Im doing this project about a Derrick crane, all I know is that the boom has 10 m length and must be able to lift 500 kg. Can someone help me discover the section of the boom?

Im doing this project about a Derrick crane, all I know is that the boom has 10 m length and must be able to lift 500 kg. Can someone help me discover the section of the boom?

I'm in the hiring process here. Applied for a part-time Retail Sales position. During the interview, the hiring manager saw on my availability chart that I was available all day every day of the week, and was wondering if I would be open to a full-time job, to which I said yes (I just applied to what was available online). They called me a couple days after and are asking if I'd like to discuss working in the Windows & Walls department. What does this job entail?
My only concern is some physical limitations I have. It's not a lack of strength but a lack of stability with large items. I'm a 5' rather stocky woman, definitely a bit more on the muscular side, and the issue with my height is I just can't get underneath large items well enough to properly lift with my legs. I can lift a 40lb bag of dog food easier than I can a bed or small table. That goes for everyone, I just regularly have to lift with my back and that goes poorly fast. I've thrown my back out lifting stuff like bed frames even with someone else helping and I'm only 20, so I get back/shoulder issues fast. I also tore my ACL last year, and while I'm like 96% back to normal, it gets to me when I've been pushing too hard. The injury isn't impactful enough to require accommodations but I'll probably deal with it for the rest of my life. I've had to ask for team lift help more than others in other retail jobs, and that seemed to annoy store Leads, and I was once demoted to a permanent sitting position just from my hip flaring up from being up and down ladders all day.
So, I'm wondering what Windows & Walls is like. If I'm about to be the only one in the department and I'll be expected to lift heavy stuff daily without help, or they'll get annoyed with me asking for help too much, I'll speak those concerns and ask about other departments. Another department that was brought up in the interview was part-time with Garden stuff, so anything about a day-in-the-life of either department (including average shift days, start times and lengths) would be great.
I do need this job. I just like speaking up for my well-being from the get go now because I've dealt with enough jobs ignoring my availability and physical needs and then getting upset when issues arise.

I recently bought some Bomb Dungarees in size 32. I have several other Outlier pants and shorts I bought a while ago that fit me well (still), in size 30 and 31. I got the new ones in 32 because I'm lifting a bit more now and I wanted to err on the side of larger.
So when I got them I was surprised to find that they were way too small. To be clear, I'm not complaining about them being too tight. My issue is that before ordering, I looked at the size chart, used that as a reference with other pants I have, and measured the ones I got, and they're pretty different from what the chart says.
Here are a few pics and numbers for comparison:
the size chart for Bomb Dungarees on the website
if I understand that right, size 32 should be 12.5 inches, measured at the upper thigh, from the crotch, horizontally to the edge, when the pants are laid flat.
Here's what they look like with a ruler:
pic 1
pic 2
I'm pressing the ruler down to make them lie flat and I lifted the other leg up so I could be as generous as possible (counting additional distance under the pants crotch, which I probably shouldn't), to make it as close to what it should be.
You can see that it's at most 11 inches, and probably even a bit smaller. Since they're lying flat, that means they're actually about 3 inches smaller in circumference. I don't want to sound like I'm nitpicking about fractions of an inch, so note that the smallest size on that chart (size 28) has a measurement (11.5") that's bigger than this. So it seems like the error covers the whole range of sizes.
I don't understand: is there something I'm missing about how we're supposed to measure that? I really like all the other Outlier clothes I've bought but it's strange that a company that's supposedly all about ~technical details~ seems to have one of the main things I need to know to wear the pants wrong. Is this chart just wrong? it's not encouraging that both the top opening and leg opening are labeled "top opening".

The rules are (generally) pretty straight forward but I'm trying to figure out how a strong character throws something.
If I'm reading the chart correct an average character can throw an average object 5. I mean that seems like a lot but comic books so...
Now if a character has Mighty 1 then they are treated as one size larger for lifting/carrying/throwing. I get that means an average character can now lift/carry/throw a big object, like a car. But how far can then throw it? It says the range is based on the object's relative size as shown on the chart but the range for a big object is listed as blank.
Now I can extrapolate that if an average character can throw an average object 5 then a big character could throw a big object 5. So perhaps the intent is that characters can throw an object of their size 5 and then you move down the chart one category for every level of difference.
Example - A character with Mighty 1 is treated as Big so they can throw a Big object 5, an Average object 5 and a Small object 10. A character with Mighty 2 is treated as Huge so they can throw a huge object 5, a big object 5, an Average object 10 and a Small object 20.

Beth's Law by Joel Lane
Originally published in British Invasion (2009) edited by Christopher Golden, Tim Lebbon and James A. Moore
Excerpted from Where Furnaces Burn (2012) by Joel Lane

The plan was remarkably simple. Wait in the basement. If anyone else came, stop them. If necessary, phone for back-up. What we would do if nothing happened had been only lightly touched upon, but McMahon had sensibly brought along a flask of black coffee. No biscuits, but the atmosphere wasn't conductive to hunger. As Jensen had said, there were mattresses down there. It was easy to believe that birth and death had taken place there with the same mechanical regularity as the heating and cooling of the dusty boiler in the corner of the room.
A couple of hours, at least, went past. We crouched by the boiler, listening to the faint static of the rain. From time to time, we smoked to overcome the smell that filled my head with multiple, confusing images: a litter of rats, a human foetus, a mop soaked in bleach, a torn condom, a bloodstained hand, a decaying gull. A quick check with a pocket-torch early on had revealed nothing too grim; but now I wondered what had been hiding under the rotten mattresses, stiff blankets and scraps of tinfoil. Perhaps the darkness had been shifting around the light. Guarding its secrets. There were a few whispered attempts at conversation, but all our voices sounded like Jensen and after a while it was less disturbing to keep silent.
I remember thinking the damp had got into my bones, because I felt painfully tired and weak. I could see flickers of blue in the darkness, as if a number of lights were moving a long way off. And then there was a sound, only yards away from us: something moving awkwardly over the floor. I reached for my torch, expecting to see a dog. Minutes went past while my hand refused to move. The lights slowly brightened, forming a ragged circle in the middle of the basement. On either side of me, my colleagues were awake, watching.
In the centre of the circle of lights, a small figure was trying to hide between two ripped and swollen mattresses. It had the form of a naked child, but its flesh seemed to be made entirely of torn and wadded newsprint. Blurred photos gave its head something like eyes and a mouth. I had the feeling it was trying to cry out, but had no lungs. It cringed, waving a grey arm above its head, as the wavering blue lights closed in.
I could make even less sense of the thin glowing figures whose light exposed the child. Something in their bent posture suggested hunger; but there was no substance to them, nothing but edges. They lifted the child between them and slowly tore it apart, cutting away layer on layer of newsprint to reveal only smaller versions of the same thing: an infant, a baby, an embryo. The blue light faded slowly, until complete darkness filled the basement.
I felt my hand rising with the torch, switching it on. The two mattresses at the centre of the floor were covered in shreds of damp newspaper like a rat's nest. A few random, indecipherable scraps of a headline were stuck to the fabric like a nearly-erased epitaph. The image came to be of the papier-mâché head I'd made in infant school: features clumsily shaped over a wire skull and left to dry. Dark print showing through a whitish skin of water-paint.
We talked in the dark for a while, but none of us had anything useful to say. The only we were sure about was that we had no basis for a report. Somehow we stayed there until dawn, taking comfort from our shared inaction. Then I phoned the station, and we took off. The gaunt windowless buildings of Lee Bank seemed unreal when you could see the city centre beyond them: cars streaming down the expressway, cranes reaching into a sky tinged with an unexpectedly deep blue.
Our cars were parked near the Bull Ring. Bestwick and McMahon went back to the staiton. I went home to a hungry child, a frightened wife, and a sense of deadness that took years to wear off.

Thanks u/CriticalAd3079 for finding this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hd5L5cvDXB8
Couple of slides from talk by Nilesh M Desai (Director, SAC) at 54 min forward:
https://imgur.com/a/v7OSPPk
Chandrayaan-4 Lunar Sample Return mission:

• Will take ~5 years.
• Lunar Sample Return mission - Landing site near Shiv Shakti point (Landing site of Vikram-2)
• Mission Life - 1 Lunar Day
• Four modules
  
  • Transfer Module (TM)
  • Reentry module(RM)
  • Lander Module (LM)
  • Ascender Module (AM)
• Two Separate Launch Vehicles :
  
  • PSLV for Injection of RM+TM together to Sub GTO
  • LVM3 for direct injection of AM+DM+PM to TLI / GTO
• RM+TM will be parked in Lunar Orbit favourable for Ascender docking
  
• AM+DM will descend to lunar surface
  
• Robotic Arm in DM for sample collection & transfer to AM
  
• AM - DM separation and AM lift off from lunar surface
  
• AM docking with TM
  
• Robotic Arm in TM for transfer of lunar samples -- AM to RM
  
• AM undocking from TM, RM+TM reaching Earth orbit
  
• RM-TM separation, RM re-entry and touchdown on Earth
  

Mars Lander Mission (MLM)

• ISRO’s first Mars Landing Mission
• Critical technologies
  • Supersonic Parachute
  • Aerodynamic design for landing
  • Sky-Crane for Rover deployment
• Launcher: LVM3
• Relay Mars Orbiter: Launch by PSLV
• Potential/Proposed Science Payloads on Rover
  • Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) - for sub-surface studies
  • UV to TIR spectrometers - for mineral mapping
  • Raman Spectrometer - for bio-signature detection
  • Microscopic Color Imager- for surface morphology and soil characteristics
  • Stereo Camera- For Geological context and Navigation
  • Dust analyser - for studying atmospheric dust characteristics
  • Radiation Budget monitoring
  • In-situ resource utilization Instrument
  • VNIR & IR camera onboard Relay orbiter - For Mars Disc observation to study Atmospheric dynamics at global level

On Indian Space Station or Bharatiya Antriksh Station (BAS)..

• First module launch in 2028 and completion by 2035
• Astronauts on-board for 3 to 6 months.
• Resupply missions every 3 months.

"Wade! Good to see you back buddy!" Nathan said aloud as he and F approached Wade and Tina, the two breaking their embrace before looking to their friends.
Wade chuckled a bit as he responded to Nathan's greeting, Tina giving a pleasant smile as she stood behind him. "Same to you, man. How're things here?"
"Better than any words I could use for the situation!" Looking behind him, he gazed at a group of the worker drones that were rescued from the factory, having been brought aboard in order to transport them to a safer location. Their faces were of varied gratefulness and smiles as they made conversation with some of the troops onboard. "The rescue-ees are happy to be out of that place, far as I can tell!"
"They sure look like it." Wade said with a pleased smile, admiring the success of his and the Coalition's efforts as Nathan's friend Kurtis came over to the four.
Catching sight of Tina, the veteran drone gave a sly look as he correctly guessed the identity of Wade's accomplice. "Oh, and I see you found your girl you were telling me about."
The drone in question gave a blush of embarrassment as Wade held her hand, chuckling smugly as he introduced Tina. "Ah, yeah. Nathan, Kurtis, F, this is my girlfriend Tina. She's one of the best pilots I've met and known in my life, along with her sister Jasmine."
Tina's blush intensified heavily at Wade's words, a laugh breaching her mouth as she spoke to Wade's colleagues. "Well, I don't like to boast, but my sister and I DID fly for the military a while back."
Nathan and Kurtis gave impressed laughs as F chuckled at the amusing meeting, the former of the duo speaking as he shook Tina's hand. "Heh, well it's a proud pleasure to meet you, Miss Tina! You've got quite the partner with you, I'd say. He helped save F and Gerard from an accident during our time on Ceres."
Tina raised a hand to her mouth in shock as she looked to Wade, surprised by the news of his heroics at his new job before chuckling. "Well, it's not too surprising, I'd probably be dead if he didn't come in to help us." Remembering that F was involved in her rescue too, she glanced to the disassembly drone before quietly adding, "You too, darling."
F gave a thankful smile at the pilot drone as Wade spoke up on Tina's statement on her rescue. "Well, I'd also be done for if you didn't save me back there, with that disassembly drone squad." Tina nodded as Nathan looked to the drone couple in surprise at their stated feat.
"More of them? How many? Three? Fo-" The miner drone asked as Wade answered him mid-sentence.
"Three, and they put up a nasty fight. One almost got me before Tina shot at her with one of those guns these militia guys brought. A trooper must've dropped it during the fighting." Nathan gave an uncomfortable look of shock as Wade added, "One of them looked kinda like you too."
Tina pulled out her gun before holding it at attention, Nathan nodding in admiration of her efforts as she spoke up. "Think I could keep this one? We pilots usually carry sidearms like these, but I lost mine when they kidnapped me aboard the station in orbit."
Nathan and Kurtis looked to each other before nodding in agreement. "Sure, gonna need a holster though. Wouldn't want it to fall out that nice coat there, would we?" While Nathan gave his answer, Kurtis was already heading to the storage bays at the back of the ship, planning on grabbing the sizable holster wrap for Tina's weapon.
"Of course." Tina replied as Kurtis grabbed the desired gear, shutting the cargo door as he returned to the group. Taking the holster in her hand, she handed the pistol to Wade before speaking in between her efforts to attach the holster to her upper leg. "Thanks for the compliment, by the way."
"Don't mention it." Nathan replied back as F stepped up in between the group, wanting to add her own praise as the group looked to her.
"Glad to see so many together in arms here, especially when it's work colleagues like the boys here." Looking to Tina, she continued. "And Nathan's right, Miss Tina. Your partner is quite the guy, I'm a little surprised he didn't join the service. Him and his brother would've made great men if they fought in the ranks."
The positive air was quickly shattered upon the mention of Ron. Nathan, Wade, and the others all looked to F as her eyes became golden rings, the warrior drone realizing her mistake too late as she began to raise a hand to her face.
"...Yeah. Yes, we sure would have." Wade said solemnly, nodding lightly with a slight smile in his attempt to lighten the comment and, in turn, the mood. His smile faltered once again as he saw the others still frowning in sorrow, Wade joining them shortly after before remembering something. "Uh... Nathan? You did bring his body back here, right?"
Nathan nodded hesitantly as he glanced to the cargo bays at the back of the ship. "Yeah, I uh... We put him near the others we managed to recover before we left."
Tina listened with concerned eyes as she held tightly onto Wade's hand, the former worker drone tightening his own grip while speaking further to Nathan. "Good. Maybe, after this is all over, we can... Make preparations for a service. Ron deserves that at the least."
"So... h-he's in one of... those?" Tina asked dreadfully, observing the body bags lying next to each other in front of one of the cargo bay doors before looking back to Nathan, who looked down at the floor before replying.
"...Yep." Initially, Tina started to move, morbidly concerned over Ron's exact fate before stopping herself, still holding Wade's hand as she stood next to him again. Catching a glimpse of her attempt to see Ron, Nathan raised a digital eyebrow at her. "You, uh... want to see him?"
Wade looked down to Tina, who returned the gesture as they pondered over the uncomforting idea. She admittedly didn't want to see Ron, fearful of seeing what was left of him after that battle, but in a twisted way, knowing Wade wouldn't lie to her about a close relative like Ron being dead, she desperately felt the need for even the slightest sense of closure.
Looking to each other, Tina finally built her strength up, giving the faintest nod to Wade as her answer. Accepting her willingness, Wade slowly looked to Nathan, who needed no further gestures or words as he slowly walked over to the body bags, Wade, Tina, and their colleagues in tow. Upon reaching the bags, Nathan knelt down as his friends stopped behind him, Wade and Tina watching as he slowly unzipped the bag open. Despite her effort to be brave, Tina couldn't help but let out a horrified gasp upon seeing Ron's body, immediately noticing the large wound with dark, dried blood at his chest.
Nathan shook his head in dismay as he looked upon the sight of his fallen friend in the flayed bag. "It was when we made our second attempt in raiding the factory back there. We... We managed to pass through most of the halls without much trouble, but... we we're ambushed as we got close to the conversion room."
"G, the disassembly drone that helped the company abduct me, attacked us, along with several other troopers he brought with him." Wade added, him and Tina holding each other tightly as he continued. "We fought them off well enough, but G got an upper hand on me. He almost killed me, but.... Ron got in the way." Tina felt herself beginning to cry as she collapsed into Wade's chest, the former worker drone embracing her ever more tightly as she wept for their friend.
F shook her head in dismay, disappointed in herself as she spoke up. "I could've saved him, if I hadn't let myself get beat down like that. I-"
"F!" Wade said sternly, F ceasing her self-degrading as he tried to ease her guilt. "We did the best we could. If anything, it could've gone a lot worse."
Kurtis patted F on her back as he spoke up on his co-worker. "He was a good man, tried to bring out the best in people. Taught Wade that ideal well, too." He looked to Wade with a smile, the drone taking the compliment with the same gesture as he lightly patted Tina on her back too.
"*sniff* Y-Yes... He d-did try to make life brighter with his actions." Tina croaked as she slowly lifted her head up off of Wade, wiping the digital drops off her face as she added, "He... Him and Wade did well to so many with their farm they had back home, Jasmine and I helped transport their harvests all across the colonies."
The group gave looks and nods of admiration at the labor Tina described, Wade nodding in affirmation as he added, "Yeah, we held that place up for a long while. But if it weren't for the recent storms that ran through this place, we probably would still be farming." He began to chuckle slightly as he noted the events after the storm. "Heh, then again, we probably wouldn't have gone to Ceres if that was the case. So, I'm quite glad life changed our course on that endeavor."
Nathan was about to speak on the matter, but was stopped as Kelly walked out of the cockpit area, speaking to Wade specifically. "Mr. Wade? Our operative and her boss wants to see you and some of your team, says it's about the trouble you and the others went through."
Wade and Tina looked to each other with raised eyebrows before looking to their friends, F raising a hand as she spoke to the couple. "Well, you heard her. Let's get up there." Looking to Nathan, she motioned for him to follow her before glancing to Kurtis, who nodded to her before kneeling down to seal Ron's body bag.
Turning back to Wade and Tina, F smirked at them as they quickly made their way up to the small bridge of the ship, Tina speaking to Wade about the interior and where to go. "I do remember these ships a bit, now that I think about it. There should be a smaller room at the top above us. Come on."
Holding her hand, Wade and Tina made their way into the cockpit, F and Nathan close behind as the four walked up the small steps to the pilot seats. Right next to the ascending steps were another set of such steps, albeit going the other way into another room as Tina mentioned. The lover drones walked up the second set of steps as they entered the room, catching the sound of a conversation in their ears.
"Yeah Tess, they did a number on the security forces from what I've been told by Mr. Kurtis. He seems quite pro-" J stopped as she heard a startled gasp coming from the entrance near the cockpit, spotting her requested visitors as they took notice of her.
Wade, however, was immediately in shock, Tina also spooked by the familiar face as her love drew a sword before holding it out defensively. F and Nathan looked to the two in surprise as the former raised her arms slightly as to calm down Wade, knowing this J wasn't an enemy.
"Whoa there, easy now." The human hologram said with her hands raised as Wade and Tina gave a faint glare at J, who stared unamused with her hands to her hips.
Easy, Mr. Wade. I'm a friend." J stated as Wade kept his blade trained at her.
"Didn't we just kill you out there earlier?" Tina asked as she held onto Wade's arm, J smirking as she took in the amusing detail.
"Oh, yes. I believe you must've taken out one of my clones, not surprised. I killed a few myself back there." The corporate drone replied as Wade lowered his sword, surprised at J's words as she looked to him.
"Clones?" Tina said in bewilderment, confounded by the idea of multiples of the same drone running around.
"So, there's more of you?" Wade asked as he swapped his sword back for a hand.
"Indeed there are, Mr. Wade. Effective disassembly drones get cloned more often." J answered as she cringed slightly, remembering part of the reason she ended up here. "Though, admittedly I wasn't efficient enough recently. I'm a clone of one of the old units dispatched about two decades ago, before the Disassembly Division was officially instated."
Tina raised an eyebrow at J's explanation. "Recently? If you were away all that time, what could've possibly stopped you now?"
The murder drone groaned in slight annoyance as she reluctantly explained her answer. "Well, the colony we were supposedly sent to wipe out was quite persistent. During one of our raids, some brat with a ray gun blasted me in two." Regaining her composure, J flicked her hair with a smirk. "Then again, my clones should be better than they are, the Administrator seems to have a dislike towards me, as far as I can tell."
Wade and Tina glanced at each other as they took in the news, perplexed at the story they were hearing as the former spoke up. "Well, I sure hope so. Your clone didn't put up as much of a fight as I was expecting."
"Right..." J said with a look of disappointment before clearing her throat. "But besides that, we don't have time for THAT kind of backstory. We've got a lot of talk to do, Mr. Wade."
The holographic human raised a finger, drawing Wade and Tina's attention as she spoke. "Say, didn't J tell me about a human friend you had? A 'brother' guy?"
J nodded as she now also became curious over their missing acquaintant. "Ah yes, Ron, I believe. Do you know where he is, Wade?"
The two drones looked down in sorrow as Wade answered in dismay. "He uh... he didn't make it."
J allowed a concerned look to breach her shield of confident pride as her human friend spoke up, sounding sad at the news. "Oh, I uh, I'm sorry to hear that, Mr. W- er... Carter."
"It's alright," Wade replied as he held Tina's hand, looking up to J and the hologram before continuing. "at least he's not hurting anymore."
"My... condolences, Mr. Carter." J said, calling Wade by his last name now as she recovered from the tragic news. "But, it seems you've found someone else important. Who's your friend?"
Wade perked up a bit as he prepared to introduce Tina again. "Ah, yes. This is Tina Fowley, my girlfriend. She was among those captured by the company, I got her out before they could turn her, however."
"She's a pilot too." Nathan chirped from behind Wade, J and her boss stifling laughs as they took in the amusing description of Wade's partner.
"Well, she's quite the cutie, I'll say." The holo-human said in amusement, Tina blushing at the compliment as J spoke as well.
"Indeed she is, good find, Mr. Carter." Chuckling to herself, she remembered that she hadn't even formally met Wade earlier, prompting her to return the effort. "Well, now's as good a time as any to introduce ourselves." Looking to the hologram, J spoke. "Though you probably know who I am, name's J. And this is my boss, Tessa."
Looking to the human girl with a pleasant smile, he spoke to her. "Well, pleased to meet you, Mrs. Tessa."
"Good to meet ya too, Wade!" Tessa replied energetically before bringing herself back to a more serious stance, Wade and Tina feeling a bit surprised by the change of air as she spoke further. "And as much as I hate to cut the pleasantries so short, J and I have some important things to brief you on. So, take a seat and get comfy, everyone."
Noting the pair of chairs in front of the small table J and Tessa were standing on the other side of, the couple took them as Nathan and F stood behind them, simply listening in as J began to explain the matter at hand. "So, you both are probably wondering what this whole mess was all about, correct?"
The two drones nodded as Tina spoke up. "I heard it was having to do something with being recruited for the Disassembly Division, that group you spoke of a second ago. Why did they need to steal me away from my sister up there?"
"Well, the thing is, they didn't." Tessa answered, putting her hands to her hips as her companion explained further.
"Indeed, a simple memory transfer and body scan would've sufficed, but it seems the Administrator was in a bit of a rush." Crossing her arms, J continued in disgruntlement. "From what we gathered, this was done by her as per request by the company CEO, Mr. Jenson. He wanted the Administrator to recruit more drones under a new model of disassembly drone, with slight upgrades that would presumably remove most of the persistent issues each of us have." Shaking her head in disappointment, J finished with, "But, it's clear she cared little for how they were acquired, and way too far overboard with her efforts."
Wade held back his anger as he felt his certainty on the ones responsible grow with J's explanation. "So, it's true? Your people did all this? Got my brother and countless others killed for us?"
The corporate drone seemed to give a sluggish wave of her hand as she replied to Wade. "Well, you see, this whole ordeal is much more complex than it seems." Readying a holo-projector from her hand as it showed the image of a worker drone, dressed in a maid uniform. The hair was silver, two strips of it going down the sides of its head, as well as bearing a bow at the top of it all. Though the hologram made it hard to tell certain details, the drone's eyes appeared faintly as yellow through the blue hue from the hologram light.
Wade, Tina, and their companions eyed the seemingly innocent worker drone in puzzlement as J spoke again. "Now, you should count yourselves lucky, cause what I'm about to tell you is something corporate wouldn't let me spew out to anyone under certain statuses." Looking to Tessa, she continued with a sly smirk. "Then again, it'd probably be forced out of us anyway later on even if we didn't decide to tell you. So, now would be the best time to give you a run-down of the truth we have to share."
"Truth?" Wade asked with a raised hand, J nodding in affirmation before replying.
"Yes." Clearing her throat, J began. "You see, the Administrator was not a creation of JCJenson. At least, not in the way they intended. In fact, she was once a normal worker drone, just like you and I were." Wade raised an eyebrow as J's holo-projector shifted to show a building, a large, very old looking manor that went up a couple of stories high. As Wade and his cohorts observed the structure, J continued her story about her and this Administrator's origins.
"A long time ago, at this place we'll call Elliott Manor, my boss, who was still a child at the time, brought in a few worker drones left outside in a dump near the mansion, mostly composed of scrapped worker drone bodies. Upon bringing us in, Tess would fix us up so we could be her friends. I myself, along with three other drones, were her closest companions. Her family weren't so keen on having us around, but, to keep their daughter happy and to make us useful, Mr. and Mrs. Elliott put us to work keeping the place tidy." The disassembly drone's projector shifted again to show J and her three fellow workers, dressed in the same maid attire J was shown in earlier. Wade and Tina stared at two of them, as they resembled the disassembly drones they fought earlier, most notably N and V.
"Among the four of us here, THIS one would be the biggest problem." The hologram zoomed into the worker drone displayed earlier, postured in a strange, slouched over posture.
"Her name is Cyn, and, unlike J, V and N there, she was more broken than I had surmised back then. Spoke like some old artificial voice generator thing." Tessa stated, pointing at the highlighted drone before Tina decided to speak up on the backstory.
"How broken? Was there something wrong with her coding?" She said as she put a hand to her core.
J nodded lightly as she gave her answer. "Most likely. Do you remember the protocol tape for proper disposal of worker units? Seen it at all?"
Tina and Wade shivered a bit as they thought of the presumed tape J spoke of, dread creeping in from their memories of seeing it as the latter of the duo answered. "I think so, once during a little maintenance time I had years back. I think it was called... 'Zombie Drones'?"
"That's exactly the one." J said with a nod before continuing. "Well, if you saw it all the way through, the pie chart diagram points out the outcomes for OS complications should a worker core be improperly terminated. Out of those outcomes, the smallest, least likely one was 'potentially hazardous mutations'." Pointing to Cyn on the hologram, J continued further. "As for Cyn here, she befell said mutations, and they would come to not only affect her, but all of us at the manor too."
Tina's eyes went wide as she started to click the pieces together, recalling herself reading up on the incident J was hinting at years earlier during a class she took at the college she and Wade attended. "Wait... You, you don't mean SHE was the one who caused the Elliott Gala Massacre?"
J nodded in affirmation as Wade spoke up, confused at the revelation. "Wait, I remember looking into that too. Didn't the news say it was some mass murderer that did it?"
"That they did." Tessa replied as she added to the story. "However, that was a cover-up by the company to hide part of what really happened."
Pulling up what appeared to be a large room full of people inside, J explained the tragedy shown on the projector. "Tessa's parents didn't treat the drones under their service well, and Cyn seemed to despise them for it. On that day during a gala hosted by the Elliotts, Cyn, utilizing the mutations I mentioned, slaughtered the entire attending party there." Glancing to Tessa, J finished with, "Tess and I tried to stop her, but... it was too late."
Holding their hands to their mouths, Wade and Tina looked on in horror, Nathan and F sharing similar dismay as the four looked to Tessa. Knowing their desire to hear how she was spared, Tessa spoke to them. "Despite seeing her kill my parents and everyone in that room with my own eyes, Cyn spared me from the carnage. Took me away to some place so I could be kept quiet."
Raising a hand, F spoke up. "Well, wait a minute, how did Cyn join the company after all that?"
"Good question." J replied, pulling up an image of Cyn and a man, whom Wade recognized as Halloway before the corporate drone explained. "Upon the arrival of law enforcement and agents sent by the company, they found Cyn, who had already turned me and the other worker drones from the manor into the first disassembly drones. After some chatter between the two, Dr. Edgar Halloway, a simple materials recovery officer at the time, struck a deal with her. Talking with the authorities, they managed to convince them to keep the incident on the down low while they took Cyn and her drones in for study. Through said study, addition of protocols and official installation of Cyn into higher company positions, not to mention the creation of the Disassembly Drone Division, the rest is history."
The four drones looked on in stunned shock, taking in Tessa and J's story with unease as Wade spoke up. "So, this new body, the crazy shit that we just went through... it's all cause of this Cyn being? And those who are helping her?"
"That's right." J answered as Tina raised a finger, still concerned over the capabilities of the Administrator as she spoke.
"But, how did she convert you all into what you are now? What were these 'mutations' exactly?"
Tessa sighed a bit as she prepared to explain the origins of this horrible program. "Well, from what information I could gather before I got out of Cyn's clutches a while back, the researchers put to work studying Cyn and her abnormalities came to regard the latter as some kind of program, which grew stronger and more capable quite fast as it was kept under the company's leash. Eventually, they gave it a name: AbsoluteSolver." Pulling out what looked like a smartcomm, Tessa flicked her finger over it as she explained further. "Despite all logic, the AbsoluteSolver program, or, Solver, could generate various things out of thin air, as well as manipulate objects and living beings in many ways. To be blunt, it's like some kind of freaky magic powers for drones.
"Seeing that they could learn a lot from this program, as well as use Cyn's abilities to wring out all kinds of products and items for them to sell and use, the company instated the Solver Project, a research group dedicated to understanding the AS and its potential." Raising a finger, Tessa looked to Wade as she finished her explanation on the Solver. "Said program has been branched out to several other planets over the years, helping to spread this virus as far as possible for purposes we're certain aren't good, given that one of those planets got devastated by an experiment one of the teams did involving the virus."
The news that this infection brought harm to one of the colony worlds didn't sit well with the lover drones, both of them looking on in dismay as J gave more details. "And with that in mind, this recent effort has only cemented our belief that Cyn is up to something sinister. So once we reach the base here in Nevada, we have to make preparations for bringing this Solver Project to a halt... BEFORE it can harm any more people."
Smirking deviously, Tessa raised a finger as she glanced to Wade, who looked to her with concern as she spoke. "By the way Mr. Carter, that Halloway guy you ran into earlier? He leads one of the main teams working on the project."
Wade scoffed in annoyance he was reminded of that man. "Doesn't surprise me, seemed like he was really close to the Administrator from what I saw." Then, thinking on the reason for this briefing he was attending, Wade looked to J and Tessa curiously. "Why are you telling us this?"
J crossed her arms as she explained. "Because, Mr. Carter, YOU are the only disassembly drone we managed to recover from that place. And, given your exceptional performance there, your help would be much appreciated in our mission."
"Mission?" Tina said with a raised eyebrow. "So we're not done yet?"
"For us, not in the slightest. We've got some explaining to do with the government officials stationed at the base we're heading to. As for you all," J answered before looking to the four, all of them returning the glance as she continued. "...that depends on what you all have to say. Can you lend us a hand?"
Glancing to each other, Wade and Tina gazed into one another before nodding in agreement, turning back to J and Tessa before giving their decision. "Well, after what I just went through, and what happened to my brother... I'm sure as hell gonna bring those bastards to justice in one form or another."
"Yes, Wade and I have some talking to do with this 'Dr. Halloway' fellow before this is all over." Tina added, her and Wade holding each others hand as J gave a smirk at their vigorous determination.
"I'm glad to hear you two feel the same on the matter." J said as Tessa put her hands to her hips, slumped slightly as she spoke in a disappointed tone.
"Unfortunately, it may be a minute before we see some action. Once we reach the base, you all will find a place to rest for the time being. Since it's a military base, it should be safe from any major retribution attempts by those blokes at the company." Pulling out her smartcomm again, she continued once more. "As for us, we'll talk to the leaders there and see what their decision will be on the matter."
The quartet seemed to grow concerned over that last part, Nathan raising a hand before speaking his mind. "So, if they say no? Does that mean...?"
J and Tessa glanced to each other before the former answered the veteran drone. "Well, in that case, while it will be harder without official military support, the Coalition will take us wherever we need them to in order to put a stop to the Administrator. Shouldn't be much to worry about."
Taking this somewhat comforting news to heart, Tina and Wade nodded in understanding before the latter spoke to the operatives. "Well, that's good to hear. Whenever you do get an answer, give us a heads up."
"We will, Mr. Carter." J replied to Wade before shifting in her stance, Wade and his friends standing up together as their disassembly drone superior spoke once more. "With all that said, you're all dismissed. If you have any more questions, don't hesitate to ask."
"Thanks for clearing this up, Mrs. J. You too, Tessa." Wade said gratefully before turning to the exit, Tina walking with him as F and Nathan walked over to the operatives.
"Wade? Do you mind coming down to the bay below? I... I have something to show you." Wade nodded to her before they made their way down, the four people behind them continuing the chatter as the couple went to have their long overdue privacy.
Stepping out of the cockpit behind them, Wade and Tina sighed in comfort as they saw the troops busy with their tasks, not giving a glance to the two as they walked close to the sealed door of the transport. Admiring the enormous view the large window in the door gave for a moment, the two drones looked to each other as Tina dug into her pocket. "I was hoping to do this when we got back home, but... I got this from Eridanus while I was visiting." Finding her token of love to Wade, she pulled out the small box she showed off on the call earlier, opening it to reveal her present.
Wade admired the blue gemstone with wide eyes as Tina pulled it out with great care. "Wow... It's beautiful."
Tina chuckled as she extended the gem's necklace band out. "I knew you would, I just happened to stumble upon it while exploring the forest during a tour." Putting the two necklace bands around Wade's neck, she clipped the present together before pulling her arms back, adoring Wade's new add-on as she finished her sentence. "I felt it would be something nice for you to remember me by, while we're away from each other."
Wade smiled at Tina as he expressed his appreciation for the gift. "It certainly will." Stiffling a chuckle, the former worker drone held Tina's hand holding the box as he spoke further. "But, no matter how far apart we are, nothing could fill the space you hold in my heart."
"Same in mine, dear." Tina replied as she gazed into Wade's eyes, noting the faint green in his yellowed visor as she looked on in hopeful amusement. "And yet, even after all they did, I can still see those eyes. Changed from the soft, cool grass to the warmth of a blazing sun." She said while putting the box away, then placing a hand onto Wade's face as he looked off with a blush.
"Tina, I..." Wade began, unsure of how to put his thoughts to words as he tried to find them. "I don't know what they did to me, but I won't let it ruin our relationship." Holding her shoulders, Wade spoke to Tina further. "You're the most beautiful being I've seen in the whole universe, your warmth, your flight prowess... I want to protect that. I want to protect you."
"Oh, Wade." Tina murmured as the two touched their heads to one another, holding each other close in their efforts to provide affection. Such affection intensified as the two joined their metal lips, sharing a long kiss as they enjoyed their moment of awkward romance together.
...
Location: New Nellis Staryards, Nevada
The Chameleon transports zoomed over the large military air base as they arrived at their destination, several A-20 planes flying about over the base as they either carried out flight sorties or, more likely, investigated the arriving craft coming towards the base. After about an hour of flying over the country, the Coalition-USN task force finally arrived at the designated area to begin unloading their rescued drones to an area they could be protected more efficiently.
As the transport began to descend, Wade, Tina, and their friends observed the sight outside the window, spotting several landed aircraft and even a few docked warships. They admired the many ships resting for repair and refurbishment while they prepared to land and disembark for the base outside.
In the small bridge of the dropship, one of the two pilots tapped a button on the control panel, putting a microphone to their mouth before speaking into it. "Base Control, this is Transport Chi-729-B, we've got assets from the recent op lead by Captain Preston aboard. Request permission to land."
"Permission granted, Chi-729. Welcome back." The officer on the other end replied as the transport descended further, two lightningrod jets breaking off as they permitted the craft to land on their grounds below them.

BoxOfficeTheory Presale Tracking
USA Showtimes As of May 10
Presales Data (Google Sheets Link)
BoxOfficeReport Previews
DOMESTIC PRESALES
The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Monday Re-Release

• filmlover (Have actually sold a fairly decent amount of seats so far (April 15).)

Back to Black EA+Thursday Comp: $0.55M

• filmlover (Looking at the sales even for the early shows on Wednesday it's on the anemic side (and nothing that's likely to boost it over the next days). Feels like we're about to see how low a biopic about a famous musician can go (May 10).)
  
• katnisscinnaplex ($0.55M EA+Thursday comp.)
  

IF Thursday comp: $1.47M

• PROMOTIONS (APRIL 29 ONLY: Each purchased ticket with RegalMovies gifts a ticket to someone at 826. Regal offering 2500 rewards points.)
  
• abracadabra1998 ($1M Thursday comp. One week out, not impressed in the slightest (May 9). Rising against comps as expected, due to the short release window, but I am still failing to see anything that suggests the numbers given by some other outlets (May 5). The release window for this is way shorter than all these comps so those numbers will naturally go up. Decent growth in the last three days (May 2). Comps are obviously silly at this stage, just wanted to show that unsurprisingly not really a lot of interest from a get-go. We shall see how it does in these coming weeks (April 29).)
  
• AniNate (I definitely haven't seen as much of a rush here with Garfield as with IF (May 11). I dunno, I have no comps but I feel like local presales is a pretty sizable haul a week in advance for an original non-Disney kids movie (May 9). I did see a surprising amount of single sales looking at IF charts (May 1). Gonna try some amateur local tracking: 55 tickets sold across 4 Cinemarks. I feel like this level of unadulterated upfront interest is pretty notable for an original family movie (April 30).)
  
• charlie Jatinder (Hmm. So no real Regal impact it seems at katnisscinnaplex's theaters (April 30).)
  
• DAJK (Selling pretty well so far here (May 4).)
  
• el sid (Not really signs for a breakout for Friday so far, but very solid. It will not really get 4-6M Thursday e.g. compared to Migration but from most comps the number could be pretty decent (May 7). Looked good for the film, both on Thursday and on Friday (May 6).)
  
• katnisscinnaplex ($2.10M Thursday comp. 25 Regal sales (out of 45?) (April 30).)
  
• TheFlatLannister ($2.36M Thursday comp. Not much growth (May 10). Pace is collapsing a bit. Continues its downward trend (May 7). After a strong start, this has cooled off quite a bit (May 4). This is very good considering the lower amount of showings it has (April 30).)
  
• vafrow ($0.4M Thursday comp. Still nothing happening. I did check Friday sales, and it was a lot stronger with 51 tickets sold. That's better, but still not tremendous. I also checked the wider radius, where it's pretty much exactly where Haunted Mansion was, which hit $3.1M opening (May 11). Still nothing really happening here (May 10). Since the last update, they released full showtime sets, and it actually lost two showtimes rather than gain. From the sound of it, it might be doing better in other Canadian markets, particularly BC (May 8). Numbers are still really low, making the standard track fairly useless. I did do a larger 100km radius track, encompassing the broader southern Ontaro market (~8M population, MTC4 being about 70-80% of the market). Even against Haunted Mansion, which underindexed here, it's not doing well (May 4). For a 100 km radius (which captures the whole broader region, probably about an 8M population base), it's sold 11 tickets. Still no sales locally (April 30). I think this only went up overnight, so it's not too odd to have zero sales (April 29).)
  

The Strangers: Chapter 1 Thursday Comp: $1.59M

• katnisscinnaplex ($1.59M Thursday comp)
  
• TwoMisfits (TMobile deal for May - $5 ticket to The Strangers Chapter 1 next Tuesday (May 9).)
  

Furiosa Thursday Comp assuming $5M For keysersoze123: $3.84M

• abracadabra1998 ($5.27M Thursday comp. Really good stuff in this market (May 9). Reallyyyyyy good day 1 here. I want to note that: NO I do NOT think preview numbers will be that high; it's just highlighting the fact that this is likely a movie that will be running hot in my market, as cinephile blockbusters usually do. Next update I will have T-14 comps, which will be a lot lower due to the short release window (May 8).)
  
• AniNate (Skimmed through ThuFri and Valley View (Cleveland vicinity) has sold roughly 60 Furiosa tix so far while Tinseltown (Canton) has sold 40. I'm guessing the upfront audience does lean more toward the urban/cosmopolitan sensibilities (May 9). Presales show there's definitely some hype for this. Regal gonna irritate trackers again, offering no upcharge IMAX for Furiosa (May 8).)
  
• Charlie Jatinder ($3.05M Thursday comp.)
  
• el sid (Furiosa continues its strong performance in "my" theaters. The movie yesterday had already 1.310 sold tickets (for Thursday, May 23). Up 15% in ca. 24 hours which isn't bad at all after the first rush. Already comfortably in front of The Fall Guy's final sales (it had 1.071 counted on Thursday for Thursday) and almost on par with Civil War's final sales (1.357) and also the Apes finally had not more than 1.657 sold tickets in my theaters (May 11). I also can't complain about Furiosa's presales in my theaters, not at all. Already 1,138 sold tickets (in all of "my" 7 theaters) for May 23. 14 days left. Promising start. Civil War on Thursday of the release week for Thursday had 1,357 sold tickets and The Fall Guy finally had 1,071 sold tickets (May 9).)
  
• katnisscinnaplex ($3.33M Thursday comp.)
  
• keysersoze123 (I think this is a solid OD presales. With a short PS window its probably looking at 5m+ previews (May 9).)
  
• TheFlatLannister ($4.20M Thursday comp. Keeps climbing at a strong pace (May 11). This continues to grow at an excellent rate (May 10). Really strong day 2. The short presales is for sure a factor (May 9). Not seeing much of a breakout. Still pretty solid start to presales (May 8).)
  
• vafrow ($2.2M Thursday comp. Mediocre day 2 (May 10). Not the hottest start. IMAX is the format of choice though, so, ATP will be high (May 9).)
  

The Garfield Movie EA+Thursday Comp: $2.4M

• abracadabra1998 ($0.88M EA comp and $1.33M Thursday comp. Good EA numbers, but many of these comps were PLF-only EA, which this is not, so I think the ATP will be quite lower and that should be adjusted for (May 9).)
  
• AniNate (I definitely haven't seen as much of a rush here with Garfield as with IF (May 11).)
  
• el sid (The very even sales are a good sign (May 7). For Sunday, May 19, I can already report that also in my theaters it looks very good for Garfield. They will for sure add shows soon. It has so far only 1 show/theater and the shows are almost sold out, between 1 and 4 seats are still available. So my guess still is that this movie if it's not totally bad (and first reviews here were quite positive) will become a (big) hit. Seems not much on Thursday but it's a step in the right direction (May 6).)
  
• katnisscinnaplex ($2.59M EA+Thursday comp.)
  
• TheFlatLannister ($2.14M Thursday comp.)
  
• vafrow ($0.4M Thursday comp. Comps don't paint a pretty picture though. EA shows are doing okay (May 11). Still no sales for my core sample for previews. But I did the larger sweep, which shows the interest right now is the Sunday early access shows. Looking at sales patterns, it's mainly blocks of 3/4 tickets, so likely families grabbing some. It's worth noting that the May holiday in Canada is the weekend of May 17-20th, not the weekend after with Memorial Day. I can see families prioritizing getting out the holiday weekend when they have more time (May 4). Still no sales (April 28).)
  

The Lord of the Rings Extended Edition Re-Releases (June 8-10)

• katnisscinnaplex (Up to ~1,400 shows now with new locations picking it up and others adding a second showing. LotR1 has sold 831 seats OD, LotR2 sold 715 seats OD, and LotR3 sold 735 seats OD. For comparison, Phantom Menace didn't break 800 tickets until T-3 and we're still over a month out. JW3 comp is currently around 9m (it was at 1,670 tickets sold at this point!) (May 6). Just for kicks I took a look at the LotR re-releases scheduled for June. They're getting one show each (for the most part) in around 1k theaters. Some locations already adding a second showing (April 30). Looks to be in around 1k theaters. Sales looking good already as expected (I already got mine!) (April 26).)

Inside Out 2

• Porthos (On the Saturday of release weekend (ie NOT EA) there is a special event screening for IO2: INSIDE OUT 2: FUNKO FAMILY EVENT! (2024) Sat June 15th. Might boost the OW slightly, depending on how wide this event is and how much more these tickets will presumably cost (May 11).)
  
• YM! (Was taking a look at Marcus Cinemas to see that they have preloaded Inside Out 2 showtimes which seem to start at 3:00 pm on a Thursday. It seems like Marcus is going all out on it as judging from showtimes it's taking away all of Bad Boys’ PLFs in that theaters that have two+ PLFs are giving all to IO2 (May 11).)
  

Domestic Calendar Dates (last updated May 3):
MAY

• (May 12) Social Media Embargo Lifts [Garfield 9 AM EST]
  
• (May 13) Opening Day [Monday: The Amazing Spider-Man 2 Re-Release]
  
• (May 14) Presales Start [Inside Out 2]
  
• (May 16) Presales Start [Bad Boys Ride or Die]
  
• (May 16) Thursday Previews [Babes + Back to Black + If + The Strangers: Chapter 1 + The Blue Angels IMAX]
  
• (May 19) Review Embargo Lifts [Garfield 9 PM EST]
  
• (May 20) Opening Day [Monday: Spider-Man Homecoming Re-Release]
  
• (May 23) Thursday Previews [Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga + The Garfield Movie + Sight]
  
• (May 26) Presales Start [Bikeriders]
  
• (May 27) Opening Day [Monday: Spider-Man Far From Home Re-Release]
  
• (May 30) Thursday Previews [Ezra + Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle + Robot Dreams + The Young Woman and the Sea]
  

JUNE

• (June 3) Opening Day [Monday: Spider-Man No Way Home Re-Release]
  
• (June 5) Presales Start [Despicable Me 4]
  
• (June 6) Thursday Previews [Bad Boys: Ride or Die + The Watchers]
  
• (June 8) 1-Saturday Re-Release [The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Extended Edition]
  
• (June 9) 1-Sunday Re-Release [The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers Extended Edition]
  
• (June 10) 1-Monday Re-Release [The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King Extended Edition]
  
• (June 13) Thursday Previews [Inside Out 2]
  
• (June 20) Thursday Previews [The Bikeriders + Janet Planet]
  
• (June 27) Thursday Previews [Blue Lock The Movie -Episode Nagi- + Horizon: An American Saga Chapter 1 + A Quiet Place: Day One]
  

JULY

• (July 2) Opening Day [Wednesday: Despicable Me 4]
  
• (July 4) Opening Day [Thursday: Possum Trot]
  
• (July 4) Thursday Previews [MaXXXine]
  
• (July 11) Thursday Previews [Fly Me to the Moon + Untitled New Line Horror movie]
  
• (July 18) Thursday Previews [Twisters]
  
• (July 25) Thursday Previews [Deadpool and Wolverine + Didi + Fabulous Four]
  

AUGUST

• (August 1) Thursday Previews [Harold and the Purple Crayon]
  
• (August 8) Thursday Previews [Borderlands + Colleen Hoover’s It Ends With Us + Cuckoo + The Fire Inside + Trap]
  
• (August 15) Thursday Previews [Alien: Romulus + Horizon An American Saga Chapter 2 + Ryan’s World the Movie: Titan Universe Adventure]
  
• (August 22) Thursday Previews [Blink Twice + The Crow + The Forge + Slingshot]
  
• (August 29) Thursday Previews [City of Dreams + Reagan + They Listen]
  

Presale Tracking Posts:
April 16
April 18
April 20
April 23
April 25
April 27
April 30
May 2
May 4
May 7
May 9
Note: I have removed most tracking data that has not been updated for 2 weeks. I think there is value in keeping data for a week or two but at a certain point they start to lose their value and should not be treated the same as more recent tracking data.

Can anyone recommend a lift or crane for a 3rd gen Tacoma, one that attaches to the trailer hitch. I don't want a permanent setup just one for the trailer hitch, one that I can tear down and put in the back of my bed. one that can lift heavy loads and not too expensive. thanks.

This denial was really strange. I thought it was strange in the first place because the judge was saying in his notes. That I could lift, push, pull weight that no medical record or document says I can anywhere. He was also saying I had a range of motion no medical record or document says in my medical charts anywhere. At first I thought he was just making stuff up and pulling it out of this air.
After my husband looked at the denial letter though, he noticed the judge was using medical assessments that were done by doctors I've never seen in my life. The judge denied my disability case based off of assessments that weren't done on me. Assessments made by doctors I've never in my life seen. From places I've never even been to. There were four different doctors he used records and assessments to deny my case that had nothing to do with me or my case or my condition. How is that even legal?
Stranger still, all the doctors he used seem plausible as they are all from the two states I've had my actual medical evaluations and assessments done. One of the doctors names we couldn't pin point exactly. There's three different people this doctor could potentially be that he used. One is an actual MD that is from the area I live and has practiced even where I had my decompression surgery; except this doctor died in 1964; so that can't be it. Another possibility is a guy by the same name from the relative area who died just last month, but would've been alive to write the assessment the judge used. Problem is, that guy isn't a doctor, he's a musician, but mainly, a men's and women's basketball coach; so that can't be it. The third is an actual MD that is from the city and suburb I live in and is actually alive. The problem is, he's a hand surgeon that does plastic surgeries which has nothing to do with my condition. There's only 10 vascular surgeon's that deal with my condition in the US because it's rare and complex. Only effecting 1% of the overall population. Regardless, I've never seen this doctor ever in my life let alone had a medical evaluation performed on me by this guy.
The judge used two psychologists to look over a psych evaluation back in August of 2022. One of these PhD's of from the area I live, but has no pictures, no ratings or anything other than he is a psychologist that specializes in psychotherapy. The other psychologist he used was from, again a place I've never been, but at least in my state. This one works for Zocdoc, a telehealth psychologist which I've never used this service in my life. These two psychologists determined that I had no psychiatric disorders. The problem is, I never had a psych evaluation done in 2022. I've not had a need to because I've been seeing psychologists and psychiatrists since 1992. I've had the same psychiatrist and psychologist since I was 20 years old; I'm 41 now. I recieve regular prescriptions from my psychiatrist for bipolar type two and GAPD for a couple decades now.
The two MD's that he used, one was an orthopedic specialist that works with Saint Luke's. Which is a hospital I've never been to, and I've never met this orthopedic specialist and he's never conducted a medical evaluation or functional capacity test on me in my life. Then the mysterious MD that's either not an MD at all, died before I was even born, or a hand plastic surgeon. None of which I've ever met, or ever had them do a medical evaluation or functional capacity test on me in my entire life. These two sources the judge used were saying according to their assessment (who ever they did an assessment on if these medical evaluations are even real) was not me. Their assessments though was where the judge was getting information that I could "jog, run, do exercises, lift up to 40lbs, climb ropes, latter's and scaffolding's" among other things I can't do.
I know the names and practices of the specialists and other doctors that have actually done medical evaluations on me. I know the name of the person, the company he worked for, and where my actual functional capacity evaluation was done. None of my actual doctors, their notes in my records, or assessments were used in the judges notes to make his denial decision. There are no medical records that say I can even lift up to 20lbs. My weight limit is more like 5 to 10lbs with 7lbs being the actual restriction. I have a DASH of 73 and my ROM measurements are less than half of what they're supposed to be. Out of 180 degrees I only got about 30 degrees, in another direction it's only 90, and the other direction it's only 60 degrees. I can't reach in every which direction at all, I can't even reach my head. I have to sit to bathe to be able to teach my legs and feet by bringing them to my hands to wash them. I struggle lifting a gallon of milk (roughly about 10lbs) my arm shakes and I'll drop it if he's for not even a full minute. My radial, median and ulnar nerves are damaged from finger tip to shoulder. I've got nerve damage in my chest and neck. I've got atrophy, contractures and spasms in my arm, neck and back. All of this has been medically documented. It's even medically documented that I can't do any repetitive motion including sitting at a keyboard for more than 15 to 20 minutes at a time.
I have a disability lawyer, and we are appealing this decision. I just don't know what to think of this denial because everything the judge based his decision on where records, assessments and evaluations that were not mine. Made by doctors that I've never seen in my whole life and have nothing to do with me or my case. Is this legal? Is this fraud? Is there anything a person can even do about it as far as holding the judge accountable? Has anyone else seen anything like that before? How common a occurrence is this to happen?
To be clear, I don't know if the judge did this on purpose just to deny a case. If he was just looking at someone else's file or got mine and another person's medical records confused. I don't know how something like that happens.

_.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-.
Chapter III - Is that baklava, or are you just happy to see me? San Francisco, California - Market & Castro - June 1st, 2008
Number 5: "So there I was, at a Fetus/GWAR concert and I'm right at the barricade at the very front between sets, and there's this super HOT fucking bouncer chick, right? And she's staring right at me, and I look right at Oderus, and he looks right at me, and we both stare at this fine ass bouncer working crowd security at the front. Then, just out of nowhere, she lifts her shirt and whips her tits out and points at her mouth, and they aim the blood canon right at her and absolutely blast her with purple monster blood all over her in the face and tits. And me and Oderus look at her, then each other, and then just shrug, and man. It was fucking awesome..."
Command: "When was the last time you went to a GWAR concert, Five?"
Number 5: "It was at least back in 03'... Hold up. We've got Cookie monsters gathering in Jane Warner Plaza... You seeing this Seven?"
Number 7/Overwatch: "Copy that, five. They just hopped out of the MUNI, and looks like they're getting hot for boy pussy... Fucking dickholes..."
Command: "Okay ladies, don't get your panties in a twist. We need this to go down quietly. Do you have eyes on the package?"
Number 6: "Packages everywhere. Literally, but not the one we're looking for..."
Number 8: "Be advised, we've got Hajis and Skinnies popping out of the Muni station. Looks like they're here for more than just tail. Do you see this Command?"
Command: "Roger that, Eight. Keep it tight and don't let them out of your sight. Five, I want a danger close tail on those fuckwads, and find out if they're here for the package."
Number 5: "Copy, Command. I'll drop a line to the West Side Story boys, and see if they can keep a visual. Just a sec... Crutchie, do you read?"
Crutchie: "Oooh, is that who I think it is? Five, Darling. You never called me back after last time... And I thought we had sooo much in common."
Number 5: "Well that was before you made out with and keestered our asset, and made him pop positive for molly on a piss test, Crutchie..."
Crutchie: *Twirls a lock of hair* Whatever, Five. And he was soooo hot to trot too. Tsssssss."
Number 6: "Doesn't Crutchie always try to bone all of our assets?"
Crutchie: "Only if they're hot enough, Six..."
Number 8: "By the way Crutchie, really digging the whole hipsteClark Kent get up you've got going for you. Does it normally get you tagged by boner, or is that how you always dress when courting an investment banker?"
Crutchie: "Only when they're getting right off of work and hitting the club scene, Eight. Okay, I've got visual on the Skinnies. I'll have Leather Daddy run the tail from here, and we'll have Gilette and Stabby watch from their perch."
Number 6: "Tell Gilette I said Hi. Is she still dating that fucking twat from Jersey? Last time we had an engagement, she almost blew the whole damned OP over a tray of creme brulee..."
Crutchie: "Yeah, well bitch had a sweet tooth... Never get between a woman and what she's craving during a pregnancy..."
Number 7/Overwatch: "We've got a problem. Looks like the Skinnies are heading over to the deli for some falafel, and they've got company. Looks like the Greek mobsters from Kearny Street we saw last week..."
Command: "Keep it cool, ladies. The last thing we need is for one of you to get made if these fuckers start exchanging bullets. Hopefully they keep their dildos in their holsters..."
Crutchie: "Speaking of dildos, when's the last time you had some poon, Five? It's been what, over a year since you had that hot goth chick you were making out with at my mom's apartment? Or are you into dudes now?"
Number 5: "I don't get attached, Crutchie. I'm here for a good time, not a long time. Remember?"
Crutchie: "Okay, if you say so, but you still didn't answer my question, darling..."
Stabby: "Daddy, do you have visual? Pop a twenty in the deli and order some baklava. Find out if these fuckers are here for the package."
Leather Daddy: "If you say so, sweetie. And ooooh, good call. The baklava is to die for. You've absolutely gotta try some sometime..."
Stabby: "Be advised, Six. We've got the Sesame Street convention hopping out of the MUNI station. Looks like the perverts you warned us about on the APB."
Number 6: "Got visual, and yep. Those are the same perps."
Crutchie: "I don't want to be a party pooper, ladies, but I've got an investment banker to impress... Think you can party with Stabby and Gilette for now?"
Number 5: "Damn it, Crutchie... and by impress you mean..."
Crutchie: "Always sweetheart."
*The four suspects start heading over to the Palestinian Deli*
Number 6: "We've got a problem, looks like the Cookie Monsters already know the Greek Malacca fuckwads... Command, you seeing this?"
Command: "Affirmative, Six. Standby for further instructions. Daddy, how's the baklava looking?"
Leather Daddy: "Oooh, sweet as can be. You like shwarma, sweetie?"
Command: "Not really, Daddy. Kebabs are my thing, and usually salmon if they have it, and have decent enough tatsiki sauce."
Number 7/Overwatch: "One of the skinnies isn't looking so hot. You see the heat on him? He's burning up..."
Crutchie: "And by burning up, I'm going to assume you mean in a less than sexy way?"
Stabby: "Confirmed on the thermal, Seven. He's got a temp of over 107 .
*The Somalian youth in the leather jacket keels over to his hands and knees and starts coughing up blood*
Number 6: "Well, that's not a good sign... You seeing this command?"
Command: "Affirmative, Six. Keep a distance in case he's got ebola or some shit. Daddy? Be advised, the skinny in front of the deli is coughing up blood. Keep a good gap and follow the others when they move.
Leather Daddy: "Yes, Mommy. I thought you'd never ask."
Stabby: "Looks like the Hajis are heading across the street to the bodega next to the bakery/ice cream shop. Standby, Daddy. This could get complicated. Let's see what these fuckers are about.
Leather Daddy: "Oooh, what a co-inky-dink. My girls are getting ready for Rocky tonight. They're at Starbucks right now. Should I give them a ringy-dingy?
Gilette: "Copy that, Daddy. The more the merrier."
Number 6: "Looks like the Skinnies are on the move, and they don't seem to give a fuck about their buddies well being, they're just dragging him along..."
Number 7/Overwatch: "Yep, looks like they're heading into the plaza in front of Twin Peaks right now. Those Malacca fucks are still milling about with the Sesame Street parade."
Number 5: "Copy that. Let's keep the logistics for this shit under wraps. Dykie, Stabby, Daddy? We'll do a split push. You have your girls at Starbucks watch the Hajis, and we'll keep an eye on the Plaza. If anymore Cookie Monsters pop up out of the Muni, I'm going to get fucking heartburn."
July 2nd, 2008 - 2148 Hours San Francisco, California - Market & Castro - June 1st, 2008
*The four Muhajadeen gatherered in front of the bodega, while the elder with the flowing beard and trucker cap walked in the front door. Sueliman lit a cigarette while Mohammed and Ismael looked at Mehmed sideways*
*Simultaneously, Dave and Richard sat in Jane Warner Plaza, reading magazines and eating sandwiches they bought moments earlier from next door to Twin Peaks.*
Sgt. Dave: "You ever get the feeling we're in the wrong line of work? I mean, with all the shit going on in the world today, we could be overseas making a difference, and instead we're walking a beat to protect a bunch of entitled liberals and hipsters..."
Pvt. Richard: "You're barking up the wrong tree with that one, Sarge. I already did my tour, and it was a steaming pile of dog shit. War is still not over. Not by a long shot. I'll take walking a beat with this crowd any time, compared to getting keestered in some Iraqi shithole mosque's basement, any day of the fucking week."
Number 5: "Be on the lookout, we've got two cops sitting in the plaza and they are completely fucking clueless to the Sesame Street brigade gathering around them."
Stabby: "Copy that, Five. They're beat cops, and they're usuals in this neck of the woods. They're not involved in policing this kind of shit..."
Leather Daddy: "Ooooh girls, looks like we got some boys from the Bin Laden fan club gathering in front of the bodega, and I think they're there to buy more than just bongs and zig zags..."
Number 6: "Copy that, Daddy. Looks like the Skinnies are walking past the Cafe and are heading down Market. The Greeks are still hanging out in front of the deli..."
Gilette: "Looks like Rip Van Wrinkle from the Muhajedeen is going to be in there for a while. Standby. Yo, Daddy. Can you get a stoner or hardcore pothead to drop in there and see what the fuck is going on inside?
Leather Daddy: "Passing Squat and Gobble right now, tailing the pirates. I'll see what I can do... Heeeeeey, Javier?"
Javier: "God damn it, dude. I told you not to call me this early. I'm not holding and the dispensary doesn't restock until Tuesday..."
Leather Daddy: "Well, see. If you could help a brother out, I've got this group from the Bin Laden fan club at the bodega bong shop around the corner from the flag, and I really need someone to drop by and give a looksie. Could you be a dear and do me a favor, just this once?"
Javier: "Yeah, yeah, Daddy-o. I'll have one of the Punk rockers from up the street drop by and get a pair of ears in there. It could be a minute though..."
Leather Daddy: "Ahoy! The sooner the better sweetie. We're running a tight ship."
Javier: "Got someone walking up the block on a parallel route right now. Should be there in a minute twenty."
Leather Daddy: "Fantastic! I'll definitely owe you one, Javi."
Javier: "Any time, Daddy-O."
*Just then, a Ford Explorer pulled up at the intersection of Market and Castro, with 20" rims and neon lights on the under carriage. "Mac Dre" was dumping out of the woofers*
Stabby: "And look who it is..."
Gilette: "Sauce boss is early today, eh?"
Stabby: "Probably about to hit the Cafe for the usual customers. If they run into the Sesame Street convention in the plaza, we could be looking at a shootout in the making..."
Number 6: "Be advised, Greeks are looking heated."
Number 5: "Don't tell me those malacca fuckwads are thinking what I think they're thinking..."
Command: "Five, Six, Seven, Eight! Do NOT engage! I repeat! Do NOT engage!"
Gilette: "Oh, Motherfucker-"
*The Greeks in front of the Palestinian deli eyeballed the Ford Explorer and reached into their coats as it rounded the corner on Castro. That's when Intratec Tec DC-9s with extended barrels and 30 round mags popped out of the windows, and it began to rain 9mm x 19mm shell casings and ball parabellum rounds.* _.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-._.-=-.
Chapter 4 - We need more cone charges... Hayward, California - July 6th 2008 - 0324 Hours Mobile Task Force - Epsilon Bravo VII (The Renegades)
EB7-5: "Well that was a shitshow the other night..."
EB7-6: "Yeah, tell me about it, Five. And we got reassigned to the Scooby Squad and the Mystery Machine? Literally, how in the fuck does that happen?"
EB7-8: "Well, those coke dealers weren't playing around when those Greek kid fuckers reached for their jammies..."
EB7-7/Overwatch: "No shit. It was curtains the minute they dug in. Damned shamed about the package though, we almost had that fucker."
EB7-6: "Hey Five, you know if those cops made it? The ones in the plaza?"
EB7-5: "They were wearing standard issue kevlar. The few strays the sergeant caught to the torso tagged him in the vest, but one got him in the shoulder. The Private got one in the pelvis, so he's in ICU still. We don't know if he'll pull through."
EB7-8: "They were a game changer though, through and through. Lucky for the Sergeant, that Private was a Seal."
EB7-5: "Well, that made all the difference in that world." she said, making a wide covering arc with her extended barrel AA-12 as she knelt and held up a balled fist to Six and Eight, a 30 round drum of 12-gauge Thamauturgically enhanced cobalt slugs hung from beneath her weapon, and two more drums were in her pack, just like the rest of her 3 person fire team whom also had similar loadouts of AA-12s, each one with a secondary loadout of short barrel SCAR-Light bullpups and several 30 round magazines in their Boron-Ceramic armor's LBVs. Seven had standard issue .50 Cal tungsten carbide SLAP rounds enhanced with neutronic singularity dispersement tips at the ready, and an FN-FS2000 with lithium plasma phase differential bullets.
EB7-Command: "Good evening, Ladies..."
EB7-6: "Holy fuck, is that Gator?"
EB7-Command: "The one and only, Six."
EB7-5: "Congrats on the promotion, Captain. Glad to have you join us..."
EB7-Command: "Thanks, Five. I'd hate to be the bearer of bad news, but switch to your visors. You've got some tangoes up ahead and I don't think they're here for tea."
EB7-5: "Roger that. Gear up girls, this is what we signed up for. Switching to multispectral..."
Professor Chaos: "Wait for me to run point up ahead, and you three cover me. I need to see what these things are up to..."
EB7-5: "Copy that, Skippy. Just don't get your damned arms ripped off, got it?"
Professor Chaos: "Roger that, Five. I'm Oscar Mike, with Charlie..." he said, as he closed his eyes and began walking, doing his best to concentrate, craning his head from right to left. Taking a bandana out of his pouch, he tied it around his eyes so he wouldn't have any distractions...
Professor Chaos: "Be advised, I'm reading some temporal-spatial anomalies about half a click ahead."
EB7-Command: 'You can fucking see that shit, Skippy?"
Professor Chaos: "Five, now would be a damned good time to deploy a mobile Scranton Beam Projector..."
EB7-5: "Copy that, Skippy. Tripod deploying the directed energy stabilization field in ten seconds." Ten seconds later, there was a brief temporal distortion, and the spatial fabric of the facility wavered and shimmered momentarily.
EB7-5: "Temporal-Spatial stabilization synchronized, Skippy. You're clear to proceed."
EB7-6: "Didn't Nazis used to use this place as a secret base after the war?"
EB7-Command: "Correct, Six. Those fuckers were hiding under everyone's noses for decades until OSI flushed them out in the 70's. Place has been In-OP and direlect for decades, but the Serpents Legion teamed up with what was left of the Ahnernerbe Inner Circle back in the Satanic Panic of the 80's and 90's. They've been using the place on and off since then..."
EB7-Gunny: "Lance and I will keep watch here on the surface and give you a heads up if anyone decides to drop by. As of now though, not a soul knows were here, and Higher made sure to keep it dark on signals. We're the only one's that will be in or out... Professor, don't get shanked by a fucking sorcerer now, or worse get Shanghai'ed by the damned cult. Motherfuckers will be sad if your ass gets eaten by a God damned monster, Skippy..."
Lance Corporal Todd slung the M32A1 over his torso as he slid the extra clips of .308 into the LBV on his Boron/Ceramic armor. Taking his bullpup SCAR Heavy with suppressor and Multispec scope, he gave a brief once over of his gear. Corpsman Bill did the same, as did Gunny Wilson. Each one had similar rotary grenade launchers with high explosive armor piercing 40mm grenades, and extra ordinance and munitions in their packs, including cone charges, claymores, and various utility grenades like flashbangs and thermite. Taking one last look at each other, they switched on their quantum camouflage, and their forms shimmered and disappeared to visible light spectrum. Switching to back scatter X-Ray/Multispec, they nodded to each other and made off to secure the entrances at the perimeter.
EB7-Bill: "Did you make sure to wash with hunter's soap and scent free baking soda deodorant, guys?"
EB7-Wilson: "Copy that, Corpsman. I can't even smell myself."
EB7-Todd: "Yeah, it's weird. It's like 99 degrees right now and I'm not even sweating, let alone smelling myself. At least it's not like Mississippi..."
Just then a pair of headlights could be seen rolling down towards the warehouses. The sound of Reggaton could be heard on subwoofer.
EB7-Bill: "Well boys, it looks like we've got company, and I don' think they're here for the same reason we are. Let's just hope its a drug deal or an arms sale, and let them go on their way."
An electrical company van's headlights could be seen coming from the opposite direction, and it was being followed by a repair truck with a bucket lift.
EB7-Wilson: "I Get the creeping suspicion that these cats aren't here to check the meter."
EB7-Todd: "Command, be advised. We've got activity here on the surface. Looks like gangster shit, but we've also got some utility workers on their way to the street parallel to us. What do you want us to do for now?"
EB7-Command: "I'm less worried about the gangsters, and more concerned about the utility workers. Keep an eye on them. Especially if they start snooping around.
EB7-Bill: "Copy that, Command. We'll be on the lookout."
The Escalade bumping the reggaton pulled off to a side road a few streets over, and the Utility van and bucket truck pulled the same way. More headlights could be seen as two vehicles came from the same direction as the gangsters. One was a Dodge grand caravan, and the other was a Ford F-350 XL.
EB7-Wilson: "Oh shit, this can't be good. Command, you seeing this?" It was then that the microwave uplink to the aerial surveillance drone scrambled and cut out.
EB7-Command: "Well fuck me running, boys, but looks like the drone's feed just ate shit, and the timing of theses utility workers and gangsters is a little too convenient. Stay in the shadows. It looks like they're here for us and the girls..."
Three men in body armor with kitted out Ak-47s and NV goggles hopped out of the Escalade. Five more hopped out of the minivan, equally geared up. Two hopped out of the truck, and went around back for large metal cases and dragged them to the ground, as well as three C-Bags. A man in a white suit with a white cabana hat stepped out of the Utility Van, and lit a cigar.
Mercenary Captain: "Buenos Tardes, Patron. Es tiempo." The man in the white, gave him one stern look and simply said, "¿Si? Bien."
The Captain pointed his AK-47 at the ground as he slapped the side of the truck twice and yelled to the men, "Vamanos puez! Andele!" The nine men gathered around, and each one dropped to one knee, and lowered their heads. Taking a puff of his cigar and pinching it between his fingers, the man in white outstretched his arms and stepped forward.
Man In White: "Welcome, Children of the Night! The Serpent is with us. I do hope you are all ready to do the Lord's work..."
It was at this point that the power went out for the entire grid to the whole city. All the lights and ground communications went dark in that very moment.
Man In White: "Viya con dios, Mijos."
They all rose to their feet and immediately began unloading the crates of rocket launchers and light machine guns, and ammo boxes.
EB7-Wilson: "Yeah. Guess they're not here to check the meter fellas. These aren't Mexican mafia at all... They're something else..."
EB7-Command: "Hopefully they don't see you yet..."
It was then that the Man in White walked 90 º perpendicular to physical 4th dimensional reality and winked out of existence. His men did a double take and stood there flabbergasted for at least a minute looking around until the Captain said, "Get back to work!"
EB7-Wilson: "You fucking see that shit, Gator?"
EB7-Command: "Yeeeeeah. That's NOT a good sign. Ladies, this is probably not a good time, but we've got our hands full up here. Stick to securing the objective with Professor Chaos. We've got a mess about to happen and will do our best to hold them off while we can."
EB7-5: "Yeah, we got a Temporal-Spatial distortion spike right before you told us. Well stick with Skippy. Seven, you're up here with us. All of us will stick in a five man team from here on out. Going radio dark, Command. We don't know if our COMS encryption's been burned yet.
EB7-Command: "Good call, Five. We'll head down there as soon as we get this handled. Good luck." Wilson, Todd, and Bill, held their positions and aimed their weapons at the entourage of mercenaries.
EB7-Wilson: "Don't do a thing unless they fire at us. It's better we aren't seen and don't have to engage unless we have no other options."
The Man in White's voice echoed in Wilson's head.
Man In White: "I appreciate you demonstrating a professional courtesy of sparing my men, Gunnery Sergeant Dennis Nathaniel Wilson, and honestly you and your fireteam could have killed them all rather quickly if you were motivated enough. However, I cannot guarantee the girls success of securing the relic. You will find that its guardians can be rather- persistent. Now tell me more about the SCIP friend of yours...Professor Chaos."
EB7-Wilson: "I remember your from Peshwar. You were with the general from ISI in '03." *His eyes widened* "You're-" Wilson's eyes rolled back into his head and he began twitching as he entered a fugue state and convulsed and foamed at the mouth. He fell to the ground unconscious shortly thereafter. He plopped like a ragdoll with an invisible *thud*. It was then that the Man in White began probing his memories...
EB7-Command: "Wilson! Damn it Gunny, Wake UP!"
_ To Be Continued...

I think I am coming close to my final version before moving on. I want to get better at showing and not telling so that enough of the protagonist's character comes through/is developed so that the plot from here on out is driven by character instead of just things happening to him and him reacting. I generally have
I am trying to show the reader 2+2 instead of 4.
There are some parts that I feel are info-dumpy that I might keep in for now until I can find a place later in the story but I'd like them pointed out regardless so I can at least highlight what I need to modify/cut.
I want to know if what the potions are doing is clear, whether there's enough of the character coming through but I've found it difficult without anyone else for him to speak with.
I'll write future chapters in third person just to try things out.
Get in, get the fruit, get out. Simple enough, right? Even so, this wasn’t a somewhere any human should be. Had my ambitions as a mage gone too far?
My world brightened and my body was weightless for a moment. Then, I collapsed onto a hard, dry ground. Standing, sulfur and smoke lingered on my clothes from the ritual that brought me to this realm—the Fae Lands. I blinked my eyes to clear my vision, and grinned. For better or worse, I succeeded in the first part and entered the White Woods. An orchard in which magic grew like fruit on trees – the heart of the Fae’s magic.
Its inhabitants, and their bestial servants did not take kindly to intruders. Only, the Fae were dead, and these lands were abandoned. But with their passing, any way out of the Fae Lands had been cut off, not that they’d let anyone leave. But we have a plan. Something even the Fae may have never known. I trusted my friends. But all knowledge comes at a risk. All lessons required payment. Common sayings amongst those that studied magic and all too habitually used to justify reckless behavior.
As my vision cleared, I craned my neck up and my pride turned to awe.
Massive trunks surrounded me as they stretched into the night sky like smooth, marble-white pillars. Their foliage seamlessly blended with the stars which shed a pervasive blue glow throughout the forest. Underneath, sparse vegetation grew dark, waxy leaves that reflected the light.
I placed my hand on a root and received a cold sensation as though it were worn stone. I always expected to sense the weight of past eons here but, instead, this place seemed entirely beyond the grasp of time. Though abandoned, it wasn’t clear whether this forest was tranquil or holding its breath.
Now, the Fae fruit, within which resided raw magic. I didn’t know what it looked like but XXX said I’d know it when I see it. I pulled a water satchel out and drank deeply, relieving my mouth from the dry, still air. My bag was light for being so far from home, but I shouldn’t be here too long if things go as planned. And if they don’t, extra provisions wouldn’t save me.
I uncorked a vial filled with a metallic, heavy liquid, and drank the bitter, iron-tasting liquor. I gagged and wished XZ made these damned concoctions tolerable for once.
I stilled my breathing. My heart slowed and my eyes closed as I channeled magic into them. Hoping the potion was effective and lowered my sensitivity to the intense magic here, I cautiously opened them.
Gradually, iridescent strings brightened into view, forming winding paths that hung in the air or an interwoven network along the ground which grew dense at the base of the trees. Their trunks, rigid and smooth before, were now laced with these threads, which wound together and formed cords that ran the length of the trunks and rooted themselves in the stars above.
Under the protection of the potion, my eyes safely explored the surrounding network for a single strand that would lead me to the sapling which held the Fae fruit. It didn’t take long to find. Its irregular and frenzied rhythm made it stand out as it bumped and danced around the older, more tired threads rooted to the nearby giants as if wanting to find a partner. As if it wanted to be found.
The Fae fruit was not a spell but was magic itself. Wild and untamed. Moldable. It longed for place in the fabric of the world. Ancient rulers used them to forge spells and weapons of war or to win the affection of those they sought for matrimony. Others, to defend land for their subjects to till. An utter waste of such potential. A Fae fruit for dirt? Some, reasonably, used them to fashion flames to burn away incursions of the withering rot, a seemingly sentient mold that threatened to cover entire nations.
But I sought greater heights. Too long had magic been used to hurt or destroy. Where others would cut, I would mend. I sought to forge a new spell. One to heal the sick and wounded. At least in theory.
After all, future ages would better remember our names if they could live.
I marched on, following this thread. Occasionally, it would skip to my right or left, and I’d chase after it and leap over other roots, like a game of tag I played with XZ and XY when we were kids, at least, whenever we could pull XY’s nose out of her books.
Gradually, other strands appeared, each just as excited. Though strange, it was like I was approaching a festival. A celebration. After what felt like a quarter of a night, I saw my destination. The threads had converged at the roots of a sapling.
The sapling, if it could be called such, better resembled the trees I’d climbed as a boy, pale as it was. It was distinguished only by its size from the other arboreal titans nearby. And there, on one of its branches hung the Fae fruit.
It was still. Quiet. But when viewed by those trained in the arcane, the tree burned with energy. The threads twirled around, formed new connections, and just as easily breaking them. Occasionally, two threads would twist together, fuse, then separate having switched their dancing partners.
In the right hands, the fruit could be used to weave entirely new spells or, if one were wasteful, in the crafting of a single powerful enchanted item. But worst of all, the brewing of an especially bad tasting, though potent potion. Of course, neither I nor anyone else in their right mind would pass on any such treasures. Wars were fought over such relics in the past, though politics, pride, and occasionally honor also played their role spectacularly in such disputes.
But if left alone, would the fruit grow into a tree and root into the sky if not stolen from no one at all? Was our intention greater than that forest’s? I pushed such questions from my mind as I advanced towards the base of the tree. Towards my ambition.
It was surrounded by a deep thicket. With no way around, I cautiously stepped onto the underlying mossy carpet and traveled deeper within. As I pushed, the vegetation fought my efforts but, before snapping, abruptly relaxed and gave way. “Thank you.” I whispered, surprising even myself. Though, I supposed it never hurt to be too courteous. Even to a bush.
Behind me, the path I’d made slowly disappeared as the branches returned to their original position like I’d never been there. I looked forward and-
*crunch*
The bone-chilling sound shattered the silence of the forest. I froze. My heart quickened.
What was that? What did I step on? The vegetation closed in around me, surrounding me in blackness. The convenience of their allowing me deeper within now seemed to be the opening of a trap which now closed on me as I stood frozen. The branches surrounded me and... paused.
The next minute was an eternity in this timeless place. ‘Would I die to a bush?’ The thought lingered, ominous and absurd.
Slowly, I lifted my foot and positioned it to the side. Feeling the even ground again, I pushed forward. The branches, seemingly having forgotten my presence, once again needed convincing to let me pass through. Clear of the thicket, a sigh of relief escaped my chest as I was unsure of exactly how much danger I was in. Or what I’d stepped on.
But such thoughts vanished as my sight settled on my goal. It radiated a cold-blue light and, surprisingly, did look far more like an apple than expected.
“Huh.” I’d said, far louder than intended.
I climbed the tree and crawled out on one of its branches, using another to keep my balance. This was used to be easier. A stem connected the fruit to the branch which my instincts told me could not be cut by normal means.
Withdrawing a small knife with a white, wooden handle, provided by XXX for this occasion, the enchanted blade was passed across the stem. Frayed, iridescent threads were severed and hung in the air as they slowly dissolved. Others would find each other and fuse to survive. As more threads were cut, some swept along the blade, threatening to bind to it and alter its very nature. It might disrupt the enchantment.
My work quickened and the fruit came free in my palm. Then, for the first time, a cool breath of wind caressed my face like the forest exhaled. The air had shifted. I braced and my eyes watched the gaps in the trees as the forest turned its attention to me. More than just the White Trees were now watching. I needed to get home. Now.
I gently secured the still glowing fruit in a bag and strapped it tightly onto my back, feeling its weight on my shoulders like a ball of iron. Dust kicked up as my boots hit the ground, and I navigated back through the thicket, avoiding the place where I’d stepped on the object.
I reached for a second vial, also provided by XZ, when my eyes focused on something. It was nearly as tall as I was and covered in moss, resembling a circular stone table on its side with a single thin rectangular protrusion extending upward.
Despite the sensation of being watched, I lifted the moss to reveal a pale-white surface with distinct ridges radiating outward from a central point. A vertebrae. The moss was returned onto the enormous bone. I didn’t want to think about that right now.
‘Home. Now.’ My instincts told me.
I took a vial within which a clear liquid effortlessly danced with the light. Uncorking it, I tipped it over, ensuring only a single drop fell towards the ground. Before landing, it slowed, curved, and accelerated away from me to my right. Thank goodness. Trusting the droplet would lead me home, I chased after it.
Each droplet eventually tired and fell to the dusty ground or splattered against the side of a tree. After, I’d poured another, eyeing its slowing descent and acceleration ahead of me. As this ritual repeated, the sound of my boots hitting the hard, dusty ground echoed off the bodies of the pale giants surrounding me.
The more time I spent here, the more it felt like this place was deep underground. Like the sky above threatened to trap me here alone. I increased my rhythm of chasing the droplets as a distant hum in the air continued to grow louder.
Smiling triumphantly, I caught my breath and watched as a droplet traveled towards the base of a single, undistinguished tree, then danced upwards along its body, glowing brighter before disappearing in a flash. I’d found my way out.
“Almost there. Here goes nothing.”
I gingerly stepped onto the side of the tree. The other foot followed. Feeling my weight shift, I stood horizontal to the ground. Laughing, I look ‘up’ back towards the way from which I came and froze. That’s when I see it. A hulking figure with a wolf-like body crouched motionless and low to the ground. It was mid-step as it stared at me with pale eyes that were all too intelligent. The long hair on its head was a braided, tangled, mess from which a crown of antlers protruded. Slowly, it raised its body.
This place was supposed to be abandoned.
CLICK.
A sound like a boulder cracking reverberated through my bones, breaking the humming of the tree under my feet, and threatened my balance.
This isn’t happening.
CLICK. CLICK.
It shifted. And lunged, kicking up dust and tearing the ground as it ran. It’s hair waved wildly as it clawed the ground while the clicking grew into a frenzied rhythm that drowned the hum of the tree.
I snapped back and turned, sprinting up the tree hoping to get high enough to escape its reach. I nearly slipped as I looked back at the ground. Dread filled me as I saw the thing had immediately closed in on the base of the tree. It was far too agile for its size. It leapt and grabbed onto either side of the giant tree and heaved itself upwards, swiftly scaling the tree.
I ripped the cork from the same vial, throwing it away, and drank the rest. It burned my throat as I continued my mad ascent. Halfway up the tree, my weight shifted again, and my vision brightened. The world turned white when suddenly a searing pain arced across my back as my flesh was opened. Then I’m falling.
I feel a cool wind whip across my face as my eyes open to see familiar sunlight on green fields surrounding a lake towards which I’m rapidly falling.
Thanks for reading if you've gotten this far!