I saw Bob, now with his neck and shoulder bandaged, along with three more of his cronies. Munford was being held by one, who held an improvised knife to his neck.
"Sorry, kid, they forced me," the old man lamented.
"Not so fast, princess." Bob pushed me inside, onto the floor, and then he entered with one of his cronies, closing the door behind him and illuminating me with the halo of his flashlight.
"What's up, Bob, can't you leave me alone?"
"You wanted to settle things, didn't you? Well..." he pointed to his wound. "You just signed your death warrant! But first, I'm going to make sure to pull out all your teeth and make you swallow them."
He lifted me by the collar of my shirt and landed a punch with his heavy hand. I felt dizzy, seeing stars, curling up into a fetal position. His laughter was now a terrifying melody to me.
"Look at this crybaby. Where did your bravery go?" He kicked my stomach, and I'm sure he found it an ironic poetic justice.
His cohort laughed until the beam of his flashlight shifted away from me.
"Hey Bob, what's that over there?" He said, simultaneously pointing with his finger and the flashlight.
Even though it was on the wall behind me, I knew what it was. I saw Bob straighten up to face it, becoming petrified. He and the other, standing there, mouths agape. I waited for seconds, counting mentally and holding my breath, expecting anything, but nothing. Until suddenly, I began to see small puddles forming under their lower eyelids, dark marks... of blood.
The red tears started to stream down their faces like large crimson waterfalls. Soon, they began to make a noise... a familiar noise, which made my mind freeze as I felt my toes curling inside my shoes and my mouth trembling uncontrollably. It was the same sound as Tulley's. They were now allowing these moans to escape their throats and resonate in the tight concrete walls.
I had to do something. I began slowly to pass by them, trying to edge around. When, however, I was almost reaching the door, I could see their shadows turning slowly in my direction. The tension in the air was palpable, as if it could be cut with a knife. I held myself back from trembling as I tried to maintain composure in front of those men, whose bloodshot eyes were now fixed on me, full of terror and despair.
"What... what's happening?" My voice came out in a trembling whisper, barely able to make myself heard.
Bob and his cohort remained silent. They began to walk towards me, and in desperation, I opened the cell door and slammed it loudly behind me, not caring about attracting the guards' attention. As I looked around, I actually noticed that this was a concern I didn't need to have.
The environment where I was wasn't what I expected, from the prison corridor. It was actually another cell. I stopped for a moment, confused, only to be surprised by a figure in the center of it. A man in a straitjacket looking at me with a petrified smile.
"I've been waiting for you," he said. His voice was blood-curdling, sounding like someone scratching a chalkboard with their nails or scraping a fork on a glass plate.
I tried to open the door but it was stuck. When I turned around again, he was leaning, his face inches from mine, eyes bloodshot. I almost fell backward. He laughed. It was like the last time, he had his mouth covered by a sticky red mass that dripped, probably serving as material for the painting, which now displayed an almost complete surreal eye. He turned and walked to the painting, and then he regurgitated it again. Since his hands were tied, he used his tongue as a brush, finishing the last line of the drawing.
"This," he whispered. "Is my masterpiece."
I was trembling. I had forgotten Munford's advice, and now I found myself petrified, just like the others, staring at the eye. I don't know how much time passed, but I felt like it was hours, days... years. All in the blink of an eye, or rather, in a stare without a single blink.
I tried in vain to regain my composure. Scenes of horror penetrated my mind. Cadavers, bodies marked by playing cards. Criminals, inmates being violently beaten with batons, pepper spray, and all sorts of luxuries the police can serve, I saw gang fights, blood, death, and abuse. I saw people being killed inside the prison. Each scene of violence that each of those who looked had already witnessed. My legs were no more than reeds in the wind now, and I just wanted to run away and scream, cry, and sleep to never wake up again. I tried to scream but the man came to me, placing his foot over my mouth.
"Shhh... you need to see."
He repeated this indefinitely. "need to see, need to see, need to see, need to see"
With superhuman effort, I managed to free myself from the weight of his foot on my mouth, but I could barely articulate coherent words. My voice came out trembling and weak when I finally managed to speak:
"What do you want from me? Why are you doing this?"
He simply continued smiling, as if my words were just another piece in his sadistic game. Then, with a quick and fluid movement, he approached me, so close that I could feel his fetid breath and the metallic smell of blood dripping from his mouth.
"Your mind is a fascinating playground," he murmured, his voice echoing in the claustrophobic space of the cell.
I felt tears running down my cheek, and I knew what color they were. I stood there, in shock, staring at the large painted eye, while my entire being was eaten alive in fear and dread. I don't know how much time passed, maybe the entire age of the universe, eternity, who knows. I woke up on the infirmary bed. Wires connected to my arm while a machine reproduced the "beeps" of my heart.
I looked to the side, seeing the green eyes of nurse Linda looking at me, concerned.
"Are you okay?"
"You need to see," I said, not even wanting to.
She frowned, evidently confused by my response. Linda seemed hesitant, as if she were trying to decide whether to ask more or simply ignore my strange statement. I could see the concern in her eyes, but also a certain curiosity, as if something inside her was intrigued by what I had to say.
"What do you mean by that?" She finally asked, her soft voice echoing in the silence of the infirmary.
I sat up slowly on the bed, feeling a wave of dizziness pass over me. My mind was still cloudy, as if I were struggling to emerge from a deep nightmare. I tried to articulate my words as coherently as possible.
"I... I saw things," I murmured, my voice still trembling. "Terrible things. In the cell... in there... something... something is wrong."
Linda watched me with a serious expression, her green eyes analyzing me carefully. She seemed to understand that something serious had happened, but couldn't fully comprehend what I was trying to communicate.
"Look... you and the others had a collective hallucination in that cell... The director has already arranged for an investigation, but we suspect carbon monoxide poisoning, we've already talked to him about the lack of windows in that place, but it seems he doesn't listen."
I stopped, confused by that information. Was I hallucinating? Well, maybe I would even think that if it weren't for what followed. A man in a dark suit entered. He had a serious and intimidating expression, and he asked Linda to leave.
"Listen here, young man, you're lucky to have come back. The others are catatonic... and probably won't come back to themselves. That's why your cooperation is extremely important, and we need to know: what did you see?"
I stumbled, recounting as much information as I could remember, from Tulley to Bob. The man listened to me without making any expression. After that, he took a radio that was hanging from his blazer and said some words that I didn't quite understand, something like "Ceter," "Queter"... and then he took a clipboard, handing it to me.
"This is your letter of freedom. Our proposal is as follows: We release you from prison and in exchange, you don't open your mouth about the specific events mentioned here," he pointed to the clauses.
That was five years ago, and given my freedom, you must imagine that not everything that happened is transcribed here, but the most important parts are. I ended up visiting Munford a few times after that, and I was horrified to discover that Francis, on the eve of his release, hanged himself with the bedsheet. The old man and I stared at each other after this discovery, in a mutual silent understanding. Shortly after, they closed not only the cell, but our entire pavilion, relocating the inmates. I never saw Munford or any of the others again after that. My nightmares persisted, but in recent months they have been much less frequent, and I think I might be slowly healing.
I wanted to say that this story ends well, with my rehabilitation. A troublesome prisoner full of stories becoming a family man. And it would be, if it weren't for the last 15 minutes of this morning. I believe you may remember that I received a letter this morning like that cursed number. I left it on the counter in the living room while I came here, to have breakfast and finish reporting this to you. When I finished the last paragraph, I went back to the room, but now, it seems like the whole nightmare is back.
I felt the tears, transparent this time, forming in my eyes. In the center of the room right now is Linda, holding the letter, looking at something in it that I can already imagine. She's standing there, wet and red stains on her face, I can hear her whispering "You need to see... need to see," and by God... I can see...

His ex sent me this message. Sorry it’s so long! Has anybody else gotten a similar message in the past? How did you react?
Message below: “It’s been over a year of me wondering whether I should just come out and ask you or message you… but being afraid that if I do, and I’m wrong, it’ll be a the biggest mistake of my life. I have begged and begged him to tell me what you are to him, and he denies having anything more than a platonic friendship with you.
I want to preface this message with, I have no ill will towards you, I just want some answers… answers I don’t believe I’m going to get from Jared. I don’t know if he’s mentioned anything about me. So here goes…
November 2022, I sent Jared an email, telling him I loved him, missed him, and though I didn’t require a response back, I wanted him to know how sorry I was for everything that had happened and things had ended. He responded with a lengthy email telling me he still fervently loved me and how he too was sorry for how things had ended. That email lead to the last year and a half of events.
December 2022, I drove down to Roanoke and surprised him at the Carilion garage. He left the hospital as fast as he could that night, and we spent the rest of that evening together, catching up, and he left for Key West two days later. Two weeks later, he came up to DC and we had a late birthday celebration for him at Clyde’s in Georgetown and went to see A Christmas Carol at the Ford Theater. A few weeks later we drove to Jersey to see Matchbox20, by now it was the end of January 2023. Almost every week off, for the last year, he would come up and see me, if even for only two days, or I would drive down to Roanoke and spend the week with him. We spoke about our past, the hurt, and future, he told me numerous times that when he pictured marriage and children, it was only with me, but he needed time. This part is important, and I’ll come back to it later. We celebrated my birthday at a restaurant in Navy Yard, two weeks before you guys left for London. Chris video chatted with that night while we were at the restaurant eating Wagyu, and they discussed the new shipment of sunglasses Chris had gotten for Miggieswear.
The weekend of the Super Bowl, he had come seen me earlier that week, the day after he left I came to Roanoke and left the day of the Super Bowl. He told me his parents were having a viewing party and he had to go home and cook. I’m now assuming he left my Airbnb and came to your place.
That February he planned a trip to London, with Nicole, Ryan and Chris, and what he told me were, Nicole’s “friends.” Nicole happened to post a picture of you guys sitting on the plane and I was shocked, why would Nicole’s friend be sitting between him and Ryan. I sent him a message while you were on that 6 hour flight, telling him that if he had been seeing somebody, then why didn’t he tell me? There was no point in us spending time together if he had moved on. His response to me was “do you even know what you’re looking at? I’m surprised you don’t recognize her, that’s Nicole’s friend. You’re jumping to a lot of conclusions right now and don’t know what you’re talking about.” Something in my gut didn’t believe it but I wanted to trust that, so I did. I put you out of sight, out of mind. When he got back, he told me how he wished I’d been there with him, we both love history and old buildings, it’s a place we would have found magical together. I don’t know who came up with the idea of going to London, but part of me always thinks I’m the one who put it there when I shared the pictures i had taken when I went there the year we had been no contact.
We went to a Kenny Chesney concert in Charlottesville that March when I got back from my family trip to India, and he got back from London. Between work, us both traveling with our families, we were excited to see one another. We were going to go to St Augustine, but because of the weather, we stayed in Roanoke and saw Kenny Chesney in Charlottesville. The original plan had been to spend the night in Charlottesville at a hotel, but we couldn’t get one last minute so we ended up driving back to Roanoke and sneaking into the basement at his parents house and sleeping in his bed at 3am.
A few months later, we went to Richmond, and stayed the weekend, exploring the city, and watched Hamilton at the Altria Theater. A few months after that, we went to Savannah and Atlanta, where he got a flat tire driving into the garage, and spent the rest of the weekend at a yoga retreat. July, he asked me to go to Boston with him and his brother, for 4th or July weekend, but I couldn’t because my siblings were in town. Every single week, he came down and either stayed with me, or made a quick trip to spend time with me…
This past September, I found out he took you to Justin’s wedding, and I broke. I needed more from him. I have known him, been intimate with him, shared my every fear, worry, I have brought him home cooked meals from DC and surprised him at work with dinner, I’ve made him care packages. I’ve made Ryan Easter baskets and sent him birthday presents and encouraged Jared to put him in academic classes, I’ve helped Jared look into private schools for Ryan, and weighed the pros and cons of the options. I had no expectations in return from him other than, at the very least, a mutual respect and HONESTY.
I’ve seen him quite a few times since September and I last saw him in Roanoke at the beginning of March 2024. We sat in front of each other, in his car before he went into work that Monday night, and he told me, again, that when he thinks of marriage and a future, I’m the only one he pictures a marriage and children with. I’m not saying this to hurt you, or to make a point, I’m saying it because i don’t know what to believe anymore.
I became suspicious of his relationship with you, when he mentioned going to Macchu Picchu and hiking through the mountains. As all women have the ability to find out details they might later regret, I did the same thing. Except I didn’t believe he had actually gone to Macchu Picchu. I knew his passport had been long expired since around or before COVID, and I knew he had renewed it before he went to London. But that was when I realized you were the girl in the photo that Nicole posted. When I confronted him about Macchu Picchu, he told me he had been joking and he had also already told me he’d been joking. He had NEVER told me it was a joke, he had actually refused to show me photos when I asked him for pictures from the trip… he had then proceeded to change the topic, which is what had even raised red flags in my head.
My point is, I have asked him point blank so many times whether you two have a relationship. You tell me you still love me, that you picture marriage and a family with me, but this girl is a part of your life, and you took her to a wedding with you, while I was on a trip with my siblings, you took her to London with you, and you continue to tell me she’s just a friend. I asked him again on Tuesday night/Wednesday Morning after he left work, if you two are dating, and he said no. He asked me why I’m so hyper-fixated on somebody who’s just a friend when he has a million other female friends.
In September, he told me he needed a month to clear his head, that he wanted to commit to me, but he was afraid and that he needed to get over the fear and roadblock of our past break up. I gave him grace and understood. So we took a 4 week break. Some time during that time period, he sent me a snap of doves, and said “doves, and swans mate for life.” He sent me Ed Sheeran songs telling me he wants to find his way back to me. “No Strings Attached… you are the one I love”
In November, he messaged me and told me he had a surprise for me and to look for something in the mail. He loves the Count of Monte Carlo, it’s one of his favorite movies, and he told me it was in reference to that. A few weeks later I got a candle, a silver 400 dollar Buddha candle from Thomson Ferrier. I didn’t understand the reference to the Count of Monte Carlo, but it was a beautiful gesture and present… especially because he knew how much little gestures from him mean to me.
Fast forward to January, I got another 350 dollar black skull candle from him, from Thomson Ferrier. At this point I was upset, angry and livid. I called my sister in tears that evening. I had come back to him because he told me he loved me, that he “has a fire that burns so deeply” when he thinks of me. If i had known that wasn’t true, i would have closed the chapter a year and a half ago. I don’t want $700 worth of gifts and candles, I want more. I want marriage, I want children, I want our lives to move forward, I want communication. Out of anger, I packed up the candle, his sweatshirts and clothes that he had left at my place this past year, and mailed them back to his house. I’m sure it’s sitting somewhere in his basement closet/ bedroom… along with his white Huq sweatshirt, a picture of us I had up in my house, and various articles of clothing.
What upsets me is that he didn’t just involve me this year, he involved my family. He sent my mom presents, my parents in return sent him gifts. My sister, parents and cousins messaged him asking him to come around more. There was no point in involving my family, if he was going to involve himself with you. There was no point in involving himself with me, if he was going to involve himself with you. Those leather Indian shoes sitting in his room, my dad bought those for him. That blue sweater, those green pants and that maroon shirt, my parents bought those for him just this last year.
I don’t know what he’s told you about me, but I will say this. I was your age when we started dating. I was 29 years old. He was single, that’s what everyone in our residency program thought. He would tell everyone how Shari left him one day, all of a sudden just got up and left. “I saw the look behind her eyes just change when she looked at me.” He would tell everyone his horrific dating stories. When i started dating him, there was no doubt in my mind he was single… but I was wrong. He wasn’t single, he was dating Devon, one of the nurses from Carilion, and he had been for the past 4 years prior to that. At one point when he moved to Norfolk, she had even moved in with him. Even Shari was visiting him in Norfolk during this time period. I would have never suspected it, nobody in our residency program did. It wasn’t until one day, when he told me his friends were visiting from home, and they were all going to a concert together, that I found out. Her profile picture was of the two of them together, and her Facebook relationship status said “in a relationship.” Out of my own naivety, i believed him when he told me she was crazy and obsessed with him. He told me, to him, they were just friends but she wanted more. Women do a lot of things, but no woman is dumb enough to think she’s your girlfriend when she’s not. When we moved back to our hometowns, Devon was there waiting for him. He disappeared one day for 24 hours, told me that he was helping his dad’s friend who was stranded in NC. A year and a half later, i would find out that was a lie and that he had been at a concert Florida Georgia Line concert with her. She had been visiting his grandmother with him, staying at his parents home. The irony is that a few weeks after he took her, he took me to the same concert in Scranton. Him and his family didn’t bat an eye when a month later, I showed up and was the “new girlfriend.”
Eventually Devon found out about his lies and left him, but again, stupid me thought she was a crazy girl who just wanted so badly to be with him, that she built their relationship up in her head.
Dignity, respect for humans, empathy, are the most important qualities in a human being.
What I don’t wish is for you to be in my spot in 5 years. He will paint you in his colors, make you fall in love with MB20, and take you to Augustana concerts, he’ll tell you that you understand him, and his heart in a way that nobody else does. He’ll bond with you over music, and send you songs that make you feel he’s talking about you. He is so good at making you feel seen, and involving you with his family. He’ll say he had a vision of a girl that looks like you, coming into his life, and here you are, his soul mate. And one day, the same way that Shari, Devon and I got lost in him, the reality of everything will come pouring down on you. Be careful, there are signs between the lines, and the smiles, and good times. Make sure you don’t miss those, whatever you decide.
My relationship with him, started off just like yours. Another girl on the periphery, and teetering the line of inappropriate. Everything you call him out on, will always have an excuse, and you will believe him because he’s the “good guy” who goes above and beyond for people.
I don’t wish for any woman to go through the pain I’ve gone through, the manipulation, the lies and the emotional abuse. I can’t tell you what to do, but I will say, be careful and don’t be blind to the small things that will one day become huge. The novelty will fade, and though Jared isn’t the devil, he has a lot of growing up to do at 40. It was not okay to toy with me and drag me through the mud this year. It wasn’t okay to minimize his relationship with you and lie to me about it. It’s not okay to, to this day claim to see a life with me and not commit to it. I deserve better, and you deserve better.
How men talk about their ex’s and other women is an indication about how they will one day talk about and treat you. That is the worst and best lesson i have learned. I’m 34, years of my life wasted, and he took another year of my life knowing full well, this is how it would end. He’s sat on the phone with me for hours talking about how stupid PA’s are and if you were going to not be a doctor, at least become an NP, who has better bedside knowledge. Why would he say that, because i suppose you’re a PA and it minimizes the significance of even having a relationship with somebody who isn’t as intelligent as he is. The lack of respect will always be there, you just have to look for it.
Dishonesty, and manipulation are a plague, and if that’s who you are at 40, it is who you will always be unless you recognize that something needs to change. Where there is no accountability, there can be no change. I’m not the exception, I’m the same as the two girls before me. He’ll show you text messages where he never responded to me, even though he replies on Snapchat where every thing is erased. I cannot believe i didn’t see the signs. He will make me look crazy and laugh at me, the same way he showed me messages from Jen, and Elisabeth, and Devon, and made them sound crazy to me. I guess that’s his MO. The same way he told me you were nothing to him.
I was going to send you this message, two months ago… i then decided not to because he convinced me he wasn’t dating you… I saw him less than a month ago in Roanoke, i begged him to tell me that he was in a relationship with you. He said he wasn’t, again, he told me he was going to a wedding alone with only Ryan and that he wasn’t taking you. I then begged him to tell me that we were done and that he didn’t love me anymore. His response was idk what’s going to happen a year from now, i know I’ll see you again. His response every time has been when im ready for a relationship, emotionally, do you want me to finally let you know? I don’t care to be with him anymore. I’m so over it but i really think you should know the type of person you’re dealing with.
He has put me through so much hell for a year and a half of my life, stringing me along acting like he’s doing me a favor while he works on his own mental health and claims to still love me when we are together.”
TLDR: my SO’s ex messaged me saying he’s been seeing both of us for the past year and a half. Has anybody experienced this before. She sent me pictures from the past year of them and their text exchanges

Thank you u/SpacePaladin15 for the amazing universe!
l Prologue l Previous l Next l
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Memory transcription subject: Kalsim, Captain, United Federation Fleet
Date [standardized human time]: December 30th, 2136
It became harder and harder to remember why we came in the first place when the simple process of landing on the ground was tantamount to stepping back into the past.
So many of the sensations granted by the asteroid sanctuary, the smells,the sights, the sounds, were so hauntingly familiar. Of flying from treetop to treetop, seeing my non sapient kin fly free of the burden of galactic existence. Of fruits and berries picked right from the stem, carrying with them flavors that bordered on ecstasy. The calls and cries of a nature beaten down time and time again, but still managed to stand back up on its own two legs every single time.
So much of it was familiar, yet so much of it wasn't.
"Kelum, do you recognize that?" referring to the foreign call sounding off in the distance.
He was still trying to process his surroundings, beak poised catch several insects. "Uh...no, I don't."
I turned in the direction of its source. "Neither do I."
"What about that bird from earlier?"
The one that flew by the viewport? "Didn't recognize that one either."
"Shit then." Kelum slowly returned to guard mode as he began sweeping his rifle over the foliage. "Your the big history guy here, I'm relying on you. What does it mean that you don't know?"
"Well, maybe call it a gap in my knowledge..." my attention was caught by a strange cluster of berries perched on a nearby bush. Collected in bunches, the fruits were oblong, almost cylindrical, orange with black spots across the skin. The aroma was sweet and tangy, something I knew several officers on the Lyakuda would love to use as an air freshener. And it was entirely unrecognizable.
Yet some base instinct inside of me said that it belonged. That it all belonged. That the ferns and grasses adn the strange noises that seemed foreign to my home were in fact an integral part of this one. There was song being played that I couldn't quiet yet hear, but I knew was there. Whether it was one that I would enjoy was still up for debate.
"Captain?"
"Wuh?" I spun around to see Kelum checking me with a look of concern.
"You kinda zoned out there for a sec. Are you alright?"
"Sorry, I was just thinking." I stepped back from the bush and into the clearing. "I...don't know what to make of this. This place..."
Kelum shrugged. "Couldn't tell you either cap. I'm just along for the ride at this point."
"All I need you to do is to keep that gun raised, just in case." Some part of me said that it would be unnecessary. After all, the Federation wiped out any native species that posed even the slightest threat to a krakotl. And by all means, this place seemed like Nishtal. But then again...
A sharp cry grabbed the silence and violently broke it over its knee. More like a wail, piercing in its effect, little needles in our eardrums that seemed to stab more and more as the seconds dragged along. The pitch never faltered, even as the cry let the background jungle settle back into its normal rhythm. I looked over to see Kelum taking deep breaths, before I realized I was too.
"Cap, what the fuck was that?" For the first time since we arrived, tendrils of genuine fear seemed to creep into Kelum's voice. At the very least, he was never letting go of that rifle ever again.
"I don't know, I never heard that before either."
"Well I need you to start knowing right fucking now, cause I don't like that shit, not one bit."
"Neither do I, but we need to remain calm. Now's not the time to start acting like Sivkit," another awful wail echoed in the further distance, "so keep that rifle up."
Kelum didn't need to be told twice. "Maybe we shouldn't stick around. Maybe we've seen everything we've needed to see."
Some part of me agreed with him. You didn't need to be a prey to not be comfortable sharing a space with whatever made that sound. And I don't think that's all this place has in store for us. For better and for worse...
"We saw those buildings. We were just in that observation room. This place is more than just a sanctuary. We need to keep going."
Kelum raised a talon in argument, faltered, then sighed. "If I die here, I'm gonna fucking kill you cap."
That somehow raised a chuckle out of me. "Glad to see your still you."
"You drag me to the gallows, least you can do is let me get the last laugh in." Kelum pushed past me and began sifting through the undergrowth. "I'll lead. I think the town was this way."
Directions, thankfully, weren't going to be an issue. Despite its gargantuan size, the sanctuary appeared to have a pretty simple layout. A giant circle, with the town at the center, surrounded on all sides by thick jungle. All we had to do was walk forward. If only if it was that simple.
I did manage to recognize many of the plants that composed the flora, only due to their absence on the Nishtal I knew. The undergrowth there was absolutely sparse in comparison to here, mostly thanks to the Federation's anti predator efforts. Without natural balances to keep them in check, the native herbivores of Nishtal went wild, stripping the ground level nearly down to the very soil itself. If not for our geoengineering tech, the planet would've suffered an ecological collapse that would've made the Cradle look like hiccup in comparison.
This place seemed to suffer no such issues. Great for the local ecosystem, terrible for us. For not only was it hot, not only was it humid, we had to push through vine and bramble so thick it was nearly impossible to squeeze through. It didn't help that the we seemed to be heading down a slope, so the atmosphere only got thicker as we descended further. It came to the point where I almost considered stripping off my vest so I wouldn't die of heatstroke on the spot. Thankfully we came across a small clearing, which gave us the opportunity to catch our breaths.
"How close do you think we are?" I asked between pulls of impossibly humid air.
"Don't know, but we have to be close." Kelum looked up to the 'sky', where the 'sun' had really reached its zenith. "Hard to tell, but we're definitely making progress."
"Stars above, whatever this is must be worth it."
"Better fucking be. Not dying of thirst on some secret asteroid zoo run by...fuck I don't know. You said you thought it was someone up high who contacted you?"
"Yeah, but that was just a confident guess."
He chuckled. "Maybe this is just his private resort or something. They definitely have the money to hollow out an asteroid. Maybe there will be a pool and a bar on the other side of this bush."
I had to admit, the possibility was funny. "If this was just a roundabout way for Nikonus to invite me over for a drink, I swear to the stars above I'll glass Aafa myself."
Kelum laughed. "Glad to hear your in a good mood cap."
"I'm not."
He stood up, ready to get on the move again. "At least you know what a joke is. Did you know I used to work for Jerulim? Head so far up his ass he forgot what-"
The rustle from a nearby bush cut off Kelum's admiration of our ambassador. He trained the rifle on the source, talon itching to let the weapon bark. The pistol in my holster gained a newfound presence as something began to emerge from within the shadows.
"Alright then, come at me you...oh."
The creature that caused us so much worry turned out to be a small lizard, scales verdant, barely the length of my wing. It crawled from underneath the bush and across the dark earth of the clearing. It took a moment to regard us with two beady side facing eyes, before it began on its way once more.
Kelum lowered the rifle, and began breathing once again. "Damn, little buddy there gave me a-"
Before he had a chance to finish, a rush of air came from behind, and a flash of green and gold plucked the lizard off the ground right in front of our eyes. Before we had a chance to fully process what just happened, the bird was away, propelling itself skyward, the unfortunate lizard grasped firmly in its talons.
We stared dumbly as the...predator ascended, then leveled out, before finally disappearing behind the canopy. Kelum went to say something several times, but each attempt only seemed to point his rifle closer and closer to the ground. Finally, he turned to face me directly, his face the farthest point from comprehension it could possibly go.
"Cap, did that..." he didn't need to finish his sentence. I was still struggling to construe it, but we both saw the same thing.
"Yes, it did."
Kelum nodded his head, before turning it back to the sky. "It did..."
As the shock of the lizard being hunted wore off, I managed to have some thoughts on the situation. This place is definitely not the Nishtal I know. The Federation would never let a bird like that exist in any form besides ash. Yet here it was, in a facility no doubt constructed by the Federation. Is that what the note writer wanted us to see?
"Cap?" I turned to see Kelum once again wear that worried expression. "Any ideas?"
"I...don't know. Maybe this is...some sort of facility to study predators? An isolated environment, far from any inhabited planet, where they won't pose any danger?"
Kelum sighed. "I think that's the best we got right now. But that still doesn't explain the town."
"No, it doesn't." At this point, I was worried that the distant collection of buildings we saw would only serve to raise even more questions. Who lives there? More krakotl? kolshians? Is it empty? But standing around wouldn't answer any questions. It'll kill us, given everything we've seen so far. "Kelum, we have to keep moving."
"Yeah, your right, but with all this..." He paused, before looking at me, then himself. "Are we stupid?"
"Uh...what do you mean."
"Cap, we're birds."
"Yes, but..."
"...oh..."
We had become so enamored with our surroundings that we completely forgot the fact that we could fly.
"Yeah, oh." Kelum slung his rifle over his shoulders, and extended his wings out to their full length. "Hopefully we can just fly right over all of this shit."
"Good thinking, wish we thought of-" Another rustle caught my attention, this time from the nearest tree. In the shadowed canopy far above, I could just barely make out something slinking among the branches.
Earth and debris began to swirl as Kelum went airborne. "Something wrong Cap?"
"Nothing, it's just..." Another branch moved, then fell entirely still. Out of all things, why does this seem so...
And then all at once, days spent at the academy flooded back. Memories of illegal histories and textbooks downloaded over the internet, of countless nights spent secretly learning my peoples true history, of why the Federation even considered us prey in the first place.
Oh no.
"Kelum, KELUM!"
"Cap, wha-"
My yell was enough for Kelum to falter, just enough so that the blur that leapt out of the tree missed him by a feathers width. It landed on a trunk opposite to me, claws sharper than an Arxurs digging into the bark. Its earthen fur, which camouflaged it amidst the foliage, now stood on its ends. A growl gurgled from between its barred teeth, and four forward facing eyes trained directly on me.
For a moment we stared each other down, as we both processed the fact that we were seeing specters. My breath caught, my wings were shaking, and I couldn't focus. Partly out of fear, partly out of the impossibility of the whole situation.
Your supposed to be dead. The Federation killed you, they killed ALL of you.
But it didn't care much for the Federation. It only cared about me. Because it was the predator, and I was now its prey.
It launched off the trunk, almost defying gravity as it crossed the gap at a nearly imperceptible speed. I tried to dodge out of the way, but I only managed halfway before an unfathomable pain flashed across my chest and sent my spinning into the earth.
Something warm and sticky filled the space between my vest and chest as my vision faded in and out. Loud pops sounded off one after another, fully killing the already injured silence. That terrible wail once again echoed distantly, cut off by another pop, and the calm returned once again. Shadows invaded the corners of my vision, threatening to overtake everything. As the false sun dispapeared behind Kelum, consciousness finally slipped away.
The pain was the first thing to greet me, followed by the contradiction of the relatively cool air. The battle between them, the pounding agony and the soothing cold, was what awoke me from my imposed slumber.
Fluttering my eyes met we with large splotches of grey and gold, spattered over my vision like spilled buckets of paint. It took several moments for everything to gain defintion, while another spot of blue went back and forth across my sight.
K...Kelum?
Something I did caught his attention, for he stopped in his tracks and immediately came to my side.
"Captain....Cap...can you hear me?"
"I...Kelum?"
"Yeah, yeah, Cap, it's me. It's Kelum."
"Kelum..."
Kelum was standing over me, fatigue dragging at his features. His talons, his wings, his vest, all of him was smeared with violet. Looking behind him revealed that we were in some sort of cave, orange light cascading through the distant entrance. The rock reflected it all, granting the scene an almost...magmatic appearence. Like everything was going to melt right on top of us and burn us alive. My chest already felt much that way anyways.
"Stars above, your awake. I thought you weren't gonna make it."
I managed to look down to see that I was entirely naked, spare for the fithly fabrics wrapped tightly around my chest. They, along with the feathers surrounding it, was also stained a pugent violet.
"Kelum," a cough sent bolts of pain running across my chest.
"Take it easy, Cap, take it easy." Kelum pressed a talon on my shoulder to keep me from gettiing up. "It got you pretty good. You lost a lot of blood."
"Wha...what happened." My memory was still fuzzy, no more defined than my vision mere moments ago. All that was there were feelings, of fear, pain, confusion, and in some small note, even awe.
"That...that thing, it almost got me. If you hadn't had called out, I...fuck, that fall would've done most of the work." Kelum's brevity was all but gone, leaving behind a bloodied, anxious wreck. "And then it pounced on you, got you across the chest. There was so much blood, I thought you were going to..." He trailed off as he considered the possibility. It was still a possibility.
"Hey," I managed weakly. "I'm still here. It hasn't got me yet."
Kelum managed to regain some of his composure. "I...had to use your vest as a bandage. I don't know how long it'll hold, but it's stopped the bleeding for now."
I looked down at my chest again. Somewhere beneath the tattered remains of my uniform laid a gash that nearly ended my life. There was a momentary urge to peel back the fabric to see how bad it was, but that would only hasten things at that point.
"Kelum...if I don't make it..."
"Cap, don't say that."
"Kelum, it's my job as a captain to realistically assess the situation we find ourselves in. And the fact is that I can't fly. I don't even know if I can walk. Odds are that more of those Dakquo are roaming around out there, along with stars know what else. If this," I pointed to my bandage, "doesn't get me, everything else will."
"Cap..." Kelum didn't want to accept it, but I could see that he knew it was true. I was living on borrowed time.
"Kelum, for what it's worth, I wouldn't have chosen anyone else to come with me. Even in this place, you've flown above and beyond the call of duty. And for that, thank you."
Kelum couldn't help a tear from rolling down his cheek, one which he quickly wiped away, leaving behind a little smear of purple. "Thanks cap, it's been an honor serving with you too."
Kelum stood over me for a long moment, before setting down beside me. He glanced deeper into the tunnel , before turning back to face the entrance. "Cap?"
"Yeah?" My breathing was beginning to grow more ragged.
"You mentioned a Dakquo? Was that..."
"Yeah, it was."
Another moment of silence.
It's ironic, isn't it.
"It was a predator from before the Federation arrived. It likes to hide up in the trees, waiting for something to fly past. That's when it pounces. I...became fasncinated with it in my youth. To think, such a powerful creature once roamed our home, that we coexisted with it peacefully for so long. And in an instant, the Federation took it all away. I never thought I would see one. I was never suppsoed to see one. They're supposed to be all dead."
Kelum took another glance back.
"So when I saw it there, about to pounce, a small part of me couldn't help but feel amazed. Something they took from us, something that once defined who we were. And there it was, right in front of my eyes."
I coughed again, and pain roared back once more. Kelum gripped me tighly as it slowly faded, but didn't fully disppear. I didn't have long. Hours, maybe a day or two at the most.
I looked down at the wrap. A small bead of blood peeked out from the wound, which I picked up on the tip of my talon. It glowed pink under the fading light.
"It's funny. It only took a thousand years, but things are finally back to normal."
Kelum glanced back once more.
"Kelum, what are you looking at?"
"I.." he blinked, "I've been trying to ignore it, but there's down the tunnel there."
"What do you mean? Is it-"
"It's not alive, but..." his look said it might has well been. "I'm gonna check it out."
"I'm coming with you." I moved to stand up, but Kelum placed a talon on my shoulder.
"Your not going anywhere cap. Walking around isn't gonna do you any good."
"Like sitting here is." Ignoring my wound scremaing murder, I stood up, and balanced myself on two shaky legs. "I'm not sitting this out. Not anymore."
"But cap-"
"Kelum, I came here because it was a choice I could make. Let me make this one too."
Kelum moved to protest, but only managed to sigh. He unholstered my pistol, and handed it off to me. "If you die now, I'm gonna kill you cap."
That managed a frail chcukle out of me. "Glad to see your still you."
"Fuck, I'm glad too."
Every step was like ten years spent on a cattle farm, but I was able to at least walk. We began slowly creeping deeper into the cave, with Kelum bringing up his weapon light against the encroaching darkness. It revealed something only barely visible from our previous spot, a set of...bones. Inching closer showed that the corpse wasn't of a bird, or that lizard, or even the Dakquo. Rather...
"Wait..." Kelum pasued his light on the skull, where two forward facing sokcets stared back. The snout was elongated, housing row upon row of razor sharp teeth. It rested near what remained of the creatures long tail...and the hands...
"No way..."
Kelum turned his light on one of the hands. Four fingers, and...two thumbs.
"That can't be possible." Kelum swept the light to the other arm, and the story was the same. Four fingers, two thumbs. "No, this can't be right."
It wasn't supposed to be possible, but it was. It was staring us right in the face, with sockets that housed eyes that once terrfied the entire galaxy.
"It's an arxur."
Before we even had time to process the discovery, noises from back where we came caught our attention. Kelum turned towards the light, rifle raised in anticiaption of another attack. I raised my pistol, before a flash of agony nearly sent me to the ground. Something tore, something seperated, and my chest suddenly began to feel too warm. I looked down to see that the bandage had gone loose, and the blood was beginning to run free.
"Oh shit, Kalsim, hold on!"
"It's fine...it's fine." I lowered to the ground as Kelum began frantically ripping off his own vest. The blood was running in little rivers between my feathers as my gaurd despratley tried to stem the flow. But it wasn't working this time. Even with mine and his, the makeshift dressing wasn't enough to prevent what was coming now.
Everything began to fade, Kelums deseperate pleas for me to stay awake, the approaching footsteps, what sounded like voices, all rapdily consumed by the encroaching fog. Even the pain, which seemed to slink away with every passing second.
It was so...peaceful. Even as Kelum began to shake me, even as he was thrown aside by a shadowed figure, I wasn't afraid. Maybe I lost the capacity to be afraid. The path set for me left me liable to be shot or annihilaited at any given moment. I long accepted the inevitability of my death, but I was no hurry to greet it. And now here I was, knocking on the door.
The darkness envloped me entirely, and sensation quickly fell away. Just as I crossed the threshhold, one final thought occured to me:
At least it was all my fault.
l Prologue l Previous l Next l

Welcome to The Fleet Facto®y!

Est. 2946
 
Standalone Ships:

Type	Name	Melt value	Upgrade value	Price
CCU'd	Vulture LTI	$120	$175	$149
CCU'd	Vulture LTI BIS 2953	$125	$175	$165
CCU'd	Zeus MKII MR LTI	$135	$190	$174
CCU'd	Constellation Taurus LTI	$135	$200	$179
CCU'd	Vulcan LTI	$145	$200	$179
CCU'd	Hurricane LTI	$130	$210	$179
CCU'd	Terrapin LTI	$155	$220	$194
CCU'd	Railen LTI	$160	$225	$199
CCU'd	Constellation Andromeda LTI	$155	$240	$189
CCU'd	Scorpius LTI	$140	$240	$189
CCU'd	Corsair LTI	$165	$250	$199
CCU'd	Corsair LTI BIS 2953	$165	$250	$215
CCU'd	400i LTI	$165	$250	$199
CCU'd	Ares Inferno LTI	$140	$250	$199
CCU'd	Ares Ion LTI	$140	$250	$199
CCU'd	Mercury Star Runner LTI	$155	$260	$195
CCU'd	Vanguard Warden LTI	$155	$260	$209
CCU'd	Vanguard Sentinel LTI	$160	$275	$219
CCU'd	Retaliator Bomber LTI	$160	$275	$219
CCU'd	Apollo Medivac LTI	$160	$275	$219
CCU'd	Vanguard Harbinger LTI	$175	$290	$225
CCU'd	Eclipse LTI	$170	$300	$225
CCU'd	Constellation Aquila LTI	$210	$315	$239
CCU'd	Mole LTI	$210	$315	$239
CCU'd	Redeemer LTI BIS 2953	$205	$325	$245
CCU'd	Caterpillar LTI	$195	$330	$239
CCU'd	Starfarer Gemini LTI	$210	$340	$244
CCU'd	Crucible LTI	$220	$350	$255
CCU'd	Endeavor LTI	$220	$350	$255
CCU'd	Glaive LTI	$220	$350	$295
CCU'd	Valkyrie LTI	$220	$375	$259
CCU'd	Galaxy LTI	$225	$380	$264
CCU'd	Reclaimer LTI	$245	$400	$279
CCU'd	C2 Hercules LTI	$245	$400	$289
CCU'd	Prowler LTI	$255	$440	$299
CCU'd	600i Explorer LTI BIS 2953	$260	$475	$315
CCU'd	Hull C LTI	$265	$500	$325
CCU'd	M2 Hercules LTI	$285	$520	$335
CCU'd	Hull D LTI	$270	$550	$339
CCU'd	Liberator LTI	$300	$575	$359
CCU'd	Arrastra LTI	$290	$575	$349
CCU'd	Carrack LTI	$280	$600	$355
CCU'd	Orion LTI	$290	$600	$359
CCU'd	Merchantman LTI	$280	$650	$359
CCU'd	Perseus LTI	$300	$675	$369
CCU'd	Odyssey LTI	$325	$675	$379
CCU'd	Hammerhead	$300	$725	$369
CCU'd	A2 Hercules LTI	$300	$750	$374
CCU'd	Polaris LTI	$330	$750	$389

Special offers, limited numbers:

Type	Name	Upgrade value	Price	Quantity

 
Ship and Vehicle Upgrades:

Type	Name	Price
AEGIS
CCU	325A to Avenger Titan Renegade	$10
CCU	Reliant Kore to Avenger Titan Renegade	$18
CCU	Reliant Tana to Avenger Warlock	$18
CCU	325A to Avenger Warlock	$25
CCU	315P to Avenger Warlock	$30
CCU	Vanguard Harbinger to Eclipse	$18
CCU	M50 to Gladius Valiant	$18
CCU	Odyssey to Hammerhead	$45
CCU	Odyssey to Nautilus	$45
CCU	Valkyrie to Reclaimer	$35
CCU	Gladiator to Sabre	$11
CCU	Sabre to Sabre Comet	$25
CCU	Terrapin to Vanguard Hoplite	$32
CCU	Apollo Triage to Vanguard Warden	$18
CCU	Vanguard Hoplite to Vanguard Warden	$32
CCU	Sabre Comet to Vulcan	$25
CCU	Super Hornet to Vulcan	$25
ANVIL
CCU	Freelancer DUR to Ballista	$11
CCU	Liberator to Carrack	$44
CCU	Starfarer Gemini to Crucible	$18
CCU	Prospector to Gladiator	$17
CCU	Reliant Mako to Hawk	$11
CCU	Gladius to Hawk	$17
CCU	Sabre Comet to Hornet Heartseeker	$19
CCU	Super Hornet to Hornet Heartseeker	$25
CCU	Prospector to Hornet Wildfire	$32
CCU	Vulcan to Hurricane	$18
CCU	Taurus to Hurricane	$18
CCU	F7C Hornet to Legionnaire	$18
CCU	Mustang Beta to Pisces C8X	$10
CCU	Dragonfly Black to Pisces C8X	$10
CCU	Arrow to Spartan	$11
CCU	Hornet Wildfire to Super Hornet	$17
CCU	Sabre to Super Hornet	$24
CCU	Khartu-Al to Super Hornet	$24
CCU	Gladiator to Super Hornet	$31
CCU	Prospector to Super Hornet	$45
CCU	Vulcan to Terrapin	$33
CCU	Crucible to Valkyrie	$44
CCU	Endeavor to Valkyrie	$44
AOPOA / XI'AN
CCU	Gladiator to Khartu-Al	$11
CCU	Prospector to Khartu-Al	$25
CCU	Dragonfly Black to Nox	$11
CCU	X1 Base to Nox Kue	$12
CCU	Vulcan to San'tok.Yai	$33
ARGO
CCU	Mustang Alpha to MPUV Cargo	$11
CCU	Razor to SRV	$11
CCU	Tracker to SRV	$18
BANU
CONSOLIDATED OUTLAND
CCU	Avenger Stalker to Mustang Delta	$10
CCU	300i to Mustang Delta	$17
CRUSADER
CCU	Andromeda to Ares Inferno	$18
CCU	Andromeda to Ares Ion	$18
CCU	Valkyrie to Genisis Starliner	$44
CCU	Nautilus to Hercules A2	$45
CCU	Hammerhead to Hercules A2	$45
CCU	Valkyrie to Hercules C2	$44
CCU	400i to Mercury Star Runner	$18
CCU	Andromeda to Mercury Star Runner	$33
DRAKE
CCU	Hawk to Buccaneer	$17
CCU	M50 to Buccaneer	$17
CCU	Mole to Caterpillar	$25
CCU	Sabre to Cutlass Blue	$11
CCU	Prospector to Cutlass Blue	$32
CCU	Reliant Tana to Herald	$17
CCU	325A to Herald	$24
CCU	Dragonfly Black to Mule	$11
CCU	Andromeda to Corsair	$18
KRUGER
MISC
CCU	Starfarer Gemini to Endeavor	$18
CCU	Hornet Tracker to Expanse	$17
CCU	Sabre to Freelancer MIS	$10
CCU	Gladiator to Freelancer MIS	$17
CCU	Prospector to Freelancer MIS	$33
CCU	Spartan to Hull A	$17
CCU	Arrow to Hull A	$23
CCU	Cutlass Red to Hull B	$12
CCU	Perseus to Odyssey	$44
CCU	Tracker to Razor	$11
CCU	Freelancer DUR to Razor	$17
CCU	Hornet Ghost to Razor	$32
CCU	Razor to Razor LX	$11
CCU	Tracker to Razor LX	$17
CCU	Freelancer MAX to Razor EX	$11
CCU	Razor LX to Razor EX	$11
CCU	Retaliator Base to Razor EX	$11
CCU	325A to Reliant Tana	$10
CCU	Arrow to Reliant Sen	$17
CCU	Reliant Tana to Reliant Sen	$17
CCU	325A to Reliant Sen	$24
CCU	Gladius to Reliant Mako	$10
CCU	325A to Reliant Mako	$36
CCU	Mole to Starfarer Gemini	$41
CCU	Starfarer to Starfarer Gemini	$58
ORIGIN
CCU	Dragonfly Black to 100i	$17
CCU	Ursa Rover to 125A	$17
CCU	Avenger Titan to 125A	$12
CCU	100i to 125A	$17
CCU	125A to 135C	$11
CCU	300i to 135C	$17
CCU	Mustang Gamma to 135C	$17
CCU	Andromeda to 400i	$18
CCU	Aurora CL to 85X	$11
CCU	Mustang Gamma to G12	$11
CCU	Mustang Gamma to G12R Racing	$11
CCU	Avenger Stalker to G12A Military	$11
CCU	G12 to G12A Military	$11
CCU	G12R Racing to G12A Military	$11
CCU	Reliant Mako to M50 Interceptor	$11
CCU	Gladius to M50 Interceptor	$17
CCU	Dragonfly Black to X1 Velocity	$17
CCU	X1 Baseline to X1 Velocity	$11
CCU	X1 Velocity to X1 Force	$11
CCU	X1 Baseline to X1 Force	$17
RSI
CCU	Apollo Triage to Apollo Medivac	$38
CCU	Vanguard Warden to Apollo Medivac	$27
CCU	Vanguard Hoplite to Apollo Triage	$18
CCU	Aurora MR to Aurora LX	$11
CCU	Razor to Mantis	$10
CCU	Hornet Tracker to Mantis	$18
CCU	Hammerhead to Polaris	$45
CCU	85X to Ursa Rover Fortuna	$12
TUMBRIL
CCU	Cyclone to Cyclone RC	$18
CCU	Cyclone to Cyclone TR	$18
CCU	Cyclone to Cyclone RN	$18
CCU	Cyclone to Cyclone AA	$37
CCU	Cyclone RC to Cyclone AA	$25
CCU	Cyclone TR to Cyclone AA	$25
CCU	Cyclone RN to Cyclone AA	$25
CCU	Ursa Rover to Cyclone	$11
CCU	Ursa Rover to Cyclone RC	$25
CCU	Ursa Rover to Cyclone TR	$25
CCU	Ursa Rover to Cyclone RN	$25
CCU	Ursa Rover to Cyclone AA	$45
CCU	300i to Cyclone RC	$11
CCU	300i to Cyclone TR	$11
CCU	300i to Cyclone RN	$11
CCU	325a to Cyclone MT	$18
CCU	Arrow to Cyclone AA	$11
CCU	F7C Hornet to Nova Tank	$17
CCU	Mustang Alpha to Ranger CV	$11
CCU	Mustang Alpha to Ranger RC	$11
CCU	Ranger CV to Ranger TR	$11
CCU	Ranger RC to Ranger TR	$11

 
Paints:

Ship	Name	Price
Aegis Avenger	Blue and gold ILW 2950	$15
Aegis Avenger	Solar Winds Paint	$15
Aegis Gladius	Solar Winds Paint	$18
Aegis Gladius	Blue and gold ILW 2953	$18
Aegis Vanguard	Solar Winds Paint	$22
Aegis Vanguard	Blue and gold ILW 2953	$22
Aegis Retaliator	Blue and gold ILW 2953	$22
Anvil Arrow	Twilight ILW 2950	$15
Anvil Centurion	Beachhead	$18
Anvil Hawk	Blue and gold ILW 2953	$18
Anvil Legionnaire	Shadow Strike Paint	$18
Anvil Hornet	Blue and gold ILW 2953	$18
Anvil Valkyrie	Splinter ILW 2950	$24
Anvil Liberator	Condor	$35
Crusader Mercury	Fortuna	$23
Cursader Spirit	Crimson	$20
Cursader Spirit	Intrepid	$20
Cursader Spirit	Olympia	$20
Cursader Hercules	Blue and gold ILW 2953	$29
Drake Dragonfly	Ghoulish Green	$15
Drake Cutlass	Ghoulish Green	$15
Drake Cutlass	Scull and Crossbones	$19
Drake Buccaneer	Ghoulish Green	$18
Drake Caterpillar	Ghoulish Green	$22
Drake Herald	Ghoulish Green	$18
Drake Mule	Ghoulish Green	$14
Drake Mule	Smokestack	$9
Drake Vulture	Ghoulish Green	$20
Gatac Railen	Hyaotan	$23
Greycat STV	Blue Steel	$9
Mirai Fury	Leatherback	$15
Misc Reliant	Blue and gold ILW 2953	$15
Misc Freelancer	Paint pack ILW 2950	$23
Misc Starfarer	Paint pack ILW 2950	$43
Misc Expanse	Stardust	$20
Origin 100i	Blue and gold ILW 2953	$23
Origin 400i	Fortuna	$23
Origin 400i	Penumbra	$29
Origin 400i	Meridian	$29
Origin 600i	Fortuna	$29
RSI Lynx	Moonrise	$15
RSI Aurora	Blue and gold ILW2950	$15
RSI Constellation	Blue and gold ILW2950	$22
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His ex sent me this message, should I believe it? I don’t know what to do. Sorry the message is really long!
“It’s been over a year of me wondering whether I should just come out and ask you or message you… but being afraid that if I do, and I’m wrong, it’ll be a the biggest mistake of my life. I have begged and begged him to tell me what you are to him, and he denies having anything more than a platonic friendship with you.
I want to preface this message with, I have no ill will towards you, I just want some answers… answers I don’t believe I’m going to get from Jared. I don’t know if he’s mentioned anything about me. So here goes…
November 2022, I sent Jared an email, telling him I loved him, missed him, and though I didn’t require a response back, I wanted him to know how sorry I was for everything that had happened and things had ended. He responded with a lengthy email telling me he still fervently loved me and how he too was sorry for how things had ended. That email lead to the last year and a half of events.
December 2022, I drove down to Roanoke and surprised him at the Carilion garage. He left the hospital as fast as he could that night, and we spent the rest of that evening together, catching up, and he left for Key West two days later. Two weeks later, he came up to DC and we had a late birthday celebration for him at Clyde’s in Georgetown and went to see A Christmas Carol at the Ford Theater. A few weeks later we drove to Jersey to see Matchbox20, by now it was the end of January 2023. Almost every week off, for the last year, he would come up and see me, if even for only two days, or I would drive down to Roanoke and spend the week with him. We spoke about our past, the hurt, and future, he told me numerous times that when he pictured marriage and children, it was only with me, but he needed time. This part is important, and I’ll come back to it later. We celebrated my birthday at a restaurant in Navy Yard, two weeks before you guys left for London. Chris video chatted with that night while we were at the restaurant eating Wagyu, and they discussed the new shipment of sunglasses Chris had gotten for Miggieswear.
The weekend of the Super Bowl, he had come seen me earlier that week, the day after he left I came to Roanoke and left the day of the Super Bowl. He told me his parents were having a viewing party and he had to go home and cook. I’m now assuming he left my Airbnb and came to your place.
That February he planned a trip to London, with Nicole, Ryan and Chris, and what he told me were, Nicole’s “friends.” Nicole happened to post a picture of you guys sitting on the plane and I was shocked, why would Nicole’s friend be sitting between him and Ryan. I sent him a message while you were on that 6 hour flight, telling him that if he had been seeing somebody, then why didn’t he tell me? There was no point in us spending time together if he had moved on. His response to me was “do you even know what you’re looking at? I’m surprised you don’t recognize her, that’s Nicole’s friend. You’re jumping to a lot of conclusions right now and don’t know what you’re talking about.” Something in my gut didn’t believe it but I wanted to trust that, so I did. I put you out of sight, out of mind. When he got back, he told me how he wished I’d been there with him, we both love history and old buildings, it’s a place we would have found magical together. I don’t know who came up with the idea of going to London, but part of me always thinks I’m the one who put it there when I shared the pictures i had taken when I went there the year we had been no contact.
We went to a Kenny Chesney concert in Charlottesville that March when I got back from my family trip to India, and he got back from London. Between work, us both traveling with our families, we were excited to see one another. We were going to go to St Augustine, but because of the weather, we stayed in Roanoke and saw Kenny Chesney in Charlottesville. The original plan had been to spend the night in Charlottesville at a hotel, but we couldn’t get one last minute so we ended up driving back to Roanoke and sneaking into the basement at his parents house and sleeping in his bed at 3am.
A few months later, we went to Richmond, and stayed the weekend, exploring the city, and watched Hamilton at the Altria Theater. A few months after that, we went to Savannah and Atlanta, where he got a flat tire driving into the garage, and spent the rest of the weekend at a yoga retreat. July, he asked me to go to Boston with him and his brother, for 4th or July weekend, but I couldn’t because my siblings were in town. Every single week, he came down and either stayed with me, or made a quick trip to spend time with me…
This past September, I found out he took you to Justin’s wedding, and I broke. I needed more from him. I have known him, been intimate with him, shared my every fear, worry, I have brought him home cooked meals from DC and surprised him at work with dinner, I’ve made him care packages. I’ve made Ryan Easter baskets and sent him birthday presents and encouraged Jared to put him in academic classes, I’ve helped Jared look into private schools for Ryan, and weighed the pros and cons of the options. I had no expectations in return from him other than, at the very least, a mutual respect and HONESTY.
I’ve seen him quite a few times since September and I last saw him in Roanoke at the beginning of March 2024. We sat in front of each other, in his car before he went into work that Monday night, and he told me, again, that when he thinks of marriage and a future, I’m the only one he pictures a marriage and children with. I’m not saying this to hurt you, or to make a point, I’m saying it because i don’t know what to believe anymore.
I became suspicious of his relationship with you, when he mentioned going to Macchu Picchu and hiking through the mountains. As all women have the ability to find out details they might later regret, I did the same thing. Except I didn’t believe he had actually gone to Macchu Picchu. I knew his passport had been long expired since around or before COVID, and I knew he had renewed it before he went to London. But that was when I realized you were the girl in the photo that Nicole posted. When I confronted him about Macchu Picchu, he told me he had been joking and he had also already told me he’d been joking. He had NEVER told me it was a joke, he had actually refused to show me photos when I asked him for pictures from the trip… he had then proceeded to change the topic, which is what had even raised red flags in my head.
My point is, I have asked him point blank so many times whether you two have a relationship. You tell me you still love me, that you picture marriage and a family with me, but this girl is a part of your life, and you took her to a wedding with you, while I was on a trip with my siblings, you took her to London with you, and you continue to tell me she’s just a friend. I asked him again on Tuesday night/Wednesday Morning after he left work, if you two are dating, and he said no. He asked me why I’m so hyper-fixated on somebody who’s just a friend when he has a million other female friends.
In September, he told me he needed a month to clear his head, that he wanted to commit to me, but he was afraid and that he needed to get over the fear and roadblock of our past break up. I gave him grace and understood. So we took a 4 week break. Some time during that time period, he sent me a snap of doves, and said “doves, and swans mate for life.” He sent me Ed Sheeran songs telling me he wants to find his way back to me. “No Strings Attached… you are the one I love”
In November, he messaged me and told me he had a surprise for me and to look for something in the mail. He loves the Count of Monte Carlo, it’s one of his favorite movies, and he told me it was in reference to that. A few weeks later I got a candle, a silver 400 dollar Buddha candle from Thomson Ferrier. I didn’t understand the reference to the Count of Monte Carlo, but it was a beautiful gesture and present… especially because he knew how much little gestures from him mean to me.
Fast forward to January, I got another 350 dollar black skull candle from him, from Thomson Ferrier. At this point I was upset, angry and livid. I called my sister in tears that evening. I had come back to him because he told me he loved me, that he “has a fire that burns so deeply” when he thinks of me. If i had known that wasn’t true, i would have closed the chapter a year and a half ago. I don’t want $700 worth of gifts and candles, I want more. I want marriage, I want children, I want our lives to move forward, I want communication. Out of anger, I packed up the candle, his sweatshirts and clothes that he had left at my place this past year, and mailed them back to his house. I’m sure it’s sitting somewhere in his basement closet/ bedroom… along with his white Huq sweatshirt, a picture of us I had up in my house, and various articles of clothing.
What upsets me is that he didn’t just involve me this year, he involved my family. He sent my mom presents, my parents in return sent him gifts. My sister, parents and cousins messaged him asking him to come around more. There was no point in involving my family, if he was going to involve himself with you. There was no point in involving himself with me, if he was going to involve himself with you. Those leather Indian shoes sitting in his room, my dad bought those for him. That blue sweater, those green pants and that maroon shirt, my parents bought those for him just this last year.
I don’t know what he’s told you about me, but I will say this. I was your age when we started dating. I was 29 years old. He was single, that’s what everyone in our residency program thought. He would tell everyone how Shari left him one day, all of a sudden just got up and left. “I saw the look behind her eyes just change when she looked at me.” He would tell everyone his horrific dating stories. When i started dating him, there was no doubt in my mind he was single… but I was wrong. He wasn’t single, he was dating Devon, one of the nurses from Carilion, and he had been for the past 4 years prior to that. At one point when he moved to Norfolk, she had even moved in with him. Even Shari was visiting him in Norfolk during this time period. I would have never suspected it, nobody in our residency program did. It wasn’t until one day, when he told me his friends were visiting from home, and they were all going to a concert together, that I found out. Her profile picture was of the two of them together, and her Facebook relationship status said “in a relationship.” Out of my own naivety, i believed him when he told me she was crazy and obsessed with him. He told me, to him, they were just friends but she wanted more. Women do a lot of things, but no woman is dumb enough to think she’s your girlfriend when she’s not. When we moved back to our hometowns, Devon was there waiting for him. He disappeared one day for 24 hours, told me that he was helping his dad’s friend who was stranded in NC. A year and a half later, i would find out that was a lie and that he had been at a concert Florida Georgia Line concert with her. She had been visiting his grandmother with him, staying at his parents home. The irony is that a few weeks after he took her, he took me to the same concert in Scranton. Him and his family didn’t bat an eye when a month later, I showed up and was the “new girlfriend.”
Eventually Devon found out about his lies and left him, but again, stupid me thought she was a crazy girl who just wanted so badly to be with him, that she built their relationship up in her head.
Dignity, respect for humans, empathy, are the most important qualities in a human being.
What I don’t wish is for you to be in my spot in 5 years. He will paint you in his colors, make you fall in love with MB20, and take you to Augustana concerts, he’ll tell you that you understand him, and his heart in a way that nobody else does. He’ll bond with you over music, and send you songs that make you feel he’s talking about you. He is so good at making you feel seen, and involving you with his family. He’ll say he had a vision of a girl that looks like you, coming into his life, and here you are, his soul mate. And one day, the same way that Shari, Devon and I got lost in him, the reality of everything will come pouring down on you. Be careful, there are signs between the lines, and the smiles, and good times. Make sure you don’t miss those, whatever you decide.
My relationship with him, started off just like yours. Another girl on the periphery, and teetering the line of inappropriate. Everything you call him out on, will always have an excuse, and you will believe him because he’s the “good guy” who goes above and beyond for people.
I don’t wish for any woman to go through the pain I’ve gone through, the manipulation, the lies and the emotional abuse. I can’t tell you what to do, but I will say, be careful and don’t be blind to the small things that will one day become huge. The novelty will fade, and though Jared isn’t the devil, he has a lot of growing up to do at 40. It was not okay to toy with me and drag me through the mud this year. It wasn’t okay to minimize his relationship with you and lie to me about it. It’s not okay to, to this day claim to see a life with me and not commit to it. I deserve better, and you deserve better.
How men talk about their ex’s and other women is an indication about how they will one day talk about and treat you. That is the worst and best lesson i have learned. I’m 34, years of my life wasted, and he took another year of my life knowing full well, this is how it would end. He’s sat on the phone with me for hours talking about how stupid PA’s are and if you were going to not be a doctor, at least become an NP, who has better bedside knowledge. Why would he say that, because i suppose you’re a PA and it minimizes the significance of even having a relationship with somebody who isn’t as intelligent as he is. The lack of respect will always be there, you just have to look for it.
Dishonesty, and manipulation are a plague, and if that’s who you are at 40, it is who you will always be unless you recognize that something needs to change. Where there is no accountability, there can be no change. I’m not the exception, I’m the same as the two girls before me. He’ll show you text messages where he never responded to me, even though he replies on Snapchat where every thing is erased. I cannot believe i didn’t see the signs. He will make me look crazy and laugh at me, the same way he showed me messages from Jen, and Elisabeth, and Devon, and made them sound crazy to me. I guess that’s his MO. The same way he told me you were nothing to him.
I was going to send you this message, two months ago… i then decided not to because he convinced me he wasn’t dating you… I saw him less than a month ago in Roanoke, i begged him to tell me that he was in a relationship with you. He said he wasn’t, again, he told me he was going to a wedding alone with only Ryan and that he wasn’t taking you. I then begged him to tell me that we were done and that he didn’t love me anymore. His response was idk what’s going to happen a year from now, i know I’ll see you again. His response every time has been when im ready for a relationship, emotionally, do you want me to finally let you know? I don’t care to be with him anymore. I’m so over it but i really think you should know the type of person you’re dealing with.
He has put me through so much hell for a year and a half of my life, stringing me along acting like he’s doing me a favor while he works on his own mental health and claims to still love me when we are together.”

I tells ya, so much falls into place here. This comes from Helen Hardacre's book Kurozumikyō and the New Religions of Japan, Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey, 1986. First, some background:

The contemporary religious scene in Japan is commonly divided into the "established religions" (kisei shūkyō) and the "new religions" (shinshūkō). These categories are further divided into Buddhist- and Shintō-derived varieties of each as well as into further subcategories.

The titular "Kurozumikyō" is a Shintō new religion founded in 1814 by the Shintō priest Kurozumi Munetada. As of this publication, it had a total membership of 220,000.

Founded by a priest of the "established" Shintō tradition, it is one of the oldest of the so-called new religions and seems to combine aspects of both new and established types. (p. 3)
THE NEW RELIGIONS OF JAPAN
The new religions and their members represent an important and distinctive sector of Japanese society. In spite of the great variety of their doctrines, new religions share a unity of aspiration and world view significantly different from those of secular society and from the so-called established religions. New religions constitute the most vital sector of Japanese religion today and include perhaps 30 percent of the nation's population in their membership. (p. 3)

A source I read recently noted that the Soka Gakkai grew from poaching members of other new religions; it seems this demographic was the most fluid and changeable of Japan's religious demographic. However, at just 30% of the population, even if the Soka Gakkai had managed to claim 100% of these new religions' memberships, it would still have fallen short of Ikeda's self-defined minimum requirement of 1/3 of the population.

Among the doctrines of the new religions there is great variety, since doctrine frequently originates in revelations to a founder. (p. 5)

Here is the Soka Gakkai's version:

• The enlightenment attained by President Toda in prison is the prime point of Soka Buddhism.

Founders tend to be charismatic individuals who attract a following through faith healing rather than through ordination and textual erudition.

The Soka Gakkai version:

• Ikeda: "Every disease can be cured by Gohonzon!"

Also here and here and especially HERE - DEFINITELY with the "faith healing".
As far as the "textual erudition" goes, Toda's post-WWII lectures on the Lotus Sutra were expected to be accepted as the "gold standard" of textual interpretation, and today, SGI members study Ikeda's lectures on texts rather than the texts themselves - see here and here. Who needs any priest??

The new religions tend to recruit their following through evangelistic proselytization and dramatic conversion, at least in the first generation. They promise followers "this-worldly-benefits" in the form of healing, solution of family problems, and material prosperity. In ethics they emphasize family solidarity and qualities of sincerity, frugality, harmony, diligence, and filial piety. Between laity and leaders there is only a vague dividing line, and for the most part, anyone may acquire leadership credentials, including women. Frequently the new religions recognize no sacred centers but those of their own history. (pp. 5-6)

While the Soka Gakkai initially embraced pilgrimages ("tozan") to the Nichiren Shoshu Head Temple Taiseki-ji, their regular activities were centered on Soka Gakkai buildings ("kaikan", or "centers") rather than on Nichiren Shoshu temples. In fact, this was an early source of conflict, as the Nichiren Shoshu priesthood justifiably questioned WHY the Soka Gakkai was putting so much more effort and resources into building NEW Soka Gakkai centers than on building Nichiren Shoshu temples, which would have been the proper function of any religion's legitimate lay organization. Add to that the bad optics of Ikeda's cult's attempted steeplejacking of established Nichiren Shoshu temples, and there was DEFINITELY something rotten in Denmark, so to speak. The Soka Gakkai's focus was trained on IKEDA rather than on the priests of the order they supposedly belonged to as a lay organization. That's some fucked up priorities and it was only a matter of time before that became an open, obvious problem. Of course Ikeda hoped to delay that reckoning until he was in a position to seize the entire Nichiren Shoshu religion for himself. Too bad, so sad, the Nichiren Shoshu priesthood headed him off at the pass and spoiled all his beautiful plots.

The world view of the Japanese new religions conceives of the individual, society, nature, and the universe as an integrated system vitalized by a single principle. Every level represents the manifestation of that principle on a larger scale. The relationships among the levels, however, are not static. They must be maintained in balance, harmony, and congruence. These qualities are manifested in conditions of happiness, health, social stability, abundant harvests, and regular succession of the seasons (free of such calamities as flood, drought, and major earthquakes). The opposite conditions (unhappiness, illness, social unrest, scarcity of food, and natural disasters) are symptomatic of a lack of harmony or congruence. Everything is interconnected so that a change in one dimension, no matter how small, eventually ripples out and affects other dimensions in a larger context. Religious practice is a striving for continuous integration of self with the body, society, nature, and the universe. This involves careful management of the most basic components: the self, the faculties of mind and emotion, and the personality. (pp. 11-12)

This thinking was the basis for Nichiren's Rissho Ankoku Ron, or "On Establishing the etc. & whatever".
Here is the chart that illustrates this thinking; you can clearly see the basis for "A great human revolution in just a single individual will help achieve a change in the destiny of a nation and, further, can even enable a change in the destiny of all humankind". There is no scientific basis for this kind of delusion; ignorant people just LIKE believing it. "Look how IMPORTANT and INFLUENTIAL I am!! Everything is all about MEEE!!!" The Soka Gakkai has been in existence (in a continuous state) for some 80 years now; if this sort of thing DID happen, we'd see it. We already know Ikeda had such high hopes for his followers, but the truth is that the membership never lived up to Ikeda's expectations. No "world leaders" emerged from Soka Gakkai ranks; they didn't even become rich! That simply isn't something that happens because of "this practice", no matter how much Ikeda misled all the gullibles. Daimoku is obviously NOT "the perfect solution for all problems".

Although the new religions inevitably adopt the system I have just described, they state it in different idioms. They may use Buddhist, Shintō, or colloquial terms for the self, calling it variously the kokoro (heart-mind or heart), konjō (guts), *reikon (spirit), tamashii (soul), and other terms. Similarly, they may name the principle vitalizing all existence by Shintō, Buddhist, or other terms: kami-nature, Buddha-nature, karma, ki, yōki, and so forth. They may predicate the existence of a variety of supernaturals who exist on a different plane than human beings, intervening in human affairs from time to time. These may be kami, Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, or ancestors. Alien to the system is the notion of a single deity standing outside the whole and manipulating it by means of an unknowable will. The supernaturals of the integrated system are subject to its rhythms and generally conform to its principles. The system is compatible with a variety of cosmological ideas and world pictures, including horizontal and vertical cosmologies seen in Japanese myths and in Buddhism's many-tiered realms of existence. (pp. 12-14)
Because self-cultivation is the primary task of all, textual erudition, esoteric ritual, and the observance of abstinences are rejected or relegated to secondary significance.

Because "Earthly desires ARE enlightenment", right?? And all that other Buddhism stuff, well, that's all obsolete now, "as useless as last year's calendar", right??

The notion of kokoro is a hallmark of Japanese culture, and it is the central pillar of the world view of the new religions. Consider the following proverb, one that could be endorsed by the new religions and is a stock saying in secular society: "Both suffering and happiness depend on how we bear the kokoro." Kokoro is borne or carried in a certain way, good or bad, and according to that we suffer or are happy. We are in control. An ordinary, nonreligious interpretation of this proverb would say that our attitude toward circumstances determines in large part whether we are happy or unhappy, or that an attitude of "positive thinking" can improve our experience of unfavorable situations even if the circumstances are not thereby altered. (p. 19)

You can see Ikeda alluding to this here:

Even a man who has great wealth, social recognition and many awards may still be shadowed by indescribable suffering deep in his heart. On the other hand, an elderly woman who is not fortunate financially, leading a simple life alone, may feel the sun of joy and happiness rising in her heart each day.

An interpretation of the proverb among the new religions is likely to be much stronger, to hold that human beings certainly have the power to be happy, depending solely on the manner in which one bears kokoro. We need only exercise that power by self-cultivation.

And remember - NO COMPLAINING!!

Moreover, the idea that circumstances can be changed by the power of diligently cultivated kokoro is pervasive. It is a question not only of a change of attitude but sometimes of radical material change, such as an improvement in economic situation or a miraculous healing. It is understood that the cultivated kokoro has the power also to change external persons and events, and that nothing is impossible. Exercising the full power fo the kokoro is possible for anyone who practices self-cultivation through the spiritual disciplines of the particular religious group. (pp. 19-20)

Isn't that the whole basis for the idea of "human revolution"? How else could anyone understand "You can chant for whatever you want!"? Don't the Dead-Ikeda-cult SGI culties love to talk about "making the impossible possible"?? Hmm..I wonder why they never do...🤨
Here Ikeda likens the Soka Gakkai practice to the magic lamp of the "Aladdin" story. And it only works for Soka Gakkai members, of course.

We chant to make the impossible possible, we want extraordinary, not ordinary. Let's get those benefits flowing, let's appreciate those challenges that allow us to grow and win and share those victories with others so that they can be inspired and win. Source

While the terminology of the self is basic to understanding Japanese constructions of self, the patterns of action and affect in which these are embedded constitute the functioning of the world view of the new religions. Here I identify four such patterns:

(1) the idea that "other people are mirrors,"

(2) the exchange of gratitude and repayment of favor,
(3) the quest for sincerity, and
(4) the adherence to paths of self-cultivation.
So much for the supposed "novelty" of Dickeata's supposedly eternal "clear mirror guidance", eh? Oh, and EVERYBODY owes Scamsei and the SGI their eternal gratitude, too, and you NEVER EVER get to finish your "human revolution" ("self-cultivation")!

Each of these patterns represents an indispensable element of Japanese culture, and thus their implementation in Japanese religions is not unique. (p. 21)

Nope. The Soka Gakkai is just bog standard for a Japanese New Religion. Nothing unique or special. Just like all the rest.

The idea that other people are mirrors makes the individual totally responsible in all circumstances. Although the burden is heavy, there is also a tacit message that the self can control any situation. Placing blame and responsibility on the individual also denies the idea that "society" can be blamed for one's problems; hence concepts of exploitation and discrimination are ruled out of consideration. On the whole the new religions are uninterested in political action to improve society; to them it is a question of individuals improving themselves individually and collectively through self-cultivation. (p. 23)

Remember, this author ISN'T talking about Soka Gakkai here! This a feature of ALL Japan's new religions!

Since self-cultivation is the primary determiner of all human affairs, notions of fate or divine wrath (karma or bachi, for example) are reinterpreted, ignored, or denied.

Or introduced when necessary to blame a member when the promises of SGI leaders are proven empty and false. It's always the MEMBERSHIP's fault somehow, never that the teachings are wrong or deceptive.

In like manner, because of the primacy of self-cultivation, the concept of pollution cannot be fully credited, and this opens the door to greater participation by women than is the case in the established religions.

In the case of the Soka Gakkai, "greater participation by women" has been implemented as "greater exploitation of women". The women of the Soka Gakkai were expected to deliver daily newspapers for no pay throughout the Soka Gakkai's history; it is only recently that their numbers have declined so catastrophically and they have aged so much that the Soka Gakkai finally had to contract with a delivery service - which of course Soka Gakkai has to PAY now. Newspapers are SO much more profitable when you can find some suckers to deliver them at no cost to YOU!

Thus the new religions stress unquestioning performance of their established disciplines, fully aware that the demand for uncomprehending obedience (at least iat the beginning) will cause the convert frustration. Also involved as a minor theme is the pedagogical principle that "physical action can be perceived as isomorphic with spiritual change." Thus, for example, polishing floors can be assumed to "polish" the self. If one enters through form, eventually the kokoro will follow.

Speaking of exploiting women, who else heard that when women were cleaning the toilets for free at the local SGI center, they were "cleaning their karma"??

The hardship entailed is not to be avoided; no one denies that it is punishing to polish floors by hand, recite sutras, or endure cold water ablutions. Hardship in itself is virtuous and confers compassion and maturity.

Isn't that the essence of SGI's much-vaunted "youth division training"? Basically, it's SGI leaders getting off on forcing young people to do all sorts of scut work and to engage in unpleasant activities just because they can - somebody has to do the grunt work, right? Make THEM do it! Tell them it's "training" when actually it's just training them to allow themselves to be exploited. For a funny example of this attitude, see how this colossal doofus was trying to cajole and coerce his employee into joining SGI before he aged out of the youth division, so he could get him some of that gooooood "youth division training"!!

Meanwhile, now I worry about Chad, who has only a few months left to obtain YMD training, to whom I had to slip September Living Buddhism under his door, since his subscription is on the internet, and I want him to start working on the Introductory Exam material. Yesterday he did not answer or reply when he was supposed to be at work. (He is paid per day of work from his home.) Today when I arrived he was not even there. So I have been chanting for his welfare. He recently reported to me a medical difficulty he has that may be interfering with his efforts, or worse.

That's ONE way to duck an annoying self-important SGI stalker-nag! "Sorry, can't talk - have the plague..."

All the new religions agree that a person's real potential cannot be fulfilled without suffering, and in this they share with secular society the suspicion about someone who has failed that perhaps kurō ga tarinai, "the person hasn't suffered enough." That is, if one had endured sufficient trials before the present ordeal, one could have conquered this hardship. Accordingly it is important to establish how much leaders and founders have suffered in the course of their own self-cultivation. (p. 28)

See More myths about how the young Ikeda suffered so much and was so sickly wah wah

All problems can be traced to insufficient cultivation of self. Thus it is misguided to expect fundamental social change from political ideology. Instead, society can be improved only through collective moral improvement, the doctrine of meliorism. Similarly, attempting to cure disease simply by treating the body alone is useless. Healing can come about only through rededication to ethical values; hence medicine is effective only in a provisional way. Education and secular achievements apart from faith and cultivation of self are houses of cards, castles on sand. Accordingly, media-sponsored presentation of thoroughly secularized views of life are disapproved. (p. 14)

You can see the clearest examples of this thinking in the teachings of Ikeda and the Soka Gakkai from the 1960s, before people understood how immediate and pervasive "political ideology" could effect fundamental social change, as in the US when the anti-race-mixing "anti-miscegenation" interracial marriage legal prohibitions were swept away in the US Supreme Court's 1967 judgment on "Loving v. Virginia". That changed society more fundamentally and pervasively than any religion's doctrines that people's "hearts" must be changed FIRST before anyone could hope to see societal change realized, or in the terms above, "collective moral improvement". No. Remove unjust laws and establish penalties for behaving unjustly, and voilà! Society changes!
See SGI is actively OPPOSED to social justice and thus will NEVER contribute meaningfully to world peace and More on why SGI will never make any significant changes to society.
Back when Japan's medical system was primitive, with limited availability, the new religions advertised "faith healing", as seen above and here. But as medical care improved and, most importantly, became widely accessible, that became people's healing option of choice, so the new religions (and all the rest) had to drop it as a selling point, because nobody was buying it any more. Within the ignorant and indoctrinated ranks of SGI members, we can STILL see claims of "faith healing"; they apparently don't realize this isn't a compelling sales pitch any more. Except that in house, the superstitious, magical-thinking culties still eat it up with a spoon 🙄
But you can see Ikeda here explaining that medicine is unnecessary to treat various ills; there must be a "faith" component or the treatment will inevitably be ineffective. OR that having faith will make even a nonsensical nontreatment effective! Also slamming medicine as harmful and condemning members as somehow "deserving" of terrible illnesses.
And remember when Ikeda told "girls" they didn't need to go to college? That was fun. And how Icky denigrated university graduates??
Let's not forget how the Soka Gakkai has always been anti-union and has never established any charitable services anywhere, not even for the needy within its own struggling membership.

Lacking justification for a strong differentiation between the religious lives of priests and laity, the tendency to make the laity central is strong and pervasive. (p. 14)

This was a primary issue within the Soka Gakkai that festered until Ikeda brought it to a full boil out of his obsessive desire to BE the object of worship. The Soka Gakkai/Nichiren Shoshu alliance, while expedient for the Soka Gakkai and undeniably profitable for Nichiren Shoshu, was nonetheless an uneasy alliance, given the Soka Gakkai's defining characteristics as a "new religion" and Nichiren Shoshu's "established religion" status. Those two simply don't mix. Especially on this last point, you can see that it is a characteristic of a "new religion" to have the fundamental attitude that "priests are unnecessary". Ikeda simply wanted to USE Nichiren Shoshu for his OWN convenience, in service to HIS plans, instead of directing the Soka Gakkai to function as a legitimate lay organization whose focus was their religion, Nichiren Shoshu. Ikeda made it all about himself and his goal of maximizing his own power and control. Ikeda was never a religious person.