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This is the most plausible answer. I think this is exactly how he did it using facts from sermons, emails, texts, news, interviews, maps, and extensive experience with parasitic Narcissistic sitic abuse. If there is anything that I am incorrect on please let me know and I will recalculate. After typing this up two days ago, I stumbled upon Micaâs fatherâs interview, and it completely solidified it to the point where I started violently shaking. I think this is what happened.
I was told Winslowâs property backs up against that state forest. 200 acres. Right down the road. Now remember. Somebody on his staff was told to go and trim back the overgrowth on that specific property shortly before all of this happened,
I think Mica at some point had conversation with Winslow and agreed to come and talk to him at his property, a âsafe place JP wouldnât know.â, thinking she could trust him. I think mica went to winslows and JP was waiting there for unknowingly.
I think Winslow has JPâs phone and I think JP has Winslowâs phone so theyâre not gonna ping the towers. All they saw was the license plate they never verified He was actually there.
I think JP and Winslow met at a undisclosed location and swapped vehicles. JP went up to Winslowâs NC property with Winslowâs vehicle and cell phone, and Winslow went down south with JP cell phone and truck. I canât quite place the girlfriend, but she is an alibi therefore she is aware that something has happened or is going on. I cannot figure out whether or not Winslow was with JP and she took the vehicle down south either or we need to find out the location of where the girlfriend was and where Winslow was. That could all be found by bank financial records of the days in question. Nobody uses cash in 2024 for an entire getaway.
Didnât they say he got a new truck? There was something new about the truck? Did he get a new one so it wouldnât have any of Winslowâs DNA inside of it? If Winslow drove it, his DNA/finger prints on the steering wheel would easily be on the steering wheel. Why else would he need to drive Winslowâs vehicle if there were indications, he was driving the vehicle. Now remember one of them is a lawyer he knows what they look for. JPâs and Winslowâs vehicles both need to be tested for gunpowder residue.
Mica shows up to Winslowâs property, JP is there with Winslowâs vehicle, ambushes her OR Winslow is there too and the girlfriend took her phone and truck south. He already has a plan of where heâs going to take her to unalive her before she arrives. JP drives Micaâs car with Mica in it to the final location parking lot, walks her into the woods kills her, puts her stuff down and walks back to Winslow property through the woods. Girlfriend says she was with him, I think she stayed at the property or she drove a vehicle to come get him after he was done if she was there. either way Winslow or girlfriend somebody picked him up or was waiting or he went back to the property and gotten Winslowâs vehicle and left. Remember itâs not that far away..
Now, after reviewing the 911 recording again, I do not think it is AI. The biggest reason why I know it wasnât AI is because if you listen to the fast response when asked for the phone number, there wasnât enough time to record that and send it at the same time. So she replied too fast. Now, when have you ever heard a 911 operator asking somebody for their phone number? That never would have been written. You still have the type stuff in the AI creators. Also, she delayed pause between every number, how would she have replied in half the time it would have taken to type all of that out. Think about it, he would have had to type a number hit space type a number hit space over and over. In a rush I know I mess up you donât think he would have messed up? He never would have been able to get that recorded smoothly quickly in the time it took for her to respond. Again, when have you ever heard of 911 asking for your phone number?. I believe he is in the car with her after they just left Winslows property. I believe heâs sitting right next to her in the car and allows her to make the call thinking itâs going to cover up everything and benefit him. She was sending out the whistle to her family and Sheâs trying to buy time for them to locate her. He knew to turn off the location because she mentioned She turned it on notice how it ended at that?. My point with this is at the end.
Logically speaking if she was purposely driving to that park, she would have known the name to GPS it. She wouldâve known the name of the park to give the operator. Thatâs why she was pausing, probably looking to him to see where theyâre at. Thatâs why she says âyes thatâs itâ cause he nodded. he had enough time to process what the operator was saying before Mica was able to answer thatâs why she was able to reply quickly because the operator was speaking slowly. He heard the first word and nodded. She didnât know, but now suddenly she knew? If she was going to purposely take her own life, and she really wanted her body found, why wouldnât she have found the name of the park before she called to give them proper location?
She would have seen oh look itâs a park and read the sign and pulled into it. She didnât know the sign because she was terrified because he was with her. She just knows sheâs in a park.
I would possibly look to see if there was any dirt roads that led to where her vehicle is at back to Winslowâs property. That might be why she didnât see a sign. I havenât looked too much into that part but itâs a suggestion if anybody wants to do any homework.
SO Thatâs why the phone was put on airplane mode so cops wouldnât track them into the woods at the site of the incident and he would be able to get away in time into the woods without being seen.
Also airplane mode was turned on while in the car, at the end of the 911 call, I think he took the phone put the airplane mode on which is why the airplane mode was put on because she mentioned it out loud specifically, he knew the cops were coming time to MOVE, canât follow us to the woods though. THATS why thereâs no bird sounds, they did it in the car after they got to the parking lot. I think subconsciously she thought knew this was going to happen. Kinda like I told my family this was going to happen, and then it clicked what she needed to do. He brought the phone with them to paint the picture. Why would she turn off her location herself if she wanted to be found? She was already going to enter her life right? She was obviously not going to wait a long time right? Listen to her voice when it got emotional when she said she was going to kill herself. If she was unsure, why did she skip up in the exact moment? She was almost free, she had fought so hard. When youâre almost free, what would make you think she would want to stop now? Listen to me clearly, he was in the car. She needed to send out a dog whistle to the people she had told she she told him she would admit to the suicide if she could have her body found. She knew she was going to die and she knew she needed to make sure her family could piece this together. Therefore the only plausible answer is he was in the car with her. She was emotionless probably because the gun was already on her, the phone was removed from her because she mentioned the airplane mode specifically he thought they canât trace us out to the woods, airplane mode goes on. He walked out to the woods. He needed Time to get away and couldnât have them knowing exactly where he was to go to first so he could escape right after.
Now he goes into the woods by possibly dragging her which is why she has a bruised wrist. That might be why she started crying. She might have tried to get away when she knew what was going to happen or that it was happening hence why thereâs multiple rounds. This led to possible yanking, and then the gunshot, which is why the fisherman heard the crying. Then it was over. Put her in the water he placed her belongings and Then he walked back towards Winslowâs property. I want to know if thereâs a phone call between mica and Winslow, was this drive scheduled day of or days prior and gave enough time for it to be planned. I believe at that time he got back into Winslowâs vehicle met somewhere with Windlow switched vehicles again. JP going to his home and Winslow going back to his home. The funeral and everything was already preplanned and scheduled due to the fact they already knew what was going to happen and already had it pre-planned and needed to make sure it was swift and left no room for delay. Her family, knowing they would want to see her, he manipulated them into signing the cremation holding her body over their heads. Taunting them via text message blaming them to create the narrative. Otherwise, what would be the big deal of allowing them to see the body without needing something in exchange? He knew they would have questions afterwards. At that time all they had was the 911 call and a body, sometimes you need time to process. You know when something happens and then later on youâre like wait what? He wanted to make sure that body had no stop on the cremation process to get rid of all evidence before thosequestions inevitably came. He got ahead of it so there was no hiccup in delays because he knew he had to allow them to see the body to the public that would be the moral right thing to do. Not allowing them to see the body would be suspicious. He figured out how to make it work for both. He talks about laying with her body four times and trying to raise her from the dead, was this guilt or was it like when somebody puts a deer head on the wall?
Now remember, she has already been predisposed to trust Winslow. He mentions Winslow in an email to her previously, obviously showing that he & his wife were a trusted friend of hers as well. Itâs 100% a possibility that Winslow told her to come up and talk where she was protected and JP wouldnât find them, and Winslow left with the truck and met with JP and they switched. Winslow south, JP north. Winslow had asked his staff to clean up that overgrowth on the property. It being a wooded area, was this done so that the roadway was assessable for the plan? she probably drove down some type of dirt road, and he ambushed her in some manner. North Carolina Woods are dense, therefore easily to hide when she pulls over.
Now, how do I think that JP convinced Winslow to help, I believe JP convinced Winslow , Mica was going to tell on all of them and ruin their lives. This could have been backed up by the fact that all the documentation that she had previously collected had gone missing, and was brought to Winslow to paint Mica as an enemy so this was enough for him to convince Winslow that their future and freedom was inJeopardy. When JP was actually afraid she was going to tell on his abuse and life and ruin him. So they killed her to protect their life.
They said something yesterday about breaking news how they found that the notary was forged? Thats enough for me to draw speculation because it was done by Winslow that he is now in on the dirty dealings. He is a part of the actual dirty dealings against mica He knows something is being done wrong and he is condoning it.
That notary that was done on the power of attorney from mica was falsely notarized. Mica was not present for the notary. There was an article on earlier I was looking at but I was in information overload. I just know It was not legally notarized. This shows that Winslow does not have integrity. How far is he willing to go to protect JP and all of their secrets?
I think she told JP she just wanted her body to be found for her family and she would go without a fight. I believe that it was a dog whistle to her family. The clue they would need to know this wasnât suicide. She told them and now she needed them to remember. She knew she was going to die and everybody needed to know about the gunshot specifically that she warned everyone about days prior. He didnât know she told people close to her that that. Thatâs why her voice broke up when she said she was going to unalive herself. She did not want to die. She just wanted people to be able to solve the crime. She manipulated him into thinking he was going to get away with this because she is admitting to it being a suicide. Not knowing She had whistled what was going to happen, she needed people to listen. She offered up no extra information during the 911 call which then delayed the process hoping they would find her location. She told her dad days prior sheâs getting a gun for protection. I think she got it before she drove up there just incase and the bruises on her hand may be him wrestling it from her. Maybe at arrival.
A search and rescue dog can smell from weeks to months after somebody has left the area, and if anybody can get something of his and be able to place him there in the woods, you have convincing beyond a reasonable doubt.
After writing this up yesterday when I was complete, I got super sick to my stomach. I was shaking. I could see it completely out in my head where all the facts completely aligned. I believe tthis is the only plausible theory there is.
What people need to realize at the end of the day the good attention and bad attention is still attention to a narcissist. He is enjoying the intention is getting from this primarily from getting away with it. Thatâs why I believe he visited her body four times after she was deceased. Because he already had a girlfriend, he already talked about going and getting a hot wife and then after she dies, he does an interview about how sheâs the most incredible wife and supportive. He made the obituary about how awesome he thought she was to still collect her validation and the validation he got from being her husband because she was good. She was light and he was jealous of that. He wanted that thatâs why he had that position. She loved him so much he claimed and how she was so wonderful he claimed yet she didnât want him when she had a no contact order and wanted a divorce obviously, he wasnât that. and if you guys donât think he groomed her go to the memorial of life sermon and listen to the poem again. Now switch the words, âschoolâ and âchurch.â And follow the story line.
He killed Mica Miller.
I'm building a new PC, but haven't in 5+ years, so I'm feeling a bit out of the loop.
Based on some googling, I'm looking at the Intel Core i7-14700K, MSI SUPRIM X GeForce RTX 4080 SUPER, and G.Skill Trident Z5 RGB 64 GB (2x32GB).
I mostly game, and rarely do coding on my desktop, so I hear the 64GB may be overkill and I might switch it to 32GB (2x16GB).
I remember ASUS used to be a great brand for anything, but now I hear their customer service sucks and they're not a great company? That was why I went with the MSI GPU. Should I do the same for the mobo?
For the PSU, pcpartpicker has me at 635W so far, and I assume I'll need more than that, so would ~750W with an 80 Plus Gold rating be sufficient?
No idea what kind of case to get. I have space for a full tower, so I wouldn't mind that if there are any good suggestions.
Thanks for reading, and for the suggestions!
This is the most plausible answer. I think this is exactly how he did it using facts from sermons, emails, texts, news, interviews, maps, and extensive experience with parasitic Narcissistic sitic abuse. If there is anything that I am incorrect on please let me know and I will recalculate. After typing this up two days ago, I stumbled upon Micaâs fatherâs interview, and it completely solidified it to the point where I started violently shaking. I think this is what happened.
I was told Winslowâs property backs up against that state forest. 200 acres. Right down the road. Now remember. Somebody on his staff was told to go and trim back the overgrowth on that specific property shortly before all of this happened,
I think Mica at some point had conversation with Winslow and agreed to come and talk to him at his property, a âsafe place JP wouldnât know.â, thinking she could trust him. I think mica went to winslows and JP was waiting there for unknowingly.
I think Winslow has JPâs phone and I think JP has Winslowâs phone so theyâre not gonna ping the towers. All they saw was the license plate they never verified He was actually there.
I think JP and Winslow met at a undisclosed location and swapped vehicles. JP went up to Winslowâs NC property with Winslowâs vehicle and cell phone, and Winslow went down south with JP cell phone and truck. I canât quite place the girlfriend, but she is an alibi therefore she is aware that something has happened or is going on. I cannot figure out whether or not Winslow was with JP and she took the vehicle down south either or we need to find out the location of where the girlfriend was and where Winslow was. That could all be found by bank financial records of the days in question. Nobody uses cash in 2024 for an entire getaway.
Didnât they say he got a new truck? There was something new about the truck? Did he get a new one so it wouldnât have any of Winslowâs DNA inside of it? If Winslow drove it, his DNA/finger prints on the steering wheel would easily be on the steering wheel. Why else would he need to drive Winslowâs vehicle if there were indications, he was driving the vehicle. Now remember one of them is a lawyer he knows what they look for. JPâs and Winslowâs vehicles both need to be tested for gunpowder residue.
Mica shows up to Winslowâs property, JP is there with Winslowâs vehicle, ambushes her OR Winslow is there too and the girlfriend took her phone and truck south. He already has a plan of where heâs going to take her to unalive her before she arrives. JP drives Micaâs car with Mica in it to the final location parking lot, walks her into the woods kills her, puts her stuff down and walks back to Winslow property through the woods. Girlfriend says she was with him, I think she stayed at the property or she drove a vehicle to come get him after he was done if she was there. either way Winslow or girlfriend somebody picked him up or was waiting or he went back to the property and gotten Winslowâs vehicle and left. Remember itâs not that far away..
Now, after reviewing the 911 recording again, I do not think it is AI. The biggest reason why I know it wasnât AI is because if you listen to the fast response when asked for the phone number, there wasnât enough time to record that and send it at the same time. So she replied too fast. Now, when have you ever heard a 911 operator asking somebody for their phone number? That never would have been written. You still have the type stuff in the AI creators. Also, she delayed pause between every number, how would she have replied in half the time it would have taken to type all of that out. Think about it, he would have had to type a number hit space type a number hit space over and over. In a rush I know I mess up you donât think he would have messed up? He never would have been able to get that recorded smoothly quickly in the time it took for her to respond. Again, when have you ever heard of 911 asking for your phone number?. I believe he is in the car with her after they just left Winslows property. I believe heâs sitting right next to her in the car and allows her to make the call thinking itâs going to cover up everything and benefit him. She was sending out the whistle to her family and Sheâs trying to buy time for them to locate her. He knew to turn off the location because she mentioned She turned it on notice how it ended at that?. My point with this is at the end.
Logically speaking if she was purposely driving to that park, she would have known the name to GPS it. She wouldâve known the name of the park to give the operator. Thatâs why she was pausing, probably looking to him to see where theyâre at. Thatâs why she says âyes thatâs itâ cause he nodded. he had enough time to process what the operator was saying before Mica was able to answer thatâs why she was able to reply quickly because the operator was speaking slowly. He heard the first word and nodded. She didnât know, but now suddenly she knew? If she was going to purposely take her own life, and she really wanted her body found, why wouldnât she have found the name of the park before she called to give them proper location?
She would have seen oh look itâs a park and read the sign and pulled into it. She didnât know the sign because she was terrified because he was with her. She just knows sheâs in a park.
I would possibly look to see if there was any dirt roads that led to where her vehicle is at back to Winslowâs property. That might be why she didnât see a sign. I havenât looked too much into that part but itâs a suggestion if anybody wants to do any homework.
SO Thatâs why the phone was put on airplane mode so cops wouldnât track them into the woods at the site of the incident and he would be able to get away in time into the woods without being seen.
Also airplane mode was turned on while in the car, at the end of the 911 call, I think he took the phone put the airplane mode on which is why the airplane mode was put on because she mentioned it out loud specifically, he knew the cops were coming time to MOVE, canât follow us to the woods though. THATS why thereâs no bird sounds, they did it in the car after they got to the parking lot. I think subconsciously she thought knew this was going to happen. Kinda like I told my family this was going to happen, and then it clicked what she needed to do. He brought the phone with them to paint the picture. Why would she turn off her location herself if she wanted to be found? She was already going to enter her life right? She was obviously not going to wait a long time right? Listen to her voice when it got emotional when she said she was going to kill herself. If she was unsure, why did she skip up in the exact moment? She was almost free, she had fought so hard. When youâre almost free, what would make you think she would want to stop now? Listen to me clearly, he was in the car. She needed to send out a dog whistle to the people she had told she she told him she would admit to the suicide if she could have her body found. She knew she was going to die and she knew she needed to make sure her family could piece this together. Therefore the only plausible answer is he was in the car with her. She was emotionless probably because the gun was already on her, the phone was removed from her because she mentioned the airplane mode specifically he thought they canât trace us out to the woods, airplane mode goes on. He walked out to the woods. He needed Time to get away and couldnât have them knowing exactly where he was to go to first so he could escape right after.
Now he goes into the woods by possibly dragging her which is why she has a bruised wrist. That might be why she started crying. She might have tried to get away when she knew what was going to happen or that it was happening hence why thereâs multiple rounds. This led to possible yanking, and then the gunshot, which is why the fisherman heard the crying. Then it was over. Put her in the water he placed her belongings and Then he walked back towards Winslowâs property. I want to know if thereâs a phone call between mica and Winslow, was this drive scheduled day of or days prior and gave enough time for it to be planned. I believe at that time he got back into Winslowâs vehicle met somewhere with Windlow switched vehicles again. JP going to his home and Winslow going back to his home. The funeral and everything was already preplanned and scheduled due to the fact they already knew what was going to happen and already had it pre-planned and needed to make sure it was swift and left no room for delay. Her family, knowing they would want to see her, he manipulated them into signing the cremation holding her body over their heads. Taunting them via text message blaming them to create the narrative. Otherwise, what would be the big deal of allowing them to see the body without needing something in exchange? He knew they would have questions afterwards. At that time all they had was the 911 call and a body, sometimes you need time to process. You know when something happens and then later on youâre like wait what? He wanted to make sure that body had no stop on the cremation process to get rid of all evidence before thosequestions inevitably came. He got ahead of it so there was no hiccup in delays because he knew he had to allow them to see the body to the public that would be the moral right thing to do. Not allowing them to see the body would be suspicious. He figured out how to make it work for both. He talks about laying with her body four times and trying to raise her from the dead, was this guilt or was it like when somebody puts a deer head on the wall?
Now remember, she has already been predisposed to trust Winslow. He mentions Winslow in an email to her previously, obviously showing that he & his wife were a trusted friend of hers as well. Itâs 100% a possibility that Winslow told her to come up and talk where she was protected and JP wouldnât find them, and Winslow left with the truck and met with JP and they switched. Winslow south, JP north. Winslow had asked his staff to clean up that overgrowth on the property. It being a wooded area, was this done so that the roadway was assessable for the plan? she probably drove down some type of dirt road, and he ambushed her in some manner. North Carolina Woods are dense, therefore easily to hide when she pulls over.
Now, how do I think that JP convinced Winslow to help, I believe JP convinced Winslow , Mica was going to tell on all of them and ruin their lives. This could have been backed up by the fact that all the documentation that she had previously collected had gone missing, and was brought to Winslow to paint Mica as an enemy so this was enough for him to convince Winslow that their future and freedom was inJeopardy. When JP was actually afraid she was going to tell on his abuse and life and ruin him. So they killed her to protect their life.
They said something yesterday about breaking news how they found that the notary was forged? Thats enough for me to draw speculation because it was done by Winslow that he is now in on the dirty dealings. He is a part of the actual dirty dealings against mica He knows something is being done wrong and he is condoning it.
That notary that was done on the power of attorney from mica was falsely notarized. Mica was not present for the notary. There was an article on earlier I was looking at but I was in information overload. I just know It was not legally notarized. This shows that Winslow does not have integrity. How far is he willing to go to protect JP and all of their secrets?
I think she told JP she just wanted her body to be found for her family and she would go without a fight. I believe that it was a dog whistle to her family. The clue they would need to know this wasnât suicide. She told them and now she needed them to remember. She knew she was going to die and everybody needed to know about the gunshot specifically that she warned everyone about days prior. He didnât know she told people close to her that that. Thatâs why her voice broke up when she said she was going to unalive herself. She did not want to die. She just wanted people to be able to solve the crime. She manipulated him into thinking he was going to get away with this because she is admitting to it being a suicide. Not knowing She had whistled what was going to happen, she needed people to listen. She offered up no extra information during the 911 call which then delayed the process hoping they would find her location. She told her dad days prior sheâs getting a gun for protection. I think she got it before she drove up there just incase and the bruises on her hand may be him wrestling it from her. Maybe at arrival.
A search and rescue dog can smell from weeks to months after somebody has left the area, and if anybody can get something of his and be able to place him there in the woods, you have convincing beyond a reasonable doubt.
After writing this up yesterday when I was complete, I got super sick to my stomach. I was shaking. I could see it completely out in my head where all the facts completely aligned. I believe tthis is the only plausible theory there is.
What people need to realize at the end of the day the good attention and bad attention is still attention to a narcissist. He is enjoying the intention is getting from this primarily from getting away with it. Thatâs why I believe he visited her body four times after she was deceased. Because he already had a girlfriend, he already talked about going and getting a hot wife and then after she dies, he does an interview about how sheâs the most incredible wife and supportive. He made the obituary about how awesome he thought she was to still collect her validation and the validation he got from being her husband because she was good. She was light and he was jealous of that. He wanted that thatâs why he had that position. She loved him so much he claimed and how she was so wonderful he claimed yet she didnât want him when she had a no contact order and wanted a divorce obviously, he wasnât that. and if you guys donât think he groomed her go to the memorial of life sermon and listen to the poem again. Now switch the words, âschoolâ and âchurch.â And follow the story line.
He killed Mica Miller.
I feel quite flat today. I feel okay and all, I just feel empty but not sad empty but empty as in I have nothing to give today.
Iâm taking a step back in some areas with work. I came to the realisation today that my doing work I shouldnât have to/is not my responsibility means that the issue of it not being done isnât being exposed. Iâve communicated several times to my manager that what should be happening isnât and nothing has changed, so I figure it I step back from it then sheâll see it not being done/sheâll hear about it from others. I like that Iâm a team player blah blah blah, I always support and encourage my colleagues and take on more so they can focus on their goals and things and I just need to stop. I can still do it, and I know wi will regardless because I canât not, but I need to be selfish. My manager herself said I needed to learn to be selfish - ironic isnât it, given how much it a selfish self absorbed cow I am outside of work. Anyway Iâm letting it pile up now. Iâve communicated plenty, Iâve offered solutions, Iâve even set up a bloody chat for the team taking over if they have any questions and I can help them. If they opt to not do their work then it shouldnât fall on me, so therefore Iâm stepping back.
I feel like I donât have any real control over myself lately. Like I tell myself to do something and I donât do it and I canât seem to make myself do anything. I have zero discipline. I need to learn to have much stronger discipline. Iâve also had the worst cravings again lately, I guess Iâve shown some discipline in that but Iâm still not eating properly - I need to be cooking proper meals, not instant rice and veggies and stuff. I feel like utter crap when I donât eat properly, and that doesnât mean eating junk food stuff it also means not eating an adequate amount of protein and things. I need to get myself together. I just havenât had the drive to do anything lately.
Iâve been using my K18 mask each wash, as it says I should, I donât condition and then I put it into my damp hair and maybe my hair feels healthier I guess but I hate how it air-dries. Itâs so blahhh. Normally when I air dry itâs fairly silky in the morning, not silky silky as it would be when I properly style it or use a mask etc but itâs nice enough. Whereas now itâs all⌠idk. It feels a lot thicker lately, idk why as it wonât be, but I canât fit it all into a claw clip anymore like I could before. I wonder if itâs more to do with my layers growing out? Itâs also longer. So probably those two things. Itâs still going through a shedding phase, the post stress kind of shedding I get. I hate it. I hate that my inability to control my emotions means I get such physical side effects. Anyway. Iâm welllll overdue for a haircut, but I feel like I want to get it all to one length and then go, because I feel like she keeps fâing up my length. So idk. Itâs so ugly at the moment though, itâs due for a colour and desperately needs some shaping done. Maybe this time I will go to a new salon and then I always have my usual one to fall back on? Idk. I wonât get a cut for at least another month I donât think. Maybe. I need it but I want it all one length so it can be properly restyled. So idk, I guess Iâll get bigger clips. My face framies need some TLC big time though. Oh well. Whatâs some bad hair when Iâm so ugly anyway. Plus getting my hair done means I have to stare at myself in a mirror for 2 hours, I can barely even look at myself when putting makeup/skincare on.
I did a workout today and it was so bad. I truly have nothing to give today. I ended up just doing a super basic pilates routine which tbh was more stretching than anything. It felt nice though, so Iâm glad I did it. So in short I did not do a workout today, and I shouldnât have said that.
I wonder what it will be like to not hate myself? It feels like an unreachable goal but itâs my goal nonetheless. But I wonder what itâs like? It sounds so freeing. The way Andy says he doesnât really think negatively about himself, that he doesnât relentlessly beat himself up over things and idk, he said more but anyway. I know that wonât always be the case and heâll sometimes feel completely different and negatively and things, which I detest the idea of, but on the whole heâs content with himself. The idea of that feels so foreign. I donât know where it came from, I mean I do - a lifetime of collecting insecurities, fears and all of that. But I realise I havenât had a life where Iâve been constantly rejected or had any issue getting attention from men (who were clearly daft and blind), I have parents who in theory seem to love me (out of obligation), I donât have a difficult life and I have plenty of opportunities thrown at me etc etc. I I guess I have been treated badly by people close to me, people Iâve forced myself to trust and be open with, and I have always been sensitive and idk. So I guess I took on those situations and words and they stuck and then proceeded to fester. But I hated myself before then too⌠though I hated myself less before then I suppose. But I didnât feel worthy of anything much back then and I didnât like myself at all. I canât actually remember a time where I felt accepting of myself, I donât mean a time where I liked myself, I mean just a time where I felt content enough. I remember being in primary school and wishing on dandelions that I could be anyone else as long as I wasnât me. I remember it, I think it was in my grandmas garden and idk. Anyway. I still make wishes on dandelions even now, though a lot more privately. But so I canât remember a time I felt okay about myself, and over the years itâs just slowly but surely become a twisted, monstrous hatred for myself, where I fantasise about ripping my skin off and hacking away at myself and tell myself horrid nasty things throughout the day, every day. It sometimes feels lightened thanks to therapy, the hatred hasnât really lessened but my ability to recognise the negativity has increased and so I donât lean into the negativity as easily now, but I still do on a daily basis. I just donât even know what it would be like to accept myself. I hope I get to that point some day, I really hope itâs soon. Even if it just means Iâm in a state of delusion.
I wish downstairs wouldnât slam their goddamn door all the time, itâs like theyâre incapable of closing it normally. And then they thunder around so heavy footed - like how is it that the people DOWNSTAIRS makes UPSTAIRS shake with footsteps and things. Anyway itâs fine and not really an issue, but it annoys me sometimes. Like why do they walk so heavy!!! WALK LIGHTER.
I donât want to journal anymore. Im going to read. Heâs still asleep so Iâm not really sure if weâll spend time together or not tonight. Okay anyway bye
I've seen a few ways to get analog control working for this game, but only on 3DS and computers. Has anybody done this successfully on Android?
From what I understand about those mods on PC, part of how they work is that the center of the touch screen is pressed by default, if the user isn't inputting any action. This means that when properly set up on the emulator, moving the analog stick up would touch the screen at 12 o clock. Since the screen already had a center press going, your character immediately moves forward without any swiping needed.
I say that to say this: if I could get that working, I could play with the touch screen instead of a controller. The game's default swipe to move touch controls really don't work well and I don't understand why they made it like that. If the touch screen could be transformed into a faux analog stick, that could work out well. I don't think mapping the touch screen to control stick is feasible with melonds or drastic for this game, so center touch as default would be the best thing.
I was playing the original SM64 and the controls were really bugging me even halfway through the game. Couldn't put a finger on it but they felt off and continuously falling off catwalks was really pissing me. I had no problems like this in Super Mario Sunshine or Galaxy. SM64DS' regular dpad controls with 8 way movement and manual sprinting is somehow better to me than OG SM64's analog controls. If I could get a further upgrade that would be great.
Issue Fifty Written by u/VoidKiller826 Edited by u/Predaplant Arc: Revelations *************************************************************
Greetings, people of Gateway City. This is your new peacekeeper speaking. You might know me as the White Magician, a rather crude name, but I will accept it considering Manâs World's lack of creativity. However, you may also call me Circe, and I am here with an important message that your news station will deliver for all to hear. SCYTHE is no more: their HQ is under my and the Red Centipedesâ command. The Commander and his soldiers are dead and buried, as you all wished to happen. I was more than happy to oblige you if it meant depriving your stupid President of her next chance for reelection. Any survivors of the prison break are being hunted down by the people they locked in cages, who are more than happy to round them up as they once had been themselves. But none of thatâs important, for this recording is only to be heard by one person: Olympos, Wonder Girl, or whatever the fuck new title name you want to be called. This message is for you: You are to surrender yourself to me here in SCYTHE HQ in the next five hours, and in turn, I will not destroy this piss-end of a city. If you fail, I promise you, I will make Coast City look like a picnic by the time I finish with Gateway. That cow you call Wonder Woman is dead, and I will make sure everyone else will follow her if you donât comply with my request. Your mentor learned a valuable lesson when she tested my patience. *************************************************************
Spears Apartment - Gateway City: [...President Cale has announced the complete closure of all access to Gateway City following the prison break that occurred in SCYTHEâs holding facility hours ago,] said Cassandra Arnold from GateNews, the cityâs main news station.
[We still have an unconfirmed number of escapees following the message sent by the White Magician, but the President has assured GateNews a solution will be found.] Vanessa Kapatelis watched the TV in dismay. Pacing back and forth in the Spears duplex apartment, she had the TV on to pass the time while Ares worked on helping Helena and Cassandra upstairs.
âHere,â Vanessa turned away from the TV to see Tanya Spears handing her a bottle of water. âSomething for you to drink.â
âThank you,â Vanessa accepted the bottle. âI would prefer a beer, but this will make do.â
âMy mom has her wine collection in a locked cabinet,â Tanya noted, pointing at the kitchen. âShe doesnât know that I know that, but I can get you a bottle?â
Vanessa chuckled. âThanks, but I donât want a girl your age to be walking around with alcohol or to get you in trouble with your mom.â She twisted the bottle cap and slowly drank. âI needed that⌠it feels like Iâve been dry for months.â
âItâs actually been 3 hours,â Tanya said, sitting on the sofa and opening her tablet to look over the internet. âI hope what she said wasnât true⌠about Wonder Woman not being aroundâŚâ
Taking a seat by her side, Vanessa saw that Tanya was reading through the report on what happened to SCYTHE. The escaped convicts had taken control of the SCYTHE headquarters and equipment after killing many of the agents that had stood in their way.
Seeing the photo of SCYTHE HQ burning angered her. That place should represent the absolute shield of Gateway. Now, it had come under the control of the convicts that they were supposed to stop because of
Aeeta Branwen. A name that had made her happy now belonged to a stranger who had lied to her all this time.
Memories of their most intimate moments came flooding back: their first conversation, their first date, their kiss, and the morning after their date in her apartment. It was a moment when she thought she could finally stop grieving and move on from what happened to Coast City. And now, that had been disintegrated into oblivion.
In anger, she crushed the bottle with her hand, spraying water all over the table and the floor.
âShit!â Vanessa stood up, finally realizing her mistake. âI am sorry!â
âOh, it's fine!â Tanya ran to the kitchen to grab some paper towels. âItâs just water.â
âI know itâs justâŚâ Taking the paper towel, the two began wiping the floor and the table. âI have a lot on my mind.â
âIâll bet with everything that happened,â said Tanya, giving Vanessa a supportive smile. âYour friends are getting hurt, and you canât do anything but watch. It would piss anyone off. I know it did with me when the RedCent guys invaded EE Tower.â
âYeahâŚâ Vanessa sat back on the sofa. âBut this⌠I not only possibly lost many friends, but I was betrayed by someone I loved, someone who I thought was the one for meâŚâ she said, distraught, as tears ran down her face.
Tanya, without saying anything more, hugged Vanessa closely. Despite them knowing each other for only a few hours, Tanya knew that Vanessa was in pain. Watching her loved ones being hurt by someone that she trusted must have been a hard truth to accept.
The doors upstairs opening and closing caught the twoâs attention. Looking up, they saw Somya Spears descending, looking exhausted, like she had gone ten rounds in the ring. As she reached the ground floor, Tanya ran up to her mother, hugged her close, and guided her to the nearest chair to rest.
âIs everything alright, mom?â Tanya asked, worried.
âYeah⌠just felt that I might take that long overdue vacationâŚâ Somya answered, leaning against the soft chair with a tired sigh. âMaybe weâll go to Paris like you wanted, TanyaâŚâ
More steps followed, and Ares, or Mars as he insisted to be called, followed Somya, pulling his folded-up sleeves back. Unlike Somya, he didnât seem any different from when he went upstairs to help the Sandsmarks, but the few strands of hair on his face told a different story.
âHow are they?â Vanessa asked, walking up to the former God of War. âAre they ok?â
Ares turned to Vanessa. âThe girl has a lot of heart, far too stubborn to let a beating keep her down.â He said with praise, impressed with the former Wonder Girlâs willpower. âHer Sumerian blood will help her heal in only a few days, but it wonât help her mental wounds after I told her the news about her mother.â
Vanessa had a lot of questions about what he had said, especially the word Sumerian; perhaps Cassie was not simply half-Olympian. However, she focused on the most important detail in his explanation. âWhat happened with Helena?â She asked in a worried tone. âIs she-â
âShe is alive,â Ares said, but his expression shifted, frowning, making her nervous. âPhysically, she will recover, she has only a few cuts and bruises. Even a human like her can heal those.â
âBut?â
âBut it's the spell Circe struck her with. It is unlike anything Iâve seen because it is of her creation,â Ares explained, and Vanessa ground her teeth together when she heard the name belonging to the stranger who hurt her and her loved ones. âWhatever she used, it is affecting her very soul, slowly killing her.â
âLike a virus?â Vanessa asked, and Ares nodded. âMagic can do that?â
âIt does,â Ares answered. âMagic can create a nuclear bomb if the user has the patience for it. And Circe is a master at it, one of the very best and most gifted witches on the planet, so making something like this would be as easy as making a cake for her.â
Magic had never been SCYTHEâs priority, but the Commander still made them study anything related to the subject in case they had to face it. Vanessa had never expected to see it at this scale.
âCan you break it?â Vanessa asked. âFind a way to break the curse from Helenaâs soul?â
Ares took a deep breath, pocketing his hands. âItâs too complex to break. I will admit Magic is not my strongest suit, but even if you bring in someone knowledgeable, it would be a while for them to break her creation,â he explained. âYou need someone at her level of knowledge when it comes to magic, and I am not the best person to face her in that department.â
âThen we call for a specialist, anyone, really,â Vanessa said in desperation. âIf this is like a virus, a curse, then we bring a surgeon to cut it out! Maybe Cassie can use her Justice Legion connection, or maybe you can call someone for a favor.â
Vanessa's desperation was clear. She was willing to call for the Justice Legion, the very people she swore to go against for their vigilantism, if it meant saving Helena Sandsmark, her promise be damned.
âThe spell is growing far too rapidly. By the time you find someone, it will be far too late,â Ares said solemnly. âThe only person in the world who can break the spell without any problem or fear of failsafe is Hecate, the Goddess of Magic. She was Circeâs mentor, and she taught her everything she could about magic. No matter how complex it is, Hecate would understand it.â
âShe can help us?â
Ares shook his head. âNo, she has no interest in helping the world unless it is connected to her directly, and even then, dealing with her is the worst-case scenario because there is a chance sheâll side with Circe before she even thinks of helping us.â
âSo what now?â Vanessa asked, sounding defeated. âJust let Helena die? Let Cassie suffer? Let Circe win?!â she shouted angrily, finally addressing Circe by name. All of this explanation from Ares told her one thing: that the Witch had them beat, and they couldnât do anything about it.
Ares didnât react to her outburst, while the Spears looked worried. Tanya, for her part, tried to walk up to calm Vanessa, but the War God raised his hand to stop her, shaking his head and giving her the silent sign to let Vanessa be.
âThere is one way: it will be quicker if we act fast enough, but it would take everything from all of us for it to happen,â Ares said, beginning his explanation. âThere is a chain link connecting the spell, from the spell caster to Circe. This means it can be broken if we force Circe to release the chain connecting her to HelenaâŚâ he explained, letting his words be understood by the occupants in the room before finishing with one last note. âKilling Circe would also break the binding if she didnât leave any contingencies.â
Vanessa gritted her teeth. âSo we have to make her break the spell, and hopefully she doesnât screw us over⌠or we kill her, and hopefully she still doesnât screw us over even in death?â she asked, and Ares nodded. âWhat kind of person is willing to put in all that work? Just for revenge? On Diana, who is long gone?â
Ares shrugged and turned to the Spears, his gaze focused on Tanya, his daughter. Someone whom he never thought he would meet again was facing him, without knowledge of their blood relations.
âPossibly,â Ares answered, taking a step back. âBut if there is one thing I know for sure, Circe does not put these kinds of bindings without any reason. Whatever that reason is involves Cassandra Sandsmark and whether she will choose to make Circe break the spell or kill her, tainting her forever.â
Silence came to the room, letting Aresâs words sink in for all occupants, which might have been the same words he said to the Sandsmarks.
*************************************************************
The room of Somya Spears was quiet, with the only sound being the breathing of Helena Sandsmark lying on the bed sleeping. The room was spacious, with an expensive queen-sized bed as expected from an interim CEO of one the largest companies in the world.
Seated a few feet away on a chair was Cassandra Sandsmark, dressed in fresh clothes given to her by Somya after throwing off the bloody tattered ones she had arrived in. Watching her mother closely, Cassandraâs mind was racing, especially after what Ares told her about the curse Circe placed on her mother, slowly destroying her soul bit by bit until she was nothing but a husk.
âDammit!â In anger at their situation, she crushed the armchair, tearing its arm off like it was made of paper. If she was stronger, faster, and had the heart for it, she would have stopped the Witch, stopped her from hurting her city, the people of SCYTHE, and those caught in the crossfire, stopped her from hurting her motherâŚ
She buried her face into her hands, tears running down her eyes as she despaired. Everything she worked on after Coast City evaporated was ground up under a very powerful enemy out for revenge.
Considering Circeâs ultimatum, her city could well be gone by the time this was over.
âArtemis⌠please be safeâŚâ she whispered. She had nearly had a panic attack when she heard the news of the Amazon heading to SCYTHE HQ to stop the prison break, and then⌠nothing. No matter how many times she dialed her phone, there was no one answering, and she feared for the worst.
She heard her mother coughing, and Cassandra was quickly by her side. âMom!â she called for her, holding her hand.
âCassandra?...â Her mother said her name weakly. Her skin was becoming paler, a clear sign that the curse spell was working. âAre you⌠ok?â
âIâm fine, Mom,â Cassandra answered, covering the bandages hidden inside her clothes. âWeâre safe.
Youâre safe.â she said, tightening both her hands around her mothers.
âDid you⌠break something?â She asked, looking at the chair behind her. âYou shouldnât be⌠doing that⌠we are guestsâŚâ
Cassandra laughed, her tears falling away. âSorry⌠itâs just⌠itâs been a hell of a weekâŚâ
Helena touched her daughterâs cheek, noticing the bandage on it. âYouâre⌠hurtâŚâ
âItâs alright, Mom. Just a few bruises,â Cassandra assured. âYou shouldnât worry, you know I can take itâŚâ
âI am your⌠mother, Cassandra,â Helena said, facing her daughter. âDemi-God or not⌠I will always be worried⌠scared for my little girl.â
Cassandraâs tears came back. Seeing her mother remain strong despite everything made her happy, and she was terrified of losing her.
âSo⌠my soul is cursed?â Helena asked.
âYou heard all that?â
âCanât not⌠with all the swearingâŚâ Helena noted, giving her daughter a small smile. âYou shouldnât swear at people, Cassandra, especially those who are trying to help.â
âI know, I know,â Cassandra said. She had gone off on Ares after he explained what happened to her mother, and she might have overreacted when she put all her anger on the former War God. âItâs just⌠I donât want to lose you⌠not while we can fix this.â
Helena sat up on her bed, fully facing her daughter. âWhich is why⌠I donât want you to make the wrong choice.â
âI wonât,â Cassandra said with a low tone. âI will make Circe free you from this curse-â
âNo, Cassandra,â Helena grabbed both of Cassandraâs hands with hers. âThat is not what I meantâŚâ
Cassandra raised her brows, confused. âMom?â
âI heard everything⌠from Circeâs spell⌠how it works⌠and how it can be brokenâŚâ Helena said, shocking Cassandra. âI know you already decided what you feel you have to do.â
Cassandra didnât answer, avoiding her motherâs disapproving gaze accusing her. Ares said the quickest way to break the binding and the spell was either by forcing Circe to break it herself or by killing her, severing the connection.
But if what Circe said was true, that Diana decided to kill her instead of making her surrender like everyone else who faced her, that means there was no chance the Witch would submit willingly. She would rather die than give the satisfaction of admitting defeat.
Which left only one solution where she could save her mother.
Helena sighed, knowing what decision her daughter might have made. She held her hand tightly and changed the subject. âI have to tell you somethingâŚâ
âNo, mom. Youâre not giving me the
âDying Speechâ, not while there is a chance we can save you-â
âItâs about your father,â Helena cut her off, shutting Cassandra up. âYour real fatherâŚâ
Cassandra remembered Circe calling her Daughter of Enlil, not Zeus. Ares said he was a friend of her father, which confused her because Ares hated Zeus, so it wouldnât make sense that he would help out even if they were his siblings.
â
EnlilâŚâ Cassandra said the name aloud, and Helenaâs eyes widened, her breath hitching when she heard the name. âCirce⌠she called me Daughter of Enlil⌠Child of the Sky...â
Helena took a deep breath, bringing her daughter closer. âYes⌠that is trueâŚâ she began. âYou are not Zeusâs daughter, Cassandra, nor you are an Olympian in any way⌠but you are in fact⌠Sumerian⌠Mesopotamian,â The elder Sandsmark brought her youngest closer and spoke carefully, as if worried that someone might hear them. âYour father is Enlil, the Sumerian God of Wind⌠and he was the kindest man I have ever knownâŚâ
From then on, Helena explained Cassandraâs origins as carefully as possible, pushing on even while the spell affected her. She explained how she met Enlil, a man with golden hair similar to Cassandraâs, who introduced himself as an expert in Mesopotamian history during an expedition in Iraq. They had become rivals at first due to their clashing personalities, but how that developed into respect, to eventually falling in love after a very lengthy adventure that sounded like the plot of The Mummy.
And that love resulted in Cassandraâs birth. He helped raise her with Helena for the first year and a half before he disappeared because he had Olympian enemies and had to leave them to keep them safe.
While she explained all this, Cassandraâs mind went to another piece of critical information. Her fatherâs true identity had never been the most important thing for her. But what made it important was what Circe told her about Dianaâs true reason for coming to Gateway City. It wasnât just settling in a âpiss-end of a cityâ the more she taught about it, the more she realized the terrifying truth behind her mentorâs reasoning for coming to the city.
Diana was sent to find Cassandra, a
Sumerian Demi-God, the Olympians greatest enemy since the Titans, and eliminate her. The prophecy of the Godkiller that they had feared might have come from Cassandra, but all it did was start a long, personal, and bloody war between two women because of the gods' demands for blood.
And now, she, Artemis, and Gateway City suffered the consequences. Even after Dianaâs death, Circe would not let her hatred for what had happened to her go, and if it meant destroying her mentorâs legacy, she would do it.
âDianaâŚâ Cassandra thought in sadness.
*************************************************************
SCYTHE Sub Base - Industrial District: âI am not sure how you were able to do it, but you somehow found an ever more depressing place than that HQ of yours. It makes the cell you put us in look like a five-star hotel room,â said one Pamela Isley, formerly Poison Ivy, seated in the middle of a large room behind a large table. Around her were what was left of the SCYTHE agents they had saved during the escape, all working to get the makeshift base they had hidden up and running.
Alexei Abramovici, the Bloodcrow of SCYTHE, glared at the former supervillain, not happy with her comment. He turned to one of his men and began barking orders, âYou! Get the goddamn Black Room working! We are running blind here!â
âWorker drones even without their Commander.â Pamela looked on unimpressed at the agents. She had never been that sympathetic to the plight of cops getting killed, especially militarized ones. The once mighty and feared peacekeepers of Gateway, who went to war against all the crime syndicates and the Red Centipedes, were now a mere little squad that wonât be able to protect a mini-mart, let alone every escaped convict under the command of the White Magician.
âMan⌠the signal here sucks!â complained Miguel Barragan by her side, raising his phone and trying to catch any kind of signal. âCould barely talk to my boyfriend when I called him, and canât connect to the internet,â he complained. He tried once again to call but he couldnât find a signal. âUseless brickâŚâ
âWe are underground in a bunker previously owned by Neo-Nazis, Barragan,â Pamela noted. From what she had heard, this used to be an old RedCent hideout that SCYTHE took over after the war, using it as a smaller base in case of emergency. âNot receiving any signal is part of the appeal of the place.â
âBunker, huhâŚâ Miguel chuckled. The name Bunker reminded him of the super name that he picked out; the more time passed, the more convinced he was that it was the right one.
Pamela gave a confused look at his expression and shrugged it off. Turning to her right, she saw the silent Emily Sung staring off into the distance. Unlike Barragan, Emily had other matters on her mind. Whatever she sensed or saw back at SCYTHE HQ freaked her out, like seeing something she shouldnât.
Just as Pamela was about to ask her how she was feeling, a knock on the large blast doors echoed around the base, loud enough for all to hear. Quickly, everyone felt tense, and the SCYTHE agents covered the door as Alexei signaled them to aim their weapons. After the news of the escaped convicts taking control of SCYTHE HQ and their equipment and weaponry, the agents knew that they were being haunted now by the convicts looking for revenge, so they were not taking any chances.
âWould you mind opening the door!â A familiar voice said behind the door, a voice Pamela recognized right away. âI have a bloody Amazon here, and I would like her off my fur!â
âBarbara?â Pamela realized.
âMinerva? As in the Cheetah?â Alexei asked, eyes narrowed with suspicion. âShe could be working with them, with
the White Magician.â
âShe isnât,â Pamela answered, glaring at the SCYTHE soldier for the accusation. âShe would never ally with the psychos you had under lock and key.â
Alexei scoffed. âThat woman got a cemetery filled with people who say otherwise, and she hurt the mother of someone I know.â
Before the two could argue, Miguel stood up and decided to take action. He extended his hand, forming a large arm construct from it, and grabbed the handle of the blast door. With one pull, he opened it wide. Barbara entered. Her feline form made some of the SCYTHE agents tense, and weapons were still trained on her.
âQuite the welcoming committeeâŚâ she noted in sarcasm. âNow, would you be dears and get this woman some help?â She adjusted the unconscious and bloody Artemis on her back. Her blood covered Barbaraâs fur.
âMedic!â Alexei called for an agent nearby before turning to Miguel. âAnd you, donât use your freaky powers until I order you to do so.â
âSorry tin man, I donât speak fascist,â Miguel responded with a smirk, and Alexei glared at him.
The medic quickly came to Barbara and guided her to a nearby makeshift hospital room, which had a bed and various equipment to help the SCYTHE wounded. Barbara went in haste, and gently, with the help of the medic, they placed the injured Amazon on the bed, her blood soaking the white sheets red.
âHow the hell did you even find us?â Alexei asked as he and the others entered. âI made sure I covered all our steps.â
âYou did,â Barbara noted, stepping back to let the medic check on Artemis. She turned to Alexei and pointed at her nose. âBut one of you has a very special pheromone that I can smell for miles,â she said with a smile as she turned her gaze to Pamela. âStill with those rose scents around you.â
The redhead smiled. âMaybe itâs that mark you left on me.â
âMore than you think, Pammy.â
âChristâŚâ the medic gasped, catching everyoneâs attention. âHow is she still alive? And how long has she been like this?â He asked, examining the injured Amazon.
Her armor was wholly wrecked, beyond repair. Her headpiece was half broken, and the gauntlets and braces on her arms and legs were dented and unusable. Her injuries were severe: open wounds, slash marks, and burn marks were all over her body, and judging from blows on her armor, she might have had a few broken bones as well.
âDidnât bother to look at the time with some of the grunts that were sent after us,â Barbara answered, leaning on a nearby chair as fatigue finally set in for her. âBut these Amazons are too stubborn to die, and I know that from experienceâŚâ
The number of times Barbara thought she had beaten Diana only for the Amazon to get back up and beat her back was many, and it frustrated the woman to no end, but now she couldnât help but be in awe at the resilience of these warriors.
âHer Amazon gifts will heal her,â Barbara noted. âBut I am not sure how long it will takeâŚâ
âI doubt it will take more than a few days at leastâŚâ the medic noted, bringing out some bandages and wrapping them around her arms. âShe will need a miracle to even walk out of here on her own two feet.â
âUhmmâŚâ Everyone in the room turned to Emily Sung, who stood by the doorway. âI⌠I think I can help her heal faster.â
Barbara and the medic gave her an odd look. To better explain it, Emily brought her hands together, and a small flame began to form from her palm. However, they werenât bright orange flames; they were blue flames, and they didnât feel any heat from them.
âI developed this technique while training,â said Emily. âIt's a fire spell that doesnât burn, but it heals people. I first used it on Miguel when he hurt his hands, and it was instantaneous,â she explained, and Miguel showed his fully healed hand as if he was demonstrating it. âBut this will be the first time I will heal someone with this severe of injuriesâŚâ
Pamela and Barbara looked at the blue flames with wide eyes. In Pamelaâs case, she was told that Emily had powers, and from Miguelâs description, she had the power of all the elements. However, seeing it firsthand and feeling it from just that tiny flame made her sense there was power behind it, warmth, like the sun.
âDo it,â Barbara said, taking a step back. âAt this point, if we need magic to get her back into the fight, we better get to it before we lose her for real.â She turned to the shocked medic. This was the first time he would ever see magic in play. âAnd you, guide her in whatever wounds need to be healed.â
The medic nodded. It was better than nothing. With his guidance and Miguelâs support by her side, Emily went to work to heal Wonder Woman, who was in a state of life and death if they didnât work fast enough, all while Circe and her crew were out there terrorizing the city.
âWhatâs the news out there?â Alexei asked after the three left the infirmary room. âWe are in the dark here, and I couldnât radio in anyone with the pieces of junk we got. Not even my brother, who was trying to get as many agents as possible.â
âBrother?â Barbara asked before she realized who his brother was. Her expression became solemn. She remembered the Warhammer who stayed behind to slow Circe and her crew, giving Barbara a chance to escape with Artemis on her back. âThe guy with the HammerâŚâ
Alexei furrowed his brows, noticing the change in her expression. âWhat happened to my brother?â
Barbara took a deep breath and began explaining everything that had happened: the White Magicianâs true identity, her taking over SCYTHE HQ, her ultimatum to Wonder Girl, and finally, Anatoly Abromiviciâs sacrifice to save them.
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Somewhere in Gateway⌠With the loss of SCYTHE and their headquarters, the surviving agents didnât have the necessary support from the intel agents in the Black Room to fight off against the newly revived Red Centipedes, now grown more powerful with the help of the escaped convicts, more than happy to exact revenge.
With the bridges closed off, SCYTHEâs weakened state, and Wonder Woman being presumed dead, the city had been thrown into chaos. Streets filled with criminals and looters taking full advantage of what had happened, stealing anything from everyone across the island.
Red Centipedes roamed the streets with military trucks, taken from SCYTHE after their HQ had fallen to the White Magicianâs control, making full use of their hardware to hunt down any surviving agent, delivering the message that they were the new peacekeepers of Gateway.
âLet me go!â
A woman, a worker from Taco Whiz, was being dragged from the streets by a group of RedCent grunts. Taken into a nearby corner, the RedCent dropped the worker on the dirty ground. Their eyes had terrible intentions behind them.
âCome on, man,â one RedCent grunt said from behind to his buddy. âWe are supposed to find those SCYTHE fuckers, not mess around.â
âYouâre serious?â The buddy looked at his friend like he was crazy. âWeâve been locked for months in SCYTHEâs cells; we can have a few minutes of fun.â
âPlease! Donât do this!â The woman screamed, tears falling from her eyes, afraid of what they would do to her. She tried to stand up and run away but was quickly pushed back down on the pavement.
The RedCent approached the woman, who crawled away from them in fear. âCome on, girl, I just need to release all this stress after being locked up for so long!â He proclaimed, giving the woman a leery look before turning to his buddy. âHey man, I can share! Maybe we can get someone else from the street-â
The RedCent stopped speaking, catching his breath for a moment after he saw his buddy lying on the ground face first, knocked out cold. Looking up, his eyes widened in shock when he saw the person standing before him. âYouâre⌠you were supposed to be dead?!â
Covered in heavy bandages and wrecked NIGHT armor, and carrying a mace in his hand and a pissed-off look on his face, Commander Hector Hall stood before the RedCent grunt like a dark spectre coming back to life. Kicking the knocked-out buddy aside, the Commander looked between the grunt and the terrified woman before he hardened his glare at the RedCent.
âStay back!â The RedCent grunt aimed his weapon, hands shaking in fear. âI said stay the fuck back-â
In a moment, Hall moved at such a speed he looked like a blur, cutting the distance between the two. With one swing of his mace, he smacked him squarely on the head, sending him to the ground.
Hall turned to the woman he saved, who looked at him in horror. âGo⌠get to safetyâŚâ
Without another word, the woman ran toward the exit and into the streets, away from the alley. Now alone with the two RedCents, Hall grabbed the knocked-out buddy and woke him up, making the man see the bandaged-up Hall looking down at him with hateful eyes.
âYou⌠I want you to send your boss a messageâŚâ Hall began, making him face the Commander. âTell the White Magician,
Circe, that I am declaring war on her and on anyone who stands by her side.â He turned and walked up to the other grunt, who was crawling away from the Commander in fear, grabbing his bleeding head. He begged for his life, but Hall ignored his pleas. âAnd this
, this is for my men that you Centipedes have killedâŚâ
He lifted his bloody mace and brought it down like a hammer on the begging Red Centipede as his buddy looked on in horror. He lifted it up once more to reveal the manâs head was crushed like a watermelon.
Commander Hector Hall was still alive, and as long as he was still breathing, SCYTHE would remain standing to fight against all threats against Gateway City.
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Wonder Women Vol 3.
Previous Issue <> Next Issue
It wasnât always bad. The first 4 years were pretty good. The occasional fight or spat, then we had our first kid and there was this weird subtle shift. Barely noticeable, but definitely there. I was dealing with being a new mom, fell into a pretty bad postpartum anxiety, to the point I had to quit my job because it had gotten so bad. He started coming home from work then sitting in the garage for hours or leaving the house at odd times. It took me 2 years to figure out that what he was doing in the garage was smoking meth. Leaving to buy meth and to meet up with other people because according to him I wasnât satisfying him. But how was I to know that you canât actually satisfy a meth addict, something about the high. I donât know Iâve never done it.
Anyway, I forgave him and tried to help him with his addiction. Tried everything I could think of short of having him committed to a rehab facility involuntarily⌠which I donât think I can do without a court order. I lasted 8 months doing this before I couldnât do it anymore, but then I found out I was pregnant, weirdly I was on birth controlâŚfun. I feel like I need to add here that although our second baby was a bit of a surprise she was very much a wanted baby⌠a baby I had planned to try for 4 months after I actually got pregnant and only if things had calmed down. Oh and I had also started working again 6 months prior.
Well things got worse, so much worse. 7 months into my pregnancy I found out that he had been having an affair with some girl 12 years his junior who he wanted to move into my house with our children and be in a relationship with this person and I was supposed to just accept it. On top of that I also figured out he was sleeping with multiple other peopleâŚWhile in a panic, I had a moment of clarity and I ran to my OB and had them run every possible STD test out there. And positive it came back. Thankfully it was bacterial, caught in time and my doctor was able to treat it and get rid of it with a round of antibiotics.
That was it for me. I ended it. 7 months pregnant with a toddler and single⌠super excited. I wish I could say things got better after that. But, as so often happens, things got worse. Now I was being threatened to be beat up by his girlfriend. I was so deeply depressed I was hardly eating anything. When the baby came (during the beginning of Covid lockdown, by the way), he slept while I labored, was visibly high while I gave birth and stayed exactly 1 hour after she was born and then took off and didnât come back until it was time for us to go home. And only then he only came back because he had my car with the car seat and I begged him to come get us after he suggested my sister pick us up.
And yet, I was so embarrassed about the whole situation blaming myself entirely for all of it. After all I chose him. No one knew what was happening. No one knew of the cheating, the meth, that sweet little letter he wrote me to convince me to bring his girlfriend to live with us. His threats of suicide and self harm. Nothing. And then one night 2 years later I decided I needed to start dating and so I did⌠bad idea⌠it lasted 2 months before he hacked into my phone. My email, my everything and was watching my every move. I figured it out one night when my phone stopped working and I went to my provider to find out what was going on. They let me know someone had cloned my sim and had access to all my personal accounts⌠they showed me the number that had my sim⌠it was his phone⌠his excuse when I confronted him? âI had to know where my children wereâ mind you I had never lied to him or kept the kids from him, matter of fact I went out of my way to tell him where we were and how long weâd be. I moved out that night. I went to the house grabbed all essentials for the kids and myself and anything else I could possibly fit in my small SUV asked my parents if I could stay with them and never looked back.
Three months later I found a tracking device in my car. I now have a permanent restraining order against the guy and heâs worked himself out of having both physical and legal custody of the kids.
All that to say that in the 4 years since I left him, Iâve tried to date several times⌠and⌠I canât seem to stay with it. Iâm afraid of everything. Iâm afraid of being hurt again. Iâm afraid of someone hurting my children, not that they ever even meet them. Iâm afraid of ending in the same place I am now. Iâm afraid of putting that much effort into someone again. I donât know how to make the fear disappear. I donât know how to let anyone in again. Iâve tried therapy, Iâve tried just jumping into it and nothing. I end up running for the hills.
Iâm not saying I need to be in a relationship, but it would be nice to not feel so afraid of it. So stuck in this bad place that I canât open up to the even the possibility of it.